Skip to content

The History of HALL's Historic Bergfeld Building

Admin
Jul 24, 2022 11:49:45 AM
HALL Wines is known for its breath-taking modern art collection and award-winning Cabernet Sauvignon. But what many people don’t know is that in juxtaposition to our contemporary tasting room in St. Helena, we also have an iconic piece of Napa Valley history on the property—the Bergfeld Building.  
 
This building was established in 1885 by a sea captain named William Peterson, and the area around HALL’s Bergfeld building was actually one of the first areas to be fully developed into vineyards in the Napa Valley!

Peterson used the top floor of the building as a wine production facility, and the bottom floor as a cellar. Fun fact:  the stone walls of the Bergfeld helped to keep the wines cool and the perfect temperature for aging!

When Napa Valley was invaded by phylloxera in 1890 (a small insect that feeds on grape vines and nearly destroyed the Napa Valley Wine Industry), Peterson sold the winery to Robert Bergfeld, which is where the building derives it’s name.

Bergfeld promptly sold the property to a Theodore Grier, who was the director of the newly formed Grape Growers Associates of California and very against prohibition. Grier increased the production size of the winery by ten-fold and tried to continue winemaking even after prohibition in 1920, but was ultimately sent to prison.  

 

After prohibition, the Bergfeld building was abandoned and dubbed a “ghost winery” for many years, until being rediscovered in 1933 with its production equipment intact. New structures were built and the tank capacity was doubled to over 500,000 gallons. The Bergfeld building became the Napa Valley Co-Op Winery, and the largest and most important winery in the Napa Valley—producing 40% of Napa Valley Wines through the 1950s.

When the Hall family bought this property in 2003, their intent was to create a spectacular winery facility combining great architecture, art, and wine all while maintaining the incredible history of the Bergfeld Building as a once integral part of our winemaking community. We now honor this building by hosting our most exclusive seated tastings on the top floor. You can learn more about tasting experiences hosted in the Bergfeld Building on our visit page!

Leave a Comment

Related Posts

Plan Your Trip to Napa Valley

Art & Wine at HALL

Beginner's Guide to CABERNET SAUVIGNON