Drink with the Ghosts: California’s Forgotten Wineries

California’s forgotten wineries are back from the dead

What Would Margaret Drink?

Margaret Pearman, a certified sommelier with the Court of Master Sommeliers, curates the acclaimed wine program at Charlie’s L’Etoile Verte. This month she raises a glass to California’s ghost wineries and the bottles bringing their stories back to life.

Speakeasies have made Prohibition stylish. Hidden doors, secret passwords and cocktails let us play at the illicit glamour of the 1920s. But in California wine country, Prohibition left behind something intriguing: ghosts. Not the chain-rattling kind. The wine kind.

“Ghost winery” describes historic California wineries that fell silent, many during or around Prohibition, then sat abandoned for decades. Their stone walls, caves, cellars and vineyards became remnants of an earlier wine era. Some disappeared. Others came back to life.

Buena Vista

Buena Vista is a prime example. Founded in Sonoma in 1857 by Agoston Haraszthy and recognized as California’s first premium winery, its stone buildings and caves remain a link to early winemaking.

Frog’s Leap

At Frog’s Leap in Rutherford, history lives on through the Adamson Winery barn, built in 1884 and among Napa Valley’s oldest surviving winery structures.

Mount Peak Winery

High above Sonoma Valley, Mount Peak Winery represents another comeback. Established in the 19th century before going dormant, the Mount Peak name was revived more than a century later.

Like the best legends, these places blur the line between what’s gone and what remains. Buildings crumble. Generations pass. Yet vines grow, cellars survive, and old wineries get another chapter.

This October, forget the haunted house. I’d rather drink with the ghosts.

Cellar Secrets

Tucked beneath Buena Vista Winery in Sonoma, this private tasting room offers an atmospheric glimpse into California’s wine history. Stone walls, a barrel-vaulted ceiling and candlelit warmth make an appropriate setting for a winery founded in 1857.

Try These

Buena Vista Chardonnay

Full and rich, with just enough oak to bring warmth and texture. A natural fit for fall. About $70

Frog’s Leap Merlot

One of the estate’s flagship wines, with depth, balance and character that prove just how compelling Merlot can be. About $50

Mount Peak Gravity Red Blend

Sourced from high-elevation vineyards, this Cabernet-driven blend is bold, structured and made for fall. About $50