When Raynette and Louis Gregory decided to revive his family winemaking heritage and establish Locatelli Vineyards in 1996, they set their sights on the northernmost part of the Paso Robles wine-growing region. There they discovered a 100-acre property and instantly knew they had found a sweet spot for growing wine grapes.
At the time, the beautiful acreage overlooking the Salinas River and Mission San Miguel was used for cattle grazing. The couple and their young family lived two hours away in Visalia in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley, and they owned and operated a successful engineering business. But the world of farming and enology called, and they purchased the land. With the help of Raynette’s father, Reuben Gruber, they planted 40 acres with premium quality wine grapes on a terrace above the southern reaches of the river.
They named the vineyard “Locatelli” to honor Louis’ great grandfather, Cesare Locatelli, who immigrated to the United States as a teenager from the Swiss town of Cerentino. He literally worked his way across the country to California, bought a ranch, and later taught his sons how to crush grapes.
With the move to San Miguel came a change in occupation for Louis, who became the winemaker for Locatelli Vineyards & Winery. To him, this new career was another tribute to his heritage.
The importance of family remains evident at Locatelli Vineyards & Winery. Raynette and Louis asked Raynette’s cousins, brothers Mark and Jeffrey Gruber, to get involved with the day-to-day business, and Mark and Jeffrey joined the team in 2008. Together they specialize in producing handcrafted, full-bodied estate wines.
One unique family accomplishment, the 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Old Mission San Miguel Arcangel, was crafted to help restore the local mission. A portion of the sale of each bottle will be donated to the effort. Both the wine and the endeavor would surely make Cesare Locatelli very proud.