SUNBEAMS: Lamorinda (re-)emerging as a wine center(1)
MORAGA VINES' wine surpass that of Napa & Sonoma! Before Prohibition, the Lamorinda area was full of grape vines and Saint Mary's was the central hub for making wines, Moraga's David Parker, founder of the Lamorinda Winegrowers Association, told Moraga Rotary Club members.
But during Prohibition, many of the vines were ripped out and people started moving in. Soon after this period, people found an abundance of land further north — in the Napa and Sonoma areas — for vineyards.
"But climatically, Lamorinda is the best area for producing high-quality wines, even more than for Napa and Sonoma wines," Parker declared.
He abandoned Silicon Valley to learn everything about wine before he planted 1,500 vines on the hill in his back yard, calling it Parkmon Vineyards (a combination of his and his wife's names). After a couple of years of hard work he was able to get the official stamp of approval, state and federal licenses and permits needed, in time for the 2005 harvest. That first year, he bottled 650 cases of wines; last year there was less, because of the extreme weather fluctuations such as we're experiencing now.
The Lamorinda Winegrowers Association has about 75 families from Lafayette and Moraga who have small residential vineyards of 200 to 300 vines. The largest vineyard in Lamorinda is a lot with 4,300 vines on 3 acres. Finishing his history lesson (just think, we all owe this
development due to Prohibition), Parker treated the Moraga Rotarians to tastes of fine local wines, resulting in a chorus of appreciative "mmmmms." These wines can be found in some grocery stores and restaurants and prices range between $20-$30.Association members celebrate with two annual release parties along with members of the Parkmon Friends and Family Club (those committed to buying wine from local vineyards — the club already has some 300 members). So why seek those latter-day saints of Napa or Sonoma valleys?
ROTARIANS DIALED: Thanks to Nora Avelar of Moraga Rotary for this intelligence: Rotary is a family tradition in the Avelar family — Nora's dad, Jose (Pepe) Avelar, is active in the Orinda Rotary Club that will celebrate its 60th year of service on April 4. Meanwhile, Lafayette Royary Club's Dick Holt puts on the great annual Concert in the Res, while all members steadily deliver Meals on Wheels to lonely homebound folks.
Then there's Lamorinda Sunrise Rotary Club, which meets weekly for breakfast at Postino's (the other clubs do lunches) and draws hardworking but fun-loving members from both Orinda and Lafayette. Their coed team, led by Skip McGowan, just built a house for poverty-stricken folks in Antigua, Guatemala, bringing 21 duffel bags full of donated gear for Common Hope to educate children to help break the cycle of poverty.
