Renovated Coppola winery hiring 130
KENT PORTER/Press Democrat Tradesmen like Juan Rivera of KA Bine Construction are working to finish the renovation of Francis Ford Coppola's winery in Geyserville.
Filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola's vision of a family-friendly winery is coming into focus in northern Sonoma County, where construction workers are racing to meet a July 4 opening deadline and a hiring blitz is set to begin next week.
After four years and millions of dollars, the former Chateau Souverain winery is nearly ready for its close-up.
“They have made an amazing amount of progress over the last two months,” said winemaker Corey Beck.
The major structural changes to the winery were completed last year. Two new pyramid-shaped towers were installed to replace the hop-kiln inspired spires, a new guest services building was constructed, and a series of retaining walls were installed to expand and level the courtyard.
Within that larger courtyard, Coppola is now adding several new features aimed at making the winery a more welcoming place for families.
“Francis said, ‘I want people to play freely and joyfully throughout the property,'” said James Luchini, manager of events and performing arts at the winery. “It's made for a family to come here and enjoy themselves.”
At the moment, the winery is a big, bustling, construction site. On Friday, earth movers scraped in a new access road, mixer trucks poured load after load of concrete, and the sounds of power tools pierced the bucolic calm of the surrounding vineyards.
But through the haze of dust, the outlines of a unique winery experience are becoming visible.
Two wading pools sit in the center of the courtyard on the north side of the winery. Now they're filled with rainwater from the unusually wet spring, which slowed construction by a few weeks. But soon the four-foot-deep pools will be the heart of the winery's outdoor experience.
Beside the pools sit 28 unfinished changing cabins, which will be available for rent for a fee. A circular poolside bar and patio are also taking shape, as is the stage and amphitheater where Coppola envisions puppet shows, lives music and dancing. Work on several bocce courts has yet to begin.
Upgrades to the interior are farther along than the exterior, in part because the rainy spring forced a fair amount of labor indoors, said Luchini said, although he declined access into the building.
Coppola wants to wait until the interior upgrades are complete before allowing the media a sneak peek at the tasting room, restaurant and areas where his movie memorabilia will be displayed, Luchini said.
Props from Coppola's long and storied filmmaking career are expected to be a big draw. Don Corleone's desk from The Godfather will be on display along with various items from Apocalypse Now and one of the original automobiles from Tucker: The Man and his Dream.
“It's really meant to be a home for all of his creative work,” said spokeswoman Katie Clark.
Coppola purchased the Geyserville winery as part of a larger plan to shift the focus at his Napa winery, Rubicon Estate.
He has owned the 1,560-acre Inglenook Estate in Rutherford since 1975, and had renovated the main winery building to hold his collection of movie memorabilia. As part of an effort to restore the 1880 winery to its historic origins, Coppola searched for a new winery where he could leave his own unique stamp.
Coppola purchased Chateau Souverain in 2006 and renamed it Francis Ford Coppola Presents: Rosso & Bianco. He installed a billboard along Highway 101 and a sign above the entrance. Last year he quietly dropped the name, replacing it with Francis Ford Coppola Winery.
Rosso & Bianco was merely placeholder, Clark said. Coppola always planned to put his name on the final product but didn't want it on the former Chateau Souverain winery, Clark said.
Since Coppola's purchase, the U.S. wine industry has suffered through some of its toughest years on record. But Luchini said they are unconcerned about opening amid a period of sluggish demand.
Coppola's wines are priced between $14 and $40, less than the high-end labels that have suffered most from the downturn. The unique property and rich programming give Luchini confidence that the new winery will be a hit with visitors.
“Where else are you going to do this in Sonoma County? Where else are you going to do this in Napa County? This is something different,” he said.
On Monday, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., the winery will host a job fair to fill 130 positions, from waiters and waitresses to tasting room staff, dishwashers and lifeguards. It represents one of largest spates of new hiring the county has seen in years.
Luchini is expecting big crowds. The winery recently received 300 applications for a single tasting room position, he said. The event will be set up to hire people on the spot.
“If they make it through the interviews, people will be filling out employment documents right there,” Luchini said.
David Nickelson, a project manager with Grassi & Associates of Napa, said about 70 workers are on site each day.
About 60 percent are subcontractors from Sonoma County, something Coppola personally required because he wanted the project to support the local community through construction jobs whenever possible, Nickelson said.
“I think it's going to a great asset to the community,” he said.