John Caldwell

69 Minutes

Whoever said crime doesn't pay, didn't know John Caldwell. When John bought his 54 acres (and three houses) in the Coombsville area of Napa Valley in the late 1970s, he thought he was getting into the real estate business. But when the County placed a moratorium on development, he had to figure out something else to do with his land and decided to grow grapes and make wine. What came next is one of the wildest stories in the wine industry, involving smuggling and close calls with the law. Today Caldwell is recognized as a pioneer and the changes he brought made a difference Valley-wide in the quality of the wine produced here. Learn more at: CaldwellVineyard.com