While the world is turned on its head because of COVID-19, we are grateful to be out in the vineyard, doing what we do best – farming. The pandemic is always a residual concern in my mind. However, agriculture is deemed an essential business, so our work has not stopped. I cannot even begin to imagine where the vines would be right now if we hadn’t been able to work. The vines don’t stop growing. Right now, we are busy shoot thinning and managing the canopy. We are tucking shoots into the trellis and splitting the canopy so that the grapes form in the middle of the vine.

Read More...

When we began selling wine in 1984, we decided to deliver case orders of wine ourselves to patrons in the Bay Area. Not only did this save us on shipping expenses but more importantly, we got to know our patrons well, and vice versa! In the beginning, I got to do deliveries, and now Spencer has taken the reins. When the pandemic first hit, we discussed our strategy for continuing to do deliveries. “What is best for our patrons? What do they need?” It was an easy two-word answer: “Wine”, “Safely!”

Read More...

Hi there! We are the four Hafner Vineyard dogs, and we thought that while everyone is “sheltering in place” it is time you officially meet us. We hope you enjoy a little levity in your day. And if you have a dog (or cat or any pet) toss them an extra biscuit for us! We know it can be tough sheltering in place for you humans, but think about us! Now we have to share our homebase with you all.

Read More...

As winemakers, tasting is our number 1 job and in these days of “shelter in place”, tastings are the perfect diversion. While technically we are “working” when we taste, we thought it would be fun to share a tasting game with you. We’ve named it the “Somm Game”. We don’t take it very seriously. It's a way to add a little lightheartedness to your evening and practice learning what you like in a wine. Essentially, it is a blind tasting where you try to guess the wine. Normally, we play the game with our adult children, but with the current situation of coronavirus, we are doing it virtually. 

Read More...

After the recent fires, we have been particularly aware of the need to reduce fuel near the winery. The Kincade Fire that broke out on the evening of October 24th, 2019 and reached our property in just hours. We have 150 acres of oak woodlands that come right up to the winery and our homes. When considering ways to reduce fuel, we turned to friend and local vineyard manager, Bret Munselle, who has a herd of goats. He was generous enough to bring 35 goats and a beautiful dog named Buddy over to the winery to help nibble away brush, particularly a large patch of the invasive scotch broom. It has been fun to have them here and quite impressive what they are able to eat away.

Read More...