California

C. Jarrett Dieterle | 10.26.2024 7:00 AM

In 1976, at the now-famous Judgment of Paris, California wines took top prize over the French wines in a cross-Atlantic tasting competition. The outcome shocked the global wine world—especially given that the judges of the event were French—and tourists began to flock to Napa Valley. A decade later, in 1986, California passed the country's first direct-to-consumer wine shipping law, allowing wines to be shipped directly from vineyards to doorsteps.

Since then, the Napa Valley wine juggernaut has appeared unstoppable. But now the Napa County government itself is strangling the very businesses that put the region on the map.

This saga actually predates the famous triumph in Paris. In 1968, the Napa Agriculture Preserve was created to prioritize agricultural zoning and ward off development. In 1990, Napa County implemented a Winery Definition Ordinance that laid out requirements for winery operations, including that wineries obtain a use permit.

In order to host tastings, wineries must have an on-site "wine production facility," which brings........

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