In 1932, with Prohibition still casting its shadow over Napa Valley, Italian immigrants Giovanni and Emma Salvestrin purchased a portion of Dr. George Belden Crane's historic ranch — a vineyard first planted in 1859. They didn't know it yet, but they had just rooted their family's future in one of Napa's most significant vineyard sites. One year later, as luck would have it, Prohibition was repealed.
For decades the family farmed the Dr. Crane Vineyard and sold fruit to the Napa Valley Co-Op, tending the same vines through three generations. In 1994, Rich and Shannon Salvestrin made their own leap of faith: they made their first vintage — 157 cases of Cabernet Sauvignon, produced at Rombauer's facilities from fruit they peeled off what they were already selling. By 1998 they'd outgrown borrowed space, broke ground on their own winery, and haven't looked back since. Wine Spectator noted: "The Salvestrin name is one that probably isn't well known, but should be."
