A brief history
The Pelissa family legacy is unique to Napa Valley and rare in the modern day California wine industry. It began in 1902 when Joseph Pelissa came to Napa Valley from Liguria, Italy and purchased his first 35 acres of land with a single gold coin in 1903. His son Andrew later took over, building successful dairy and trucking businesses and eventually acquiring 1000 acres in Oakville and Yountville where he planted wine grapes and other crops. A civic-minded man who was an early champion of keeping Napa Valley in agriculture, Andrew was instrumental in establishing Napa Valley’s Agricultural Preserve Zone. Today, the Pelissa grape-growing operation continues to be family-owned and run, overseen by 4thand 5thgeneration family members who live on and farm the land. Since planting their first grapes, the family has supplied fruit to some of the most prestigious wineries in Napa Valley, and its entire 635 acres of grapes have been 100% certified organic since 1991.
In 2006, over 100 years after Joseph Pelissa came to Napa Valley, the Pelissa family decided to create their own wines from the grapes they grow. Ghost Block Estate Wines, comprised of three separate brands, are meant to showcase this unpretentious family’s pride in where they live, the vineyards they farm, and their family’s deep roots in Napa Valley history.
In the end, this is a real story about a real family who, for five generations has woken up every day to the vista of their own vineyards. Nothing gives the family members more pride than farming their own land organically and creating the finest wines possible. It is no coincidence that their land is in the heart of Napa Valley. Their greatest hope is that a little bit of their history and true passion for farming is expressed in each and every bottle.
