Early 1900s
Barberis
In 1907, Domenico Barberis, an immigrant from the small village in Liguria, Italy, bought the vineyard and farm that once belonged to James and Jeannie Horn and that is now the vineyard of Palisades Canyon. Like other young immigrants, Domenico Barberis came to California to find work and secured a job at Calistoga’s Oat Hill mine. In 1907, Gilda Stella, whom Domenico had not met, came to California at the urging of one of his brothers in Italy to join Domenico on his new land. Soon after their wedding in 1908, Domenico and Gilda replanted their vineyard with new vines, including Petite Sirah.
In 1915 Domenico built Bonded Winery 118 on the property, but soon after it started operation, Prohibition shut it down. Frank Barberis, Gilda and Domenico's only son, continued to farm the vineyard until 1992.
Bonded Winery No. 118 still stands. It is used as the Palisades Canyon maintenance workshop today and still has the old grape crusher mounted under the roof and the leather conveyor belt that was used to feed grapes into it.
