Our legacy begins with Lucia Santa Cruz Molina—a quiet force whose hands helped shape wine history, even if her name never made the label. In the years leading up to the 1976 Judgment of Paris, a little-known Californian Chardonnay beat the French giants, the wine world turned its head. Few knew that the grapes in that bottle—the ones that stunned the world—came, in part, from the Baccigalupi vineyard, tended quietly for years by Lucia’s hands. There was no podium for her, no interviews. Just another harvest to tend to, another day beneath the sun. While California wines shocked the world by outperforming the best of France, Lucia and her family were quietly tending to the vines that would help make that history.

Lucia didn’t come from wine. She came from resilience.  Born in Sonora, Mexico—Lucia moved to Healdsburg, California during the 1950’s. By the early 1970’s, she met Dr. Charles Baccigalupi, a meticulous grower who had long been experimenting with grape clones, rootstocks, and irrigation techniques. Dr. Baccigalupi saw potential in Lucia and empowered her to become his assistant in caring for the vineyard.  Lucia became an expert in how to plant, prune, tie, sucker, and manage the harvest.  Often while working in the fields, she sang old Mexican folk songs as she worked—songs passed down to her children. She always brought her children to work beside her during the summer and the spring and winter breaks from school.  Each one of her children learned everything we know today about grapes vine management from her.

She did not have the opportunity to learn about the effects of her work in the vineyard when after the results were announced.  She passed away after working the vineyard in November of 1977.  We honor her today by continuing the tradition of producing world class grapes that are the foundation of world class wine.