Napa family wineries destroyed by Glass Fire

NAPA, Calif. - As some evacuation orders are lifted, the totality of the destruction caused by the Glass Fire is beginning to come into focus.

A growing number of Napa Valley's legendary wineries and resorts are among the casualties.

A KTVU news crew drove up Spring Mountain Road in St. Helena to see the destruction first hand.There were a number of wineries and vineyards destroyed or severely damaged.

"We have a little half an acre here that got pretty scorched," says Lisa Drinkward of Behrens Family Winery.

She and her husband Les Behrens pointed to the severe damage left by the flames that swept through the property a week ago.

It is among the many multi-generational family wineries in the area that have been devastated by the Glass Fire. 

"These hills are covered in little tiny family owned wineries so it's pretty hard," says Behrens. 

The couple says they built their winery from the ground up in 1999, 21 years ago.

"This was our wine our 2020 vintage. And now, it's just ruined," says Drinkward as she lifted the lid to a fermentation bin. 

She says they've lost 400 barrels of wine, two buildings including their winery and its office.

"We haven't begun to figure out what we've lost," says Behrens. 

The couple says many people in the Napa Valley were already having a difficult time before the fire. 

"It was already hard with covid and with the smoke taint, some of these wineries stopped picking their fruit. A lot of people rely on this income -pickers, They were already working at half of what they were going to get," says Drinkward. 

Nearby, Sherwin Family Vineyards burned to the ground. On social media, the family said they are heartbroken but that they will rebuild.

"With the wind and the temperature and the fuel load, a hundred years of this mountain not burning, there was no way to stop it," says Behrens. 

At the Behrens Family Winery,  the building that houses the tasting room survived and so did their beloved chickens.

The couple says this time of year would normally be harvest.

"So now, we're shifting from harvest mode to clean up mode, recovery. Hopefully, our crush pad and our tank barn are still in good shape. "21 will be a better year," says Drinkward. 

 The couple says they store their inventory off-site.

They're hoping to be able to re-open their tasting room in Spring of next year.