To most of the world, Sonoma and Napa are synonymous with wine. But in recent years, the region known as Wine Country has also become known as a mecca for craft beer lovers. Now, a new addition to the local beverage scene is merging wine and beer.
St. Clair Brown, a Napa winery, recently revealed that they have added a “nanobrewery” to their operations. The winery, which opened four years ago in the city of Napa, bills itself as an “urban winery,” and is nestled among culinary gardens with a greenhouse tasting room. The winery hosts music performances and locals nights, and offers wine tastings of their small production wines, which include sauvignon blanc, muscat, rosé, zinfandel and cabernet sauvignon. And now, there’s craft beer, too.
Since opening the winery in 2014, St. Clair Brown co-founder and winemaker Elaine St. Clair had dreamt of adding a brewery to the operations. A former winemaker at Domaine Chandon and former brewmaster and co-owner of Napa Ale Works, she founded St. Clair Brown with co-owner Laina Brown with the intention of creating small batch wine (they make about 1,000 cases a year) and small production craft beer.