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Article: Viano winery is the last in Contra Costa County.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)
- Article from:
- Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service
- Article date:
- April 11, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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MARTINEZ, Calif. _ Green rolling hills, neatly lined grapevines and a quaint tasting room with a gruff Italian pouring wine.
The scene is not Piedmont, Italy and it's definitely not Napa. Nestled off of the Martinez thoroughfare leading to the Shell refinery, sits Contra Costa County's last winery.
Clem Viano's parents bought the land in 1920 because it reminded them of their home in Italy. The main vineyard had been planted in the late 1800s and the Viano family had been making wine and working vineyards for centuries.
For the first 26 years the family sold their grapes to other wineries, but in 1946 they sold their first bottle of Viano wine.