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La Fantesca graced the stages of Italian improvisational theater in the 16th century;
she was a witty, sexy woman in a male-dominated art: young, clever, and adventurous.
With a nod to this fun spirit, Fantesca Estate & Winery owners Susan and Duane Hoff
approach winemaking seriously, but always with an emphasis on what's important
in life: family, friends, food, and of course, wine. The Minneapolis natives fell in love
with Napa Valley over several romantic rendezvous and decided to change careers,
exchanging the busy urban corporate world for the idyllic setting of Napa's rolling
hills and foggy vineyards.
ABOVE: Fewer than 800 cases of Fantesca Estate Cabernet Sauvignon are produced annually.
FACING PAGE: Reclaimed after Prohibition and replanted in 1997, Fantesca's vineyard sprawls
over 10 acres of steep mountainside, producing a shallow bowl that is just right for growing a
robust cabernet.
Photographs by M. J. Wickham
Fantesca Estate & Winery
S T. H E L E N A
NAPA VALLEY
