The Chappell Winery actually arose from the ashes of the 1990 Yosemite wildfire. Doug and Kathy Chappell (both Ventura County teachers) spent 3 summers building their dream home on the family homestead in Foresta (6 miles east of Yosemite Valley). In June they moved into their new house, and it burned in August. Unsure about what to do next, they moved to Mariposa (the closest town) and bought 45 acres of raw land. In 1992 Doug built another house for his family and decided to become a farmer by planting nine acres of the varietals Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre, and Zinfandel. Originally the plan was to focus only on the growing process and all of the grapes were sold to Silver Fox, another Mariposa winery. Of course, Doug couldn't resist trying something new, so he started dabbling in winemaking. After many years of practicing and trying different blends on family and friends, it was time for the Chappell Vineyard to become Chappell Winery. Following an amicable split with Silver Fox, they were bonded in 2004. The winery only uses grapes from their own vineyards and does all winery operations on site. All of the work in the vineyard and winery is done by the Chappell family except for the pruning and picking.
Since 1992, many things have changed on the Chappell Estate, including the vineyard. The original Mourvedre was grafted over to Syrah, and the Zinfandel was replaced with new Mourvedre, plus the white rhône varietals of Viogner, Marsanne and Rousanne. These new additions will be producing in 2008, so the winery will have a whole new array of blends to offer. On a south facing slope at 3200 ft. elevation, the Chappell's rocky clay soil is perfect for wine grapes. The grapes ripen during hot summer days and are then cooled by night air from the Sierras. The picturesque hillside vineyard, surrounded by pine and oak forest and views of snowcapped mountains, has proven to be an idyllic setting for creating handcrafted premium wines, and this can be tasted in every glass.
In 2004 Doug started building the underground cellar by digging a massive hole in a hillside near their house. Using a backhoe, he dug a rectangle approximately 60 feet back into the hill and about 25 feet wide. He then lined it with 182, 2 foot by 2 foot by 4 foot solid concrete blocks. Each block is over half a yard of concrete and weighs about 1200 pounds. He stacked the blocks five high using his backhoe and a crane. Steel I beams were placed across the top of the blocks and corrugated roofing on top of that. It was finally topped with 5 inches of concrete and the dirt was put back on top by bulldozer. A 12 inch wood and insulation wall was built across the front with an 8 by 8 door. The cellar maintains a fairly constant temperature of 60 degrees throughout the year. All the barrels and cases are stored inside and most of the winemaking, bottling, and labeling occurs there. A covered 20 by 30 apron was built out in front for outside work such as crushing and pressing the grapes.
