The Troquatos

Winemaker George Troquato literally grew up in the wine business. Here is a look back to his formative years when he learned the trade from his father at Troquato Vineyards in Los Gatos.

Angelo and George Troquato

Mentored by his grandfather and uncle, Angelo Troquato made wine in Scranton, Pennsylvania from 1939 to 1956, pausing only for the Second World War when the fruit supply abruptly stopped. “Zinfandel, muscato and alicante bouchet grapes were railroaded in boxcars,” says Angelo. “The wooden fruit bins bore brand names such as ‘Caesurae Mondavi’ and ‘Louie Martini.’”

Angelo and his wife Elvia moved to Riverside, California in 1956 where he continued making wine. They stayed 10 years before moving the family, including five-year-old son George, to Los Gatos in order to be nearer the fruit sources. Angelo’s winemaking hobby introduced George to the wine industry in his pre-teen years.

Beginning in 1976, Angelo leased 28 acres of land from the State of California including a tract that contained six acres of zinfandel. “They were gnarly head-trained vines … about 100 years old,” says Angelo. He later planted 14 additional acres of vines. Grapes were sold and wine was made under a home label until he retired from the electrical engineering field in 1985.

Intent on gaining formal training, Angelo enrolled in a handful of wine courses at the University of California Davis and began a second career in commercial winemaking. Meanwhile, George graduated from the California Polytechnical Institute (Cal Poly), San Luis Obispo in 1985 with a degree in agronomy. “George and I crushed in the cellars of the Jesuit novitiate in Los Gatos,” says Angelo. “The priests made sweet sacramental wines and some other varietals.”

The old zinfandel vines in Los Gatos were bulldozed in 1992 to make room for Highway 85, so Angelo and George made cabernet sauvignon from leased property in Saratoga for the next two years.

Nowadays, wines are made with purchased grapes – Russian River Chardonnay, Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, and Lodi Zinfandel. All are sold winery-direct or personally delivered to the consumer’s door.

With no vineyards to tend, Angelo now farms a quarter-acre planting of vegetables and herbs, mostly tomatoes, eggplant, bell peppers and sweet basil. He delivers wine, and occasionally vegetables, to his longstanding customers – “Would you like some tomatoes and zucchini with that zinfandel?”

George continues making wine for Cinnabar and enjoys his role as consulting winemaker for Troquato Vineyards. Has a profound understanding about the finality of winemaking: “Every year is different, but you only get 20 to 30 tries in a lifetime.” With many successful vintages under his belt, he is making the most of his chances.

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