Bucket List: Miravalle

Many television shows, particularly those from the 1980s, were set on estates and/or mansions owned by wealthy business people.  I always found the open country and huge properties appealing.  One such place is known as Miravalle.

The Victorian-style house is the main residence at the Spring Mountain Vineyard, a 342 hectare (845 acre) estate in Napa Valley, California that produces many internationally-recognized wines.  Miravalle, meaning "look valley", was commissioned in 1884 by Tiburcio Parrott, a Mexican-American businessman and mining prospector.  It was designed by San Francisco architect Albert Schroepfer.

After Tiburcio's death, the house wasn't used by his family for many years.  Eventually the estate was purchased in 1974 by real-estate mogul Mike Robbins who restored the property and built a new 1579 square meter (17,000 square foot) winery.  The estate subsequently became famous thanks to the 1981 TV series Falcon Crest.  Ironically, the 'falcon' figure in the mansion's interior stained glass display was actually intended to be a parrot.

Today the structures have been fully restored using original materials, and the winery is still producing, although it's currently closed to the public.

Official site www.springmountainvineyard.com