North Bay Business Journal

KENWOOD — After eight years of planning, Vittorio Belmonte’s vision to recreate a little bit of Italy in Kenwood, complete with a VJB barrel cellar, tasting room and village marketplace surrounding a piazza, was realized in a grand opening on July 20.

SONOMA VALLEY — Naked Wines, which has blended the futures, club and crowdfunding models over its three-year history, today announced it has planted deep roots in California’s North Coast by leasing the Blackstone Winery to offer custom-winemaking services.

SONOMA VALLEY — The Ken Wilson family wine portfolio now has an eighth facility with the sale of the Blackstone Winery facility to one of his companies, Stonecushion Inc.

KENWOOD — Premium imported bottled water Fiji Water announced today its purchase of the award-winning chardonnay producer Landmark Vineyards in Kenwood.

SONOMA and NAPA COUNTIES — Bay Area real estate industry veterans Ed Krafchow, Earl Shuttleworth and Gerrett Snedaker announced today the formation of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Wine Country Group Realtors with nine offices and over 180 agents concentrated in northern California’s Wine Country.

KENWOOD — Constellation Wines U.S. on Monday informed the 10 employees at the Blackstone winery and visitor’s center in Kenwood that it would be closed as of March 1 and possibly put up for sale, as production of Blackstone Sonoma Reserve wines has already relocated to Sonoma.

KENWOOD — Santa Rosa-based Vintage Wine Estates, a growing portfolio of wine operations including Windsor Vineyards and Girard Winery, purchased a minority stake in Kunde Family Estate winery in Kenwood.

What follows are brief introductions to the top leaders of independently owned wine companies from the Business Journal’s Independently Owned Wineries list, published in March, and the Wine Companies list, published in this issue.