1966: Andy Beckstoffer, a native of Richmond Virginia, graduates with an MBA from Dartmouth College and joins Heublein Inc. to become Director of Corporate Acquisitions Strategies. He advises Heublein to enter the super-premium wine segment of the California wine industry and is instrumental in its purchase of Beaulieu Vineyards and United Vintners, owners of Inglenook and Italian Swiss Colony wines.
1969: The Beckstoffer family moves to California.
1973: Beckstoffer purchases Vinifera Development Corporation, assuming ownership of Melrose Vineyard and the lease of Carneros Creek Vineyards in the Napa Valley, and Ukiah Vineyard in Mendocino, as part of the sale. Under his full ownership, he names the company Beckstoffer Vineyards.
1974: Beckstoffer purchases Vinifera Vineyard in Mendocino.
1975: The Napa Valley Grapegrowers Association is formed with Andy Beckstoffer as a Founding Director and its second President. Beckstoffer forges an historic agreement on grape pricing, tying the price of grapes to retail bottle price. Thus begins a new era, in which grape quality and land preservation are brought to the forefront of the grape grower industry.
1976: Andy Beckstoffer leads the Napa Valley Grapegrowers in a controversial move to demand geographical and historical indicators be used to establish a wine’s appellation of origin.
1976: Beckstoffer was appointed to the Napa County Planning Commission and served as a commissioner until 1981.
1978: Beckstoffer purchases 44 vineyard acres in the Carneros appellation of the Napa Valley
1980s: Andy Beckstoffer promotes vineyard-designated wines as the best expression of wines produced from a single vineyard source. Resulting Vineyard Designate wines from Beckstoffer Vineyards receive the highest accolades and the move to wines that express the unique character of a particular vineyard site is born.
1981: Beckstoffer purchases 249 acres of prime vineyard land in Mendocino County.
1983: Beckstoffer purchases Las Piedras Vineyard, the first of the Beckstoffer Vineyards’ Heritage Vineyards in the Napa Valley.
1988: Beckstoffer purchases the former Beaulieu Vineyard Number 3 in Rutherford, 221 acres of prime vineyard land in the Napa Valley, and the second of its’ Heritage Vineyards. He renames it Vineyard Georges III.
1989: Beckstoffer leads the Napa Valley Grapegrowers in establishing the Winery Definition Ordinance, which requires that 75% of grapes used in wines must be from the Napa Valley, and allows food service and education at Napa Valley wineries.
1992-1997: Beckstoffer purchases five Napa Valley properties including four Heritage Vineyards: Beckstoffer Carneros Lake in Carneros, To Kalon in Oakville, Missouri Hopper in Yountville and Dr. Crane Vineyard in Saint Helena and Las Amigas Vineyard in the Napa Valley.
1994: Andy Beckstoffer is Founding Director and first President of the Rutherford Dust Society dedicated to encouraging and promoting the highest quality standards in grape growing and winemaking in the Rutherford Viticultural Area.
1997: Beckstoffer Vineyards is honored by the State of California as an Integrated Pest Management Innovator for its commitment to new viticulture technologies and pest management.
1997: David Beckstoffer joins Beckstoffer Vineyards with an MBA from The Wharton School and after a decade working for Bechtel, specializing in structuring financing for international construction projects.
1998-1999: Beckstoffer purchases over 1,000 acres, including the S Bar S Ranch and surrounding hillsides at Mount Konocti in the Red Hills of Lake County.
1998-2000: Beckstoffer purchases Mendocino 101 Vineyard.
2000: Andy Beckstoffer becomes Chairman and CEO and David Beckstoffer becomes President and COO of Beckstoffer Vineyards
2000: the St. Helena Chamber of Commerce, names Andy and Betty Beckstoffer, married for 42 years, Citizens of the Year, for their dedication and active participation in the community.
2001-2009: Beckstoffer purchases Talmage Pond and Hopland Vineyards in Mendocino, and Galleron Vineyard in St. Helena.
2005-2011: Beckstoffer was elected and served on the Napa County Land Trust Board of Directors
2007: Beckstoffer was given the Wine Industry Leadership Award on July 20th by the United States Congressional Wine Caucus.
2010: Beckstoffer purchases the historic Bourn Vineyard near the town of St. Helena.
2010: Andy Beckstoffer is elected into the Culinary Institute of America’s Vintners Hall of Fame, the first grower to be honored with this prestigious wine industry award.
2010: Beckstoffer family honored at dedication ceremony on August 16th for THE BECKSTOFFER FAMILY GRAPEGROWERS’ PLAZA at Justin-Siena High School.
2011-2019: Beckstoffer purchases over 723 acres (404+ estimated plantable), expanding the Amber Knolls Vineyard.
208.78 acres purchased from AG Cred/Roumiguire (2011); 143.98 acres from Henrik Nielsen (2016); 114.86 from Lindemuth (2017); 9.77 from Meshulam (2017); 232.25 from DeCarli (2018); and 13.9 acres from MacDonnell (2019).
2011: Andy Beckstoffer is featured in The Wall Street Journal for his contributions and legacy in grape growing. Unlike many growers, Andy only sells grapes to other wineries; he doesn’t make wine himself. The Beckstoffer holdings (which also include a couple thousand more acres in Mendocino and Lake Counties) are not only notable for their size but their pedigree. They include some of the top Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards in the state.
2011: A 10,000-square-foot gym named the Beckstoffer Gymnasium in honor of Andy Beckstoffer in the Alex Rorabough Center.
2013-2017: Beckstoffer purchases over 179 acres of open land to be cleared and planted (79+ estimated plantable) to expand the Crimson Ridge Vineyard.
46.84 acres purchased from Honeycutt (2013); 38.7 acres from Spencer (2015); 75.88 acres from Geurts (2016); and 17.61 acres from Morks/Humphrey (2017).
2015: Beckstoffer Vineyards contributes $50,000 to #LakeCountyRising.
2015: Andy and Betty Beckstoffer donated $100,000 to Connolly Ranch for construction of education showcase barn.
2015: Andy Beckstoffer is selected as the California Assocation of Winegrape Growers 2015 Grower of the year.
2016: The Beckstoffer Grapegrowers Barn was unveiled at a ceremony at Conolly Ranch.
2016: The Beckstoffer family pledged $500,000 toward the new OLE Health development project in south Napa.
2017: Andy Beckstoffer is featured on the cover of June’s Wine Spectator as “Napa Valley’s Most Powerful Grapegrower”. In depth articles showcase Andy being the grower behind many of Napa Valley’s elite Cabernets and his vineyard empire making him one of the most influential people in California wine today.
Additional article showcases Andy’s belief that Red Hills in Lake County shows the same potential that Napa Valley did in the 1960s and how he has set about proving his theory.
2017: Originally purchased in 1993, Beckstoffer purchases another 145 acres from Treasury Estates (121.5 estimated plantable), expanding the Carneros Lake/Las Amiga Vineyard to over 480 acres (410 acres plantable).
2019: Beckstoffer Vineyards Purchases the Beringer Clear Mountain Vineyard in the Red Hills of Lake County from Treasury Wine Estates; Renames it Amber Mountain