N. Kerbi Photo

To bless the upcoming harvest, which is the one-hundredth for Napa Wine Company owners the Pelissa Family, several members of the family built a new rock cairn on the spectacular hill located in the middle of their organically farmed vineyards. In doing so they honored an ancient Native American tradition of placing rocks on a cairn or “wayside shrine” to guarantee safe passage. Managing partner Andrew Hoxsey said, “My daughters Kendall and Morgaen, our vineyard manager and lifelong friend, Jim DelBondio, and I built the new cairn to show appreciation for the rich history of this land and as a prayer for the future.”

For many years in Napa Valley, Indians passed over Yountville Hill on their way to trade with the tribesmen of the coast. With them they carried acorns, baskets, and arrows to trade for seashells and as each man passed into the valley from the hills that divide the land of the Wappo tribe from the Suisun tribe, he would say a short prayer and place a rock on the cairn that marked the divide. According to local historian D.T. Davis, the prayer was something like, “Yohlsin Chheck Nikah Apoimoh Hu Lah Hunah Alil,” which means, “Be good to me oh God as I am walking along here today; I do not want bad luck.”

A rock cairn such as that described above is also called by archaeologists a “wayside shrine.” George Yount, the original owner of what is now the Pelissa property, mentioned in his memoirs Wappo “spirit places,” where passersby would place a rock, bead or arrowhead for good luck and safe passage. Such stone offering piles can be found among Indian tribes up and down the California and Pacific Northwest coast.

Unfortunately, over the years weather and time have scattered many of the rocks from the original cairns on the Pelissa property. The new rock cairn is on the ridge top of Yountville Hill in a spot overlooking their certified organic vineyards in Oakville to the north and Yountville to the south and east. “This is a truly beautiful and meditative spot,” Hoxsey said. “Our family and friends will continue to visit the cairn and add rocks or other tokens to contemplate our past, ask the creator’s blessing for the future and enjoy the incredible views of this magnificent valley.”

Read Anthony Kilgallin's Book "100 Harvests: The Pelissa Family In the Napa Valley" Online!
Napa Wine Company's Andrew Hoxsey earlier this year hired family friend and amateur historian Tony Kilgallin to research and write the family story for publication as part of his family's celebration of their centennial anniversary of harvesting in the Napa Valley. Click here to read the book online. You can also order your very own copy of the book by calling Napa Wine Company at 800.848.9630.