Baylen Linnekin: The Slow Creep Toward Saner Alcohol Policies

On beer, wine, and liquor issues, the country
appears to be creeping toward saner policies. Success stories,
deregulation, and voter-led changes are all signs of this trend.
But for some—like Westover Winery—change hasn’t come fast
enough.

Westover Winery was a small, family-owned, award-winning
producer based in California’s Castro Valley. The company drew on
a groundbreaking family
history of winemaking. Several generations ago, in 1881,
an aunt of owner William Westover Smyth had become the first
documented woman winemaker in the state.

Despite its size, Westover impressively “produce[d]
the greatest variety of ports in the United States,” along with
sparkling wines and several varietals. They were also a sustainable
producer, recycling the
great majority (90 percent) of their waste.

Earlier this summer, Westover took home a gold medal and
best-in-show award at the Alameda County Wine Competition. But as
the summer drew to a close, so too did Westover Winery.

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