Cooper Vineyards, a Shenandoah Valley gem, just won the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition’s Sweepstakes Award for its 2021 Amador County Barbera. The award is an exceptional honor as the (fairly) local judging is the largest of its kind in North America, pitting wines against those from around the country.
Agriculture veteran Dick Cooper was a legend in Amador viticulture. His first planting of barbera, one of 17 varietals he would plant, became the flagship variety of his winery that opened in 2004. Since his passing in 2021, Cooper’s four daughters have collaborated with longtime winemaker Mike Roser to continue his legacy.
On the award, Mike Dunne, the Chronicle’s wine writer commented, “A fitting tribute to the late Dick Cooper, pivotal in showing that barbera can be as comfortably at home in the Sierra Foothills as it is in Italy.”