The Crocker Estate is some of Napa Valley’s oldest continually farmed land, dating as far back as the 1870’s when the Dowdell family established Dowdell & Sons Winery.
In the 1870s, the Irish-born Dowdell family planted hops and grapes and started producing beer, wine, and brandy out of their stone production facilities east on Dowdell Lane.
The Dowdells' once-prolific business was shut down in 1920 due to Prohibition, but the vineyard continued to grow grapes. In 1971, Charlie Crocker purchased the 1870s Dowdell & Sons stone winery and surrounding vineyard, renaming it the Crocker Estate. Charlie added adjacent properties to his estate over the years, and today 85 of the 100 estate acres are planted to vine. Throughout the late 70’s and early ’80s, Charlie Crocker planted Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon which he sold to friends and fellow vintners.
