In 1876, brothers Jacob and Frederick Beringer left their home in Germany to settle 215 acres of the Valley’s rocky, fertile soil, which reminded them of the farmland in their home country. Since then, the Beringer clan has been constant innovators, not only in winemaking but in promoting Napa Valley: In the 1930s, they became the first Napa winery to offer tours to the public. Now, Beringer is the oldest continuously operating vineyard in the Valley.

Just a handful of Napa producers can lay claim to the Napa’s origin story. Fewer still can wow the critics after nearly a century and a half. Yet Robert Parker himself has praised Beringer’s wines as “exceptionally impressive,” and they’re the only Napa winery to have both a red and a white wine named #1 Wine of the Year by Wine Spectator.

The majority of their vineyard holdings lie in St. Helena and Howell Mountain, but they also have properties in six other Napa AVAs. All these vineyards have been certified sustainable, something that covers not only the environment—there, the winery has focused on soil health, water conservation, and fostering a diverse ecosystem, among many other things—but the estate as a whole. They have the largest solar installation of any winery in California, which has helped them reduce their energy consumption by almost a third, and they’re certified under the Napa Green Winery and Napa Green Certified Land Programs, as well as the California Sustainable Winegrowing program.