Gilroy
– To David and Valerie Vanni, food and wine is more than a hobby
– it’s a lifestyle. And with plans to renovate their 15-year-old
Solis Winery, the couple hopes their customers will leave feeling
the same way.
Gilroy – To David and Valerie Vanni, food and wine is more than a hobby – it’s a lifestyle. And with plans to renovate their 15-year-old Solis Winery, the couple hopes their customers will leave feeling the same way.
Snuggled at the gateway of Hecker Pass, the Vannis’ 16-acre establishment will be in for a dramatic facelift if Santa Clara County officials approve the plans to expand. While most of the added space will go to new offices and storage, the winery’s existing tasting room will grow roughly 1,500 square feet and be completely redone. The Vannis hope the changes will enable them to better convey their message to customers: Food and wine can be a healthy, satisfying part of life.
The first change will smooth the tasting room’s floor into one continuous level, a change from the existing dual-platforms that are connected by steps. Next, the tasting room will adjoin a new kitchen, and where there’s a kitchen, there’s food.
Richard Arioto, the winery’s tasting manager, will double up as chef, preparing light bites to accompany customers’ wine. Although the winery now hosts several catered food events throughout the year, the Vannis hope that bringing the operation all under one roof will allow them more control over exactly what ingredients are paired with what wines.
“We want to provide a food and wine experience and teach people how food and wine is part of a healthy lifestyle, like in European countries,” Valerie Vanni said. “We grow all of our own grapes, so it’s literally from the ground up you’re able to learn about what goes into what we serve.”
The Vannis aren’t looking to change their reputation as a small, intimate gathering spot, Valerie Vanni said. The tasting room will accommodate up to 25 people, with a separate corporate room for organized events. The Vannis said they’re not planning to hire new staff with the planned expansion.
“We’re not changing who we are. We’re very comfortable with what we do,” Valerie Vanni said.
The winery’s look will maintain the same cozy, Tuscan atmosphere it has now by incorporating stone, aggregate and slightly weathered-looking paint into the final design.
“We don’t want it to look brand new,” Valerie Vanni said. “We want sort of a lived-in feel.”
The third change – and probably the most noticeable – will be the room’s northwest wall, which will be transformed from a few large windows into an almost entirely glass panel. The bar, now curving around the room’s southeast wall and facing Highway 152, will be repositioned along the glass wall, allowing customers to absorb picturesque views of the vineyards and Hecker Pass while sipping wine.
“We have some amazing views, and we’d like to show them off a little more,” Dave Vanni said.
The winery also will see new office and storage space, which the Vannis say will be a welcomed upgrade. The building, once part of a real estate office, was transported to its current location in the 1970s and is beginning to fall apart.
“It just didn’t make sense to try to make all the necessary repairs,” Valerie Vanni said. “A makeover seemed more efficient.”
Because the winery lies just outside Gilroy city limits, the Vannis are working with the county to get their plans approved. They began designing with an architect more than two years ago and submitted a proposal about a year ago. Though it’s been business as usual in the meantime, the Vannis have their fingers crossed that they’ll get the OK, and they hope to break ground by January. The project will take about 10 months to complete, they said.
One potential concern comes from the county’s historical society, which is considering how construction might affect a nearby house that was built in the early 1900s. The historical society has examined the site once and will return soon for a second look, Dave Vanni said.
But the couple’s enthusiasm has yet to be curbed.
“This is very exciting for this area,” Valerie Vanni said. “We definitely think this will draw more tourists than we get now because people are interested about wine as a lifestyle, and that’s what we want to teach.”
