The ribbon-cutting ceremony for the second tasting room for Clay and Margarita Shannon was held Saturday, October 30, 2010, in Lower Lake, Calif. Photo by Terre Logsdon.
LOWER LAKE, Calif. – Adding to the growing list of affordable and relaxed wineries that are putting the Red Hills American Viticultural Area and all of Lake County high on the wine aficionado’s list, Vigilance Winery & Vineyards opened with much fanfare on Saturday, Oct. 30.
Located on Point Lakeview Road, in the highly-acclaimed Red Hills AVA just up the road from Gregory Graham Winery, Vigilance is Clay and Margarita Shannon's second Lake County tasting room.
“We want to share this beautiful site with everyone,” said Clay Shannon, gesturing with his arm over the expansive vineyards that wend downhill to Anderson Marsh, where Shannon visualizes kayaks launching to explore the abundant wildlife and birding opportunities, leading to Clear Lake beyond.
This vision for Vigilance includes turning the refurbished ranch house – which now serves as the tasting room with stunning views of the vineyards and marsh, complete with American white pelicans wheeling skyward in the distance – to a bed and breakfast which will welcome all.
“We want to capture an old-world experience,” Shannon explained. “Where families, couples, everyone, can experience the natural beauty and clean air here.”
At the same time, they hope to give visitors the chance to relax, enjoy local foods – including the grassfed beef and lamb Shannon raises– play cards at one of the picnic tables under the apple trees or in the olive orchard, or also be able to enjoy a family-friendly movie on a large outdoor screen during warm summer nights.
Congressman Mike Thompson visited and took part in the grand opening of Vigilance Winery & Vineyards on Saturday, October 30, 2010, in Lower Lake, Calif. Photo by Terre Logsdon.
Of course, sampling the many wines offered at Vigilance is something else one can enjoy here – or just sipping a lemonade. Shannon's overriding vision, he said, is to offer more good things to the world, which includes access to the outdoors via horseback, mountain bike, hiking and kayaking.
“We want this to be a place for people to connect,” Shannon said, “with each other, with nature, with the outdoors – all in a comfortable and welcoming setting.”
At the Vigilance grand opening on Saturday, Congressman Mike Thompson, co-chair of the Congressional Wine Caucus and representative for Lake County, welcomed guests and noted that Shannon brings more to the community than he takes away, giving a nod to Shannon's continuing effort to support the community.
“We're trying hard and spending a few dollars at it,” by buying and contracting locally as much as he can, Shannon explained.
District 3 Supervisor Denise Rushing, who was also in attendance for the grand opening, said she was impressed with Shannon's continuing dedication to support the communities in Lake County.
“He is a model of local business support,” Rushing said of Shannon, whose first tasting room in Lake County, under his Shannon Ridge label, is located in her district in Clearlake Oaks, in a refurbished schoolhouse on East Highway 20.
In addition to hiring locally, Shannon also donates locally, and recently donated materials for the natural building project under way at Clarks Island in Clearlake Oaks.
The name of the label, Vigilance, comes from the temperament of their two Maremma sheepdogs, who vigilantly oversee the sheep that help tend the vineyards and assist the Shannons in their sustainable practice of winegrape growing.
Besides, Shannon said of Vigilance, “It's a cool name, too.”
From the deck railing of the tasting room at Vigilance Winery & Vineyards, visitors can take in the stunning vistas to Anderson Marsh and Clear Lake below. Photo by Terre Logsdon.
Winemaker Mike Woods was dubbed the “King of Cab” at last years' Lake County People's Choice Awards, an event where professionals narrow the field of Lake County-branded wines and the “people” vote in a blind taste test naming the winners.
Woods not only oversees the production of all varietals of wines produced under Clay and Margarita Shannon's three labels – Shannon Ridge, Vigilance and Cross Springs – he also produces award-winning wines under his own Shed Horn Cellars label.
At their grand opening party, organized by Linda Shields, who handles “whatever else needs doing” for the three labels, Vigilance offered a Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cimarron – which is a multi-layered blend of Zinfandel, Syrah, Petite Sirah, Barbera, Mourvedre and Tempranillo – as well as single-vineyard Shannon Ridge labels of Roussanne, Viognier, Riesling, Barbera and Cabernet Sauvignon.
“All of the grapes for all of our wines are sustainably produced,” said Sales Manager Joey Luiz, “and everything is Lake County grown.”
Although production of their wines occur in Lake, it also occurs in Sonoma and Mendocino counties, according to Wood, as Shannon has no production facilities of their own here, but that hasn't been an issue.
And Lake County wine lovers – here and elsewhere – will love what the Shannons are sustainably producing here now, “and for generations to come,” Thompson remarked, which is in alignment with the rising future of Lake County.
“We will offer a safe place for friends and family to have a little peace,” Shannon noted.
If his little slice of paradise at Vigilance is any testament to the burgeoning local food and wine scene – paired with plans for amazing outdoor opportunities in Lake County – he just be might be on to something big.
Visit Vigilance online at www.vigilancewinery.com/.
E-mail Terre Logsdon at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews , on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews .
Although it's the end of October and seated scarecrows with wine glasses in hand greeted visitors to the opening, winegrape grower Clay Shannon said of this years' harvest,
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County's incumbent congressman has won reelection.
Congressman Mike Thompson, 59, decisively won his seventh two-year term in the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
“I feel both humbled and grateful,” Thompson told Lake County News just after 10 p.m. Tuesday, not long after he was declared the winner in a field that included Republic Loren Hanks, Green Party candidate Carol Wolman and Libertarian Mike Rodrigues.
With 89.1 percent of the precincts in the First Congressional District counted as of 2:45 a.m., Thompson had 92,591 votes, or 61.6 percent of the vote, compared to Hanks' 49,182 votes, accounting for 32.7 percent of the vote. Wolman took 5,138 votes, 3.4 percent, and Rodrigues received 3,600 votes, or 2.3 percent.
Hanks told supporters in Napa Tuesday night that they've seen “a powerful shift in public sentiment” with the toppling of the Democratic majority in the House of Representatives.
“This district kept its incumbent, and we wish Mike Thompson good health in the next Congress,” he said. “But the conservative constituents of the district have awakened and after tonight, we will retool and retrench.”
He said the race “race has been a good first step in a long campaign to return the country to a Constitutional foundation.”
Thompson said he's honored to be able to continue to serve the First Congressional District, where he said he's worked with residents on the issues that are important to them.
He said he is looking forward to getting back to work when Congress goes back into session on Nov. 15.
However, come January, when new members of Congress are sworn in, the House will be under new leadership, with the Republicans retaking the majority, whereas the Democrats retained their majority in the Senate.
As to one of the legislative targets of Republicans, “I don't think they can repeal health care,” said Thompson. “There are just too many good things people are already enjoying.”
Thompson said President Barack Obama also wouldn't sign such repeal legislation.
“Everybody knows that health care was not sustainable,” Thompson said. “It needed to be fixed.”
Thompson acknowledged that there has been a lot of criticism about the fix that Congress produced.
“The truth of the matter is, we have a health care path upon which we'll continue to move, continue to make sure that Californians and Americans have access to quality affordable health care,” Thompson said. “That's something we've been trying to do in this country for decades.”
The Republicans will now steer a lot of legislation, but no matter who is in the Speaker of the House's chair, Thompson said he's not concerned about working closely with his colleagues across the aisle, which is something he said he has always done and will continue to do.
“I've been in the minority more than I've been in the majority,” he said.
Looking ahead at the serious challenges still facing the country, Thompson said he hopes the new Republican majority will be “interested in working with everyone to do what's best for America.”
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews , on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews .
LAYTONVILLE, Calif. – A suspect fatally shot in a home invasion robbery last week has been identified, and two of his alleged accomplices have been arrested.
Timothy Burger, 21, of Sacramento died after being shot in a fire fight in a home in Laytonville, according to a Monday report from Capt. Kurt Smallcomb of the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office.
The incident in which Burger died occurred at a residence on Steele Lane in Laytonville on Oct. 30, as Lake County News has reported.
Officials said the alleged home invasion was believed to have been linked to marijuana cultivation taking place at the residence.
Smallcomb said two other suspects in the case have been taken into custody.
A few hours after the incident on Oct. 30, two Mendocino County Sheriff's deputies, assisted by a Cal Fire officer, located 18-year-old Tyrone Bell and 19-year-old Christopher Shinn, both of Sacramento, walking south of Laytonville, Smallcomb said.
Detectives interviewed Bell and Shinn and subsequently arrested them, he said.
The men were booked into the Mendocino County Jail on charges of murder, conspiracy and robbery, with bail for each set at $250,000, according to Smallcomb.
An autopsy was scheduled to take place on Burger Monday. Smallcomb said the results would be released at a later date.
Also on Monday, Smallcomb reported that investigators were able to identify the suspect alleged to have shot a 19-year-old Laytonville man in an Oct. 28 confrontation that also was said to be connected to marijuana cultivation.
Leberado Lopez Ramirez, 35, a transient who is believed to have connections both to Oregon and Northern California, is alleged to have shot William Graves on Oct. 28 in or around the Bell Springs Road Area north of Laytonville, Smallcomb said.
Smallcomb said deputies learned that Graves and Ramirez – who were engaged in a marijuana operation – allegedly got into an altercation, with the result being that Graves was shot in the face.
On Oct. 29 detectives were able to identify Ramirez as the suspect who allegedly shot Graves, who Smallcomb said remains hospitalized.
Smallcomb said Ramirez still remains at large, and the investigation is continuing.
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LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Planning Commission will hold a public hearing this week on draft environmental documents for a steamfield expansion project proposed by Bottle Rock Power.
The special meeting will begin at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 3, in the board chambers at the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.
The commission will consider the draft environmental impact report and draft environmental assessment on the project, which can be downloaded at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Community_Development/Bottle_Rock_Power_Draft_EIR_9-16-10.htm .
All written comments must be submitted prior to 5 p.m. Monday, Nov. 1, to Community Development Director Richard Coel, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , telephone 707-263-2221.
Bottle Rock Power LLC is seeking a use permit and rezone in order to expand its steamfield, according to county documents.
The project is located within the Binkley Leasehold at 6743, 6825, 7358, 7385 and 7500 High Valley Road, Cobb.
As part of the project, the company wants to build two new geothermal well pads along with an access road, and 1.3 miles of new pipeline to connect to the existing pipeline serving the power plant.
Also part of the proposal is the drilling of 22 production and injection wells on the two proposed
well pads over the life of the project.
The commission hearing's purpose is to review the draft EIR's adequacy, and consider whether or not to direct preparation of the project's final EIR.
Since the plant reopened three and a half years ago, neighbors of the facility have brought forward numerous complaints about permit violations, traffic, environmental impacts and safety.
A number of community meetings in Cobb have been held to address those concerns, with the atmosphere at most of those meetings becoming heated as community members confronted plant officials.
One of the area property owners closely watching the process is Hamilton Hess, chairman of the Friends of Cobb Mountain, a group that formed in 1976 in response to a plan from Unocal to put geothermal wells on Cobb.
Hess said he's read the 750-page EIR, which he called “an immense thing.”
He added, “I think it's a poor document, frankly.”
Hess said he believed the transportation section is faulty, pointing to its statement that the number of vehicles and trips could be mitigated down to causing no impact.
Considering the existing traffic issues for residents along High Valley Road, “That's a very curious and, I would say, untrue statement to make,” Hess said.
He said the impacts on residents so far have been “fairly heavy in several respects,” including odor, traffic, noise and grading work that's been done without proper permits. “It's been a difficult situation.”
Hess also pointed out that there's no assurance that there is even enough steam in the field to justify the project, with the document's median estimate putting it at 26 megawatts below what the plant needs.
“It's a big gamble,” he said.
He said a lot of Cobb residents are planning to attend the Nov. 3 hearing.
“There are strong feelings in the valley about it,” he said.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews , on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews .
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