On The Border Of Malibu A Winemaking Mother Recalls Challenges And Joy

Karin Hall Bilsland lives on 12 acres of land in Lobo Canyon in Agoura Hills, just north of Malibu. The property includes one acre of vines. Although these vines are still maintained, she has not produced wine since 2007. At that time, she named varietals produced from 900 vines after her children: Christopher Cabernet, Chloe Syrah and Colin Merlot. She worked with winemaker Christian Roguenant from The Rosenthal Estate, as well as vineyard consultants from Sunridge Nurseries, to establish her vines—40% Cabernet, 20% Syrah and the balance of Merlot.

The vineyard is my hobby. I was a stay at home mom with three kids. In order to get the kids to help me, I named the varietals after each child. They helped with harvest every year and accompanied me at wine tastings where they answered questions regarding having a family vineyard.

The vineyard has been a challenge. The farmer’s life is tough. Pests include red tail fox, raccoons, coyotes, deer and gophers. And if you can wrangle all those, you still have winged pests and mildew to contend with. Drought was a challenge as well. My children will always remember waking up at 5 a.m. and harvesting ‘their grapes’ before catching the bus to school. Each brought frozen grapes for their friends to try.

North of her family’s property is the city of Agoura Hills. Within Los Angeles County in California, that city perches on highlands about eight miles directly north of, and a thousand vertical feet above, the Pacific Ocean. With a population of more than 20,000 residents, the city is transected east to west by the Ventura Freeway, which links the cities of Los Angeles with Ventura and Santa Barbara further west. The lands of Agoura Hills, like Thousand Oaks, Malibu and other cities, suffered from the ravages of the Woolsey fire. Stoked by Santa Ana winds in November of 2018, the fire burned about 150 square miles of land, incinerated over 1,500 structures and led to the temporary evacuation of more than a quarter million residents.

Hall Bilsland is still a member of the Malibu Coast American Viticulture Area (AVA) and attends events with fellow vintners. The wildfire last year decimated many neighboring vines. According to an article in the Hollywood Reporter regarding Malibu vineyards, the Woolsey Fire caused ‘…extensive damage to virtually all of the vineyards and wineries throughout the AVA.’ Fortunately, no human injuries were reported. The same article tells how the owner of Cielo Vineyards used his irrigation system to soak soils surrounding his winery to protect it (but still lost thousands of vines) and how The Saddlerock Ranch—which has a hundred acres of vines—lost over 90% of their structures to flames. Several other Malibu wineries were also decimated.

Hall Bilsland was fortunate that her property and vines avoided decimation, partially due to higher elevation of the property compared to some neighboring vineyards.

Our property is like a little oasis. Everything was scorched around it. I’m fortunate. My vineyard and property sustained minimal damage. I lost all my grape growing neighbors and most members of the Malibu Coast AVA. Some will replant and return, however some will not. Things are getting back to normalcy around here since the fire.

Her children, now in their teens and twenties, attend high school and college. She recalls a family trip they took to Rioja in Spain before their first harvest. That journey provided additional inspiration for their own family’s work in the vines. Today, Hall Bilsland still enjoys walking through their vineyard, and—as the property is currently on the market—considers the possibility of working as a vineyard consultant for any future owner.

I enjoyed tending this family vineyard along with my children. So blessed to have had this opportunity. The kids will always have the memories of the vineyard and their role. My daughter, now 21 and home from art school, is applying for jobs, and will help prune the vineyard next week in exchange for paying her parking tickets. Pretty good trade, as she could be waiting tables (as I was at her age). The story and lifestyle is great. It’s bittersweet to be selling the property. However, I’m hopeful another young family will carry on what we started here.

This post first appeared on Forbes.com. To see the original, click here.