5th generation Oakland native and 5th generation winemaker, Chenoa Ashton-Lewis, and cinematographer, Will Basanta, got fully bitten by the winemaking bug in October of 2019 upon hearing that Chenoa’s family vineyard still had unsold grapes that were quickly turning to bird fodder and heading up to Sonoma Mountain. With the help of family and friends they jumped in, picking and crushing to make an experimental Syrah and Pinot Noir co-ferment. The single barrel was then stored in a tent for 8 months on the family’s organic, 50-year-old vineyard, planted by Chenoa’s grandparents in the early 1970s.

In 2020 when quarantine hit, Chenoa and Will once again returned. In the early spring while wandering the remains of the Pinot Noir vineyard destroyed in the 2017 Nuns Fire, they found new vines alive and growing horizontally. They immediately and painstakingly walked row by row discovering and staking the new vines. By the early summer, 160 vines that were once seemingly dead had been reclaimed and were bearing clusters of grapes. For harvest 2020, Chenoa and Will were shepherds to their first commercial vintage at the historic Coturri Winery, introducing their label Ashanta Wines.

In 2020 when quarantine hit, Chenoa and Will once again returned. In the early spring while wandering the remains of the Pinot Noir vineyard destroyed in the 2017 Nuns Fire, they found new vines alive and growing horizontally. They immediately and painstakingly walked row by row discovering and staking the new vines. By the early summer, 160 vines that were once seemingly dead had been reclaimed and were bearing clusters of grapes. For harvest 2020, Chenoa and Will were shepherds to their first commercial vintage at the historic Coturri Winery, introducing their label Ashanta Wines.