Established by Tiburcio Tapia, whose Cucamonga Rancho was granted on March 3, 1839, by Governor Juan Bautista Alvarado of Mexico, Cucamonga Winery became California's oldest commercial winery. Missionaries had brought grape vines to Mexico and California in the late 1700s to provide sacramental wines, and cuttings of the Black Mission Grape from the Mission San Gabriel vineyard were used by Tapia to establish his Mother Vineyard in 1839 with twelve rows of forty-seven plants each. Six years later, his 13,000-acre property contained more than 3400 vines. The winery's two 1400 gallon oak aging casks were carried around the Horn on a clipper ship rather than coopered locally. Its grape wines were complemented by fruit-based wines made from cherry, red currant, raspberry, blackberry, loganberry, apple as hard cider, and apricot, and at its peak these extensive offerings were enjoyed by local residents and Route 66 travelers.
