As it becomes increasingly difficult to build a winery building in unincorporated parts of Napa Valley — notably in the Ag Preserve and watershed — wine companies are opting for making their wine in industrial parks and custom crush facilities. And they’re setting up tasting rooms inside Napa County’s cities and business parks.

Two wineries, Bourassa and Dominari, have opened tasting rooms on Camino Oruga, near the Bin to Bottle custom winemaking facility off North Kelly Road in south Napa. Four are now open in Napa Valley Corporate Park around the Meritage Hotel: Patz & Hall, Delectus, Trinitas Winery (in the Meritage wine cave) and Falcor.

Falcor Winery goes one step further. It has recently opened a complete winery as well as a tasting room in the corporate park. And as a bonus, visitors to the tasting room can view a modern winery without heading up valley. The winery is also available for corporate events, private parties, wine education and custom tastings.

“This new facility gives Falcor a great advantage, since all our winery operations will now be in one place, and we also will have a very attractive places for wine lovers to taste our wines, something we did not have before,” says Ryan Bee, the winery’s general manager. “The tasting room has a very large glass panel on one wine so that our customers can see wine being produced while they taste.”

Falcor was founded by two long-time wine lovers, Bee’s father, Mike Bee, and Jim Peterson, who are partners in a trial law firm, Hill, Peterson, Carper, Bee & Deitzler, in Charleston, W.V.

Like many others who’ve made their name in Napa Valley, the two law partners decided to make wine here, a challenge complicated by their location in West Virginia. Overcoming the obvious problems, they started making Falcor wine in Napa Valley in 1995.

They hired winemaker Ray Coursen of Elyse Winery to produce their first vintage, 192 cases of 1996 Falcor chardonnay. They sold five cases, gave five cases away and drank the rest with family, friends and law associates.  

Bee and Petersen committed to doing everything first class, from the sources of grapes to  modern winery facilities and equipment — and financial resources to get established.

“We are not concerned with the profit,” Peterson admitted. “We want to make very high quality wines at great values.”

Mike Lee added, “We make wines that are taste driven, not market driven. We want to be very small and very good.”

Their commitment paid off when Wine Spectator rated Falcor’s 1999 chardonnay one of the highest rated chardonnays that year.

With growing acceptance, the pair began making other varietals from grapes grown in various parts of Napa Valley and other premium grape-growing areas.

They buy chardonnay from famed Durell Vineyards in Sonoma and Bacigalupi Vineyard in Russian River, for example, and syrah from Shifflett Vineyards in Yountville and Mt. Veeder. The cabernets and Le Bijou Bordeaux blend come from Shifflett Vineyard in Yountville; Stagecoach Vineyard in Atlas Peak; Howell Mountain and Wood Vineyard in Rutherford

With greater production, they also  began to market Falcor wines in other parts of the United States.

It wasn’t long before Ryan Bee became general manager and assistant winemaker, with Coursen remaining as consulting winemaker. Larry Bradley is vineyard manager and Fernando Castro cellar master. They recently hired Doug Berlogar as marketing director and Norma Poole as director of hospitality and wine education.   

As the wines became successful, the partners decided to build a winery. They recently completed the facility, a modern 11,000-sq.ft. winery in Napa Valley Corporate Park. It can produce 45,000 gallons of wine, about 20,000 cases including some for custom-crush clients.

It produces its own wine in small quantities, 200 to 500 cases. Falcor’s line now includes two chardonnays, one from the Russian River and one from Carneros; sangiovese, merlot, cabernet sauvignon and Le Bijou, a gem of a Bordeaux blend. The winery also produces other wines at times like cabernet franc, syrah, zinfandel and rosé. Most are priced under $50 per bottle; the H block cabernet is $65.

Jay Golik of Napa was the architect for the project with Brett Leonhardt and Katie Buchanan its designers.

Mike Bee and Jim Peterson often visit Napa Valley to check on progress, and Peterson is looking to build a house when he finds the right location. Ryan Bee handles the day-to-day operations.

And the name? The winery was named after Peterson’s daughter’s pet bird.

For more information about Falcor, visit its Web site www.falcorwines.com

Falcor Winery is at 2511 Napa Corporate Dr., Suite 115. Its open for tasting seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and there’s no charge for regular tastings. For a wine/food pairing by appointment, the cost is $25 per person. Call 255-6070.