Abbey of New Clairvaux

New Clairvaux is a Trappist abbey in Vina, Northern California. The about 33 km Northwest of Chico monastery is now known primarily for its vineyards and the project " Sacred Stones " at the 800 year old stones were used from the Spanish monastery Ovila for the reconstruction of a chapter house.

The stones had been brought by the American publisher William Randolph Hearst to California in 1931 to be used in the construction of a held in the style of the Middle Ages castle. After Hearst ran out during the Great Depression, the money for the building, the stones initially Gate Park in San Francisco camped in Golden. As part of the reconstruction project started in 1994, the Stones finally got to Vina. There, the final stone was set into the floor structure of the rebuilt chapter house in December 2011.

Monastic foundation and revival of viticulture

The Monastery of New Clairvaux was founded in 1955, when the monastery The Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani sent a group of monks to Northern California to prevent overfilling of the Mother House in Bardstown, Kentucky. For the establishment of the new Abbey the Vina Ranch, a formerly owned by Leland Stanford, founder of Stanford University, befindliches winery was selected. After the wine had been abandoned after the death of Stanford in the late 19th century, the lands had changed several times their owners before the Trappist monks bought up the remaining buildings and the surrounding areas in 1955.

In 2000, the wine industry in Vina was revived by planting the first vines by the monks. Under the leadership of Aimée Sunseri, a trained at the University of California, Davis winemaker, the first harvest could be retracted in 2003. The sale of wines, including those of Syrah, Viognier and Alvarinho, began in 2005. In 2012, approximately 14.5 acres ( about 5.9 hectares) were planted around the monastery with vines. The over 100 years old, built by Leland Stanford Winery buildings were further used here.