Patz & Hall goes solar

On Aug. 18, Patz & Hall unveiled a roof-mounted solar array comprised of 512 solar photovoltaic modules at its winery on Eighth Street East in Sonoma. Designed and installed by San Francisco-based Sunlight Electric, the array is capable of producing 128,000 kilowatt hours per year, which will make the Patz & Hall winery 100 percent energy self-sufficient, while sparing the environment over 128,000 pounds of CO2 emissions annually.
The unveiling of the new solar array is the latest step in Patz & Hall’s committed program of environmentally aware winemaking practices. Many of these practices, which include separate barrel room and tank-cooling systems, in-house wastewater pretreatment, and energy efficient lighting, were incorporated into the design of Patz & Hall’s state-of-the-art winery, which was custom built for the production of chardonnay and pinot noir.
“We like to think that you can do good by drinking well,” said Patz & Hall’s co-founder and National Sales Director Donald Patz. “Part of that means being good neighbors and good environmental citizens. Whether it’s smaller things, like using lighter bottles to reduce C02 emissions during shipping, or big initiatives, like our composting program or our solar array, it all adds up. It is also a positive and responsible way to make great wine.”
Founded in 1988, Patz & Hall embodies the collective expertise of four friends – Donald Patz, Anne Moses, Heather Patz and James Hall. Together, this team crafts benchmark, single-vineyard chardonnays and pinot noirs.