Set in the Napa Valley at the turn of the century, this novel beautifully evokes the characters' love of the land and the rhythms of life lived close to the earth and its seasons. Alda Pendle is the daughter of a viticulturist who has taught her his craft. When he dies, leaving her without property, her skills make her indispensable to the solitary owner of one of the old vineyards in the valley. The novel provides a vivid history of winemaking in California to the Prohibition era.

A new foreword by vintner Robert Mondavi places the novel in the context of the history of winemaking in California.