The object of my travels is especially to note down everything in which the Europeans surpass us, and afterward lay them before the citizens of the United States. Few in the annals of wine history have been on the receiving end of more fake news and false titles than Agoston Haraszthy. Google him and the following lies appear: he was a count and a colonel he was neither , he was the father of modern California viticulture not totally inaccurate, but arguable , and he introduced Zinfandel to the United States roundly disproven.
During his time in the Americas — , Haraszthy was a pioneer in every sense, seeming to thrive on the uncivilized edge of the New World. Though his legacy has become something of a caricature, the California wine industry owes much of its early success to his efforts. Agoston Haraszthy was born in in the Hungarian city of Pest, well before it was united with, and appended to, Buda. At age 28, he relocated to the American frontier. Though he claimed to be a political refugee, his biographer and great-great-grandson, Brian McGinty, asserts that his journey had more to do with his love of adventure and enterprise than any sort of real political pressure.
Haraszthy first settled in what would become the state of Wisconsin. His was a particularly colorful character, and dubious allegations followed in his wake, including one wherein he strangled a wolf to death with his bare hands. In his previous life in Hungary, Haraszthy had owned a farm that raised both silk worms and wine grapes.
Agriculture, specifically grapevines, would prove a lifelong interest—a constant in an otherwise spastic and fragmented resume. He even planted vines on his Wisconsin ranch, though they perished in the frigid winter conditions. Today, their resting place is the location of the thriving Wollersheim Winery. But instead of making his way north with the rest of the 49ers, he turned south toward San Diego. His time in San Diego was just as fruitful as his stint in Wisconsin, both entrepreneurially and politically.
He was elected to the State Assembly and once again turned to agriculture, being sure to include grapevines among his fruit trees and other produce. At this point, a remarkable amount of gold was being funneled from the inland mountains through the developing metropolis of San Francisco. In , the government established a mint to process all this newfound wealth, and Haraszthy, who had experience as a metallurgist, was appointed its assayer.
