Napa vintner Donn Chappellet dies at 84

Napa vintner Donn Chappellet dies at 84Donn Chappellet trademarked the Pritchard Hill area of Napa Valley. Courtesy of Chappellet The Chronicle has learned that Donn Chappellet, founder of Napa Valley’s Chappellet winery, died on Sunday at home with his family. He was 84. Not only did Chappellet and his family create one of Napa’s most iconic Cabernet brands, but they also — in a slightly unusual move — trademarked Pritchard Hill, the subregion in which their property lies, and never allowed it to become an official American Viticultural Area. Born in Los Angeles, Chappellet attended Pomona College. Like many winery owners in Napa, he struck it big in another industry