2014 July PASO Magazine

Paso Robles
Celebrates 125 Years
walnut and plum trees, Zinfandel and and
Beclan grapes on a sloping 2,300-acre spread
bought from Harriet Winteroll. He bought
a 320-acre parcel fronting Adelaida Road,
called Rancho Santa Helena, plus another
80-acre property to access Merritt Springs
for leisurely picnics.
To better establish his California home,
Paderewski summoned UC Professor Frederick
Bioletti to cultivate approximately 200
Zinfandel and petite Syrah grapes and ranch
manager William “Daddy” Hemphill to develop
his almond orchards. With help from
farm manager Jan “Gunnyscak” Gnieziak,
Paderewski’s Zinfandel harvest would earn
gold at the California State Fair, a win that
solidified Paso Robles’ importance on the
viticulture map.
The pianist leveraged his celebrity to
revise history, and Paderewski was hailed as
“singularly responsible for Poland becoming
a nation after World War I.” His yearlong
assignment as Prime Minister in 1919 and
his diplomatic skill in the drafting of the Treaty of Versailles
effectively restored his homeland as a sovereign nation.
Paderewski returned to the stage in 1922, enjoying resounding
success at Carnegie Hall. In the early 1920s, dressed in
turn-of-the-century-styled white vest and pinstriped trousers,
Paderewski continued to enjoy walks through the Ranchos. He
would find time to relax, attend silent picture shows at T&D
Theatre with wife Helena, often smuggling in their small dog,
Ping. Meanwhile, Paderewski continued to keep limber, using
a practice piano in his room at Hotel El Paso de Robles.
Queen Victoria and George V of England both admired
Paderewski’s compositions. An avid pianist, President Harry
Truman studied him, while President Hoover directed critical
resources into war-torn Poland because Paderewski had once
befriended him. Renowned concert pianist Vladimir
Horowitz displayed Paderewski’s signed photo on his wall,
and universities worldwide lauded his political achievements
with honorary degrees.
The gentleman farmer in his Paso
Robles orchard, 1921.
(Private collection photograph;
used by permission.)
By Melissa Chavez
Time Magazine featured the charismatic
patriot on its cover in 1928, and again in
1939, the year Adolph Hitler stole Kraków,
Poland, on behalf of the Nazi regime.
Through two world wars, Paderewski
countered destruction by subsidizing
Polish relief charities with concert proceeds.
While in New Jersey campaigning
against Hitler’s invasion of Europe in
1941, Paderewski developed a chill
following speaking engagement.
Fighting pneumonia, he died in New
York two weeks later at age 80. His
body was buried in Arlington Cemetery.
Fifty years later, former President
George Bush attended his reinterment
in Poland.
For a lifetime of achievement in music,
democracy, and philanthropy, Ignacy Jan
Paderewski is remembered and celebrated
in Paso Robles to this day, at the city’s
annual Paderewski Festival.
The Vineyard Virtuoso
Ignacy Paderewski fell in love with the rolling,
rocky hills that reminded him of his Polish
homeland. On the west side of town, he
planted Zinfandel vines that earned gold at
the California State Fair, and he took those
prized grapes to the VITICULTURAL
VIRTUOSO in his own neighborhood,
on York Mountain Road.
There, the first winery on the
Central Coast, established in 1882
by trailblazing vintner Andrew Jackson
York, fermented and crafted the
PIANO VIRTUOSO’s grapes into
award-winning wine. The two virtuosos
are performing together again
– turn the page to learn more.
photo by Melissa Chavez
July 2014, Paso Robles Magazine 29