As a boy, Willow Glen resident Clint Marsh would help his grandfather crush grapes and make wine at his grandparents' home in Los Altos along with his brother. But it wasn't until his grandfather died and Marsh became the owner of some antiquated winemaking equipment that he caught the "bug."

He began to research and experiment with home winemaking. His education was self-taught: networking with other home winemakers, reading books on the subject, making "beginner" wine from free or cheap grapes. Most of us in this area know at least one person who fits this profile.

Still, there seems to be a defining moment for most that make the leap from "garage"-based winemaking to the commercial arena—a point in time when they begin to believe that instead of being satisfied making home wine for family and friends that they have what it takes to make it in the daunting world of the wine industry. For Clint Marsh this moment came when he tasted his 2001 zinfandel. In his mind and the mind of his mentors, this wine was good enough to compete against the wines of the pros.

Then a fortuitous trip to Italy in 2002 sealed it. Marsh visited the town of Al Picella, in the region of Liguria, a tiny fishing town of 700 people nestled on the seacoast. His mother's people came from this little town and they shared with Marsh the long history of winemaking in his family. Winemaking had been part of their lives as long as memory served them, and Marsh brought that history back home with him. "Caviglia" (pronounced "Kavelya") is his mother's family name, and he borrowed it for his wine. Caviglia Vineyards was launched in 2004 and Marsh has not looked back.

"I began walking in the direction of my passion," he says.

As if his life did not have enough change going on at that time, Marsh met his wife, Stacey, at a wine-tasting group in early 2003; they just celebrated the birth of Aiden James on Sept. 30.

The Marshes toyed with the idea of buying a winery and moving from the area, but decided that their Willow Glen community was just too difficult to leave. Instead of owning vineyards, they have contracts with certain vineyards in the area to buy grapes. As a negotiant they lose some control over the vineyard management, but they gain control over the final decision; if the grapes are not good enough, they don't go into the wine. Caviglia Vineyards is currently producing 1,500 plus cases of wine and hopes to increase production over the next several years to 5,000.

But wait, that's not all! During her pregnancy, Stacey designed the layout for their new wine-tasting room in the Paso Robles area that opened on July 4. The tasting room is located at 63008 Bernardo Road in San Ardo (South Monterey county) and is open Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The passion that Clint and Stacey have for their business and their wines is contagious, plus the wines are pretty darn good. They have launched seven varietals: a sangiovese, zinfandel, sauvignon blanc, barbera, pinot noir, chardonnay and an off-dry riesling. All the wines are moderately priced and represent a great value. Marsh will continue to focus on what is commonly called "Cal-Ital" wines—Italian varietals grown here—while sangiovese and barbera are both classic Italian varietals.

It takes a great deal of vision, but even more elbow grease, to turn a passion into a business. After the initial romantic haze fades a bit, you find yourself with grape skins under your fingernails and a tired back after the harvest. When you think of it, a winemaker gets to practice his craft only a few dozen times in his career. The rest of the time is spent marketing, bottling, selling and, if you are lucky enough, enjoying your success. Yet, for many of us in independent business, even the tough times are bolstered by the fact that we are doing what we love.

The Marshes are floating on their own fluffy white cloud these days with a new baby in the house and a wine business that is showing growth and acceptance. Still, they have found enough time and energy to plan their first-ever winemakers dinner on Dec. 4 at the UC­Santa Cruz Event Center to benefit Casa de la Nueva Vida, a nonprofit organization that aids orphanages.

Meanwhile, if you are interested in tasting their wines around town, you can find them at Vin Santo Ristorante by the glass and at The Grapevine in Willow Glen by the bottle. Caviglia Vineyards continues to expand its placements and should be popping up at more restaurants and wine shops soon.

For more information about the Casa de la Nueva Vida event or the Caviglia tasting room, visit www.cavigliavineyards.com or call Caviglia at 408.427.2775.

Cara Finn is the owner of The Grapevine, a fine wine and cheese store and tasting bar. She can be reached at 408.293.7574 or at info@grapevine-wg.com.