Winery and Barn

The barn and small winery was located north of the family home up at the top of Pepper Street, somewhere around where Glen Canyon and Midwick meet.

William planted several varieties of grapes to augment the producing vines Benjamin Eaton had planted and dry-farmed and then W. W. Edwards, the previous ranch owner, carried forward. The early plantings were all from the vines of the San Gabriel Mission and were referred to as "Mission Grapes". In the days of Spanish California, the grapes were distilled into sacramental wine and the pulp and skins and stems were distilled further to create a higher alcohol content liqueur of around 20%. This was freely traded as a commodity and was served in saloons and on ranchos for any occasion. William Allen had a knowledgable and interesting neighbor who had a huge winery where Victory Park now sits and had been experimenting with many varietals to see what grew best in the San Gabriel microclimate.

The Allens did not press most of their own grapes, rather, they would box them up and drive them down the hill a mile to Leonard J. Rose and his vats and distillery. Rose produced a significant portion of the wine and brandy of California for a few years and his legacy in that regard lives in nearby Rosemead Blvd.

What little distilling the Allens did on the ranch occurred at the barn and their result was a brandy like liquor they called Angelica.