Amizetta is named for Amizetta McFaddin Clark, born into one of Texas's oldest ranching families in Beaumont — her husband Spencer, a professional musician for some fifteen years before the move, decided the best tribute to their new vineyard was to call it after her. The couple left Texas for St. Helena in the late 1970s and in 1979 bought a steep, rocky 40-acre parcel with south-facing slopes at the tail end of Howell Mountain in the Conn Valley area, sitting around 1,000 feet with views over Lake Hennessey and Pritchard Hill. They terraced it and planted Cabernet partly from cuttings taken at Martha's Vineyard, releasing their first commercial wine in 1983 and building a small winery shortly after on the advice of family friend Justin Meyer of Silver Oak. Napa has since restricted hillside development, making the terraces a rarity. Three of the Clark children now run the estate, with Edward as winemaker since 2011.