“Grappa is the most powerful beverage derived from grapes, and our power car is the most powerful of all of our cars,” said Giaccio. The Grappa car joins other Wine Train cars with names such as the Merlot, the Chardonnay, the Cabernet and the Zinfandel. The Wine Train includes nine passenger cars, the power car, and two locomotives.

The power car came to the Wine Train from Mare Island and was previously owned by the Department of Defense. It was first built in 1953, according to Eastland.

Plenty of trains have power cars, Eastland said, but what makes the Grappa car unique is that passengers can pass through the car. Normally, power cars are working cars and are not passenger-accessible.

The project started in November. First, the roof of the boxcar had to be lowered about two feet. “We didn’t want to block the view from the dome,” Eastland said. The power car is located adjacent to the dome car.

Then a large hole had to be cut into the side of the car to install a 450,000-watt diesel generator.

“I could power two to three city residential blocks with it, no problem,” Eastland said. “But it’s needed.” If the train were any larger, it would need even more power, he said.