(Wine-Searcher) - County officials spring into action, much to the surprise of observers of Napa's development struggle.

Napa County has a strong undercurrent of anti-growth sentiment from people who think the rules restricting wineries aren't strong enough. Even when there are rules, it turns out wineries don't always follow them.

The county is suing the owners of brand new Joseph Cellars winery in Calistoga, Napa Valley's northernmost city. The county says Joseph Cellars is making wine and selling it without the necessary permits. According to the lawsuit, Joseph Cellars doesn't even yet have the permanent right to occupy the property.

Napa sent undercover investigators to buy wine in December to prove that nefarious sales activity was going on. But Joseph Cellars isn't exactly being secretive – its website offers tasting and cave tours, and says in capital letters: "Our wines are sold at the winery."

The case seems proof of something that slow-growth activist Ginna Beharry told Wine-Searcher a week ago. "It feels like it's lawless here," said Beharry, vice president of Napa Vision 2050. "We don't know what permits are. [The county] recognizes and forgives violations."

Perhaps the lawsuit is a response to ongoing criticism like Beharry's that the county is too lenient with scofflaw wineries. Over the years, wineries have broken laws regarding everything from leveling hillsides to producing too much wine. In some cases they have been fined, but in many cases no punishment was applied.

Not this time. The suit, filed December 28 in Napa County Superior Court, asks for $1000 a day in fines and payment of county court costs. It also asks for an injunction to "abate a public nuisance", which could mean requiring the new winery to shut down, at least temporarily.

Joseph Cellars was founded by Florida businessman Joe Bartholomew, who bought a 32-acre property that includes a vineyard several years ago with plans to build a winery and hospitality center. The vineyard can be accessed from State Route 29, the county's main highway, making it desirable real estate for a tasting room.

In 2013, Bartholomew told the Weekly Calistogan that his plan was to make no more than 5000 cases a year and to sell nearly all of it directly to consumers through his tasting room and a nascent wine club. This is increasingly a model of choice in Napa County, where 450 wineries vie for public attention and distributors are not excited about picking up new, unheralded brands.

Bartholomew got a temporary permit in 2013 to occupy the property in order to make wine, but that permit expired in 2014 and has not been renewed.

Bartholomew told the Napa Register that a delay in obtaining a permit from the state to build a left-turn lane on SR 29 caused his delay with the county occupancy permit.