A Perfect Day In Amador County

Read about our magic day in the wine-soaked Amador County CA

 

Bronwyn and David are perfect hosts.

As well as a choice of quality loose-leaf tea, breakfast this morning included none other than Vegemite on toast.  It’s been over a month since my last Vegemite.

While we were getting ready for the day, David took a call from neighbour and vintner Linda who, having heard we were here, invited us over to their vineyard this afternoon.

Bronwyn had gone to a study commitment for the morning so we agreed to meet her in Folsom County for lunch.  In the interim, Jenny, David and I travelled around forty minutes to a carefully-chosen shopping outlet which was close to our rendezvous.

Best Buy, REI and DSW (Discount Shoe Warehouse) were visited and a couple of critical purchases made – this will test our bag weight and capacity limits even more.  The four of us had lunch in the local Wholefoods Market and then headed to Amador Cellars.

Amador Cellars was built in 2003.  The winery was built using straw, concrete and steel and sits on a knoll overlooking rolling vineyards in the shade of a stand of Valley Oak.  The vineyards are located in the heart of Amador County’s lush Shenandoah Valley wine country, just beyond Bronwyn and David’s own vines.  The winery sits atop a beautiful twenty-two acre site with 1500 feet elevation on soils derived from decomposed granite, with warm days and cool nights which suits Mediterranean varieties.  The Estate vineyards are planted to six Mediterranean varieties including: Zinfandel, Tempranillo, Mourvedre, Grenache, Aglianico and Sauvignon Blanc.

The owners Larry and Linda Long discovered the art and fun of making wine at home.

We arrived at Amador Cellars around 4pm and met Larry and Linda.

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Amador Cellars Winery

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Winery Interior

Soon we were enjoying some tastings.  I started with a nice, fruity Sauvignon Blanc and was particularly impressed with the 2010 Sangiovese.

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The winery has won a number of awards

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After some preliminaries, we were invited down to the new event barn for some more wine and nibbles.  The barn is the perfect site for a wedding or other event.

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The Wedding Barn

We were also shown their new timber house under construction, built with the same materials as the barn and we spoke at length with the builder, who had just finished up for the day.  The house will be only a short walk from the barn and will be a very impressive, elegant and well-designed home.

We retired back to the barn for cheese, fruit, crackers, beer and wine.  By about seven pm we said our goodbyes.  We will never forget our time there.  Wonderful wine and people.  Thanks to Larry and Linda for their courtesy, hospitality and beautiful produce.

Check out here for the website

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Looking back over the winery

 

Read about our magic day in the wine-soaked Amador County CA

Read about our magic day in the wine-soaked Amador County CA

Read about our magic day in the wine-soaked Amador County CA

Read about our magic day in the wine-soaked Amador County CA

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Author: Rob Dickens

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