Sierra Foothills

Sierra Foothills

Clos Saron

A cool microclimate in the Oregon House Valley: forty five hundred vines planted on a gentle, well-drained, north-east facing slope. Red loam and clay topsoil on decomposed granite and volcanic ash subsoil, sprinkled with fragments of granite rocks, basalt, and quartz. The virgin soil is pure, uncontaminated, alive with microorganisms and earthworms. The Sierra Nevada Foothills are not the first to spring to mind when thinking about Pinot Noir in California, and yet this site provides an ideal microclimate and soil combination for its demanding nature.

Cantiga Wine Works

Cantiga Wineworks! A small, family-operated winery based in the Sierra Foothills of California. Cantiga Wine Works is committed to recapturing the art of making wine that benefits from long periods of cellaring, and to crafting a food-friendly style, thus reclaiming wine’s rightful place on the dinner table.

Butterfly Creek Winery

The Gerken family arrived in Mariposa in 1972, and have been developing their family vineyards ever since. The mountain spring water, clean climate and zesty Sierra Nevada soil provide the perfect setting for the premium wines that Butterfly Creek Winery produces. Butterfly Creek Winery and Vineyards is set on 200 acres adjoining the Sierra Foothills, yet only 45 minutes driving time from the borders of Yosemite National Park. When visiting the winery plan a picnic lunch next to bubbling "Butterfly Creek."

Toogood Estate Wine Caves

Hidden from view off a narrow two-lane road in the heart of Fair Play, this winery takes advantage of the rocky outcroppings and protected valleys indigenous to the area. Toogood Estate Winery is unique in the Sierra Foothills because it has wine caves. There were many wines to choose from and the staff made the visit fun. They mixed in educating us about the wines and their process with jokes and kept things fun.

Gekkeikan Sake

Japan's tradition of sake making began more than 2,000 years ago shortly after rice cultivation was introduced from China. Though the first few centuries yielded a beverage quite unlike that of today, years of experience perfected brewing techniques and increased sake's overall appeal and popularity. In 1637, Gekkeikan's founder, Jiemon Okura established his sake brewery in the town of Fushimi, a location well-known for its high quality of water. Access to the ideal ingredients combined with a convenient location enabled Okura and his successors' business to thrive in the years that followed. To meet this increase in demand, Gekkeikan Sake (USA) , Inc. was established in Folsom, California in 1989. Today, Gekkeikan's passion for pleasing the sake connoisseur remains unchanged.

Oakstone Winery

How many tasting rooms do you know of where the owner / vintner is there pouring? It's an added bonus that lets you know he's not only interested in his passion, but interested in your enjoyment of his wines as well. John Smith is not only very happy to pour for you, but is just as willing to tell his wine's story to a seasoned oenophile or neophyte alike.

Szabo Vineyards

A cozy tasting room and they were even dog friendly! Wine was delicious and owners were really friendly and great to talk to. The tasting was $6 - not bad at all when you compare them to Napa, but a little different when you compare them to all the wineries in Grass Valley who don't charge for tastings. This is more of a place you spend the evening with a good glass of wine rather than a "learn about each type of wine in detail" because there were lots of people in the tasting room and they didn't have a lot of time to explain every wine to us. However, on a recent weekend visit, a Sunday it was far more relaxed.

Bertagna Son Kissed Vineyard

The history of the Bertagna family farming and winemaking began centuries ago in Italy. The Bertagnas have been almond farmers for four generations, a tradition Berton Bertagna continues today. Berton's great grandfather made wine for his friends and family in Italy and continued the practice when he immigrated to Chico through Ellis Island in 1912. While the family continued farming almonds, the art of winemaking skipped two generations before being started again by Berton, through the encouragement of his wife, Carol.

Baiocchi Wines

They say genetic traits can skip generations. Greg Baiocchi would argue that passions can skip generations well. This was the case for Greg’s father, who grew up watching his father, Maggio Baiocchi, make wine. While the smell alone was enough to dissuade Greg’s dad from following in his father’s footsteps, it was not enough to keep Greg from doing so. As a boy of five or six, Greg remembers watching his grandfather in his basement, working the old equipment. The sights, sounds and smells of watching him make wine are still vividly alive for Greg Baiocchi today.

Ursa Vineyards

Ursa Vineyards is a collaborative effort between the husband and wife team - Greg Stokes and Deborah Elissagaray. Greg has 25 years experience with vineyards and wine making, Deborah 18 years in wine making. Both were part of the wine making team at David Bruce for years. This small foothill winery produces no more than 2500 cases annually, allowing exceptional attention to be paid in both the vineyard and the cellar. All fruit is fermented in small fermenters and worked by hand. A minimal amount of handling ensures the preservation of the fruit character of the varietal being made. Ursa Vineyards focus is petite sirah from various vineyards in California, but they also produce merlot, syrah and a unique varietal from the Pyrenees, tannat. Open Saturday & Sunday, 11am - 5pm

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