Rabbit’s Foot Meadery produces award winning mead - honey wine, hard ciders and our famous braggot. Rabbit’s Foot recipes and methods have been perfected over a period of more than fifteen years and combine the latest in fermentation technology with historical recipes to create unique mead - honey wine in a style that is like no other. All of our mead, ciders, dessert mead and braggots-honey ales, are produced using the finest honey available without the addition of added sulfites.

We no longer operate a public tasting room. Please contact the meadery to arrange a private tasting and tour.
info@rabbitsfootmeadery.com
F: 1.408.940.5039

About Casa de Fruta

Ever since the first orchards were planted in 1908, Casa de Fruta has been growing. New orchards, new varieties, new stores, new family members, new catalogs, and of course, new web pages have all contributed to its expansion. Located at a roadside site in the fertile Pacheco Valley, nestled between Monterey and Yosemite, Casa de Fruta has welcomed visitors from around the world.

New additions are continually being introduced alongside classic favorites, inviting both new visitors and returning patrons to experience the evolving offerings.

Casa de Fruta stands as a testament to the American success story, flourishing from the roots of an immigrant Italian family. Since the initial orchards were planted in 1908, it has evolved into a diversified enterprise. In the 1940s, three teenage brothers—George, Joseph, and Eugene Zanger—opened a cherry stand on the Pacheco Pass Highway. Encouraged by their mother, Clara Bisceglia Zanger, the young entrepreneurs expanded their operation into the multifaceted business it is today. Now, the families of Joseph and Eugene continue to operate one of the country's most unique businesses, embodying the spirit of growth and innovation.

The History of our founders and by extension our winery starts in Italy. Both of our founders, Ernest (Ernie) and Marie Fortino goes back to Italy where they were born. Marie emigrated from Sicily to the United States with her family at the age of eleven, while Ernie came to the United States at the age of 23 from Cosenza, in the region of Calabria.

Ernie met Marie in Santa Cruz, where their respective families were living. Ernie was immediately taken by Marie and gave her a promise ring while she was still in school, thus ensuring that she would not date anyone other than him. They married in Santa Cruz in 1964 and started their lives together. Ernie and Marie had two children (Gino and Teri) when they found and purchased a very run-down winery in Gilroy in 1970. As young newlyweds and immigrants, they had very modest means, however, they were able to purchase the building and the land surrounding it, thus beginning their legacy in the Santa Clara Valley.

Mount Eden Vineyards, a historic gem, perches at 2,000 feet in the Santa Cruz Mountain Appellation, offering breathtaking views of Silicon Valley, about 50 miles south of San Francisco. Established in 1945, this pioneering boutique winery specializes in small lots of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Sauvignon. With the longest lineage of estate-bottled Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in California, Mount Eden's vineyards, planted in the austere, infertile Franciscan shale of a cool, exposed mountaintop, have produced world-class wines for over half a century. In 2007, the vineyard expanded by acquiring a 55-acre estate in the Saratoga foothills, known as Domaine Eden.

In addition to their estate wines, Mount Eden Vineyards crafts non-estate Chardonnays from the Central Coast, notably the Edna Valley. Their Chardonnay from the Wolff Vineyard is particularly acclaimed, consistently earning accolades.

Since 1981, Jeffrey Patterson has been at the helm of Mount Eden's winemaking and grape growing. His philosophy prioritizes wine growing over winemaking, with a fervent commitment to gentle and natural handling of the grapes and wines.