Have you ever dreamed about having a place out in the country, sitting on a deck, sipping wine and enjoying a view of a vineyard?
Many wineries add perks to their wine club memberships. As members of Charles B. Mitchell Winery’s wine club we get to rent the Winemaker’s guest house at a steep discount. My wife strategically planned our stay around her birthday near the end of April. We booked our stay for a Thursday and Friday night. The winery is about an hour and half drive and we decided to take the scenic route. Starting in the town of Auburn and taking hwy 49 south. The drive was gorgeous, very little traffic and all the meadows were green. We arrived at the winery around 3:00 pm. Of course one of the best parts of checking in at a winery is that you can wine taste before going to your room.
Our hostess introduced us to a new Rosé that Charles the winemaker is exited about.Made with Syrah grapes, the skin is left on for only a day, giving a nice pink blush color. I’m typically a red wine drinker but was impressed with the flavor of the Rosé – served chilled, it was delicious. We made some choice picks to take to the guest house with us. We followed our hostess in our car through the gate and up the driveway. The house is close to the winery but barely visible from the winery on the other side of a hill.
A Country Setting
If you’ve never been to this area of Eldorado County – think country. The scenery is gorgeous. Many of the roads are just two lanes. You may encounter a single lane bridge here and there. Accommodations like restaurants, gas stations, and motels are few and far between. There are some Bed & Breakfasts. We’ve encountered wild turkeys, rabbits, and deer. Many of the wineries in the area would be considered small. Quite often it may be the owner of the winery who is pouring for you. Do your research ahead of time, many of the wineries are only open on weekends.
The Winemaker’s Guest House
The house consists of the two separate entrances, the Winemaker’s quarters and the guest area. So technically I’d call it ‘The Winemakers Guest Quarters’ A wide hallway runs from one side of the house to the other, the entrance door opens to the hallway, an immediate left will take you to a bathroom and the blue bedroom, following the hallway to the end and a left will take you to the red bedroom. When we booked the Winemaker’s Guest House, we were told there were two rooms (we thought we were booking a room) so technically you are booking two rooms you can bring guests.
Amenities include microwave, coffee maker (there was coffee, but just to be sure you might want to bring your own), and mini refrigerator. In case you were wondering, there was no TV.
The rooms are nicely decorated. Climate control in each of the rooms consist of window air conditioners and portable room heaters. There was a thermostat in the hall which I believe controls a swamp cooler on the roof.
Outside and around to the far side of the house is the deck that overlooks a vineyard and the surrounding properties. The house sits up on a hill and overlooks a vineyard, surrounding properties add to the view and the view is gorgeous!
Dinner Out
We had skipped lunch and were hungry, which worked into our plans to eat an early dinner and enjoy the deck and view into sunset. Or hostess suggested Gold Vine Grill about 10 minutes away. Being out in the country we didn’t know what to expect. The restaurant is at a crossroads and is located in a small strip mall with an unassuming entrance. It’s nicely decorated with a nice bar and several tables. We were pleasantly surprised if not impressed when we saw the creative menu. We had the seared ahi tuna appetizer, my wife had the macadamia crusted mahi mahi with mashed potatoes, and I had the fish and chips.
All were very well executed, generous portions, reasonably priced and delicious. We ordered a slice of maple cream frosted carrot cake to-go to enjoy later, with our wine and view.
Back at the guest house, we had some music via our cell phone and Bluetooth speaker, some wine and our carrot cake, as the sun set two deer were feeding on the grass between the rows of grape vines.
Exploring the surrounding area
Of course you are in the heart of Northern California wine country and it’s hard to fathom the number of wineries close to the Winemaker’s Guest house. Of course make yourself familiar with Charles B. Mitchell Vineyards wines – we gravitate towards the dry Zinfandels but there’s many whites, Rosés and reds to choose from. Some of our other suggestions would include Windwalker Vineyard, Too Good, Busby Cellars, and Latcham Vineyards. Go and find your own favorites. You are out in the country with winding two lane roads, so please take your time and don’t over indulge. Many have picnic areas where you can relax and take your time and enjoy the area.
If you choose to do some sightseeing. Highway 49 is one of the main routes through many small towns, all of which have a long history relating to California’s gold industry. These small towns typically have antique shops and boutiques, places to eat, wine tasting rooms and museums. North on Hwy 49 is Coloma where gold was first discovered, there’s a nice park there with artifacts. South on Hwy 49 are the towns of Eldorado, Dry Creek, Amador, Sutter Creek, and Jackson all having their own unique personalities. If you’re a cheese lover, you have to stop at Sutter Creek’s Cheese Shop – they have cheeses from all over the world.
We had packed bagels, cream cheese and smoked salmon for breakfast. My wife wanted to go sight seeing, I suggested Placerville or Jackson. She chose Jackson. It was an hour drive from the Winemaker’s Guest House. We visited the shops in Jackson and had a late lunch at the National Hotel which I recommend if you find yourself in Jackson. On the way home we stopped by the town of Stutter Creek and visited an old favorite wine tasting room Scott Harvey.
By time we returned, the wine maker’s truck was at the house. We got our things settled, grabbed some wine, snacks, and music and went out on the deck to enjoy the view. About a half hour later the winemaker opened the sliding glass door to the deck, stepped out and introduced himself. We asked him to join us and have some snacks. He shared his Rosé. Charles B. Mitchell is in his mid 70’s, he’s a very active person with a variety of interests and activities. He skateboards almost every day, collects motorcycles, and flies his own plane. He told us about the vineyards and some of his experiences. The winery organizes trips to the South of France. He chaperones the trips. His daughter lives on France and leads the tours.
Here’s an interesting tidbit he shared: the French have no word for Winemaker. Their reasoning is that if you step on a grape and the wild yeast in the air ferments the juice, you have wine. Nature produced the wine, not a person.
After a while he excused himself. Left us with some additional Rosé and retired for the evening.
Breakfast the next morning was at Katie’s Country Cafe and Bakery about 10 min away in the opposite direction of the Gold Vine Restaurant. They serve Breakfast and lunch along with baked goods, beer and wine. This is your definitive Country Cafe with rib sticking recipes. They had both of my breakfast favorites on the menu – Country Fried Steak and Corned Beef Hash – I went with the Country fried steak – it was delicious, my wife had one of their omelets and enjoyed it.
Saturday was the start of Eldorado County’s Passport Weekend, we wanted to avoid the crowds so we went directly to Windwalker Winery, purchased some wines we were running low on and headed home.
Sitting on a deck at sunset, overlooking a vineyard, sipping a good wine. That’s #NorCalWineLife