It was a beautiful summer evening to enjoy good wine, good music in a beautiful setting. This was the first time we attended one of Rock Hill Winery’s Summer concerts. Saturday August 22, 2015 Rock Hill Winery put on a Free Concert for their patrons. A portion of the wine testing room was built into the side of a large hill. This greatly helps stabilize the temperature of the wine storage area. They also topped that area with a nice flat stage area. There’s room for a band, seating and dancing! There’s also seating area carved into the hill. The winery has a series of paid concerts, that we have not yet attended.
We arrived on the early side (5:30pm) to take in the whole experience. Second only to enjoying wine, we love to people watch. We parked and headed up the trail behind the winery and choose a high spot on the side of the hill. There’s basically two good sized flat paths carved out of the hill in addition to the cement pad that acts as stage and dance floor and a smaller raised spot around a large tree, where you can park your lawn chairs and enjoy the show. Not only was out spot a great perch to people watch from, we could look east over the roof of the winery and see across the Loomis Basin to the foothills of Newcastle, which was a beautiful sight at sunset.
There was food and drink available for purchase, tritip and pulled pork sandwich plates that came with salad and chips were $7 and $6 respectively. The plates were a bit on the lighter side – I wouldn’t plan on that being dinner if you have a big appetite. Sodas, Beer, water and of course wine (red and white, by the glass or bottle) was also available. We choose the Cabfindel a very enjoyable blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel you get the fruit of the Zinfandel with the body of the Cab to round it out. A bottle was somewhere around $22-$24 (from my best calculation subtracting out the food from my final tab).
Local vintner Joe Ciotti (of Ciotti Cellars) is a member of the Barton Douglas Band. The music got started about 6:15pm. The Barton Douglas Band was basically a garage band playing a variety of 70’s and early 80’s rock music; America, Bob Segar, Heart, Kenny Wayne Shepard etc. They may not be pros but their passion for their music shines through. They were donating their tips to charity. As the night matured, and wine was consumed, it wasn’t long before the brave ones came out on the dance floor, soon followed by an impressive percentage of the crowd. The majority of the crowd were Baby Boomers, with some younger ones who appreciate good music mixed in.
The whole experience was the feel of a big family outdoor wedding reception or neighborhood block party. Check the winery’s Events Calendar for more info or ask to be put on their email list.
The wine was good, the people were enjoying themselves, the band was having a good time, the weather was wonderful, and the scenery was enjoyable that’s #NorCalWineLife
Bring your lawn chairs, the area is reasonably well lit but I would bring a flashlight the next time.