Take your tapas and wine explorations to Amador County, California

Looking for a relaxing wine country escape then put Amador County at the top of your list. What impressed this Spaswinefood enthusiast the most at this year’s Wine Bloggers Conference (#WBC16) in Lodi were the conference excursions, and off-site events. In this post I will focus on a pre-conference excursion to Amador Wine Country. My hopes are that you will find this helpful to plan your very own special wine country retreat.

CHEERS! Amador Wine Country © Spaswinefood

We Off to Amador Wine Country © Spaswinefood

Off to Amador Wine Country

It was early August afternoon when we boarded the shuttle pickup in Lodi for Amador County. My first stop was to check-in at the delightful Rest Hotel, Plymouth. 

 Arriving at the Delightful Rest Hotel, Plymouth © Spaswinefood

I soon discovered this was the perfect choice for me. It just happened that Bella Grace, one of my favorite wineries was pouring wine at the Rest Hotel.

Bella Grace Wines © Spaswinefood

Yes, even before I set out to explore wine country, I did  a wine tasting right there at the hotel. The hotel regularly offers to its guests wine tastings from local Amador County wineries.

An Evening of Tapas and Terroir

The agenda for the evening included a visit to the Kennedy Gold Mine. This iconic site was once an integral part of California’s Gold Rush. That evening however, when we arrived at Kennedy Gold Mine, we were greeted with tasteful tapas. While we munched on tasty tapas we explored the influence of terroir on the wines. There, with 5,912 feet vertical head as a backdrop, it was indeed a stunning setting to explore Amador County wines. Discovered in the 1840’s the mother lode gold vein, one of the deepest and richest in the world, occurs along Highway 49. This is why the California Gold Rush took place here. The days of gold mining has passed, and today’s visitors come seeking the new gold, wine.

That beautiful evening at the tapas and terror reception we explored the influences of climate, elevation, slope, soil and other aspects on Amador wines. The event began with four wineries, each winery pouring two wines with a single characteristic difference of terroir. Tapas were offered to enhance the sensory experience. The winery (Wine Tree, Legendre, Yorba, Deaver) and food pairings (JRCR, National Hotel, Hotel Sutter, Taste, Union Inn) included:

1.     Hotel Sutter/ Legendre

Legendre Wines © Spaswinefood

Tasting Legendre Wines © Spaswinefood

Yes, there were tempting tapas from Hotel Sutter paired with the wines.

Hotel Sutter Tapas List © Spaswinefood

Hotel Sutter Tapas © Spaswinefood

2.     Taste/ Yorba

Yes, I did catch one of my blogger friends checking out Yorba wines. I did too!

Yorba Wine Time © Spaswinefood

Yorba, Shake Ridge Vineyard Greco di Oro  © Spaswinefood

Yorba, Shake Ridge Vineyard Syrah © Spaswinefood

Now for a few tempting tapas from Taste.

Tapas from Taste © Spaswinefood

More Tapas from Taste © Spaswinefood

3.     National Hotel/ Wine Tree Farm

Wine Tree Farm © Spaswinefood

Wine Tree Farm Wines © Spaswinefood

Yes, there were more tempting tapas to taste.

Tapas from National Hotel © Spaswinefood

4.     JRCR Desserts / Deaver Ports 

Deaver Ports and JRCR Desserts © Spaswinefood

Maybe One, Deaver Port and JRCR Dessert © Spaswinefood

Maybe "Just One", Deaver Port and JRCR Dessert © Spaswinefood

Maybe Just One More, Deaver Port and JRCR Dessert © Spaswinefood

But of course it was hard to select just one.

Deaver Ports © Spaswinefood

Following the tapas and wine pairings there were wine tastings from nine wineries (Andis, Bella Grace, Cooper, Distant Cellars, Feist, Noceto, Renwood, Sera Fina, and Scott Harvey). Yes, I did cleanse my palate and taste some wines. It was after all a working day for me!

Tastings Andis, Bella Grace, Cooper, Distant Cellars, Feist, Noceto, Renwood, Sera Fina, and Scott Harvey Wines

While the sun slide towards the horizon on that August summer evening I continued to taste Amador County wines.

Let's Taste more Amador County Wines © Spaswinefood

Here are a few of the winery tastings that I did.

Tasting Renwood Wines © Spaswinefood

Tasting Andis Wines © Spaswinefood

There were more Bella Graces wines to taste.

Bella Grace Wines © Spaswinefood

Bella Grace 3 Graces White 2014 © Spaswinefood

Bella Grace Reserve Barbera 2013 © Spaswinefood

Here are a few more of the wines that I tasted:

Scott Harvey © Spaswinefood

Noceto Wines © Spaswinefood

Sera Fina Wines © Spaswinefood

Tasting Sera Fina Wines © Spaswinefood

Distant Cellars © Spaswinefood

Throughout the evening I delighted in discovering the wines and meeting characters in period costume. The locals engaged in conversations with wine bloggers about their storied lives in Amador County. Also, the local VIP list included:

Eric Costa, author, writer and geologist

Elaine Zorbas, Chinese history

Marilyn Alarcon, Native American History

Linda Gonzalez, Kennedy Gold Mine

Karl and Patty Knobelauch, Preston Castle

Perhaps, I can say the historical entertainment that evening paired well with the terroir. Moreover, it is the variation in terroir throughout the county, which helps Amador to create such rich, multi-dimensional wines. Just explore a little in Amador County and you will also discover your very own favorite wines.

I left the Kennedy Gold Mine that evening with not only a sense of historical context but also the importance of place in the production of Amador wines. Yes, you must add a visit to Kennedy Gold Mine to your to do list.

Plan Your Getaway to Amador Wine Country

Amador Wine Country is that perfect Spaswinefood getaway. I would suggest that you wine country explorations include some of the above wineries. I enjoyed my stay at the Rest Hotel however, while in Amador County some of the other wine bloggers stayed at  the National Hotel and Hotel Sutter. All reports suggest the restaurants that supplied the tapas for the event are great places to dine. I certainly plan to return to do more sampling.

Plymouth, Amador County © Spaswinefood

Early Morning, Plymouth © Spaswinefood

Wine & Beer Bar, Plymouth © Spaswinefood

Getting to/from Amador Wine Region

Amador Wine Region is located approximately130 miles/ 2.5-3 hours drive from San Francisco, 60 miles/ 1 hours drive from Sacramento, and 150 miles/ 3 hours drive from Reno. This article is the first of two posts on Amador Wine Country (see top wineries).

Amador Vintners © Spaswinefood

Yes, Amador County is the ideal place to checkout tapas and wine. While you are there just relax in one of California's most peaceful wine country escapes. You can check out my travels in California and elsewhere at Spaswinefood.

Sharon
August 2016
Amador Wine Region
California
© Spaswinefood

Yes, Have A Fabulous Day © Spaswinefood


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Note: Part of the expenses to complete this #wbc16 trip was covered by Amador County Vintners and others.