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Explore Merlot in The Sierra Foothills |
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The Sierra Foothills and the California Gold Rush - this is where it started and once gold was discovered people from all over the world flooded into these foothills with the dream of becoming rich. Signs of this are evident from Nevada, Placer, El Dorado, Amador, Calaveras, Mariposa. You can visit towns that date back to the 1850s; stay in Bed and Breakfasts that are historic buildings or see remnants of mining activities along Highway 49, named after the men who rushed to California in 1849 looking for gold. Merlot is among the wines produced in the Sierra Foothills. A distinctly different region in the foothills is the California Shenandoah Valley. Its valley position and the sandy and clay loams as part of the soil make-up along with the Sierra Series granitic rock that make this a unique viticultural area in the Sierra Foothills.
Merlot's heritage is in Bordeaux France. Flavors and aromas typical of Merlot are: red cherry, cassis, cedar. Merlot t is marked by high levels of tannins which are softened by age and so this is a wine that can be cellared for at least five to ten years. Often Merlot or Cabernet Franc are blended with Cabernet Sauvignon to add complexity and to soften the tannins.
These pages will provide the tools you need to create your own self guided tour. Your exploration can focus on one region or follow a route to sample the highlights of several. Find links in the navigation bar to the left to move back and forth between California AVA regions which are listed in the tables below where Cabernet Sauvignon is grown. Those will take you to pages that list all of the sub AVAs with lists of wineries and links to additional information about food, lodging and area highlights. Stay tuned as, over time, we will provide additional first hand information to give you more finely honed information for your own use.
How Great Merlot is Created - Terroir
The vineyards in the Sierra Foothills are relatively remote and are found at elevations between 1,200 to 3,600 feet above sea level which is well above the fog line. This makes for long, sunny summer days. Nights are cooled by breezes flowing from the Sierra Nevada. The soils from 1,200 to about 2,000 foot levels are made of decomposed granite and at elevations above the 3,000 foot level are crushed volcanic rock. Both soil types provide good drainage but lack many nutrients.
Sierra Foothills Merlot is deep purple and full bodied yet with soft tannin. The elevation contributes to complexity with notable currant, cherry, plum with a little bit of earthiness. The colors tend to be very dark purple/red. The aromas are earthy with an essence of violets. The wine is medium to full bodied and chewy. The flavors are fruity with black olive overtones and spice.
Merlot and Food Pairings
Pair Merlot with grilled red ed meat, fowl and pastas and tomato based dishes containing basil and rosemary herbs.
Create Your Own Tour
Explore one region or sample the highlights of several. Find links in the navigation bar to the left to move back and forth between the different California AVA regions where Zinfandel is grown or visit different varietals. Those links will take you to pages like this that will direct you to information including list all of their sub AVAs that include lists of wineries and links to additional information about food, lodging and area highlights. Stay tuned as, over time, we will provide more information for you to fine tune your exploration.
Click on the Sierra Foothills sub-AVA links in the navigation bar on the left to go down the page to explore the AVAs listed in the table below. In the Navigation bar you will also find links to vineyard and winery associations and Chambers of Commerce which will direct you to information about area restaurants, lodging and local highlights.
North Yuba |
El Dorado |
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Fair Play |
Fiddletown |
CA Shenandoah Valley |
Below are tables with lists of the wineries in each AVA. There is overlap between counties and AVAs. For example, El Dorado County and Amador County share the California Shenandoah Valley AVA. These are important designations on wine labels and are a way of communicating about the basic characteristics of the wine. Wineries are part of Counties as well as part of AVAs and may list their wines with the different designations. In addition, while most Sierra Foothills vineyards and wineries are single vineyard affairs although quite often they have premium offerings with grapes from other sources. These are reflected on their labels. The codes below can be found at the end of each winery listing and indicate the AVAs with which they overlap.
| CA SV = CA Shenandoah Valley | ED=El Dorado | FP=Fair Play | FT =Fiddletown |
A label with the AVA name, such as "El Dorado" often means that grapes were sourced from two or more vineyards within that region. Wineries that offer wines where the majority of their grapes come from outside of that region will list that on the label as the source, such as "Paso Robles." We indicate that by OS=Out Sourced. SV=Single Vineyard wines are often but not always the same thing as Estate Wines . Estate wines are indicated by ES. RE=Reserve Wine which is a special edition produced by the winery. The letters above can be combined in different ways, for example SV+OS=Single Vineyard+Out Sourced from another region. OV=Old Vine.
| ES=Estate | SV=Single Vineyard | OS=Out Sourced | SV+OS=Single Vineyard+Out Sourced | OV=Old Vine | RE=Reserve |
The lists below show only those wineries that produce or offer Chardonnay. Click on the Zinfandel logo above to go to The Sierra Foothills Zinfandel page to see the complete list of wineries in the region.
***A functioning website is the criteria for winery/vineyard inclusion in the lists below.***
If you go, this North Yuba AVA will be a quick tour since Renaissance Vineyard and Winery is only winery in North Yuba. The AVA is in the northwestern region of the Sierra Foothills. The vineyard is located at an elevation of 1,700-2,300 feet. This is a steeply sloping terraced vineyard that produces estate bottled wines. The soil is a mixture of decomposed granite and volcanic subsoil, clay and ash. Microclimates provide enough acres that produce Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Syrah, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and many more varietals.
Renaissance Vineyard and Winery |
12585 Rices Crossing Road (PO Box 1000), Oregon House CA 95962; Phone: 530.692.8229, 800.655.3277, Fax: 530.692.2497; email: sales@rvw.com, website: www.rvw.com. Tours and tasting Friday and Saturday by appointment only. Call the toll free #. ES |
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The county of El Dorado has two wine regions, El Dorado AVA and Fair Play AVA, with their own unique geology, soil types and elevation: The El Dorado AVA region in the north has an elevation from about 2,000 feet to 3,600 feet. The soil is composed of crushed volcanic rock. The Fair Play AVA region in the south has an elevation from 1,200 feet to about 2,500 feet. The soil here is unique being composed of decomposed granite. The vineyards in these two regions benefit from their higher elevations which put them well above the fog line and allows for long, sunny days tempered by cool nights. Both regions are made up mostly of small, family wineries, which focus on small batches of single vineyard estate wines.
El Dorado Merlot features aromas of cream and a bit of chocolate, pepper and spiced cherries, black licorice and herbs and flavors of cherries and sage. The wine is medium bodied with soft tannins and finish.
Boeger Winery |
1709 Carson Road, Placerville CA 95667; Phone: 530.622.8094, 800.655.2634; Fax: 530.622.8112; email: tara@boegerwinery.com; website: www.boegerwinery.com. Open daily: 10-5. |
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Chateau Rodin |
4771 Green Hills Road, Placerville CA 95667; Phone: 530.622.6839; email: inquire@chateaurodin.com; website: www.chateaurodin.com. Open Wednesday-Sunday 11-5. SV |
Colibri Ridge Winery & Vineyard |
6100 Gray Rock Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.7255; email: info@colibriridge.com, website: www.colibriridge.com; Open Friday-Sunday, 11-5. FP SV |
Coulson Winery |
3550 Carson Road, Camino CA 95709-9507; Phone: 530.644.2854, (toll free) 877.253.9672, Fax: 530.644.3653; email: ed@coulsonwinery.com; website: www.coulsonwinery.com. Open daily 11-5. SV |
Fitzpatrick Winery & Lodge |
7740 Fair Play Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.3248, 800.245.9166, Fax: 530.620.6838; email: brian@fitzpatrickwinery.com, website: www.fitzpatrickwinery.com. Open Wednesday-Monday 11-5. SV |
Gold Hill Vineyard |
5660 Vineyard Lane, Placerville CA 95667; Phone: 530.626.6522; email: winemaster@goldhillvineyard.com; website: www.goldhillvineyard.com. Open Thursday-Sunday 10-5 otherwise by appointment. SV |
Latcham Vineyards |
2860 Omo Ranch Road (P.O. Box 80) Mt. Aukum CA 95656; Phone: 530.620.6395, 800.638.6041, Fax: 530.620.4884; email: granitespr@directcon.net; website: www.latcham.com. Open daily 11-5. |
Lava Cap Winery |
2221 Fruitridge Road, Placerville CA 95667; Phone: 530.621.0175; Fax: 530.621.4399; email: lavacap@calweb.com; website: www.lavacap.com. Open daily 11-5 SV |
Madrona Vineyards |
2560 High Hill Road (P.O. Box 454) Camino, CA 95709; Phone: 530.644.5948 Fax: 530.644.7517; email: Winery@MadronaVineyards.com; website: www.MadronaVineyards.com. Open daily 11-5. ES |
Charles B Mitchell Vineyards |
8221 Stoney Creek Rd, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.3467, 800.704.WINE (9463) ; email: info@charlesbmitchell.com, website: www.charlesbmitchell.com. Open daily 11-5. FP |
**Oakstone Winery |
6440 Slug Gulch Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.5303, 877.OAKSTONE (toll free), Fax: 530.620.5304; email: oakstone@innercite.com, website: www.oakstone-winery.com. Open Wednesday-Sunday 11-5. ES |
Perry Creek Vineyards |
7400 Perry Creek Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.5175; email: wines@perrycreek.com, website: www.perrycreek.com. Open daily 11-5, except major holidays. ES |
Sierra Oaks Estates |
6713 Mount Aukum Road (P.O. Box 617), Fair Play CA 95656; Phone: 530.620.7079; email: , website: www.sierraoaksestates.com. Open Wednesday-Sunday 11-5. OS+ES, OS+ES+RE |
Single Leaf |
7480 Fairplay Road, Fairplay CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.3545, (toll free 888.663.5323) email: sales@singleleaf.com, website: www.singleleaf.com. Open Wednesday-Sunday 11-5. SV |
Sogno Winery |
3046 Ponderosa Road, Shingle Springs, CA 95682; Phone: 530.672.6968, Fax: 530.672.8458; email: info@sognowinery.com, website: www.sognowinery.com. Open Thursday-Sunday 11-5. SV |
Venezio Vineyards & Winery |
5821 Highway 49, Coloma CA 95613; Phone: 530.885.WINE, Fax: 530.885.9659; email: info@venezio.com, website: www.venezio.com. Open Wednesday-Sunday 11-5. OS |
Windwalker Vineyard & Winery |
7630 Perry Creek Road, Somerset CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.4054; email: agilpin@innercite.com, website: www.windwalkervineyard.com. Open daily 11-5. OS |
In the Fair Play AVA there are 19 wineries that are all family owned, and they are located all within a 5 mile radius. The Fair Play Region is 2,000 - 3,000 feet above sea level giving the growing season long, warm days and cool evenings. Soils are deep, decomposed granitic sandy loam and produce distinctive and intense wines. The topography is responsible for a variety of microclimates which contribute to the wide diversity of wine varietals. Here we will focus on the wineries that produce Merlot. Visit the wineries' websites for more information including events, maps and for their lists of the other varietals they grow.
Fair Play Merlot shows spicy clove and cherry flavors with a touch of mint. The aromas are distinctly cherry.
Charles B Mitchell Vineyards |
8221 Stoney Creek Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.3467, 800.704.WINE (9463) ; email: info@charlesbmitchell.com, website: www.charlesbmitchell.com. Open daily 11-5. |
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Colibri Ridge |
6100 Gray Rock Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.7255; email: info@colibriridge.com, website: www.colibriridge.com. Open Friday-Sunday 11-5. |
dk cellars |
7740 Fair Play Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.3248, 800.245.9166, Fax: 530.620.6838; email: brian@fitzpatrickwinery.com, website: www.fitzpatrickwinery.com. Open Wednesday-Monday 11-5. SV |
Fitzpatrick Winery & Lodge |
7740 Fair Play Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.3248, 800.245.9166, Fax: 530.620.6838; email: brian@fitzpatrickwinery.com, website: www.fitzpatrickwinery.com. Open Wednesday-Monday 11-5. SV |
Granite Springs Winery |
5050 Granite Springs Winery Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.6395, 800.638.6041, Fax: 530.620.4884, 800.638.6041; email: granitespr@directcon.net, website: www.latcham.com. Open daily 11-5. |
Latcham Vineyards |
2860 Omo Ranch Road (P.O. Box 80), Mt. Aukum CA 95656; Phone:530.620.664,2 800.750.5591, Fax: 530.620.5578, 800.750.5591; email: latcham@directcon.net; website: www.latcham.com. Open daily 11-5. |
Oakstone Winery |
6440 Slug Gulch Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.5303, 877.OAKSTONE (toll free), Fax: 530.620.5304; email: oakstone@innercite.com, website: www.oakstone-winery.com. Open Wednesday-Sunday 11-5. ES |
Perry Creek Vineyards |
7400 Perry Creek Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.5175; email: wines@perrycreek.com, website: www.perrycreek.com. Open daily 11-5, except major holidays. OS+ES |
Sierra Oaks Estates |
6713 Mt. Aukum Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.7079; email: info@sierraoaksestates.com, website: www.sierraoaksestates.com. Open Wednesday-Sunday 11-5 and summer, daily 11-5. ES |
Single Leaf |
7480 Fairplay Road, Fairplay CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.3545, (toll free 888.663.5323) email: sales@singleleaf.com, website: www.singleleaf.com. Open Wednesday-Sunday 11-5. SV |
Toogood Estate Wine Caves |
7280 Fair Play Road, Fair Play CA 95684; Phone: 530.620.1910; email: info@toogoodwinery.com, website: www.toogoodwinery.com. Open Friday-Sunday 11-5:30 or by appointment. ES |
The Fiddletown AVA is part of Amador County and is located at an elevation between 1,500 feet and 2,500 feet. Zinfandel is the primary grape grown in the appellation. The wineries listed below with the ** beside their names, are not technically within the Fiddletown AVA but these wineries use 85% of the grapes from the region allowing them to legally use the Fiddletown AVA on their label.
Merlot and is not widely grown in the Fiddletown AVA.
**Domaine de la Terre Rouge & Easton Vineyards |
Dickson Road, off Shenandoah Rd; Plymouth CA; P.O. Box 41, Fiddletown CA 95629; Phone; 209.245.3117; Fax: 209.245.5415; email: info@terrerougewines.com; website: www.terrerougewines.com. Open Friday-Monday 11-4. OS |
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Le Mulet Rouge |
16915 Red Mule Road, Fiddletown CA 95639; Phone: 209.245.3037, fax: 209.245.3038; email: imr@muletrouge.com, website: www.muletrouge.com. Tasting at Sutter Creek Wine Tasting, 85 Main Street, Sutter Creek, CA 95685. Open daily 11-6. |
*/**Thomas Fogarty Winery |
3270 Alpine Road, Portola Valley CA 94028; Phone: 650.851.6777, Fax: 650.851.5840; email: info@fogartywinery.com, website: www.fogartywinery.com. Open Thursday-Sunday 11-5 (tasting fee) OS |
The CA Shenandoah Valley AVA is the newest Sierra Foothills appellation and it is located in Amador County. The designation comes because of geographic and historic reasons. Does the name sound familiar? It was named by settlers from the east after the Virginia Shenandoah River Valley from which they came. CA Shenandoah Valley is north west of Fiddletown and north east of Plymouth in Amador County. The soil is well drained decomposed granite, sandy loam and clay. The elevation is around 1,100 feet. Summer temperatures can be very warm, ranging from 80 to 100 degrees. The Merlot grape likes somewhat cooler temperatures and it is not widely grown in the region although microclimates do create some premium Merlot growing areas.
Domaine de la Terre Rouge & Easton Vineyards |
Dickson Road, off Shenandoah Road; Plymouth CA; P.O. Box 41, Fiddletown CA 95629; Phone; 209.245.3117; Fax: 209.245.5415; email: info@terrerougewines.com; website: www.terrerougewines.com. Open Friday-Monday 11-4. SV |
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Story Winery |
10525 Bell Road, Plymouth CA 95669; Phone: 209.245.6208, 800.713.6390, Fax: 209.245.6619; email: storyzin@cdepot.net; website: www.zin.com. Open Monday-Friday 12-4; Saturday-Sunday 11-5. SV |
Amador County is not itself an American Viticultural Area but it does contain and share regions as described below. The elevation is 2,00-3,000 feet but Amador has relatively warm summer days and the typical foothill cool evenings which prolongs the growing season. The soils are loam and/or sandy loam. The California Shenandoah Valley (settled by former Virginians) and The Fiddletown Appellation are part of Amador County. The wines produced in the Fiddletown AVA have less alcohol and more refined fruit character. Fiddletown AVA's elevation is between 1,500-2,500 feet. A * marks the wineries below that are part of the Fiddletown AVA. Many of Amador's wineries farm organically. Amador shares the California Shenandoah Valley AVA with El Dorado County and the Amador wineries that fall within that jurisdiction have the letters: "CA SV" at the end of their addresses. Because of the overlap, you will find many of these vineyards and wineries listed in the AVAs described above.
Below are the only vineyards and wineries in Amador County that offer Merlot.
Cooper Vineyards |
21365 Shenandoah School Road, Plymouth CA 95669; Phone: 209.245.6181, Fax: 916.218.6264; email: cooperwines@sbcglobal.net; website: www.cooperwines.com. Open Friday-Sunday 11-5. Groups of 6 or more by appointment. SV |
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**Domaine de la Terre Rouge & Easton Vineyards |
Dickson Road, off Shenandoah Rd; Plymouth CA; P.O. Box 41, Fiddletown CA 95629-0041; Phone; 209.245.3117; Fax: 209.245.5415; email: info@terrerougewines.com; website: www.terrerougewines.com. Open Friday-Monday 11-4. |
Story Winery |
10525 Bell Road, Plymouth CA 95669; Phone: 209.245.6208, 800.713.6390, Fax: 209.245.6619; email: storyzin@cdepot.net; website: www.zin.com. Open Monday-Friday 12-4; Saturday-Sunday 11-5. SV, SV+OV |
Calaveras County, home Mark Twain's jumping frog. Calaveras County is the southern most region of the Sierra Foothills and the vineyards lie at an elevation of 1,500 to 2,400 feet. The county has the distinction too of being at the northern edge of Yosemite National Park. French and Italians settled here during the gold rush so that Rhone and Italian varietals predominate in the region.
Calaveras Merlot has raspberries and baking spices aromas and flavors that are distinctly dark cherry flavored with berries secondary and spicy clove accents.
| Black Sheep Winery | Located west end Murphys Main St., P.O. Box 1851, Murphys CA 95247; Phone: 209.728.2157; email: info@blacksheepwinery.com; website: www.blacksheepwinery.com. Open Fri - Sun 12-5 and by appointment. OS |
| Brice Station | 3353 East Highway 4, Murphys CA 95247; Phone. 209.728.9893, Fax: 209.728.8805; email: wine@bricestation.com; website: www.bricestation.com. Open Fri-Sun, some Mon, 12-6 and by appointment. |
| Broll Mountain Vineyards | 106 Main Street, Murphys CA 95247; Phone: 209.728.9570; email: bill@brollmountainvineyards.com; website: www.brollmountainvineyards.com. Open Sat-Sun 1-5. |
| Chatom Vineyards | 1969 Highway 4, Douglas Flat, CA 95229; Phone: 209.736.6500; Fax: 209.736.6507; email: info@chatomvineyards.com; website: www.ChatomVineyards.com. Open daily 11-5. |
| Ironstone Vineyards | 1894 Six Mile Road, Murphys CA 95247; Phone: 209.728.1251; Fax: 209.728.1275; email: info@IronstoneVineyards.com; website: www.IronstoneVineyards.com. Open daily 10-5, tours daily 11:30, 1:30 & 3:30. OS |
| Laraine Wines/Gerber Vineyards | 3675 Six Mile Road, Vallecito CA 95251; Phone: 209.736.4766, 866.571.0966; Fax: 209.736.6730; email: GerberVineyards@aol.com; website: ww.GerberVineyards.com. Open Fri-Sun & holidays 11-5 otherwise by appointment ES |
| Milliaire Winery | 276 Main Street, Murphys CA 95247; Phone: 209.728.1658; Fax: 209.728.1658; email: wines@MilliaireWinery.com; website: ww.MilliaireWinery.com. Open daily 11-5 |
| Stevenot Winery | 2690 San Domingo Road, Murphys CA 95247; Phone: 209.728.0638; Fax: 209.728.0635; email: info@StevenotWinery.com; website: www.StevenotWinery.com. Open daily 11-5. Downtown Main Street Tasting Room: Phone: 209.728.0148. Open Wed-Mon 11-6. |
| Zucca Mountain Vineyards | Vineyard: 7830 Airola Road (PO Box 438) Vallecito CA 95251; Phone: 209.736l.2949; Fax: 209.736.1295 Tasting Room: 425 E Main Street, Murphys CA 95247; Phone: 209.736.2949; Fax: 209.736.1295; email: info@ZuccaWines.com; website: www.ZuccaWines.com. Open Daily 12-5. |
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| Click the Sierra Foothills link to see a summary of our trip. |
| The Sierra Foothills |
Explore Merlot in The Sierra Foothills AVA. Click on the links below to learn more about Merlot in those AVAs. |
