What’s better than a weekend wine tasting? How about one where each winery you visit has an educational activity?
Behind The Cellar Door, organized by the Amador Vintners Association, is one of my favorite events of the year because there is so much to do! While I love a walk-around-tasting with gourmet small bites, honestly who doesn’t, visiting individual wineries during an event weekend and having a planned activity at each stop can be fun.
(Please note that tickets to this event were provided to me at no cost, but all views expressed in this post are my own. I was not under any obligation to give positive reviews and I only recommend experiences I truly enjoyed.)
If you’re unfamiliar with Amador County Wine Country, it’s about 100 miles east of Napa Valley at the edge of the Sierra Foothills in what used to be gold country. The region is known for Barbera, Zinfandel and other Italian varietals.
Behind The Cellar Door Day One
Iron Hub Wines
Our first stop was Iron Hub Wines for wine tasting and a barrel sample of the current vintage of Zinfandel. We also finished the experience with a Zinfandel brownie paired with their dessert wine. Father and Son winemaking team Tom and Spencer Jones were both there to talk about the wines and pour barrel samples.
Lusso Della Terra
Our second stop was Lusso Della Terra for a wine and small bites pairing. The temperature warmed up, and it was nice to sit outside on their deck. We also got a demonstration from winemaker Edward Cholakian on how to hand disgorge sparkling wine as part of the bottling process. I got to try my hand at it and did a pretty bad job. Maybe I’m meant to only drink sparkling wines, not to make them.
Vino Noceto
Our last stop of the day was Vino Noceto mostly to try their Sangiovese but also because I’ve wanted to get a picture with their Doggy Diner statue since I first saw it a few years ago. This stop wasn’t actually one of our Behind The Cellar Door stops, they were initially booked at the time we wanted to visit, but we stopped for a tasting anyways.
Behind The Cellar Door Day Two
Rombauer Vineyards
Our first stop was the Rombauer Vineyards’ Plymouth, CA location. Did you know Rombauer has a second location in Amador County? This location produces their Zinfandels along with some of their other wines. We were treated to wine tasting, including their iconic Chardonnay, along with a food pairing of braised short ribs and creamy polenta with their Zinfandel. There was also an optional tour and talk with one of their winemakers.
Andis Wines
Our last stop of Behind The Cellar Door was Andis Wines for a seated wine tasting led by partner and vintner Lorenzo Muslia. We tasted through 5 of their wines as Lorenzo talked about the stylistic winemaking choices, history of the varietals, and Amador Wine Country in general.
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Behind The Cellar Door is organized by the Amador Vintners Association. It is a two-day event; you can choose a one-day or two-day ticket. While you can visit up to 4 wineries each day, we only visited three on Saturday and two on Sunday. Each winery experience must be booked in advance at the time of ticket purchase in one of four daily time slots. Please remember to enjoy wine events responsibly and have a designated driver or arrange for transportation.
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