Placer County Wineries have 3 reasons to celebrate
during the Placer Hills Winery Tour November 14-15

There is a lot of celebration going on in the winery filled hills of Placer County for 3 reasons:

1.       It’s the end of the grape harvest, which can be a grueling 3 month, morning, day & night process.

2.       It was a long cool growing season making for nicely balanced wines with ripe fruit flavors.

3.       The Placer Hills Wine Trail is bigger than ever – 14 local wineries will participate in the Placer Hills Fall Winery Tour and more wineries are a “good thing!” More wineries close to home means not having to trek over an hour on windy roads or dealing with traffic to get to the other nearby wine regions.  Visitors have a more unique experience by almost always talking to the winemaker and owners in their own backyard.

The Placer Hills Fall Winery Tour will be held on Saturday & Sunday - Nov. 14 & 15, 2009 from 12:00 - 5:00 pm.  On this special weekend travel around Placer County to experience 14 Wineries and a Cidery who will open their doors with “no appointments necessary”. Enjoy special barrel tastings, new releases, featured artists, discounts, music, and other fun activities planned over the two day period.  There is no charge for participation in the winery/cidery tour, but some locations may charge a nominal tasting fee.

Just a few of the fun activities include: 1) Fawnridge will host the works of 3 different artists, with a live demonstration, 2) Dono dal Cielo will feature live music and tours, 3) Casque Wines will hold their Fall release party on Sunday with music, discounts, and food.  4) Lone Buffalo will release new wines and have winery tours by appointment, 5) and Vina Castellano will have barrel tastings and some food for the first 50 people in their unique wine cave, but there is so much more to be experienced.

AUBURN

·         Baumbach Wines - www.HBWines.com

·         Casque Wines (inside Carpe Vino, this weekend only) – www.CasqueWines.com

·         Fawnridge Winery - www.FawnridgeWine.com

·         Green Family Winery - www.GreenFamilywinery.com

·         Lone Buffalo Vineyards  www.LoneBuffaloVineyards.ocm

·         Mt. Vernon Winery – MtVernonWinery.com

·         Viña Castellano – www.VinaCastellano.com

COLFAX

·         Fox Barrel Cider – www.FoxBarrel.com

LOOMIS

·         Cristaldi Vineyards – www.CristaldiVineyards.com

·         Duarte Family Vineyards (inside Cristaldi Vineyards, this weekend only) – www.DuarteFamilyVineyards.com

·         Secret Ravine Vineyard & Winery – www.SecretRavine .com

LINCOLN

·         Rancho Roble Vineyard – www.RanchoRoble.com

NEWCASTLE

·         Dono dal Cielo Vineyard – www.DonodalCielo.com

·         Ophir Wines – Gold Blossom Vineyards – www.OphirWines.com

·         Pescatore Vineyard & Winery – www.PescatoreWines.com

Experience 3 new wineries participating in the tour this year adding some new and interesting wines to the already great line-up the other wineries have to offer.  Kevin Stevenson, the winemaker for Casque Wines, is relishing in the excitement from this year’s harvest.  Stevenson said, “A preliminary look at the harvest this year is that yields were higher and the quality is terrific.  We had a nice long cooler growing season which helps produce ripe flavors in the fruit and makes for nicely balanced wines.”

Cristaldi Vineyards is also one of Placer County’s newest wineries, featuring organically farmed vineyards and olive groves. “I am pleased to be a part of the tour this year and am happy to host another new local winemaker, Michael Duarte of Duarte Family Vineyards, on this special weekend,” said David Brockman of Cristaldi.  “I look forward to others having the opportunity to also learn about the Duarte family history of growing wine grapes and hope they enjoy the camaraderie of our new local wineries.”

The Placer Hills Winery Tour is just one of the events happening under the Art, Verse & Vines umbrella from November 12-15 throughout Placer County.  On this weekend you can experience three signature events: 
1) Placer Hills Fall Winery Tour, 2) PlacerArts’ 16th Annual Autumn Art Studios Tour and 3) the Cowpoke Fall Gathering:  15th Annual Cowboy Poetry and Music.  Visitors and local residents are invited to join in this celebration of the Sierra Foothills rich traditions of art, western heritage and wine-making taking place from Nov. 12-15, 2009.

Plan to make a weekend of it.  Details on each location including address and the special activities can be downloaded at www.PlacerHillsWineTour.com.

There is a quiet renaissance going on in the hills of Placer County - vineyards and wineries are returning to the foothill slopes that, before Prohibition, had more wineries than the Napa/Sonoma region combined.

The Placer Hills Winery Tour is a collaborative open-house style winery tour hosted by twelve Placer County boutique wineries with tasting rooms. Meet winemakers, wine grape growers and other wine enthusiasts while tasting award-winning artisan wines in the down-to-earth atmosphere of the Sierra Foothills.  Placer County is home to additional commercial wineries that don’t have tasting rooms at this time but are making and selling wine on-line and through local retails shops and restaurants.

Visit their website www.PlacerHillsWineTour.com  for quarterly tour dates, a list of wineries on the various tours with maps, tasting room hours and find lodging all year long.  “Be a part of the adventurous California spirit that’s bringing 'wine country' back to the foothills!”

MORE INFORMATION: 

Placer Hills Winery Tour: www.PlacerHillsWineryTour.com (November 14-15)

PlacerArts’ Autumn Art Studios Tour:  www.PlacerArts.org (November 13-15)

Cowpoke Fall Gathering:  www.CowPokeFallGathering.com (November 12-15)