Winemaker Dinners
Winemaker dinners are single seating events usually held on a Saturday but most times will extend into Sunday. We typically host anywhere between 35 to 40 winemaker dinners in any given year … so one of your favorites is always bound to be coming up soon! The dinners are typically five-to-seven courses paired with five-to-seven wines. There are no choices amongst the courses. Due to the complexity of the menu, we regret that we are unable to accommodate vegetarian requests, but will do our best to accommodate special dietary needs if we can and if given advance notice.
The host for the evening is usually the winemaker, owner or importer who will give a short presentation at the beginning of dinner and then speak about the specific wines being served with each course at the appropriate times. It’s a very social setting with the host stopping by to visit with each table throughout the evening. If you come solo or as a couple you will very likely be seated with other folks at long tables … so be prepared to make some new friends!
Who’s Been Here
We’ve been privileged to have had a diverse selection of winemakers from all over the world … some famous, some not so famous. Many return on an annual basis and have become close friends … both to us and to our regular customers. We’ve also had the privilege of hosting wine tours where we’ve been able to take our customers to many of these wineries. Here’s a sampling of some of the folks who have hosted dinners here along with links to their wineries:
Adam Lee (Siduri Winery, Sonoma)
Billy Grant & Christian Tietje (Four Vines & Cypher, Paso Robles)
Chaim Gur-Arieh (C. G. di Arie Winery, Sierra Foothills)
Chris Phelps (Swanson Vineyards, Napa Valley)
Chris Ringland (Chris Ringland Winery, Australia)
Christian Canute (Rusden Winery, Australia)
Christian Roguenant (Tangent Winery, Edna Valley)
Clay Fritz (Fritz Winery, Sonoma)
Clay Mauritson (Rockpile Winery, Sonoma)
Craig Stoller (Sextant Winery, San Luis Obispo)
Cris Cherry (Villa Creek Winery, Paso Robles)
Dave Miner (Miner Family Vineyards, Napa Valley)
Dick & Jenny Dore (Foxen Vineyards, Santa Maria)
Doug Margerum (Margerum Wine Company, Los Olivos)
Eric Titus (Titus Vineyards, Napa Valley)
Fran Kysela (Kysela Imports, France)
Frank Leal (Leal Vineyards, San Benito)
Jason Haas (Tablas Creek, Paso Robles)
Jeff Gaffner (Saxon Brown, Sonoma)
Jim Fetzer (Ceago Vinegarden, Lake County)
Jon Lauer (Bryn Mawr Vineyards, Oregon)
Josh Jensen (Calera, Mt. Harlan)
Justin Baldwin (Justin Winery, Paso Robles)
Liz & Markus Bokisch (Bokisch Vineyards, Lodi)
Maria Ponzi (Ponzi Vineyards, Oregon)
Michael Keenan (Keenan, Napa Valley)
Michael Mondavi (Mondavi Family Winery, Napa Valley)
Nils Venge (Saddleback Cellars, Napa Valley)
Paul Hobbs (Paul Hobbs Winery, Napa Valley)
Pete Seghesio (Seghesio Vineyards, Sonoma)
Peter Franus (Peter Franus Winery, Napa Valley)
Peter Stolpman (Stoplman Vineyards, Santa Ynez Valley)
Phil Gregory (Vena Cava, Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico)
Phillip Baxter (Baxter Winery, Mendocino)
Randy Dunn (Dunn Vineyards, Napa Valley)
Ray Magnussen (Lechuza Vineyards, Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico)
Regina Martinelli (Martinelli Winery, Windsor)
Stephan Asseo (L’Aventure Winery, Paso Robles)
Cyril Chappellet (Chappellet Winery, Napa Valley)
Ted Plemons (Cass Winery, Paso Robles)
Tobin James (Tobin James Cellars, Paso Robles)
Trevor Jones (Trevor Jones Winery, Australia)