Last Friday marked the end of harvest. We pressed our very last lot, Fenaughty Syrah, in the morning and were in the mood to celebrate. It also happened to be Halloween and Carrie had been wanting to visit Boeger Winery for some time, so off we went. That place is special to both of us. I was working there when I met Carrie at the Amador County Fair Wine Tasting She was pouring Windwalker and I, Boeger. But that story’s for another time.
We walked down to the Boeger tasting room and were immediately struck by the landscaping… dwarf smoke bushes with unusually large leaves glowing in the autumn light. Wade, the tasting room manager, couldn’t have been kinder. He poured us whatever we wanted to try and filled our visit with thoughtful details about the wines, including both his favorites and winemaker Justin’s.
We fell for the Falanghina white and the Nero D’Avola red, which I think was their first bottling of that grape. Back when I worked there, tastings were held in the old 150-year-old cellar and they even made Rhone varieties including a smooth blend called Majeure. These days they’re leaning more into Italian varieties alongside the classics.
The standout for me was, as always, their Estate Barbera. It’s beautifully balanced, not over-oaked, just letting the fruit sing. If you haven’t been to Boeger, you really should go. It’s the first post-Prohibition winery in El Dorado County, the wines are terrific, and the grounds are spectacular, complete with a year-round stream and a redwood-studded picnic area.
With a couple bottles (12 to be exact) tucked under our arms we headed back toward Main Street Placerville, knowing trick-or-treating would be underway later. With our youngest now a high school senior, Halloween is kind of in our rearview mirror so it felt good to soak in the festive energy again.
We stopped by Dedrick’s Cheese where our daughter was working. All three of our kids have put in their time there at some point. (Winemakers’ daughters slinging gourmet cheese seems like something out of a Hallmark movie!) We admired her Hawaiian costume, grass skirt and all. Then we grabbed a seat at Carolina’s for nachos and a couple of drinks. The people-watching on Main Street that day was unbeatable.
By the time we left Carolina’s the sun was low and the streets were alive with ghosts, superheroes and the sound of “the costume contest will begin at 6” over a loud-speaker. We ended up at Cappelli Winery where Carrie’s good friend was pouring. Marco Cappelli has set up something unique there: wines bottled right on site that you can bring back for refills at a discount. I’m still not sure how he makes the math work but it’s a brilliant idea for wine enthusiasts of all tastes. Carrie went for the sparkling and I was taken by the Dolcetto. That grape grabbed me when we were in Italy’s Piedmont region where Nebbiolo is king and Barbera the crown prince, but Dolcetto always stands out for its freshness, complexity and value.
We actually met Marco years ago when he was selling a bottling line at Napa’s Swanson Winery, where he made wine. We didn’t end up buying it but we were happily surprised when he showed up in our tasting room a couple years later, having purchased the historic Herbert Vineyard. He later became winemaker at Miraflores just down the road from us.
Seeing him that day at Cappelli made me chuckle inside. He was in the back slinging pizzas and honestly that’s exactly what I’d want to be doing too (and often am at our place).
We made it home before dark, no trick-or-treaters this far out. But days like that make my heart feel good.
Cheers,
Josh Bendick, Co-winemaker
