Nevada County’s wine scene emerges

Winery tourism is increasingly popular in the up-and-coming Sierra Nevada region, with more organized events like the Sierra Vintners Regional Wine Trail open house and festival taking place Saturday, Sept. 24.

Wineries such as Double Oak, Sierra Sky and Solune host food and wine samplings, and the event is so popular that the vintners’ group is planning similar open houses for next spring and summer.

Part of the appeal of these festivals is the homespun mood, where winery owners and winemakers are on hand for meet-and-greets.

Yet there’s still a charming, personal mood to be enjoyed in the historic wood-and-stone building that was formerly the Miners Foundry Garage in the quaint downtown.

[...] the old garage facade remains, adjoining the newer wood cottage entry.

The best seats are on the back deck, sipping six pours ($5) from a selection of Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Gewurztraminer, Barbera, Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Petite Sirah, Sangiovese, a Rough and Ready Red blend, a Sonata white blend, and sparkling Brut.

Winemaker Mark Foster also fashions a Rüdiger Red (Zinfandel), and Rüdiger White (Chardonnay), donating 10 percent of the proceeds to the Nevada County Canine Association, which funds Rüdiger, the Nevada City Police Department’s K9 patrol dog.

Set on a 20-acre former dairy farm in the remote historic town of Rough and Ready, the all-estate-grown grapes feature interesting varieties like Marsanne, Roussanne and Cinsaut.

[...] when owners-winemakers Janet Wheeling and Henry Coufos converted the property’s old blacksmith shop into a tasting room in 2006, they were careful to maintain the charm — the old wood barns and outbuildings were kept, now converted into winemaking facilities.

[...] we’re escorted to the winery’s sprawling stone terraces for a comparative tasting of red wines paired with a small appetizer plate.

[...] we sip selections like a recent array of Petite Sirah, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Primitivo, Livedo Lot 7 (Barbera, Cabernet Franc, Petite Verdot and Petite Sirah) and Paramour (a Rhone blend of Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre and Petite Sirah).

Winemaker and co-owner Riki Pollock is Maori (the indigenous Polynesian people) from New Zealand, and he partnered with co-owners Andrea Tiernan-Pollock (his wife) and Laurie Zoulas to create a New Zealand-style tasting room in an old cottage.

Grapes are purchased from Lake County, Mendocino County and the Russian River Valley, to deliver a tasting lineup that recently included 2013 and 2014 Lake County Zinfandels, a 2013 Lake County Barbera and a 2014 Lake County Cabernet Sauvignon.

There’s no tasting fee, the deck overlooking the old red barn demands a picnic, and Pollock is an entertainer — he jokes that “it helps to have an interesting accent” as he shares stories with his customers.

Rob and Marilyn Chrisman have created a lovely salon that feels as much like a boutique shop as a tasting room.

The claim to fame is the rare grapes, such as Cristallo, Friulano, Peverella, Teroldego and the American hybrid Carmine — in fact, Rob says he worked with UC Davis in the late 1970s to introduce Russian and Italian varieties to the United States.