Mile Marker 17.45… Stairway to Heaven
Esterlina Vineyards & Winery is off the beaten path. Actually, it’s on little more than a path, but it makes for an incredible wine tasting experience overlooking the Anderson Valley.
“There is no road sign, just drive until you reach mile marker 17.45 and then turn up the dirt road. See you at eleven thirty.”
These were the last words of instruction Dan, the tasting room attendant at Esterlina Vineyards & Winery gave me when I called to make an appointment for a tasting. An hour earlier we were making small talk with the owner of the Agate Cove Inn explaining the types of wineries we were interested in visiting. “Think about Esterlina. You have to call ahead to make an appointment, they are way up on a hill with great views of the valley.” Not much to go on but it was enough to pique our interest. After a beautiful drive through redwood forests along Route 128 we entered the Anderson Valley wine region and we made the call.
The view across the Anderson Valley from our tasting deck at Esterlina Vineyard & Winery.
Sure enough, at mile marker 17.45 was a dirt road heading up… and up… and up. Two miles of washboard roads and 20+ percent grades. We wondered if this was the road; was our GPS hoodwinked (again)? Soon enough a small sign for the winery peeked out - we had arrived.
Dan greeted us as we pulled into the driveway of a nondescript duo of home-like buildings. As it turns out one was the home of the owners, the other a two story conversion into a tasting balcony, retail space, and warehouse. Moments later our tasting partners arrived - Pat and Nicki from Cincinnati.
“Here’s the tasting sheet - four wines on one side four on the other and a couple of pens because we’re going to taste wines off the list so you’ll have to write your own notes. By the way, there are dump buckets on the table and I expect you to use them. I’m going to pour a lot of wine today.” These last words were ample warning that at Esterlina weekend winetasting warriors were not tolerated and that if we didn’t behave, then the tasting would end. Message delivered, message received.
Sitting on a deck with new-found friends, high above the Anderson Valley floor overlooking the vineyards and facing hills on a 70 degree cloudless day, being poured fabulous wines, educated on the brand and wildly entertained by Dan, our host. Not bad, eh? Esterlina is not a winery you happen upon - it’s a planned destination, and you have to want to be here. Come here and you won’t be fed gibberish about wine competition awards, or words of greatness. You’ll be fed insights, humorous conversation from an employee who doesn’t take himself or the business too seriously and cheese puffs. Yes, cheese puffs, not wine crackers or artisnal breads. (Read about the cheese puffs in this article - and good backstory on the winery.)
Dan leads us through the wine selections from the tasting deck.
About an hour into the tasting we hit a halftime of sorts - Dan insisted we take a few moments to simply enjoy the Cabernet Sauvignon just poured before moving on. This moment epitomized what was meant to be - a wine experience that goes beyond what’s in the glass but what extends beyond into the day, the time, the place, and the people. It was good moment; all things in a delicate balance.
This serendipitous moment, more like a two hour event to be exact, was why I came to California. We pushed beyond the veneer of overly commercialized tasting “villas” to find people interested in making good wine and sharing it with new friends. Esterlina was the climb to the mountaintop, the stairway to California tasting heaven. Only a select few, somehow chosen by Bacchus himself, would be inspired to find this mecca on the hilltop overlooking the panorama of the beautiful Anderson Valley.
Only one winery stop today. Esterlina was a complete day.
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