Vineyard to open Santa Cruz Mountains redwood grove for tastings

Everything about the 20-acre winery property that Los Gatos resident Dan Lokteff and his wife Molly procured in 2009 and lovingly restored preserves a little bit of record.

They named their vineyard Wrights Station, keeping alive the custom of hospitality for which this previous halt on the railroad from Los Gatos to Santa Cruz was once famed. The signal arm on the label pays tribute to the railroad and all people who operated it to retain the movement of people coming to this station, which after boasted a energetic lodge and cafe, and likely a number of saloons.

The city of Wrights, which dates to 1879, was named for the guy who proven vineyards, orchards and a stagecoach resort on this website. With nearly 3,200 acres of fruit—mostly plums and grapes—in the Summit area in the 19th century, Wrights turned an crucial freight station for acquiring items to market place.

This area was once lauded for the excellent of its table grapes, such as Flame Tokay, Black Cornichon, Verdal, Emperor, White and Black Muscat, Black Ferrera, Morocco, Thompson’s Seedless, Royal Isabella and Malvoise. According to an Oct. 17, 1903 edition of the Pacific Rural Push, “The main marketplaces in which these desk grapes are sold are Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, New Orleans, Denver, San Antonio and Galveston (Texas), the City of Mexico and Montreal. This wide distribution of the Wrights table vineyard merchandise sufficiently attests the esteem in which they are held and the large demand there is for them.”

Right now, the Wrights Station vineyard is planted completely to chardonnay and pinot noir, with neighboring vineyards supplying cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, Sangiovese and zinfandel to include to the roster of wines presented.

Whilst the station is prolonged absent, some of the tracks even now continue being, alongside with the remnants of the 1.5-mile tunnel concluded in 1880 by Chinese laborers. For the duration of Globe War II, fearing invasion by the Japanese, locals crammed in this and other railway tunnels to discourage their use as enemy hideaways.

The Lokteffs turned the lovely old 1940s farmhouse on the site into a welcoming tasting place, which includes a cozy living home with couches and chairs and a glassed-in porch with a panoramic watch of the house and past.

What was in the past a chinchilla farm and then a horse barn turned the vineyard what was a dog operate and horseshoe pit grew to become the crush pad. The barn’s equestrian earlier is echoed in the stunning barn doorways finish with time period-searching hinges and latches. Out front are aged horse tie-ups. Inside of, the metal stall outlines continue being, developing a problem for going barrels in and out, but supplying the excellent pillars for wrapping sparkling lights for intimate wine dinners. Overhead, chandeliers fashioned from barrels provide the excellent ambiance.

But it is the lovely secluded redwood grove on the assets that Dan Lokteff has been working on for the past 10 a long time that will turn into the focal position of events and club member tastings heading ahead. The grove is established to open to the public on June 19 for Father’s Day.

“It has taken a village of Wrights Station employees to set up this fantastic new

“Along with Dan and Molly, our new challenge supervisor is in charge of phase 2 of Wrights Station,” states basic manager Carol Martin. “Danielle (Dani) Fazzolari, has been operating 12-hour days for a number of weeks to make this materialize.”

Martin notes that tasting home manager Maggie McMahon, volunteer Martin Palma and the entire winery crew labored to build a welcoming house that will be used for each private and general public functions.

“We are scheduling dinners and lunches with chefs like Diego Felix, with whom we are partnering for a evening meal in August,” she provides.

A soft opening for club members was prepared for the initially weekend of June, then the grove will be open up for general public tastings on Sundays, commencing with Father’s Working day.  Said tastings will be poured at a redwood bar and will operate $40 by reservation to

Sundays in the Redwoods will e-book at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. for two-hour time slots. Picnic lunches are welcome, except on days when special foods and wine pairings will be served.

Use cozy sneakers, as finding to the redwood grove demands a winery stroll through slight mountain terrain. Tastings will include a weekly range by winemaker Dan Lokteff.  The grove will be open up on Sundays till September, when it will develop into a personal event venue till following time.

Wrights Station Vineyard is found at 24250 Loma Prieta Way, Los Gatos. E mail dani@wrightsstation.com for aid with booking the Grove for non-public activities.