Murphys Wine Country
Murphys
That’s right, it’s spelled Murphys, kind of a weird name, and not that easy to get to, but one you get over those two things, you’ll probably have a great time there, just like we did. The village of Murphys is located in Calaveras County, California. How we found it was by looking at a map that showed Sacramento, the airport we were flying in to, and Yosemite, our destination for the week, and it’s about smack dab in the middle. We had a workation in Yosemite but wanted to go out the weekend before, we did a google search for wine in the region and this tiny little town was completely covered in wine glass icons. We decided that this was going to be the stop for us that weekend. We really didn’t know much about the region, so we got to searching articles and we looked at the winery sites for tasting prices and wine varietals and built a list.
Murphys is about a two to two and a half hour drive from Sacramento, Fresno, Oakland, or San Jose’s airports. That means there are plenty of options, and all of them are as bad as the other ones, so it just comes down to price and travel time for us. Sacramento usually makes the most sense because we can spend some time in Lodi on the way back to the airport, and if you can’t find a wine you like in Lodi, then you should stick to beer.
There are a number of AirBnB’s in the Murphys area, as well as a few hotels, including Murphys Historic Hotel right on Main St. In two trips out there, we stayed at Murphys Suites, which is centrally located for the area, but still required driving to get to the Main St. tasting bars. The rooms were a little dated, but we weren’t really planning on spending a lot of time in the room. The second time we went, we stayed at an AirBnB called Murphys Wine Cottage, which was right off Main St, and literally just a no-frills crash pad for our weekend. Do not book this place and complain later, the description and pictures do not lie, but if all you wanted was a place to sleep, then this is a good option.
We organized our trips to take advantage of the tasting room hours, some required reservations, others we just knew would be pretty busy with their central location. The farthest one out of town that we really liked was Ironstone Vineyards. Ironstone is one of the largest wine producers in the country, the tasting room is very large and there’s an amphitheater onsite that they have concerts at during the high season. The tasting price was very reasonable, and we got it refunded when we had a case shipped home.
Our trips up and down Main St. included a few tasting rooms that were fun but the wine wasn’t really anything we wanted to send home. Most of them had one that we liked, or the atmosphere was good. Tanner Vineyards looks like it’s in an old provisions store and we really liked the gentleman doing our wine tasting. Gossamer Cellars had a fun couple working behind the counter, they had some great stories and let us try whatever we wanted, but their wines were a little more adventurous than we were looking for. We stopped at Black Sheep Winery, not because we’d seen anything about them that we liked, but because there wasn’t anyone there. The wines were ok but the lady behind the bar was a little bit out there. Frog’s Tooth Winery was another one we just stopped in at because no one was there, their Serendipity red blend and Viognier were good but there Syrah felt like their best offering. Irish Vineyards had their Kilkenny Blend that we both liked for its spiciness. Stevenot Wine was on the far side of town, still walkable from the rest, but their wines were a bit more of a toss up with Miranda liking the Chenin Blanc. One trick we picked up between our trips was to buy the inflatable wine protectors that come with the cheap little pump. Most of the wineries wave your tasting fee if you join their club or buy a bottle. The bottle can be troublesome, but if you’ve got a way to protect it, then it does save a lot of money.
Now that we’ve gotten the ones that were better than most Missouri wineries, but not really noteworthy for the area out of the way, here’s our shouldn’t miss list:
Hatcher Winery
On our first trip to Murphys, this was the first one we really loved. There are plenty of signs, but it still feels a little awkward trying to find the place. Down a little alley next to Murphys Irish Pub, down a set of stairs, and then into a non-descript door is a cellar tasting room. Both times we’ve gone, we’ve had to wait our turn, but once you get to the tasting bar, there are tons of great choices. On the white side, their Sauvignon Blanc is crisp with a hint of sweetness and the Chardonnay being equally as crisp but more sweet. Their list of reds seems to go on and on with our favorites being the Estate Zinfandel, which had a smooth buttery finish that set the standard for us in Zins. The Reserve Barbera was also dry and smooth with some butter on the taste. We also really liked the Reserve Zin, Sewell Red, Syrah, and Port. The atmosphere was a lot of fun, great folks working behind the tasting bar, and people having fun in the stone and wood cellar that really made you feel like having another glass.
Newsome Harlow
Another two-time stop for us was Newsome Harlow, they have a small tasting room and a large patio. We were impressed by the whites here as well with the Sauvignon Blanc being similar to Hatcher’s but the Chardonnay was very buttery, almost like a red. The reds were numerous and have been a little hard to follow as we’ve received shipments since joining in 2022. Foothill Zin, Donner Party Zin, Derailed, Big John, Syrah, Petite Sirah and Meritage were all good but sometimes a little hard to tell apart after trying them all.
Hovey Winery
Somehow we missed this little gem the first time we came through the area. It’s just a small tasting room with a large outdoor area with picnic tables. The Zinfandel and C2 blends were good, big, and bold, like many of the reds we’d had in the area, but most of their wines were a little lighter. The Grenache was light, as it usually is, with hints of strawberry. The Barbera was a little floral but the Petite Sirah was dry and very smooth. The Chardonay continued a trend of non-offensive whites that we would end up getting more of.
Vina Moda
This tiny little stone building was a little rundown looking on the outside but was a nicely decorated small tasting room on the inside. We didn’t go the second time because the place had a line out the door, so if you can get in, it’s certainly worth a try. We really liked the Vinas, Grenache, and Barbera. All of them were very smooth and buttery, just a little bit different on the heavy to light scale. The Phoenix was good as well, but those three stood out well above the rest.
Milliaire Winery
Another winery we didn’t pay much attention to the first time we came to Murphys was Milliaire Winery. The second time we liked it well enough to join their wine club. The tasting room is cozy but they make good use of the space, there’s also a patio out back. We liked their Pinot Noir and they had a number of Zins that have made them hard to tell them apart. We liked their Amado County, Calaveras County, and Old Vine Zins. We also found their Calaveras County Barbera to be smooth, crisp, and spicy.
Food
One cannot live on wine alone, and over the course of two weekends, we managed to try a few places in town. For breakfast we ate at both Grounds and Murphys Historic Hotel. You can’t go wrong with either one of them, our vote would probably be Grounds, but the hotel did have a pretty amazing Redwood tree table outside.
For lunch/dinner we went to Firewood twice, their pizza is fantastic and somehow the fish tacos were really good too.
What ElsE
Eating and drinking options are everywhere, but there are a few other highlights while visiting the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Calaveras Big Trees State Park couldn’t be more aptly named. We got to experience it with a little bit of snow on the ground, which made the hiking chilly and slippery but added something different to our pictures.
One day Murphys might be as overrun as Napa, Sonoma, or Columbia Valley, but for the next few years, we hope it keeps it’s small-town charm. We asked around and found out that, during the peak season, it is pretty crowded along Main St. It’s an easy weekend getaway for Sacramento and the Bay Area. It requires an extra day or two to be worth the flight out for us, but it’s totally worth it.