Baiocchi Tasting Room in Sutter Creek
Baiocchi Tasting Room in Sutter Creek is one of several new tasting rooms in this Gold Country town. Baiocchi Wines‘ first vintage was 2009. Greg Baiocchi is the winemaker and his wife Sharon tends to the business and PR end of the winery. Both Greg and Sharon work the tasting room that is open Thursday through Sunday, 11am to 5 pm. Baiocchi Wines is actually located in El Dorado County in the Fair Play AVA, about 30 miles northeast of Sutter Creek. In Fair Play, the Baiocchis have 12 acres which they farm sustainably. The Baiocchis felt that their wines would receive much more attention with a tasting room in Sutter Creek. Fair Play is off the beaten path, and Sutter Creek is becoming a destination wine country town. Baiocchi is a small-production winery with an annual production of 1300 cases of wine a year. There are actually two labels, the Baiocchi label and the GB label. The latter label includes wines that are more affordable, with less oak and aging. The main focus at Baiocchi is on Rhone-style varietals and blends. In the whites, we thoroughly enjoyed the Viognier, so much so that we purchased some for home. The reds were all well made and tasty, but we thought the Sharon’s Vineyard Grenache was a pure delight. There are eight tasting rooms in Sutter Creek, and certainly the Baiocchi tasting room is one to put on your visitation list. We always enjoy a wine tasting, but when the person pouring the wine is the owner or winemaker, it is so much more educational and interesting.