Shenandoah Valley in the Sierra Foothills – Fall Colors

Sutter Creek Theater and other boutiques on Main Street

Is Sutter Creek the best wine town in the Sierra Foothills?

Here are some reasons why we think it is.

Close to wineries

Sutter Creek is 20 minutes away from the Shenandoah Valley in the Plymouth area. There are over 40 wineries in this area of Amador County.  The wineries are mostly small and family owned. Most of the wineries are open from Thursday to Sunday, but several others are open daily. This wine country features some lovely side country roads lined with oak trees, grasslands and vineyards. For more wine adventures, travelers can head into the Fair Play wine region of El Dorado County. There are 19 wineries there, and many feature Rhone-style wines. Our favorite wineries are listed in our Sierra Foothills Wine Routes.

Excellent B&B’s

Sutter Creek offers many choices in B&B accommodations. Leading the way is the newly-remodeled Hanford House Inn. Owners Robert and Athena Gordon are wonderful hosts. Other B&B’s include the Eureka Street Inn and the Grey Gables Inn.  The Hotel Sutter has also recently been remodeled and has a lively bar and restaurant.

Tasting Room Row

In this small town, there are nine tasting rooms. They have their own Website, Sutter Creek Wine on Main, with complete visiting details. We like Yorba, Scott Harvey and Baiocchi. We really have not had much chance to visit the others, but I would guess they are also good. On Thursday, Yorba stays open until 7 pm. Beginning at 5 pm,  catered food from Lucy’s Spice Box is featured along with the great Yorba wines.

A historic gold mining town

Sutter Creek is where the gold discoveries began in California. There are lots of historic treasures, and visitors can take a tour of some of the old mining caves. If you are a California history buff, you will find plenty to do in the Sutter Creek area. The Sutter Creek Association has a complete list of the tours and historic gold mining sites.

Boutique shops

Even though the town is all of three blocks long, you can spend a lazy afternoon visiting many boutique shops loaded with knick-knacks, antiques, artworks and other goodies. Sandwich in a couple of wine tasting visits while browsing the cool shops.

Gourmet Dining

The Hotel Sutter and Susan’s Place are the top dining spots for now. But soon, the Element Restaurant at the Hanford House Inn will be serving gourmet dinners. Hanford House presently serves a fantastic breakfast.  I am sure that we can expect some delicious dinner meals by mid Spring. Additionally, there are the Sutter Creek Cheese Shoppe, Sutter Creek Provisions and Cavana’s Deli for gourmet items not found at the local markets.

The town of Volcano and Daffodil Hill

Volcano is an even smaller town 13 miles from Sutter Creek. Up in Volcano is the St. George Hotel. It is a historic place with an old saloon and restaurant. It is a fun spot. There is also the Union Inn and Pub. From late March to mid-April (depending on the weather), Daffodil Hill is a huge attraction. See our article on our visit there in late Feb.

Amador Flower Farm

While wine tasting in the Shenandoah Valley, mix in a trip to the finest garden nursery in Amador County. It’s the Amador Flower Farm on Shenandoah School Road.  They have a wide variety of flowers, plants, and trees available.  They also have a good selection of garden-related merchandise for sale.

Sutter Creek Slide Show

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The slide show gives you a quick glance at all the interesting and exciting things you can do in and around Sutter Creek. Sutter Creek is on the rise and it is destined to become one of the more popular wine country towns in California.

Something missing?

Did we miss something? An attraction, restaurant or lodging? Please post in the comment section. Even though Sutter Creek is small, there is always something new each time we visit.