Long Meadow Ranch
738 Main Street, St. Helena, CA 94574
Website: http://www.longmeadowranch.com/
The tasting room for Long Meadow Ranch is near the center of downtown St. Helena next to Louis M. Martini. Although it is located off of probably the busiest area of Highway 29, the tasting room was quiet when I visited. We parked outside the white picket fence and walked along the path past a gazebo to the tasting room located inside the historic Logan-Ives House. The Logan-Ives House is a restored gothic revival farm house built in 1874. The outdoor area is shaded by trees, which makes you forget about all of the St. Helena hussle and bustle just on the other side of the property. There was a nice little picnic area outside of the tasting room. It felt more like we were visiting someone’s home than a winery.
Long Meadow Ranch has been owned by the Hall family (Ted, Laddie, and Chris) since 1989. Ted was raised in a small farming community in western PA, went to high school in Texas where he met Laddie, and started making wine along with two Stanford University classmates in 1971. That passion for making wine drove him in the 1980s to look for a place for his family to start their own winery. The Hall family bought the property in 1991 and had their first vintage in 1994. In the 20 years since the Hall family purchased the property they have created Long Meadow Ranch & Affiliates, a group of family-owned companies producing ultra-premium wine, extra virgin olive oil, grass-fed beef, and organic fruits and vegetables. The family runs a Farmers Market on the property.
Long Meadow Ranch Tasting Room
The tasting room and bar inside the Logan-Ives House is spacious. There is an area with food and gift items produced from Long Meadow’s farm. Visitors can come by to sample both wine and olive oil, no reservations are needed. There is also a family owned farm-to-table restaurant on the property. The wine and food is sourced from three estates – Mayacamas Estate, Rutherford Estate, and Long Meadow Ranch Winery estate. The family owns 650 acres in the Mayacamas.
Long Meadow Ranch Gift Shop
I did the wine and olive tasting when I visited. The tasting included 4 wines plus samples of their olive oil. I enjoyed all of the wines I tried, in particular the 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon. I found it was rich in blackberries, black cherries, and plum. It was extremely smooth. I also enjoyed the E.J. Church Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve which is 100% cabernet sauvignon produced from the highest vineyard on the property. There were only 130-140 cases produced.
This winery also offers a Mayacamas Estate or Chef’s Table experience by reservation. The Mayacamas Estate Experience includes a tour of the vineyards and caves and an introduction to some limited production estate wines. The Chef’s Table experience provides a chance to meet the estate’s chef and enjoy a multi-course meal and wine pairing.