Bremer Family Winery
975 Deer Park Rd, Saint Helene, CA 94574
Website: https://bremerfamilywinery.com/
Bremer Family winery is an old school winery on Howell Mountain overlooking Deer Creek. The original winery was built in 1891. At the time, the land was purchased by a Swiss couple named Emile and Mary Sutter Leuenberger for $987. Mary’s brothers built the original stone building and cellar. The Leuenbergers and Sutters sold the property in 1909 to open a larger facility on Highway 29 now known as Sutter Home Winery. The property became abandoned during Prohibition and then was bought by an Irish emigrant in 1922 for $10 in gold coin. The farm house that is still there today was built in 1922. The winery continued to change hands a couple other times until the Bremers purchased it in the 21st century and released their first wine in October 2003. Today the Bremer family owns 68 acres of vineyards with over 50 of them on Howell Mountain.
An antique truck at Bremer Family Winery
As we drove down the gravel road to the winery we were surrounded by rows of trees with pretty pink blossoms. We drove past the historic farm house and a car port with an antique truck loaded with oak barrels. This winery only offers tastings by appointment which is common for a lot of the mountain wineries. On nice days they will do tastings outside at picnic tables shaded by oak trees. It is such a peaceful setting. Our host was very gracious. He walked back and forth between the picnic tables pouring wine and talking about the history of the property and wines. The tasting was very casual. In addition to the outdoor tasting, there are a couple of indoor tasting rooms. If you select to sit outside like we did, you might get a visit from the friendly winery dog.
Outdoor tasting at Bremer Family Winery
The Bremers’ wines are definitely not old fashioned. They make high-end Bordeaux style wines with a focus on Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. They also produce Zinfandel, Chardonnay, Port and a couple of red blends. Their Claret is an ode to a French red blend of four varietals. One of their red blends is named Austintatious after their son. I thought the Cabernet Sauvignons were lovely. I also enjoyed the Claret and Zinfandel and took a few bottles home with me. I really appreciated the wines, atmosphere, and tasting experience.