You never know what someone might come up with when you ask, “What’s the most bizarre, memorable, funny or romantic moment you’ve witnessed in a tasting room?” Here are some of the answers we received.
Twilight Zone
On October 28, 2009, fans of the movie “Twilight” came to Ceja Vineyards’ wine tasting salon. They were all dressed in costume and had brought a life-size picture of the vampire Edward Cullen—it was fun and bizarre at the same time.
My son, Ariel Ceja, was working that day and he had the guests take this picture.
Amelia Morán Ceja, president
Popping Corks—and Questions
Because we have such a phenomenal view—not to mention amazing wines—I’ve witnessed several proposals here at Sbragia Family Vineyards.
One time, while serving and pouring wines at the tasting bar, I greeted a group of about eight or 10 people that had an appointment with us early in the day. They were all very jovial and enjoying their visit. I’d just poured the second wine for the group when one of them handed me a camera so I could get a group shot.
Just as she did that, one of the gentlemen droped to his knee while opening a ring box. His girlfriend’s eyes flew open wide as he began to propose. I was thinking, “Oh, so sweet.” Then, I realized I had the camera! I started snapping pictures. It appeared everyone was surprised, not just the bride-to-be (who replied, “Yes, oh yes!” over and over). It was an honor to be a part of such a beautiful and memorable moment.
Another time, I’d watched as a couple were obviously enjoying themselves out at the peak of our terrace. The afternoon was perfect. They were getting closer in their respective seats—about as close as two chairs at a table can be.
Closing time (5 p.m.) came and went. We decided to close softly and let them have their moment. About 15 minutes or so later, I started to walk out toward the peak to give them a 10-minute warning. As I got about 15 feet away from them, down to his knee he went. Whoop—I turned around and went back in the building to give them privacy. When they came back inside, we all congratulated them and remarked at what a beautiful ring it was and how happy they looked.
Another time, one of the local hotels called to say that they were sending a couple up to visit who’d arrive with picnic basket and blanket in hand. (The plan was he was going to propose to her that day and wanted a romantic vineyard with a view to relax in while they picnicked and he proposed.)
They arrived, we welcomed them, sold them a bottle of wine and up into the vineyard they went. It was approaching 5 p.m. and they came back into the tasting room. She was beaming and crying; he was beaming, too.
Again, we all marveled at the moment. And, as usual, we presented them with a bottle of “La Promessa” Zinfandel with the date on it, and had it signed by the winemaker (La Promessa means “The Promise” in Italian).
Peggy Lord , wine club manager
Nice Tip
I once poured a sample of wine for nice lady who then took a $1 bill from her purse and with a sincere “thank you,” tossed it in the dump bucket on the tasting room bar.
Amber Moshin
Barrel of Fun
We’ve had an engagement at our winery (most romantic) and, for Halloween one year, we had a group of tasters dressed as the characters in “Wizard of Oz.”
We’ve also had an old bus from the ’70s with the destination “Buffalo, N.Y.” on the front. The bus was full of barrel tasters, very drunk. They must have been from San Francisco. The girls were squatting in the vineyard to pee and one guy stood on the bumper like Robin Williams did in the movie “RV.” Then a drunk guy was holding onto the windshield wipers as the bus was backing out of our driveway to finally leave. It was quite a show at the end of a barrel tasting Saturday 10 years ago! (Obviously, we didn’t serve any of them, nor did they care; as they were too drunk to know the difference).
Tracy Dutton, president
Promise Kept
In spring 2009, I was working in the visitors center and hosted a group of five young Japanese men who were in Napa for two years studying to become pilots. They were so grateful and happy, they bought some Schramsberg to take home to share with their families in Japan. Then they asked if they could get a picture with me and, when they left, they made a promise to come back and visit me in five years when they’d become pilots.
To my surprise and delight, they returned in May 2014. We were hosting our annual spring Cellar Club party, themed “Hollywood Comes To Schramsberg,” so I was in costume dressed as Elizabeth Taylor as Cleopatra.
The now-pilots were greeted by our valet, Devon Fernandez. They asked if I was working and if they could see me. Devon came in to tell me there were some young men in the parking lot asking to see me. To my surprise, there were three of the young men who’d made a promise to me five years before! To their surprise, here I was dressed as Cleopatra. They even brought me a beautiful, traditional Japanese flower vase. One of them was about to be married and said he’d be honored to serve Schramsberg at his wedding, so he took some back to Japan with him.
They kept their promise, and now have promised to visit me again in five more years.
Kelly Duarte, wine educator
Thirsty?
While wine blending and barrel tasting at Judd’s Hill Winery, Verve Napa Valley owner, T Beller, got a lesson from winemaker Kenn Vigoda on how to siphon wine from a barrel. As you can see, it went very smoothly. T has never been afraid to laugh at herself! Verve is a curated Wine Country tour and Destination Management Company located in Napa.
Emma Kruch Morris
Meant to Be
You just never know : Two separate couples visited the winery from Kansas City, Mo. One couple recently relocated from the Chicago area and was talking about their “new neighbors” and how they were very excited for the move. After chatting through the tasting, the other couple asked where in Kansas City they moved to, and the other couple said, “We just moved to XX street.” The ones who asked looked astonished and said, “We live on that street, where exactly are you?” The couples lived two doors down from each other! The group had a chuckle and someone else made a comment, “Good thing you didn’t say anything bad about your neighbors!”
The love for Jordan: A party of four I hosted was visiting for a library tasting. One couple was from Southern California and other was from Atlanta, Georgia. The couples had met two years prior when the California couple was trying to smuggle more wine than allowed onto a seven-day cruise. The Georgia couple heard the clinking and approached. When they opened their bag, they saw they had six bottles of Jordan wine to bring on the cruise. So the Georgia couple said, “We love Jordan, we can help get that in!” They became fast friends from that trip and, two years later, came to Jordan Winery together.
Quick funnies:
• We have Boston Ivy (part of the grape family) growing on the side of the building. A couple visiting Wine Country for the first time asked, “Is that how you grow and pick grapes?”
• “Do you actually add cherries and blackberries to your wines?”
• “Chardonnay is harvested before Cabernet right? So that means you pick the grapes before they turn red right?”
• “We saw you’re open by appointment only, but we can we make an appointment for right now?”
Lisa Mattson, marketing and communications director
Fine Feathered Friends
The only really “appropriate” story we can share is a woman walked in and asked if we were pet-friendly. We answered yes. She went outside and then returned with her bird on her shoulder.
Debra Mathy, proprietor
Room with a View
Our Fort Ross Vineyard tasting room [which overlooks the Sonoma Coast] was described as “lavishly Spartan”—a sly and poetic contrapuntal concept—and music to a minimalist’s ears.
Linda Schwartz
