Boa Ventura de Caires Winery, May 11, 2013

Winery - 3 / Wines - 6
Range:  1 to 9 (9 is best, 5 is average)
Authentically rustic, family-oriented site.  Well-suited for picnics.  Many wine varietals.
boaventuravineyard.com

Boa Ventura de Caires Winery is so authentically rustic that it would be nearly impossible to replicate.  The winery is clearly a family run farming operation with a winery operation installed in the main barn.  The barn is rustic yet sturdy and sets a family-oriented mood.  Because this is such a small operation, the tasting room is only open on the first weekend of every month.  (Check ahead in January and September.)  By joining the winery’s mailing list, you can get advanced notice of when the tasting room will be open other weekends.  As this was Mother’s Day weekend, they sent out an e-mail earlier in the week announcing they would be open.  Since we were already in Livermore Valley for the afternoon, we decided to stop by.



The winery operations in the barn at Boa Ventura Vineyard

 The Boa Ventura winery offers an ideal setting to enjoy a warm afternoon in the sun.  The barn is surrounded by two yards set up with picnic tables.  There is a bocce-ball court set up along the side of the main barn.  And children will enjoy the large cage holding some of the farm’s animals, including a few chickens.  The owners have a few good-natured dogs that like to hang around the dog-lovers in the crowd.  (Don’t worry … if you’re a dog lover, the dogs will find you.)  Inside the barn you’ll find a long, low tasting bar running along one end of the tasting room, and a few chairs and a table with great cheeses along the other.  The tasting room feels narrow when a crowd develops, but is otherwise comfortable.  Rustic remains the theme with a stamped concrete floor, old redwood siding, and some of the funnier signage that I have seen in the area.  (One sign reads “Unattended children will be given espresso and a free kitten.”)  A few works by local artists also adorn the upper walls of the tasting room.  If you are visiting during the winter months, dress to keep yourself warm as there is no insulation.


The rustic tasting room at Boa Ventura Vineyard

The Boa Ventura tasting menu is long, so be prepared to spend a couple of hours here to let your body process the quantity of wine, or select a handful of their wines for your flight.  I started with the 2012 White Table Wine, which is a blend of Albarino, Sauvignon Blanc, and Muscat (which I describe as a cab-drinker’s white).  Next I opted for the 2009 Red Mutt blend, the 2009 Petite Sirah, the 2009/10 Platinum Label Cabernet, the 2009 Blue Label Cabernet, and the 2008 Maroon Label Cabernet.  (I skipped the Syrah and the Green and Black label cabs.)  Although the Maroon Label Cabernet offers the best body and richness, my favorite from this flight was the Platinum Label Cabernet for its balance of fruit and minerals.

Based on this experience, I would rate the winery as a 3 and the wines offered as a 6.  This is consistent with my previous visits.