Impromptu Visit to the Old Sugar Mill Yields Some Fun Finds

The Old Sugar Mill, Clarksburg, CA

An impromptu trip the Old Sugar Mill in Clarksburg this weekend yielded some pleasant surprises. I’d heard good things about this historic spot that features a collection of winery tasting rooms, but this was my first time there.

The Old Sugar Mill buildings were actually constructed in the 1910s in Ogden, Utah, and then disassembled and shipped by train in the mid-1930s to their present location, where they were reassembled into a sugar beet processing mill that operated from the late 1930s until 1992. During that period, what is now the main corridor for visitors, into which all the wineries open, was a railroad track. Trains would come right through the center of the main building and workers would load bags of sugar onto cargo cars for transport.

Today the Old Sugar Mill is a beautiful relic from a past era featuring an eclectic mix of wineries specializing in several different varietals. I got to visit three (Carvalho Family Winery, Elevation Ten Winery, and the owners of the facility, Clarksburg Wine Company) of the eight tasting rooms in my short visit there, and I plan to return to complete the circuit sometime soon. The Old Sugar Mill is also a popular wedding spot, and various other events throughout the year bring in families and tourists as well.

Some quick notes on the three wineries I visited:

Carvalho Boat Shed Red

Carvalho Family Winery: Carvalho serves primarily whites, and very light ones at that. I’m generally speaking not a huge white wine fan, particularly of sauvignon blancs and the like, but on occasion they can be a refreshing change from the heavier reds I prefer. To my surprise, the Picnic Blanc – a blend of Chenin Blanc and Suavignon Blanc – was my favorite of the white being poured. I picked up a bottle of this to pour at my next wine gathering. I also enjoyed the Boat Shed Red, a red blend with a great story behind it. A dozen years ago the first wine produced by the Carvalho family was done in the old boat house right on the Sacramento River on the back side of the Old Sugar Mill property. The sample I had was from the fourth lot of this wine (2006), which bears its name in tribute to its site of origin as the first wine the family made. In all, the Carvalho wines I tasted, white and red alike (I skipped the ports this visit), are very light and would be nice accompaniments for a summer day on the patio. For light white wine drinkers, there are a few to choose from here, particularly the Picnic Blanc. For bolder red fans like myself, this probably isn’t the spot for you.

Elevation Ten: A friend had recommended this winery, so I made sure to stop in here for some sampling.  I was wondering if all the Clarksburg wines were light and simple. I was happy to find that there indeed are significant differences between each winery. Elevation Ten features just couple of traditional whites, a Chardonnay and a Sauvignon Blanc, alongside its full run of reds and dessert wines.

Elevation Ten 2009 Proprietor’s Blend

The two dessert wines I tasted, a 2007 After Ten Port and a 2009 Semillon, were very pleasing. The Semillon, a wonderfully honey-colored white, lived up to its billing, boasting honey and vanilla scents and taste. The Port was on the other end of the spectrum, a rich, tasty, thick red that would pair wonderfully with the right chocolate. Among the traditional reds, my favorite was the Proprietor’s Blend, a mix of my two favorite varietals, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. This alone was well worth the visit, and I brought a bottle home to enjoy this fall. The Cabernet Sauvignon was also worth a taste (and yes I also bought a bottle of this), but for me the Proprietor’s Blend was the best of the lot.

Clarksburg Wine Company 2010 Petite Sirah

Clarksburg Wine Company: I wandered in this tasting room at the end of the corridor just a bit before closing time, and I’m glad I found my way in here. It turns out this is a very young label, although the company has been crushing grapes and producing wines for other labels for many years. The wide variety of wines here far surpassed the other wineries in variety. That’s not necessarily a good sign, as being a jack of all trades certainly can lead to being a master of none, but this actually is a very promising label. I stuck with just the reds for this tasting – one tasting here allows you your choice of eight tastes from throughout a menu of reds and white that is double that (so being selective is good!).

Although these wines are indeed very young, there are a couple that show great promise. The 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve is very pleasing – soft tannins and a smooth finish. The 2010 Remenance – an intriguing blend of four different reds – was very enjoyable. Wonderful bouquet and again a very smooth finish. The biggest surprise was the 2010 Petite Sirah. The richness of this wine was evident in the glass. Virtually no light gets through when you hold this up, and it clings to the sides of the glass and you roll it around. Just a wonderful, thick texture. Though these are all just in the bottle a short time, they’re enjoyable now. However, I’ll be stashing these away for awhile. I look forward to seeing how they are with some appropriate aging.

A brilliant fall sunset over the Clarksburg vineyards completed the scene perfectly.

I’m looking forward to a return trip to Clarksburg. Aside from five more wineries at the Old Sugar Mill to try, there are some other wineries nearby to visit, including both larger, more commercial  names like Bogle and some smaller family wineries like River Grove. And of course there’s some breathtaking scenery to enjoy. If you’re in the Sacramento region and looking for a nice escape to a pastoral setting from the past, this is a great spot to try.