Winery of the Month
September 2022
Simas Family Vineyard | Capay Valley, CA
Yolo County is home to a diverse landscape and an exceptional community. Take a trip to the Northwest corner of the county and you’ll find yourself amongst mountains, farms, and breathtaking scenery. This is the Capay Valley where lavender, honey, olive oil, and unique, small wineries thrive.
It is worth making a wine tasting trip to Capay. Relaxing, low-key atmospheres, excellent local wines, and more often than not, a winery owner or winemaker will be nearby to stop in on your tasting and say hello. And if you’re ready to experience a true local, family-owned and operated winery, Simas Family Vineyard should be at the top of your list.
Simas Family Vineyard, located just after Taber Ranch but before Séka Hills and Capay Valley Vineyards, brings authentic winemaking to the forefront. Beginning in 2007, the winery started with the family and a few friends picking grapes and making wine in their garage. Since then, the winery has grown and now partners with Urban Legend in Alameda to custom crush their grapes and to produce their refreshing wines.
Guests can enjoy their wines at pop-up style wine tastings that are open to all on weekends when a large community event is happening (such as the Yolo County Wine Ramble or the Almond Festival in February). The family produces several Rhône varieties that thrive in the Capay Valley climate, including a Grenache Blanc that is a Summertime (or heatwave) favorite.
Q&A WITH SIMAS FAMILY VINEYARD
Q: How many acres of vineyards do you farm? Do you farm any other crops?
A: We farm 5 acres of wine grapes and grow exclusively Rhone varietals. In addition to grapes, we have a lot of chickens on our farm as Bonnie Simas is in the egg business!
Q: What wine varietals do you specialize in?
A: We began with the idea of making only two wines: a white blend and a red blend. We soon realized that blends are not everyone's “cup of tea”. So we started making single variety wines, including a Marsanne and a Mourvèdre.
Q: Why is your winery unique?
A: We do not have a common tasting room that is open on a regular basis. Instead, we offer pop-up style wine tastings when the weather is nice, or when another event is happening in the community. We host our pop-up tastings underneath a gorgeous oak tree on our property, where you are likely to run into our son, Mason, who pours our wine!
Stay up to date with Simas Family Vineyards pop-up tastings and events via Facebook, Instagram, or purchase a bottle (or two!) from their website to enjoy at home!