Experienced wine tasters know the scene. You drive up to a winery. You’re mesmerized by the building. It’s beautiful, the gardens are lovingly cared for, everything is pristine and you can’t wait to get tasting. You’ve heard great things about this winery’s Cabernet.
Oh…but wait, there’s the bar. It’s packed and there doesn’t seem to be room to stand. The young guy behind the bar is chatting up some ladies at the far end. How can you get his attention? Why is the person next to you crowding you out all the while talking on his cell phone. Is this what wine country is supposed to be about?
Back in April of this year, we at Michel Schlumberger decided the answer to that question was decidedly no. To back up a little, we’ve always been a bit informal in our approach to tasting. Our winery was originally constructed as a private residence so it’s not your typical “tasting room”. It’s more like a house and we taste out on the back terrace, in the courtyard, in the kitchen, in the living room. We like to think of tasting as a relaxing experience above all.
With that same intention we converted our formal dining room into a salon with multiple tables where guests can actually sit down and, without the hustle and bustle of a roadhouse bar, taste the fruits of our labor. Our knowledgable staff will pour three or four wines for you, talk about them if you like, but more than anything our aim is to give you a chance to try our wines without having to elbow your way back and forth to a bar. After you’ve tasted it’s always nice to go check out our estate vegetable garden. It’s in full bloom this time of year and we’ll even throw in a tomato or two with your tasting!
