Looking for somewhere fun to visit in Northern California? The MacPhail Family Wines Tasting Room at The Barlow in Sebastopol is both a delicious and eco stop on your wine tasting travels.
If you’re like me and enjoy taking the family on adventures during the winter break, then you will want to put the MacPhail Family Wine Tasting Room at The Barlow on your list of places to hit. The tasting room has many things to offer. Of course, it goes without saying that the primary visit to visit is the wonderful artisanal, sustainably framed wine. Winemaker James MacPhail makes great Pinot Noir and small lots of Chardonnay that are regulars on my table. MacPhail’s wine imminently drinkable and they make great house gifts. As an aside, MacPhail has some wonderful, rare gift packs wine trios that anyone would love to receive. All trios are packaged in gift boxes and include a personalized handwritten card.
But, its not just the wine at the MacPhail Tasting Lounge @ The Barlow. The entire room is includes decor that is recycled, repurposed, or reimagined. Oak slabs for the main bar are salvaged from large fallen oak trees from a Calistoga ranch. The wood that clads the lounges, the beams that hold the shelves and the exterior table tops are repurposed barrel racks salvaged from the Steltzner Vineyards wine caves. A recycled oil drum chandelier and a grand sculpture of crushed red wagons made by artist Richard Von Saaladorn adorn the tasting room.
Finally, the tatting room is part of a wonderful shopping complex, The Barlow. A unique retail experience that houses a community market, boutique shops and even a hair salon, The Barlow is notably the first business community in the U.S. to “focus on connecting customers with products and the people who make them, and also with the production itself.” At The Barlow you can taste the finest local coffee, wine, beer and spirits and you can watch the production process while you sip. At art galleries you can get up close and personal with the art while the artist paints. Restaurants serve fresh, farm-to-table cuisine sourced from local farmers and producers. And, of course, there’s wonderful wine to be tasted at MacPhail Family Wines Tasting Room.
