Thursday, February 18, 2010

Wine Country Sky Shots

Did you think I meant Napa? No, this is
Gold Country/Wine Country.
We had blue skies and a few high clouds this week when we visited.
Several areas in the Sierra foothills have vineyards and wineries and recently
we went to some in Plymouth, Amador County, California.
Whose that peeking at us from behind the tree.
Mama Giraffe and her little one.

Each of the wineries has a distinctive character. We like this one for its great views and metal sculptures for sale. We bring a picnic and eat under the oaks while looking out at the hills and vineyards.
It makes a nice outing even if you don't drink wine. Many have nice gift shops and lovely grounds.
If you do like to taste, most of the wineries here don't charge a tasting fee as wineries do in the more popular regions and the wine here is quite good.
You can find more amazing skies at Sky Watch Friday, hosted for us each week by Klaus, Sandy, Wren, Fishing Guy and Sylvia.

28 comments:

Carolyn Ford said...

Fabulous skies just for your visit there! I love the giraffe peaking through the bare tree...wine country is a treat to spend time. We have Temecula down by us. We also visit Los Olivos north of Santa Barbara for a day trip. We are so lucky to have more fine days than not, out here in California!

Unknown said...

The skies in each photo are such a lovely shade of blue. Cool giraffes. Hmmm. I wonder what the connection between wine and giraffes is.

Yogi♪♪♪ said...

That looks like a great place for a picnic.

Noelle Johnson said...

I love the old, twisted grape vines. You can see how beautiful their branches are when they are leafless. A wonderful photo.

Diane AZ said...

Fantastic sky, grape vines and giraffes, fun post!

Gaelyn said...

Beautiful blue skies. Love the giraffes. There's a place here in my neighborhood that has a yard full of metal sculpture animals, including a giraffe reaching over the fence and a Giant dinasoaur. What a fun place to go for a picnic, and tasting if you choose.

Sylvia K said...

Gorgeous skies, Martha! When I first saw the giraffe peaking through the tree I thought I was seeing things! So glad it really was one even if was a metal one! Great post for the day. Hope you had a lovely trip and have a great weekend!

Sylvia

Lew said...

Delightful creatures in your beautiful skies! The wineries do know haw to show off there spots in this world.

Photo Cache said...

beautiful skies.

rain is forecasted tomorrow :(

www.ewok1993.wordpress.com

joo said...

Looks like perfect place to visit! Lovely photos:)
Greetings:)

Joanne Olivieri said...

Love the sculptures, it gives the winery a unique feel and character. Wine tasting is always so much fun and a special treat.

Eaglesbrother said...

Kewl photo's.

eden said...

Great photos of grapevines and giraffe. Looks like a beautiful day.

eileeninmd said...

Lovley skies and the giraffes sculpture are cool! Great photos!

Paulie said...

oh! I love that giraffe! I would love to place that on the grounds here looking into someone's window. hehehe Sounds like a nice place to visit and picnic!

Anonymous said...

What a joy to see these old trees. Something I do dearly miss. Thankfully there's your site.
Interesting also the giraffe, an animal i would not expect - what a surprise.

Please have you all a wonderful Friday.

Regina said...

Beautiful scenes.
I enjoyed so much.
Great captures Martha.

Happy weekend.

Ebie said...

I love the peeking shot of the giraffe. Looks like a great day for a picnic. I really wanted to visit the wineries, but the closest could be 2 hrs away!

Linda Reeder said...

I love the gnarly old grape vines!

Vagabonde said...

I like the giraffes you published. I saw some real giraffes last week when we were in Florida, walking around in a park. There was a young one too and she was so cute. I’ll make a post on that next week.

Victoria Tsavdaridou said...

California wines are famous worldwide!!! Thanks for sharing these marvelous skies!!!

SquirrelQueen said...

The giraffes are such a delightful surprise. We have many wineries in our area but none with sculptures like these. The blue skies are wonderful.

Tania said...

Looks nice in a world without snow! Great place and shot:-)

Carver said...

I love the metal sculpture and that looks like a fantastic place for a picnic. I rarely drink at this point in my life but wine tasting sounds perfect for me. I enjoy wine and a little sip is all I need. Of course a bunch of little sips adds up.

fredamans said...

I hear wine country and I think Niagara-on-the-lake... not even Napa.

Great shots regardless.

http://fredamans.blogspot.com/2010/02/sky-friday_19.html

Serendipity said...

I really like the second shot :)

happily retired gal said...

Oh my ... I love, love, love the two photos with giraffes and am making a note to look this place up one day ... just because.
Hugs and blessings,

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

Beautiful place and the tours sound so fun. Western Oregon also has some great wineries and tasting also is low cost or free. Thanks for sharing another place to add to our "I hope maybe someday" list!