A (M.I.N.G.L.E.) Day to Remember
photo by Doni Greenberg
A group of people met at the clubhouse at 9:00 am to take a MINGLES trip to Ironstone Vineyards in Murphys - about a two-hour trip. We loaded into the large van and begun the trip with introductions and animated conversions.
What a perfect day, the sky was blue, the livestock grazing on the green rolling hills and the old barns looked like something out of a "California happy cow" advertisement. The time flew by getting to know new neighbors, laughing and even playing a little trivia. Before we knew it, we were at the Vineyard meeting the other half of our group.
I have to insert a disclaimer here. I am not a wine drinker so my focus was on the tour of the old mines, and the caves where the oak wine barrels are stacked. I am not into the wine making as much as the unique stuff. For example, did you know they sent a recording crew to Ironstone Vineyard to record the sound of the creaking door opening to the cave for the movie Casper the Friendly Ghost? They won't let anyone near it with a can of WD40. The rocks were so hard to dig that some miners thought it was more like cutting through iron - hence Ironstone Vineyards.
But the most amazing thing to me was the flowers. Everywhere. The colors and assortment made me feel like I was in a flower market. There is no way I can describe the flowers so we will put together a slide show (soon) to give you a hint of the incredible colors and variety. (Editor's note: Slideshow now available click on link at top).
After the tour, we went into a beautiful room with a pipe organ filling an entire wall, bronze lions from MGM and chandeliers the size of most living rooms.
Different for wine tasting was linen covered tables where we could sit and enjoy the pairings with canapés. We were able to sample 6 different wines and true to what our host said, half of the table would like the sweeter, lighter whites and half preferred the deeper flavorings in the reds. I will share the Canapé recipes in a future piece. They were matched perfectly to compliment the type of wine we were drinking.
Lunch followed and consisted of plated Calaveras Chicken. It was served with Obsession Apple gravy, steamed fresh vegetables, roasted mashed potatoes, fresh bread, mixed spring salad, coffee and ice tea and dessert.
Feeling similar to a post Thanksgiving feast, it felt good to explore the room with its artifacts and listen to the unique music made by the huge pipe organ's continuous supply of wind - which allows for sustained notes. Ironstone also hosts silent movies in this room with a live organist accompaniment.
Highlights of the upcoming Ironstone 2010 Concert Series in the amazing outdoor amphitheater include, Crosby Stills & Nash, Chicago, The Doobie Brothers, ZZ top, B. B. King, Willie Nelson and Sheryl Crow among others.
We then had an hour to explore the gift shop and heritage museum. The Kautz famiily owns Ironstone Vineyards and the famous 44-pound nugget, believed to be the largest specimen of crystalline gold in the world. They made the nugget the centerpiece of the museum and jewelry store. The priceless gold nugget is so big it took two years to extract it from the quartz using dental tools. Staff graciously opened the venues just for us as Ironstone is currently closed to the public on Monday and Tuesday.
.We returned to the Arbour Lodge at 5:00 PM with a day full of visual delights and good memories.
Don't miss the next MINGLE activity this Saturday (4/24/10) at the Lodge. There will be a Nacho Bar starting at 6:00 PM and we will be making a list of events and activities residents would like to do in the near future. Bring your ideas and suggestions and meet some new neighbors.
Photo by Kay McHugh
photo by Kay McHugh
Photo by Kay McHugh
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Sounds like it was a lovely trip. Have to put it on our "To Do" list.