I love contemporary architecture and design. So on the approach up the winding driveway up to the Hamel family’s new winery, I was immediately won over by their sleek stone and slate buildings.

The estate’s Managing Director, George Hamel, III – or GIII as he is known — greeted us before we reached the front door. His enthusiasm for the family business is, I have to say, infectious. Among the details he shared with us, I was impressed to learn that all of the materials dug out of the land to make room for the vast estate were put back into it . . . rocks for the stone retaining walls, dirt for the rammed earth building walls. This takes the idea of “sustainable building” to a new level.

Inside, huge glass window frame the views of the Valley of the Moon and lead to a sprawling terrace with lots of seating for groups to gather and taste. Beyond that, still more picnic tables. You could definitely hang out here for a while, and they encourage it.

In addition to the 30 planted acres on their 125-acre Glen Ellen estate, the Hamels own four other parcels in Kenwood.  From these they produce about 4,000 cases – a mix of Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Sauvignon Blanc, plus a few small lots of Rhone varietals and blends.

George shared the hilarious story behind the badger on their label.  Read the Badger Clan club level descriptions and you can see they are a family who loves tradition and family tales, as much as they do making fine wine.  My personal favorite is the Mysterio club, named after the matriarch’s horse.  Had I known that before our visit, I could have shared some “HT” horse talk!

Our tour took us into the immaculate 12,000 square foot cave. At the end of each of the cave’s three bore holes the walls were left exposed, revealing swirling veins of basalt from an ancient river bed. The effect was mesmerizing.  Even more so with giant concrete fermentation eggs placed in front of them. The eggs looked like rocket ships set for launch to a strange and distant land. Trippy sounding, I know, but check out this photo.

The tasting experience is chock full of special touches, like having our names printed on the tasting menu. All the water at the winery is triple-filtered and served in what look like old milk bottles. No detail seemed too small — even the spittoons were custom-made for the winery.
All of this was no doubt the handiwork of their hospitality director who hails from the revered Gary Danko restaurant in SF. I can only imagine the lengths to which they will go to please their guests.

My favorite wines of the day were their rosé and their Bordeaux blend. When George boxed up our purchase he added a couple of bottles of their house water. Another nice touch, deeply appreciated on a hot summer’s day.