La Rochelle Winery
5443 Tesla Road
Livermore, CA 94550
(925) 456-2357
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Open daily 12 to 4:30 pm
Tasting is complimentary, $5 for its vineyard designated Pinot Noir
15% discount on case
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Tours:
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Tours by Appointment
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Amenities:
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Weekend "Pinot Bar"
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Price Range:
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$16 to up to $75 per bottle
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Production:
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2500 cases
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Description
La Rochelle is a small artisan winery focused on making handcrafted, world-class Pinot Noir from vineyard sites in California and Oregon. The winery was named after the charming French port where the owner’s family departed for the New World.
In 2005, they moved their operation from the San Jose area to the vineyard-covered hills of Livermore Valley. Owned and operated by the six- generation wine pioneer Mirassou family, this winery makes very limited-production wines using grapes sourced from the Monterey and Livermore Valley regions, as well as some select vineyards in Oregon. The Mirassou family has been credited with planting the first Pinot Noir grapes in California in 1854, and today offers a number of vineyard-designated wines. To round out their production they also produce Syrah, Merlot, Pinot Blanc and Chardonnay. Some releases are very small (less than 100 cases), and all wines are sold through their wine club, the Internet, or in the tasting room.
The La Rochelle tasting room is back behind the “big house” (home of the Steven Kent tasting room). It is adorned with an extensive trellis system over a small courtyard and a walkway with wine barrel planters sporting rose bushes. A series of French doors leads you inside the long, single-story building. There is a stamped concrete floor and a long tasting bar, along with some gourmet food items and winery accessories. On weekends, they offer a special “Pinot Bar,” where they showcase their recent Pinot Noir releases. La Rochelle also plans to release a sparkling “Blanc de Blanc” in keeping with the family’s 60-year tradition of producing sparkling wine.
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