Set in the hills of Mendocino County’s Yorkville Highlands, Maple Creek Winery is a happy discovery for many passersby. They take the narrow paved drive that leads nearly a mile through a rolling wooded ranch to the barn that houses Maple Creek Winery’s tasting room. And they’re glad they did.
Maple Creek Winery is a small boutique artisan winery that produces small lots of wonderful, award-winning wines. The 2007 Largo Ridge Zinfandel won double gold at the 2010 San Francisco International Wine Competition, the 2007 Maple Creek Chardonnay was awarded 91 points by Wine Enthusiast Magazine, and the 2008 Artevino Symphony won gold at the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition. Judges aren’t the only fans; this 3,600-case-production winery has a wine club that’s more than 1,000 members strong.
Owner Tom Rodrigues is a wine lover and artist from way back. He started collecting wine when he was young and became a glass artist in his teens. He was asked to do a label for Far Niente in 1978 and has designed many since. But it wasn’t until 2001, when he bought the ranch, that he learned the chemistry of winemaking.
“Winemaking and art are my passion and I do both now,” Tom says. He talks with equal enthusiasm about his wines and their label designs, which have also won international gold medals. Tom is also passionate about sustainable farming and maintaining a balanced ecosystem on the property.
Tom handcrafts wine for two labels: Maple Creek (limited production estate-grown wines) and Artevino (wines from locally purchased grapes). The name Artevino comes from Tom’s love for both art and wine, and each wine features a different label that he designs. At the winery, there’s a gallery featuring Tom’s beautiful stained glass artwork and paintings. He’s often nearby, along with a four-legged greeting committee of Sheriff, Sylvester, and Tuffy.
A sign over the tasting room door says, “Enter as strangers, leave as friends.” They also tend to leave as fans of Maple Creek wines.