Chuck Wagner has been a longtime critic of Napa County’s strict rules governing how much wine a winery can produce and what sorts of activities it can host. The impetus for coming to Suisun Valley was initially logistical. Photos by Jessica Christian / The Chronicle Swinging chairs, above right, are located on a deck outside the private tasting area. Photos by Jessica Christian / The Chronicle A stained-glass window near the retail room, above left, is based on an aerial map of Suisun Valley vineyards and farms, with Caymus' vineyards in yellow.
A concierge will meet you by the valet pick-up, to hand off your purchased wine as you drive away.Ī stained-glass window near the retail room, above left, is based on an aerial map of Suisun Valley vineyards and farms, with Caymus' vineyards in yellow. “The goal is never to charge a tasting fee,” said Charlie Wagner. Unless you buy wine, of course, in which case the $25 is waived. The espresso drink is included in your $25 tasting fee. (A bottle of 2000 Caymus Special Selection Napa Valley: $375.) A sleek espresso bar serving Camellia Roasters coffee awaits by the exit, a custom inspired by Australian wineries. Before leaving, all visitors will be routed through a wine retail room, where bottles of wine are for sale. Gardens surrounding the tasting room include peaches, tomatoes, onions and other edible goods visitors will be invited to roam around and pick some ripe produce to take home. As a nostalgic touch, the private room has a vintage 1983 tape deck and a collection of cassettes (the room gets too much sun for vinyl records). It has a private tasting area that can be booked for birthday parties or corporate events, complete with leather swinging chairs on a secluded deck. Formerly an apricot cutting and dehydration plant, Caymus-Suisun can now seat 150 customers in the glass-walled tasting pavilion for either guided tastings or casual by-the-glass service. The Wagners - specifically patriarch Chuck Wagner and two of his children, Charlie and Jenny - have transformed this property since purchasing it six years ago, with the help of interior design firm Bureau + Geldert. Jessica Christian/The ChronicleĪs proof of the wind’s intensity, Caymus-Suisun uses only stemless glasses - because traditional stemware would blow over, said Charlie’s sister Jenny Wagner. Winemakers Charlie Wagner and Jenny Wagner co-own Caymus-Suisun with their father, who founded Caymus Vineyards in Rutherford in 1972.
#CAYMUS SUISUN WINERY WINDOWS#
Top photo: The Caymus-Suisun tasting room was designed with floor-to-ceiling windows to make it “feel like you’re outside even when you’re inside,” said Charlie Wagner. “And we wanted to show off the wind.” The glass walls, he said, are meant to elide the barrier between indoor and outdoor, and also to emphasize the strong Suisun Valley breeze, one of the characteristics that define winegrowing conditions here. “We want it to feel like you’re outside even when you’re inside,” said Charlie Wagner, whose father, Chuck Wagner, started Caymus in 1972.
Designed by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, an architecture firm behind Apple Store and Blue Bottle Coffee locations, Caymus-Suisun almost feels like a resort, with floor-to-ceiling glass walls and a promenade of palm trees. Recently, the massive, state-of-the-art visitor center known as Caymus-Suisun opened - and it feels nothing like a mom-and-pop shop.
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