Wine on the Tuolumne River – 3 Days
If you love adventure, wine, and delicious food in an unforgettable setting, then Wine on the Tuolumne River is your perfect vacation. Between the exciting Class IV waters, lush landscapes, and indulgent wine and food-filled evenings at camp, you’ll wish you never had to leave.
Featuring
Vintner: Boyle MacDonald Wines, Murphys, CA
Chef: Duskie Estes, Black Pig Meat Co., Forestville, CA
Boyle MacDonald Wines in Murphys, California, offers a diverse selection of Estate Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, as well as Sierra Foothill Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Merlot, Sangiovese, and Montepulciano. Craig MacDonald, co-owner and winemaker at Boyle MacDonald Wines, will present a selection of their favorite pours.
Duskie Estes and her partner John Stewart are the chefs, farmers, and ranchers behind Black Pig Meat Co., known for their award-winning pasture-raised bacon, snout-to-tail products, and their food truck, the Black Piglet. In 2019, they lost their beloved restaurant–ZAZU Kitchen+Farm–in a flood after 19 years of raking in awards, inclulding the top 10 best new restaurants and top 100 restaurants in San Francisco Chronicle, top 50 restaurants in the Bay Area by San Fransisco Magazine, Michelin Recommended in the San Fransisco Guide for over a decade, Rising Star Chef Award for Sustainability, Slow Food Snail Awards, King and Queen of Pork at Aspen Food & Wine, and multiple Good Food Awards. They have been featured on Food Network’s Next Iron Chef, Guy’s Grocery Games, Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives, Guy’s Ranch Kitchen, Beat Bobby Flay, and Alex v. America, as well as on PBS, OWN, and Discovery+. Duskie was voted Seattle City Search’s Best Chef, and Palace Kitchen was awarded one of the nation’s top 50 restaurants by Gourmet Magazine under her leadership. She co-authored Tom Douglas’s Seattle Kitchen, receiving the 2001 James Beard Award.
About This Trip
Spend your days taking on the exhilarating “Wild and Scenic” Tuolumne River, with a total of 14 rapids rated Class IV+. In between heart-thumping, adrenaline-pumping action, you’ll get the chance to take in all that pristine California beauty with excursions along wildflower-lined paths to storybook locations. Perhaps you’ll stand under cascading waterfalls, take a refreshing dip in a swimming hole, or feel like a kid again, giggling as you make your way down a natural rock slide. After a day of world-class whitewater and exploring magical places, you’ll be ready for a relaxing evening at camp.
After pulling into camp for the day, everyone will unload the rafts, and you can find the perfect spot to set up your tent for the night. Once you’re all settled, the real fun begins as you gather around for an enlightening wine tasting with a representative from Boyle MacDonald Wines, perfectly paired with delectable hors d’oeuvres by Chef Duskie As educational as it is fun, you’re sure to gain a deeper appreciation for wine and the passionate people who produce it while you learn about what makes every bottle unique.
While you continue wine tasting or relaxing in camp, Chef Duskie will transform the freshest of ingredients straight from her farm and ranch into unforgettable meals that celebrate flavor, sustainability, and creativity. You’ll sit at linen-draped, candlelit tables with your fellow rafters and break bread. The conversation will flow, the food and wine will be abundant, and laughter will fill the air. As you head to bed with a satisfied stomach and happy heart, you’ll ponder the memories made that day as the mellifluous river lulls you to sleep.
