Sarah, Guy and Ella Pacurar
As a mom to a 14-year-old daughter, I love the special bond that she has with her dad. There has been much discussion about the special relationships that happen between fathers and daughters. Lately that was highlighted with the #girldad hashtag that came about after ESPN Reporter Elle Duncan shared her encounter with Former NBA Player Kobe Bryant when he expressed his joy for being the father of girls prior to his and his daughter’s tragic death in a helicopter crash. But, I wasn’t aware of a winery that was built on this premise until I was introduced to Fathers & Daughters Cellars, which is dedicated to several generations of fathers, daughters and wine.
During our stay at Brewery Gulch Inn, we sat down with Guy and Sarah Pacurar, who are the owners of the Brewery Gulch Inn and Fathers & Daughters Cellars to hear their story. Guy came to Mendocino with the sole purpose of buying an inn, not to open a winery. He was single at the time and had a friend in town who was a mover and shaker who insisted that she had the perfect person to introduce him to. He emailed Sarah who was living in Berkley, California, and the rest is history.
Sarah had already helped start a successful vineyard when her father, Kurt Schoeneman, decided he would like to grow grapes after a successful career as a Bay area builder. She found the perfect vineyard in Anderson Valley in 1996 and they purchased it from Dr. Richard Ferrington. The Ferrington vineyard soon gained a reputation for its Pinot Noir grapes sold to wineries like William Selyem, MacPhail, Schramberg’s Davies label, Saxon Brown Wines, Breggo Cellars and Arista.
The Fathers & Daughters Cellars name comes from the involvement of Kurt and Sarah, Guy and his daughter Taylor, and Ella, who was the first child of Guy and Sarah in 2012.
Our wine line up from Fathers & Daughters Cellars
Father & Daughters Cellars first made Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc from Ferrington Vineyards with Winemaker Phil Baxter, who has also makes Baxter Wines. The winery makes Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Rosé, Gewurztraminer and The Dance, a blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Gewurztraminer and Chardonnay. They also make Sarah’s Rustic Bubbles, a “petillant-naturel style” wine sourced from neighboring Roederer Estates that was really great.
My other favorites were the 2012 and 2016 Ella’s Reserve Pinot Noir. I loved the story of Ella being in a backpack at the first harvest at 4 am on September 7, 2012. And after meeting her I can say that she has the spunk and personality to live up to the expectations on this label.
This family is dedicated to making high quality, small production wine that will continue as a legacy. Sitting on the patio at the Brewery Gulch Inn (more on that to come in another blog) with a glass of Father & Daughters Cellars wine, a plate of cheese and talking to the Pacurar’s makes you feel like you are part of the family. I highly recommend Father & Daughters Cellars and the Brewery Gulch Inn as places to explore what’s special about Mendocino.
