California’s Gold County is rich with history. While many people associate the Central Sierra Foothills with prospecting and abandoned gold mines, one family-owned vineyard is reshaping that narrative, attracting visitors with unpretentious wine tastings, expansive open spaces, and epic outdoor concerts.

We met with Stephen Kautz, President of Ironstone Vineyards, to learn more about why this off-the-beaten-path winery has quickly become a tourist destination. 

Calaveras County: Rich With Wine History, Ripe for a Comeback

Ironstone Vineyards was founded by the Kautz family in 1988, but winegrapes have flourished in the Sierra Foothills since the 1800s. Ironstone Vineyards seamlessly weaves Gold Country’s history and narrative into its modern-day winery.

The winery’s grounds were once home to over 4000 miners, and you’ll find nods to that storied past in their outdoor history museum – showcasing a water wheel, flume, miner’s shack, mining shaft and vintage Gold Rush equipment and machinery.

The winery’s founders, the Kautz family, were Lodi winegrape growers renowned for championing the region’s emerging sustainability movement, earning the industry’s first award for sustainable winegrape growing in 1976. When Stephen’s parents, Gail and John Kautz, planted vineyards on their Calaveras County property, it allowed them to expand beyond the varietals best suited to Lodi’s cooler climate. Stephen explains, “The climate here is very conducive for growing (winegrapes), especially Spanish varietals and or Bordeaux varieties. People don’t realize this, but during the gold rush, Calaveras County was the largest wine-producing region in California. And the winemakers here have just perpetuated that into some of the great wines that we produce today.” 

While Gold Country’s terroir allows countless and varied winegrape varietals to flourish, Ironstone has distinguished itself by championing emerging and unique varietals.

Stephen notes, “Gold Country, everyone thinks of Chardonnay, Zinfandel, maybe some Barbera. It does really nicely with Roussanne, Marsanne, and some of the exotic whites that are here. It’s great for Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. But really, it loves Cabernet Franc, it loves Tempranillo – and that is what we focus on.”

Preserving agricultural legacy and natural habitats

For California’s multi-generational farm families, sustainability goes beyond conserving natural resources – it’s about protecting the land for future generations. Stephen explains, “My child’s gonna be fourth generation in this business. So, we’re not giving back for today, we’re giving back for tomorrow and really looking at all our farming practices that focus on that.” 

Despite the foothills receiving more rainfall than many other wine regions, water use and conservation remain a concern. Ironstone works closely with the local water district, relying on reclaimed water and efficient drip irrigation. Because the rural region is rich with wildlife, the Ironstone team works to protect and support natural habitats. “We’ve got owl boxes, we do wood duck boxes, nesting programs,” Stephen says. “We look at all the riparian waterways that are here and how we can best utilize them and yet keep them for the natural habitat that’s there.” 

A destination winery, for the whole family

For most Californians, Calaveras County is a little off the beaten path, but well worth the trip. Stephen proudly notes, “We really created a family destination winery here. So when other people talk about coming to taste wines, we say come explore our grounds, come see what we have to offer. Bring your family and enjoy the day.” Here’s how to spend the day at Ironstone Vineyards:

Enjoy a wine tasting

Ironstone Vineyards’ striking tasting room is open Thursday through Sunday. Sidle up to the antique bar and enjoy a taste of the Sierra Foothills. Some of their most popular sips include a bold, balanced single-varietal Cabernet Franc and the subtly sweet Obsession Symphony.

Explore the property

Guests are free to explore the scenic property’s winding paths or enjoy a guided tour. Both the Elevated Tasting Experience and the Scenic High Country vineyard tour include a stroll through the vineyard and estates. Children of all ages are sure to be enraptured by the Outdoor History Museum, giving them a peek into the property’s Gold Country past.

Early spring is a particularly popular time to visit Ironstone Winery, when half a million daffodil bulbs burst into bloom and blanket the grounds in sunny shades of yellow and white.  

Visit the wine caves

The underground wine caves at Ironstone Vineyards are a literal blast from the past. When the Kautz family began planting vineyards in the late 1980s, they discovered that the property was littered with existing mineshafts and tunnels. The family originally hoped to repurpose those shafts for barrel aging, but geologists deemed them too unstable and suggested carving into the solid rock mountain instead. 

Stephen recalls the ambitious project with a grin: “In 1988, we formed our own mining company, hand blasted the end of a solid rock mountain and spent the next year digging 10,000 square feet of underground caverns. So, the winery’s unique in that it’s seven stories tall. It sits over the top of the caves where we age our product and has just created a unique environment.”

Both the Estate Tour and Scenic High Country vineyard tour include a thorough exploration of Ironstone Vineyards’ remarkable wine caves. 

Experience an outdoor concert

From mid-June through October, Ironstone Vineyards hosts a summer concert series in its outdoor amphitheatre. Big-name acts like Lee Brice, Walker Hayes, ZZ Top and Brad Paisley have all graced the Ironstone amphitheatre.

The concert venue can accommodate thousands, with both assigned seats and lawn seating, but tickets can be hard to snatch up. Follow Ironstone Vineyards on Instagram and subscribe to their newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest concert announcements!

Entertainment and education

Ironstone Vineyards is proud to be a premier Calaveras County destination, and they hope that guests will leave with a new appreciation for wine – and even agriculture in general. Stephen admits, “A lot of people come here for the first time and just think ‘we can get wine at the grocery store’. They don’t know the whole process that’s involved.” 

Many of Ironstone’s tours are designed to introduce guests to the basics of winemaking. “We do estate tours, we take them out into the vineyards, we walk them through the production process,” Stephen says.  “They don’t realize all the time and effort that goes into making a bottle of wine, that it starts in the fields. It starts with pruning and developing this year’s crop, selecting the fruit, and then picking it at peak ripeness. And then, fermentation, pressing and aging. When you walk them through that, they go back with a better realization that a bottle of wine is just not something that came off a store shelf.” 

“I love introducing people to the wines of Ironstone in Calaveras County and finding something that they might not have tried before,” Stephen concludes. “I get asked what my favorite wine is all the time.” He waits a beat, cracks a mischievous smile and states, “And my response is always ‘the one you like most’.”

Visit Ironstone Vineyards

Ironstone Vineyards

1894 Six Mile Rd., Murphys, CA 95247

(209) 728-1251

Open Thursday through Sunday. Call or check the website for seasonal hours and for information on upcoming concerts and events! 

Article by Hilary Rance. Photography by Hilary Rance and Daniel Kushnir for Ironstone Vineyards.