Touring the Korbel Wine Cellars in Guerneville, California

 

Just eleven miles from 

Duncans Mills is 

Korbel Champagne Cellars

in Guerneville.

We are excited about touring

the Cellar & learning about

champagne making.

Following his escape from prison in Prague in 1850, Francis Korbel made his way to America.  Brothers Anton, Joseph and Winsel joined him.  They traveled west to California.  They eventually settled in the Russian River Valley and logged redwoods to fill supply needs in San Francisco.  As the demand for lumber diminished, the Korbels farmed the bottom lands of their property, producing prunes, beets, corn, alfalfa and wheat.  Soil sample testing revealed the land is great for grape growing.  Pinor Noir grape vines were planted and in 1882, the Korbel brothers started a small winery.

Korbel also produces brandies.

The Brandy Tower is a replica

of the tower Francis was

held in in Prague.

The bolts in the redwood

beam shore up damage

from the 1906 Earthquake.

Korbel Champagne Cellars uses the champenoise method to make their champagnes.  This multi-step process includes barrel fermentation and bottle fermentation.

These oak barrels were 

built in place in 1882.

Following barrel fermentation, the

champagne-to-be is bottled with

yeast to eat the sugars in the wine.

The wine rests for about two years,

until the yeas has eaten all the

sugar in the bottle.

After resting for two years the

wine bottles are turned, 

or riddled.

This labor intensive process

has been automated.

This display shows how

champagnes were readied

for sale in the late 1800s.







The metal cage that covers the cork is opened by twisting it six times, counter clockwise.  This is true for every champagne bottle in the world.

President Ronald Reagan brought

Korbel Champagne to the 

White House for his second 

inauguration in 1985.

Every presidential inauguration since has been toasted with Korbel Champagne.