Many people know the fable of the town of El Dorado, the mystical place where everything was made of gold, while the American Viticultural Area of the same name isn’t completely made of gold, it is where gold was first discovered within California. Yes, this is the exact area which led to the fabled Gold Rush which helped to populate California for the first time.

The Boeger Winery of the El Dorado AVA is certainly one of the shining examples of winemaking in the area and has made an excellent choice for wine gifts since its inception in 1972. One of our favorite Zinfandel makers in all of the state, Boeger makes a series of small production wines largely centered on Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon and occasionally a Meritage.

Consumers love these wines because they’re conservatively priced, which we think has helped the winery continue its high standards even during this economic downtown which has negatively affected sales for wineries everywhere. Most of the wines produced are a nice combination of concentrated fruit from their mountain vineyard. Overall, the wines represent really solid efforts. You aren’t likely to have a life altering event, but you are also paying for what amounts to a Tuesday night wine and receiving Saturday night quality.