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Medlock Ames' New Tasting Room

When I was in Healdsburg checking out H2Hotel, I took a little detour to Medlock Ames' recently opened tasting room and bar, which is on the site and in the footprint of the century-old Alexander Valley Bar and Store, just north of downtown Healdsburg. Architect Luke Wade, builder Andy Bannister, and Medlock Ames' general manager Kenneth Rochford showed me around.

The building, which opened in May, retains the shape and size of its original incarnation: a former gas station and...

"The owners wanted something clean, but with a lot of character," says Wade.

"Tasting rooms can be really fast and furious," says Rochford.

In good weather, the triple-hung windows can open all the way, blurring the boundary between inside and out.

In addition to wine, they also sell jars of canned and pickled vegetables, grown on site.

Marked only with a discrete neon 'Cocktails' sign, the speakeasy bar is in the former general store's walk-in cooler,...

Sustainable-minded builder Andy Bannister talks about the property's eco-elements.

The landscape architects reduced the site's irrigation needs by fifty percent by using drought-tolerant plants and...

Here's a cool detail in one of the outdoor picnic tables.

This is Medlock Ames' refreshingly graphic and understated wine label.