Rain it did, but not before we had walked through the four-acre vineyard planted in 10-year-old cabernet sauvignon vines and watched as the wood ducks fled, rising in a wing-beat from the two lakes that give Dos Lagos Vineyards its name.

Watching their retreat co-owner Tom Dinkel described how he differentiates between a pond and a lake: “I can throw a rock across a pond,” he said, “but not a lake.”

Tom’s written instructions for getting to Dos Lagos were to drive, mostly up for 7.5 miles, after turning onto Atlas Peak Road.

"When you say to yourself: ‘Good lord, WHERE do these people live?’ you have about another mile to go. Enjoy the scenery, it’s beautiful!” He added: “Be on the lookout for the waterfall, gorilla, cows, turkeys, pet cemetery, deer, quail … not necessarily in that order.”

It was a long way up but when I spotted a red 1969 Mercedes 280SL and a covered car — which turned out to be an elderly blood-orange Porsche 911 which Tom says needs a lot of work — I knew I had found the place.

My brother’s buddy

I first met Dos Lagos Vineyard owners Tom Dinkel and Marcie Hunt — it was her Mercedes and his Porsche — at Infineon Raceway back when it was called Sears Point. He was one of my brother Peter’s sailing buddies and Peter had invited them to indulge in another of his passions, racing historic cars.

I would see Tom and Marcie at the races — at different times all three of us enjoyed a few exhilarating laps around Infineon as passengers in Peter’s 1968 McLaren M6. It was at the races that we got our fill of the sounds and sights of vintage race cars. Earlier this month, we walked through the vineyards, pruned early in the year by vineyard manager Hector Lopez and his crew. As Tom bent over and picked up a piece of rock that crumbled in his hands, he remarked that he loved learning about the vines and working with Lopez. Growing grapes on the property is a challenge, there’s not much soil, but stressing the grapes leads to the intense flavor and the big cabernets of the Atlas Peak appellation.

Tom attended De La Salle High School and as a senior went to the Napa Valley and the Christian Brothers retreat and conference center on Redwood Road. “I was captivated by the vineyards,” he said.

Marcie began modeling in high school and was “discovered” in San Francisco. She went to Paris and during her 14-year career she appeared on 100 Vogue and Elle covers. It was during her time in France that she learned about red Bordeaux wines.

Lured by vineyards

On one of their first dates the couple visited the Christian Brothers property, next to the Hess Collection. They were enthralled by the vineyards, by the seasonal changes, and knew they had to make this part of their lives.

Tom and Marcie married and started dreaming about their lives. They envisioned a home with spectacular views and ended up in Sedona, Ariz. After that chapter of the lives was finished, they envisioned a move to the wine country, since her parents are in Sonoma County. They created a “treasure map” and designed how their lives would look. “You imagine your future as if it’s already happened,” Tom said, and they ended up buying a fixer-upper on some land in Healdsburg.

After renovating that home, and living in it for a couple of years, Tom was looking at property on the Internet. He spotted the Atlas Peak property that would become Dos Lagos Vineyards, but it was too expensive and after looking at it, they passed it by.

But the property remained on the market for more than two years. One day, uncharacteristically, Marcie turned on the computer and up popped the Atlas Peak property. The owners had dropped the price. Long story short, they bought the 22 acres.

It was, they agree, just meant to be.

Both Tom and Marcie love living on the secluded property with its air of serenity and peace. Although neither are recluses, they admit they find it harder and harder to leave the hilltop. Both work most of the time at home; Marcie is a life coach and Tom is a partner in Abraxas, a company that provides ways for businesses to conserve energy and reduce their carbon footprint.

Mountains, vineyards, lakes

At the end of the vineyard tour Tom lit the gas barbecue. He sliced some cheese and slipped burgers and hamburger buns on the barbecue. Marcie prepared tomatoes, green lettuce and pickles. We sat outside savouring the view of mountains, vineyards and lakes and a bottle of 2005 Bialla Cabernet Sauvignon.

When it started raining we grabbed our plates, the ketchup, mustard and the bottle of cabernet. We decided to finish the wine and our conversation in the living room in front of a roaring fire.

After Tom and Marcie bought the property it was Vito Bialla’s generosity that made a huge difference. He arranged for them to meet and hire his vineyard manager, Lopez, and his winemaker, Craig MacLean.

Lopez sold eight tons of the Cabernet Sauvignon grapes to one of his clients, Caymus, which meant that Tom and Marcie had a couple of tons to crush and put into barrels. The wine is now in five barrels from five different cooperages and stored in a nearby warehouse.

For the record, I’m willing to bet it won’t be called Tom and Marcie’s Big Red Cabernet. But, maybe it should be.