MIDDLETOWN ? Twin Pine Casino & Hotel will celebrate a $42.5 million, 18-month construction project with a four-day grand opening event June 4 through 7. The celebration will showcase the new, exquisitely fashioned casino and hotel, which boasts an eloquent wine industry theme.
“We”re Lake County. We wanted to fit in with the rural ambiance of the county,” Marketing and Guest Services Director Phil Davis said. “The whole idea is an old winery converted into a casino.”
The state-of-the-art 107,000 square foot facility represents several years of planning, designing and development. The result is a family-friendly vacation destination compatible with the natural beauty and rural uniqueness of south Lake County and the Napa Valley.
The exterior of the facility is designed as a rustic lodge using large amounts of river rock, native timber, wood shingles and earth tones. When guests enter the casino, they are transported to a turn-of-the-century winery and wine warehouse featuring wine barrels on catwalks, water tanks, an old mill house with functioning water wheel, a spiral staircase, sets of pipes, valves and pulleys and exposed giant beams and trusses.
According to Davis, Twin Pine”s thematic architecture and design is unique within the entire national gaming industry. “This is a really unique experience here that no other casino in the country has,” he said.
Davis said he”s particularly proud of the wine tasting station that is situated near the entrance of the facility. The wine tasting experience provides guests an opportunity to sample a large variety of the best and most popular wines of the four-county North Bay region. Wine tasting attendants enhance the experience by providing interesting and educational information regarding local ecology and winegrape growing conditions.
“The wine tasting experience is truly educational,” Davis said. “Our attendants tell our guests about the region and its soils and climates so people can be more familiar with what Lake County has to offer. The casino expects to become known as a valuable educational and experiential resource to local and visiting wine enthusiasts.”
Adjacent to the wine tasting station is the “Off the Vine” gift shop where guests can purchase their favorite selections as well as other gifts including Native American art and jewelry and other handmade crafts.
The casino”s new gaming area has been expanded to include 520 of the latest and most popular slot machines and 12 card tables. Plans call for increasing the number of slots to more than 600 machines in the near future. One of the most prominent features of the slot floor Davis said is the extra wide aisles and spaces between the machines to increase guest comfort. “The intent is to maintain a more intimate size appropriate to the local population, anticipated tourist interest and the special rural characteristics and cherished beauty of south Lake County,” he said.
Since smoking is allowed in all California casinos Twin Pines put forth the effort to improve the air quality of the casino and gaming area. In addition to high ceilings and open space design, a state-of the-art air handling system has been installed to exchange the air frequently and remove particulates. Extra large-capacity air conditioning units are also engineered to handle even the most extreme seasonal conditions.
The new casino features the four-star Manzanita Restaurant, which seats 100. Davis praised the skills of Executive Chef Jeremy Peckham, who he said has extensive experience in the fine dining industry. “We have an Executive Chef who can do anything. He”s amazing,” Davis said.
Next to the restaurant is the Grapevine Bar & Lounge stocked with a full bar within brick-arched ceilings and walls and generously accessorized with five large, flat-screen plasma TVs. The venue can accommodate live entertainment including music and dancing.
Twin Pine”s new four-star, three-floor hotel opened in March with 60 rooms connected to the casino. Extra efforts in soundproofing ensure a quiet and peaceful stay, Davis said. A standard room is approximately 408 to 433 square feet with either two queen beds or one king bed. Extra large, two room luxury suites comprise 1,365 square feet with a king bed and comfortable fold-out sofas. Each luxury suite has its own kitchen with serving counter, conference-size dining table, extra bathroom, a separate living area and a private, wraparound walk-out deck. Rooms feature local and historically significant Pomo Indian art and crafts.
The grand opening celebration will include more than $60,000 in cash giveaways and a large plasma screen HDTV. (You must be a Harvest Club member to win.) The event will feature live entertainment as well including international music and dancers and two free performances by actor/comedian Sinbad in the Grapevine Lounge.
Twin Pine Casino & Hotel is a commercial enterprise of the Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians.
The tribe has owned and operated Twin Pine Casino since 1994.
The casino is located on Highway 29 one mile south of Middletown and 15 miles north of Calistoga.
For more information visit Twin Pine”s Web site at www.TwinPine.com or call 987-1226 for room rates and reservations.
