Hart's Desire had absolutely exceptional wines, and very many at that. They had a lot of varietals that you rarely find elsewhere in Sonoma County except for in blends, such as Malbec, Claret, and Cabernet Franc. Their tasting room has beautiful artwork and has an old school jukebox playing great tunes!
Frei Brothers Reserve is a winemaking story more than a century in the making. In 1890, Swiss immigrant Andrew Frei purchased the core of what is now Frei Ranch in Sonoma County's Dry Creek Valley. The superb stretch of land was already a vineyard, but Frei brought it to prominence when he built a winery that produced 20,000 cases of wine annually by 1895. In 1903, Frei turned the winery over to his sons, Walter and Louis, who adopted the name Frei Brothers.
Berthoud Wines (Berthoud is pronounced: BEAR2) are produced and estate bottled in the barn depicted on the label from vines that are meticulously managed to yield less than two tons of small, concentrated grapes per acre. The grapes are punched down by hand several times each day in traditional open-top redwood vats during fermentation to maximize color and flavor extraction in the gentlest mannerTasting and purchasing Berthoud Wines is available at Mayo Family Winery 13101 Arnold Dr., Glen Ellen, CA
Deux Amis {duh zah me}, French for "two friends," was a partnership between two close companions, Phyllis Zouzounis and Jim Penpraze. Throughout their time in the wine industry, the duo spent countless late nights unwinding over a glass of Zinfandel following busy days on the crush pad. These shared moments led the two friends to envision establishing their winery, a dream that ultimately materialized with the 1987 harvest. That year, Deux Amis yielded one hundred cases of Zinfandel sourced from a single vineyard in the Dry Creek Valley.
After 26 years of fruitful collaboration, the partnership evolved as Jim entered retirement and Phyllis continued to nurture their shared vision. Phyllis carried on the tradition of crafting exceptional wines, relying on the same vineyards, and maintaining strong bonds with growers through handshakes and long-term commitments. She wholeheartedly embraced the belief that great wines are born in the vineyard, ensuring that the Deux Amis legacy persevered through Zouzounis Wines.
The Dry Creek wineries produce a wider variety of wines and styles of wines than the traditional PN and Zin crowd along the Russian River. The Amphor tasting room location is in the same parking lot as 10 other wineries tasting rooms - right off Dry Creek Road. Stop at this location and you will be able to taste wines from Amphora, Collier Falls, Dashe, Forth, Philip Staley, Peterson, Lago di Merlo, Kokomo, Mietz and Papapietro.
Mr. Swan makes some very nice California pinot noirs and zinfandels. Sure, this is not OPUS ONE facility-wise, but Rod makes great wine at more than fair prices. I appreciated their willingness to educate people and enjoyed their 07 Tannat.
When Davis Bynum created Barefoot Bynum Burgundy—the first ever Barefoot wine—in his garage in Albany, California.
We changed our name to Barefoot Cellars, created the famous footprint label and quickly captured the hearts of our fans.
We struck gold. Jennifer Wall, winemaker extraordinaire, joined our team and sprinkled her magic dust on our line of fun, delicious wines.
Gamba Vineyards is a small, family owned vineyard and winery business in Sonoma County, California. The over century old 27.5 acre Gamba Estate Vineyard parcel rests on th Eastern edge of the beautiful Russian River Valley Appellation, on gently rolling benchland above the valley floor. Planted to Zinfandel in 1900, the Gamba Estate Vineyard consists primarily of Old Vine Zinfandel, as well as small separate blocks of Cabernet Sauvignon. With ideal This vineyard winery has been family owned since 1900. Gamba Specializes in old vine zines. Gamba Estate Vineyards & Winery is only open on Sunday, by appointment only. The outside looks like a church, while inside olives, meat, cheese, and lots of Zin. It is really something to ask how long the winery has been here and have them respond that "my family planted these grapes in the early 1900s.
The wines here were very good really enjoyed them. They charge a $5 tasting fee, which is definitely worth it to try some of their nice blends as well as the Zin, Cab, and Petite Sirah. Nice winery with a great personality. The barrel tasting experience is great. The lobster bisque was very good. The wine selection made it all worth the trip and the picnic area really took things to a new place.
At Silverstone, our winemaker has selected 2-year old American Oak barrels with just a hint of toasty oak influence to enhance the flavors of the wines and highlight the delicate character. Our winemaking regime is attentive with top quality always in mind, starting with vineyard selection, gentle fermentation technique and just the right amount of barrel and bottle aging. Each individual lot of wine is tasted throughout its maturation in the barrel to determine what will be the best blend for the final wine.
