Williams Seylem is an institution. The original cult pinot negociant in America. For pinotfiles this place is a mecca. Since then it has changed hands (and by that I mean about a decade ago). The juice is still superb, sourced from the best vineyards in the area, and service wonderful. Though you've got to be on the mailing list to visit. Appointment required: yes, and you need to be on the list, or find someone who is.
A newly discovered gem with an enthusiastic staff serving great pinot noir, zinfandel and cabernet sauvignon. A step up in wine tasting with a small cheese plate made a huge difference. It was a pleasant surprise and complemented the wine naturally. Comfortable and personal tasting room did not take away from the point of wine tasting.
The Nale family calls a spot along the San Joaquin River home both to their family and Ziveli Winery. Here the Nale family have taken on the task of producing some wonderful Croatian style wines in the fertile soil that they call home. How nice to be greeted by a Nale family members as they pour you a delightful taste of their wines. You can tell that winemaking is a family passion. Join the Nale's for one of there events, or simply stop in for a delightful experience with their wines. Oh, ask if they have any of their wonderful Syrah filled chcoolates. It was a great winery experience talking with John and Caleb Nale during a recent visit. Be sure to try the Syrah it was a wonderful ending to our wine tasting experience when paired with local chocholates filled with the same wine. In fact, you may just have to take a few of these chocolates home with you. We are please to have Ziveli Winery listed in our directory and to be sharing it with our readers.~
Hours:
Mon-Fri Closed
Sat- 12:00pm to 5:00pm
Sun- 12:00pm to 5:00pm/or by appointment
They say, “Variety is the spice of life”, well we needed more spice! We are now growing and harvesting Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Petite Sirah, Gewurztraminer, Petit Verdot and Malbec. Some of these grapes will be put back into the wines for blending to add some complexity to our wines. Other grapes, like our Petite Sirah are going to be used exclusively on our award winning Select Harvest, that recently won a Double Gold, in the 2009 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Contest.
“Locals” is a cooperative tasting room in Geyserville off Highway 101 about 80 miles North of the Golden Gate Bridge – at the stop sign in town. Arbios & Praxis wines and those of nine other small, local producers are poured at no charge every day. The tasting room is open daily from 11am-6pm
We arrived on a sunny May day and it was easily over 90 degrees. We stopped by Navarro and I have to say - the grounds were gorgeous! There was a bench with a picnic table for those who wanted to lunch and wine. It overlooked gorgeous green lushy grass on a hill. The tasting room was very cozy and small but definitely very welcoming. Our pourer was friendly and gave us a great restaurant recommendation.
I walked into this place for a tasting, and they handed me a pulled-pork slider that blew my mind. No matter what wine I was handed after that was going to be the best I'd tasted all day.
That's cheating. Down and dirty, but it was so wonderful I'm not going to complain!
Our pourer today was Matt, who was a wealth of knowledge. Many pourers are good at recital of their product, but don't have a lotta depth. Matt is extremely well versed in wine, wine making, viticulture, and local wineries.Starting with a very nice Gewurtztraminer, it had all the great aromatics and was very sharp on the palate. The Dutton Ranch Chardonnay was excellent and a nice balance of classic and new world styles. The Dutton Ranch Pinot Noir was a great classic Russian River Pinot.
Thomas Fogarty Winery was founded in 1978 by inventor Dr. Thomas Fogarty and winemaker Michael Martella. Dr Fogarty’s penchant for innovative thought and Martella’s viticulture instincts allowed them to lead the development of the cool Skyline Ridge area; true pioneers in one of California’s premiere Pinot Noir and Chardonnay regions.
he place is very relaxed, dog- and child-friendly, and the grounds are rustic with a nice view of Carneros. It's getting the wine country experience without venturing too far up the 121, and without the tour buses and connoisseurs.
