Lombardi Wines 2018 Chardonnay and Pinot Noirs
Four new releases spur reflections about the relationship between appellation and site. Wine blogger Jo Diaz recently asked me what I enjoyed most about covering California wines. Three pleasures …
Pinot Noir
Bucher Pinot Trio a Total Delight
In the late 1990s, when the economics of dairy farming in Northern California became problematic, John Bucher diversified by planting wine grapes on the 360-acre Healdsburg property his …
Blue Farm Wines
Anne Moller-Racke’s Pinot Noirs represent the diversity of Sonoma County’s winegrowing regions. A small winery with an impressive pedigree, Blue Farm Wines produces Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from …
Virtual Taste While You Shelter in Place
A little bit “Hollywood Squares” and a lot of fun, winery tastings at home are a diverting coronavirus lockdown alternative. I’m not sure the term “virtual tasting” is …
Sonoma Pinot Noir Day Trip
Top tasting rooms in and around historic Sonoma Plaza. Several of the best Sonoma County Pinot Noir producers have tasting rooms on or near the town of Sonoma’s …
Sojourn Cellars
Boutique winery’s tastings highlight the role “terroir” plays in wine production. A boutique winery with a bungalow tasting room a little east of Sonoma Plaza, Sojourn Cellars receives high …
Patz & Hall
Gracious staffers pour remarkable Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs at understatedly elegant tasting room. Renowned for single-vineyard Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, Patz & Hall hosts its guests at the ranch-style Sonoma House. …
WALT Wines
Sister winery to HALL St. Helena produces Pinots from Oregon to California’s Central Coast. The indoor and outdoor spaces at a Tudor-style 1930s residence just north of Sonoma …
Three Sticks Wines
Sonoma winery hosts tastings at spiffed-up historic adobe. Grape grower and vintner Bill Price owns two of Sonoma County’s most famous Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vineyards, Durell and Gap’s …
Martinelli Winery
Longtime growers make fruit-forward wines with palpable restraint. The first Martinellis began growing grapes in Sonoma County in the 19th century, and some of the vines planted then …