Hop Up to Hopland for Leisurely Wine Tasting and Striking Views

Inland Mendocino County town entices with easy-going hospitality and varied experiences.

Let’s get the logistics out of the way first: a half-hour drive from Healdsburg and a 90-minute straight shot north from the Golden Gate Bridge, Hopland hides in plain sight along U.S. 101. The pace slows in this southern Mendocino County town, population about 900, and not just because its section of the highway narrows to one undivided lane in each direction and the speed limit drops to 35 mph. (Watch out for pedestrians and sometimes the cops.)

Anchor a day trip of touring with tastings at three wineries – Saracina, Campovida, and either Alta Orsa or Terra Sávia – all known for easy-going hospitality and striking views. Saracina allows guests to bring picnics, or you can eat (suggestions below) in the small “downtown” business district, where a few restaurants and cafés, half a dozen tasting rooms, a cannabis dispensary, and a shop or three straddle the highway.

Best Hopland Wine Tasting

10 am

Saracina Vineyards

Saracina Vineyards is a must-do stop for its landscaped grounds, hospitable staff, and masterful winemaker. Alex MacGregor has crafted Saracina’s wines for more than two decades – he knows this land and its grapes well. Tastings often start with whites like the Unoaked Chardonnay and the Lolonis Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc (per MacGregor from the nation’s oldest Sauvignon Blanc vines). Among the reds, the Pick and Shovel Zinfandel (unfined, unfiltered, with some Petite Sirah) impresses with its back-palate spice, elegance, and mild tannic kick, and the Malbec seduces with dark-fruit flavors and herbal/savory notes. The Winter’s Edge, a red blend of old-vine Carignane, newer Grenache, French Colombard, and a “mystery grape” that might be Cabernet Sauvignon, all cofermented and aged together, is lively, unique, and perfectly balanced.

Note: If you can’t get a reservation at Saracina, try Nelson Family Vineyards, about 6 miles north in southern Ukiah. Run by the same family since the early 1950s, it’s got a large patio and a redwood grove, both with vineyard views. 

Lunch

If you won’t be picnicking at Saracina, head to downtown’s The Golden Pig. When it’s open, the Thatcher Hotel’s Café Poppy serves bakery items and light fare. The folks behind San Francisco’s well-regarded Osha Thai restaurant announced plans to open an outpost in a brick building that dates from the 1880s. They hope to be open by early fall 2025. 

1 pm

Campovida

The owners of Campovida hipped up Hopland by refurbishing the Thatcher Hotel, which sits next door to their seven-room Stock Farm Inn, home to a restaurant and a bar/pizzeria. Campovida pours its sensitively cultivated wines about a mile outside town at its ranch – Italian and Rhône-style whites and reds are among the specialties. For one self-guided tasting, guests can stroll through the property’s gardens, which, like the vineyards, are certified organic. The owners focus on land stewardship, a topic at most sessions, one of honey and three olive oils.

3 pm

Close the day with a tasting at Alta Orsa (open only on weekdays) or Terra Sávia (open daily). 

Alta Orsa Winery

A nearly 2-mile-long gravel driveway winds past oaks, manzanitas, pines, and firs to the steep, stunning 160-acre estate of Alta Orsa Winery. Winemaker Martin Bernal-Hafner, who hails from Colombia and has done wine work on three continents (his mentors include Paul Hobbs), conducts the tastings here. Except when the weather doesn’t cooperate, sessions take place under a decades-old cork tree, usually after a vineyard walk if you’re up for it. Bernal-Hafner specializes in single-vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from Sonoma County fruit and Cabernet Sauvignon from the Hopland estate, where Merlot, Petit Verdot, and a few other varieties also grow. While sipping gracefully made wines, you’ll learn about Bernal-Hafner’s commitment to holistic, organic, regenerative farming practices.

Terra Sávia

There’s a lot to unpack at the day’s throwback winery, Terra Sávia, a sheer delight that’s a window into Hopland’s soul. In addition to organically farming 35 acres of grapes, the winery’s owners, Swiss-born Jurg Fischer and Dominican Republic native Yvonne Hall, cultivate 24 acres of olive trees, tend to a slew of rescue animals, sell nursery plants, and exhibit art. Some Terra Sávia guests come just to sample the olive oils, but the wines are also worth seeking out. Enjoy them by the flight in the tasting room, or purchase a glass and wander the grounds.

Best Time to Go

All the wineries are open daily except Alta Orsa, which closes on weekends. Alta Orsa always requires a reservation, and Campovida recommends one for most experiences but can sometimes accommodate walk-ins. It’s best to make a reservation at Saracina on summer weekends, but even then, they’ll try to fit you in if they can. Parties up to five don’t need an appointment at Terra Sávia. If time permits, you can also stop by the storefront tasting room of Brutocao Cellars, Graziano Family of Wines, or McNab Ridge Winery, all of whose owners have been growing grapes in the area for decades. 

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Also in Mendocino County 

Breggo Cellars and Lichen Estate
Lula Cellars
Stanford Inn by the Sea
2 Fun Days Tasting Anderson Valley Pinot Noir

This itinerary first appeared in mid-2022; it was most recently updated in 2025. Lead photo shows Cabernet vines at Alta Orsa.