I went in skeptical and came out smiling. This was such a fun weekend. We know the area well and are in Healdsburg a lot, so I was pretty sure it would just be same old, same old on steroids. Wrong. First, with 45 wineries to choose from, we made sure to go to ones we didn't know and were delightfully surprised. Second, every winery puts on a tremendous effort with wine selections, food, and entertainment. And third, but definitely not least - there is a sublime friendliness in the air. It comes from the winery hosts, as well as the guests who are visiting. Enjoying the exquisite weather, drinking delicious wine, and sampling foods designed to augment the wine you're drinking - in beautiful surroundings - who wouldn't be friendly?! We met folks, we listened to music, we bought some wine and met winemakers and chefs for two days of California wine bliss. We'd do it again in a heartbeat. Favorite finds were Mauritson - boy did they put on the dog. We discovered their reasonably priced, delicious sauv blanc they paired with a delicious buffalo cauliflower dish. Their reds were matched with an amazing cassoulet and divine french dip sandwich. Of course, the food was prepared by Charlie Palmer's team, and the Chef himself was there to sign his new cookbook. We also loved Truett Hurst with its beautiful patio and their simply awesome Salmon Run Rose and Red Rooster Zin. The Red Rooster barrel tasting was fun and a great learning experience. We wrapped up one day at Fritz which is a treat with their Cave, fine wines, and tremendous hospitality. They have a remarkable view from their deck and the round tasting room is unique and charming. Day two ended for us at Seghesio in Healdsburg in their elegant grounds. There was good music, and an incredible shrimp risotto plus homemade sausage sandwiches. Calm and beautiful with a final taste of their excellent Zin was the perfect ending to a great event.
Stephanie A.
What an amazing experience, will definitely be coming back, but next time maybe i won't be greedy and take only one day. This year the passport weekend happen to fall on a perfect weather - not too hot and not too cold. Yes it was windy and rainy in the morning but by 11 AM the sky went clear and the sun picked behind the clouds just enough to warm us when needed. Most of the participant wineries are beautiful and some have amazing views. Those with no view compensate with entertainment and food. It wasn't crowded and since there's a lot of wineries spreading out all over the area, the flow of people from winery to winery is not heavy. The whole atmosphere is fun and party like. Next year go for it - it is an amazing experience for the foodie, and/or wine lover. We had an incredible weekend with a wide cover of more than half the wineries list. Below are those who made an impression. We began our weekend at Da Vero a small and charming winery. they set most of the tasting outside in the garden and gave us a wonderful opening to our passport journey. I would definitely come here again. After leaving Davero we made a short stop at some of the tasting rooms in Healdsburg. Their setting in warehouses next to each other is not much of a winery experience, but each of them made an effort to entertain the guests in a unique way. Seghesio won that league with their band and garden setting. Selby was fun with their Mardi Gras setting. The best experience was at A.Rafanelli (as in every year I understand) which stunned the guests with a huge variety of delicious food and a generous poor of their excellent wines. They don't have parking so you park on the road and they bring you to the entrance by a small shuttle. we stood in line for about an hour just to come in, but it was well worth it. The runner up was Ferrari-Carano with an excellent and complete experience. They spread the tasting stations along a path leading the guests inside between the barrels and than outside to their gorgeous garden. One of the best and most beautiful settings. I totally fell in love with their Baci dessert wine. their prices were very reasonable. Wilson had a lovely deck overlooking the vines and we took a long break on that porch enjoying the and Zinfandel. Mauritson - small and lovely with very reasonable prices for the wonderful zinfandel and Malbec. Loved the salad with salmon as a companion to the tasting. Mazzocco - They have table settings outside and award winning wines. We took our time here enjoying the lively band, and the wineyokes present which we appreciated a lot. A must stop. Amista - a very enjoyable and special stop with gourmet chocolates, sparkling wine, clams and art. Michel-Schlumberger - truth to be told I was too full and too tired. I did taste some wine but can't recall what I thought. They have a charming small courtyard which I enjoyed until my friends finished their tasting. They served Pizza. One of my friends lost her wine glass and the blond girl at the front desk refused to give her a new one (got it with no problem at our next stop) so i gave her mine and just had some rest. Kachine - they were trying a Hawaiian them. they had a whole pig being smoked and served at the spot, and chocolate tastings. They refused us a second chocolate taste. Gopfrich - nice courtyard with live music and excellent crapes. Fun wine. Raymond Burr - tiny family winery. They had an really excellent finger food servings and my friend (the only one who could still taste at that point loved their wine). Bella- Unfortunately at that point just the thought of tasting food or wine made me feel nauseous. so I just set at the views from their garden at the top of the hill, listening to the live music and watching other people enjoying the lobster rolls. they also have a lovely wine cave. Sbragia - one of the best views from a wide outside setting at the top of a hill. Live music and a superb pizza. Unfortunately I did not take notes so i don't remember which wine I liked, so I'l
Chris O.
The group I went with to this event with were all first timers and we all were pleasantly surprised at the organization of the event. Well done Passport crew! We attended both days and hit a total of 16 wineries of 50. Our objective was to taste the wines at suggested wineries and not to blow through as many as we could. The pairing at each winery was pretty incredible, a must attend with no questions! While you cannot expect each winery to have the same level of service, there were one winery I wont mention that was 100% under par from the moment we first pulled up the driveway. Nothing you can do about that other than move onto the next. Overall great event with delishous foods being paired with the wines. Cheers, O
Erin S.
I was really excited to be able to attend Passport to Dry Creek this year because I had always heard it was one of the best winery events. The event is a two day event from 11 to 4pm with over 40 wineries and restaurants involved. The price of a ticket was $120, more expensive than barrel tasting, but extremely worth it. This lets the winery do more for the event. Each winery had food pairings that were quite sizable. Everyone poured their current releases and a lot of wineries poured futures at great prices. The best part of passport was that wineries held themed events. Some of the themes I saw where mafia, Caribbean, Mardi Gras, Safari, Tuscany, Saloon, Heaven and Hell, and lots more. They really created nice atmospheres. There was no really big crowds which topped of the whole event. Only thing I would improve was the fact that there were no extra dump buckets at any of the wineries and not many vegetarian options!
Diane R.
I hate to let this secret out but every year this organization puts on an amazing two day event at Sonoma County Wineries in the Dry Creek Reigon. Every winery has a theme, music, tons of great food and lots and lots of wine tastings. The event is so popular you have to be in a drawing to have the chance to purchase tickets.
Beautiful
Beautiful
I went in skeptical and came out smiling. This was such a fun weekend. We know the area well and are in Healdsburg a lot, so I was pretty sure it would just be same old, same old on steroids. Wrong. First, with 45 wineries to choose from, we made sure to go to ones we didn't know and were delightfully surprised. Second, every winery puts on a tremendous effort with wine selections, food, and entertainment. And third, but definitely not least - there is a sublime friendliness in the air. It comes from the winery hosts, as well as the guests who are visiting. Enjoying the exquisite weather, drinking delicious wine, and sampling foods designed to augment the wine you're drinking - in beautiful surroundings - who wouldn't be friendly?! We met folks, we listened to music, we bought some wine and met winemakers and chefs for two days of California wine bliss. We'd do it again in a heartbeat. Favorite finds were Mauritson - boy did they put on the dog. We discovered their reasonably priced, delicious sauv blanc they paired with a delicious buffalo cauliflower dish. Their reds were matched with an amazing cassoulet and divine french dip sandwich. Of course, the food was prepared by Charlie Palmer's team, and the Chef himself was there to sign his new cookbook. We also loved Truett Hurst with its beautiful patio and their simply awesome Salmon Run Rose and Red Rooster Zin. The Red Rooster barrel tasting was fun and a great learning experience. We wrapped up one day at Fritz which is a treat with their Cave, fine wines, and tremendous hospitality. They have a remarkable view from their deck and the round tasting room is unique and charming. Day two ended for us at Seghesio in Healdsburg in their elegant grounds. There was good music, and an incredible shrimp risotto plus homemade sausage sandwiches. Calm and beautiful with a final taste of their excellent Zin was the perfect ending to a great event.
What an amazing experience, will definitely be coming back, but next time maybe i won't be greedy and take only one day. This year the passport weekend happen to fall on a perfect weather - not too hot and not too cold. Yes it was windy and rainy in the morning but by 11 AM the sky went clear and the sun picked behind the clouds just enough to warm us when needed. Most of the participant wineries are beautiful and some have amazing views. Those with no view compensate with entertainment and food. It wasn't crowded and since there's a lot of wineries spreading out all over the area, the flow of people from winery to winery is not heavy. The whole atmosphere is fun and party like. Next year go for it - it is an amazing experience for the foodie, and/or wine lover. We had an incredible weekend with a wide cover of more than half the wineries list. Below are those who made an impression. We began our weekend at Da Vero a small and charming winery. they set most of the tasting outside in the garden and gave us a wonderful opening to our passport journey. I would definitely come here again. After leaving Davero we made a short stop at some of the tasting rooms in Healdsburg. Their setting in warehouses next to each other is not much of a winery experience, but each of them made an effort to entertain the guests in a unique way. Seghesio won that league with their band and garden setting. Selby was fun with their Mardi Gras setting. The best experience was at A.Rafanelli (as in every year I understand) which stunned the guests with a huge variety of delicious food and a generous poor of their excellent wines. They don't have parking so you park on the road and they bring you to the entrance by a small shuttle. we stood in line for about an hour just to come in, but it was well worth it. The runner up was Ferrari-Carano with an excellent and complete experience. They spread the tasting stations along a path leading the guests inside between the barrels and than outside to their gorgeous garden. One of the best and most beautiful settings. I totally fell in love with their Baci dessert wine. their prices were very reasonable. Wilson had a lovely deck overlooking the vines and we took a long break on that porch enjoying the and Zinfandel. Mauritson - small and lovely with very reasonable prices for the wonderful zinfandel and Malbec. Loved the salad with salmon as a companion to the tasting. Mazzocco - They have table settings outside and award winning wines. We took our time here enjoying the lively band, and the wineyokes present which we appreciated a lot. A must stop. Amista - a very enjoyable and special stop with gourmet chocolates, sparkling wine, clams and art. Michel-Schlumberger - truth to be told I was too full and too tired. I did taste some wine but can't recall what I thought. They have a charming small courtyard which I enjoyed until my friends finished their tasting. They served Pizza. One of my friends lost her wine glass and the blond girl at the front desk refused to give her a new one (got it with no problem at our next stop) so i gave her mine and just had some rest. Kachine - they were trying a Hawaiian them. they had a whole pig being smoked and served at the spot, and chocolate tastings. They refused us a second chocolate taste. Gopfrich - nice courtyard with live music and excellent crapes. Fun wine. Raymond Burr - tiny family winery. They had an really excellent finger food servings and my friend (the only one who could still taste at that point loved their wine). Bella- Unfortunately at that point just the thought of tasting food or wine made me feel nauseous. so I just set at the views from their garden at the top of the hill, listening to the live music and watching other people enjoying the lobster rolls. they also have a lovely wine cave. Sbragia - one of the best views from a wide outside setting at the top of a hill. Live music and a superb pizza. Unfortunately I did not take notes so i don't remember which wine I liked, so I'l
The group I went with to this event with were all first timers and we all were pleasantly surprised at the organization of the event. Well done Passport crew! We attended both days and hit a total of 16 wineries of 50. Our objective was to taste the wines at suggested wineries and not to blow through as many as we could. The pairing at each winery was pretty incredible, a must attend with no questions! While you cannot expect each winery to have the same level of service, there were one winery I wont mention that was 100% under par from the moment we first pulled up the driveway. Nothing you can do about that other than move onto the next. Overall great event with delishous foods being paired with the wines. Cheers, O
I was really excited to be able to attend Passport to Dry Creek this year because I had always heard it was one of the best winery events. The event is a two day event from 11 to 4pm with over 40 wineries and restaurants involved. The price of a ticket was $120, more expensive than barrel tasting, but extremely worth it. This lets the winery do more for the event. Each winery had food pairings that were quite sizable. Everyone poured their current releases and a lot of wineries poured futures at great prices. The best part of passport was that wineries held themed events. Some of the themes I saw where mafia, Caribbean, Mardi Gras, Safari, Tuscany, Saloon, Heaven and Hell, and lots more. They really created nice atmospheres. There was no really big crowds which topped of the whole event. Only thing I would improve was the fact that there were no extra dump buckets at any of the wineries and not many vegetarian options!
I hate to let this secret out but every year this organization puts on an amazing two day event at Sonoma County Wineries in the Dry Creek Reigon. Every winery has a theme, music, tons of great food and lots and lots of wine tastings. The event is so popular you have to be in a drawing to have the chance to purchase tickets.
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