“This was our last spot of the day. We enjoyed our visit. Our host was super nice, friendly and informative. She gave us info about the wine, the owner, and the area. We had sparkling to whites to reds. We enjoyed sitting outside in the comfy chairs and the view of the vineyard. Such a relaxing place to visit. Walked away with some sparkling wine.“
“Beautiful tasting room with a beautiful outdoor area and a nice selection of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wine. David the host made the experience educational and fun explaining the subtle differences in blends and where the grapes were grown.“
“Mitch, thank you for describing how you bring out the taste of the earth the grapes are trying to express. I loved Dragon’s Back, and will have to add that to my wish list for when we come back. I know that I will enjoy your wine club I joined.“
“My husband and I wanted to visit Santa Rosa for a cheese shop and we looked for a wine tasting experience nearby. We found D'Argenzio through Yelp. We had a nice relaxing tasting on their patio. The hostess was very sweet and I wish I remembered her name. She added a lot to the experience. We enjoyed a red tasting and an Italian variety tasting. We liked both tastings and couldn't really pick a favorite. Each had their special qualities. The option for food made for a nice relaxing atmosphere.“
“Half the fun here is getting to Belden Barns--the road over Sonoma Mountain makes it a bit of a challenge and the entrance isn't super-clear, but once you get inside this sprawling property (and close the gate to keep the deer out) you'll get a chance to see a really cool vineyard/farm/winery taking shape. The tasting in an old barn is unpretentious and straightforward. After a nice Rose' to start, the unfiltered Sauvignon Blanc was an unexpectedly substantive and fruit-forward SB that deserves the plaudits it has received. Belden Barns is also the site of the only Gruner Veltliner planting in Sonoma County (and one of a tiny handful in the whole state) and the estate bottling of it is nicely-made, with a clean finish and solid acidity. The Serendipity Pinot Noir is outstanding--liked it much more than the Estate Pinot Noir, though it was nice to see the contrast in winemaking style between the two (go for the Estate if you like cherry cola). As for the Syrah, well, if you like Syrah, you'll likely like this Syrah. It's a good cool climate Syrah. The tasting consisted of 6 wines but they had plenty of other interesting bottles and we picked up their Blanc de Noirs and a Late Harvest Viognier. Surrounded by so many Chard/Pinot-only places, it's refreshing to find variety while still maintaining quality. While the Wishing Tree experience was a great way to cap off the visit, it was neat just to be able to walk around the vines and see some of the views off of Sonoma Mountain and into the valleys and hills around. There's a lot of interesting history about the property and some really cool farming ideas that they're working on. It's nice to see a winery that's taking a different direction from most others. We'll definitely be back to try the cider and some other wines and will look forward to seeing how the place and the wines develop.“
“Although the staff was in training and we didn't have a tasting reservation, Brooke met us in the parking lot, chatted with us about the winery and even took a few family pictures. Great location and Brooke's warm welcome mean we'll be coming back for sure.“
“Our tasting with Cathy was one of the highlights on our girls trip Sonoma! After doing a wine tour the day before, we went to downtown Santa Rosa for lunch, and then looked for a tasting room, instead of driving out to more vineyards. When we stumbled in there was only one other couple, who left before our tasting started. This is a very intimate experience. The key word here is experience! It was about 2 hours long and we tasted 12 wines. The conversation would shift between the wines and other general conversation. We were surprised when we finished and so much time had passed. Cathy will work with you if you do have reservations or a time crunch, but I recommend making yourself available for the whole experience.“
“We had a fantastic private wine tasting here - highly recommend! The wine is delicious, Katie is great and was warm/accommodating to us (we had several babies/toddlers in our group), the indoor tasting room and outdoor grounds are beautiful and she showed us around the property, nice cheese board, really a special experience. Thank you!“
“Hanna Winery is a well known establishment in west county for wine tasting and one that I have visited on several occasions.First and foremost, the property is very quaint, but do not expect a luxurious Napa esque setting as you will be disappointed. Growing up in the area, I am more accustomed to more of the low-key wineries rather than the eloquence you may receive over the mountain. With that said, their outside is beautiful, and the inside is quite nice as well. Now, their wines, I always steer towards their delicious Sauvignon Blanc, but they do offer other varieties as well. I do enjoy some of their bolder reds from time to time from the local stores, but I'd suggest you visit for some wines you may not be able to find in the stores. Fast forward to my visit, staff was very friendly and knowledgeable. I have sat outside the several times I have visited, which is great for the warmer months. Pricing is about standard for the area, but you are getting qualities wines, so there is that to think about. All and all, I always enjoy and recommend Hanna to those looking for additional winery visits in the area.“
“Not really a big wine drinker but all of the wines I had here I really liked. All smooth not too dry not too sweet, so much so I had to buy 2 bottles! Great atmosphere, friendly staff, kid friendly! And they have chickens and fruit trees in the back you can pick mandarins and lemons ? from:)“
“We enjoyed wine tasting here on the patio. We did not have reservations, but they graciously found a spot for us anyway. They really are a friendly bunch! We bought two bottles of wine. They really focus on Pinos, but I usually prefer Cabernet. Despite that, we'll definitely be back to enjoy a nice glass of wine on the patio. If only we lived closer...“
“Had an absolute blast at Matanzas Creek! Stunning views, great white wines (that's our fav!), and such a positive winery experience. Also, great charcuterie board and the Brie with lavender honey was ::chefs kiss!:: However, the piece de resistance.... The SERVICE! Sergio was our server and he was incredible. Detailed tasting notes, knowledgeable about the overall brand, and super attentive. I would absolutely ask for him if you're visiting Matanzas Creek.“
“I wish I could say that our visit to Sugarloaf Wine Co. was a memorable experience and that we could recommend it to others. However, there were simply too many frustrating occurances, starting with my email inquiring about how to purchase tickets for their June 25th music event. I received a response that I did not need to buy tickets, just arrive on the day of the event. The following day I got another email, this time from I believe the owner who stated that there was a link to purchase tickets and sent that over so that we were able to reserve our place. Then once we arrived on that 25th the musical group was not whom we had been hoping for. We were also informed that they were going to be food trucks and so when there was only one food booth, we were kind of caught by surprise. It was Japanese food which we normally love but they offered only three choices. We had chicken on a stick and a shrimp wrap, both of which were somewhat bland. We went into taste the wine, and I asked if I might taste the chardonnay prior to purchasing. I was told,"no" that they didn't allow tasting during events. However, earlier my friend had gone in and had a different server (we believe this was the owner) and she was able to get a taste of wine before purchasing her glass. By the way, the wine glasses were between 12 and $16 each. Quite a bit of money tonight allow a tasting before purchase!We were also told to set up our chairs in the back to allow for the lower chairs which we did and yet there were many that sat up front with much higher chairs than ours.Overall I would say that the experience was forgettable and disappointing but we do want to put a shout out to the artists that were there even though there were not many they were very friendly and accommodating much more than the winery itself.Postscript:I was delighted to receive an email from Ronald Du Preez, offering an apology and also a gift of the 2021 and 2022 Rosé as a way of making amends.I gave him a call to thank him and to discuss the points mentioned in my review.He had addressed my concerns with the staff immediately and I want to highly applaud this owner for taking the time to dialogue my earlier frustrationns. I will be returning to this winery and look forward to future events!“
“In short I can review their wines and their online events. If there's any justice, soon I'll be able to review their new Sonoma space, too. In long These guys are low-key in their packaging and low-key in their approach to self-promotion, but their craft is exceptionally good, especially at the price points they occupy. I've been a club member for most of the last 10+ years and the worst problem is I keep opening stuff even when I should save a bottle or two to try with more age on it. They source mostly (if not entirely) local fruit to produce a nice variety of reds, a couple whites, and the occasional pink. I've enjoyed everything I've tried, some tremendously. They pride themselves on their pinots, which have some heft to them, with tons of flavor, all perfectly in balance. And while they don't make cabs as far as I know, they make wonderfully hearty zins and syrahs. I've purchased aged examples of their syrahs and opened them right away...which is also the schedule I follow for their new-release syrahs I could be aging. They often release a white (with a companion white blend) under the name Winter Sun, which is usually a very small batch. It's one of the best whites I've had. They have made a rosé (I think from syrah grapes?) that's definitely the best rosé I've had. They hosted online tastings with blending sessions during the lockdown. They made it fun to see how combining single-grape samples into a blend could make something average change instantly into a delicious and interesting wine, just by finding the right proportions to meld together. I've been a fan practically since the beginning and expect to keep enjoying their wines for as long as they care to make them.“
“My husband and I stopped by for a tasting and were hosted by Scott. I can't say enough good things about the wine. We are from Ontario, Canada and our LCBO carries Kendall Jackson wines which we love we wanted to pay them a visit. Scott was an amazing host, we learnt so much from him - he was very informative and incredibly kind. Thank you so much for a wonderful afternoon!“