12 Beautiful Sonoma Wineries to Visit Right Now

By Amy Thomas
November 24, 2019
Kevin Yuan/Shutterstock
Sonoma Valley. Just the name suggests innate decadence and glorious beauty, which makes natural disasters, like the recent Kincade Fire, all the more devastating.

Fortunately, less than 8% of Sonoma’s one million acres of rolling hills, verdant farmland, pristine redwood groves, and coastal inlets were damaged. And the 2019 harvest was 92% complete when the fire broke out on October 23, which means the 400-plus Sonoma wineries are open for business and ready to pour. From regal to rustic, modern to classic, grand to intimate, Sonoma’s wineries, across 18 appellations, are as diverse as the surrounding area is beautiful. And since after taste, sight is the most important sense to satiate while wine tasting, here are a dozen of the most beautiful spots to sip your Chardonnay or Pinot Noir.
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Copain Wines

Courtesy of Sonoma County Tourism

The natural splendor of Copain’s hilltop winery is visible the moment you start meandering up the driveway, but it's best appreciated from an Adirondack chair overlooking the serene Russian River Valley below.

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Fort Ross Vineyard

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While the rest of Sonoma soaks up the sun inland, Fort Ross Vineyard floats over the chill of coastal fog, affording a bird’s-eye view of the property’s vines, forests, meadows—and the spectacular Pacific Ocean in the distance.

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Jordan Winery

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You'll feel like you're in Alsace rather than the Alexander Valley thanks to Jordan Winery’s grand, ivy-covered chateau that lords over 1,200 acres of picturesque vineyards, orchards, and pastures.

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Scribe Winery

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Elegance surrounds you as soon as you turn into Scribe’s extended palm-lined allée and head toward the estate’s shabby-chic hacienda, which has ample outdoor viewing of the surrounding Sonoma hills.

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Hamel Family Wines

Courtesy of Sonoma County Tourism

Hamel Family Wines’ modern tasting room and hillside terrace are the arresting centerpiece of an all-around impressive estate, which is the perfect place to gaze at Sonoma Mountain and the valley below.

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Chateau St. Jean Winery

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A sprawling green lawn with towering palm trees, manicured gardens, and a regal 1920s chateau create the feeling of an exotic escape, right off Sonoma’s Highway 12.

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Robert Young Winery

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This 448-acre winery has been operating since 1858, but its new tasting room, the Scion House, built on the Young family’s favorite hilltop, offers fresh and modern 360-degree views of the Alexander Valley.

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Lambert Bridge Winery

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The charming wisteria-vined tasting room of this rustic Dry Creek Valley winery sits nestled within redwood-forested hills. If that’s not alluring enough, there are manicured gardens and intimate picnic vistas, too.

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Lynmar Estate Winery

Courtesy of Sonoma County Tourism

Bordering a 22-mile wildlife preserve, Lynmar Estate’s views might actually include a mountain lion or bald eagle—but only if you pull yourself away from the elegant terrace and manicured gardens surrounding the contemporary tasting room.

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Matanzas Creek Winery

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The vast and fragrant fields of lavender on Matanzas Creek’s property are like a French fantasy. And if your idea of beauty is a bocce ball court, well, there’s one of those, too.

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Cline Cellars

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Enjoy thousands of rose bushes from the wraparound veranda of Cline Cellars’ 1850s farmhouse tasting room before disappearing to the property’s great lawn, draped in oversized willow trees.

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Foley Sonoma

Courtesy of Google (Maxar Technologies, USDA Farm Service Agency)

The floor-to-ceiling windows and outdoor perches of Foley Sonoma’s dramatic tasting room are the perfect spot to watch the play of light between Alexander Valley and the Mayacamas Mountains—with a glass of Pinot Noir or Zinfandel, of course.

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By Amy Thomas