Porter-Bass Winery

TL;DR

  • Cute for pictures: 3/5

  • QPR: 5/5, average price $18-50

  • Main varietals: Chardonnay, Pinot, Zin, Cab

  • Tasting fee: $25 to taste, waived with a bottle purchase

  • Average wine rating on Vivino: 4.2

Porter-bass is one of the most chill and relaxed tasting experience. You feel like you are visiting a friend’s vineyard home and tasting through their favorite wines. a bit of a drive out from the main Sebastopol town but worth the drive and you are rewarded with views of the vineyard and great quality to price wines. $35 for a bottle of Cab in Sonoma/Napa? Sign me up!

More about Porter-Bass: Website, Yelp , IG

Hendry Winery

TL;DR

  • Cute for pictures: 4/5

  • QPR: 5/5, average price $18-45

  • Main varietals: Little bit of everything! Rosé, Albariño, Chardonnay, Bordeaux varietals, Pinot

  • Tasting fee: $75 to taste, waived with purchase equivalent to the fee

  • Average wine rating on Vivino: 4.1

I’ve bookmarked Hendry Winery for so long and so glad I finally got to visit. I usually plan my weekend trips ~1-2 weeks before but they are usually fully booked on weekends for ~3-4 weeks out (seeing a lot more of this at other wineries in the area recently). I was really excited when I got a call that I got off the waitlist 😆 Their property is 203 acres and the entire experience was definitely worth the wait. It’s family owned and operated with a dedicated host for your group, which makes the experience personal and informative. We went through various side by side tastings which I always love (unoaked Chardonnay vs. barrel fermented Chardonnay, Primitivo vs. Ziznfandel) even learned that Primitivo and Zinfandels have the same DNA! Can’t recommend it enough and bonus points since bottles are affordable for Napa and location is closer to downtown.

Great views, wines, quality to price ratio, hospitality, and visit overall :)

More about Hendry: Website, Yelp , IG

Passalacqua Winery

TL;DR

  • Cute for pictures: 4/5

  • QPR: 4/5, average price $50-80

  • Main varietals: Rosé, Chardonnay, Cab, Bordeaux Blends

  • Tasting fee: No tasting fee, recommended purchase of 2-3 bottles/pp

  • Average wine rating on Vivino: 4.2

This place is another one of hidden gems that I almost don’t want to tell anyone about! Small family owned winery that helps visitors discover their wines and purchase vs. charging a hefty tasting fee. Located in Healdsburg, their ground is gorgeous with an outdoor tasting area that has an amazing view of the vineyard. All of their wines were wonderful and it was difficult to leave without bottles of them. I ended up loving two of their blends, Tredici and Ispirato but their Cabs from various vineyard “blocks” were excellent as well. Definitely going on my list of must visits in Healdsburg!

More about Passalcqua: Website, Yelp , IG

Reeve Wines

TL;DR

  • Cute for pictures: 4/5

  • QPR: 4/5, average price $40-80+

  • Main varietals: Rosé, Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot, Sangiovese

  • Tasting fee: $45 per person, waived for members

  • Average wine rating on Vivino: 4.2

This modern-rustic winery is so charming and a great place to spend your weekend. Not only their wines are high quality, weekend tasting comes with a delicious wood-fired pizza! They make wines with lesser known varietals (Cab Franc, Sangiovese) in addition to various Pinots and Chardonnays from Sonoma and Mendocino. Not sure if it was the pizza pairing but every single wine we tasted were so good we ended up becoming members 😄 Space is small and they book up pretty quickly for weekend spots so make sure to reserve in advance!

More about Reeve: Website, Yelp , IG

Halleck Vineyard

TL;DR

  • Cute for pictures: 3/5

  • QPR: 3/5, average price $45-100+

  • Main varietals: Chardonnay and Pinot

  • Tasting fee: $65 per person, waived for members

  • Average wine rating on Vivino: 4.3

Discovering Halleck Vineyard was totally unexpected as it’s off the beaten path up the mountains from Sebastopol. I searched for a winery on the way to the Bodega Bay from San Francisco and Halleck happens to be located on the route. When we arrived, realized we are tasting award winning Chardonnay and Pinots at the owner’s vineyard home. Tasting involves a cheese and chocolate pairing that really enhanced the experience. Not a fancy tasting building but wines were definitely fancy and worth the drive for Chardonnay and Pinot lovers.

More about Halleck: Website, Yelp , IG