25 Best Wineries in California

© Francis Ford Coppola Winery

Francis Ford Coppola Winery sells their wines all over the world, and has been voted Winery of the Year by several international wine competitions. From the flagship Archimedes vintage to the Diamond Collection Claret in its distinctive bottle wrapped with gold wire, Francis Ford Coppola Winery has some beautiful and exquisite wines in its library, but that’s just half the fun. The winery has a beautiful tasting room, a restaurant, a weekly dining event called A Tavola, and even a poolside cafe for guests to enjoy. Games, a park, and some beautiful locations for events such as weddings or retreats round out the deal at Francis Ford Coppola Winery, as well as events sponsored by the venue, such as live music and even movie nights.

300 Via Archimedes, Geyserville, CA 95441, Phone: 707-857-1471

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© Matthiasson Winery

Matthiasson Winery has been named as the Bay Area's winemaker of the year by Food and Wine and The San Francisco Chronicle, nominated for a James Beard Award in 2018 and 2019 for its stellar refined wines and blends. The company, which is helmed by married duo Steve and Jill Klein Matthiasson, is best known for its high-quality white wines, focusing on grape varietals originally cultivated along the Italy-Slovenia border such as Ribolla Gialla,and Tocai Friulano. High-quality red wines are also produced, including traditional Bordeaux and Merlot varietals. Guests can tour the winery each morning and sample the winery's delicious lower-alcohol-content wines, known for acid profiles making them perfect for food pairings.

3175 Dry Creek Rd, Napa, CA 94558, Phone: 707-637-4877

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© Sebastiani Vineyards & Winery

Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery was founded by Samuele Sebastiani, who left his native Tuscany for California in 1895 and started his own winery in the hills of Sonoma less than a decade later. During Prohibition, Sebastiani Vineyards was the only winery in the region to continue making wines, albeit restricted to medicinal and religious purposes. The winery persevered through Prohibition and the Great Depression by becoming a community center for the population, with a skating rink, theater, hotel, and other services offered on site to keep it running. The winery remained in the family after Samuele’s death until 2008, when it came under new management, though it still carries on his tradition of a fine community and even finer wines.

389 Fourth Street East, Sonoma, CA 95476, Phone: 707-933-3200

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© Ram's Gate Winery

Ram's Gate Winery is a Certified Sustainable Vineyard in Sonoma that was opened in 2011, focusing on small-lot Pinot Noir and Chardonnay varietals. The winery strives to cultivate the best wines possible from the Sonoma Valley's prime viticultural conditions, with all wines expertly tasted and perfected by company chefs to bring out unique flavors and textures. Tastings are available at the company's tasting room by advance appointment, offered Thursdays through Mondays during the morning and afternoon hours. A variety of tasting experiences are offered regularly, including Gateway Tastings for new visitors, vineyard tour and tasting combination experiences, and exclusive chef's table tasting events, which pair fine culinary selections with wines.

28700 Arnold Dr, Sonoma, CA 95476, Phone: 707)-721-8700

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© Landmark Vineyards

Landmark Vineyards is an elegant Kenwood winery originally founded in 1974 by a group of investors that included the great-great-granddaughter of famed American inventor John Deere. The vineyard produces a wide variety of high-quality white and red wines today throughout California's spectacular Sonoma and Russian River Valleys, including exclusive estate Chardonnay and pinot noir varietals. Guests can make reservations for private tastings and tours at both of the winery's facilities, highlighting the company's winemaking process and allowing visitors to taste a selection of the company's best small-production wines. Horse-drawn carriage vineyard tours are offered at the Sonoma Valley facility, with picnic opportunities provided at both locations.

101 Adobe Canyon Road, Kenwood, CA 95452, Phone: 707-833-0053

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© Alfaro Family Vineyards and Winery

Alfaro Family Vineyards and Winery is a 56-acre estate-grown winery in Corralitos, helmed by married duo Mary Kay and Richard Alfaro since their 1997 acquisition of a former apple farm facility. The Santa Cruz-area winery has been acclaimed as the Corralitos region's best winery by regional publications such as Good Times Magazine and The Register-Pajaronian, bottling fine varietals of classic wines such as Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Chardonnay alongside its unique Gruner Veltliner wine. Visitors can taste wines at the company's intimate tasting room on weekends, with complimentary tastings offered to the company's Wine Club members. A spacious back patio space allows guests to bring picnic lunches and enjoy wines alongside family members of all ages. Wine club pick-up parties are also open to the public, showcasing live music performances.

420 Hames Road, Corralitos, CA 95076, Phone: 831-728-5172

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© Jordan Winery

Jordan Vineyard & Winery is a family-owned California winery located in Alexander Valley in Sonoma County. Jordan produces only two wines: Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and Russian River Valley Chardonnay. Jordan Vineyard & Winery was founded in 1972 by Tom and Sally Jordan. The Jordan Chateau, located in the heart of 1,400 acres of hills and vineyards was designed by the architecture firm Backen, Arrigoni & Ross and was completed in 1976, the same year the first vintage of Jordan was harvested. Three quarters of the land is protected as a natural habitat. In 2013, the Jordan Estate became open to the public through an Estate Tour & Tasting experience. There are five wine tours and tastings at their Alexander Valley estate in Healdsburg, which include food and wine pairing. Reservations are necessary.

1474 Alexander Valley Rd, Healdsburg, CA 95448, Phone: 707-431-5250

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© efired/stock.adobe.com

Calmére Estate Winery is a state-of-the-art winery in Napa's Carneros region, situated on 100 acres owned and operated by sisters Ariana and Lisa Peju since 2016. The winery, which is named for the French words for "calm" and "sea," overlooks the beautiful Bay Area landscape and cultivates plantings of classic Burgundian grape varietals such as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. High-quality reserve wines are produced each year, along with highly drinkable white and red blends. Guests can visit the winery's public tasting deck and room and sample all of its excellent wines in flights, presented elegantly along with history and background on the region's ecosystem and wine growing practices. Reservations are required for groups of six people or more, with cheese board pairings available upon requests for all guests.

9715, 2750 Las Amigas Rd, Napa, CA 94559, Phone: 707-302-1160

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© Burrell School Vineyard and Winery

The tasting room at Burrell School Vineyard and Winery is open Friday, Saturday, and Sundays from 11am to 5pm, and during these times, visitors can come to the winery to try some of their fantastic product in the historic carriage house of the 19th century Burrell School where the winery is located. Burrell plays on this theme a lot, hosting ‘back to school’ wine tasting dinner events, and even offering a club membership to fans of their wines. Members of the Sippers’ Club get to taste every wine that Burrell makes, via quarterly shipments of bottles, with added benefits like complimentary tastings, members-only events like ‘sippers sessions’, and ongoing discounts on purchases.

24060 Summit Road, Los Gatos, CA 95033, Phone: 408-353-6290

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© Bonny Doon Vineyard

Bonny Doon Vineyard is one of Santa Cruz's premiere wineries, originally founded in 1983 by Randall Graham. The nationally-renowned winery produces more than 450,000 cases of wine per year, known for its humorously-named wines, including its famed flagship wines Le Cigare Volant. Since 2006, the winery has limited its operations in order to focus on terroir wines, including Rhone varietals. Since its refocusing, the company has focused on the production of high-end boutique vintages, along with unique canned and dessert varietals. Guests can sample wines at the company's tasting room, which is located approximately 10 miles north of Santa Cruz's downtown district adjacent to the Davenport Roadhouse.

450 Highway 1, Davenport, CA 95017, Phone: 888-819-6789

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© Fess Parker Winery & Vineyard

Fess Parker Winery has an exquisite tasting room, with shelves packed with bottles of wine lining the walls, leather couches around a huge stone hearth, an open, sunny veranda alongside terraced raised garden beds, and a picture perfect view of the surrounding countryside. It’s a beautiful setting to enjoy a glass of wine with family or friends, and the wine itself is wonderful. Fess Parker wine tastings are offered daily from 10am to 4:45pm, and are led by a knowledgeable staff member who will lead visitors on their quest to find the perfect wine for them. The winery also offers tours of their facilities, for a behind the scenes look at how their wines are created.

6200 Foxen Canyon Rd, Los Olivos, CA 93441, Phone: 800-841-1104

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Ledson Winery offers several tasting experiences for guests, from the Classic option, where guests can choose from two specially curated tasting menus, to the Wine and Food Pairing, in which visitors can enjoy a full experience of Japanese food - served in four or six courses - paired of course with some of the delicious wines that Ledson offers. An experience at Ledson Winery is further embellished by their stunning venue, in a historic castle which began as a family home and grew into the business and winery it is today, with acre upon acre of merlot and other grapes that all contribute to Ledson’s fantastic wines.

7335 Highway 12, Kenwood, CA 95409, Phone: 707-537-3810

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© Lodi Wine & Visitor Center

Napa might get all the credit, but the Lodi region was voted wine region of the year during 2015. The mild climate, with warm days and cool evenings, is perfectly suited for many different varietals of grape, so wineries in Lodi can maintain a full, rich, and complex flavor in their wines. Visitors looking for a wine tour should look no further than Lodi, as there are an abundance of great wineries in the region and the wine trail, provided by Lodi Wines of California, features a wide variety of vineyards. They run a number of events throughout the year involving the local wineries of the area, so visitors should check out their website for any upcoming festivities.

2545 West Turner Road, Lodi, CA 95242, Phone: 209-367-4727

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© Miramonte Winery

Miramonte Winery, in the Temecula Valley, has been producing wine for almost two decades, and their wines focus on varietals originally sourced from Spain, Portugal, and Southern France. These grapes are expertly crafted by Miramonte’s team into a number of great vintages, such as their Albarino, Touriga Nacional, and Rose. Miramonte WInery also sells red and white sangria, perfect for fun summer days and parties with friends. Guests can book a VIP Winemaker’s TOur at Miramonte, which will take them through the process of creating wine from growing the grapes through fermentation all the way to sipping a glass in the tasting room with some delicious food pairings.

33410 Rancho California Rd, Temecula, CA 92591, Phone: 951-506-5500

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© Tablas Creek Vineyard

Tablas Creek Vineyard is a lovely Paso Robles winery, originally founded in 1990 by Jean-Pierre and François Perrin. The winery, which is located within the Paso Robles American Viticultural Area and set against the backdrop of the beautiful Santa Lucia Mountains, is best known for its high-quality Rhône-style blends, including its signature GSM Southern Rhône style. Other notable varietals include the company's Esprit de Beaucastel red and white blends, Panoplie low-production cuvée, Antithesis Chardonnay, and Quintessence Vin de Paille dessert wine. The company's tasting room is open to the public daily, offering full seated tasting experiences showcasing flights of six of the company's wines. Vineyard tours are available twice daily with advance reservations. Special events hosted at the winery throughout the year include pig roasts, wine festivals, and special wine tasting and pairing events.

9339 Adelaida Rd, Paso Robles, CA 93446, Phone: 805-237-1231

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© Navarro Vineyards & Winery

Navarro Vineyards and Winery is a small company, so visitors might not recognize this name or find it on the shelves of any major wine shops across the country. But their wine is no less delicious for their size, and in fact this way the small winery is able to devote all its energy to producing its wines. Those looking to try Navarro Vineyards’ wines will have to head to their tasting room in Philo, California for a glass or a bottle. Navarro offers tours of their facilities twice a day at 10:30am and 2pm, and reservations can be made online or by calling ahead. After the tour, visitors are welcome to bring a packed lunch or buy some cheese and meat from Navarro’s deli to enjoy with a glass of wine on the grounds of the vineyard.

5601 Hwy 128, Philo, CA 95466, Phone: 800-537-9463

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© Newport Beach Vineyards & Winery

Newport Beach Vineyards and Winery is a quirky and fun place that is widely regarded as one of the best kept secrets in the area. At Newport Beach Vineyards, there are over twelve hundred vines on the property, which are harvested, fermented, and blended each year into the winery’s award winning Meritage blend. They use primarily Bordeaux red grapes like Merlot, Cab Franc, Malbec, and Cabernet Sauvignon, and each Meritage has up to five varietals in it. Tours and tastings at the Vineyard are available by appointment only for groups of 8 or more, and each experience lasts approximately two hours.

2128 MESA DRIVE, NEWPORT BEACH, CA, 92660, Phone: 949-645-2200

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© Orfila Vineyards and Winery

Every day at noon, visitors to Orfila Vineyards and Winery are invited to join the experts on a free tour of the facilities, where they will learn about the process of winemaking as they explore the vineyards, the cellars, and eventually the tasting room. After the tour, for $15 per person, guests can enjoy tastings of six of Orfila’s wines. Orfila Vineyards and Winery is located on a 70 acre estate where they produce small batch estate wines and create other blends from vineyards throughout the California wine region. Located near San Diego, Orfila is a great spot to hang out with a glass of wine, buy a bottle, or enjoy one of the events the winery hosts, such as weekly food trucks, live music during their Tunes on the Terrace events, or a Grape Stomp.

13455 San Pasqual Road, Escondido, CA 92025, Phone: 760-738-6500

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© San Antonio Winery - Ontario Wine Tasting, Gift Shop & Event Center

The year 2017 marked one hundred years in the books for San Antonio Winery, a massive vineyard with estates located in Monterey County, Napa Valley, and other locations. The Ontario tasting room has been in operation for over 40 years, serving delicious wines to guests, both San Antonio wines and also vintages from other guest and partner wineries in their wine store. For $15 per person, guests can try a variety of four wines from the San Antonio Winery’s cellar, as well as other wines on sale by the glass. Their wines vary from bold reds to smooth whites, with just about everything in between, so there’s something for everyone in the San Antonio family of wines.

2802 S. Milliken Avenue, Ontario, CA 91761, Phone: 909-947-3995

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© Scheid Vineyards - Winery & Tasting Room

Scheid Vineyards boasts two tasting rooms, one in Carmel, and another in Greenfield, California, but no matter which one you choose, there’s bound to be delicious wine there. Scheid Vineyards has been producing grapes in the Monterey region for almost fifty years, where they began as a vineyard that sold grapes to other wineries and finally moved into creating their own wines much later. Today, many of Scheid’s grapes, grown on 11 vineyards stretched over a staggering 70 miles of land, are sold to other wineries, but many of them are also used to create Scheid’s signature wines, including their fantastic Pinot Noir, Claret, and Cab Sauvignon.

SAN CARLOS & 7TH, CARMEL, CA 93923, Phone: 831-626-9463

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Michael Dawson, the owner and proprietor of Seal Beach Winery, really knows wine, which one should expect from a winemaker, but he really knows it on another level. Dawson intimately studies and understands the chemistry and biology of grapes and the process of fermenting them into wine, and with that understanding comes the fantastic product that he and his staff create at Seal Beach Winery. Guests who stop by their tasting room in Los Alamitos will find it open Wednesdays through Sundays from 4pm to 9pm, with a full tasting menu that includes glasses, bottles, tasting flights, growlers, and even charcuterie boards to pair with their wine choices.

3387 CERRITOS AVE, LOS ALAMITOS, CA 90720, Phone: 562-594-5800

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Visitors to San Francisco and the Bay area will enjoy Solis Winery, which is located just a short drive away in Gilroy. Solis Winery’s vineyard is over a century old, and throughout its storied history has been the source of delicious and fine wines that are still being made today. The tasting room at Solis Winery is open seven days a week, excluding some holidays, from 12pm to 5pm, and there, visitors can sample and taste some of the amazing product the winery has to offer, including their Gold Medal winning Baciami, Cab Sauv, Merlot, and Sangiovese. Solis Winery is a small company, and their wines are difficult to find outside the tasting room, so guests should take the opportunity to purchase wine from their tasting room on the premises.

3920 Hecker Pass Hwy., Gilroy, CA 95020, Phone: 408-847-6306

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© Callaway Vineyard & Winery

The gorgeous estates at Callaway Vineyard and Winery are huge, with rolling hills of vineyards under a blue and cloudless California sky. Guests at Callaway can take a tour of the property, which is offered daily at 11am and 1pm, for $10 per person, or $25 for a tour combined with a full wine tasting. The tour includes an exclusive behind the scenes look at Callaway’s inner workings -- their vineyards, their barrels and fermentation tanks, and more -- as well as a taste of wine straight from the barrel. The tour ends up at the tasting room, where guests can opt to try more of their delicious wines, and a full wine tasting at Callaway Vineyard and Winery includes tastings of six different types of wine.

32720 Rancho California Road, Temecula, CA 92591, Phone: 951-676-4001

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Storrs Winery has been growing grapes and producing wine since the late 1980s, but in the summer of 2018, they opened their new winery facilities in Corralitos in the Santa Cruz Mountains. This beautiful place is brand new, state of the art, and the perfect spot to enjoy some of Storr’s great products, like their Santa Cruz Mountain Chardonnays, or Wildcat Ridge Pinot Noir. Lovers of Storrs Wine can even join their wine club, which guarantees the delivery of four bottles of wine, shipped four times a year, for a total of sixteen bottles. Members of the wine club get special discounts, sneak peeks at new wines, and even complimentary tastings at Storrs Winery’s tasting rooms.

303 Potrero Street no. 35, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, Phone: 831-458-5030

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© Ackerman Family Vineyards at the Aviary

Ackerman Family Vineyards works hard to capture the true spirit of each grape in their wines, from their spectacular Bordeaux blend to their delightful Cabernet Sauvignon. At Ackerman Family Vineyards at the Aviary, there are over eleven thousand acres of land used for growing grapes, and its location on an extinct volcano means that the volcanic soil beneath the vineyards is rich with nutrients that give Ackerman Family Vineyards’ wine its amazing and unique taste. They farm sustainably and are a CCOF (California Certified Organic Farm) so there are no pesticides used in any of their products, and they use innovative techniques like hawks on their properties to manage pests, and cover crops like vegetables and poppies to enhance their soil.

608 Randolph St, Napa, CA 94559, Phone: 855-238-9463

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