Hill top overlooking the pond at Windsor Oaks Winery.
It takes a little effort to find 710-acre Windsor Oaks Vineyards & Winery – the sunny property in the foothills of the Russian River Valley enjoys a beautiful, secluded setting up a long, happily winding unpaved lane. More than half of the property has been preserved as open space – much of the rest is planted with the Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Sangiovese, Zinfandel, and Pinot Noir grapes that go into the winery’s highly prized, artisan wines. The property is only open to the public a few weekends each year, during special events. And the next one of these, the 2nd Annual Nature Walks & Wine weekend, is coming up soon: Friday through Sunday, August 5 through August 7.
Visitors are encouraged to come as early as 8:30 each morning to hike the property’s rugged terrain, although “relaxing by our winery pond” has been presented as a relaxing alternative to those uninterested in moving about too much. Then from 11 until 5, there’s wine-tasting (the fee is $10 per person, which is refundable with purchase) as well as picnicking on the grounds. Bring your own food, or you can order a box lunch ahead of time. It’s a perfect way to spend an August day.
Windsor Oaks is 12 miles north of Santa Rosa, just off the Arata Lane exit of the U.S. 101 freeway (here’s a map to the property).
Can’t wait to see you over here…for as much chillin’ or hiking — or both!– as you desire. The tasting will be full of refreshing whites (Sauv Blanc, Pinot Gris, Unoaked and Reserve Chardonnays) plus Double Gold awarded Pinot Noir Rose and our luscious Pinot Noir and Malbec.
More Great news: we just won 3 Chairman’s Best of Class Double Gold Medals on our Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Reserve Zinfandel and Super Tuscan Style Blend at the Long Beach Grand Cru International Competition. All 3 of those will be in a special celebratory Reserve room pouring to add to the fun. Cheers!!! Julie (winemaker)
http://www.windsoroaksvineyards.com/naturewalks.shtml