Alexander Valley Vineyards
8644 California 128, Healdsburg, CA 95448
Website: http://www.avvwine.com/
Alexander Valley Vineyards is tucked away in northern Sonoma in the Alexander Valley appellation. This family-owned winery is rustic like many of the other small wineries in this area of Sonoma. The winery was once the original home of Cyrus Alexander, a pioneer who arrived in 1840 and became a community leader in the valley by building the valley’s first schoolhouse and three local churches. Hence, the valley was named after him. The Wetzel family purchased the property from Alexander’s heirs in 1962 and restored the family home. They then constructed the winery and produced their first wine in 1975.
Fermentation tanks in the parking lot of Alexander Valley Vineyards
When my husband and I visited it was quiet with only a couple of other cars in the parking lot. At one end of the parking lot is a wood paneled building that houses the tasting room, and at the other end are barrels and large stainless steel fermentation tanks. Off to the side of the tasting room building is the newly expanded wine cave. This is an eco-friendly winery that uses solar panels to operate the winery, including pumps, computers, and bottling equipment. The winery offers complimentary winery and cave tours twice a day. They also have a complimentary reserve tasting coupon on their website. My husband and I did the complimentary tour. The tour consisted of a quick explanation about how they create the wine from the crush pad and outdoor fermentation tanks to the barrels in the cave, and then we took a walk inside the cave with a stop to taste from one of the barrels. It wasn’t the most thorough tour I have been on, but I can’t complain about a complimentary barrel tasting. If you are looking for a little something more, the winery offers wine and cheese pairings, and during the summer months they have hikes through the vineyards with lunch included. Reservations are required for both of these experiences.
The tasting room was quiet and simple. A couple of wine club members had stopped in while we were tasting to pick up cases of wine. Obviously they were big fans of the wine. Alexander Valley Vineyards concentrates on Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon, but they also produce other varietals like Merlot, Chardonnay, and Gewurztraminer. The winery produces 12 -15 different wines. One of their most well-known wines is the Sin Zin. They also produce a Temptation and Redemption Zinfandel. I had a side-by-side tasting of each of the Zinfandels and enjoyed all of them. Each one has its own nuance. There are several other options to choose from outside of the Zinfandel. The staff was friendly and offered to pour anything that we wanted to try off the menu. Between my husband and me, we tried almost all of them. My personal favorites were the Zinfandels, Alexander School Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, and CYRUS.