Valley of the Moon at Madrone Estate
777 Madrone Rd, Glen Ellen, CA 95442
Website: http://www.valleyofthemoonwinery.com/
Valley of the Moon Winery at Madrone Estate is located in the southern end of Sonoma Valley. It neighbors B. R. Cohn winery. The stone structures of the winery date back to 1863, making it the oldest operating winery in Glen Ellen. Since that time the winery has gone through several owners and was converted to a more contemporary winemaking facility in 1998 when Heck Estates purchased the property. The most currently owners, Dan Zepponi and Tony Stewart of West Cost Wine Partners LLC, purchased the winery in 2012. Despite the modern winemaking facility, the winery takes pride in its history as they state on their website, “As we celebrate the renaissance of Valley of the Moon Winery, our mission is clear: To at last honor the rich history of our Sonoma Valley winery, its true sense of place and sustained sense of purpose with wines of exceptional quality and of genuine provenance.”
Historic barrel cellar at Madrone Estate
The name “Valley of the Moon” is what enticed me to visit. I had driven by it on several occasions on my way to different wineries but was always intrigued by the name. There is nothing on the website that indicates how the winery got its name, so I did a little research of my own. There is a legend of Valley of the Moon that is tied to a book of the same name written by Jack London in 1913. In the book, London claims that Sonoma is a Native American word that means Valley of the Moon. Although there is some dispute about this translation, Sonoma is often referred to as Valley of the Moon today.
Valley of the Moon at Madrone Estate Tasting Room
The renovated winery is elegant, warm, and inviting all at the same time. The entire facility is rather large. From the outside, the woodsy looking exterior blends in nicely with the surrounding landscape. The original barrel cellar from the 1800s is still in use. My favorite part of the property is the field of old vines right out front of the winery. I couldn’t resist stopping to take a picture before heading into the tasting room. In contrast, the interior has a very modern feel. The tasting room is very spacious with a large semi-circular stone tasting bar on the left side of the room. There are several tables with chairs scattered throughout the room. There was a small lounge area to the left of the tasting bar. Outside is more tables under umbrellas right next to the vines. I felt that the staff was friendly in welcoming us to the winery, but they didn’t offer a ton of information about the wines that they poured for my husband and me. There is a good selection of wines at three different tier levels – Reserve, Madrone Estate, and Valley of the Moon. The Valley of the Moon wines are the more commonly distributed ones. They actually did not talk much about those wines during the tasting. The tasting menu was all of the Madrone Estate or Reserve wines. Overall, I enjoyed the winery and appreciate the old vine wines the most.
Old vines at Madrone Estate