Geyser Peak Winery
2306 Magnolia Dr, Healdsburg, CA
Website: http://www.geyserpeakwinery.com/
Geyser Peak Winery is located in a convenient location on Westside Road right outside of downtown Healdsburg. The winery moved to this new location in January 2014. It used to be the property of Alderbrook Winery. The winery was previously located on a hillside in Geyserville across from Geyser Peak Mountain, hence its name. The current owner is Accolade Wines who purchased the winery in June 2012. The company is the fifth largest wine company in the world with 45 brands sold to over 140 countries. Despite the fact that Geyser Peak is owned by such a large company today, it has a lot of history. Augustus Quitzow originally founded the winery in 1880. It is California’s 29th bonded winery. Quitzow was known as a pioneer in Alexander Valley.
Geyser Peak Winery Framer’s Porch
The new site of the tasting room is a large gray farm house with a huge farmer’s porch in front and behind the tasting room. There are perfectly manicured hedges out front. On the farmer’s porch in front and back are some benches and tables with chairs. This place was very quiet when we visited. The tasting room is spacious with a tasting bar that could serve a few groups of people at once.
Geyser Peak Tasting Room
The tasting bar takes up almost the entire left side of the room. The base of the bar is stark white painted wood with a light granite top. Behind the bar is a wooden wine display that expands the entire wall. It’s impressive to see. To the right of the bar is a leather couch, a coffee table, and couple of chairs in front of a fire place. There are wine gifts and accessories all around the room. The tasting room is very clean, with tan walls and white trim. The high ceilings and glass doors bring lots of lighting into the room. Glass doors lead to the back porch that looks out onto a wide an expanse of lawn.
I had some pleasant surprises during my wine tasting with the River Ranches Sauvignon Blanc and Atlas Peak Malbec wines. These are varietals that I typically don’t prefer based on my personal tastes because I find they tend to be very bold, “In your face” type of wines and I lean toward softer styles. This Sauvignon Blanc was almost a clear color with refreshing lime and passionfruit flavors and was very well–balanced. The Malbec was more fruity than tannic with nice balance as well. I also really enjoyed the Water Bend Chardonnay and Walking Tree Petite Sirah. Geyser Peak has a wide variety of wines including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Petit Verdot, and some other red blends. Since I visited in February, I don’t know if this place gets a lot busier during the busy season, but it would be a nice place to bring a group of friends to when it’s not busy. The winery offers a special boxed lunch tasting on the porch for groups of 10 or more. It’s an easy stop if you are heading into or out of downtown Healdsburg.