Hawley Tasting Room and Gallery in downtown Healdsburg
36 North St, Healdsburg, CA 95448
Website: https://hawleywine.com/
I visited the Hawley tasting room in downtown Healdsburg upon a recommendation from our tour guide at Bella Winery. I believe in the adage to “always trust the locals”. Hawley Vineyards and Winery is actually located in Dry Creek Valley. The property sits 1000 ft. above sea level on Bradford Mountain. Ten acres of the estate are planted to Merlot, Cabernet, Cabernet Franc, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah and Viognier. This winery is owned by John and Dana Hawley who moved onto the property in 1975. The vineyard at the time was rundown. John tried to produce wine from the vines with not much success. He ended up tearing them out and starting over. Between 1990 and 1996 John worked as chief winemaker for Kendall Jackson. The Merlot from his property was the core of Kendall Jackson’s reserve program. John produced the first vintage under the Hawley label in 1995. The winery became certified organic in 2006.
Hawley Tasting Roomn
The tasting room and gallery is located off a side street in downtown Healdsburg. The tasting room is modest with artwork by Dana Hawley and wine barrel furniture built by their son Austin. The tasting experience was reasonably priced, offering a taste of 4 wines for $10 or all 9 wines for $20. The tasting room has a rustic, cozy feel. The space isn’t incredibly large, but there is enough seating for a few groups of people at a time. I thought the tasting bar made from barrel staves was pretty cool. In the center of the space were some stools and a wooden table. There was also a wooden park bench and a couple of comfy leather chairs. There were also a few wine barrel Adirondack chairs outside the front door of the tasting room for those who prefer to hang outside. Dana’s artwork was displayed on the walls. Both the artwork and some of the furniture were available for purchase. The estate is not open to the public, but they do offer vineyard tours and experiences by reservation, such as a blending class or picnic.
I really enjoyed all of the wines. My husband and I sampled their flagship Viogner with lovely citrus flavors, a delightfully light Chardonnay, a fruity Pinot Nori, and a jammy Zinfandel. We took some home with us and left feeling grateful for the recommendation to visit.