Platypus Wine Tours

SONOMA VALLEY WINERY DIRECTORY

TOP SONOMA VALLEY WINERIES

Sonoma Valley is often considered Napa’s historic neighbor, being the birthplace of California’s wine industry. People from all over the world are attracted to Sonoma Valley for its gorgeous scenery, authentic wines, and rich history. Sonoma wineries trace their story back to roughly 1823, when the first grapes were planted. With over 10,000 residents, Sonoma Valley retains its quaint but lively energy, fostering an appreciation for cuisine, the arts, and nature. It’s no wonder Sonoma is home to a population that appreciates its surroundings, preserving many historical sub towns as well as its state parks.

The town of Sonoma houses charming hotels, high end boutiques, restaurants, galleries, and multiple tasting rooms for Sonoma wineries. Sonoma Square or “the Plaza” features a wonderful park with the historic city hall in the center, hosting many community events throughout the year including the Valley of the Moon Vintage every September, California’s oldest tradition of celebrating the area’s wine since 1897. Wineries in Sonoma are often family-owned and small production. Traditions are alive in Sonoma and guests are always thrilled to see them come to life.

With well over 400 wineries located in the North Bay and over 40 Sonoma Valley wineries, we hand-pick from the best to create wine tours that avoid the crowds and find the more intimate side, and the real charm, of our beautiful wine country. We focus on smaller, family-owned wineries and Sonoma wineries of historical significance while trying to avoid larger, more heavily visited wineries, providing you with a memorable experience. We’re thrilled that Trip Avisor consistently ranks our Sonoma Wine Tours as top-rated activities in the region, giving guests access to some of the most amazing hidden gem Sonoma wineries.

Make a Platypus Wine Tour reservation online now or call (707) 253-2723 . Learn more about wineries in Sonoma Valley.  Have any specific Sonoma wineries you would like to visit? Plan a private tour with us and let’s create the perfect trip for you!

Here is a handy directory of many of wine country’s best wineries.  You can use this directory while creating a custom, Private Tour.  Please note that Join-in Tour wineries are selected by our experienced guides.

Winery Description

In 1986, Squire and Suzy Fridell packed up their three-year old daughter and all their worldly goods to trade the freeways and the sand of Southern California for the back roads and fertile soil of Sonoma Valley. They purchased twenty-six acres of raw land, just north of the Village of Glen Ellen. The gentle rolling hills were covered with poison oak, oak trees, manzanita trees, madrone trees, bay trees, and a few redwoods. They cut a few of the trees and put in a road, got poison oak, dug a well and brought in power, got more poison oak, built their Cottage, hand-planted two acres of grapevines, and got a lot more poison oak. After a year of Calamine lotion, itching, and cottage living, they got rid of most of the poison oak, built their new home on top of the hill, started building their winery, planted a second vineyard and created a new life for themselves.

Winery Description

Gundlach Bundschu is California’s oldest continuously family-owned winery, originally founded in 1858 by Jacob Gundlach. It is located 5 minutes from the historic Sonoma Plaza.. Today it is owned and operated by the 6th generation of Bundschu’s and known for being a place to bring families and to have fun. They specialize in making distinctive estate grown wines and typically showcase music on their property so you and your family can enjoy a fun-filled family experience. Beautiful grounds to picnic areas and plenty of places to walk around to see the history of the property are encouraged. They specialize in their red wines, but also showcase their chardonnays and roses. Many different tour offerings can be selected from a Pinzgauer tour to the historic winery tour. A lot is here to sample and see for the visitor and all ages.