Wine tasting near Santa Rosa can be as relaxed or as involved as you like. Highway 12 leads through Sonoma Valley, connecting winery stops around Santa Rosa, Kenwood and Glen Ellen with the town of Sonoma. Some tasting rooms sit right on the highway; others are a detour worth planning around.
Wine Country Soulcation gives you a Santa Rosa home base for exploring the route. My advice is to choose two or three stops, leave time for lunch and enjoy each visit rather than trying to work through the whole list in a day.
Plan your Highway 12 wine-tasting day
- Choose an area: group nearby stops around Santa Rosa and Kenwood, Glen Ellen, or Sonoma. Check the actual addresses before booking, especially for estates off the highway.
- Book the experience: a tasting, cave tour, vineyard tour and food pairing can be separate reservations. Allow the full visit time plus travel between stops.
- Plan your ride: arrange a designated driver or prebook transportation before the first tasting.
- Check your whole group: confirm rules for children, non-tasting guests, dogs and outside food with each winery. Policies can differ between experiences at the same property.
Traveling with children? Start with my family-friendly Sonoma County winery guide, then confirm the rules for your chosen booking.
Choose your Santa Rosa wine tasting itinerary
For a first visit, build the day around two reservations and leave a third stop optional. Choose the wineries for the experience you want, then check appointment times and addresses before booking.
- A Santa Rosa and Kenwood day: consider St. Francis in Santa Rosa and Landmark’s Kenwood Estate from the list below. Leave room between tastings for lunch and the drive.
- A longer Sonoma Valley outing: choose one Glen Ellen-area experience and one Sonoma stop. Off-highway estate visits deserve their own space in your schedule.
- A day with children: choose the experience by its child policy first. Use the family-friendly guide above and confirm the exact tasting or picnic reservation with each winery.
You do not need to cover the whole route to have a memorable day. Grouping your stops gives you more time to enjoy each visit and a relaxed return to your Santa Rosa home base.
Wineries to consider from Santa Rosa to Sonoma
Use these as options for your own itinerary, rather than a single-day checklist. Follow each official link for current availability, pricing and reservations.
1. Annadel Estate Winery
For a more intimate start, Annadel offers private, appointment-only tastings on its estate, with vineyard scenery and historic ruins. Reserve ahead rather than treating it as a drop-in stop; its current experience is limited to six guests per party.
Plan a visit to Annadel Estate Winery
2. The Wine Lounge at Sugarloaf Wine Co.
Sugarloaf is a tasting-room collective near Santa Rosa, where you can explore wines from several small producers in one place. Choose a flight, glass or bottle, and reserve ahead if you want a particular seating area, bocce court or food pairing. Children are welcome, with outdoor space and games making this a useful option to consider for a family outing.
Plan a visit to The Wine Lounge at Sugarloaf Wine Co.
3. Ledson Winery & Vineyards
Ledson’s castle makes this a distinctive Sonoma Valley stop. Its tasting options include guided experiences and reserved tables, so choose the setting that suits your group before booking. Check directly about food arrangements and any guests under 21.
Plan a visit to Ledson Winery & Vineyards
4. St. Francis Winery & Vineyards
St. Francis offers wine flights, food pairings and vineyard experiences at its Santa Rosa estate. Pick a straightforward tasting or make a food-and-wine experience the centerpiece of your day. Book the specific experience you want; a tasting reservation does not automatically include a winery tour or meal.
Plan a visit to St. Francis Winery & Vineyards
5. Landmark Vineyards, Kenwood Estate
Landmark’s Kenwood Estate focuses on Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, with outdoor scenery and a reservable bocce experience. Make sure your booking is for Kenwood in Sonoma Valley, rather than the separate Hop Kiln location in the Russian River Valley. Check its current reservation and food policies before arriving.
Plan a visit to Landmark Vineyards, Kenwood Estate
6. St. Anne’s Crossing Winery
If Zinfandel is your favorite, put St. Anne’s Crossing on your shortlist. The winery specializes in Zinfandel while also offering other reds and whites. Check the current tasting options and reserve a time that leaves room to enjoy the wines without rushing to your next stop.
Plan a visit to St. Anne’s Crossing Winery
7. Muscardini Cellars
Set in a historic schoolhouse in Kenwood, Muscardini is a good fit for fans of Italian-inspired wines, including Sangiovese and Super Tuscan-style blends. Its tasting menu includes classic flights and more involved private experiences. Reservations are strongly recommended; groups of nine or more should contact the winery directly.
Plan a visit to Muscardini Cellars
8. Kunde Family Winery
Kunde offers several ways to explore its estate, from a casual tasting to cave and seasonal mountain-top experiences. Choose and book the actual experience you want instead of assuming every visit includes a vineyard tour. Its cave tour and mountain-top experiences are 21+, and outdoor offerings depend on the season and weather.
Plan a visit to Kunde Family Winery
9. Deerfield Ranch Winery
Deerfield is one of my personal favorites for a different kind of tasting setting: its large wine cave. Check the winery’s current tasting reservations before visiting. This is a cave-tasting stop rather than a promise of unrestricted access to production areas or vineyards.
Plan a visit to Deerfield Ranch Winery
10. Loxton Cellars
Loxton offers tastings outdoors among the vines or inside its barrel room when the weather calls for it. Its separately booked Vineyard Walkabout adds a closer look at the vineyard and winemaking. Picnic tables are another option, with a tasting required for each adult; check the current food and booking arrangements.
Plan a visit to Loxton Cellars
11. Lasseter Family Winery
Just outside Glen Ellen, Lasseter offers patio tastings, a cellar tour with a salon tasting, and an estate vineyard tour. Its wines include Bordeaux- and Rhône-inspired styles. Reservations are required, and the different experiences have different inclusions, so choose your visit before building the rest of your day around it.
Plan a visit to Lasseter Family Winery
12. Imagery Estate Winery
Imagery brings wine and visual art together through its artist-designed labels and gallery. It is a good stop to consider if your group enjoys discovering varieties beyond the usual Chardonnay and Cabernet lineup. Check current tasting, seating and food options before you go.
Plan a visit to Imagery Estate Winery
13. B.R. Cohn Winery
B.R. Cohn offers tasting experiences and vineyard-view seating, with options for wine by the glass or bottle. A reserved cabana can suit a group that wants time to settle in. Its current cabana policy does not permit outside food or drinks, so plan around the winery’s available snacks rather than assuming you can bring a picnic.
Plan a visit to B.R. Cohn Winery
14. Hamel Estate
Hamel is an option for a more structured estate visit, with guided winery and cave experiences followed by seated tastings. There are also food-focused experiences for those who want a longer visit. Reserve the specific experience directly and allow the full time shown in your booking.
15. Little Vineyards Family Winery
This small estate offers patio tastings and separately reservable picnic tables. Children are welcome but should stay with their adults, and the winery asks you to include them in your reservation details. Outside food is not allowed during hosted tastings; reserve a picnic table if you want to bring lunch. Check its operating days, which are currently Friday through Sunday.
Plan a visit to Little Vineyards Family Winery
16. Repris Wines, Moon Mountain Vineyard
Repris is an estate excursion off the main Highway 12 corridor, so give it its own place in your schedule. Its reservation experience combines an open-air vineyard journey, a cave visit and a seated tasting. Request a reservation directly and follow the winery’s arrival directions rather than treating it as a roadside drop-in.
Plan a visit to Repris Wines, Moon Mountain Vineyard
17. Buena Vista Winery
Near the Sonoma end of your trip, Buena Vista combines wine tasting with a historic winery setting. Options include seated and standing tastings, plus separately booked tours and specialty experiences. Select the experience you want in advance, especially if visiting the caves or taking a tour is important to you.
Plan a visit to Buena Vista Winery
18. Bartholomew Estate Winery
Previously referred to in this guide as Bartholomew Park Winery, the current winery is Bartholomew Estate. Its indoor and outdoor tasting areas are 21+. Families can enjoy designated areas of the surrounding Bartholomew Park, but those are separate from the winery’s tasting spaces. Outside food is permitted in designated park picnic areas, not the winery tasting areas.
Plan a visit to Bartholomew Estate Winery
19. Sebastiani Vineyards & Winery
Sebastiani offers bar and seated tasting options in Sonoma, making it a useful stop when you also want time around town. Walk-ins are welcome, while groups of seven or more need to arrange a visit directly. Check the current tasting menu rather than assuming a barrel-room or production tour is included.
Plan a visit to Sebastiani Vineyards & Winery
Private experiences and availability checks
La Rochelle Wines
La Rochelle’s current website promotes customized private experiences, including in-home tastings and a limited members’ lounge. Contact the winery directly about its present options before planning a tasting-room visit. Explore La Rochelle’s current experiences.
Kenwood Vineyards
Confirm directly before adding Kenwood Vineyards to your itinerary. Published information about tasting-room availability has changed, so confirm a visit directly instead of relying on older opening hours. There are plenty of other Kenwood-area stops above to build your day around.
Make Santa Rosa your Wine Country home base
After a day exploring Sonoma Valley, come back to a place where everyone has room to relax. Wine Country Soulcation offers a Santa Rosa stay with a private pool, hot tub and game room.
Browse the Santa Rosa vacation rental page or explore more local ideas in my Wine Country experience guide.
Planning details reviewed October 22, 2026. Check each winery’s official site before booking, as hours, experiences and visitor policies can change.