Historic Vineyards in Sonoma County
The forefathers of the land known for some of the best wines in the world were from Mission San Francisco Solano De Sonoma and planted the first vineyard in 1824 to make sacramental wines for the churches. The first wine for public consumption was made from Buena Vista Winery. The grapes were planted by a Hungarian man named Agostan Haraszthy just easy of town on Old Winery Road. Buena Vista Winery has gone through various changes in ownership and renovation. They even have a museum at Buena Vista Winery.
Another place worth checking out is downtown Sonoma Plaza which has a national landmark where the settlers of this area declared independence from Mexico. This event helped the United States in taking California from Mexico. In the center of town, there’s a park filled with art galleries, shops, restaurants, and the Sonoma Cheese Factory, which is famous for their Sonoma Jack Cheese. Another historic winery is Gundlach Bundschu, which can be found south of town off of Napa Road. It’s California’s second oldest winery, which began in 1858 by a German man named Jacob Gundlach. It has an excellent view of the valley and Gundlach Bundschu is known to have excellent Rieslings, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir and Merlots. If you travel to Healdsburg, you’ll find several restaurants, shops, and wine tasting rooms. Healdsburg is 30 miles north of Santa Rosa. There are several wine tasting rooms in Healdsburg, so if you’re looking to have your fair share of wine, there’s no need for a taxi if you’re checked in at Hotel Healdsburg. Some of the wine bars in Healdsburg are Kendall Jackson, Gallo Family Vineyards, La Crema, and several more.
Be sure to plan a route for your trip whether you’re biking, hiking, or driving. If you go north onto Highway 12, you will find many wineries off of the Highway. You’ll also find many wineries off of the country roads that are off the Highway 101 or Sonoma Valley’s Highway 128.