It's not easy compiling a list of the best Santa Cruz wineries. This wine region, located on the upper part of California's Central Coast, has over 70 wineries offering high-quality wines.
Make sure you carve out plenty of time to enjoy these wonderful wineries in Santa Cruz. They are pretty spread out, so there can be a good amount of driving time between them. The entire Santa Cruz wine appellation region is 850 square miles. This wine region is vast and covers mountainous, valley and marine terrains. This allows for great diversity in the local vineyards due to the various micro climates.
Santa Cruz also happens to be one of the most laid back of the California wine regions. You don't find a lot of overly ornate or gaudy wineries here. The tasting rooms tend to be pretty straightforward with a focus on pouring their great wine. Don't be fooled by the lack of formality or glitz. The Santa Cruz mountains played a key role in California's fine wine movement and the best Santa Cruz wineries carry on the rich tradition.
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Our List of The Best Santa Cruz Wineries
MJA Vineyards | 24900 Highland Way Los Gatos, CA 95033
Breathe in the fresh ocean air on the outdoor patio, complete with lounge area and live music at the MJA Vineyards Tasting room. Their wine is direct the Santa Cruz Mountains where Marin John Artukovich, owner, and winemaker, creates his labels Serene Cellars and Davine Cellars. A former Kona Coffee grower from Hawaii, MJA was inspired to harvest grapes out of his love for good wine or what he likes to refer to as “handcrafting Aloha”. You can taste the fruits of his labor at the MJA Vineyards Tasting Room in the beach town of Santa Cruz where you can enjoy such wines as “Still Horny”, “French Kiss”, and “Sweet Thang”. They produce many varietals including Sangiovese, Pinot Noir, Malbec and both white and rosé sparkling wine. Join the wine club to get free tastings for you and a friend, plus 30% off any purchased bottles during your tasting.
A former Kona Coffee grower from Hawaii, MJA was inspired to harvest grapes out of his love for good wine or what he likes to refer to as “handcrafting Aloha”. This winery keeps showing up on any list of the best Santa Cruz wineries for a reason! You can taste the fruits of his labor at the MJA Vineyards Tasting Room in the beach town of Santa Cruz where you can enjoy such wines as “Still Horny”, “French Kiss”, and “Sweet Thang”. They produce many varietals including Sangiovese, Pinot Noir, Malbec and both white and rosé sparkling wine. Join the wine club to get free tastings for you and a friend, plus 30% off any purchased bottles during your tasting.
Ridge Vineyards | 17100 Montebello Road Cupertino, CA 95014
Ridge is a key player in the history of California fine wine. Some of the vineyards here were planted before prohibition and others were planted soon after it ended. Through some good fortune, the historic vineyards were discovered and revitalized by a group of Stanford research students who had a passion for wine. This happened during a time that jug wines from producers like Gallo dominated the US wine market.
These upstart winemakers focused on creating fine wine in small batches using traditional methods. The resulting wines were a revelation for California wine drinkers. This quickly established Ridge as not only the best winery in Santa Cruz but one of the top wineries in America.
Amazingly, Ridge has maintained the quality of their wine even as the quantities grew exponentially. They remain one of the best Santa Cruz wineries to this day. This is a must visit when you are exploring the Santa Cruz Mountains wine region.
Storrs Winery & Vineyards | 303 Potrero Street no. 35, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
This husband and wife team who were both students at UC Davis’ viticulture program began Storrs Wines in 1988. Their organically grown grapes are inspired by French varietals including Burgundy and Pinot Noir varietals including Dijon and Pommard.
You can enjoy tastings of Storrs wine in their tasting room at the Old Sash Mill where you can find Stephen, the winemaker, greeting you with a warm welcome and chatting it up with visitors. You can score 6 tastings for just $10 which includes the fan favorite Grenache and Pinot Noir - both award winners. Open daily noon-5pm.
Beauregard Vineyard | 10 Pine Flat Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
A family owned and operated vineyard since 1945, Beauregard focuses on producing wines that show the flavor of the land like Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Zinfandel. Aside from these classics, this father and son team also produce Orange Wine and Sparkling Apple Wine. Beauregard Vineyards is located in the mountainous region of the Santa Cruz mountains known as Bonny Doon. It’s literally in the woods so bringing a picnic to enjoy on their grounds along with the wine is encouraged.
The tasting room is historic as it was once the site of The Lost Weekend Bar - a popular hangout for locals and travelers who were road trippin’ along Hwy 1. The winemakers have even made a Sangiovese blend of wine named The Lost Weekend. The tasting room is open daily from 10am-5pm. Tasting fee is waived with purchase of a bottle.
Sones Cellars | 334 B Ingalls St Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Sones is a family winery located in the heart of Santa Cruz. They are best known their red and white blends. They produce premium bottles of Pinot Noir, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot, however, their everyday Hedgehog wine is competitively priced for those who want to get their vino allowance daily. You can even take your bottles back to the winery and have them refilled.
The owners are really into the hedgehogs - the tasting room is full of hedgehog decor! The tasting room is open Thursday - Sunday until 6 pm where you can taste up to six wines for under $10. You can find the owners there on any given day pouring you their best bottle to taste. Wine refills! What else do you need to be one of the best Santa Cruz wineries?
Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard | 334–A Ingalls Street Santa Cruz, CA 95060
This is one of the oldest wineries in the neighborhood dating back to 1975 and there is nothing pretentious about it. Coining it the “dive bars” of wineries would be fair. We happen to love dive bars when the people behind the bar know their wine. That is the case here.
The tasting room is even located in a back alley. They specialize in European style wines with much focus on Spanish and Portuguese varietals. A visit to the tasting room will have your tummy rumbling as they love to discuss food pairing with the wine - the winemakers keep this in mind when they craft a wine as what food would go best with it.
The wines are reasonably priced under $30 per bottle. Visitors gloat how the tasting pours are generous and the attendants love to chat it up with the patrons while pouring more wines than are on the tasting menu.
Stockwell Cellars | 1100 Fair Ave Santa Cruz, CA 95060
There is a new breed of urban wineries that are taking over and Stockwell produces some of the finest handcrafted wines inside its westside micro-boutique winery. The winery doubles as a cellar/art gallery creating that urban vibe complete with live music in the cellar for those chill nights.
With a small wine production, owner and winemaker Eric Stockwell with his wife Suzanne and daughter Jessica all host the tasting room to deliver the best service and most authentic tasting experience you could hope for. Tasting fees are waived with bottle purchase and against the norm, they allow you to bring in outside food to enjoy with your wine. That's what makes this one of the best Santa Cruz wineries to visit.
Bottle Jack Wines | 1088 La Madrona Drive, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Kind of like a secret society for down-to-earth, unpretentious people, Bottle Jack Wines is a no-frills winery. The tasting room is open just one weekend a month (mark the 3rd weekend on your calendar) which makes it an instant party.
Relax in the cozy atmosphere with views of the bay and mountains while sipping their bold flavored Italian and French varietals. Husband and wife winemaking team, John and Katherine, can be found pouring their award-winning classics like the Firenze and Merlot, which people have touted as so good it made them change their mind about Merlot. Open 3rd Saturday and Sunday of every month from noon-4pm.
Conclusion and More Santa Cruz Winery Resources
This list of the best Santa Cruz wineries is meant as a starting point for your exploration. There are many more wineries in the Santa Cruz Mountains and in the nearby urban areas. We suggest you dedicate at least two days if you want to get a sense of what the area has to offer. It is best to split up your tasting tours into a northern and southern focus. This will help you cut down on driving. Here are a few resources to help you enjoy your time in Santa Cruz wine country. The Santa Cruz Mountains Winegrowers Association - Great for finding events, maps and more information on the region The Mountain Winery - This is a popular venue for concerts and private events. Wine tasting tips - A few simple tips to make sure you enjoy your day wine tasting. The Priority Wine Pass - This is a great way to save some money when you are visiting winery tasting rooms.
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