Family Wineries Dry Creek

Alexis was on hand to help us get through the 6 different wineries represented here. We had a bit of a fried palate but she gave us some mineral water to clear our palate. We left with a great selection of wines from 4 different wine makers. She knew her stuff and helped us select according to our taste. We got 10% off as we has a card from Wilson. Make sure you ask is the has comp tasting cards at each place!!!

This is one of our favorite tasting rooms to visit. Some of the comments have talked about the lack of «view» at the winery but honestly who cares. Having a nice view at a winery is fine but there are many wineries with nice views with so so wine which to me defeats the purpose of going wine tasting. Wines here are great. I love that all the wineries are small batch wineries; and given that there are six wineries, you get a wide variety in your tasting.
Both times Shaun helped us. Shaun is super awesome! He’s pretty chill and lets you do your tasting but will definitely recommend what he thinks you will enjoy. We bought the Philip Staley IB Blend w/​o tasting since Shaun highly recommended it. We also bought the Lago Di Merlo Sangiovese w/​o tasting since we loved it last time we were here. Last time we were here, we regretted not buying more wine so we bought a case with shipping only at $ 18.
Shaun’s been in the industry a while so seems like he can recommend a bunch of places for you to go to in the Sonoma area… just ask him!

If you want some great wines for reasonable prices poured by friendly people, come here.
The place: In somewhat of a parking lot with a bunch of different wineries, don’t expect the majestic view of vineyards. However, Family Wines pours a decent selection from about 6 different small producing wine makers in the area. When we were there, one of the wine makers was pouring himself so a great time to ask questions, learn about the history, etc.
The Wine: We came away with 6… yes, 6. All were $ 30 or less, all were fantastic. So excited to enjoy them.
The People: The 3 gentlemen pouring were such a delight. Down to earth, gave us a great background on the wineries, and also let us know about pairing food options with some of the wine. And 2 adorable friendly dogs roamed the place.
Would love to go back to buy more wine. The «parking lot» winery experience is SUCH a convenient way to taste some great wines in a convenient location!

We went to a number of wineries we found recommended on Unilocal and by other friends — looking for a nice Pinot Noir that didn’t cost $ 75 or more. Head to Family Wineries off of Dry Creek Ridge. We liked the Mietz. It’s located next to a number of other tasting rooms as well as a tasting room that also specializes in olive oil. The guys at Family Wineries were super friendly and entertaining. Obviously love what they do. Tasting room is modest but a warm atmosphere. I preferred it over some of the dark dungeon like motif that seems to be driving tasting room décor trends. We also got some yummy mustards/​olives and crackers for our planned picnic and a recommendation to go to Johnny’s in Healdsburg to get our meats and cheeses.
Tip– lots of tasting rooms give a free or $ 10 taste. But what really matters is finding something you like in a price range you can live with to buy! We don’t drink $ 100 bottles of wine, unfortunately. Look for reviews about really good wine, not free tastings.
We also had some very nice Petite Syrah at Trattore next door, had some not so great Pinot at Kokomo.

We stopped by here so I can get a couple of bottles of the Dashe Cellars late harvest Zinfandel. It’s a great dessert wine that is consistently good each year and even after tasting some other dessert wines I still preferred it over the rest. A stop here is convenient since you can do tastings of multiple wineries at the same place.

We came here during a weekend day of wine tasting and it was our second stop before lunch. We were the only guests and the host was a great guy. The tastings are inexpensive and there are a variety of wines you can taste from multiple small growers who formed together to sell from this store. The wines aren’t fantastic, but we did end up finding a nice dessert wine for a pretty cheap price.
It was a pretty relaxed place but it’s all indoors — so no nice view like some of the other big wineries. On the other hand, the area has an olive oil tasting room next door and a few other wineries so you could literally walk around and get smashed easily and for less than 20 dollars. So, if that’s what you’ve come to this area to do, you’re in luck.
The tasting room also has a bunch of salsas and oils to taste. Overall, it’s not bad and depending on what type of experience you’re looking for, you can have a great time here, or wish you were elsewhere for views/​fancier furnishings, etc.

The place is a sleeper, but you need to go here.
Six of us went to the «Family Wineries Dry Creek», a fairly small and unimposing building a turn off of Dry Creek Road.
Our Barista was sensational and very knowledgeable about the wineries he represented. We tried both reds and whites — and a rose. The wines offered here represent a very broad spectrum — six wineries in all. Very likely you are going to find something you love. I liked the reds more than the whites, but that could just be me. I’m pretty selective on whites.
My palate gave out before the the end of the tasting. However, the winery sells a fizzy carbonated palate restorer for just that issue. Good thing, too, because after that I found two bottles that I really loved.
When you go up Dry Creek road, make this the second stop and buy the palate restorer for the rest of your tasting experience.
This is a tasting room not to miss.
BTW, one of our party doesn’t do wines, but she found the cute goodies in the tasting room really interesting.

What a great place to sample wines from six different producers!!! This is a WINE tasting review, not one that comments on the layout of the tasting room or the ambiance of the merchandising area.
Six tastings for $ 5 fee (applied to any purchase of wine). The day we were there, they had 10 whites and 16 reds. We tried five whites and seven reds along with three dessert wines. We could have kept right on tasting except our palates were giving out and it was only 11 am on a Tuesday.
Plenty of delicious wines here. Among the samples were Collier Falls 2008 Primitivo, Dashe 2008 Zinfandel, Forth 2006 Syrah, Mietz Petit Verdot, Philip Staley Tempranillo, Lago di Merlo Moscato and Dashe Late Harvest Zin. The winners for my palate were the Lago di Merlo 2009 Sangiovese and 2009 Barbera — they got purchased.
The Dry Creek wineries produce a wider variety of wines and styles of wines than the traditional PN and Zin crowd along the Russian River. The Dry Creek area of the Alexander Valley is surprisingly good. We prefer it to most of the samples we tried along the Russian River.
The Family Wineries Dry Creek tasting room location is in the same parking lot as 4 other wineries tasting rooms — right off Dry Creek Road. Stop at this ONE location and you will be able to taste wines from Amphora, Collier Falls, Dashe, Forth, Philip Staley, Peterson, Lago di Merlo, Kokomo, Mietz and Papapietro. Easy peasy.

I had a great time tasting here. Our wine guy, Shaun, was relaxed and knowledgeable and I loved that I could have an entire flight of white wines for my tasting.
He ate a salad for the most of our tasting, but, surprisingly, it didn’t bother me. He still kept our glasses full and answered any questions we had… even went off the list a bit and I’m always a sucker for a taster willing to veer.
They featured wines from Dasche, which was a treat because I love their wine. I had their Riesling and their Late Harvest Zin… both varietals were fantastic.
Also tried the sauv. blanc by Forth Vineyards. nice crisp, but not overpowered by citrus… just a hint.
I really enjoyed the Ca’Bella Moscato and we had to take a bottle of that home :) can’t wait to crack it open.
They have cute lil wine trinkets in here. including some corks with eye balls and hats. There was one painted in black face that reminded me of a lawn jockey. So, the corks are a lil sketchy, but the wine is good and they have a huge selection to choose from.

Shaun and Glenn run a great shop with excellent attitude and knowledge of their products. Stopped in for some of the excellent Collier wines and wow, what a value.
Thanks,

i had such a great experience here about two months ago i’m suprised i didn’t write a review sooner! my girlfriends and i came here during the first and second weekend of barrel tasting. needless to say it was pure chaos. luckily we came on a friday on the first weekend and it was the calm before the storm.
the men that were pouring the wines behind the bar greeted us with open arms and seemed just as excited to pour for us as we were to drink! i completely appreciated how respectful they were of us and that they treated us like every other customer. they know that barrel tasting weekend is full of college kids, who mostly dont care about the beauty of winemaking yet they did not judge us by our age whatsoever. they were so funny and we had great conversations about school and winemaking and of course the great wines. did i mention that there’s also the cutest residential golden retreiver?
i’m so tired of reviews about sonoma county wineries and their lack of «ambience». i love these wineries– they are small, personable, and allow you to get to know the people who actually make the product. wine tasting should be about the great wines and having good conversations with others around you about the experience you’re sharing. if you want a château and glitz and glamour you know where to go.
not only does family wineries have fantastic wine (i bought two bottles of moscato mmmmm) but they sell the most delicious mustards, olive oils, jellys, and other dips. i also left with a meyer lemon marmalade that was so delicious.
they gave me a gift certificate for a free tasting since i went there maybe four times throughout the two weekends, and i can’t wait to go back!

we walked in 5 mins before closing. We were willing to take whatever we could get. We walked up to the bar, expecting 1 or 2 wines… but instead, we got the full offering of 12 wines! I don’t remember all of the wineries represented, but they were pretty good. This was the last stop of the day so you can imagine what condition our palettes were in.

ok, so the ambience is pretty much non-​existent. But it’s not miserable or anything. kind of like tasting wine in a country store.
and after a few tastes, honestly, who gives a damn about ambience? I’ve had a great time each of the 5 or 6 times I’ve visited, the staff has always been friendly, and I usually feel like I’m the less-​than-​friendly one until that 3^rd taste or so when suddenly I turn loquacious. We always end up buying here, and I have a husband who doesn’t usually buy at any location. I love Mietz Pinot Noir, Dashe zins and Phillip Staley has some good varietals as well. Good times, I love the laid-​back feeling of this place. Check out the olive oil tasting next door too.

One of the first wineries we stopped by yesterday. Tasting room staff was awful and rude. Shaun was nothing but non accommodating. Too bad too cus I really enjoyed the Viogneir.
UPDATE —
After I wrote this review I was contacted by the owner who apologized and asked for me to come back with a 10% discount with any purchase.

Came here for the wine & food affair it was the first place on our list. The wines were just ok, but the gumbo they served was AMAZING. I would go back to this winery to try their restaraunt but not so much their wine.

The wines were decent, but 2 stars for layout /​design /​experience. Since ambiance is important to me, and I’m such an experience-​driven person, I just can’t give Family more stars.
I found the layout for this winery very stressful and overwhelming. It was confusing, disconnected, and hard to understand which tasting rooms belonged to which winery, and where you had to pay fees & where you had already paid. There were too many wines to try, and no one pourer for all the wineries to keep track of what you’ve tried and what you haven’t. It was like this big co-​op of wineries with a total lack of flow & organization. Small hut-​like houses in a massive parking lot. I just didn’t get it, and I didn’t find it relaxing, peaceful, nor fun.
It probably didn’t help that we went on the «All-​American Zin Day» the day after July 4^th and were kind of in for this packaged deal to Family, Wilson, Rued & Mazzocco, but still. Either way, I found Family to not be streamlined, to not be relaxing, and to just be downright confusing. I won’t be going back.
UPDATE:
After I wrote this review I was contacted by the Director of Marketing & Operations to come back for a visit and have a tasting on them. The gentleman also explained that the wineries in the Family Co-​op are unable to have tasting rooms at their vineyards, hence the co-​op on this shared property. He also explained that the property was an old dried fruit & tomato cannery, hence the multiple buildings on the property. It is unfortunate that this is the design Family must make-​do with, so I will give them that. I suggest you try their wine for yourself. Cheers!

Very nice selection of wines, including some obscure ones that you probably couldn’t taste otherwise. The range of wines offered is nice, as there were probably 30 wines to choose from [pick 6 for $ 5] from the different labels. I like that they had some Rose, whites, reds, and dessert wines. Plus, the proximity to other places in the area is nice for doing several tastings without having to move the car.

*Barrel Tasting Update*
I’m a big fan of Family Wineries but wouldn’t recommend coming during Barrel Tasting. Do yourself a favor and check them out any other time but the crowds that we encountered yesterday were pretty much unbearable.
*original review*
I cannot recommend Family Wineries enough! My friend Dave is a wine club member there and insisted that we fit them in on Saturday while in Healdsburg. The tasting room features six different wineries and a bunch of different olive oils, mustards and bbq sauces for tasting. Most of the wines were very affordable (less than $ 20 a bottle) and since they were pouring so many different labels we were all able to find something we liked.
Thank you, Family Wineries! I might have to join my buddy Dave and become a member as well…

So let’s say you want to visit 6 wineries, but it’s 4 o’clock and everyone is about to close. What do you do? Go to Family Wineries and taste away!
Family Wineries houses 6 different brands: Dashe (my personal favorite), Duxop, Collier Falls, Forth, Lago-​Merlo, and Mietz. From the sampling that we did, all of these wineries are making fantastic wines.
Everyone in the tasting room is really friendly, and it’s conveniently located in Healdsburg off Dry Creek Road. If you’re a wine-​o like me, you’ll be in heaven!!!