Travel by horse-drawn carriage through the vineyards of Sonoma County to three award-winning Healdsburg-area wineries. First, indulge in a wine cave tour, barrel sampling and wine tasting, and then enjoy a 2.5-hour cross-country adventure through creeks, over hills and along the vines to two more stellar wineries. Along the way, enjoy spectacular vistas, a bounty of gourmet snacks and chilled spring water. Receive an entertaining perspective of local history, as well as information regarding vineyards, grapes and winemaking. Savor the relaxed pace while leaving the traffic far behind.
On a carriage drawn by two magnificent draft horses, travel through the vines and winding lanes to tastings at award-winning boutique wineries in Sonoma County’s Alexander Valley. The tour begins with a guided stroll through the Gothic-style vaulted chambers of the Alexander Valley Vineyards’ wine cave filled with oak casks from which you will be offered a barrel tasting. After indulging in a delightful sampling of their wines, board the waiting carriage and set off on a 2.5-hour cross-country adventure through creeks and between grapevines to tastings at Soda Rock and Hanna wineries. Along the way, relax and socialize while enjoying the sights and smells of the picturesque vineyards and vistas of the coastal range.
The wineries visited are family-owned gems with award-winning wines, distinctive architecture and intriguing histories. You’ll be offered premium tastings of diverse varietals, such as crisp sauvignon blancs and buttery chardonnays, spicy old-vine zinfandels and hearty cabernet sauvignons, all served with a casual and gracious hospitality. Gourmet snacks are provided to enjoy along the way, including locally sourced organic cheese and apples, seeded bread sticks, herbed nuts and dark chocolate. Non-spill wine cups are available to keep the party going while on the trail!
The carriage has cushioned seats and provides a smooth, comfortable ride with a fringed shade top. You can even reach out and pick grapes from the vines along the narrow lanes without spilling a drop from your wine glass! Your coachman guide is informative and entertaining, with an insider’s view of local history, little-known facts, the life cycle of the vines and the winemaking process. The gentle steeds are the charismatic stars of the tour, and spending time with them will delight your soul and is sure to be a highlight of your vacation.
This is more than a wine tour. It’s a romantic and thrilling adventure with an intimate backstage look into the world of California wine!
Wonderful way to see the vineyards up close and personal. Pleasant trip in the carriage and a nice snack offered to go along with a few tastings. Thanks brett for a great day.
Review by: Ian W, June 2015
A perfect way to spend an afternoon in Sonoma wine country - Brett was very friendly and knowledgeable, and all three wineries were well worth the visit! I had family in town for the weekend who hadn't done many wine tastings before - this was a great way to get away from the bustle of the Bay Area, let someone else do the driving, and sample from three great wineries in the area!
Review by: Linda H, June 2015
An awesome way to see wine country! The guides were great, the horses were so sweet, and the other couple with us were really nice. I will recommend this to anyone going to Sonoma!
Review by: Marisa B, October 2014
Great way to spend an afternoon. Would highly recommend considering this.
Review by: Sandra, October 2014
Great way to spend an afternoon. Would highly recommend considering this.
Review by: Martha M, September 2014
An incredible tour and experience! The wine carriage is fantastic; the horses, Cody and Shayanne make the ride so pleasant.
Review by: Pamela T, August 2014
Your Guide was so knowledgeable and went above a beyond to make it informative and fun!! I have taken a few tours of the Napa area and I would recommend this one highly!
Review by: Thomas W, July 2014
I can't think of a better way to see Alexander Valley than riding through the vineyards on a carriage pulled by Cody and Cheyenne. Brandon was our tour guide for the day, and he was extremely pleasant and knowledgeable. We started off at the Alexander Valley Vineyards with a tasting and then a cave tour that included a barrel tasting. We were given a bag of snacks and jumped on the carriage for a pleasant ride to Hanna. A very small tasting fee was needed to sample some great wines. Before boarding the carriage again, we were given some chocolate bars by Brandon and cold water. Next stop was Soda Rock. A very unique place with extremely friendly staff and plenty of room to sit down and have your wine tasting. After we finished there, we hopped back on the carriage for the ride back to Alexander Valley Vineyards. We were all wondering when we were going to have lunch by this time and just assumed we would get it when we returned. Unfortunately, we were never given lunch and left extremely hungry. Everything about the tour was fantastic and still worth the money for the experience, except someone should let you know to eat before going if you are not serving lunch as advertised.
Review by: Bandit, August 2013
We had a blast on our wine country tour by horse and carriage. Our guide was energetic and entertaining, the horses well behaved and the wine delicious! Overall, a unique way to explore the wine country and a fun day out!
Review by: Melissa H, August 2013
I had a fantastic time on the Wine Carriage. Our driver/guide was incredibly friendly and super knowledgeable about all the vineyards we passed through and the history of the valley. I was really pleased with the choice of wineries. I particularly liked Hanna. Carol was pouring and educated us on the differences between all the wine growing regions from the grapes to the geography--she really knew her stuff! I ended up buying one of their reserve bottles it was so good. And the lunch! So amazingly tasty and pitch perfect for a wine country picnic lunch.
_br_ _/br_ I can't recommend this highly enough; this tour really embodied the experience of what I wanted my trip to Sonoma to be.
Review by: Katiemo, August 2013
This was a fun way to experience the beautiful Sonoma wine country! There was a nice lunch included featuring local cheeses, meats, fruit and bread - all perfect pairings for wine tasting! Riding in the wine carriage was an exciting way to go wine tasting and learning the history of the region was a great addition to the tour as we rode through the vines. Definitely something you should experience while in wine country.
Review by: taylor, August 2013
Fabulous, one-of-a-kind day out in the beautiful Sonoma wine country. Pulling up to a winery in a horse-drawn carriage makes for quite the entrance! I have been wine tasting in this area several times before, but this was a really unique and special way to visit wineries. Going through the vineyards, we were close enough to reach out and touch the vines and the guide had very interesting historical and wine making info along the way.
We were served a delicious and relaxing lunch at one of the wineries and the table was set with table clothes, nice outdoor plates and cutlery and the food was perfect - organic deli meats, bread, local olive oil, cheeses and fruits.
I can highly recommend this tour for visitors and locals alike!
Review by: Ian B, October 2012
Disappointing as literally the wheel came off our wagon as there were probably too many people on board ( 12). Nice people but very expensive trip for a ride in the back of a pick up truck !!
Review by: Wade W, October 2012
Awesome host. Brett was very friendly and professional. All of the vineyards had great tasting rooms and the lunch was excellent. A fantastic way to spend an afternoon!
Review by: Marie G, June 2012
Lovely way to spend the day. The ride was wonderful and the guide (Lilly) is terrific. She shared insights on the vineyards and the history of area. Duke and Pepper were our horses and they were beautiful.. I would hightly recommend
RSS Feed