J. Rickards Winery

Stop everything you're doing and VISIT THIS WINERY! Anyone who knows me knows I'm a certified wine Gal (zinfandel). My man surprised me with a little trip to this BEAUTIFUL winery...it was a wine gal's paradise! My jaw was seriously on the floor with how gorg this place is. Ozzy and Daryl are a dynamic duo and made our visit one for the history books. Kind, knowledgeable, and LOVELY smiles, we were in great hands. Our whole group was smiling ear to ear the whole dang time. If you go here you MUST have the port wine...it was out of this world! So what's the Crissy verdict? Well let's say ill be back, probably with my girlfriends Sarah and Joanne for a wine gal's getaway. 5 stars....Crissy approved!!!

This is a great little family winery. A beautiful shaded patio with nice views and a cool breeze. Super friendly staff! And wines that surprised us s in very pleasant ways. A good variety to taste from all at affordable prices.

Oh my god, GO HERE. The tasting is an amazing experience with great wine, unparalleled scenery, and friendly knowledgeable staff. The worst part about my visit here was trying to limit myself to what wines I wanted to take home (you can only fit so many bottles in your suitcase). Between sipping delicious wines while looking out over the vineyard and touring the cave, Ozzy, Jay, and Jim all shared tidbits about the history of the vineyard, and wine in general, that kept me on the edge of my seat - I learned a lot! I can't say enough about how wonderful this winery is and how positive my entire experience was. I'd love to spend a day (or ten) here just drinking wine open to close.

Beautiful setting, amazing wines and very friendly family winery. Our tasting guide was the brother of the owner. The owner is very approachable having engaging conversations with our group for at least 20 minutes. Not very many wineries can offer this friendly family atmosphere which makes for a very relaxing and informative tasting visit. Regarding the wine. WOW we were very amazed by the quality/taste of all wines tasted. The Old Vine Zin, Cab, and Barbara wines in particular were incredible being better than or equivalent to any other area wineries visited in this area. The wine club is very cost effective with flexible selections and very reasonable shipping. Highly recommend doing a testing at Rickards and joining the wine club if you enjoy fine wines and also enjoy tasting in a scenic and friendly place.

We absolutely loved this place. Amazing views, service and most importantly wine. We loved the wholesome and down to earth atmosphere and enjoyed the personal touch of the Ozzy & Jim who spent lots of time talking us through the history and sharing their knowledge of wine. We've already recommended it to many friends and will be back one day soon!

Great view of Russian river valley and vines enhanced our tasting experience , which was outside on picnic tables. Our engaging server Jay provided us with about 10 different wines to sample. Very knowledgeable about the history of this property. He gave us a tour of the $1.3 wine cave storage facility. The 2019 Left Bank blend was outstanding, combining Cab and several other varietals. The 2019 Petite Syrah was silky with a chocolate aroma. Fun and informative 👍

One of the best wineries and wine experiences ever!! And the wines are absolutely amazing!! Put this winery on your list!!

Absolutely the best time me and my wife have ever had. Dam, good wine, and the staff made us feel like part of the family. The view was great. We will most definitely be back.

Had the absolute best wine tasting here today! Not only are the wines very good but the views are spectacular. Christine was a wonderful host and Jim was a plethora of information. I feel like we could have spent the entire day here. Be sure to check them out and say hello to the wine dog, Tilly!

May 6, 2025 - Cloverdale This was our second visit to this winery, and it was just as lovely as our first visit. It's a family-owned winery, and very down to earth. Dog-friendly. Upon arrival, we were immediately greeted by Tilley, a rescued Aussie Cattle Dog. I LOVE that they list her as one of the team members on their website. There is a large tasting room, and an outdoor covered patio on a terrace overlooking the vineyard with amazing views. Once we chose where we wanted to sit, our host, Christy, gave us a complementary taste of rose'. The tasting fee is $20 per person, waived with a two-bottle purchase. The tasting menu is mostly reds, but started with a Viognier. We were then offered the chance to try any white that they had open. Such a relaxing and, really, a perfect wine tasting experience. Christy is friendly and knowledgeable. And then Jim Rickards (owner) came over and talked to us for a while. He is very personable, and had some wonderful stories. We shared conversation with him for quite a while. We enjoyed all the wines. We bought the rose' and the merlot. Prices range from $30-$39 for the whites, and from $35-$63 for the reds.

Christy was our server (friendly, knowledgeable, and generous!) Tasting is $20/person waived with a purchase of 2 bottles. Non-member bottle prices range from $30-$63. They have indoor and covered outdoor patio seating. Their tasting list has many red and white wine options. All the wines we tried were very good. I especially liked the Merlot! The winery has a very nice ambience and is well worth the visit.

Darn Fine Barn Wine the motto here at J. Rickards. Words that are a metaphor for living a good life drinking beautiful wine vintages. This authentic winery led with passion by Jim Rickards himself. A grand tale of sacrifices made to achieve the goals of this small family winery. Phenomenal winevat incredibly reasonable prices...Absolutely fantastic experience with genuine people. Cheers!

The exceptional views will get you in the door, but the delicious wine and exemplary service is what will make you stay. J. Rickards Winery boasts some of the best red wines and the most scenic views within Alexander Valley. My friend and I visited J. Rickards Winery during an event and it easily became our favorite winery stop out of the 4 wineries that we went to. This is a family owned and operated vineyard, and the winemaker is involved in every aspect of the winery. In fact, we met the owner and winemaker (Jim) while we were there and he poured some of our wines. If that ain't personalized service, then I don't know what is! How often do you find the actual winemaker out and about pouring the wines?! Not too often these days. I also must mention that this is a full family operation. As Jim was pouring our wines, he introduced us to several members of his family who are also involved with the winery. Just amazing! I was just soaking everything in, including the fabulous wines. The views are quite breathtaking here. What I love is that even though the views are immaculate and the estate is gorgeous, it still has that lovable homey feel to it. It doesn't feel commercialized because it isn't. It's a very relaxing experience and we truly did not want to leave. The wines are exquisite. Both their white and red wines are scrumptious, but it's that Zinfandel that will make you fall completely in love. Zinfandel is what they're known for and rightfully so. Their bright, fruity, and jammy Zinfandels are right up my alley. As a Zin lover, my palate was completely quenched by the exceptional Zinfandels here. Other wonderful tasting notables are their Rosé and red blend. The service that we received from everyone was top tier. I don't venture out to Cloverdale too often, but I will make a special visit just to come back to J. Rickards again.

I love everything about this winery! They make my favorite wines. My favorites are any of the Zinfandels but I've never tried a wine there that I didn't like. All the wines are fruit forward. Great with food or just for drinking. The prices of their wines is very reasonable. Lovely place to visit and taste. You can bring food and set back and relax. Low pressure but informative tastings. I live in wine country and if I could only drink from one winery, no contest, J Rickards is my absolute favorite.

This place makes a huge variety of rather average wines, sold at pretty affordable prices. The tasting is cheap, and is waived if you buy a couple bottles. This is a dying trend in Napa/Sonoma, so for that reason and a few others, I'm going to give this place 5 stars. PROS: 1) Rather beautiful location with easy parking and friendly people 2) There's a barn dog that is friendly and loves everyone 3) The tasting is only $20 or $25 (can't remember which) and is waived if you buy 2 bottles 4) Bottles are cheap starting around $30 5) The tasting is flexible. I told him I only wanted reds, and that wasn't a problem 6) There's a rather crazy selection of wines. Like WAY too many. But if you like choice this should be a plus CONS: 1) The wines are overly sweet and designed to be consumed sooner rather than later. This might be a pro for some people. 2) They will not open anything not opened. I ended up purchasing two bottles that they had available for sale, but would not let me sample because they were not open. Can't really complain since it was a cheap tasting that ended up being free due to the bottle purchase.

Had a great experience with Ozzy hosting our table this past week at J Rickards. Fantastic dog friendly winery right off the 101, the views overlook beautiful vineyards and the wines are delicious! Everyone who works there is super friendly and knowledgeable. We will most definitely be back to try more of their unique wines!

I was en route to J. Rickards Winery with friends when a salient observation was made: "In truth, our overall feelings about a place can be greatly influenced by the company we go there with". Someone else chimed in, "I could be eating the worst food and if I'm with friends having fun, 5 stars". I was with friends Id not seen for 1+ years. I was having fun. 5 stars. But here's the rub: J. Rickards Winery would've warranted 5 stars even if I'd taken a sandwich there solo, sat at a picnic table overlooking the vineyards, and enjoyed a tasting of their SF Chronicle Gold Medal Award winning wines. So, though the company I kept did a lot of the heavy lifting, it wasn't just the company. J. Rickards sits in Cloverdale (Sonoma County), in a wine region often overlooked because a) it's not Napa Valley and b) it's fairly far from my home. When you're there though, you begin to understand why it's worth the drive. It's not just the excellent wine, the lack of pretension this winery and its workers present, and the astonishingly (these days) reasonable tasting fee ($15, waived with bottle purchased for consumption at home). Rather, it's all of this plus the opportunity to enjoy a bottle on site - along with whatever lunch you might bring (on-site food offerings coming soon). On a weekday afternoon, this experience was ours for hours, with no pressure to move along or even to make a purchase. It probably helped that the friends I was with were J. Rickards Wine Club members. This meant free tastings for up to 6 of us plus incredible deals on already incredibly reasonably priced wine. I paid wine club price for a bottle that won Gold at the San Francisco Chronicle Wine competition and came away with change from $30. Try that in the Napa Valley. There was absolutely nothing not to enjoy at J. Rickards and thus, there was nothing I didn't enjoy. Though there are several different tastings on offer, you can't go wrong with the Chronicle Wine competition tasting (1 white, 3 reds).

I had a nice wine tasting here. Was well organized. They assigned a server to pour the wines featured in their tasting. I actually liked our server. As for the wines, there was a white wine that I can't remember the name but was very delicious and there was a Zin that I loved very much. Bought those 2 wines. Why only 2 stars? Well, I found the staff (other than our server) to be not customer service oriented. Also, they're stuck doing wine tastings... the before-covid appt. only way which is not my favorite.

We were camping in the area. Left the kids and husband for a little break. Found this gem. Christine and Tara were the best! My girlfriends and I had such a great time with them. We laughed so hard and was able to WINE-down.

Truthfully, I got lost in experience and forgot to take more pictures. From start to finish, we were treated like family or at least, like their favorite wine club members. :) Ozzy was FABULOUS at introducing us to J.Rickards's wines. We left it open for him to decide what we'd be tasting alongside the picnic foods we had brought. My favorites were their spicy berry/vanilla Old Vine Zinfandel and the cherry, "Best in Class" Five Sisters Cabernet. Relaxed atmosphere, beautiful views, well-priced, delicious wines! Excellent experience!

Such a great winery. This is a hidden gem. The wines are great and the staff overly friendly. We clearly fell in love as soon we were there !

J. Rickards Winery was awesome! The host Ozzy did an amazing job showing us the barrel rooms, walking us through the fields, and being super knowledgable unlike any of the other 3 hosts we had on our Platypus Wine Tour. None of them made us feel special and important like that which is what I was expecting in Sonoma like Ozzy did! Ozzy was the best sommelier wine host I have ever had! He was impressive! The wine was exceptional!!

Absolutely my favorite winery in Sonoma County! It's a small, family run winery - not a large corporate winery that seems to rule these days. It's perched on a hill, with lovely views. We had a picnic while tasting some incredible wines. The employees who work there are very attentive and poured us many yummy award winning wines. We also had a nice chat with the owner, Mr. Jim Rickards. We learned how their grapes have been sustainably farmed for years. This small winery has been progressive way before it became fashionable. Kudos to the J Rickards Winery!

Amazing wine, family run, truly a gem and a must visit! Jim is a legend and his staff are knowledgeable and friendly. Cozy indoor and outdoor seating.

Super fun wine tour stop! Ozzie made our afternoon a fun and wine filled experience. Everything we tried was very drinkable and enjoyable!

If there were ten stars I would leave a ten star review. The vineyard is a great place to visit with a nice view. The only thing better than the vineyard and the views is the wine they are producing. Add to that a friendly environment and you have one of the best wine tasting experiences you could enjoy!

This was one of the best wineries we've stumbled upon. So glad we found this place. The wine was great!! The price was right! Yes, we joined this wine club. Highly recommend checking them out.

Went here recently on an organized wine tour. The winery is beautiful - Ozzy was helping us with the tasting and we had a great time knowing about the winery and wines . We got a red wine starting with a C , it was amazing . The Old zin was very tasty as well. We also purchased a white wine which was on the sweeter side and I am looking forward to trying it soon. Highly recommend.

J. Rickards was the first winery we visited on our wine tour. When we drove up we were greeted by 2 dogs and Jim the owner. The place is quaint and wine is phenomenal. The wine took me to a happy place, I was in a total state of bliss. Jim the owner took his time and explained the wine making process to our group, he even had us taste one of the grapes on the hillside. One of my favorite wines was the wine blend called "Sisters" which is made from the traditional Bordeaux varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petite Verdot and Malbec, all estate grown. I purchased a few bottles of my faves.

Loved my visit to this winery. We got the chance to meet the owner Jim, who took us on a tour of his "cave". He was a sweet man who provided a very in depth explanation into the history of the winery and how he decides what to grow. The coasters they provide here even have a punch out mustache that you can put on yourself that resembles Jim's famous mustache. The vineyards are beautiful and on top of it all the wine was delicious. For a couple of our tastings, they provided us with some cheese to pair with it. I especially loved the muskat blanc and pepper jack cheese pairing - the wine mellowed out the spice so that the richness of the cheese came through. This wine is supposed to pair well with spicy Asian or Indian dishes and since we haven't yet found a wine to pair with these dishes, we decided to get a bottle of the muskat blanc to take home with us. Overall, had a great time at J. Rickards Winery!

BEST customer service. This is a great family owned winery that has a great feel and the customer service was top notch. Doug was very friendly and knew a ton about wine, he was super informative and even gave us a tour of the place. It's a beautiful winery that isn't intimidating, very intimate with a friendly, welcoming feel. The wine was top notch and the wine club is a great deal. If you don't live in the area you get a flat $5 shipping fee if it's three or more bottles. I will definitely be back to visit if I'm back in the area. This place is truly a gem of a winery you definitely don't want to miss!

My FAVORITE winery I've been to in Sonoma County. It's a small family-owned winery that feels intimate and welcoming. Now I bring all my out-of-town friends here because I know they are very consistent. Their customer service is some of the best I've experienced. Doug served us and really took care of us teaching us all about the wine. It was clear that he was very knowledgeable. He gave us a little tour and even took some pictures of our group for us. Jay took care of us the last time we went, and he too was really awesome. I like all of their wines a lot and it is clear that they take care to create some great wines at a reasonable cost.

J Rickards was fantastic! We came here on a small group tour and had the best experience of the day. The wines were great, the views amazing, and Ozzy was a fantastic host. It was a truly special day and would highly suggest it if you want a royal experience.

Visited this winery in 2015 and 2016 for the Winter WineLand Event. JIM is always present to welcome his guest. The wine is wonderful. I got 3 dessert wines that were on special. The pricing for the Wine club is very reasonable here. I love visiting this winery. Friendly staff. It has a family wholeness feeling. My friends love coming here too. We made sure we visited him again this year. His mustache is pretty famous around town!!! Love the mustache stickers they give you when you check in. I highly recommend coming here. Taste their wine. And I'm sure you will become a member!!!

Excellent presentation and great knowledge.. thanks Ross! try theNV Los Ninos... LOVE THE VIEW!!!

This place was a lot of fun and had a great view. Our favorite part was the Canine for Independence group who had a table there and dogs to pet. The wine was not amazing or terrible, the tasting fee is waved if you purchase so I got a bottle of their white wine I forget what it was called it had a unique name. They also give regular tours we got there just as one started so we got to tour the wine cave before tasting.

Fantastic winery. Recommendations: cab, old vine zin, and the Muscat. The below experience is written based on the "Winter Wineland" event of 2016, so experiences may vary. The one aspect that makes this winery standout is their service. Where others wineries may be glorified kiosks for their bottles, this place is more like a tour at Universal studios--without the animatronics. You start the tasting at the far end of the barrel room where they put mustaches on your glasses to make them look like Lyft rides. Then you walk through their barrel room where they serve you lobster bisque along with exclusive wines. Tricky tactic to get you buy wine so you don't choke on awesomeness. However the show-stealer is Lobo, the dog who welcomes you as you emerge from the pre-release wine section and migrate to the general tasting room!

We love small wineries and this place is just right up our alley. Unfortunately I didn't actively taste, but I did get to share some tasting with my cousin and husband. We had a group of 12 and made a reservation. Despite getting there early, they were very accommodating and we had a fun little tour with Jim who had a great sense of humor- love it. While the rest of the family was tasting, I had lovely conversations with Mary and Terry (I hope I got their names right) as well. Wonderful ladies. You honestly feel like you're with friends when you're here at the winery. It's not huge, so don't expect too much, but it's a good sized tasting room, with a little area in the back for spill overs. Now onto the wines. I was quite impressed with most of everything I tasted. Their sauvignon blanc was very light and tasty, as was the semillon. Both very drinkable and I can see being perfect warm weather wines. The muscat blanc was also very good, but a tad on the sweeter side (which some of the family seem to enjoy quite a bit). Their reds in general were all very good as well. Old vine zin and Malbec stood out the most and I'm sure we walked away with ($25 +/- 2 per bottle). Very enjoyable. They also served a port that I thought was really good, and paired very well with the dark chocolate they served with it. When we were done, they kindly help us set up a picnic table (because we asked if we could have a little picnic there), and our entire group was quite happy (both from all the wines they tasted, and from the service). Love it here and now joined their membership.

We really enjoyed our time here. The lady who helped us was very patient and extremely friendly. She answered all our questions and took us on a small cave tour. The wines here a very good. Being a white wine lover, I even liked the reds. I can't wait to try the bottle of blanc de noirs I bought, which I didn't get to try because there was no opened bottles. We even got to pair some of the wines with cheeses and chocolate. What an awesome experience. There's even a red dessert wine that is covered in chocolate. Prices aren't very expensive either.

I was with a group of 10 people (5 couples) when I visited J. Rickards and we had an amazing time. Alex was a great host and shared so much of her knowledge with us. We were there on a perfect October day and it was so beautiful with the blue skies and changing leaves on the vines. We tasted so many great wines and even got to peak in the wine cave.

It was our first stop on the tour and the best by far. Good wine, friendly and very informative. it was the standard by which all others were measured. Delightful. We learned so much about wines and how they are made. Jim joined the club so we can enjoy this trip from the comforts of our homes. Tara our host was awesome, friendly and fun! Made the day!

Damn fine barn wine! Always love what these folks are doing! Been a few times and quite happy each visit! Low key and relaxed tasting expwrience

Came here on a whim. Every year we purchase wine for our next trip to Mendocino. Hubby and I came in with 2 very well behaved kids and maybe that is why we weren't welcomed in, IDK... I've been to LOTS of wineries and this was the first one where we told to go to the end of the bar and were poured the first wine for tasting. No one talked to us about the wines or anything. We were told what the name of the wine was and then left to our own devices. It wasn't even crowded. The wines were good and priced well but the staff just wasn't very friendly, it wasn't relaxing or enjoyable really. We bought a bottle of the zin and left to go to another winery where they were a little more personable and welcoming.

I haven't had a chance to go to the winery yet but I just wanted to say that the bottle of 2016 Left Bank Cuvee Classic Blend Red Wine we just enjoyed was very nice. Quality through the palate and surprising depth. It was a perfect pairing with pasta and meat sauce.

Yay! I'm a fan...but not necessarily because of the wines. They were unique, interesting, one was even "buttery," but they didn't call out to me as my kind of amazing. But that is how wine is! What makes me a fan was the impressive friendliness, knowledge and willingness to give us out of towners tips on what else to do in the area, including other wineries to try. The view was lovely, peaceful. The information shared with us by our hostess was wonderful, and really gave us a sense of the winery. I would definitely visit again!

Loved the personalized tasting we received on our tour of Sonoma County. Our host was friendly and encouraged us to tour the grounds, even giving us a sneak peek into the wine cellar. One of my favorite places we saw the whole trip to wine country.

This is our favorite winery ever! We've been wine club members since 2013 when we first visited California. On our first visit to this winery we were supposed to be on a wine tour but ended up being the only two people on the bus. When we got to this winery we were there for 2 hours!! They were so great to us and let us taste everything! They also showed us around the vineyard and let us see how their wine is made. Every time we receive a shipment they send a little note and gift for being a member. You won't find wine even close to this anywhere on Long Island. I recommend placing an order and you will see for yourself what people are talking about. I recommend the Old Vine Zinfandel to start with, but you won't be disappointed with anything you try from this vineyard!

We walked in right before closing on Saturday after the Ironman to buy some bottles of wine and were so surprised, impressed, and delighted with the quality of the impromptu tasting. We met the owner and learned all about the brand and now have several bottles of wine at home in our cooler. Thank you so much for the service and the wine!!! Literally loved everything Jay put in front of us.

Can't say enough great stuff about this winery. Beautiful grounds (including caves) and friendly staff. Also some of the best wine in Sonoma County. This is one of the places people in the industry say they go when they want to wine taste.

Mary is a hoot - a really fun person for a winetasting. She gave us the cave tour and had a lot of technical knowledge regarding the barrels and the aging process. She offered many different wines both white and red, but our focus was on a limited number of varietals since we have favorite sources for wine all around this AVA. The big pleasant surprise was the 2014 Santa Ynez Valley 2014 Grenache Blanc. Fruity, not sweet - this will be a good summer wine. Bought a few. We had to correct Mary's reference to the location of the vineyard as being in "Southern California" but it is excusable for residents of the 'far north" to think that SoCal starts just below Salinas. Purchased a bottle of 2013 "The Terraces" Merlot - an estate wine. Very pleasant full mouth and long finish. At only 13.9% it looks to be a mid-term drinkable for my cellar. With only 50 cases produced, this is a nice find at a fair price. Good varietal characteristics without neutering or "dumbing-down" for the palate-less mass market. For those who have come to hate the flabby Merlots made for guzzling wine sluts, this Merlot is a standout.

We have been to wineries all over the planet and as hard as it is to pick one between all of them that would deserves 99 point, J Rickards would be the one for us. Jim and his team are first class and we now make sure that every trip into the Valley our first stop is at this place. Keep up the good work and thanks.

What a wonderful afternoon tasting great wines served by friendly people! The atmosphere was relaxed, view fabulous, weather was perfect and the taco plate was excellent and complementary to the wines. I'd call that a 10 kind of day!! Thanks for a wonderful experience Sandy and John Ferrando Santa Rosa

J.Rickards is my favorite winery anywhere!! Old Vine Zin is fabulous, it is a rich, fruity and very drinkable Zin and a personal favorite, but I love all their wines. They do a exceptional job with their red blends and the petite sirah is big, rich and smooth. Pinot Noir is soft and fruity and they make very clean and fruity sav blanc. I joined their wine club 4 years ago as I haven't seen their wines here in Florida. I frequently impress friends when I share a bottle . It truly is "Damm Fine Barn Wine"!

Since we did wine tasting in Feb when visiting the Sonoma farm, it was not a priority of ours this time driving through 101. The original thought was to check out Silver Oak--- Pay $10 for their tasting on $70-100 bottles, and walk away with a souvenir glass. Only that was back then, and this is now: $20 for tasting, with only $10 of that goes toward buying any of their super pricey wines. But you still get a glass. Ehh. So we decided to stop by J Rickards instead, since it is right next door. And that turned out to be a great decision for us. This winery might as well rename itself "Down to earth people knowing a lot about making good wine." Upon arrival, we were greeted by a friendly dog, who guided us from the parking lot to the tasting room. The owner, Jim, who offered us the tasting of 10 wines (2 whites, 3 zins, 1 malbec, 1 cab, 1 petite syrah, 1 muscat, and 1 port) was friendly, knowledgeable, and obvious to all, passionate about this family business. You can see how proud he is of their farm, and how much he admires his father, referencing frequently to different methods of farming his father has employed throughout the years and bits and pieces of the family history. Throughout our tasting, we got to meet one more cute dog, the wine master, and the dad, who grows the grapes. And I loved their Kismet, a great tasting white wine that I had to get a bottle of, even though I almost never like whites. They also offer amazing zins and a cab that will go perfectly with a piece of medium rare steak. Muscat has a nice honey, peachy finish, and the port is deep and fruity. Not one thing has failed to impress. And all priced more than reasonably. If anyone wants a down to earth, truly relaxing tasting experience of some good, honest wine, this place is not to be missed.

If I could, I would give them six stars. Jim Rickards is the salt of the earth guy you want to meet in the wine world. He bought an old vineyard 40 years ago and started making small but crucial improvements. Sold his grapes to some of the most famous names in Napa and Sonoma. Had a tractor break down in the '70's which forced him to go to harvest without pesticides. No noticeable drop in output. No added cost of pesticides. So he made a discovery! Mother nature had already solved many problems. He started adding bird boxes and weeds. A local ag school audited him a long time ago and told him he was sustainable. He said, "What's that?" The wines are the stars here. Well balanced. Almost completely solar facility. Probably the best kept secret in Alexander Valley. Although, judging by the reviews not a secret anymore. Zins, Petite Sirah, White Blends, Desert wines, and of course Cab. We're in AV after all.

Why all the outstanding reviews? The wine and the experience. Sofie and I spent nearly 2 hours here enjoying the wine and food pairings and listening to Jim Rickards tell the story of his years building his unique winery. What is unique about his winery? The soil, the aspect of the sun, the age of the vines and the care that Jim gives to his vines as a steward of the land. He took us out to a section of the vineyard and explained his unique challenges in the preservation and care of his vines. One unique challenge is growing the grapes on a slope. How to keep the soil from washing away? How to farm ground that was previously farmed by horses? (Horses are able to go places that tractors cannot go.) One technique used by the early growers of his vineyard that I found rather fascinating is how they blended their wine by growing a variety of grapes all in the same vineyard - so that there was no need to mix various wines together - just harvest your grapes and make the wine. The blend is in the grapes. He also explained how he is able to extend the life of his vineyard by carefully watching each vine to see signs of collapse. Should a new sprout appear at the root, carefully nurture it into a new vine. All of this requires a careful attention to each vine. Jim points to a particular vine and explains that it was about to break apart inside due to termites but new growth saved the vine 8 years earlier. When I first arrived at the vineyard I gravitated to Jim's tractor - a beautiful little Lamborgini crawler. I did not know he was the owner of the winery. I thought he as one of the helpers as he explained how he did an engine rebuild on the little tractor. I thought, "Three times?" - "What's wrong with it?" I asked - "It's not an antique show tractor - it gets a lot of work!" The tractor is an air cooled diesel - a unique feature of the engine - and it has no pre-heater for starting. Jim Rickards is a passionate man of many interests. Passionate about his tractor, his land, his vines and his wine. He is also a ICU nurse in Santa Rosa where still works part time. I found him pragmatic and attentive to the slow details that can be learned from careful observation and quiet reflection. His technique in taking care of his vineyard shows these qualities. It is poetic in watching him talk about his vines, his tractor, the piece of ground he has husbanded for 45 years - and to taste his wine. The best wine not served was his Barbera. I went to the tasting table for the cab and saw the Barbera label on one bottle and requested that one. It had the aroma and flavor of the earth. You know the poem by Tennyson: A Spirit Haunts The Year's Last Hours... and the lines: My very heart faints and my whole soul grieves At the moist rich smell of the rotting leaves, well, that's what came to my mind when I tasted the Barbera. Delicious! Sonoma county has lots of amazing wines, but I doubt you could get both the amazing wine and the experience of meeting J Rickards! Are you shy? Jim is like a glass of wine filled to the brim - jostle him with a question and stand back!

J. Rickards is the winery that wine-drinkers everywhere are looking for in California. The property is beautifully charming. It's perfectly situated on a hillside with the owner's house and the barn (where they make the wine) seated right in the center. It's small enough to be described as quaint and large enough to really feel the presence of the vines, which is an important part of the experience. The staff are exemplary. That is to say, Jim the owner and Alex the winemaker. They are the ones you talk to, not some wine salesman. Alex is a truly gifted winemaker, and you can tell he cares immensely about his product. Jim is every know-it-all's dream. I say this because his patience for tedious questions about farming and the winemaking process is seemingly endless. He's happy to let you wander through the vines with him and even sample the grapes right off the vine (try doing that at Silver Oak, I dare you). Both were warm and welcoming and just happy to share their world. Most importantly, the wine is, at the risk of being a little emphatic, transcendent. If effort and know-how could be fermented and bottled it would have a J. Rickards label on it. While there is not one less-than-exemplary wine at this place, my two personal favorites are the Meritage and the Twilight. I had the pleasure of barrel-tasting the first batch of Twilight a few months before it was bottled, and it was beyond belief. My two friends accompanying me agreed wholeheartedly that it was one of the best dessert wines we'd ever had. The Meritage is about as perfect as a red wine can get. I won't even go into detail about it because you really should just taste it yourself. I know my review is a little heavy-handed with the compliments, but it's only because J. Rickards is so thoroughly deserving of praise. If you've ever wished for the perfect wine country experience then visit them. Right now. You won't regret it.