Dutton Estate Winery

Located in the Green Valley AVA of the Russian River Valley, Dutton Estate Winery offers an authentic Wine Country experience. The Dutton family has deep roots in Sonoma County and has farmed in the area for six generations. During my visit, I had the pleasure of meeting Dutton Estate Winery’s Assistant Winemaker, Kylie Dutton.

With various vineyards stretching from the Pacific coastline inland approximately 20 miles, Dutton Estate’s wines represent a variety of microclimates. With Sebastopol being an apple producing region, Dutton also makes delicious cider. When visiting their tasting room just off Highway 116, you’ll have the chance to try out both Dutton’s wine and their cider – both delicious examples of Sebastopol and Sonoma County’s bounty.

While visiting Dutton Estate Winery’s tasting room, I had the pleasure of touring the winery with Kylie Dutton. Educated in winemaking at UC Davis, Kylie was full of knowledge of both new and evolving winemaking techniques such as concrete egg fermentation that makes for some delicious and well-balanced Chardonnay. Following the tour, I enjoyed a S’mores and Winter Wine Tasting in their tasting room that was previously a farmhouse.

A grand platter of various chocolates, cookies, and marshmallows were presented to me and in the center was a contained flame for marshmallow toasting. Elizabeth and Nick were wonderful hosts and poured us a couple of their Pinot Noir and Syrah wines. Overall, it was a fun and unique tasting experience!

If you’re looking for a place to stay in the West Sonoma area, Dutton Estate Winery also has a vacation rental that can easily house a large family or group of friends for a wine country excursion. Nestled amongst the vines, the house has a full kitchen and five bedrooms from which to base your group during a long weekend. 

Tracy Dutton was a wonderful and thoughtful host and was kind enough to set up special experiences for us throughout the house. Near the cozy fireplace was a beautiful assortment of chocolates and a bottle of Dutton Syrah. Other fun pastimes included playing cornhole and Yellowstone Monopoly!

Waking up at the property, one can find fog and frost coating the fields as the sun rises. It’s quite a scene to take in and is worth waking up a bit earlier just to catch it. In the evening, the sunset is just as magical – especially with a glass of Dutton Estate Winery’s Chardonnay in hand!