Westside Road to gain ANOTHER premium Pinot house...

What do the Rochioli, Bucher, Bacigalupi, Allen & Flax Vineyards have in common?

They are the anchor to many of the premium Pinot Noir houses' single vineyard releases. And they all call Westside Road, "Home".

Westside Road, just a mile west of the Healdsburg plaza, straddles two of the most prominent AVAs in Sonoma County: the Dry Creek Valley (DCV) AVA and the Russian River Valley (RRV) AVA. (What's an AVA? Learn more about those here.)

It is the gateway to some of the best Pinot Noir (and Chardonnay) California has to offer.

Foggy summer mornings, warm, sunny summer afternoons and the proximity to the waters of the Russian River create a richness in the grapes from a growing season unlike any other neighborhood within the RRV AVA. (For more on what makes this growing region unique, check out this great article by Wine Enthusiast here.)

Some of the most prominent names in pinot have designated Westside Road as their winery's addresses.

From Arista to Williams Selyem, J. Rochioli to Thomas George and Gary Farrell...award-winning wine-makers produce world-class pinot here. Williams Selyem even has a "Westside Road Neighbors" designate pinot that combines the best vineyards of this 'hood into their label.

So it should come as no surprise...but a very pleasant one at that, to learn that Flowers Winery of Cazadero (EXTREME Coastal Sonoma County) will be moving in!

This is very exciting news for the Westside Road neighbors as Flowers begins to overhaul the grounds that once housed VML Winery (now moved to Dry Creek Road).

Their goal is to create a coastal impression under the redwoods on Westside Road, mirroring their gorgeous wines of the Sonoma Coast.

They've hired architects from New York and are already busy transforming the property. Though the tasting room won't be ready for the public until sometime in the spring of 2018, they will crush, produce and bottle their Sonoma Coast Chardonnay for the first time this year at their new location.

This will be Flowers first foray into a true tasting room, so they want to go all out. Asking them about their thoughts on how they'll engage with the public, they said they really want their guests to have a winery experience, not just "bellying up to a tasting counter". So we can look forward to special tasting appointments sometime early next year.

I expect they will do extremely well at their new address. I've loved Flowers' wines for many years and was a mailing list member some time ago.

Over the years I've joined a number of mailing lists, dropped off, rejoined, adjusted my mix...all for varying reasons.

I decided about a decade ago that I want to be a list-member for wineries that I can take out-of-town guests or enjoy the facility and tasting experience. And Flowers wasn't open to the public. So I've loved them from afar and purchased their wines at restaurants and wine shops when I'm traveling. I'm sure there are other fine pinot lovers like myself out there that are looking forward to joining/rejoining their list for this very reason.

I've already celebrated the news with a mixed case of their Sea View Ridge Pinot and their Moon Select Sparkling wine...which arrived on 2.14.2017...the only flowers I want to receive on Valentine's Day.

Look forward to more news as I continue to learn about the metamorphosis of their property and move to the neighborhood over the next year as well as their biodynamic farming philosophy and winery story.