Patrick & Nico are fantastic hosts at Calera Winery. They are both so friendly and informative. They are one of the reasons we love Calera winery. [[HIGHLIGHT]]The view of the Gabilan Hills is amazing-loved the cows.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] We tasted a lovely Pinot Noir: 2022 Muns Vineyard. Always a wonderful experience at Calera. read more

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After being a member of another Duckhorn portfolio winery, I finally had the chance to visit Calera! Wasn't too bad of a drive from Pinnacles National Park, we stopped in on a Monday so we weren't worried about needing a reservation. The Pinot flight comes with a Chardonnay to start followed by four Pinot Noirs. We were also able to dry their dessert wine, the viognier doux. Definitely order their charcuterie board! For only $20 it's a huge plate with lots of variety of goodies to munch on during your tasting. The staff were lovely and I enjoyed all the info they told us about Calera. read more

Calera Wine - Tasting - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

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what a fun experience at Calera Winery! Trent took good care of us with a charcuterie board and selection of wines, some of which were not on the wine tasting menu. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Love the fact that it it a local winery with history, and a fantastic view of the Diablo Mountain Range.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Since they are part of the Duckhorn portfolio, those wines are available as well. A lovely afternoon! read more

What a 50 year anniversary event. [[HIGHLIGHT]]The weather is great.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] [[HIGHLIGHT]]The band pretending to be Gypsy Kings is lively.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] As for the event... the sushi pairings were unusual, but my expectations were high. I managed to keep up, pairing with their signature wines. That was the best part. I only found one bottle of wine I would spend over $70 to take home. The service was nice and the people were friendly. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Not a bad way to enjoy a summer in central California.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

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Absolutely delightful wines. We just had an amazing afternoon here with Nico, our hospitality tasting room server. This is not only a shout out for the delicious wines but to Nico. Exceptional service & attention to detail. His ease in conversation made the wine tasting experience even more enjoyable. Can't wait to bring our friends back. read more

Calera Wine - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

[[HIGHLIGHT]]This place is gorgeous![[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] My husband and I came here after a hike at Pinnacles and we were blown away with the service, wine, and scenery! read more

Calera Wine - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

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We did a walk in on a Sunday and were sat immediately. We ordered 3 wine tastings including 2 reds and the third being a rosé tasting. The me of the red wine tastings came w caviar. Patrick did an amazing job, he was very friendly and knowledgeable. [[HIGHLIGHT]]We brought my 4 year old nephew and our own charcuterie board w us.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] [[HIGHLIGHT]]The view was very lovely from the seating area where they had pick of style tables as well as more comfortable patio furniture.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

Calera Wine - 2 wine tastings and the caviar. Lovely view and our homemade charcuterie - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

Oops i picked the wrong winery .... I will need to visit this winery soon and give it a rating read more

[[HIGHLIGHT]]I honestly don't usually bother to leave Yelp reviews, but this place was super off putting.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] I live in the Monterey area and was driving through. Stopped first at De Rosa and it was beautiful and bought a few lovely bottles of reds! Drove up the road a bit to this place... got to the tasting room at 3:20 and was told I wasn't allowed to taste any wine, but I could "buy a glass or a bottle to take home." This is Hollister, not Napa guys. Weird because it looks like they don't actually actively pour the wine through a tasting-- just bring you out a pre-poured "flight" to try. I'm still genuinely confused. They lost a potential customer. Do y'all want my money or not? read more

I've tried this place twice over the course of a couple years. Each time I felt like I was doing them a favor by showing up. Both times despite being in their normal business hours was given less than 15 mins of time. read more

[[HIGHLIGHT]]The views from the property are breathtaking!!![[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Melissa was awesome! The wines are delicious. Our new favorite winery read more

Calera Wine - Charcuterie board - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

Calera has some very rich history in the California Wine making world. The winery is in the middle of nowhere...one specifically needs to make a trip down here... Calera is now part of the Duckhorn portfolio. I believe Duckhorn acquired Calera around 2017 or 2018. While The tasting room got a big update, it doesn't feel the same anymore...the local Winery, small business charm evaporated. It's also got the Duckhorn portfolio prices too! Still producing some brilliant wines. read more

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Wonderful owners and wine! Beautiful location and setting! I wish they were still making pizzas! read more

Beautiful wine, rustic place, an iconic winery by 1 of the legendary winemakers, pioneers in California wine... They are like cult wine. You either follow them every step of the way, or you are not even in the same league! They belong to Duckhorn winery group now, same great winemakers, single vineyards, and also rose. It was a beautiful visit, lovely folks work here, love music at the event and even tacos stand. We had a great time! read more

My wife and I are club members at Paraduxx and while there for a visit, we were informed that Calera Winery is part of the Duckhorn Family, so we decided to stop by for a tasting. We were very impressed with the experience, Vince was our host, very knowledgeable and welcoming. [[HIGHLIGHT]]I highly recommend Calera and next time we'll bring a picnic lunch to enjoy outside overlooking the rolling hills.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

Calera Wine - A wonderful experience. - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

What a great experience! [[HIGHLIGHT]]the two of us shared the Pinot Flight and Charcuterie -- and the tremendous view for a tasty and relaxing time.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] The charcuterie selections matched well with the wines (the fig preserve and brie were fought over). We will definitely be coming back! read more

[[HIGHLIGHT]]Beautiful view and the wine and service is excellent![[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Love the wine tasting. No matter what day you drive up to Calera the experience is amazing. read more

We have been members at Calera winery since 2014 and their wine is consistently our top choice! They are world-renowned for their Pinots, but their Rose and Chardonnay are just as exquisite. We drove up to Hollister to get away from the stormy weather in San Jose, and we were lucky to hit a break in the rain and enjoy an awesome wine tasting thanks to the hospitality of the staff. The minerality and crispness of the wines is unparallel. We had a great time and took home a Jensen and a Chalone. The tasting room has undergone a facelift and is sporting a variety of tables and even a cozy private room, in addition to plentiful outdoor seating with unbelievable views of the valley and the mountains. A beautiful day out in the country! read more

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We tasted Calera wines at a sister Duckhorn winery and we were happy to be able to visit in person during a recent trip to Monterey. The winery is pretty far off the beaten path but once you get up there you can really see and understand why the wines are so great. The story of how the owner picked the land and created the wines was really interesting and the wines held up to the story. We visited on a slow day so we made a last minute reservation online, but suggest you plan ahead for your visit. Super easy to reserve from their site. We took home three Pinots and the best Chardonnay I've ever tried. Mike did a great job with our tasting and we hope to come back again someday. read more

Calera Wine - tasting tree and notes. - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

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[[HIGHLIGHT]]Incredible location[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]], delicious wine, great snack and amazing staff. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Family and pet friendly[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]]. read more

We usually go to Napa for wine tasting, but i decided to look locally amd found Calera Winery. We were greeted by Elena and i forgot the gentlemans name, but he was such a funny guy. [[HIGHLIGHT]]We sat outside and it was chill and relaxing.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Elena went over the history of Calera. She also went into details about our wines. Pinot was not my thing, but my partner very much enjoyed it. I loved my white and rose wine. Their charcuterie was very delicious and in a fair price. Will definitely come back again. Getting a membership here is worth it. read more

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Laid back winery in the hills, doesn't offer much in terms of inside, the best part is outside overlooking the valley. Wine was great but kinda of a self serve type place. Would come back for the views read more

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This was our very first time wine tasting in Hollister, and I must say, we were pleasantly surprised! We are a big fan of Duckhorn wineries, and have visited nearly all of them. Reservations were easy to make, even on the day before the visit. This winery is kind of in the middle of nowhere, but in a good way! Super remote, not very crowded.. a great place to enjoy some peace and quiet! We scored some great seats on couches with gorgeous views of the valley. I felt super safe as the seating was very spread out. Wine tasting fees are very affordable ($15) and we opted to get a cheese plate and some crackers. I would probably skip the cheese in the future, but the crackers (from Rustic Bakery in Marin) were out of this world! The wine was great! Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs! I'm not much of a Chardonnay gal myself, but the chardonnay wasn't buttery or overly oaky, but rather zesty with strong citric notes. Consider me a fan! Only negative is that there wasn't much of a wine education aspect to the tasting. They kind of drop off the wine with a kind of generic tasting note menu and leave you be. Which is probably a plus for a lot of people but my fiancé and I really wanted to learn more about Calera!! Nonetheless, people were friendly, the wine was good, and the views are to die for! I will be back :)! read more

Great wine, great people, beautiful views. Definitely will come back for another glass of fine wine!

Came here recently while we were in the area celebrating a friend's birthday trying to catch the meteor shower. They were able to accommodate our last minute reservation, and had more than one table so our group could socially distance properly. Almost everyone opted to do the tasting, which included 6 different wines and came in a really fun display. My boyfriend and I also got one of their cheese plates, as we were starving. The tables are set overlooking mountains, with trees acting as an umbrella to hide you from direct sunlight (which was particularly amazing this day, as it was over 100 degrees and they were closing early due to a heat advisory). The tasting itself was great, with a variety of different whites, reds and rose (for a total of 6 tastes). The cheese plate was also super impressive with some delicious marinated goat cheese, brie, salami, grapes etc. This seems like the perfect place to spend an afternoon on a cooler day - highly recommend stopping by if you're in the area! Staff is also wonderful :) read more

Calera Wine - tasting! - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

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We were so pleased with our afternoon at Calera. Other than the stunning views, the service was personalized and authentically sincere (we were a bit nervous about bringing our 5 year old but the staff truly made all of us feel so welcome!) Being a huge Pinot fan, really enjoyed the trio on the tasting menu which was preceded by a lovely Chenin Blanc, my first in California. Finished with Carneros Merlot by Duckhorn, the parent company. Loved the warm sunlight on our necks with an occasional soft breeze. read more

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Calera is awesome for their Pinot Noirs, but they also have other awesome wines too! Call ahead and ask for a cave tour, it is worth it. And the views of the picnic tables are to die for. read more

Calera Wine - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

We were camping down the road, and there was nothing to do at the campground, so we decided to go to the wineries that were nearby, according to the paper they gave us at the campground. We had no expectations. First, the setting. As we took he turn and headed up the hill to the winery, we were stunned at how beautiful the views were, and were excited to sit in the outdoor patio overlooking the hills for our tasting. When we told them we wanted to taste outside, they poured all five wines and put them in a cute tasting tree for us to take to our table. Next, the wines. We were super impressed with the quality of the wines we tasted. We had two whites and three Pinot Noirs. We actually ended up purchasing 4 bottles of their "everyday" Pinot and two of their more expensive pinots that we really enjoyed. The pinots are very refined, balanced and not overly fruity like some California pinots can be from hotter climates. We also found out that this place is part of the Duckhorn family of wineries, so they are connected to several outstanding producers around California. read more

I'm not much of a Pino fan, but this place is as good as it gets. I got lucky and got to taste 7 wines (instead of 5) because they had an extra two bottles open. Tastings are $10, but if you are in the wine industry with a business card they will wave the tasting fee. This place is seriously amazing. Skip Napa and go to Hollister! I got the chance to chat with the wine maker, who was super cool. Next time I want to do a vineyard tour. You just need to call ahead to make arrangements. read more

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My husband, 2 kids, and I came here after a day of hiking at Pinnacles and I am so glad we stopped by! This winery has beautiful views and the service is wonderful! Elena made us feel very welcome. The kids were able to play cornhole while I was able to relax and enjoy some early Mother's Day wine. Highly recommend this cute winery in a beautiful setting. read more

It was an overall spectacular experience. There was a live band when we went and they had a beautifully arranged tower of various red/white wines. Definitely will be returning! read more

Calera Wine - Flights of wine - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

A truly family friendly winery with a stunning view. My husband and I love to pop in here with our 3 children. We became members this year and have been really enjoying the delicious wine. The customer service is top notch. Trent in particular is a joy to talk to and really goes above and beyond to make us feel welcome. Cannot recommend enough. read more

An awesome experience, great location and wine. Wonderful setting and views. With a wine cave! read more

Calera Wine - Pinot! - Wineries Near Me - Hollister, California

I am not sure which I like more about Calera Wine Company: the amazing wine or the spectacular views. I actually think that they belong together, like other famous duos. Sonny and Cher. Ernie and Bert. Ben and Jerry. Will and Grace. Castor and Pollux. Pinot and Noir. That last one, it really matters. Basically, Calera is a testament to one Californian's quest to make Burgundian quality red wine in one of the most remote places possible: the unforgiving, albeit limestone rich, slopes of Mount Harlan, deep in the wilds of the Gavilan Mountains. Along the way, Josh J., the obsessive visionary who made all this happen, also did the rest of California winemaking a huge favor when he imported cuttings of Viognier, which had nearly disappeared in the Rhône Valley of France from which it originated. In the process, he helped propagate this wonderful white wine varietal throughout the Golden State, producing some of the most crowd-pleasing wines in recent memory. Chardonnay, too. It does not get slighted here, and a new ultra-fancy wine cave opened in 2014 showcases all three wines: Pinot Noir, Viognier, and Chardonnay (and Aligoté when the yields permit, a Burgundian white wine rarely seen in North America). While the estate vineyards in the Mount Harlan AVA are fairly low production, Calera also sources grapes from Monterey and Santa Barbara counties, from top vineyards in the Santa Rita and Solomon Hills, and from the Santa Lucia Highlands and Arroyo Seco. If you are looking for a great Pinot Noir under $25, you'll find one here. But the best wines are from Mount Harlan: the Jensen and Mills block Pinot Noir wines, especially the 2012 vintage. 2015 was a terrible year for yields, but we saw many barrels of 2016 harvest wines aging in French oak in the wine cave, a sign that things will be looking up for Calera in the years to come. Because Caleria dry farms and refuses to compromise when it comes to minimalist, artisan winemaking, yields are low, and prices for the top wines are in the $60-90 range. The best of these wines can easily be mistaken for Romanee-Conti and similar French cult wines, but here, you can find them for much, much less. Plus. you don't have to buy a whole bottle. You can pay the $10 tasting fee, which would be scandalously low by Napa or Sonoma standards, and half bottles are available for purchase. A beautiful outdoor seating area - the best I have ever witnessed in California - allows you to pack a picnic and enjoy the wine while marveling at the view into the Cienega Valley, one of the true hidden gems in California wine country (along with the River Road corridor in Monterey County and the Sierra Foothills town of Murphys, in Calaveras County). The wine tasting staff are casual and fun, seemingly unaware of just how coveted the wines being poured are on the international market. 40% of Calera wines end up in Japan, and they have appeared in manga comics, so these are famous grapes and better than much of what you'll find in Sonoma or Santa Barbara. Plus, it's a really remote and beautiful place, especially in winter, fall, and early spring, before the searing heat of summer turns the green hills golden brown. Driving here is about 90 minutes from the Bay Area, and there are other good spots nearby, like DeRose and Pietra Santa. You can get great coffee and brick-oven pizza at Vertigo in San Juan Bautista (which serves Calera Central Coast wines by the half bottle), and if you love to wine taste and hike, Fremont Peak state park and Pinnacles national park are both nearby. Why not leave Napa and Paso Robles to the wine-tasting masses next long weekend and make a Pinot pilgrimage to Calera Wine Co. instead? You may just end up finding something truly and uniquely special, like I did. My wine cellar is much happier with a few bottles of Mount Harlan Pinot in it to store for the future, and that is definitely a reason to celebrate! read more

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From the PInotFile discussing Owner Josh Jensen's philosophy: Jensen abhors what he calls "Smasher-Blasters," California Pinot Noir fruit bombs that "are mostly one-dimensional, simple but potent beverages that will merely lose their fruit, their main if not their only appeal, with the passing years and just turn into ... . expensive mud." His vision for the perfect Pinot Noir is well reflected in the eloquent style of his wines and is one "that is perfectly balanced on the cusp of richness and complexity, of fruitiness and subtlety, and is neither one nor the other." Sidney Gets Caught Up On Winery Reviews Part VIII Made my way out to Hollister to do a cluster of wineries located close to Pinnacles National Monument. I had woken up too late to get to Pinnacles first thing in morning but ended up finishing 8 miles at Harvey Bear. Wine tasting was needed after lunch and since I had visited most of the Santa Clara wineries, off to the small burg of Hollister I went! Calera was one of the first wineries in California to believe in the potential for Pinot Noir to be grown in the state with the first plantings in the ground in 1975 and first crop in 1978. The wines are definitely not made in a fruit bomb style and require some patience. The tasting room/winery has a gorgeous view of the Salinas Valley that stretches all the way out to Pinnacles. The Tasting Room is not fancy, really just a large corner of the facility, but the service was friendly and knowledgeable and you do get to taste a lot for the money (refunded with purchase). Their wines are definitely the class of the area and yes the Pinots are the best of the bunch. I enjoyed the 2010 Central Coast from half bottle (recent Wine Spectator Top 100 pick) and the 2010 Ryan from Mt Harlan. Both were easy purchases for me and the Ryan will definitely need to sit a few years. It had a lovely flavor profile with balance and a nice acidity. With 13.9% alcohol, it will not make you feel heavy either. The road to get out here is windy but the drive is beautiful. This is a must stop for one of California's wine pioneers. Highly recommended! read more

I'm updating this review just because, being so out of the way, I think it's probably good to have reviews that look recent, and because, of the three area wineries I visited last weekend, I want it to be clear that this was still definitely my favorite of them. The people there were super friendly and clearly very excited to talk about all the wine Calera makes, and pretty down to earth despite making some really excellent wine. I learned later, surprisingly, Calera is actually fairly big and fairly well-known - apparently their wines have been at the White House before! - but they do a great job hiding that, and still feel like a chill micro-winery. I had literally no idea about any of that, until someone at one of the other wineries mentioned it. They could definitely get away with increasing their tasting fee, but I am very glad that they have not - it is $10, and we got to taste basically everything they had open, which was going to be 7 wines but ended up being 8 (though the bonus one was the one I liked the least - it was extremely tannic. Apparently some people like that.) The wines we tried included an *extremely* good viognier, a very good pretty affordable ($20) chardonnay, another less affordable chardonnay that, oddly, I thought wasn't as good as the cheaper one, a vin gris that was pretty good, but a lot subtler than the one I remembered from last year, and three pinots - a very good, fairly affordable one, and then two that were... not: $60 and $75, respectively, part of the reason I say they could probably charge more for the tasting, but I'm really happy they didn't. I don't often get to taste wines that pricey, so it's always fun when I do get to - I didn't think the $60 one was that great (actually liked their cheaper one more), but the $75 one... tasted like a $75 wine. read more

While I really enjoy the wine.. I felt that after all the wine we purchased, to be charged for tasting was an insult. As one of our group put it...."they made me feel like I was trying to get one over on them" The manager blew it today...and we more than likely wont be back read more

As the unprecedented times have caused many new situations and adjustments. For tasting the adjustment has been going from the employees behind the tasting bar to now having to walk around from table to table to give customers their tastings/wine etc. I am a regular at Calera and I have been a club member for many years. It was to my surprise to hear that an employee working the tasting area was told by the manager this past Sunday to specifically not help me and my reservation/party. Then we were told there's a "2 hour time limit" which I was never told about before we showed up. This manager has given me many issues in the past for example telling an employee to inform me that I cannot go and wine taste as often. Told me they were closed one day when I showed up and they were in fact open! I love Calera and the staff when this manager is not there. I refer this winery to many many people. I hope I can go back out next time and be treated fairly and have a good time. Yes I still will give my favorite winery a 5 star... 90% of my wine collection is of course Calera :) read more

Calera is an institution among pinotphiles and for good reason (See: The Heartbreak Grape by De Villiers). They make some ridiculously good wine. The tasting room is minimalistic and literally right next to their winery/warehouse and chemist lab. I actually thought that was pretty cool (the stodgy tasting rooms drive me nuts). For the Pinots their Central Coast is probably the most reliable bang for buck pinot on the market ($20-24 for a pinot that has a bit of elegance). Single vineyard pinots are pretty fantastic and, what's most important, consistently so. They are what some people call burgundian, which means more violets, meatiness, hoison sauce than their Russian River Valley cherry cola and forest floor limited counterparts. Chard's are always good but not great, malolactic fermented and smooth, but sometimes a bit too much oak for my liking. Their best white is actually the Viognier (the only California Viogneir I'd consistently score 90+). Pinot is expensive because it produces low yield, (often less than 1 ton/acre) and Jensen's pinots are perhaps the most ageable pinots in California. Honestly, I was a little baffled by the poor ratings (see other yelp page) until I read the reviews. If you're not in pinot, then I'm not sure why you'd drive all the way to Hollister to visit a certified bourghound. Yes, the pourer was a little flighty. Yes, the tasting room is in a warehouse. The focus here is the wine and not the snooty ambiance. And yes, $10 per tasting is pretty standard (esp. for 8! wines) and nothing like Napa, where'd you pay four times as much just for taste wine from a vine that's ten times as easily grown and produces five times as much fruit. I'll let you do the math to see who is gouging you. Hollister isn't a luxury vacation spot where you'll drink bombastic concoctions that actually taste more like coca cola than wine. In France you'd be drinking in a similar facility or a garage and not some douche-tastic mansion. If that's what you want, I beg you. PLEASE stay in Napa. Tasting: 8 wines, (2 chards, 1 viogneir, 4 pinots, and 1 sticky) Appointment: NOT required for tasting room Price: $10 Overall: This is a California Icon. While a bit idiosyncratic, they can do what they like because this is probably a top 5 pinot house in the New World. Napa types need not apply. read more

Josh Jensen is a LEGEND. The guy has a book written about him for heaven's sake... so when people on here complain that they have to pay $10 for a flight of some of the most critically acclaimed pinot noirs in the world (let alone California), I find it a little shortsighted. I really enjoy visiting Calera whenever I am in town. Cheers! read more