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Windy Oaks Estate Winery

4.3 (67 reviews)
PriceyWineries
Closed • Closed
Updated 3 months ago

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a view of the vineyard
Jeremy S.

One of the better wine makers in the region. The wines had a little more body then surrounding vineyards. They offered two different tasting menus. One menu was $20 per person the other was $30 per person. If you spend $50 on wines you get your tasting fee waved. One thing we enjoyed about our wine tasting was they encouraged people to bring their own snacks for the wine tasting experience, we had stopped in at Corralitos Market for some of their house made sausages and cheese.

Friends
Kellie H.

What a sweet and beautifully located winery! Had a girls day on Saturday and spent it enjoying the wine at Windy Oaks. Our wine specialist was as charming as could be and the tasting was wonderful. I joined the club! Unfortunately, I put the wine in my car haphazardly and when I opened my passenger door at home, it fell out and broke! Sad to miss my choices but SO looking forward to the next shipment!

Wine tasting menu
Andrea G.

Hidden Jewel with beautiful landscape and scenery that is breathtaking. The service was friendly and informative. We were able to bring our own charcuterie picnic. The wines were all pretty good. The service, ambiance and friendly hospitality gives this winery 5 stars.

a glass of wine on a wooden table
Laura S.

Hidden gem of a winery with great wine. I enjoyed sitting out on the patio. Beautiful views surrounded by red woods.

Tasting room and the patio
Takako S.

I found this spot on SCMWA.com when I was looking for some tasting spots in Corralitos area where I can use my Passport. I was so very happy to have found it‼ We were the only visitors at 12:30 on Saturday, so we got to talk to a wonderful young couple who helped us with tasting. Two menus were available - a mix of whites and reds with no additional charge with Passport, and four Pinot Noir only for $5 with Passport ($20 without Passport). I without any hesitation went for all Pinot. The first sip made me smile big, and the rest even bigger We were told that we could take a short walk up the vineyards where we could see the Monterey Bay. It was cloudy and we couldn't see but nevertheless it was a very nice walk with a glass of wine in hand. I really loved their inviting tasting room, the patio, the vineyards, and of course all their Pinot I'll definitely go back soon.

a hand holding a wine glass
D N.

Had the best time with my girlfriend on our little wine adventure. The view, the wine, the service, all amazing. It was a pretty hot day, they had umbrellas up to keep us all cool. You can walk the vineyard when you're done sipping the delicious wine they have. It's right down the street from my house, I will defiantly be back.

View from The Ridge
Yelper X.

Some mornings you wake up and you need a little adventure. Nothing crazy... just a little something out of the ordinary to spice things up. In my not so humble opinion, I truly feel this is what wine tastings are for. With a few hours set aside for my Saturday adventure, my girlfriend chimes in that we should drive up to Windy Oaks (tasting room open Fri/Sat 12:00-5:00). Sure. I love Corralitos. I can stop off at the Market (http://www.yelp.com/biz/corralitos-market-and-sausage-company-corralitos#hrid:lS1ufFOFrV7p5_z2rmcePw) score a couple of sausage sandwiches for us and spend lunch sipping on wine in the countryside. Coming from Santa Cruz, there is signage to direct you to the Winery. I hadn't realized how far up into the Santa Cruz Mountains this place was, and so I foolishly double backed a few times thinking I had missed it. No, no. Once you get on Brown Valley, you will probably be driving another 20 minutes to get to the winery. You will drive through the last of the Corralitos flat lands, only to begin a long-ish accent up through the redwoods. Don't fret. Just keep driving. Brown Valley becomes Hazel Dell, and once you pass Sweetwood Way, the winery will be the next driveway on the right. Now that you have successfully made it, you deserve to treat yourself to whatever tasting flight ($10) Windy Oaks has selected for the day. Today we sampled four different bottlings of pinot noir. The 2008 Cuvee, while still young, has clear potential. While it was an easily drinkable pinot at this age, I can only imagine how wonderful the wine will become in a few years. I bought a bottle ($40) to save and find out. Spencer was very knowledgeable about his families wines and the terroir they represent. He graciously directed us up to the Ridge (see photo) from where, on a clear day, you can see all the way to the Monterey Bay. Toting our tasting glasses, we scurried up the hill, made ourselves comfortable at one the seating areas amongst the vines, and chilled out admiring the amazing view. As a small family owned estate, Windy Oaks can maintain an amazing level of quality control. Their pinots really are as special as everyone else has made them out to be. What makes this tasting room so special is that you will inevitably meet one, if not two, of the wine makers at any given time. Which I think justifies a little adventure Saturday.

Jerry P.

A year ago we went to a Pinot Noir fest in Campbell where out of 65 wineries, the taste of the Windy Oaks wines stood out. This year we spent some time in Carmel and decided on the way home on Saturday to stop by Windy Oaks. On the drive up we thought 'hey, just in case we better call ahead'. The wife called and got hold of Jim, the owner and winemaker. Turns out that Windy Oaks is only open to the public by appointment only (other than a few special occasions), and he handed my wife off to the winery business manager, Jim's wife Judy. Judy says "Sure, come on in - we're about 30 minutes away and would love to see you!" When we get there Judy meets us at the gate and takes us into the winery. Jim shows up a few minutes later and between the two of them they tell us the story of their winery and wine making philosophy (well-described here by Leela S). They opened four wonderful bottles of wine for us during our chat, which was an education for the wife and me. These two folks are very knowledgeable, eloquent and nice. It was a pleasure to spend time with them. And time it was. By the time they were offering to take us on a tour of the vineyards we looked at the watch and had been there for two hours, making us late for later commitments. Needless to say, we bought a bunch of wine and joined their wine club. To recap: great people, great wine . . .

The gorgous view from the Windy Oaks Estate property
Denise B.

Windy Oaks Winery was another stop on our Santa Cruz winery tour. The winery owners were out of town, so their son did the tasting for us. Luckily, he was also very knowledgeable about wines and was clearly passionate about the family business. The wines at Windy Oaks were not the most or least expensive wines we had that day. Their wines had a decent price range, though, and they have varying levels in their wine club for their more and less pricey wines, depending on your budget. I was disappointed we only got to try a few wines, but they were all excellent. The tasting finished with a walk to their grounds, which had a stunning view of the Santa Cruz mountains. There was a picnic table already set up that was perfect for drinking wine on a nice day. This was the final sight of our day in the mountains, and it was perfect. I'd love to come back and have a picnic.

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4 years ago

We love WINDY OAKS WINERY and everyone in it, what an excellent space to enjoyably while away a few weekend hours. Cheers, Tom & Dotty

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6 years ago

Beautiful property with phenomenal views, great service, lovely wines.

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Ask the Community - Windy Oaks Estate Winery

Are dogs allowed?

Hi Kevin--this is a good question that we get asked a lot! Dogs are most welcome if they are well-behaved and on a leash. You are welcome to take your dog for a walk in the vineyard as well. We look forward to welcoming you to Windy Oaks!… 

Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

Review Highlights - Windy Oaks Estate Winery

“The Pinot Noirs are lovely as well and a fantastic setting in a beautiful tasting room.”

Mentioned in 7 reviews

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Alfaro Family Vineyard & Winery

Alfaro Family Vineyard & Winery

4.4(53 reviews)
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Absolutely gorgeous little family owned vineyard with incredible views and an array of wonderful…read morewines to try. This was my first time here, but our hosts are regular members here and introduced us to this great little winery.....for BYO "picnic" goodies to go with an assortment of fantastic tasting wines. I'm not sure how this membership thing works, but it's definitely worth checking out if you're into wines and enjoy a nice day out either sitting at one of the limited number of tables or chairs looking out onto the awesome views of the winery. My wife and I were just visitors in the area, were brought here for the very first time, and just went with the flow. And, to top things off, there was a solo guitarist playing wonderful instrumental songs while we enjoyed our Picnic and wines. The owner was also there to tend to the guests, engage in friendly banter, and just made sure we all had a great time. Excellent experience.....ok, I admit I am not an alcohol drinker and this was my first sip of wines in many years......yea, I got a bit buzzed probably from drinking too fast....because they were that good.....but luckily I wasn't the one driving :)

They are open for tasting Saturday noon-5. Their online system seems to book up even if they are…read moreempty. If you can't reserve a spot online, just show up. I've done wine tasting at a bunch of places in Santa Cruz, and Alfaro has maybe the most comfortable chairs, and the best view. The wines are very light bodied, with some yeast and oak. They don't really appeal to me. But it was fun doing the tasting.

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Anatum Winery - All the wine!

Anatum Winery

4.7(23 reviews)
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What a wonderful surprise at Anatum Winery!…read more My cousin Letty and I went wine tasting at Anatum Winery, and as someone who normally prefers reds, I almost skipped the 2024 Anatum Estate Chardonnay. Thank goodness I didn't! One sip and we literally looked at each other and said, "WHOA!" It was crisp, flavorful, beautifully balanced, not too sweet or too dry, and so smooth on the palate. I honestly couldn't believe I was drinking a Chardonnay! The Rosé of Grenache, Red Blend, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon were wonderful too -- I enjoyed the reds so much that a few bottles came home with me. Such a beautiful, relaxing setting and an even better experience. I especially loved seeing the passion this young couple has put into their winery. Anatum Winery, you turned this red-wine girl into a Chardonnay fan!

We've been coming to Anatum now for a few years as members. At one point we were doing the down…read moresizing of too many wine clubs and there was no way Anatum would be cut. Aside from the wine itself which, we are primarily Pinot noir enthusiasts that are fabulous here. There is still a great spread of varietals available. The Rose of Pinotage is amazing. Great small family run place. On a given weekend you'll likely meet the whole family. And they talk to you as family and share their life with you unlike reading a script of wine descriptions. Easy to find location with a few sandwich boards out to help make it obvious if you don't know how to use your nav system.

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Storrs Winery & Vineyards - Very pretty building and decor.

Storrs Winery & Vineyards

3.4(29 reviews)
4.2 mi

They have a tasting room at the Old Sash Mill, but I went to a tasting at the estate in Aptos,…read morewhich is open Fri-Su noon-5. It's very pleasant to sip wine on the patio. They also have a bocce ball court. Two wines stood out: 5/5: The 2024 Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay; it's rubust, sparkly, with tropical notes. 4/5: The 2024 Monterey Sauvignon blanc: Fruity instead of grassy.

**Overall 3.5 stars**…read more The wine tasted excellent! In fact, all the flavors were complex and delicious that my friends joined their wine club! The winery is situated on a hill. The road to get up the hill is very narrow that we almost missed it bec it looked like a driveway. Once we got past the trees to an opening, it was like orchestral music started playing when we saw the gorgeous Storrs building! The cement structure was so sleek and modern, yet it was in the middle of this farmhouse kind of area... it was a little shocking, in a good way. I feel bad taking off stars because I actually loved the wine at Storrs, but for the cost of the wine tasting per person, I was astonished at how TINY the pours were. We are talking the tiniest sip. You don't even have enough to swish it in your mouth to get a good sense of the wine on your palette. We thought we were being "punked", except every pour was this miniscule. There is also a strict no outside food policy here, yet they don't sell food. This is a big downside for me because I find drinking wine a great opportunity to sit back and relax with friends, and that includes munching on some food! Counter space was very cramped in the tasting room, and no one greeted us or acknowledged that we entered the building even. We just walked around for awhile until we found a tiny corner to insert ourselves. The set up isn't ideal for when there are multiple groups inside. There are tables in an outdoor patio and one long table indoors, but with the tasting pours being half a sip, you really don't need to sit down. So this is a big downside for me. The wine is delicious, so I think it's worth tasting and buying some wine here. My tip is to go on an off day so you can get better customer service and maybe get more than a 0.00001 ounce pour. Haha.

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Storrs Winery & Vineyards - This is the size of each pour!  Barely enough for a sip.

This is the size of each pour! Barely enough for a sip.

Storrs Winery & Vineyards - Good small event space!

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Storrs Winery & Vineyards - Bocci ball court.

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Bocci ball court.

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Such a beautiful, welcoming experience!Immediately upon arriving at Martin Ranch Winery we felt…read moreright at home! Therese (owner) welcomed us and made us feel like old friends. Skip had us laughing and engaged in great conversation while he served us our delicious wine tasting. We decided to become wine club members because we enjoyed every single wine we tasted and had such a great time. When guests come to our home for dinner we are always proud to serve their wine because we know they will love it as much as we do. Now, each time we visit the winery we feel like we are coming home because they make us feel like family The grounds are so beautiful and we feel so comfortable there that we always want to bring friends and family when they come to visit. Hundreds of hummingbirds agree with us and so do the geese that have decided to make their pond home. The gardens are a feast for the eyes and their chickens seem happy and content. We just love it here!

Came to Martin Ranch on a Sunday in September. It was a gorgeous day and there were a number of…read moreother parties there, but it wasn't too crowded. They have a couple different areas to sit and a dedicated tasting bar. The property was absolutely beautiful, surrounded by vineyards and with a small pond. I wished we had explored more, because you can roam around a good portion of it. You can bring your own food, which we did, but they also sell snacks. And they even sell beer for the non-wine drinkers. The tasting menu had 4 wines, though there were plenty of extra open bottles, so we were able to try a few more.

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Windy Oaks Estate Winery - wineries - Updated November 2026

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