WALT Wines Sonoma, CA

Right across the street from The Girl & The Fig , WALT Wines welcomed us with open arms and full glasses. Even though they had a private function going on at the time, they guided us to a picnic table area outside to taste some wines. We were greeted by a couple of locals that had their dog on a leash with them, and told us it was one of the very few dog

friendly wineries in the area. At this point in our trip, me and my friends were seasoned wine tasters. At most of the vineyards we went to, we were given a list of 12 wines and you could either pick from the "reserve wines" (the better and more expensive wines) or the "other wines" which you could only choose 4 of the 12 for like +$60. Instead, WALT Wines lets you sit anywhere you want, and had a tasting of SIX different wines for ~$25 a tasting. We were shocked that we didn't even need to spend 20 minutes reading, deciding, and contemplating the different wines we wanted to choose, as we had done at many other wineries. At WALT Wines you were given a tasting of 2 at a time with a small map describing the region the grapes are from and some tasting notes to savor what you're drinking. Once you've finished with those, a server comes over with the next two and so on and so forth. So you spent more time drinking than reading a menu - which is the whole reason everyone comes to wine country to begin with, right?

This is definitely a place for chill people and the low maintenance crew. We felt so relaxed that the environment was unintimidating and we felt so welcome there. From the staff to even the other customers, it was a completely different cliental than the usual Napa/Sonoma vacationer. It was such a warm day too, hanging out at the picnic tables outside, drinking wine all in a chill space was something that I was longing for in wine country - and this place has it. Wow I haven't even mentioned the wines yet! And oh my GOD they were delicious. All of us were searching for amazing pinot noir in Sonoma, and let me tell you, we got it and more. We had been to some of the more pretentious and well known wineries, that prided themselves on their pinot noir, and we all felt that they were a little... 'meh.' WALT Wines by comparison had so much flavor for such a light bodied wine, and they didn't even try to push you towards the more expensive reserve wines, or insult your taste, as many other wineries in the area had. If I lived near Sonoma I would plant myself at WALT wines for a good long stretch of time, invite my friends and family to chill and relax with me, with some fantastic wine and drink my worries away.

ALL PHOTOGRAPHS ARE COPYRIGHTED & PROTECTED. NO RIGHTS GRANTED UNLESS PERMISSION BY ARTIST,

ALL PHOTOS BY ALLY VONER.

If you would like to purchase any photographs for your own use, please email us at goodbitesandglasspints@gmail.com

(We're friendly!)