At the very end of the Dry Creek Valley, just before Dry Creek Road peters out, perched on a high cliff, is Sbragia Family Vineyards. It is just about the northernmost winery in Dry Creek so it’s a bit of a drive. Because Sbragia Family sits athwart the closure of the fault line that created Dry Creek Valley, you will be rewarded with one of the most dramatic views in Sonoma’s Wine Country.
The winery itself is sleek, modern but not overly showy. The interior is a typical tasting room, with a wide bar and, unusually, some scattered tables where you can actually sit and enjoy your tastes. The colors in the room are somber, giving the overall experience a somewhat more intimate feeling than is often the case in the Napa and Sonoma Valleys, especially in tasting rooms as large as this one.
But you’ll want to take your glasses out to the spacious terrace. There you’ll look straight down Dry Creek Valley. You can’t see San Francisco Bay from there, but your imagination will try to fill it in. Often, when you see aerial photos of vineyards the pictures have been taken from an airplane. Not at Sbragia Family. The picture below, courtesy of the winery, gives only a hint of what it’s like to see it with your own eyes.
Photo courtesy of Sbragia Family Vineyards
Of course, all that scenic beauty would be for naught if the wine was no good. You can rest easy on that point. The wine tasting itself has some special attractions, beginning with Ed Sbragia himself. As chief winemaker at Beringer in St. Helena he took an old, well-regarded winery and drove its reputation sky high. He started his own winery in 2004 and four years later he left Beringer to focus on Sbragia Family. He is still Winemaster Emeritus at Beringer and a consultant there. So when you taste wine at Sbragia Family, you’re tasting a lot of winemaking heritage.
And in fact that heritage is on a continuum. Ed’s grandfather immigrated from Tuscany and worked in the vineyards of the early 20th century. His father, Gino, owned his own vineyards as well. Today, Ed’s son Adam is being positioned to take over from his father, after spending some time at Beringer himself. And we were once served in the tasting room by on of Ed’s daughters.
The wines are an interesting mix. As you might expect from someone who earned his spurs at Beringer, the Cabernet Sauvignons are in the spotlight at Sbragia Family. There are Cabs to try from Dry Creek, Alexander, Sonoma and Napa Valleys. We have found that one of the most enjoyable aspects of a visit to Sbragia Family is trying to discern the differences from the four different locations. Gino’s Zinfandel is named after Ed’s father and is the original family vineyard. They also have Uncle Italo’s Zinfandel from Alexander Valley. (It is Sbragia Family, after all.)
Our personal favorite over the years has been the Merlot. One year we served it at Christmas dinner with our family in Québec and they simply didn’t realize that American wines could taste like that.
The combination of the wines, the history and that incredible view make Sbragia Family a worthwhile destination if you’re going tasting in Sonoma County.