Cline Cellars

In the latter part of the 1800s and the early 1900s, Oakley, California was a picturesque farming community. Oakley, in eastern Contra Costa County, is equidistant between Sacramento to the northeast and San Francisco to the west. Situated on the banks of the San Joaquin river at the point where the Sacramento river merges, the two journey west to empty into the San Francisco Bay. At the turn of the 20th century, Oakley was home to a number of Portuguese and Italian immigrants who found many similarities to the Mediterranean climate they had left behind. They planted thousands of acres of orchards and vineyards. Today, a century later, due to the devastation of phylloxera and the encroachment of commercial and residential development, only 600 acres of vineyards remain in this evolving community. Cline owns and controls 300 of those acres including some of the oldest surviving vines in California…a little bit of history. Fred Cline's maternal grandfather, Valeriano Jacuzzi who founded the famous pump and spa company with his brothers, called Oakley home. On summer visits to his grandparents, where he escaped the suburban Southern California life that had attracted his father, Fred learned from his grandfather both the love of the agricultural life and the mysteries of the vinification of grapes into wine. These lessons led Fred to U.C. Davis to study agriculture management, a rebellious departure from the U.C. Berkeley tradition of his father and paternal grandfather. After attaining his degree, in 1982 Fred returned to Oakley to found the company that would become Cline Cellars. There he started producing wines and restoring ancient vines. Today, Zinfandel, Carignane and Mourvèdre produced from these vines are some of the most unique and historic wines made in California - the coming together of the climate, the soil and the landscape are the epitome of Oakley terroir. In 1991, the winery relocated from Oakley to the Carneros region of Sonoma County on a historic 350-acre estate with new vineyards and facilities. While much of the cool Carneros region is planted to Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Merlot, Fred Cline pioneered the planting of Rhône varietals including Syrah, Viognier, Marsanne and Roussanne. In 1997, Cline ventured further west into an even cooler growing area in eastern Petaluma and again planted more Rhône varietals. Once the site of a Miwok Village and then later the first camp of Father Altimira in his quest to establish the Sonoma Mission, the property offers sweeping views of the Carneros valley. The tasting room is located inside an original 1850's farmhouse, and is wrapped by a large and pleasant, old-fashioned porch for outdoor seating. Six spring-fed ponds, with lush green lawns, rustling willow trees, ever-changing gardens and the glorious, fragrant blossoms of over 5,000 rose bushes, surround the grounds. The Cline family invites you to enjoy their wine tasting and picnic areas. Please contact us if we can be of any assistance in planning a personalized tour, catered luncheon, unique wine and food pairing, or any special moment of your life.

Sonoma, United States

24737 Arnold Drive/Highway 121,

(707) 940-4000