Passport to Dry Creek Valley

Passport to Dry Creek Valley is the Winegrowers of Dry Creek Valley's spring weekend: Saturday and Sunday of tastings at family wineries along Dry Creek and West Dry Creek Roads, each pairing its wines with a chef's bite and live music. It opens on Friday evening with the Twilight Welcome Party, a separately ticketed gathering of boutique wineries. Recent rosters have included Dry Creek Vineyard, Pedroncelli, Ridge Lytton Springs, Kokomo and the sparkling wines of Breathless, with more than fifty wineries taking part across the weekend.

Go for the people behind the wine. Dry Creek is a valley of family estates, and over Passport weekend the grower or winemaker is often the one pouring, glad to talk about the vineyard you can see from the patio. Many wineries build their stop around a theme, so one afternoon can move from a backyard party to a quiet barrel room to a lawn of bocce. The valley's Zinfandel shares the table with whites, Rhône blends and sparkling wine. A portion of every pass funds the Dry Creek Valley Scholarship, which keeps the weekend rooted in the community that hosts it.