Summer Wine Trail

The Summer Wine Trail is one Saturday in July when Wine Road wineries across Alexander Valley, Dry Creek Valley and the Russian River pour for a single ticket. There is no check-in winery and no wristband: you buy online, show the ticket on your phone at each door, and taste the flight that winery has chosen for the trail. It belongs to Wine Road's seasonal Wine Trail series, which comes back through the year in spring, summer, harvest and holiday editions, each with its own short roster. Recent summer lists have run from Alexander Valley Vineyards and Pedroncelli to Merry Edwards and Foppiano.

Go because it asks so little of you. One flat ticket covers the trail pours at every stop, there are no appointments to juggle, and a loop of a few wineries fills an easy afternoon. The field is small on purpose, so hosts have time to talk, and the wines lean toward what a warm day wants. Plan the stops around a picnic and a shaded patio, bring a designated driver, and let the valleys set the pace. Of all the ways into Wine Road country, this is the lightest one we know, and the best excuse to see the vineyards in full summer leaf.