Walt and Joan Flowers were among the first to believe that the extreme ridges above the Sonoma Coast could produce serious Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Their Camp Meeting Ridge vineyard, first planted in 1991, and the later Sea View Ridge, both high on windswept coastal ridges, were considered too cold and marginal by most of the wine world. The wines proved otherwise. Flowers established the template for what Fort Ross-Seaview and the West Sonoma Coast could produce (restrained, mineral, and age-worthy) and remains one of the appellation's defining estates.
Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir: the cornerstone bottling; a fragrant, balanced expression of the far coast.
Camp Meeting Ridge Pinot Noir, Fort Ross-Seaview: from the founding estate vineyard, focused and elegant.
Sea View Ridge Pinot Noir, Fort Ross-Seaview: a high-elevation, intensely mineral estate Pinot.
Moon Select Chardonnay: the flagship, built from the best Chardonnay parcels on the estate.
Sonoma Coast Chardonnay: a bright, coastal white of fresh acidity and minerality.
Founded in 1989 by Walt and Joan Flowers, who left their Pennsylvania horticulture business to pioneer viticulture on the far Sonoma Coast, Flowers was among the first to prove that world-class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay could come from the fog-shrouded ridges above the Pacific. The two original estate vineyards, Camp Meeting Ridge and Sea View Ridge, remain the core. The tasting program is hosted at the House of Flowers in Healdsburg, a design-forward hospitality space tucked in the gardens and redwoods on Westside Road. Three options: the 60-minute Sonoma Coast Journey ($75) pairs Sonoma Coast wines with a seasonal crudités & snack board; the 90-minute Estate Vineyard Immersion ($130) is focused on Camp Meeting Ridge and Sea View Ridge wines with food pairing bites from the in-house culinary team; the 90-minute Elements of Site ($150) adds library vintage Almar Chardonnay and Cielo & Pietra Pinot Noir Site Series bottlings. Reservations required, 21+, no pets (service animals welcome).
