Founded in 1896 by Giovanni Foppiano, a Genoa Gold Rush immigrant. The family survived Prohibition selling winemaking kits; a 1926 raid dumped 100,000 gallons into a creek. In 1967 Louis J. Foppiano released the first commercial Petite Sirah, the house's longtime anchor. Sold to Courtney Benham's CMB Wines in 2024.
Giovanni Foppiano landed in New York from Genoa in 1855 and headed west chasing the Gold Rush. Mining didn't pan out, so in 1896 he bought an 80-acre farm south of Healdsburg and began supplying bulk wine. The winery survived Prohibition by selling grapes and home winemaking kits (and, in a 1926 federal raid, the loss of 100,000 gallons of bootleg wine dumped into a nearby creek). Louis J. Foppiano — Giovanni's grandson — began bottling wines under the family label after Repeal and, in 1967, introduced what would become Foppiano's signature: an estate Petite Sirah, made when the variety was barely known in California. The 1970 plantings of Petite Sirah remain the heart of the estate.
Estate Petite Sirah, Russian River Valley — The iconic bottling since 1967, from Gianna's Vineyard's 50-plus-year-old vines; inky, velvety, and built to last.
Estate Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley — From the River's Edge block, part of the winery's expanded cool-climate program.
Estate Zinfandel, Russian River Valley — A small-lot red from the family's historic estate plantings.
Estate Chardonnay, Russian River Valley — From Della's block, the oldest spur-pruned planting on the property.
Vermentino — A crisp Italian white newly planted under owner Courtney Benham's estate revamp, alongside the heritage Petite Sirah.
Louis M. Foppiano joined his father in the 1970s and ran the winery for nearly five decades, building Petite Sirah into a defining Russian River specialty and co-founding the P.S. I Love You trade organization in 2002. In 2024, after five generations of Foppiano family ownership, Louis M. sold the winery to Courtney Benham of CMB Wines (which also owns Martin Ray Vineyards in Santa Rosa and Vina Robles in Paso Robles). Benham has launched a major revamp: a modernized tasting room remodeled in 2025, restoration of the long-neglected production facility (whose 24,000-gallon concrete vats now hold structural duty more than fermenting wine), and replanting of the 130-acre estate vineyard to modern spacing with new varieties like Vermentino. The 40 acres of 1970-planted Petite Sirah remain. Tasting room open Wednesday – Monday on Old Redwood Highway just south of Healdsburg.
Winemaker Raemy Patterson crafts the wines at historic Foppiano Vineyards under the direction of Leslie Renaud, Director of Winemaking for owner CMB Family of Wines. Founded in 1896 by Italian immigrant Giovanni Foppiano, Foppiano is one of Sonoma County's oldest continuously operated wineries — a Russian River Valley pioneer famous for the Petite Sirah it introduced in 1967, and for surviving Prohibition by selling home-winemaking kits (federal agents dumped tens of thousands of gallons into the creek in a 1926 raid). After nearly five decades under Louis M. Foppiano and 128 years of family ownership, the estate was acquired by Courtney Benham's CMB Family of Wines in 2024 and its Old Redwood Highway tasting room reimagined, with winemaking still centered on estate Petite Sirah, Vermentino, Pinot Noir, and Chardonnay from the cool Middle Reach of the Russian River Valley.
Louis M. Foppiano was the fourth-generation steward of one of Sonoma County’s oldest wineries, founded in 1896 when his great-grandfather Giovanni, an immigrant from Genoa, bought an 80-acre Healdsburg farm. Louis M. joined the business in the 1970s and ran it for nearly five decades, keeping the family brand independent — and known for its estate Petite Sirah — while neighboring family wineries sold to conglomerates. In 2024, after 128 years of unbroken family ownership, he passed the torch, selling the winery, brand, and 130 acres of vineyards. The Foppiano name remains synonymous with Healdsburg wine.
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Estate Petite Sirah, Russian River Valley — The iconic bottling since 1967, from Gianna's Vineyard's 50-plus-year-old vines; inky, velvety, and built to last.
Estate Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley — From the River's Edge block, part of the winery's expanded cool-climate program.
Estate Zinfandel, Russian River Valley — A small-lot red from the family's historic estate plantings.
Estate Chardonnay, Russian River Valley — From Della's block, the oldest spur-pruned planting on the property.
Vermentino — A crisp Italian white newly planted under owner Courtney Benham's estate revamp, alongside the heritage Petite Sirah.
Giovanni Foppiano landed in New York from Genoa in 1855 and headed west chasing the Gold Rush. Mining didn't pan out, so in 1896 he bought an 80-acre farm south of Healdsburg and began supplying bulk wine. The winery survived Prohibition by selling grapes and home winemaking kits (and, in a 1926 federal raid, the loss of 100,000 gallons of bootleg wine dumped into a nearby creek). Louis J. Foppiano — Giovanni's grandson — began bottling wines under the family label after Repeal and, in 1967, introduced what would become Foppiano's signature: an estate Petite Sirah, made when the variety was barely known in California. The 1970 plantings of Petite Sirah remain the heart of the estate.
Louis M. Foppiano joined his father in the 1970s and ran the winery for nearly five decades, building Petite Sirah into a defining Russian River specialty and co-founding the P.S. I Love You trade organization in 2002. In 2024, after five generations of Foppiano family ownership, Louis M. sold the winery to Courtney Benham of CMB Wines (which also owns Martin Ray Vineyards in Santa Rosa and Vina Robles in Paso Robles). Benham has launched a major revamp: a modernized tasting room remodeled in 2025, restoration of the long-neglected production facility (whose 24,000-gallon concrete vats now hold structural duty more than fermenting wine), and replanting of the 130-acre estate vineyard to modern spacing with new varieties like Vermentino. The 40 acres of 1970-planted Petite Sirah remain. Tasting room open Wednesday – Monday on Old Redwood Highway just south of Healdsburg.
Winemaker Raemy Patterson crafts the wines at historic Foppiano Vineyards under the direction of Leslie Renaud, Director of Winemaking for owner CMB Family of Wines. Founded in 1896 by Italian immigrant Giovanni Foppiano, Foppiano is one of Sonoma County's oldest continuously operated wineries — a Russian River Valley pioneer famous for the Petite Sirah it introduced in 1967, and for surviving Prohibition by selling home-winemaking kits (federal agents dumped tens of thousands of gallons into the creek in a 1926 raid). After nearly five decades under Louis M. Foppiano and 128 years of family ownership, the estate was acquired by Courtney Benham's CMB Family of Wines in 2024 and its Old Redwood Highway tasting room reimagined, with winemaking still centered on estate Petite Sirah, Vermentino, Pinot Noir, and Chardonnay from the cool Middle Reach of the Russian River Valley.
Louis M. Foppiano was the fourth-generation steward of one of Sonoma County’s oldest wineries, founded in 1896 when his great-grandfather Giovanni, an immigrant from Genoa, bought an 80-acre Healdsburg farm. Louis M. joined the business in the 1970s and ran it for nearly five decades, keeping the family brand independent — and known for its estate Petite Sirah — while neighboring family wineries sold to conglomerates. In 2024, after 128 years of unbroken family ownership, he passed the torch, selling the winery, brand, and 130 acres of vineyards. The Foppiano name remains synonymous with Healdsburg wine.
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