Founded in 1984 by Doug and Lee Nalle and now run by their son Andrew. Open Saturdays and by appointment, with patio tastings behind the cellar and a wine cave under a living rosemary roof. The focus is restrained, European-style Zinfandel, moderate in alcohol, bright, built to age.
Nalle Winery is one of Dry Creek Valley's best-kept secrets — a tiny family operation producing Zinfandel of extraordinary finesse from estate and sourced vineyards. Doug Nalle's approach favors elegance over power, yielding wines that are lighter in color and lower in alcohol than the appellation norm but no less complex. Production is minuscule and wines sell out through the mailing list before they hit any retail shelf. One of the best arguments for getting on as many small Sonoma mailing lists as possible.
Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel — Nalle's calling card: an elegant, dry-farmed old-vine Zin (a block planted in 1927) made in a balanced, moderate-alcohol, age-worthy style that has earned the estate a reputation as a benchmark Sonoma producer.
Cabernet Sauvignon, Dry Creek Valley — A focused, fruit-forward Cabernet in the same restrained, old-school California idiom, built for the table and the cellar.
One of Dry Creek Valley's oldest wineries, Nalle has been family-owned since Doug and Lee Nalle founded it in 1984; their son Andrew is now winemaker. Small lots are produced in an above-ground cellar kept cool by a living roof of rosemary, on land the family has farmed for generations.
Founded in 1984 by Doug and Lee Nalle and now run by their son Andrew, Nalle is the anti–tourist-bus winery — open only on Saturdays and by appointment, with tastings on the patio behind the cellar surrounded by the family's estate vineyards. The above-ground wine cave is topped with a living roof of rosemary that keeps the cellar naturally cool. The focus is restrained, European-style Zinfandel — moderate alcohol, bright acidity, built to age — alongside Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and a playful Pinot/Zin blend called Zinot Noir. Two of their recent Zinfandels earned 93- and 94-point Wine Spectator scores. Dog- and kid-friendly, and as authentic as Dry Creek gets.
Andrew Nalle is the winemaker at Nalle Winery, the family-owned Dry Creek Valley estate his father Doug Nalle founded in 1984 and built a reputation on for elegant, restrained old-vine Zinfandel. The estate's Zinfandel vines trace back to 1927, planted by Andrew's great-great-grandparents, and the family farms with a deliberately understated hand — moderate alcohols, balance, and freshness over sheer power. Beyond the flagship Dry Creek Valley Old Vine Zinfandel, Andrew makes a playful Zinfandel-Pinot Noir blend (the 'Zinot') from the organically farmed Hopkins River Ranch in the Russian River Valley.
Doug and Lee Nalle founded their winery in 1984, when red Zinfandel was unfashionable and sweet White Zin reigned. Doug, already a local winemaker, saw the potential in the historic benchland vineyard owned by Lee’s family — the Henderlongs, who had farmed Dry Creek since the 1890s and planted the dry-farmed Zinfandel block in 1927. He built an ecological above-ground cellar topped with a living roof of rosemary, and committed to an elegant, lower-alcohol, food-friendly style that held firm as others chased bigger wines. Their son Andrew, the fifth generation on the land, now makes the wine.
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Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel — Nalle's calling card: an elegant, dry-farmed old-vine Zin (a block planted in 1927) made in a balanced, moderate-alcohol, age-worthy style that has earned the estate a reputation as a benchmark Sonoma producer.
Cabernet Sauvignon, Dry Creek Valley — A focused, fruit-forward Cabernet in the same restrained, old-school California idiom, built for the table and the cellar.
One of Dry Creek Valley's oldest wineries, Nalle has been family-owned since Doug and Lee Nalle founded it in 1984; their son Andrew is now winemaker. Small lots are produced in an above-ground cellar kept cool by a living roof of rosemary, on land the family has farmed for generations.
Nalle Winery is one of Dry Creek Valley's best-kept secrets — a tiny family operation producing Zinfandel of extraordinary finesse from estate and sourced vineyards. Doug Nalle's approach favors elegance over power, yielding wines that are lighter in color and lower in alcohol than the appellation norm but no less complex. Production is minuscule and wines sell out through the mailing list before they hit any retail shelf. One of the best arguments for getting on as many small Sonoma mailing lists as possible.
Founded in 1984 by Doug and Lee Nalle and now run by their son Andrew, Nalle is the anti–tourist-bus winery — open only on Saturdays and by appointment, with tastings on the patio behind the cellar surrounded by the family's estate vineyards. The above-ground wine cave is topped with a living roof of rosemary that keeps the cellar naturally cool. The focus is restrained, European-style Zinfandel — moderate alcohol, bright acidity, built to age — alongside Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and a playful Pinot/Zin blend called Zinot Noir. Two of their recent Zinfandels earned 93- and 94-point Wine Spectator scores. Dog- and kid-friendly, and as authentic as Dry Creek gets.
Andrew Nalle is the winemaker at Nalle Winery, the family-owned Dry Creek Valley estate his father Doug Nalle founded in 1984 and built a reputation on for elegant, restrained old-vine Zinfandel. The estate's Zinfandel vines trace back to 1927, planted by Andrew's great-great-grandparents, and the family farms with a deliberately understated hand — moderate alcohols, balance, and freshness over sheer power. Beyond the flagship Dry Creek Valley Old Vine Zinfandel, Andrew makes a playful Zinfandel-Pinot Noir blend (the 'Zinot') from the organically farmed Hopkins River Ranch in the Russian River Valley.
Doug and Lee Nalle founded their winery in 1984, when red Zinfandel was unfashionable and sweet White Zin reigned. Doug, already a local winemaker, saw the potential in the historic benchland vineyard owned by Lee’s family — the Henderlongs, who had farmed Dry Creek since the 1890s and planted the dry-farmed Zinfandel block in 1927. He built an ecological above-ground cellar topped with a living roof of rosemary, and committed to an elegant, lower-alcohol, food-friendly style that held firm as others chased bigger wines. Their son Andrew, the fifth generation on the land, now makes the wine.
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