When planning our trip to Sonoma, my husband and I decided that we were in search of some good Syrahs. I found an article about the best Sonoma Syrahs that any Syrah lover should taste and looked into a few. How lucky were we to schedule a tasting at Donelan and find Syrahs and Chardonnays and Pinots that we loved! Chris called the day before our tasting and asked what types of wine we wanted to try. Talk about personal service! He absolutely hit the nail on the head. We tasted six wines along with a great cheese plate and spent two hours with him talking wine, food, travel and family. Chris made this an absolutely wonderful experience. Can’t wait to receive our 2 cases. Thanks for a very relaxed and personalized experience and thanks to the Donelan Family for making great wines!?
Daniel Snyder
We were up in Santa Rosa to celebrate a special day, and decided to do a tasting at Donelan. While the website said they were closed on Tuesdays, they responded to an email and accommodated us!
When we got there, we couldn’t believe the beautiful spread of cheeses, bread, olives, etc! Chris was really welcoming (yes, he was so nice I even remember his name!) and asked what kinds of wines we liked, and then customized the tasting for us. Unlike every other place, where you get tiny pours from already opened bottles (of unknown age), Chris was very generous with fresh bottles. He even had some well aged wines he shared with us. His expertise on winemaking and the whole process (grape sorting was literally going on in the room behind us!!) was really informative and helpful.
All in all, this was the finest and most relaxing tasting experience of my life, and the Donelan Chardonnays and Syrahs are among the very best out there. And no, I have no financial interest in it, beyond the case we ended up buying.
Cheng-Hsiang Yang
Donelan is a hidden gem. The tasting room, tucked away in a warehouse where they make their wines, offers an intimate and authentic atmosphere. My wife and I loved the experience, especially their incredible Syrah. Our host, Chris, was highly knowledgeable, making the tasting both educational and enjoyable. Highly recommended!
Dominique Essig
This is one of our wine clubs, and they make fantastic pinot noir‘s - we called to make a reservation and had an amazing tasting with the wine maker
Richard Mauro Ricchiuti
This review is based on a second hand experience with a Donelan family member, Cush and one fabulous Syrah from his family's vineyard. My partner's parents were camping in Great Basin National Park and met Cush, his wife and 2 children. They shared stories and Cush gifted Ray and Shirley a bottle of a 2013 Richardson Family Vineyard Syrah. Oh! My! God! It was amazing! Ray and Shirley, both retired, love to travel. They often meet some wonderful folks. When Ray and Shirley arrived home we grilled some prime steaks, and even though the pairing was perfect, drinking the wine, admiring its beautiful fragrance and observing its rich hue was a pure delight. It made eating this wonderful steak difficult! But the real richness was in the experience Ray, Shirley, and by extension, our family shared with this encounter. Nothing tastes better than pure unadulterated human interaction. I love great wines. And even though this is out of my league in price, I will always remember its beautiful body, flavor and the story behind it. Thank you Cush from the bottom of my heart for this wonderful experience.
Vivienne Bushell
Gorgeous wines. Gorgeous service. We were lucky enough to get Hollie for our tasting. Excellent. One of my favorite wines was the Nancy
Jeff Hawks
We had a fantastic virtual tasting during quarantine, absolutely fantastic wine.
Russ Barron
If you can get past the fact that they are located in a functional industrial park, Donelan has some of the best syrah in California. The tastings are done in a room off of the functioning Winery, and feature about 6-8 wines, and ours was led by a gregarious employee who really knew his stuff. Overall a great experience!
Dan Snyder
I’ve been to two different tastings here. On both occasions, it was like sitting down with friends, except they were experts in wine (and unlike mine) that brought excellent wine to the party! Literally, we sat down before a long row of unopened bottles of Donelan wines, and over the course of more than an hour, sampled our way across the table. We went back and forth, comparing wines, while our host educated us on the grape, their terroir, how they were grown, bottled, etc. with none of the usual snobbish descriptions.Oh, and the wines are among the best in CA. The Chardonnays and Syrahs are my favorites, with great balance and flavor. None of the “over the top” alcohol or fruit that you find dominating everything out of Napa. It’s all about balance.Worth the time, even if you go nowhere else.
Edward Shaughnessy
LOVE Donelan wines. The wines are delicious and the whole family is wonderful
When planning our trip to Sonoma, my husband and I decided that we were in search of some good Syrahs. I found an article about the best Sonoma Syrahs that any Syrah lover should taste and looked into a few. How lucky were we to schedule a tasting at Donelan and find Syrahs and Chardonnays and Pinots that we loved! Chris called the day before our tasting and asked what types of wine we wanted to try. Talk about personal service! He absolutely hit the nail on the head. We tasted six wines along with a great cheese plate and spent two hours with him talking wine, food, travel and family. Chris made this an absolutely wonderful experience. Can’t wait to receive our 2 cases. Thanks for a very relaxed and personalized experience and thanks to the Donelan Family for making great wines!?
We were up in Santa Rosa to celebrate a special day, and decided to do a tasting at Donelan. While the website said they were closed on Tuesdays, they responded to an email and accommodated us!
When we got there, we couldn’t believe the beautiful spread of cheeses, bread, olives, etc! Chris was really welcoming (yes, he was so nice I even remember his name!) and asked what kinds of wines we liked, and then customized the tasting for us. Unlike every other place, where you get tiny pours from already opened bottles (of unknown age), Chris was very generous with fresh bottles. He even had some well aged wines he shared with us. His expertise on winemaking and the whole process (grape sorting was literally going on in the room behind us!!) was really informative and helpful.
All in all, this was the finest and most relaxing tasting experience of my life, and the Donelan Chardonnays and Syrahs are among the very best out there. And no, I have no financial interest in it, beyond the case we ended up buying.
Donelan is a hidden gem. The tasting room, tucked away in a warehouse where they make their wines, offers an intimate and authentic atmosphere. My wife and I loved the experience, especially their incredible Syrah. Our host, Chris, was highly knowledgeable, making the tasting both educational and enjoyable. Highly recommended!
This is one of our wine clubs, and they make fantastic pinot noir‘s - we called to make a reservation and had an amazing tasting with the wine maker
This review is based on a second hand experience with a Donelan family member, Cush and one fabulous Syrah from his family's vineyard. My partner's parents were camping in Great Basin National Park and met Cush, his wife and 2 children. They shared stories and Cush gifted Ray and Shirley a bottle of a 2013 Richardson Family Vineyard Syrah. Oh! My! God! It was amazing! Ray and Shirley, both retired, love to travel. They often meet some wonderful folks. When Ray and Shirley arrived home we grilled some prime steaks, and even though the pairing was perfect, drinking the wine, admiring its beautiful fragrance and observing its rich hue was a pure delight. It made eating this wonderful steak difficult! But the real richness was in the experience Ray, Shirley, and by extension, our family shared with this encounter. Nothing tastes better than pure unadulterated human interaction. I love great wines. And even though this is out of my league in price, I will always remember its beautiful body, flavor and the story behind it. Thank you Cush from the bottom of my heart for this wonderful experience.
Gorgeous wines. Gorgeous service. We were lucky enough to get Hollie for our tasting. Excellent. One of my favorite wines was the Nancy
We had a fantastic virtual tasting during quarantine, absolutely fantastic wine.
If you can get past the fact that they are located in a functional industrial park, Donelan has some of the best syrah in California. The tastings are done in a room off of the functioning Winery, and feature about 6-8 wines, and ours was led by a gregarious employee who really knew his stuff. Overall a great experience!
I’ve been to two different tastings here. On both occasions, it was like sitting down with friends, except they were experts in wine (and unlike mine) that brought excellent wine to the party! Literally, we sat down before a long row of unopened bottles of Donelan wines, and over the course of more than an hour, sampled our way across the table. We went back and forth, comparing wines, while our host educated us on the grape, their terroir, how they were grown, bottled, etc. with none of the usual snobbish descriptions.Oh, and the wines are among the best in CA. The Chardonnays and Syrahs are my favorites, with great balance and flavor. None of the “over the top” alcohol or fruit that you find dominating everything out of Napa. It’s all about balance.Worth the time, even if you go nowhere else.
LOVE Donelan wines. The wines are delicious and the whole family is wonderful
Restaurantji Recommends
Incredible wines and cordial hospitality. A true gem of Sonoma County that is not to be missed!
I've been ordering Donelan Wines for years and highly recommend them.
fabulous wines and wonderful people!! find this winery...it's a must!!
Very tasty wines, especially the Syrah!
Fantastic wine from a family that loves it.
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