8 Best Sights in Petaluma, Napa and Sonoma

Heirloom-corn bourbon and the flagship malted rye are the big sellers at the distillery that Michael and Lorraine Barber and the couple’s partner Aaron Lee started in 2017. The spirits are mashed, fermented, produced, distilled, and aged from "grain to glass" inside the company's 1910 redbrick storefront using traditional methods and uncomputerized equipment. White rum, aged rum, Gravenstein apple brandy, grappa, lambanóg (a traditional Filipino spirit distilled from palm sugar), absinthe blanche, and other spirits are handcrafted in smaller batches. Amid the aromatic barrels, guests sample flights, Lorraine's finely honed cocktails, wine (the Barbers own a winery), or craft beers.

The ranch, which began making extra-virgin olive oil before expanding into wine, hosts flights of both products on a flagstone patio with views of hillside trees and a pond attracting egrets and herons. A Pinot Noir and the Red Piano Syrah stand out among the several reds, but with the Wildflower blend of three Italian white grapes, a Viognier, and still and sparkling rosés, guests can choose a flight of all lighter wines. A retail store with a window onto the olive-oil milling facility sells a body product that made the Oprah’s Favorite Things 2024 list. Visits require an appointment.  You can preorder lunch to accompany any tasting. Walkabout Ranch Tours take in vineyards, gardens, and a high-ceilinged Chinese pavilion.

An upbeat atmosphere prevails in the tasting space of this winery founded by former race-car driver Kevin Buckler and his wife, Debra. To produce its mostly small-lot wines, Adobe Road sources grapes from top-tier growers, among them Beckstoffer for Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, and Merlot; and Sangiacomo for Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Syrah from the Petaluma Gap AVA. The Cabernet and Malbec shine. A new combination tasting room, winery, and car museum along the waterfront at C and 1st Streets should open by late 2025.

London-style gin got the ball rolling for Michael and Jenny Griffo’s industrial-park distillery, which also produces vodka, whiskey, brandy, liqueurs, and bottled cocktails. Michael, who handles the distilling, has a PhD in physics research, but the spirits satisfy as much for their creativity as the scientific rigor. Case in point: the single-malt whiskey Michael developed with the brewmaster at neighboring Lagunitas Brewing using barley mash from one of the latter's beers. A small bar near the entrance serves single tastes, flights, and cocktails. The barrel room and adjacent patio host live music and other events, often with food trucks.

This boutique winery's guests discover why "wind to wine" is the Petaluma Gap AVA's slogan. The steady Pacific Ocean and San Pablo Bay breezes that mitigate the midday heat give the grapes thick "sailor's skin," heightening their tannins and flavor, says Ana Keller, whose parents began planting vineyards here in 1989 on former dairy fields. Tastings of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Syrah wines usually take place alfresco on a stone terrace shaded by umbrellas and flowering pear trees. On most days, a few dozen cars collected by winery founder Arturo Keller are on display.

These days owned by Heineken International, Lagunitas began as a craft brewery in Marin County in 1993 before moving to Petaluma in 1994. In addition to its large facility, the home of "hop-forward" IPAs operates a taproom, the Schwag Shop for gifts, and a beer garden. Guides leading the brewery tour, which includes a beer flight, provide an irreverent version of the company's rise to international acclaim.

The headquarters of General Mariano Vallejo’s vast (66,000 acres at its peak) agricultural domain from 1836 to 1846, this restored compound is the largest extant 19th-century residential adobe in the United States. The mostly low-tech exhibits explain Vallejo’s role as Mexico’s head honcho before California joined the United States and depict daily life for native peoples and Spanish and Mexican settlers.

After an ill-fated attempt to make chocolate wine, founder Bill Reading’s notion of adding dark-chocolate essences to Port became Deco Port, the first hit of this small winery on downtown’s southern edge. Reading followed up Deco by adding hazelnut essences to what's now called Duet Sherry. Individual Ports made from Chardonnay, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Tempranillo rosé, and Zinfandel are among the other crowd-pleasing wines you can taste in the warehouselike space where some are made and all are aged.