There are few wineries that can boast three entirely different and uniquely rewarding tasting locations. But Windy Oaks has you covered, whether you like downtown Carmel chic, Carmel Valley chill or Corralitos vineyard vistas, overlooking the ocean.
Each one of these beautifully appointed tasting venues has something different to offer in terms of atmosphere and experience. Yet each provides the same spectrum of hand-crafted wines that has made the brand a widely-respected icon.
Windy Oaks was founded in 1996, when proprietors, Jim and Judy Schultze, returned to California after living overseas for 7 years in Australia and Europe. Enamored of fine French Burgundy, they sought to create their own version of Pinot Noir that would respect its new world home, yet would harken back to its old world roots.
They found just the right spot at about 1,000 feet elevation, in the hills of Corralitos. Here, the growing season is long, there is a strong marine influence and flavors are well-developed.
Initially, they planted three acres of Pinot Noir. Their first vintage was crafted in 1999, and met with almost immediate critical acclaim. The couple began planting more Pinot, along with Chardonnay and Syrah, adding diversity to the vineyard with a mix of clones.
Today, they farm almost 30 acres of estate fruit, while purchasing additional fruit from other vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains, as well as in Monterey, where they source whites and reds from Chalone, Santa Lucia Highlands and Arroyo Seco.
At first, Jim and Judy held tastings on a humble table in their estate barrel room, then eventually built an inviting tasting room next to it, complete with a patio for enjoying the surrounding vines.
Both their sons are involved in the business: James is in charge of the Carmel-by-the-Sea tasting room, set to open in its new location on Lincoln and Ocean (where Carmel Road used to be) as of August 4, as well as the Carmel Valley tasting room, which opened last year.
The official Grand Opening of the new downtown Carmel tasting room is set for August 12.
Son, Spencer, is now assistant winemaker. He can occasionally be found pouring at the estate tasting room, where he might open something from the neighboring vineyard that he’s in charge of farming. His brand is called Eleven-11, because he first tasted his inaugural 2010 vintage of Pinot on November 8, 2011, which also happened to be his birthday.
The spacious Carmel Valley tasting room is co-managed by Kerry Winslow, and is a great spot to bring a larger group for tasting. Please make arrangements in advance if you want to hold a private event there.
No matter at which outpost you might first discover them, visiting the Windy Oaks estate vineyard is an experience you would be hard pressed to find elsewhere.
“We may be one of the only open wineries where guests can actually walk through the vineyard,” says proprietor, Judy Schultze. “You can enjoy a picnic in our large, oak-shaded picnic area on the ridge—1,000 feet up, overlooking Pajaro Valley and Monterey Bay—just a five minute walk from the parking area.”
The vineyards are among the best tended and most healthy-looking in the region. Winegrower, Jim Schultze, takes his farming duties so seriously, he is constantly researching new viticulture techniques and employing new technology to amplify both the quality and yields of this site.
Using a special heat machine originally developed for growing crops in South America, he is able to reduce disease pressure and help improve crop set in test blocks of the vineyard. “If we get a late season rain, I’ll run the machine through the entire vineyard, to dry off the clusters and prevent botrytis,” he explains.
After a seminar he attended in Burgundy, Schultze obtained a special 600-liter roller barrel that allows fruit to be fermented without punching down. The resulting Pinot is extraordinarily soft and silky: a result he’s eager to replicate.
Jim and Spencer are always looking for the best quality fruit, and the results of their labors can be enjoyed in two tasting flights of Windy Oaks wines, available at all three locations.
The Sampler tasting includes the Windy Oaks estate pinot, a lively Monterey rosé, a Monterey chard (currently on sale for $120/case) and two Rhones from Monterey County graps. The Premium Estate flight consists of their estate chardonnay and three estate pinots.
Highlights include the 2015 Old Vine Mourvedre, from Chalone, which is spicy and savory with hints of orange peel. The 2014 Special Burgundy Clone Pinot Noir smells of fresh daffodils and delivers beautiful flavors of chestnut, orange peel and nutmeg.
Come visit their estate vineyard, which is 10 minutes from the famous Corralitos Market & Sausage Company, where you can pick up sandwiches and picnic supplies.
The spacious tasting area surrounded by vineyards and redwood forest, is dog friendly, as long as dogs are on a leash. If you’re lucky, you’ll meet the resident winery cat, Bindy, who frequently patrols the patio in search of a kindred spirit.
He’s hoping you’ll become a Windy Oaks wine club member, so you’ll return again to pet her while enjoying some of Spencer’s 2013 Eleven-11 Pinot, made from clone 943 and Calera, a red-headed, lithe-textured beauty, oozing strawberry, ginger and cinnamon. It comes from a 7-acre vineyard next door, where they source fruit for their popular Terra Narro Pinot. There’s a pinot here to suit most tastes.
Windy Oaks Tasting Rooms & Hours
Carmel-by-the-Sea Lincoln, just off Ocean. Open Friday and Saturday, noon to 7pm; Sunday through Thursday, noon to 6pm. 831.574.3135.
Carmel Valley Village 19 East Carmel Valley Road. Open daily, 11.30am to 5.30pm. 831.298.7083.
Windy Oaks Estate, Corralitos 550 Hazel Dell Road, Corralitos. Open summer weekends, noon to 5pm, until October 7; Saturdays thereafter, until Memorial Day weekend 2019. 831.724.9562.
About the author
Laura Ness is a longtime wine journalist, columnist and judge who contributes regularly to Edible Monterey Bay, Spirited, WineOh.Tv, Los Gatos Magazine and Wine Industry Network, and a variety of consumer publications. Her passion is telling stories about the intriguing characters who inhabit the fascinating world of wine and food.
