Ross Halleck
Last week, I ventured from Halleck Vineyard Winery and Wine Tasting Room in Sonoma to the Sculptor Garden Room of the historic National Arts Club in Manhattan’s Gramercy Park to pour our California wines for a room full of artists, philanthropists, and musicians. It was my second Sonoma Wine Education Seminar at the club, and it was completely full—oversold, in fact.
I designed this event with intention: shorter than a traditional vintner dinner, more welcoming to people with all levels of wine knowledge,…
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Last night, I had the honor of pouring my wines for the team at Gramercy Tavern, a Michelin Star Restaurant in New York City that has been serving our wines for over a decade.
For a winemaker, there are few experiences more gratifying than sharing varietals and vintages with professionals who understand the nuances of food, service, and hospitality at the highest level. And Gramercy Tavern — one of the most celebrated restaurants in America — sets the gold standard.…
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For most of my career, I’ve talked about wine through the lens of flavor, food, and family. But over the last few years, something shifted for me. I began to ask a deeper question: What if wine could be more than a drink? What if it could be a spiritual tool?
That question led me down a path I didn’t expect.
I’ve spent decades exploring sacred plant medicine traditions — in Peru, with ayahuasca and shamanic ceremonies,…
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For more than 20 years, we’ve been hosting Sebastopol wine tasting experiences at our estate. We’re just inland from the majestic Sonoma Coast about 20 minutes from Bodega Bay or 15 minutes from the Barlow. Our Sebastopol wine tastings aren’t held in a traditional visitors center or hospitality tasting room. Rather, we welcome you and your dog if you have one, into our home. We have indoor and outdoor seating and a sweeping view of our vineyard,…
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Pinot Noir is the primary red wine grape planted in Burgundy. So if you’re talking about red Burgundy, you’re talking about Pinot Noir. But not all Pinot Noir comes from France. In fact, some of the best Pinots in the world aren’t French at all. Many are made from grapes grown on the west coast of the US from Oregon down to Central California.According to Google, the first three are most searched Pinot Noir wine brands in the US.…
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Near the coast of northern California is a place where the fog caresses the sea and envelops the rolling hills in its cool embrace. And here lies a family owned estate that started from the most humble of beginnings. One that would go on to create the best Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir around.
That estate is Halleck Vineyard.
But when Ross and Jennifer Halleck, the co-founders of Halleck Vineyard, originally planted their Estate Vineyard in 1993,…
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Our Virtual Tasting Salons are designed not only to bring the vineyard to you, but to offer a tasting experience paired with organic delectables created by local artisan producers. As part of our California Wine Club, we’ve explored food pairing with Pinot Noir wines, Gewurztraminer, Sauvignon Blanc and many others.
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In 2015, I got a call from a young man in New York, Josh Groban. He was performing on Broadway, had tasted our Pinot Noir, loved it, and inquired about making a special wine to benefit his foundation, the Find Your Light Foundation. The Find Your Light Foundation funds arts education across the United States.
Since we had three sons, all artists, all having attended public schools, the fit was synchronistic. We happily agreed.…
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When we planted our Estate Vineyard in 1993, our goals were not lofty.
There had never been a Pinot Noir vineyard planted in western Sebastopol, all the way to the coast. We were the first; we proceeded without a clue what we were doing. We purchased the rootstock from the Yellow Pages.
We thought it would be beautiful, relatively inexpensive landscaping and we could make “backyard garage wine.” In the best of all worlds,…
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By 2006, Halleck Vineyard had emerged as one of the top wineries amongst a handful of boutiques in our neighborhood. To say we were a big fish in a little pond would be overstating. We were a small fish in a small pond, but showing some bright colors.
One of the big fish in our neighborhood was a gentleman named Brice Cutrer Jones. He founded Sonoma Cutrer, a poster child for success in the region. Sonoma Cutrer was known for Chardonnay.…
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