Paradise Ridge Winery

The Tubbs Fire took every building on this hill on 8 October 2017 and the Bycks rebuilt it underinsured. The vineyard survived and the sculpture grove did too, including Laura Kimpton's steel LOVE.1 3

Why go

Walter Byck and his Dutch-born wife Marijke Byck-Hoenselaars founded the winery in 1994 on the Paradise Ranch, where she raised their five children.3 She died in 2006 and the sculpture grove carries her name.3 Sonia Byck-Barwick and Rene Byck run it now.3 Dan Barwick has made the wine since 1998.3 He came over from England, worked his first Sonoma harvest at Matanzas Creek in 1991 and then Ferrari-Carano, and met Sonia at a viticulture course.3

The fire started on 8 October 2017 and burned more than 5,600 structures.2 It gutted every building on the 156-acre estate: the event center, the tasting room, the winery and three houses.1 The rebuild was estimated at nearly $15 million against a $5.3 million insurance payout.1 The staff fell from about fifty to seventeen.1 The family started building the new event center on Monday 22 October 2018, a year to the week after the fire.1

The fifteen-acre estate vineyard came through.1 The 2018 wines were made down the road at Flanagan Winery in Healdsburg.1

Order this / avoid

Order: The Convict at $48, the Rockpile Zinfandel off Branham Vineyard.3
Order: the Explorer flight at $45, four bold reds mostly out of Rockpile.4
Order: The Posse at $54 if it is open, a Hoenselaars Vineyard blend of Syrah, Petite Sirah, Zinfandel and Grenache named for the family.3
Avoid: paying on a weekday morning. Monday to Thursday between eleven and two the three-wine Splash of Paradise is free.4

What locals & experts say

Virginie Boone, San Francisco Chronicle, on the wine to have: It's well-known for the Convict ($48), a Rockpile appellation Zinfandel sourced from the Branham Vineyard that's as brawny and in-your-face as the eponymous convict laborers who dug roads in this mountainous area back in the 1870s.3
Rene Byck, on the vines after the fire (Press Democrat, 23 October 2018): Originally, we thought maybe 20 percent of our vines. It looks like that is not the case. We had a healthy, full harvest.1
Walter Byck, asked whether they would reopen: There was no question.1

Good to know

Open daily 11am to 5pm, with tasting appointments running 11:00 to 3:30. Same-day bookings and parties of six or more go by phone.4
The cheese and charcuterie is seasonal and has gluten-free options, and no outside food or drink is allowed.4
The sculpture grove is part of the visit, including Marijke's Grove, Laura Kimpton's LOVE and the Temple of Remembrance.4 3
The site is Accessibility Verified through Wheel the World, and there are two farm-stay lodgings on the property.4

Verdict

should-visit — The rebuild ran to nearly $15 million against a $5.3 million payout, and the staff went from about fifty to seventeen. Rene Byck expected to lose a fifth of the vines and got a full harvest instead, and the 2018 wines were made down the road at Flanagan. Virginie Boone's pick is The Convict, a Rockpile Zinfandel off Branham Vineyard she calls as brawny as the convict laborers who cut the roads up there in the 1870s. Walter founded it in 1994 with his wife Marijke, who died in 2006. Between eleven and two on a weekday the three-wine splash is free, and the site is accessibility-verified through Wheel the World.

Paradise Ridge Winery.