About Cornell Wine Co.
Cornell Wine Co., long known as Cornell Winery & Tasting Room, occupies the historic Cornell corner of the Santa Monica Mountains, next door to The Old Place restaurant and across from Peter Strauss Ranch. Since 2006 its mission has been singular: gather the wines of the mountains' roughly fifty local vineyards under one rustic roof so visitors can actually taste what grows in these hills.
The building sets the mood, all copper ceiling, chandeliers, local art and wandering peacocks outside under the eucalyptus, and the pours run from Malibu Coast estates to producers up the coast. It is the closest thing the region has to a communal cellar door, and the pairing with a meal next door at The Old Place is a canyon-country institution.
Open Thursday evenings and Friday through Sunday, walk-ins welcome and dogs generally too, it is the natural first stop for anyone trying to understand what Santa Monica Mountains wine actually tastes like.
