Windy Oaks Estate Vineyards & Winery

About Windy Oaks Estate Vineyards & Winery

Windy Oaks began in 1996, when Jim and Judy Schultze came home from seven years in Australia and Europe carrying a love of fine Burgundy and planted three acres on a windy Corralitos ridge at 1,000 feet above Monterey Bay. The first Pinot Noir followed in 1999; today the family farms nearly 30 acres of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Syrah at the southern end of the Santa Cruz Mountains appellation.

The winemaking is patience made policy: an all-gravity winery, wines aged on their lees in French oak for 17 to 27 months, and everything bottled unfined and unfiltered so each vintage evolves to its own best expression. The Pinot program runs deep - clone-driven bottlings that have made Windy Oaks a fixture on serious Pinot lists - alongside estate Chardonnay and Syrah.

The estate tasting room and vineyard patio at 550 Hazel Dell Road pour Friday and Saturday afternoons (with seasonal weekend expansions), reservations via Tock, and outside food is welcome - the Corralitos Market & Sausage Company ten minutes away is the traditional provisioning stop. Leashed dogs are welcome, private ridge-top experiences can be arranged, and if you're lucky the winery cat will make the rounds. Satellite tasting rooms in Carmel and Carmel Valley pour the same lineup.

Burgundy's patience on a Corralitos ridge - gravity-flow Pinot aged two years in French oak, poured above Monterey Bay.

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Why we recommend this winery

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The Ridge A 1,000-foot vineyard ridgeline with Monterey Bay below - the patio seats you among the vines.

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Burgundian Patience All-gravity winemaking, 17-27 months on lees in French oak, unfined and unfiltered.

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Deep Pinot Bench Clone-driven estate bottlings that made this a pilgrimage stop for Pinot devotees.

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Bring a Picnic Outside food is welcome - grab sandwiches at the Corralitos Market and settle in.

One of Corralitos's founding estates, still family-farmed, still unhurried - the wines repay the patience.

⭐ Wino Notion Pick

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Featured Wines

Current Releases

Wines change with each vintage

For an accurate list of current-release wines and library bottlings from Windy Oaks Estate Vineyards & Winery, please check the winery's official website or contact the tasting room directly.

Tasting Experiences

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Vineyard Patio Tasting

Taste the estate Pinots on the ridge patio, Fri-Sat afternoons - reserve via Tock, picnics welcome.

See Tock

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Ridge-Top & Private

Bottle service on the vineyard ridge top, with private tastings arranged in advance.

See Tock

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★★★★★

🔎 Practical Info

🚗 Parking

Easy & Free Limited Street Only Valet

👶 Good for Kids

Great for kids Fine if well-behaved Adults only vibe

🐾 Dogs

Dogs welcome Outdoor only No dogs

💰 Value for Money

Worth every penny Fair A bit pricey

🔁 Would You Return?

Definitely Maybe Probably not

✨ Vibe & Occasion

💑 Good For (pick all that apply)

💑 Date Night 👥 Groups 🧍 Solo 💼 Corporate 🎂 Special Occasion 🎓 Wine Education

🔊 Atmosphere

🤫 Quiet & Intimate 🎶 Background Music 🎉 Lively & Social

👗 Dress Code

👟 Casual 🧥 Smart Casual 👔 Business Casual ✨ Dressy

🪑 Seating (pick all that apply)

🏠 Indoor seating ☀️ Outdoor seating ⛱️ Covered outdoor 🧺 Picnic & lawn 🚗 Standing or bar seating

🌱 Dietary Options (pick all that apply)

🌱 Vegan friendly 🥗 Vegetarian options 🌾 Gluten-free options 🧀 Charcuterie & cheese boards 🍽️ Full food menu 🚫 No food served

👟 Getting Around (pick all that apply)

🥾 Wear comfortable walking shoes 👟 Flats are perfect 👠 Heels are totally fine 🌿 Gravel or uneven paths 🏔 Hilly, wear sturdy shoes ♿ Fully wheelchair accessible

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