WELCOME TO SUTRO’S FIRST BERSERKER DAY !!!
UP TO 25% OFF and DISCOUNTED SHIPPING
Hello! I’m Alice Warnecke Sutro. I make art, farm grapes, produce wines and raise my kids all at WARNECKE RANCH & VINEYARD. For better or for worse, us Warneckes have been here, behaving inappropriately by the river, since 1911
Thank you to all Berserkers for taking the time to tune in here! And BIG THANKS to friends Graeme and @Alex_MacDonald and Nate Weiss at Silver Oak for introducing me to WB. Thank you @ToddFrench and @Siun_O_Connell for your help.
Now, if you already know you love BOLD COMPLEX Cab from Chalk Hill Road: CLICK RIGHT ON THROUGH otherwise imma gonna do some storytelling
I make wine because of my love for Warnecke Ranch, and when you love something you want to do everything with it. If Warnecke Ranch grew sheep 
(which is what my Dutch ancestors did here), I would be dyeing and knitting wool sweaters. Instead we have grown grapes 
on Chalk Hill Road in Alexander Valley since 1973.
After starting an artist residency, and then stepping up to be the face of the family biz, I accidentally launched the first ever vineyard designate from our property in 2012, called Sutro (my married name). It is my own business, separate from the family grape growing. I needed that breathing room and creative freedom because, let’s face it, imma gonna work here, for my family, till I die 
.
The big picture is to keep small family operated vineyards alive, the real soul of the wine industry. You gotta make that wine to show off that terroir. What we have is an absolutely rare blend of artistic legacy, highly sought-after volcanic soil, shared rental community/commune vibes, and untouched California native habitat.
What’s that artistic legacy you say that makes it such a VERY SPECIAL PLACE?. Some well known creative family members that keep me inspired, motivated and always trusting that the uncomfortable way is hella more fun.
In 1967, my uncle John and the Grateful Dead hung out for a summer here – and sang about it in “Alligator”. Click through to learn more. We’re also home to the Warnecke Architectural Archives, including my grandfather’s involvement with designing for JFK.
LET’s GET STARTED 
BerserkerDay Offers - click through to purchase and see packs/discounts/flat rate shipping/stack your packs/ etc.
more details on these wines below …
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Chalk Hill Sampler
2020 Cabernet Sauvignon, 2020 Merlot and 2022 Sauvignon Blanc - sold out but we saved some for Berserkers. $170 - BD sale $140 -
Volcanic Fanatic
Two vintages of Cabernet Sauvignon: 2019 and 2020 6-pack. $450 - BD sale $380 -
Gateway Pinot for Cab Lovers
3 bottles inaugural 2021 vintage of 100% Pommard clone, 20% new french oak. $150 - BD sale $125 -
Not Your 80s Merlot
EEK shhhhh a very favorite wine here for you
6 bottles current release 2020 ME. $360 - BD sale $305 -
As You Wish Cab Vertical
One bottle each of SUTRO 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon - extremely limited. $450 - BD sale $380 -
Hellcat Aged Sauvignon Blanc
Don’t be shy to get with an older woman. Ageability in Sauvignon Blanc is highly underrated. $210 - BD sale $169
Special Announcement! New item just added!
3-pack of 2022 Sauvignon Blanc only (previously only available in the Chalk Hill Sampler due to very low inventory. But, twist my arm, and I’ll accommodate! Or ask me 3 times, that’s the secret to getting me to do stuff. $105 in the real world - $90 for Bereserkers!
No code necessary at checkout - this page is ONLY for BD15 and all discounts/coupons are programmed. The price you see has the discount applied. 6/12 bottle flat-rate shipping is in effect automatically as well: $15/$25 for CA and $25/$35 for everywhere else (sorry, PNW - you’re expensive too), but you’ll notice some even bigger shipping discounts when you stack 6 or 12 bottle offers….
No ship states: AL, MI, MS, NH, ND, OK, PA, TN, WI, UT (but if you have a UPS store in NV that you like to drive to…)
Hi! Here is the glam marketing portrait. More interestingly, check out my latest artwork below 
but now at least you’ve seen my face 
and you know who you’re talking to!
Now you may want to ask “what is my winemaking style?” I hate this question. I started in this industry as a grapegrower and will always sport the attitude that you do not impose a style on your grapes. After many years in conversation with my grapes it turns out that my “winemaking style” is what Chalk Hill Road volcanic soil at 280 ft elevation in proximity to a river corridor and at the confluence of two creeks in Alexander Valley, Sonoma County is capable of producing.
Which is something damn good.
Something bold, complex AF and held up by field-matured tannins, verging on high alc therefore dependant on good natural acid and not for the weak or meek. Obviously I don’t speak about my wines this way in public but you are a special audience! Now does that style reflect who I am? Was I that before I lived here full time and became a farmer wed to her land? Or do our circumstances shape our style?
The gist is that I love what I make. I love my wine. I would like to sell it to people who love it too. That is what I am in this for, to promote the love of Warnecke Ranch and to fight the good fight of keeping small family vineyards relevant & self-sustaining.
I will say, I do not like a lot of new oak. The grapes and I agree on that.
FIRES. Bears mentioning. All grapes for the 2019 vintage were harvested before the outbreak of the 2019 Kincade fire. Absolutely no elevated guaiacol levels have been detected in 2020 vintage - neither in chemical analysis or sensory evaluation.
Please join the mailing list to receive release notifications: March for Sauvignon Blanc / Rosé, May for Pinot Noir and September for Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot. Wines are also available for purchase year-round at our hike & tasting experience in Alexander Valley and through our Wine Club.
NOW SOME DETAILS ON THE WINES
more info here too on our website.
Oh and many articles here!!
… and here are awards, ratings & reviews for all vintages
2022 Sauvignon Blanc - Warnecke Ranch, Alexander Valley
This wine is SOLD OUT to the general public. Last six cases have been reserved for Wine Berserkers and will be the limiting factor.
This is a juicy, complex Sauvignon Blanc teeming with volcanic vibrancy and mouthwatering acidity. Featured in the Press Democrat: 2023 Best Spring Releases. Clone 1 grown in lightly sloping clay loam soils, well-draining fluvial and alluvial deposits on top of volcanic bedrock, directly adjacent to the Russian River.
264 cases produced || 100% Sauvignon Blanc || Harvest September 6th, 2022 || pH 3.36 || TA 6.6 g/L || 13.5% alc. || Winemaking: 1/2 stainless steel barrel fermented, 1/2 native yeast neutral oak fermented, partial malolactic.
2020 Cabernet Sauvignon - Warnecke Ranch, Alexander Valley
This sumptuous wine is elusive, comforting and long to decipher, with aromatics that will enthrall the palate long after tasting. Grapes sourced from 16-year-old Cabernet Sauvignon Clone 8 vines grown on a gently sloping knoll of volcanic ash with meager well draining topsoil. Grown on the Mayacamas foothills benchlands, a stone’s throw from the Russian River, in Alexander Valley, the warmest region of Sonoma County.
370 cases produced || 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot || Harvest September 24, 2020 || pH 3.36 || TA 6.5 g/L || 14.4% alc. || Winemaking: Cold soak 5 days, max temp 85, extended maceration 7 days, partial native yeast fermented. Aged 21 months in 20% new Hungarian oak.
2020 Merlot - Warnecke Ranch, Alexander Valley
Very powerful, needs decanting, or lamb/duck/goose pairing. Very proud to announce NO NEW OAK here. What you’re tasting is all from steep terraces overlooking the Russian River. Does justice to the dynamic site. Grapes sourced from steep, naturally low yielding terraces overlooking the Russian River at the historic Warnecke Ranch and Vineyard.
244 cases produced || 87% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Malbec || Harvest September 17th, 2020 || pH 3.64 || TA 6.3 || 14% alc || Winemaking: Cold soak 4 days, 18 days on skins, native yeast fermented, unfined & unfiltered. Aged 22 months in 100% neutral oak.
Who grows Pinot Noir in Alexander Valley? This girl. Check out fully ripe 100% Pommard clone with a little French Oak, ripened in aluvial soils on the banks of the Maacama Creek flowing into the Russian River. A far cry from coastal Pinot. Knock the socks off your Pinot-loving friends at your next dinner party.
2021 Pinot Noir - Warnecke Ranch, Alexander Valley
2021 was our inagural vintage and is currently SOLD OUT to the public. Limited quantities available today only. When it sells out it sells out.
A ruby shine invites you into the glass brimming with wild summer raspberries, fresh cherries and plum jam. Vanilla bean meets cocoa and bergamot tea on the palate. The creamy, soft texture is luxurious and comforting, like slipping into silk pajamas after a warm bath.
138 cases produced || 100% Warnecke Ranch Pinot Noir, Pommard Clone || Harvest September 2nd, 2021 || pH 3.65 || TA 6.07 g/L || 14% alc. || Barrel Program: aged 12 months in oak, 20% new French
My second child.
Warnecke Ranch with Mayacamas & Mt St Helena in the background.
The Russian River
Latest artwork. You can see my large scale live portraits on my art website.
THANK YOU AGAIN! COME VISIT! CALL IF YOU NEED ANYTHING 707 509 9695
But I’ll be here all day 1/26 … posting/chatting/responding to your comments.
