Roses, French lavender, a bubbling fountain and the vine-covered walls of Rutherford Grove winery greet visitors as they stroll up the walk to the tasting room of this family owned and operated winery.

The tall glass doors open into a lovely room with a wood-burning fireplace, lounging chairs and a small gift area. The wood-topped tasting counter provides a place for tasting the vineyard-designated estate wines. There is a very large lawn and a group picnic area. The winery is owned by the Pestoni family, of Swiss ancestry, who has been growing grapes in the Valley for decades.

The fourth-generation winemaker, Andy Pestoni, specializes in the production of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petite Sirah and Sangiovese. Andy works with some of the Valley’s finest vineyards, including nearly 50 acres of estate-grown grapes. They also make small amounts of Petite Sirah from Spring Creek Vineyard in St. Helena and Sangiovese from their own vineyard estate.

The winemaking style includes hand sorting the fruit to remove undeveloped berries and non-grape vineyard matter. The de-stemmed fruit is then moved to fermentation tanks in its whole-berry form without being crushed. The resulting wines are supple and refined. The winery offers wine-and-cheese-pairing programs (please call for reservations).