In the latter half of the 19th century, a Hungarian Count named Agoston Haraszthy introduced important European grape varieties. Often referred to as the "Father of the California Wine Industry," Haraszthy arrived in Sonoma in 1857 and established the value of fine table wine at Alta Vista Vineyards. He went back to Europe to further his studies of viticulture and returned to Sonoma with thousands of vine cuttings from France, Italy, Germany and Spain.

Sonoma County covers 1 million acres of land. The sheer size of the region mandates that the terrain is not uniform. The county is made up of valleys, mountains, rivers, plains and uplifts of land known as benchlands. Today, Sonoma is divided into 12 viticultural regions called appellations, all of which are unique in soil, terrain and climate.

Two of these appellations, Dry Creek Valley and Russian River Valley, are recognized as some of the most important in the Sonoma wine country.

Alderbrook Winery
Situated on the border of the Dry Creek Valley and Russian River Valley, the 65-acre estate vineyard enjoys both the warm dry afternoons associated with the Dry Creek weather, and the cool, coastal morning fog rolling up the Russian River. This combination of hot afternoons, tempered by the cool evenings and mornings, allows Alderbrook's estate vineyard to mature evenly and slowly for maximum flavor development in the fruit.

Alderbrook's central location also allows the winery quick and easy access to premium vineyards from both the Dry Creek and Russian River appellations.