About Wise Villa Winery
Our journey
Wise Villa Winery is a 4th generation, family-owned Winery, Tuscan style restaurant, and Estate Vineyard nestled in bucolic Placer County amid the Sierra Nevada foothills. With breathtaking vistas of the Sacramento valley below, and miles of rolling hillsides, the California certified sustainable vineyards are teeming with wildlife and home to Wise Villas flock of resident sheep. Since Wise Villa Wineries maiden vintage in 2009, the goal has been to exercise extra care while growing and hand harvesting our grapes. Wise Villa utilizes unique and costly procedures such as cold fermentation to produce superbly balanced wines designed to retain the inherent characteristics of the fruit
Wise Villa Vineyards & Winery
The Sierra Nevada foothills are steeped in wine grape growing history, with the earliest vineyards being planted by gold miners during the California gold rush of the 1850’s. Wise Villa’s Vineyard enjoys the advantage of being situated at precisely the right elevation to take advantage of a thermal inversion layer. The nights are cool with virtually no frost, while the summer days are cooler than the valley below. Furthermore, the vineyards are seldom subject to dank foggy conditions. Although, fog can be watched approaching within a quarter mile of the vineyard, it mysteriously pauses and progresses no closer, leaving the vines in bright sunshine all day. Another comparatively fortunate aspect of Wise Villas Vineyards is the soil composition of decomposed granite, light cobble, and fine loam in the lower elevations. This diverse soil composition, coupled with the foothill topography allows Wise Villa to grow over a dozen varietals and produce more than 30 unique estate wines.
Visitors to Wise Villa Winery may choose from over 30 gluten free, vegan wines, made from grapes grown involving the strictest of sustainable vineyard farming practices. Wise Villa Winery leads Placer County in sustainable farming initiatives, being the only winery recycling 99.95% of all wastewaters produced during wine production, while using sheep as the primary source of natural fertilizer and grass control.
Our Wines
Wise Villa Winery’s winemaking practices can best be described as devoted, focused, passionate and consistent. Wise Villa enjoys a reputation of producing consistent wines, vintage after vintage and bottle to bottle. In the age of mass produced, high alcohol winemaking, Wise Villa respects and emphasizes the individuality of each grape varietal. This requires a precise winemaking process and a commitment to retaining each specific fruit characteristic. The result is a pleasantly flavorful wine with lower alcohol levels pairing exceptionally well with food.
Barrel Selection
An additional area of passionate consideration is Wise Villa Wineries oak barrel selection process. Each wine is treated as a work of art with some varietals aging best in French oak barrels, while others developing better in Hungarian or American- Minnesota oak barrels. Another area of attention is the level of toasting applied to the interior of each barrel. The degree of toast is primarily responsible for achieving a balanced wine and the slight hint of new leather or pipe tobacco you may encounter with many of our red varietals.
2015 Wise Villa Recognized as California Winery of the Year
In 2015 the California State Fair Commission, California State Assembly and then Governor Jerry Brown formally recognized Wise Villa Winery as California Winery of the Year. This honor was bestowed upon Wise Villa Winery due to the extraordinary number of awards received and attaining the highest scores during the 2015 California State Fair blind wine judging contest. This is the most distinguished and renowned wine competition in California with thousands of entrants annually. Since winning winery of the year, Wise Villa Winery has gone on to win hundreds of coveted awards and medals in competitions such as the Orange County Wine Society, Sunset Magazine, California State Fair, and prestigious international contests.
2019 San Francisco Chronicle, North America Wine Contest
Wise Villa Winery has a long history of winning coveted awards, but none are more revered than placing in the top-three during the 2019 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition. Wise Villa Winery ranked number one for single varietal wines while competing with more than 7,000 North American wineries. As a further distinction, Wise Villa Winery was ranked third overall for the sheer number of medals awarded in this blind judging contest.
Attention to detail creates a special experience
With four generations and eight family members working within the business, customer experience details are not missed. From the moment you turn onto the grapevine lined, winding access road, you will realize you have found a special place in time. Â Whether you are seeking a wine tasting experience, a gourmet meal, a stroll through the vineyards, or simply reclining in one of the secluded bungalow landings, Wise Villa Winery is something that must be experienced and shared.
