Roche winery.

Roche winery's tasting room was set downtown, just off the main plaza in sonoma. There was an outdoor tasting bar that we were able to make use off. The service was excellent and extremely friendly.

The first wine we tried was the 2018 Sparkling Brut Rose, with soft berry nose and a sweet strawberry taste. It had a bit of a pop to it, which the server said was like drinking a Sprite. We ordered a bottle of this, since it was MC's favorite.

Next was the 2018 unoaked chardonnay, which was very well made. Not too sweet, but with a bright melon and citrus nose, and a honeydew and canteloupe taste. This was my favorite of the whites.

Then came the three full bodied reds. The 2014 pinot was characteristic, with plum and cedar on the nose, dark cherry taste, and a bit of a cola aftertaste, but in a good way. Next was the fruit bomb of a merlot, from 2014 as well. No pepper, and hardly any tannins, this was one of the top merlots I've ever had, and was one of the reasons we ended up with so many bottles from this winery. Deep red currant on the nose, and a velvety raspberry taste. Last was the 2014 Syrah, which was a deep red color with a nice kick of tannins. A nose of smoked meat and black pepper, and deep plum and black pepper taste.

The last wines on the list were sweet wines. We tried both the 2018 Tamarix, which was a sweeter rose of pinot noir and syrah. The perfect porch sipping rose, this wasn't over the top, as all the sweetness seemed to come from a natural fruit taste of strawberry and light cherry, with some peach and honeysuckle on the nose. We ordered a bottle of this, and I got an extra glass of it to end my visit. The last wine was the 2018 Late Harvest Chardonnay. Our server recommended against this one, as she said it was too sweet (it was), but MC insisted. She recommended that if we did drink it, to make a spritzer using it to dull some of the sugars. The tasting notes for it said Keylime Pie and sugar cane, and so that's what I'll have to go with. Definitely a no for me.


The wines were very good, and surprising in how affordable they were. We ended up becoming wine members, and each enjoyed a glass on the patio as the sun went down.