California's First Premium Winery That Changed America's Wine Industry Is Still Serving Drinks Today

California has more than 4,600 wineries, thousands more than any other state in the country, and it's long been a leader in wine production for the U.S. California's rich history of viticulture started in the 1700s with some of the first vines planted at Mission San Diego de Alcalá in 1769. They were used to make communion wine. When it came to commercial production, California got its "first premium winery" with Buena Vista Winery in Sonoma. First opened in 1857, Buena Vista helped shape California's and, by extension, America's wine scene. The winery has been revitalized and restored, and it's a beautiful place to get a glimpse into history and sample some good wine.

Buena Vista Winery was founded by Hungarian immigrant Agoston Haraszthy. He came to California during the Gold Rush, and after a stint as San Diego's first sheriff, he moved north. He was said to be looking for "purple gold" — a place to grow quality grapes to make good wine in the California countryside, according to Buena Vista Winery. He found such a place in the Sonoma Valley in the mid 1850s.

Sonoma Valley was, and is, an ideal place for making wine, thanks to the region's variety of soils, temperate climate, and ocean fog. But he still had just the Mission grapes to work with. Haraszthy wanted to expand California wine options with better grapes from Europe, and he traveled the old continent in the early 1860s. While rumors that he brought zinfandel to the U.S. are unfounded, he did bring back vine cuttings, according to Guild Somm International. Some of the wine varietals he brought back and championed have become ubiquitous in vineyards across the country, like Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Sauvignon Blanc, per The International Wine & Food Society. 

Agoston Haraszthy, who referred to himself as the "Count of Buena Vista" to in keeping with his colorful life story, implemented a series of innovations at Buena Vista Winery. He made the first gravity-flow winery in the state, a process that's known for being gentler on the grapes and is still used at some wineries today. He's credited with being the first to dig wine caves into the California hillside; other wineries in the region, including in Napa, followed suit. Haraszthy also experimented with using redwood barrels since redwood trees were plentiful in the Sonoma region. One of his employees was Charles Krug, who would go on to establish Napa's first commercial winery.

Agoston wanted to make a champagne style sparkling wine. For that, he enlisted the help of his son Arpad Haraszthy. After some trial and error, Arpad came out with Eclipse Champagne, "the first commercially successful California sparkling wine," per University of Oklahoma Press. Despite this success, the winery had its ups and downs over the subsequent years, and it changed hands a number of times.

Boisset Family Estates, led by Jean-Charles Boisset, took over the property in 2011. Boisset first visited when he was 11. "It was love for me at first sight," Boisset explained. "Not only for the wines, but as well for the buildings, for the style of the buildings and the energy of the place. I never fathomed that such historical buildings were in place in California," according to Today. In 2012, Buena Vista Winery underwent a major renovation. Some historic parts of the property, including the champagne cellars, were restored and reopened, and you can see some of the grape varietals that Haraszathy planted, in the heritage garden area.

Buena Vista Winery now makes primarily red wines as well as a few white and sparkling varieties, and several have been awarded 90 and higher wine scores by critics. There are a number of different tasting options when you visit. The original winery Press House is now a bar where you can taste the current releases. The Cave of Curiosity Sensory Reserve Tasting takes place in one of the original wine caves. The scent wall lets you smell things that are used to describe wine, like raspberry, smoke, and green pepper, and you can see which scent you can pick up in the wine you're sampling, which gives you a broader appreciation of all kinds of wine. In the Bubble Lounge, enjoy a flight of sparkling wines; it's just the way to toast Haraszathy for helping develop California's champagne-style wine scene.

While you can make reservations for a tasting, Buena Vista is one of the Sonoma County wineries that also allows walk-ins. Along with tastings, there is a hedge maze and picnic area to enjoy.

Buena Vista Winery is in the heart of the Sonoma Valley. It's about a 10 minute drive east from the city of Sonoma and about 15 minutes from Boyes Hot Springs, a community with hot springs, good food, and ethereal beauty. Along with building his own winery, Haraszthy championed the possibility and promise of quality California wines to the rest of the world. In that spirit, you can make a visit to Buena Vista Winery just one stop on a California wine country road trip. Sonoma and neighboring Napa Valley have hundreds more wineries to check out. For those looking for more historic wineries in Northern California, Beringer Vineyards is Napa Valley's oldest continuously operating winery.