Theresa Heredia of Gary Farrell Winery
Tell us about the sustainable and eco-friendly practices at the vineyard: Gary Farrell Winery in the Russian River Valley has been a California Certified Sustainable Winery since 2019, and the winery is actively involved in sustainable practices across its business. As part of being certified sustainable, Gary Farrell Winery has committed to developing a continuous process improvement plan, which is audited annually by an outside assessor. This covers the areas of water conservation, energy efficiency, solid waste management, air-quality protection and environmentally preferable purchasing. The winery has also been solar powered since 2020. The 355-panel solar array covering the entire roof of the winery has defrayed 93 percent of annual power usage.
In addition, although Gary Farrell doesn’t own any vineyards; the winery partners with some of California’s most iconic vineyards, the vast majority of which are certified sustainable. In 2014, Sonoma County Winegrowers set the ambitious goal of becoming the nation’s first 100 percent sustainable wine region. To date, over 99 percent of Sonoma County’s vineyards are certified sustainable. Gary Farrell Winery enthusiastically supports this initiative and actively works with all its grower partners to obtain or maintain certification.
Tell us about the varietals you make: Gary Farrell Winery specializes in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from some of the premier vineyards in the Russian River Valley and other regions. Heredia carefully nurtures the winery’s legacy of producing wines that are elegant, complex expressions of their vineyard origins. The wines include a line of small-lot, single-vineyard Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays and as well as a Russian River Selection Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
What are a few wines that readers should try right now?
Gary Farrell 2018 Pinot Noir, Hallberg Vineyard, Russian River Valley
Gary Farrell 2019 Chardonnay, Ritchie Vineyard, Russian River Valley