Pride Mountain Vineyards

This is just about as far as you can drive up Spring Mountain without entering the Sonoma Valley appellation, and, in keeping with its lofty location, Pride Mountain has been getting some lofty reviews for its wines in recent years.

The former Summit Ranch was bought by the Pride family in the late 1980s and has since grown to make about 15,000 cases of wines a year, most notably big, supple examples of cabernet sauvignon and merlot that account for about two-thirds of the winery’s production. Other wines that regularly score over 90 points with the critics include a cabernet franc, chardonnay, and viognier. Many Pride wines sell out quickly, particularly the limited production reserves.

Grapes have been grown here since 1870 by some accounts, and the size of the burned-out shell of the Summit winery building, constructed in 1890, suggests a fair amount of wine was produced, too, until Prohibition ended the party.

The 80 acres of vineyards that Pride owns straddle the Sonoma-Napa border at about 2,000 feet of elevation and offer stunning views over the two valleys and toward the ocean. Some wines are made from Napa grapes, others from both Napa and Sonoma grapes. All taste pretty good.

The views and wines can be enjoyed on the free tour and tasting offered once a day at 10 a.m., but be sure to book well in advance. You can also book picnic tables and eat literally on top of the wine world. Appointment-only tastings are offered the rest of the day and cost $5, though that’s still a bargain considering the quality of the wines that generally cost upwards of $50 a bottle (4026 Spring Mountain Rd., St. Helena, 707/963-4949, www.pridewines.com, open 10 a.m.–3:30 p.m. daily except Tues. by appointment, tasting $5).