Why you should visit Los Angeles wineries
This blog post covers the six best wineries Los Angeles offers.
Los Angeles is known as an entertainment industry mecca, not a wine industry destination. Thankfully you can find world-class wines right here in the city of Los Angeles.
The first three wineries on this list are based in LA. These urban wineries self-identify as either vegan, natural, or sustainable. Each offers a unique taste of the local terroir.
Speaking of local terroir, the Los Angeles area includes three American Viticultural Appellations: the Sierra Pelona Valley AVA, the Leona Valley AVA, and the Antelope Valley of the California High Desert AVA. Just a bit of trivia for you.
The fourth winery on this list is based in LA but sources many of their grapes from Paso Robles. Wine lovers who prefer traditional fare will appreciate this winery, which has called the city home for over a century.
The final two wineries on this list are not LA natives. They source grapes from Paso Robles and Los Olivos, not Los Angeles County. But their tasting rooms in LA are fun so I’ve included them on this list. It’s nice to know you can sample other California wineries without a two-hour drive, eh?
I hope you find this list useful as you create your own personal wine tour of LA. Without further ado, here are the six best wineries Los Angeles offers!
How to access the wineries Los Angeles offers
The Los Angeles wine tasting rooms on this list are easy to access.
If you already live in Los Angeles, then you’re in luck. These wineries are an easy drive from most LA neighborhoods.
Of course “easy” is a relative term. If you’re accustomed to driving in big city traffic then you’ll survive driving in LA.
But if you’re not used to navigating rush hour traffic in a large city then you may want to reconsider whether you should drive in LA at all. Especially if your focus is wine tasting. It would be safer, easier, and more enjoyable to take a taxi, Lyft, or Uber between destinations.
If you’re not from the LA area then you’ll need to fly into the city.
The nearest airports are Los Angeles (LAX), Burbank (BUR), Long Beach (LGB), and Santa Ana (SNA). Los Angeles Airport (LAX) has the highest number of flights per day. The Burbank and Long Beach airports are smaller and more manageable though.
The best wineries Los Angeles offers for a wine tasting
Angeleno Wine Company
Angeleno Wine Company wants to tell the world how wonderful Southern California wine can be.
Their wines are naturally made and entirely vegan. They work with small family owned vineyards in Los Angeles County that practice organic and sustainable viticulture. The Alonso Family Vineyard in Agua Dulce and Swayze Vineyard in Antelope Valley provide their grapes.
Unique Spanish varietals are their bread and butter. Angeleno Wine Co. works with Godello, Graciano, Loureiro, Tannat, Treixadura, and Alicante Bouschet grapes.
Their Los Angeles tasting room is lively and personal. Turquoise bistro chairs, string lights, and lots of natural light give the tasting room a cheerful yet laidback energy.
The Angeleno Wine Company tasting room is located in the Chinatown neighborhood of Los Angeles. Tasting room hours are Friday (4-8 PM), Saturday (12-8 PM), and Sunday (12-6 PM). Reservations are recommended. You can make a reservation via their Resy profile.
During the summer their tasting room has “Summer Friday hours.” This means only walk-ins are allowed. So you can show up, sit down, and start drinking some amazing wine.
Byron Blatty Wines
Byron Blatty Wines crafts limited-edition red wines from sustainably farmed grapes. They strive to create bold yet balanced wines that reflect the terroir of Los Angeles.
Byron Blatty winery works with six family-owned vineyards in Los Angeles County, including their own. These vineyards provide a wide range of grapes including Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Merlot, Grenache, Sangiovese, Sémillon, and Tempranillo.
They use native yeasts (whenever possible) and minimal sulfites (whenever necessary).
Byron Blatty Wines are well regarded. For example, Wine Enthusiast Magazine awarded 92 points to their 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon.
You can try their wines by the flight, glass, or bottle at their Highland Park tasting room. According to their website, the space is open Thursday (5-9 PM), Friday (5-9 PM), Saturday (2-9 PM), and Sunday (12-6 PM). According to their Instagram, the Sunday tasting room hours are 2-6 PM. If you’ve planned your winery visit for Sunday be sure to double check their business hours before you head over.
Neighborhood Winery
Neighborhood Winery is a natural winery that specializes in cuvées. Their wines range from traditional to unconventional and they all have one thing in common: they’re fun!
Case in point: Superbloom (their latest creation) is bursting with mango and floral notes.
Visit their tasting room in the Arts District neighborhood of LA to try this wine and many more.
The Neighborhood Winery tasting room also serves up a variety of small bites and sandwiches. Think olives, cheese, pastrami, and savory kugel. Neighborhood Winery is the perfect place to spend a lazy afternoon with some good food paired with great wine.
Neighborhood Winery does not require reservations for regular tastings. Special wine tasting events do require a reservation, which you can make via their Tock profile.
The Neighborhood Winery tasting room is open Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 4-10 PM. They’re also open Friday (4 PM – 12 AM), Saturday (2 PM – 12 AM), and Sunday (12-9 PM). On Mondays they’re closed.
San Antonio Winery
San Antonio Winery has been making wine for over a century. According to their website, San Antonio Winery is the oldest and largest producing winery in Los Angeles.
San Antonio Winery encapsulates four brands. Their roster includes Maddalena Wines, Stella Rosa, San Simeon, and Highlands 41. You can sample these wines at their tasting room located in the Lincoln Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles.
San Antonio Winery offers a few wine tasting options. You can enjoy a guided tasting on the patio at The 1917 Wine Bar & Bistro. Large groups can book guided tastings for the Stefano Cellar. And the Maddalena Restaurant offers wine flights.
The 1917 Wine Bar & Bistro
The 1917 Wine Bar & Bistro has three tasting options. There’s “Taste the Darkness” for $54 per person. This tasting focuses on deep dark reds, as the name suggests. The price includes a charcuterie plate to enjoy alongside these red wines made from estate-grown Paso Robles grapes.
The 1917 Wine Bar & Bistro also serves an “Italian Bubbles” tasting for $54. This includes a charcuterie plate to enjoy alongside a range of sparkling Italian wines.
The wine bar’s third option is the “San Simeon Estate” tasting for $50. This tasting includes samples of Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Syrah, and Petite Sirah made from Paso Robles grapes.
Stefano Cellar
Groups of ten or more people can book a Stefano Cellar Group Wine Tasting Experience. Those who book the cellar can choose between the “Artisan Selection,” the “Sweet Wine Selection,” and the “Premier Selection.”
The San Antonio Winery tasting room is still housed in its original location on Lamar Street in Lincoln Heights. The tasting room is open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 9 AM–7 PM. Monday through Thursday they’re open 9 AM–6 PM.
In addition to their LA location, San Antonio Winery maintains tasting rooms in Paso Robles, California and Ontario, Canada.
Tensley Wines
Tensley Wines is a boutique winery focused on Syrah.
Winemaker Joey Tensley has received praise from Wine Spectator, Food & Wine magazine, and wine critic Robert Parker.
Tensley Wines is based in Los Olivos in the Santa Ynez Valley of Santa Barbara County. Lucky for us they also have a tasting room in Los Angeles County.
Tensley Wines opened their second location in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles in 2023. The tasting room is a lively, bright, art-filled space. There’s even a sun-filled patio, which is a great place to relax with a glass of wine.
The Brentwood tasting room is open Wednesday through Saturday from 12-7 PM. On Sunday they’re open from 12-5 PM. Wines are available by the glass or flight.
The Blending Lab Winery
If you’ve ever fantasized about making your own wine, this place is for you.
The Blending Lab Winery offers wine blending classes and educational tastings at their Los Angeles location.
The Blending Lab Winery offers four things: wine tastings, wines by the glass, guided wine blending classes, and “open lab” time.
Wine tastings and wines by the glass are available during tasting room hours. The Los Angeles tasting room is open Friday (4-9 PM), Saturday (2-9 PM), and Sunday (2-7 PM). Walk-ins are welcome for tastings.
The classes, however, must be booked in advance. The guided wine blending class is typically 90 minutes long and includes samples of three single varietal wines. An expert instructor will teach you how to blend these samples together to create a wine that aligns with your personal preferences.
This class is fabulous for people who (a) love experimenting (b) fancy themselves a mad scientist or (c) wish to dive deeper into why different wines either entrance or repel them. Class times are Fridays at 6 PM and Saturdays at noon and 4 PM.
The final option is Open Lab hours. Just to be clear, Open Lab is not a class. An expert instructor will provide a brief introduction and then you’re free to experiment on your own. Open Lab sessions are typically held on Sundays.
If you’d like to blend wine at their Los Angeles location you can make a reservation via their website.
P. S. The Blending Lab Winery has a location in Paso Robles as well.
Similar wine regions to explore
Hope you enjoyed our list of the best wineries Los Angeles has to offer! California is full of wonderful wine regions ripe for exploration. May we suggest a few?
Malibu, California is less than an hour’s drive from LA (depending on traffic, of course). Maybe you’re looking for a winery tasting room on the Malibu coast with a view of the Pacific Ocean (looking at you Rosenthal Winery and Surfrider Wines!). Or maybe you’d prefer a hillside vineyard nestled in the Santa Monica Mountains. Either way, our list of the best Malibu wineries has you covered.
Los Olivos, California is a quaint town nestled in the Santa Ynez Valley in Santa Barbara County. Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is 133 miles from downtown Los Olivos. In theory the drive should take 2 hours and 30 minutes (but knowing LA traffic it will take much longer). We’ve made a list of the best Los Olivos, California wineries that make organic wines. If you like organic wine these wineries are not to be missed.
The Napa Valley is arguably the most famous American wine region. We’ve covered this Northern California magnet multiple times. Here are my two favorite Napa blog posts at the moment… First, we compiled a list of the best wineries in downtown Napa. This blog post covers over two dozen winery tasting rooms that are easy to access on foot. If you’re more interested in wineries off the beaten path then check out our list of the best boutique Napa wineries.
Final suggestion: If you’re partial to coastal regions, you should check out the Santa Barbara urban wine trail. You’ll find Santa Barbara wineries on the Central Coast, tucked between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Ynez Mountains.
