I think in order to set the tone for Equality Vines, one has to look at the immediate surrounding “terroir”; namely Guerneville, California. The town of Guerneville has probably the most pride flags per capita north of San Francisco.
The notoriously prideful town, nestled right on the Russian River in Sonoma County, is a safe haven for the LGBTQIA+ community. From the Rainbow Room & Cattle Company, the town’s gay bar to formerly hosting pride parades (the parade grew in size and thus moved to Santa Rosa), in this town, love wins. Welcome to Guerneville and Equality Vines.
Speaking of “Love Wins,” that’s literally the first thing you’ll see when you spot the tasting room. The small seating area is flanked by two giant words in bold black and white: Love Wins. Put on your rainbow-colored glasses because that’s just the beginning.
The tasting kicked off with a bottle of sparkling rosé aptly named Love Wins. Made from Pinot Noir, this bubbly wine brings bright notes of cherry balanced with the warm aroma of toasted bread.
Starting a tasting with sparkling wine is ideal—not just because it’s festive, but because the bubbles literally wake up your taste buds and cleanse your palate. If you’ve recently indulged in a strongly flavored dish (I’m looking at you, garlic fans), sparkling wine or Champagne is the perfect reset.
Next, we dropped the bubbles but kept the pink as we moved on to my new best friend: Respect Rosé. The grapes hail from the relatively new Pine Mountain-Cloverdale Peak AVA, and the varietal? That would be Cabernet Sauvignon. Yes, you read that right—Cabernet Sauvignon as a rosé. Normally, I’d call that crazy, but I was too busy enjoying this wine to say anything critical about such a bold choice.
As a self-proclaimed rosé enthusiast, I can’t remember the last time I tasted a rosé made from Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s unconventional, to say the least, and would have been considered borderline heresy just two decades ago in the wine world.
Following the rosé, we moved on to Activist Pinot Noir. This wine’s namesake reflects Equality Vines’ mission to support activists in the LGBTQ+ community, with a portion of the proceeds going to their causes. This particular bottle honors Gary Saperstein, founder of Out in the Vineyard and Gay Wine Weekend. A tireless advocate for the LGBTQ+ community in the wine industry and Sonoma County, Gary’s work is supported by sales of Activist Pinot Noir, which benefits Face to Face, an organization providing HIV care and community support with dignity.
The Pinot is classic Russian River fruit, showcasing a light Asian spice with bright fruit. Light tannins make this an easy drink-now Pinot Noir.
Following the Pinot came the Cabernet, this time in full red-wine style—no rosé. For you Cabernet fans, you’ll get a fun experience with this bottle, coming from the small Pine Mountain–Cloverdale Peak AVA in northern Sonoma County.
The unique part of the AVA is that you’re likely to see snow blanketing the dormant vines, due to the fact that they are over 2,000 feet in elevation. At that altitude, the heat from the nearby valleys of Dry Creek and Alexander Valley AVAs is mitigated, and the evening temperatures during the growing season are more temperate.
For our final wine, we have the Stonewall Zinfandel. Made with Dry Creek Valley fruit—the ideal location for Zin—it is jammy and delicious. The name Stonewall comes from the Stonewall Inn and the Stonewall Riots. After years of relentless police raids on LGBTQ-friendly bars in New York City, the community reached its breaking point. When police raided the Stonewall Inn on June 28, 1969, patrons stood their ground, refusing to comply. The resistance at Stonewall sparked riots as the crowd outside swelled, signaling a powerful refusal to endure further oppression.
Goodness truly shines in and throughout the wines at Equality. Oh, and lastly, you’d be hard-pressed (no wine-related pun intended) to find more gorgeous labels than those at Equality. As a modern art junkie (Jasper Johns fan here), this ranks up there. Art is subjective, and that’s ok if you think it’s the bee’s knees or not so much so. After all, someone out there paid way too much money for a Mark Rothko.
Single-glass purchases are available, along with a traditional tasting.
