Best Wineries In San Diego In 2023

ByAisha Preece

Looking for the best wineries in San Diego?

San Diego is America’s wine country, with its lush warm Californian weather and fertile soil, there are plenty of unique growing regions for vineyards.

A wine tour of San Diego has to be on your bucket list if you are a wine lover, but with so many to choose from, where do you start?

In this list, we’ve found some of the best wineries in the bustling San Diego City area, and some a little further out of the city and into the beautiful mountains surrounding America’s wine city. 

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Best Wineries In San Diego in The City

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If you aren’t looking to go too far from the city center, don’t worry, there are still some brilliant wineries right on your doorstep. Here are just a few.

Gianni Buonomo Vintners

Just a few moments away from Ocean Beach and less than a 20 minute walk away from the sunset cliffs, Gianni Buonomo Vintners is the perfect place for tasting wine in the pacific breeze.

They source their fruit from the Yakima Valley and make it right in San Diego, offering an open tasting room from 1 pm – 7 pm all week apart from Tuesdays and Sundays where they are closed for private tasting rooms.

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Pali Wine Co.

If there’s anywhere other than San Diego that knows their wine, it’s the Europeans. So why not have the best of both worlds and have your winery in Little Italy, San Diego?

Pali Wine Co. has done just that, located just a few blocks from the harbor, Pali Wine Co. prides itself on its quality fruit sourced just upstate in the Santa Rita Hills and Sonoma vineyards, Pali Wine Co.

has a minimalistic winemaking practice that lets its high-quality fruit come through in each glass. 

Négociant Winery

Located on El Cajon Boulevard just a short 20-minute walk north of Balboa Park is Négociant, an urban winery that’s jumping on the revitalization of North Park’s Boulevard District.

Négociant sources grapes and wines from small vineyards up the west coast and by blending and aging create craft wines that are all unique.

Négociant create a fun and communal atmosphere in their winery with events such as trivia and live music constantly on. Wine and entertainment in the heart of San Diego, what’s not to love?

LJ Crafted Wines

Just one block away from the picturesque La Jolla cliffs on La Jolla Boulevard, LJ Crafted Wines is a boutique winery that sources most of its wine from the Napa and Sonoma valleys upstate.

LJ Crafted Wines tasting rooms serve small-batch wines straight from the barrel directly into your glass or into a reusable bottle and pride themselves on supporting a zero-waste lifestyle. 

Only slightly outside the city center, in La Mesa, near the Mission Trails Regional Park, San Pasqual Winery Tasting Room offers award-winning wines sourced from grapes grown in the California area.

Their tasting rooms are open every day of the week, 1 pm – 7 pm on Monday to Thursday, 1 pm – 9 pm on Friday and Saturday, and midday to 5 pm on Sunday.

If you want a quieter wine-tasting experience that’s not too out of the way, the San Pasqual Winery Tasting Room is perfect for you.

Outside of the City

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If you don’t mind traveling outside the city and want a wine tasting experience a little more peaceful, toward the San Pasqual Valley or the Solana Beach, then we’ve got you covered too with a list of fantastic wineries just outside of San Diego.

Carruth Cellars Urban Winery

Just 15 miles north of La Jolla, a block away from Solana Beach is the winery and tasting room of Carruth Cellars. Carruth Cellars source their grapes from upstate in northern and central California to produce their award-winning wines right by the beach.

Carruth Cellars tasting room is non-reservation so you can just turn up after a fun day at the beach, and they also offer a private coastal wine tasting tour, where Carruth Cellars take you in a private van to three of their tasting rooms in San Diego, including the Solana Beach tasting room, Carlsbad and one situated in Little Italy.

Bernardo Winery

Situated at the foot of the picturesque hills in Rancho Bernardo is the Bernardo Winery, a winery and tasting room that gives a fascinating look into California’s wine-making past.

Not only does your reservation come with a wine tasting experience, but Bernardo Winery offers a menu of world-famous pizzas and Old Californian bites.

Tours of the working winemaking facility are available with reservation but their historic, disused winemaking facility is open to the public, where you can see the old ways of winemaking with redwood barrels built over 130 years ago.

Hungry Hawk Vineyards & Winery

Nestled in the beautiful San Pasqual Valley, the Hungry Hawk Vineyards and Winery offer a tasting patio instead of a tasting room, so you can take in the stunning views of their vineyard and the San Diego scenery while enjoying the set menu or tasting flights.

Hungry Hawk Vineyards and Winery source their grapes right on-site in the San Pasqual Valley in their private vineyard, they also offer a tour of their hillside vineyards and their wine-making facilities.

To top it all off, Hungry Hawk Vineyards and Winery often have a weekly event where they have live music to add to the views and tasting experience. Because of the winery’s popularity, reservations are recommended.

Orfila Vineyards and Winery

Not far from the Hungry Hawk Vineyards, just down the road in the San Pasqual Valley, Orfila Vineyards and Winery are known for their extensive and sizable vineyards where they source their grapes to be made into wine right in the San Pasqual Valley.

Orfila Vineyards and Winery are on a first come first serve basis meaning that reservations aren’t needed for the tasting rooms.

Orfila Vineyards and Winery offer a signature tour around their vineyards and winemaking facilities where you can see exactly which grapes are turned into the wine that you’re drinking.

Well, there you have it, all the options for the best wineries in San Diego ! I hope you found that helpful, but if you want more info, we found you a video below.

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