Forbidden Fruit

Sonoma’s Forbidden Fruit Winery opened its doors in 1968 and got right to work producing what would become some of the best small-batch wines to ever come out of California. As a well to do young woman and aspiring vintner, the reclusive founder leveraged her family’s well-established estate roots in the valley to get ahold of some of the highly sought-after old vine Zinfandel, as well as Sauvignon Blanc, and even some of the rare cool-climate Syrah varietals and made true magic with them. Produced in very limited numbers, Forbidden Fruit’s wines quickly became prized by collectors and enthusiasts alike, with every bottle being a celebration of the Russian River Valley appellation. Sadly, a little over two decades later, the reclusive as ever woman behind Forbidden Fruit lost interest and abruptly closed up shop, taking her magical recipes for success with her.