Val du Vino

This is the only working winery in Murphys just about a block on the outskirts. The owners, Jeannine and John, are charming and friendly, and their wine is absolutely superb. They have a vibrant wine club offering many events per year with Jeannine as the chef. Tastings are $ 5 and the fee is waived when you buy a bottle. The wine is served in beautiful glasses. Don’t pass up this place. You’ll enjoy your visit in a beautiful tasting room and leave with a few excellent bottles of memories. Sante!

This was our last winery stop during our weekend wine tasting trip to Murphy’s for Mother’s Day. We arrived just before 11 AM on Sunday so we were the only ones there. As others have mentioned, the staff is very friendly and welcoming, the tasting room is beautiful and the wines are pretty good too. We purchased a couple of bottles (which waived the tasting fee) and overall had a great start to our last day in Murphy’s.

great venue for a wedding… which is why we were here… if you get creative you can make this place look like a million bucks. their wine is not very good. but the people are really nice… the red tasted like grape juice… which may be a favorite for kids … but not for those that love wine…

The oh-​so friendly & welcoming staff, yummy wine, and stylish, cozy atmosphere are totally worth the walk to this jem! The staff are so knowledgable and willing to share about all of the many, unique, local varietals — it’s clear they’re passionate on what they do, and they’re so happy doing it! If you want to hang out with warm, down-​to-​earth folks, learn something new about wine or the area, get inspired by the style of their spacious tasting room, or simply enjoy the beautiful countryside sipping wine on their porch, then go enjoy this place like I did! Keep up the great work, Val du Vino! :)

5 stars for overall experience. Jon-​A-​thon the wine maker was generous, funny, and informative about the wine, area and had great local recommendations.

Who doesn’t enjoy meeting authentic people doing what they LOVE well? Had a fantastic time with Owen and the newest addition, Zin. Beautiful tasting room and location. I know nothing about wine and Owen’s charming personality and approach put me at ease. I loved everything we had and are making another trip down to see him before we go home. My husband and I enjoyed our time immensely. We brought our well behaved kids and felt comfortable doing so. Any place with tables and chairs make me want to stay and hang out. And buy more ;)

A nice little winery at the edge of Murphy’s cute little downtown.
We visited on a busy Saturday and found the staff to be welcoming and friendly. The wine maker even took a small group of us on a quick tour through the barrel room and talked us through the wine making process.
Tastings are $ 5 per person but the fee is waived if you buy a bottle of wine. Another couple we met mentioned something about having a Groupon for tasting. Something worth checking out.
Nice wines, friendly winemakers and staff. Worth a walk to the end edge of town.

We just held my daughter’s wedding here. The wine is great. Jessica and Owen who are normally in the tasting room were wonderful in helping with all the details and planning. The venue is beautiful and the villa on the property was a great place for the wedding party to get ready.
However, if you are planning an event here, I would suggest getting EVERYTHING in writing, no matter how small. That way you can (hopefully) avoid any confusion regarding additional, undisclosed fees or how you expect the venue to look on the day of your event (broken pallets, a tractor, etc., that were to be removed from the wedding and reception areas were not).
Unfortunately, these issues resulted in an upsetting end-​of-​event interaction with the owner which almost ruined (for me) an otherwise perfect day.

Highly recommend a visit here. Followed the lead on many Unilocal reviews and we were not disappointed. Owen was extremely knowledgeAble on the wines and the winery itself. He was friendly and engaging. Met the owners who were also very kind. Favorite wines at this location are the Spanish Dragon and petit Sarah. The Port is also very good. $ 5 pp fee is waived if you purchase a bottle. Wine Club offers some great food and wine events.

The Wine here is amazing. Cant wait to go back.

Very nice tasting room just on the outskirts of town. We were thankful that they had AC as we walked from the opposite end of Murphys in the sweltering heat. Sweet owners that helped us taste & educate us on their wine. Wine was nice. I bought a port & my parents bought their Petite Syrah, both were good. Nice people & nice wine so I would go back to support their business.

This was the best winery of the three I tried in Murphys.
Typically I avoid places that make port. It’s best to leave that to the amigos in the Douro that limit barreling to two years. So this place was happy surprise when I enjoyed the tasting. I still didn’t like their port, but found the wines were generally well balanced. It showed that grapes from Calaveras and Madera yield good wine in the right hands.
For those who want a little more atmosphere, this location is also a functioning winery — unlike most of the places in Murphys that are strictly boxy tasting rooms. Some online maps incorrectly pinpoint the location. It is located where French Gulch and Main St. intersect on the western edge of town.

Great atmosphere! Rustic tasting room, super nice hosts, good wines, and even better stories! Highly recommend this place!

This is one of the best wineries in Murphys. The wines are absolutely delicious! I have a hard time picking a favorite, but I’d have to say their Grenache is up there on the list.
Coming into town via the Murphys Grade Rd, this is the first of many tasting rooms you’ll encounter on «the strip». The building is a perfect example of Shabby Chic done right. There’s plenty of space in the tasting room not only at the bar but also in the periphery where there are some smaller seating areas. Service is extremely friendly — the winemaker loves to talk about his wines (and has been known to offer barrel tastings on occasion as well… we tried to scam a barrel tasting of their Pinot this weekend but he’d just done a top-​off so no go). Speaking of Pinot, if you can get your hands on it, do. so And then go on a scavenger hunt to try and find another winery in Murphys that offers one. ;D
BTW, VdV also runs the art-​and-​winery Allegorie a couple blocks further up Main St so if you’re a club member of Allegorie, you’ll also use those benefits at Val du Vino and vice-​versa.

This is a must along your tasting adventure in Murphys! Not only are the wines the best in town, but the owners, Jeannine & Jonathon, are the incredible! They educate you about their wines, while enriching your tasting experience with some fun and hilarious stories! This will be the best tasting experience of your trip!

Plenty of 5 star reviews and now I know why. Stopped by here Sunday afternoon with my girlfriend after being recommended by Allegorie. A++ hospitality at this place! You can truly see how much they love their wines and customers. I’ll be back to purchase more bottles next time I’m in town. If there’s one winery you do not want to miss it is surely Val Du Vino.

Jonathon and Jeannine were a kick! The best Viognier I had all weekend, too. They have a cute vacation rental right next door (3 couples would fit nicely) and this is the only place that made wine on site. It’s right at the end of Murphys so don’t miss it!
BTW, the décor was the best of the bunch :)

Everything about Val du Vino is authentic, unpretentious, and unbelievably good! My first visit was during a Murphys scouting trip for wedding venues. We had been to some nice wineries in the area, but our trip to Val du Vino knocked them all right out of the running. My husband and I have really enjoyed every aspect of our visits there and we are fans for life.
The wine: REALLY good reds. Sophistication and variety to satisfy the snobbiest red wine snob, but friendly to neophytes too. The Three Cousins was the gateway for my previously-​non-​red-​drinking parents to a whole new world. All the better that it’s made right on the premises and you get a personal tour through the tasting experience from the winemaker himself (Jonathan) or one of the other super knowledgeable and friendly folks who work there.
The wineclub: Love the wine, get a discount on it (and wedding venue expenses), why not join the wine club? What could be better? The winemaker’s dinners. Jeannine is an incredible chef and knows exactly what to pair with her husband’s wines. Adventurous, delicious foods and generous pours make for an amazing evening.
The villa: Beautifully decorated house with a professional-​grade kitchen tucked amongst the vines; a very short walk from Murphys main street and steps from the tasting room. Very spacious, comfortable, and well tended. We were married under the gorgeous oak just up the hill and it made a fantastic back-​drop.
The winery/​tasting room: Great setting for wine tasting, and it turned out to be a great reception setting as well. We had ~100 guests seated on the crush pad with a Cajun band on the lawn. It was cozy, but not crowded, and everything flowed really well. Jonathan, Jeannine, and Owen were all very welcoming and celebrating with us.
Overall, Val du Vino is great for a short visit or for a longer stay and the people there take care of you for your most important moments or just for a great wine tasting afternoon.

If you’re wine tasting in Murphys, you must make a stop at Val du Vino. Good wine, generous pour, great view, charismatic hosts, and good for medium sized group tour.
Will I be back? Yes, and I’ll bring friends with me.

This review is not for the tasting room, which, by the way is great, but it’s for the winery itself. This is the only working winery on main street. All the other places are just tasting rooms which either have a working winery somewhere else or their wines are made by some one else.
The Val du Vino winemaker, Johnathon, is always happy to give people a tour of the winery. It’s an awesome sight to see and many times he will even do a barrel sample. He explains the process of making wine so that we laymen will have a better understanding of how what we really enjoy drinking is made. This is one tour you don’t want to miss and the best part is, it’s free.