Hunter Hill Vineyard & Winery

We spent the most delightful afternoon here today! After tasting, we enjoyed a nice bottle of pinot noir by a table under a tree, what a lovely view! Everyone is so friendly here, we even bought some fresh eggs before leaving. Would definitely come back!

The grounds are beautiful and its a great place to enjoy a picnic lunch. Unfortunately the service is less than desirable.

The views are amazing! They have a lot of outdoor space to sit down and sip your glass of wine surrounded by an awesome landscape.

Hunter hill wines made me love wine. Helped me fall in love with red wine, for sure.
The Chardonnay I always find is a perfect relaxing afternoon kind if wine, while the red like Barbera is not only good on its own, but both are very food pairing friendly.
The winery is always beautiful, rain or shine, and is a lovely place to taste a few well made wines and enjoy the California mountains.
The owners are always friendly and welcoming, and the girls that work there knowledgable and always helpful. I always enjoy my weekend trips here. Nothing better than nice people and a lovely glass of wine somewhere beautiful.

Really couldn’t ask for a prettier place! Beautiful vineyards, flowers, a pond and ample seating located all around the grounds. They even had community food and snacks inside.
A big group of us came pretty late in the day and the woman working was extremely accommodating for us. Kept pouring wine and was very friendly. Absolutely loved this spot and can’t wait to go back for a picnic!

Hmmm, I will state that the winery itself is just ok… The grounds are a little nicer. We have not really found an awesome winery in Santa Cruz County. the likes of Testarossa and others in proximity.
Now to the wines… The whites were very cold and lacked depth and flavor… not impressed. the Pinot was excellent and made this winery all by itself go to 4 stars. the Hunter blend was odd to the nose and had an aftertaste that was not pleasing to any of us.
They have a very nice port. if you can get a taste. it is infused with grain alcohol instead of brandy. so it was nice and sweet. very shallow and short finish but was the lightest port we have ever tried.
One other thing seriously lacking is either the staff doesnt know the wines themselves or just not interested in giving the tasters some of the wine makers notes about each wine. once you have had others do that. it is something that makes those that do stand out and those that dont, stand out in a bad way.

Stopped here with the hubby yesterday and boy we were glad we did! The grounds are beautiful and a perfect spot for a picnic. The staff was very knowledgable about the history of the vineyard and were extremely friendly. Tastings were only $ 5 and the wine was yummy. We bought a bottle of the Estate Pinot to be enjoyed very soon!
This should be a must stop destination on everyone’s wine tasting trip.

Excellent wine don’t miss Hunter Hill

«Accept what life offers you and try to drink from every cup. All wines should be tasted; some should only be sipped, but with others, drink the whole bottle.»
Paulo Coelho
So after filling up on BBQ at Sid’s Smokehouse, it was time to get some wine tasting in. One spot that I had always wanted to try out here was Hunter Hill Winery. My intelligent with impeccable taste Unilocal Friend Kari S recommended this place so I made the drive up the hill to try it out. Now I do not look like a model/​actress like Kari does but I thought they would let me drink regardless :)
Hunter Hill has a rich history as this lovely property has been home to the winery owner’s family for over a hundred years. The owners are Vann and Christine Slatter who were married in 1964, at the ages of 22 and 20, and took over a worn Soquel property from Christine’s mother in 1968. They planted grape vines in 1991 and soon thereafter Hunter Hill Winery was born.
And don’t be some common drunk when you come up here either. Vann is ex Navy seal and when asked how many push ups Vann can do, his reply was: «All of them.»
The drive up here is lovely, adjacent to the Redwood Forest of Nisene Marks and the grounds are quite charming and rustic too. There is ample area outside to sit plus a nice indoor tasting bar which is where I sat myself.
The two woman serving were just really cool and fun. 90’s rock was blaring and they were just having a good time. i almost spit out my wine, unintentionally, one time they made me laugh. This is how wine tasting should be, just fun and unpretentious completely different from… yep, here it is my seven readers… wait for it… wait for… completely different from my horrible experience at The Winery That Shall Not Named (Clos LaChance… oops, I named it). I just needed some additional meat to go with the Big Reds they serve here.
The sole white i tried was a stainless steel chardonnay that was quite lovely, I should have bought a bottle of that. It was balanced and very food friendly. The reds included a 2010 Mendocino Sangiovese, 2011 Estate Merlot, 2007 SCM Cabernet, 2011 Mouvedre (Lodi I think? My favorite of the bunch. Enjoyed the spiciness) and a 2011 Estate Syrah (my least favorite of the group but a decent wine nonetheless). We ended with a Port but there were three wines not being poured that I would have loved to try: Barbera, Pinot and Cab Franc. I arrived at 3:30 so with a 4:00pm closing time, they could not open any new bottles :(Wines are all $ 40 and under, excellent price points for quality, with the majority under $ 30.
After my Ridge visit a couple of weeks ago, my wine budget was shot so I only purchased two bottles here (next time I visit, and there will be a next time soon, I’ll buy a case or two) but that belies my true enthusiasm for the wines and for the family/​workers that I encountered here. They seem to really enjoy the life and unlike The Winery That Shall Not Be Named (Clos LaChance… oops like Britney I did it again!) you are not a number here and they seem to really enjoy hosting their visitors with great humor. Again, I only bought two bottles this visit but the cool, funky server who helped ring me up was so appreciative she thanked me sincerely and gave me a squeeze on the arm and I almost thought she was going to hug me she was so nice (and I would have hugged her because she was a very attractive woman with this cool sun tattoo I believe) :)
So beautiful surroundings and very good wines in a chill & fun atmosphere; make the drive and come up here! Highly recommended!

Our favorite winery ever! The grounds are beautiful and the Beast Feast is awesome! Van and Christine are such nice people and we love all their staff! The Cabernet Franc is my ultimate favorite!!!

They don’t participate in Passport wine weekend even though they are listed as a participant. Staff was rude when we inquired about it and told us to leave. Avoid them as there are lots of other great wineries around.

Don’t miss this gem of a winery! Hunter Hill is a low key, fun, casual place. The staff are wonderful. The wines are tasty and they are also a great bargain! Be sure to pick up a bottle of Rock and Rhone (so good and about 10 bucks!).
Hunter Hill has a lush lawn that overlooks the vines and is the perfect spot to picnic. If you are wine tasting in the Soquel area stop at Bargetto first, then go all the way to the top of the hill and do a little tasting at Soquel Vineyards, but make Hunter Hill your final destination. Be sure to bring a picnic, grab a bottle of wine (or two etc.) and enjoy the lovely setting.

This was a pretty nice place to do a tasting. The wine was decent and the vineyards were beautiful. it was really hot the day we were up here but the tasting was inside and it was cool enough. The décor inside was… interesting…

The winery itself is beautiful and the staff is fun and friendly. The wine is great too. Rock and Rhone, Merlot, Mourvedre, and Port are my favorites. The atmosphere is awesome, only complaint is that I wish they had longer hours since they are only open Saturdays and Sundays. (they close at 4)

If you’re a pretty girl, skip this one. It’s a big girls hater’s club. Horrible service.
One star for the friendly man greeting you and the other star for the cute ducks.
Go up the hill. Everything is better.

We were really amazed to find such a cute little winery so close to home! The prices were great the wine was pretty good and the simplicity of the garden was great! No frills, just down home fun. They were setting up for a dinner in the garden outside the tasting room (Michaels on Main was providing the food) and I guess they do so regularly in summer. and we will ABSOLUTELY be attending one in the future!

We went to Scotts Valley Art & Wine Festival. Hunter Hill was one of the wineries pouring today.
I’ve also been to their actual winery. The winery itself is very picturesque and beautiful. I could just hang out all day long. During event days like Passport or such, the husband that owns it BBQ’s sausage, and they have other little snackidge. Most of the wine is just a-​ok, but the Rock ‘n’ Rhone which is a blend is wonderful and only $ 10.
Today at the Festival, it was the same.

Somewhat bummed about our Soquel experience, this was stop #2 on our Passport Day tour. Now this place, impressive. Again, very nice locale. GREAT hosts. In fact, the owner (?) was out BBQ’ing, and was offering samples. Sausage! Mmmmm.
Not all the wines were impressive, some more than others… we came home with a few bottles of their Rock n’ Rhone — tasty! And 10 bucks! That was the other thing I liked about this place, a lot of their wine here was 10 – 20 bucks. Great deal.

Hunter Hill was our last stop this past weekend of wine tasting, and holy smokes!!! What a totally sweet little spot to get yer’ drink on! Where to start? How about we start with the fact that their wines are DELICIOUS! Moderately priced, and the family who owns the place is so freaking cool! This property is over 100 years old, and the vines are 20+ years? I question that because lets be honest I was drunk as a skunk by the time I got out of there, and I’m not sure how accurate my facts are.
The grounds are beautiful, new sod, and a little waterfall area makes a perfect setting for an over indulged lunch. There are four cats that wander the property, and overall it just has that «homey» feeling.
Did I mention how cool the family is that works there??? The son (?) Again assuming… is super cool. Offered up a prime spot next to the stove, and kept it burning to make sure I wasn’t freezing my tush off. His girlfriend (??) entertained us for the two hours we stayed there. She had all this crazy bar trivia, and had a great sense of humor… come to think of it, it was probably good no one else was in the tasting room at the time, since I think my group of six was rather obnoxious and inappropriate… But that’s what made the place so cool, they are right there cracking jokes with us.
Okay enough of idolizing these folks. What about their wine? As I mentioned before. Excellent Wine. Each had it’s own distinctive notes, but I specifically remember the Syrah and Pinot… wait, these are only $ 10 a bottle? I think those bottles are on promo to move stock, but holy smokes! The Cab is amazing, and the Rock-​n-​Rhone is just freaking different which is what makes it so good. Nothing better than wine that makes your palate go… now what was that? Me likey!
So here’s the deal for those of you looking for the fine print. They do have a tasting fee of $ 5 per person, and it is not refunded with the purchase of wine. Why is this? Well they have two bottles of wine that are only $ 10 each.
If a husband and wife come in for a tasting, that’s $ 10. If the wine makers refunded that, they would be essentially giving away a bottle of wine for every two people that came to taste, and bought afterwards. Makes sense, and didn’t bother me.
When you get there, drink waaaayyy to much, and think you might want to join the wine club, you should know in order to join the wine club, you have to buy a whole case of wine. But honestly, you can buy six of the $ 10 bottles, and 6 of the next cheapest and call it a day. When you join the wine club, your tasting fee is waived, AND you get ALL of the following. Free tastings as long as you are a member, a 20% discount on all bottles in the future, 4 or 5 shipments per year, and you’re invited to various events. I think the biggest event is what I call the «slaughter». It’s a dinner that the family puts on for all wine club members in which exotic meat is hunted, and served at the dinner… Again why I call it the slaughter, but the guy didn’t seem to mind, which shows you how freakin’ cool these people are! I get the feeling that membership is only good for one year, then you have to sign up again. and possibly buy another case, but that’s not hard. Just save your pennies.
Trust Me. You DON’T want to miss out on this winery. Even if you don’t become a member, just come to enjoy your time with a family who knows how to do it right.

We usually make sure to stop in at Hunter Hill a couple times a year to see what’s new. We’ve found some nice reasonably priced Zin’s from them.
What I really love though is their bbq tri tip on Passport Program days. ;) More on the passport program at

It’s always fun to see who has the best snacks at these events. and they’re right up there!