Holman Ranch Vineyard - Touring the Winery

I participated in a familiarization trip to the Holman Ranch Vineyard and Winery in Carmel, CA. My accommodations and meals were provided. All opinions are my own.

Holman Ranch Vineyard – Winemaking

The production of wine and olive oil really seems to be what Nick Elliott and Hunter Lowder love most. The ranch was purchased by Hunter’s parents, in 2006 to fulfill their dream of owning and operating a family vineyard and olive grove. Of the 400 acre ranch only 19 acres is set aside for wine making – they are all about high quality over quantity.

Holman Ranch Vineyard – Wine Tasting

I had the privilege of trying several wines, including Holman Estates Vineyards 2010 Pinot Noir, 2011 Pinot Gris, and the 2010 Chardonnay. They were all delicious, even though they’re wines I’m not normally a fan of. Nick explained that because of the cooler climate they grow in, the grapes often have a thinner skin, therefore have less tannic acid, which is generally imparted from the skin and stems of the grape (check out the Holman Ranch Varietal Map). Nick is a wealth of information about wine and the winemaking process.

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Nick took us on a tour of their custom built wine cave. This is where all the wine production takes place, from grape crushing and fermenting, all the way to bottling and labeling. The process is surprisingly uncomplicated and that is by design. They try to process their wines as little as possible, which really comes through in the final product – delightful rustic wines. These wines are lower in alcohol than your typical California wines, making them a great drinking wine that doesn’t require being cut with food.

I’m not the only one who enjoys Holman Ranch Vineyard wine however, they were named one of the top 10 wineries in National Geographic’s “The Ten Best of Everything”, in 2012. Holman ranch does ship its wines to some states, so if you’re lucky you can order Holman Ranch wine online and enjoy it at home.

Connect with Holman Ranch

Read more about our time at the Holman Ranch and in Carmel, CA here.

Travel California: Holman Ranch in Carmel (miscfinds4u.com)

21 Comments

Rosey on August 13, 2013 at 9:03 am

That’s nice that you learned so much while you were there. We went to a winery last year in Nebraska, and were so surprised at what a great visit it turned out to be!! Now we look for wineries every once in awhile, to see what they have going on. Usually there’s a great assortment of cheese and a nice tour of the land too!

I’m glad you had such a good time at Holman Ranch Vineyard!

thomas joseph rusinak on August 13, 2013 at 8:19 am

heaven on earth

Sherry Compton on August 13, 2013 at 7:37 am

I bet it’s amazing to go into the cave and learn the whole process. I wish I knew more about wines and my own tastes. A wine tasting/learning event like this sounds like fun.

Mya Murphy on August 13, 2013 at 7:18 am

I’m a recovering alcoholic. Would not be good for me.

Susan Smith on August 11, 2013 at 2:20 pm

We have not been on a winery tour yet, but I hope we get a chance some day.

clynsg on August 11, 2013 at 7:17 am

I generally do not like the taste of any alcoholic drink, but I think just touring the winery would be interesting–would just pass on the tasting!

judy gardner on August 8, 2013 at 6:38 pm

i have only been to a couple of small wineries in north carolina, but i enjoyed the tours and found that i love muscadine wine.

Elizabeth Boswell on August 6, 2013 at 10:06 am

I live in upstate New York where there are tons of wineries. I love tasting the wines and sampling with various cheeses and crackers. Holman Ranch Vineyards looks like a great place to visit.

Sarah L on August 5, 2013 at 9:24 pm

I like that they have a cave where they do all the wine related stuff. Beautiful place.

Georgia Beckman on August 5, 2013 at 7:40 am

We have not been on a winery tour yet. I hope we get to do this soon.

Nick Elliott on July 22, 2013 at 4:58 pm

Brian,
Thank you so much for the amazing posts about our wines and our venue.
It truly was a pleasure having you with us and we hope you’ll be able to visit us again, next time you are in town.
We appreciate your kind words.
Nick Elliott

Sarah L on July 19, 2013 at 11:39 pm

That looks like a beautiful place to grow grapes. The last vineyard I visited was in Chile where they have some amazing wines.

rita leonard on July 18, 2013 at 11:01 am

looks like a wonderful place to visit.

Allan on July 18, 2013 at 6:48 am

I’m not much of a wine guy, but that looks like a nice winery.

Karen Glatt on July 17, 2013 at 3:52 pm

I think that this Winery sounds like they make amazing tasting wines and would be a great place to visit and see if I can taste the wine flavors. It is fun to visit a winery to see all the grapes and the process that grapes go through to make it into wine!

Tamar on July 17, 2013 at 12:38 pm

You had so much fun on your trip! I vaguely remember driving by wineries but have never been at one.

cathy moore on July 17, 2013 at 8:45 am

This ranch looks awesome! I just started liking and trying different wines. Would love to go here!

michelle he on July 17, 2013 at 5:23 am

never been to a winery before maybe one day

Denise Taylor-Dennis on July 17, 2013 at 5:00 am

I would love to visit a winery like this but unfortunately I can’t drink wine it gives me a headache. I hear that better wine is not supposed to give you a headache though.

Connie on July 17, 2013 at 12:07 pm

I don’t drink wine very often either for the same reason, but the vineyards are so amazing I’d love to visit as well! Brian took some fabulous photos so I at least got to enjoy it that way.