The Story of Nalle

The story of Nalle Winery is one of families pursuing a dream with passion and perseverance for over a century in Sonoma County’s Dry Creek Valley.

Sheep Farm Underwater

It begins in 1890s with the John Henderlong family homesteading land in northern Dry Creek Valley. Over time, John expanded the family’s land holdings into a large sheep ranch. Lee Nalle remembers visiting the sheep ranch before it was sold to make way for the dam and Lake Sonoma. The land that was once the family sheep ranch is now under the waters of Lake Sonoma.

Setting Down Roots

In 1927 one of John’s sons, Fred Henderlong, along with his new wife Ruby, bought property off Dry Creek Road, built a house and planted a Zinfandel vineyard. Over time, Fred expanded and further developed the vineyard, eventually passing the property and vineyard to his son, Harold.

Forging the Legacy

In 1974 Harold’s daughter Lee met and married Doug Nalle, connecting the Henderlong and Nalle families. Doug was already working for a local winery when he met Lee. As time passed, Doug developed a growing passion to make his own wine from the family Zinfandel vineyard.

Wine Spectator Recognition

In 1984, Doug started making Zinfandel with the old-vine estate grapes. His 1987 Zinfandel garnered 92 points from the Wine Spectator, and transformed Nalle Winery from a little-known brand to a respected producer of sought-after Zinfandel.

Unique Cave

The release of this highly acclaimed vintage was about the same time Doug and Lee constructed their living roof cellar that served as both a winemaking and temperature-controlled storage facility.

True to Zinfandel

The Nalle Zinfandel style then and now remains constant—bright, refreshing fruit, round mouthfeel, moderate alcohol, balanced structure, French oak aging, and true to the Dry Creek Valley benchland terroir. When other wineries trended with high alcohol, jammy Zins, Nalle stayed the course, and it proved the right thing to do.

Wine Spectator Circles Back

In 2022, the Wine Spectator produced a feature article on Nalle Winery entitled, “Zinfandel According to Nalle.” They also gave two of Nalle’s Zinfandels scores in the 90s, and included Andrew Nalle in an article called “In Praise of 2019 California Zinfandels.” The article says, “Nalle, a longtime boutique producer in Dry Creek Valley, has upped its game as second-generation winemaker Andrew Nalle stretches his wings.”

New Generation

Today winemaker Andrew Nalle and his viticulturist wife April run the winery, often with their three young children in tow.

Andrew’s parents, Doug and Lee, have stepped back from the day-to-day operations of the winery, but continue to provide wisdom and support from their 40-plus years of winery experience.

Full Circle

Andrew and April live in the old farmhouse Fred Henderlong (Andrew’s great-grandfather) built for his bride Ruby. To honor the family, Andrew and April named their youngest daughter Ruby, after her great-great grandmother. Who knows, maybe Ruby will be the next Nalle winemaker.