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Ron Rubin Winery – More than Meets the Eye
At first glance, Ron Rubin Winery looks like many others in the Russian River Valley. Neat winery and visitor center, well manicured vines. A deeper look shows much more going on, I had the opportunity to visit and see for myself in May.

(click on photos in this post for full size slide show)

Ron Rubin Background
I was met by Ed Morris, the winemaker and cooper! Ed had his start in the barrel making business. Ed explained Ron’s history in the drinks business, ownership of the Republic of Tea, and his 40 year work path to his dream of owning a winery. Ron purchased River Road Winery, now Ron Rubin Winery in 2016. Since that time, the team has been busy developing a sustainable approach in the vineyard and winery. No less important, they have also been working on being good corporate citizens in the Russian River Valley.

Continuing Commitment to Sustainability
The winery is Sustainable in Practice (SIP) Certified, a set of requirements covering vineyard management, water and energy management, caring for people. Importantly, third party audit is required. They are also Certified Sustainable by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance. Most recently, they have engaged in a pilot program – the Climate Adaptation Certification program. This program is aimed at carbon sequestration with the goal of the whole operation becoming carbon neutral. Some of these items are difficult to see in action, but a look in the vineyard shows they have reduced their annual tilling to every other row, with cover crops in the non-tilled row. A little difficult to see in a dry spring! Also, chemical weedkillers are no longer in use, weed control is by mechanical means.

Committed to People and Community
The winery has invested in a variety of community programs. Notably, their commitment to the Trained for Saving Lives program has resulted in Ron Rubin Winery providing Automated External Defibrillators (AED’s) to 282 Sonoma County wineries so far, with a goal of providing up to 450.

The Wines
All the above is great, but are the wines any good? Yes! The wines are all well made with accurate tasting notes and are available direct from the winery. They are also surprisingly affordable, priced from $15-25, including shipping in the continental US! Pam’s Unoaked Chardonnay is a not too serious crowd pleaser with tropical fruits and just a touch of sweetness to balance the nice acidity. The Ron Rubin Russian River Chardonnay is typical of the region with judicious use of oak along with the tropical fruits. The Ron Rubin Russian River Pinot Noir features a nice balance between bright cherries and earth with oak that doesn’t dominate.

Ron Rubin also makes a line of River Road wines from fruit purchased from local growers. These wines are carried nationally at Total Wines.