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Roche Winery is a winery located in Sonoma, California. This historic, family-run winery is located in the Los Carneros AVA. It is the southern-most winery in Sonoma County.

History
Joseph and Genevieve Roche purchased Mangle Ranch in 1977. At the time it was a cattle ranch, but in 1982 the Roches planted 5 acres of Chardonnay and 5 acres of Pinot Noir. The first vintage of Roche wines were produced from the 1987 crop of grapes. The winery opened in 1989.

The winery grew through the 1990's, increasing to over 130 acres of producing vineyards by 1998. The Roches continued growing Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, as well as adding Syrah and Merlot varieties. During this time, the winery moved towards direct sales, rather than using distributors.

In the 2000's, Joseph and Genevieve Roche retired and sold the winery to their family. In 2009 the wine making operations were moved to a new facility built in Petaluma. In the same year, the tasting room was moved to downtown Sonoma, next to the historic Sonoma Plaza.

Tasting room
The Roche tasting room has been described as a "homey 1940's craftsman-style cottage." The Guardian rated the Roche Family Winery tasting room as one of the top 10 in the Sonoma Valley area.

Wines
The winery's winemaker is Michael Carr. . Currently, the winery makes and sells Pinot Noir, Merlot, Syrah, Tamarix, Late Harvest Chardonnay and Late Harvest Merlot. Their specialties are Chardonnays aged in French oak, American oak or stainless steel.

Futures program
The Roche Winery offers a futures program, allowing consumers to purchase wines still in the barrel, as well as discounts on other purchases and invitations to exclusive events. One author described the Roche futures program as "a sort of first-class club with various options and events not open to coach-class Carneros Club members."

Honors and awards
Honors began early for the winery. Wine Spectator named Roche Winery as "Rookies of the Year" in 1989.

The 2015 North Coast Wine Challenge chose the Roche 2013 Carneros Chardonnay French Oak Reserve as its Best of the Best winner. This was the first time a white wine won this event, besting 1,050 other entries. The Roche 2013 Carneros Chardonnay also won Best of Show White and Best of Sonoma County.

The winery has won numerous awards at the San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition, including:

2015 San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition:

·      Best of Class 2013 Reserve American Oak Chardonnay

·      Gold 2013 Estate Chardonnay

·      Gold 2013 Reserve French Oak Chardonnay

·      Silver 2012 Reserve Merlot

·      Bronze 2013 Stainless Steel Chardonnay

·      Bronze 2012 Reserve Pinot Noir

·      Bronze 2012 Carneros Syrah

·      Bronze 2012 Carneros Merlot

2014 San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition:

·      Best of Class 2012 Estate Chardonnay

·      Gold 2012 Reserve American Oak Chardonnay

·      Gold 2012 Reserve French Oak Chardonnay

·      Gold 2011 Reserve Merlot

·      Silver 2012 Estate Pinot Noir

·      Silver 2011 Syrah

2013 San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition:

·      Silver 2011 Estate Chardonnay

·      Silver 2011 Reserve American Oak Chardonnay

·      Bronze 2011 Estate Pinot Noir

2012 San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition:

·      Best of Class & Judges’ Choice 2010 Estate Chardonnay

·      Gold 2010 Estate Pinot Noir

·      Gold 2010 Reserve French Oak Chardonnay

·      Gold 2010 Reserve American Oak Chardonnay

2011 San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition:

·      Gold 2009 Stainless Steel Chardonnay

2010 San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition:

·      Best of Class & Judge’s Choice 2007 Reserve French Oak Chardonnay

·      Double Gold 2007 Reserve French Oak Chardonnay

2009 San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition:

·      Gold 2007 Reserve French Oak Chardonnay '' 2008 San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition: '' ·      Best Chardonnay & Double Gold 2006 Estate Chardonnay

·      Silver 2006 Estate Pinot Noir

·      Silver 2006 Reserve American Oak chardonnay

·      Silver 2007 Late Harvest Merlot

2007 San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition:

·      Gold 2004 Estate Pinot Noir

·      Gold 2005 Reserve French Oak Chardonnay

·      Gold 2005 Reserve American Oak chardonnay

2006 San Francisco Chronicle International Wine Competition:

·      Best of Class Gold 2004 Reserve American Oak Chardonnay ·      Silver 2004 Reserve French Oak Chardonnay

In 2010, Wine Enthusiast Magazine recognized the 90 point Roche 2009 Stainless Steel Fermented Chardonnay as an editors' choice.

Roche wines were exclusively used by the United Irish Cultural Center of San Francisco during a visit by An Taoiseach (Prime Minister), Enda Kenny in 2014.

Social responsibility
In 2007, the Roche's offered 1,665 acres of land to the Sonoma Land Trust at well below market price. Aside from the size of the amount of land, this acquisition was significant to the Trust because it provided a unique habitat corridor stretching from the wetlands of San Pablo Bay to the foothills of Sonoma Mountain. The 7,500 acres between the Bay and the mountain became an uninterrupted habitat. The land is home to rare species like California red-legged frogs and burrowing owls. The family then donated $300,000 from the sale back to the Trust.

The Roche Winery is also a member of The Ireland Funds WineGeese Society. The organization celebrates wine, food, and art of Irish provenance from around the world and membership is by invitation only.