Top Realtors for Vineyards and Wineries in Napa & Sonoma (2026 Guide)

To buy or sell a vineyard or winery in Napa or Sonoma, work with a licensed agent who handles these properties regularly, because value turns on the AVA, planted acres, vine age and health, water, grape contracts and permits as much as on the house. The table lists agents in both counties whose public profiles name vineyards, wineries or wine country property as a specialty.

Prices have eased: Napa County grapes averaged $6,635.85 a ton in 2025 and Sonoma and Marin grapes $2,762.88, down 5% and 6% from 2024 (2025 Grape Crush Report).

The vineyard market at a glance

The 2025 harvest was small as well as cheaper. Turrentine Brokerage put the statewide crush 23% below the 2019 to 2023 average and noted that Sonoma Chardonnay averaged roughly $2,370 a ton across the district even as spot sales went for closer to $800 (Wine Industry Advisor). Growers have been pulling vines: a study done for the California Association of Winegrape Growers counted about 2,700 bearing acres removed in Sonoma County and 38,000 statewide between October 2024 and August 2025 (Sonoma Index-Tribune).

The county crop reports show the same pressure. Napa’s 2025 report valued winegrapes at $968.7 million, about 99% of the county’s crop value, on 144,807 tons, and producing vineyard fell to 42,937 acres from 45,967 (Napa County). Sonoma County’s 2024 report put winegrapes at $626.6 million, down 12.6%, on 211,511.6 tons (Sonoma County). For buyers, that has meant more room to negotiate; for sellers, it raises the value of clean records on yields, contracts and vine condition.

How vineyard land is priced

Per-acre values depend heavily on parcel size. A study of Napa County Assessor appraisal records from 2017 to 2021, covering 168 vineyard properties, put the average at about $632,598 per acre on parcels of 1 to 10 acres, $190,645 on 10 to 40 acres and $145,683 on 40 to 100 acres; keep in mind these are assessor appraisals rather than sale prices (Wine Business Journal). Farm Progress reported in April 2025 that prime Napa vineyards can sell for more than $500,000 an acre (Farm Progress), and the ASFMRA California Chapter’s annual Trends report is the usual regional reference for land and lease ranges (CALASFMRA).

Appellations keep multiplying

Recognized in 1981, Napa Valley was the first AVA on the West Coast, and Napa Valley Vintners counted 16 AVAs nested inside it in 2023 (Napa Valley Vintners). TTB has since added Crystal Springs of Napa Valley, about 4,000 acres, effective November 15, 2024 (TTB). Sonoma County has 19 AVAs, from the Russian River Valley, with about 13,896 vineyard acres, to Carneros, Dry Creek Valley and Alexander Valley (Sonoma County Winegrowers), and the West Sonoma Coast AVA was added in 2022 (Federal Register). An AVA name on the label can add value to the fruit, so an agent should confirm exactly which appellations a parcel falls in.

Napa and Sonoma rules a vineyard agent should know

• Napa’s Agricultural Preserve, created in 1968, is described as the first in the country. Under the 1990 Winery Definition Ordinance, a new or expanded winery must source at least 75% of its grapes in Napa County, and a new winery needs a parcel of at least 10 acres (Napa County Grand Jury).
• Napa hillsides: grading for vines on ground steeper than 5% requires an agricultural erosion control plan, slopes of 30% to 50% and stream setbacks call for a use permit exception, and removing oak woodland brings county replacement or preservation requirements (Napa County conservation regulations).
• Sonoma plantings: new vineyards and replants need county approval under VESCO before work begins. Late applications, after September 15, may have to wait until the next year, and a Low Impact Replant Registration covers replants without deep ripping (Sonoma County VESCO).
• Frost water on the Russian River: under state rule 23 CCR 862, diverting river water for frost protection counts as an unreasonable use unless a Water Demand Management Program covers it, and the courts upheld the rule in 2014 (Downey Brand).
• Labels: an AVA name requires at least 85% of the wine from that AVA, and a county name 75% (TTB). Wines from Napa Valley sub-AVAs must also say “Napa Valley,” and since 2014 a wine labeled with an AVA lying entirely within Sonoma County has to carry “Sonoma County” as well (AB 1798 analysis).
• Property tax: new vines aren’t taxed until three years after their planting season (R&T Code 211), and Williamson Act contracts bind later buyers, with a cancellation fee of 12.5% of current market value (Department of Conservation).
• Licenses and ownership: an ABC Type 02 winegrower license requires facilities to make wine, though TTB allows alternating proprietorships in another winery (California ABC); foreign buyers of agricultural land must report on form FSA-153 within 90 days (USDA FSA).
• Groundwater: the state approved sustainability plans for the Napa Valley Subbasin, the Santa Rosa Plain, the Petaluma Valley and the Sonoma Valley Subbasin in 2023 (California Natural Resources Agency), so well records and pumping history now carry real weight in value.

Licensed agents who list vineyard and winery property

Sorted by name. Each agent’s own profile describes vineyards, wineries or wine country estates as a specialty, and the last column shows that wording.

15 agents, in alphabetical order. Each one describes vineyard or winery property as a specialty on a public profile.

Questions for a vineyard and winery agent

1. Which AVAs and property types have you sold in lately? A bare-land vineyard in the Russian River Valley and a permitted Napa winery draw different buyers and different comparables.
2. How do you separate land, vines and buildings? Ask how they account for planted versus plantable acres, vine age, rootstock and the residence.
3. What will you verify before marketing? Grape contracts, yield history, well logs, water rights, use permits and any Williamson Act contract should be in hand early.
4. How do you handle a confidential sale? Winery and brand owners often want buyers screened and under a nondisclosure agreement before they see financials.
5. Who else is on the team? Ask which appraisers, vineyard managers, soil and water consultants and attorneys they bring in for due diligence.
6. Is the license current? Use the DRE link in the table, and note the responsible broker.

Our vineyards and wineries hub collects the deeper guides: vineyard valuation, due diligence, buying a vineyard, selling a vineyard and vineyard leases. For listings and local context, see Napa County vineyards for sale, Sonoma County vineyards for sale, our Sonoma appellations guide and the Napa Valley appellation guide. Agents for homes rather than working vineyards are listed in our Napa County and Sonoma County guides.

Vineyard and winery buying questions

Do I need a vineyard specialist to buy a home with vines?

If the vines produce income, yes: contracts, yields and farming costs need someone who handles them often. For a house with a few rows of hobby vines, an agent with rural experience in that town can usually cover it.

How are vineyards valued?

Appraisers use comparable sales and income, valuing land, planted vines, water and buildings separately. Parcel size matters a great deal: in Napa assessor records, small parcels carried far higher per-acre values than large ones.

Are vineyard prices falling?

Grape prices fell in both counties in 2025, and growers pulled about 2,700 bearing acres in Sonoma County in less than a year, which has given buyers more room to negotiate.

Can a foreign buyer purchase a vineyard?

Yes, but any foreign person who buys an interest in U.S. farmland has to file form FSA-153 with USDA within 90 days.

Sources & notes

• California DRE license lookup
• 2025 Grape Crush Report; Wine Industry Advisor; Index-Tribune; Napa County crop report; Sonoma County crop report
• Wine Business Journal; Farm Progress; CALASFMRA; Napa Valley Vintners; TTB: Crystal Springs; Sonoma County Winegrowers; Federal Register: West Sonoma Coast
• Napa County Grand Jury; Napa conservation regulations; VESCO; Downey Brand; TTB; AB 1798; R&T Code 211; Williamson Act FAQ; California ABC; USDA FSA; CNRA: groundwater plans

Market figures come from the CDFA and USDA grape crush reports and the Napa and Sonoma County crop reports; no Census table applies to this guide. Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.