RAEN Winery

Wine Grown at the Edge of the Pacific

RAEN, pronounced "rain," was founded in 2013 by fourth-generation winegrowers Carlo and Dante Mondavi. The name expands to Research in Agriculture and Enology Naturally and reflects the brothers' view that wine begins as rain, filtered through rock and soil before becoming fruit. Their father Tim Mondavi's early work with California Pinot Noir and their grandfather Robert Mondavi's farming legacy shaped the project, but RAEN is deliberately focused on the cool, rugged western edge of Sonoma County rather than Napa Valley Cabernet.

Coastal Vineyards

The core sites sit between Freestone-Occidental and Fort Ross-Seaview, where Pacific wind, summer fog, elevation, and fractured marine soils slow ripening. Bodega Vineyard is a steep, high-density Pinot Noir planting farmed entirely by hand. Sea Field is a 4.8-acre monopole roughly 1,000 feet above the Pacific on ancient seabed soils. Pacific Rock follows the same coastal ridge farther north, while Charles Ranch supplies Chardonnay from old vines planted in 1981 at approximately 1,200 feet. Royal St. Robert and Lady Marjorie bring together selected coastal parcels to express the wider western Sonoma Coast.

Farming and Cellar Work

RAEN describes its farming as beyond organic and treats biodiversity as part of wine quality rather than a separate environmental program. Carlo Mondavi and the team launched the Monarch Challenge in 2016 to advocate for farming practices that protect pollinators and broader vineyard ecosystems. Pinot Noir is commonly fermented with whole clusters and native yeast, then bottled without fining; Chardonnay is whole-cluster pressed and natively fermented in barrel. Winemaker Melanie McIntyre works with Carlo, Dante, and the vineyard team to keep the wines transparent to their coastal sites.

Planning a Visit

RAEN does not operate as a conventional walk-in tasting room. Tastings are arranged directly with the winery by email, and the limited wines are released annually in the fall through the mailing list and RAEN Society. Society membership provides an automatic allocation and access to library and large-format bottles, while mailing-list allocations remain first-come, first-served. Contact info@raenwinery.com to ask about the current tasting format and availability before planning a Sonoma Coast itinerary.