We Offer Custom Winery Tours

We treat our guests as more than just customers and we become friends. When you call us you will be speaking personally with Jean, not some secretary or sales person.

We carefully select three wineries for your itinerary based on the wines you wish to experience. If you wish to visit a specific winery you have visited in the past, we are happy to customize your tour to include them. If desired, your itinerary can include a two hour, seven course food and wine pairing lunch at a winery in either the Sonoma or Napa Valley. We know the logistics and are familiar with the time allotted for tasting at a given winery and the travel time to the following winery. We then make appointments accordingly so your day is smooth and not rushed. Our pricing is based on the number of people on the tour. There is a five-hour minimum Monday – Thursday and a six hour minimum Friday – Sunday. Wine tasting fees are not included.

We take great pride in offering special settings for wine tastings. We will take you to wineries that are considered “hidden gems”. With many of the wineries their wines are only available direct from the winery, and your host may be the winery owner or winemaker. We also work with many of the top hotel concierge in Napa and Sonoma Valleys. Give us a call and experience a wine tour like you have never had before.

To view our wine tours click on “Wine Tours We Offer” for itineraries and pricing.

Private Wine Labeling

We have the availability to make you your own personal wine label for your wines with some of our amazing winemakers. We will provide the size requirements and all we will need is a color pdf file of your label design. Pricing is based on the wines selected, number of labels needed and shipping. Contact us for more information.

Chez Thomas

Unique Experiences with Custom Winery Tours in California

We treat our guests as more than just customers and we become friends. When you call us you will be speaking personally with Jean, not some secretary or sales person. 

Personalize Your Itinerary

For travelers who wish to discover new tastes, we will meticulously select three wineries for your itinerary based on the wines you wish to experience. You can also request to visit specific wineries in the area, and we’ll be happy to arrange a trip for you! 

Our itinerary customization does not end with just choosing wineries to visit. From a relaxing wine-sipping trip while enjoying the breathtaking landscape of the locale to a two-hour, seven-course food and wine pairing lunch in Sonoma or Napa Valley, our expertise in time management and logistics can give you the experience you’ve been looking for. 

After selecting destinations and experiences you want to include in your trip, we will make appointments accordingly so your day goes smoothly and is not rushed. Please take note that our pricing is based on the number of people joining the tour; wine tasting fees are not included. There is a five-hour minimum on Mondays – Thursdays and a six-hour minimum on Fridays – Sundays.  

Discover Hidden Gems

We take great pride in offering unique settings for wine tastings. Our trips will take you to boutique wineries that are not usually visited by other winery tours in the area. Not only will we give you a tour of some of the most exclusive wineries, but you’ll also get the chance to be toured by the winery owner or the winemakers themselves. We also work with many of the top hotel concierges in Napa and Sonoma Valleys to give you the best experience for your visit. 

View Winery Tours We Offer

Private Wine Labeling

Nothing beats a personalized souvenir from an unforgettable tour. You can take home the best wine from our amazing winemakers with your own customized label! Simply send us a color PDF of your label design according to the size requirement provided, and we’ll do the rest from there.  

The pricing for this service is based on the wines selected, the number of labels needed, and shipping. Contact us for more information about our wine labeling service. 

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Lesley Quinlan

Lesley Quinlan

A native of Sonoma, and Captain Steve’s daughter, Lesley grew up in the wine country. In college she was a four time All American in professional basketball, competing in Germany, New Zealand, and Portugal. Lesley joined the family business after a career in the food service industry with wine country establishments. Being very familiar with local wineries she would recommend wines to clients to enjoy with their meals.

Lance Ruttledge

Lance Ruttledge

After a 20 year career in law enforcement, Lance changed directions and has been in wine tours for over 23 years. Having lived in the area for many years he was familiar with the wineries in the valleys. He is also a member of the Napa Valley Tour Guide Guild, a group of knowledgeable wine specialists that are “step-on” bus guides hired for corporate events and by large tour companies. After all these years he still loves what he is doing.

Dan Roseland

Dan Roseland

Dan had a 50 year career with General Motors in Detroit and owned a Chevrolet dealership for 19 of those years. Dan was always a “wine guy” drinking wine among the many Detroit beer drinkers. He moved to Sonoma after retirement in 2006. Dan has known Steve and Jean for 18 years and started hosting wine tours for them. He credits Steve and Jean for teaching him about the industry, the wine making process and the wineries.

David Quist

David Quist

David had a 35 year career in the capital medical equipment industry, “capital” meaning  equipment starting at $100,000 or more, and retired as Vice President of a global capital equipment company. Throughout his career he learned about wines while entertaining doctors, as they would order the wines with dinners. Through his studies, David’s personal home wine cellar peaked at 750 bottles. With his knowledge of wine, David began hosting wine tours for several predominant wine tour companies in the Valley. He now has over 11 years creating and hosting private wine tours.

Tommy Sturtevant

Tommy Sturtevant

Tommy is Jean’s son and he had a career in the military and as a police officer in Portland, Oregon. In 2017 he moved back to Sonoma to help his parents with the wine tour business. He is currently in training working for his Sommelier level 2 certification. He interned at Cakebread Cellars and A Rafanelli Winery for several years. Tommy also works for Jam Cellars and hosts wine tours.

Mike Zimmerman

Mike Zimmerman

Mike is a native of San Francisco with family roots in New Orleans. He had a career in information technology and when his “tech job” moved to India in 2009, he decided to forsake Mumbai and remain in Napa. Looking for a more stress free career Mike turned to the wine tour industry in 2010, and began working for several top wine tour companies, creating itineraries for clients and hosting wine tours in the Napa and Sonoma Valleys. He has developed a personal relationship with many of the winery owners and winemakers.

Tom Griffith

Tom Griffith

Tom had a 37 year career in marketing and advertising, owning a full service advertising agency for 20 years. He is also a professional chef and owned a catering company for 25 years. Today Tom has almost 20 years of experience conducting customized wine tours. He has been a judge and panel member judging professional wine competitions. He is an author and instructor teaching classes in proper wine tasting techniques. He has authored the Simplified Wine Tasting Kit, and the Insider’s Guide to Napa Wineries, and is currently working on the Insider’s Guide to Sonoma Wineries, and the second edition of the Napa guide.

Jean DuBois

Jean DuBois

Jean is a native of Maine where she got her degree in business management. She went on to owning a boutique store on the main street of her hometown while having a full-time career in accounting and operations. While visiting Sonoma, Jean went on a wine tour hosted by Steve. They hit it off and several months later, Jean moved to Sonoma and became Vice President of Operations for a high-technology company. Eventually, they were married and founded Ultimate Wine Tours together in 2014. Today, when you contact us you will be speaking directly with Jean. She creates the itinerary for you based on your preferences for wines. You will have Jean’s personal cell phone number so you can contact her directly.

Steve DuBois

Steve DuBois

Steve’s career in the restaurant industry including being a partner 11 fast food restaurants and Stim’s BBQ and Catering, which he made very successful for 11 years. It came time for a new direction in life and Steve pursued an education in wines, finishing in the top of the class. He then began doing wine tours for local wine tour companies in 2010, where he met and formed personal relationship with the winery owners and winemakers. With his business background it was a natural transition to own a wine tour company and he founded Ultimate Wine Tours in 2014. Steve’s philosophy is to have fun in whatever you are doing, and it has been said that he “has a Ph.D. in fun.”