New estate offerings spanning pickleball, Merlot education, family-hosted dinners, and an Italian-inspired dance party reflect the Leonardini family’s longstanding approach to Napa Valley hospitality
June 9, 2026 (St. Helena, CA) — Whitehall Lane Winery is thrilled to announce a series of new estate experiences designed to make Napa Valley more welcoming, uniquely accessible, and engaging to a broader range of guests. From vineyard-side pickleball and educational Merlot tastings to family-hosted dinners and unique culinary partnerships, the new offerings create fresh ways to experience the winery while staying true to the Leonardini family’s longstanding belief that wine should be enjoyed without formality or barriers to entry.
That philosophy has guided Whitehall Lane since 1993, when Tom Leonardini Sr. left a San Francisco career behind, purchased the Rutherford estate, and opened a tasting room with one operating principle: great wine should not require a velvet rope. More than 30 years later, Whitehall Lane Winery remains one of the few wineries in Napa Valley where guests can walk in without an appointment and stay as long as the visit warrants. Today, the winery is putting language to what it has always practiced, welcoming guests to “Come As You Are” with these new estate experiences and ‘on the road’ offerings extending that founding philosophy to a new generation of guests.
“My father built this winery with an open door, and for more than three decades and two generations we’ve welcomed guests the same way, whether someone planned their visit months ago or pulled into the driveway on a Tuesday afternoon,” said Katie Leonardini, second-generation proprietor and managing member. “That approach has shaped everything here, from how we host people to how we think about wine. ‘Come As You Are’ gives language to something we’ve quietly believed all along, and these new experiences are an exciting way for us to share it with both longtime collectors and guests discovering Whitehall Lane for the first time.”
New experiences and offerings include:
Sip, Serve, Smash: Pickleball Among the Vines
Whitehall Lane has introduced Sip, Serve, Smash available as of June 1, a pickleball and tasting experience that puts a playful spin on the traditional Napa Valley visit. Set among the vines with sweeping mountain views, the winery’s single professionally designed court pairs morning play with a guided tasting of Whitehall Lane’s Winery Exclusive Flight, creating a more social, energetic way to experience the valley. Offered Sunday through Friday for groups of two to six guests, the two-hour experience includes private pickleball from 10AM – 11AM, followed by the tasting and a seasonal cheese pairing from 11AM – 12PM, with optional lunch add-ons available from Oakville Grocery for guests who wish to extend their visit. The experience is $85 per person, available by reservation, and limited to guests 21 and older who must sign a liability waiver prior to play.
Perks for FIFA World Cup Travelers
Available now through July, Whitehall Lane is providing FIFA World Cup ticket holders with an exclusive wine country detour worth adding to their weekend lineup (especially once the game-day beers run out). As part of a game-changing promotion with Napa Valley Vintners, FIFA ticket holders will receive 50% off Whitehall Lane’s Winery Exclusive Flight, which includes five limited-production wines paired with a small cheese accompaniment. The experience is designed to easily fit into travelers’ busy game-weekend itineraries.
100% Estate: Whitehall Lane × Lonohana Estate Chocolate Partnership
Whitehall Lane’s partnership with Lonohana Estate Chocolate brings one of Hawaii’s most beloved single-origin chocolate makers to the Rutherford tasting room. Founded on Oahu’s North Shore and crafted using 100% Hawaiian estate grown cacao with no additives, preservatives, soy, or emulsifiers, Lonohana’s chocolate is made with the same philosophy Whitehall Lane applies to its wines: start with exceptional estate fruit, intervene as little as possible, and let the terroir speak.
Like Whitehall Lane’s unfined and unfiltered red wines, the partnership celebrates products presented with transparency and minimal manipulation, allowing guests to experience both as they were intended to be enjoyed.
Available for purchase in the tasting room as of June 1, the partnership introduces guests to the parallels between estate cacao and estate wine production, from farming philosophy and fermentation practices to purity of fruit expression.
Under the Valley Sun: A Tuscan Wine Lunch – August 8th, 12:00-3:00PM
This is not your Nonna’s party: Whitehall Lane will host an Italian-inspired afternoon of wine, food, and live music duringUnder the Valley Sun on August 8 in their Garden Pavilion. The alfresco lunch channels the relaxed spirit of the Tuscan countryside with Italian fare, a live DJ and an open wine bar pouring Whitehall Lane wines. Tickets are available for $125 per person, and $100 for club members.
The Merlot Revival: Tasting Experience and Seminar
The Merlot Revival brings guests into Whitehall Lane’s generational commitment to Rutherford Merlot through a guided tasting experience led by Director of Winemaking Jason Moulton. Launching September 2026, the experience will move through library vintages, current releases, and barrel samples, offering guests a rare look at the evolution of Merlot at Whitehall Lane. An educational seminar will accompany the tasting program, tracing Merlot’s resurgence in Napa Valley and Whitehall Lane’s continued investment in the varietal long before its recent comeback conversation.
“Whitehall Lane never stopped believing in Merlot, and we never adjusted our winemaking to chase trends,” said Jason Moulton. “Our reds – including Merlot – are bottled unfined and unfiltered. We want them to arrive in the glass as they came from the vineyard: structure, texture, and character intact. Rutherford produces remarkably complete Merlot, and after decades of commitment, we have the library to prove it. Now we’re opening it.”
Family Table: Dinner with Whitehall Lane
The Family Table is a new dinner series hosted personally by members of the Leonardini family, bringing intimate table gatherings to both the Whitehall Lane estate and select cities including Los Angeles, San Diego, Scottsdale, and Dallas. Extending the experience beyond Napa Valley and “on the road,” Family Table is designed as an opportunity for guests to connect directly with the Leonardini’s, offering an insider’s look into the family, wines, and hospitality philosophy behind Whitehall Lane. Each dinner will welcome fresh faces and existing members, pairing current releases and library wines with seasonal menus in a relaxed communal setting.
Additional details and booking information for all programming will roll out throughout summer and fall 2026 at whitehalllane.com.
About Whitehall Lane Winery
Whitehall Lane Winery, established in 1979 and family-owned and operated by the Leonardini family since 1993, is a Napa Green-certified estate located in the heart of the Rutherford AVA. With more than 150 acres of 100% estate-grown fruit across Napa and Sonoma counties, the winery is led by second- and third-generation family members focused on producing small-lot wines rooted in estate vineyards and longstanding farming practices. Known for its Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Sauvignon Blanc, Whitehall Lane maintains a hospitality philosophy centered on accessibility and direct guest experience, remaining one of the few Napa Valley wineries where walk-in tastings have always been welcomed. Under winemaker Jason Moulton, the winery emphasizes site-driven winemaking, including single-block fermentations, clonal selection, and sustainable vineyard practices such as no-till farming and sheep grazing. The portfolio includes estate-grown wines across classic Napa Valley varietals, produced with minimal intervention and a focus on purity of fruit expression. The tasting room is located at 1563 St. Helena Highway, St. Helena, CA. whitehalllane.com.
