In Sonoma’s Alexander Valley, where tasting rooms buzz and new vintages race to market, Karin and Justin Warnelius-Miller are in no hurry. At Garden Creek Vineyards, the couple ages their wines for years before letting them go.

In a region where most wineries release wines within a year or two, the Warnelius-Millers have built their work around patience, letting time shape their wines.

“Our mantra has always been to wait until our wines are ready,” Karin said at a recent media lunch in Manhattan. “Four years for the Chardonnay, six for the Pinot, and at least eight for the Cabernet. For us, integrity is waiting until the wine has become what it’s meant to be: euphoric, seamless, and harmonious.”

A Story That Began Before They Met

The roots of Garden Creek Ranch stretch back more than half a century, to a meeting between their parents.

When Karin was a little girl, her family immigrated from Sweden. Soon after arriving, her father spotted a job posting for Garden Creek Ranch at the Swedish Consulate in San Francisco. The note had been placed there by Justin’s mother, also from Sweden. Before long, Karin’s father apprenticed with Justin’s father, learning the art of winegrowing. Their mothers quickly became close friends, bonding over traditional Scandinavian dishes made with fruit, vegetables, and meat raised right on the property.

Karin’s family settled nearby at Viking Ranch, where her father started his own winery, Warnelius Vineyards. Justin also grew up surrounded by the vines at Garden Creek.

By the time he was ten, Justin was already driving tractors and repairing equipment. And it was literally a hands-on education in farming: at that age, he lost part of his thumb while connecting grape trailers. Fortunately, his mother found the severed tip, and a doctor was able to sew it back on, though he’s still missing a chunk of his thumb. Today, Karin jokes that any good farmer is missing a piece of their limbs.

Years later, after college, Karin needed a place to stay. Justin had a spare room. “We just fell madly in love,” she says. Within months, they were making wine together, and today they’re celebrating their 25th vintage.

**Justin and Karin Warnelius-Miller.** *Photo: @gardencreekvineyards*

Two Properties, One Vision

Garden Creek Ranch sits on 100 acres of Sonoma’s Alexander Valley terrain. “We’re at the top east of Alexander Valley,” Justin explains, “and it’s so high that it holds the marine layer.” The effect is dramatic: “At night, when the sun drops, it’s 15 degrees cooler where our Cabernet is grown than where we live.” The geological diversity is equally striking. “We’ve got seven different soil types on the property, from compressed volcanic ash, likely from Mount St. Helena, to old seabed cobblestone,” Justin says. “You’ll crack open sandstone cobble and find seashells inside.”

That complexity finds its way into the wines. At lunch, we tasted two Garden Creek Alexander Valley Chardonnays: 2019 and 2021. The 2019 is fuller-bodied and creamy textured, with fragrant citrus blossom, honeysuckle, peach, and Meyer lemon notes, and a long, savory finish. The 2021 is leaner with racy acidity and a multitude of fresh fruit flavors: white peach, nectarine, lemon, and apricot.

Garden Creek Vineyard's flagship red, Tesserae, takes its name from the small pieces used in mosaics and is a blend that changes with each vintage. “The mosaic includes the soil types, the grapes, the location, the climate, my parents, Justin’s family, and the Gonzalez family,” said Karin. The 2018 Tesserae, (75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, 5% Malbec, and 6% Petit Verdot) embodies exactly that: structured and complex with blackberry and cassis and a hint of tobacco leaf. This is a wine built for the long haul, but drinking beautifully now, in its seventh year.

**The wine with a postcard of its vineyards.** *Photo: Lisa Denning*

In 2015, they expanded into Mendocino County, launching a Pinot Noir under the WarneliusMiller label. The idea had taken root a decade earlier, when they began looking for land outside of Alexander Valley to both challenge themselves and build a broader legacy for their children and, one day, their grandchildren.

“We wanted to experience a completely different appellation, climate, and terroir, but also add to what we’d already built,” Justin said. Their search led them to Mendocino’s Anderson Valley, where in 2006 they bought land and soon after leased and revived the historic Golden Fleece vineyard, first planted in 1971 but long abandoned. The hillside was so steep and overgrown that replanting required crawler tractors to navigate the terrain. “When we’re picking, the tubs will just slide right down the hill,” Karin laughed.

At lunch, the 2019 WärneliusMiller Pinot Noir was just as Justin had promised: far from delicate, with plenty of personality: black cherries and plums on the fragrant nose, with earthy notes keeping it grounded. The silky texture made it an easy match with both steak and sea bass, showing depth without ever taking over the dish.

The People Who Make It Work

For all their focus on land, the Warnelius-Millers are equally committed to the people who farm it. Central to their operation is the Gonzalez family, who have worked with them for four generations.

“The same hands that planted these original vineyards with my parents still tend to them today,” Karin says. “After the 2019 fires, we wouldn’t be in business if it weren’t for them helping us save the entire property, all the structures, and the barrels of wine.”

That loyalty runs both ways. The Warnelius-Millers house every member of their vineyard crew, along with their families, continuing a tradition Justin’s parents began in the 1960s.

Looking Ahead

With their daughter Elsa now studying viticulture and enology at Cal Poly, the next generation is preparing to carry the torch. For now, the Warnelius-Millers remain focused on the long game: farming with care, crafting wines built to last, and nurturing the relationships that sustain them.

Garden Creek produces just 2,000 cases a year, sold mainly through its 4,500-member mailing list. Tastings are by appointment only, offered exclusively to members. “You get two hours of our time,” Karin says. “It’s always the two of us, or one of us, in the vineyard. You’re with the owner, with the winemaker.”

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They also bring the experience to their customers, hosting private dinners across the country. “If you’re a customer and you’ve got a dozen friends, we’ll fly in, spend a weekend, and do a dinner with you,” Karin says. “That connection is what we live for.”

In a region that often chases quick turnarounds, Garden Creek offers something different: a slow and steady approach. And for those willing to wait, the reward is in every glass.