Arista Winery

Arista Winery was founded in 2002 by Al and Janis McWilliams, longtime wine enthusiasts who released their first commercial vintage in 2003. In 2004 the family purchased a 36-acre property on Westside Road near Healdsburg in the Middle Reach of the Russian River Valley, sandwiched between two of the appellation's most storied addresses, Williams Selyem and Rochioli. The McWilliams family worked with the late vineyard manager Ulises Valdez to plant the estate starting in 2006, eventually establishing seven acres of Pinot Noir and one acre of Chardonnay around a new winery completed in 2018. The vineyard heart of the estate is Harper's Rest, a two-acre Pinot Noir block on alluvial gravels near the southeastern edge of the property, named for Ruben Harper, a pioneer who homesteaded the land in the mid-1800s. A Japanese-inspired garden and tasting room became the visitor signature.

• Al and Janis McWilliams founded Arista in 2002; first commercial release came in 2003
• 36-acre Westside Road estate purchased in 2004, between Williams Selyem and Rochioli in the Middle Reach of Russian River Valley
• Ulises Valdez led the 2006 plantings: seven acres of Pinot Noir and one acre of Chardonnay; new winery built in 2018
• Harper's Rest is the estate's flagship two-acre Pinot Noir block on alluvial gravels, named for pioneer Ruben Harper

In 2012, Al and Janis McWilliams sold the business to their sons Mark and Ben, completing a generational handoff that had been in motion as the brothers grew up working at the winery. Al retired at the end of the 2012 vintage. With ownership in place, Mark and Ben hired Matt Courtney as winemaker at the start of 2013; Courtney came to Arista after eight years at Marcassin Winery, where he had worked under Helen Turley. The brothers' stated vision was to elevate Arista's profile as a small-lot, single-vineyard producer rather than to grow volume. Annual production remained at approximately 6,000 cases, almost entirely Pinot Noir and Chardonnay with a small Zinfandel program. The Japanese-inspired garden continued to anchor a hospitality program that became a Westside Road tasting destination.

• Al and Janis sold Arista to sons Mark and Ben in 2012; Al retired at the end of the 2012 vintage
• Matt Courtney joined as winemaker at the start of 2013 after eight years at Marcassin Winery
• Production stayed at approximately 6,000 cases per year through the second-generation era
• Hospitality emphasis built around the Japanese-inspired garden and appointment-only tastings

Arista's vineyard map deserves careful reading because two well-known names sit on opposite sides of the estate-versus-grower line. The Westside Road property is the actual estate, and Harper's Rest is its flagship Pinot Noir block, supported by adjacent plantings done with Ulises Valdez. Toboni Vineyard, by contrast, is a separate 15-acre Pinot Noir site owned by Joe and Mary Toboni and located near the intersection of Olivet Lane and River Road, a different part of the Russian River Valley. The Tobonis are a fourth-generation Sonoma family; Arista bottled a Toboni vineyard-designated Pinot Noir but did not own that vineyard. The program also drew on other named grower sites for single-vineyard bottlings, including parcels such as Banfield and Mononi. The distinction matters: when Arista sold the 36-acre Westside Road estate in 2025, it was Harper's Rest and the home plantings that changed hands, not Toboni.

• Westside Road estate is the actual home property, anchored by the two-acre Harper's Rest Pinot Noir block on alluvial gravels
• Toboni Vineyard is a 15-acre grower site owned by Joe and Mary Toboni near Olivet Lane and River Road; Arista bottled the fruit but never owned the vineyard
• Additional vineyard-designate bottlings sourced from named Russian River Valley grower sites including Banfield and Mononi
• Zinfandel was drawn from older-vine sources in the broader Russian River area

Under Matt Courtney, the Arista style sat in the precise rather than extracted corner of Russian River Valley Pinot Noir. Single-vineyard bottlings made up the core of the program, with each site fermented and aged separately to read the differences. Pinot Noir typically saw 14 to 18 months in French oak with a measured share of new wood, calibrated to support fruit rather than mask it; whole-cluster inclusion varied by vintage and site. Chardonnays were barrel-fermented in French oak with lees aging for textural depth, balanced against the cool-climate acidity that defines Westside Road. Across the range the aim was aromatic clarity, fine-grained tannin in the reds, and a sense of place rather than a uniform house signature.

• Matt Courtney's program emphasized site-specific Pinot Noir bottlings with restrained new oak
• Pinot Noir: 14 to 18 months in French oak; whole-cluster inclusion varied by vintage and vineyard
• Chardonnay: barrel-fermented with lees aging for texture; cool-climate acidity preserved
• House signature pursued aromatic precision and fine-grained tannin rather than extraction

In February 2025 the McWilliams family sold the 36-acre Westside Road estate, including the winery building, hospitality center, and home plantings, to Chris Underwood, CEO of Young's Holdings, for a recorded $25.35 million. Underwood announced plans to use the estate as the home of his new Jonive brand starting with the 2025 vintage, and Harper's Rest Winery was established at the property with Matt Courtney named consulting winemaker. The McWilliams brothers retained the Arista brand and continued to source fruit from grower vineyards. The arrangement lasted less than a year. In January 2026, Mark and Ben announced that the Arista brand would also wind down, naming the 2024 vintage as the last Arista release; the brothers had concluded that continuing the brand on its own would have required taking on debt or new partners, neither of which felt right after thirty years of family ownership.

• February 2025: 36-acre Westside Road estate sold to Chris Underwood (CEO, Young's Holdings) for $25.35 million
• Underwood's Jonive brand began using the estate from the 2025 vintage; Harper's Rest Winery established with Matt Courtney as consulting winemaker
• McWilliams brothers initially retained the Arista brand and continued bottling from external sources
• January 2026: Mark and Ben announced the Arista brand would wind down, with the 2024 vintage as its final release