Rosenthal Estate to close vineyard tasting experience after Palisades Fire comeback
By The Malibu Times · Sun Sep 27 2026
The Rosenthal Malibu Estate is winding down operations and has announced that Saturday, Sept. 26, will be the final day of its Vineyard Experience, bringing an end to public tastings at the Newton Canyon property where it welcomed guests after the Palisades Fire destroyed its Pacific Coast Highway wine bar and patio.
The winery lists the final tasting hours as 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on its website. The announcement comes just over a year after Rosenthal opened the vineyard to visitors, offering a new gathering place after the loss of its longtime beachfront tasting room in January 2025.
At an August 2025 soft opening, guests gathered beneath the estate’s oak trees for wine and live music. As The Malibu Times reported at the time, the occasion also brought back two familiar pieces of the PCH venue: a fragment of the Berlin Wall once displayed there and the oversized chair that had stood outside. Both were saved after the fire.
The move to the vineyard gave visitors a chance to experience the place where Rosenthal’s wines began. George Rosenthal planted the first vines in 1987, establishing what the winery describes as Malibu’s first vineyard. Its 28 acres of vines sit in Newton Canyon, about 1,450 feet above sea level, within the Malibu-Newton Canyon American Viticultural Area. The wider property encompasses about 250 acres.
Rosenthal had built a business career long before he made wine. In 1955, he founded Raleigh Enterprises as a small residential contracting company. It grew into a group of businesses that includes the Sunset Marquis hotel in West Hollywood and film and television operations. According to the winery’s account of its history, tasting his first Malibu vintage, a 1991 Cabernet Sauvignon, was a particularly meaningful achievement for him.
The estate had endured fire before. The Malibu Times reported that the Woolsey Fire scorched much of the property’s grounds, although its tasting rooms survived. The Palisades Fire later destroyed the separate wine bar and patio on PCH. Rosenthal’s opening at the vineyard in 2025 marked a return for a business many visitors had known through its coastal tasting room.
The winery has described Sept. 26 as the final day of its public vineyard experience but has not posted details explaining what will happen to its vines, wine production, or existing wine club afterward. Its online shop continues to list wines. The announced closing is therefore clear for public tastings; the future of the vineyard and wine labels has not been detailed publicly.