NAPA, CALIFORNIA.
HIT LIST.
PLACES TO STAY:
CALISTOGA MOTOR LODGE
AUGERGE HOTELS
TO DOS:
VINEYARD HOPPING
SHOPPING IN TOWN ALONG THE WAY (Yountville, St. Helena, Calistoga, Napa)
RESTAURANT HOPPING
SPA DAY
TOP VINEYARDS:
AONAIR
ALPHA OMEGA
DAVIS ESTATES (WITH FOOD PAIRING)
ZEITGEIST
RESTAURANTS:
BRASSWOOD
PRESS
BELLA BAKERY
PICO BAR, IN SOLAGE AUBERGE HOTEL
EVANGELINE
ANGELE
COOK ST. HELENA
THE ITINERARY. DAY BY DAY.
Day 1
Travel day, flew in, got a rental car in San Fran, and drove up to our hotel the Calistoga Motor Lodge and Inn (10/10 recommend this hotel for stay). We ate dinner at the restaurant there Fleetwood, which had great pizza, and was super convenient after a long day of travel. Rental Car is a must. We used Fox Rental, it was inexpensive and had bad reviews, but we had no problems at all.
Day 2
Today was full of wine tours. We visited the following:
Aonair 10:30
This one came on a recommendation from a friend. It's super high up in the hills, and has a tremendous view of the vineyards and mountains. We learned A LOT on this tour- got to see the caves, they have an amazing porch with a fire and Adirondack chairs & a hidden whiskey and sports memorabilia room. Also the wine was an A+.
Lunch: Brasswood 12:45
This was one of the most enjoyable lunches I have had. I probably will say that for everything that follows because we ate really well on this trip. But, this is a definite stopping point, and convenient to all of the wineries for the rest of the day. They have a bakery here, that we didn't get to but would be a good spot for coffee/ pastries in the mornings! Must order- mozarella, brussel sprout salad, duck Bolognese, and the Herb infused pappardelle and short rib sugo.
Charles Krug 2:30
We did the tour and tasting at this one. This is definitely a larger, commercialized vineyard, but still really pretty, and we still enjoyed it. It has good history, so a good tour to go on to learn a lot about wine/ and the vineyard itself. The wine was good at the tasting. But, if you are limiting the places you are going to, we suggest going to some of the others before this one. We had the best time at the smaller scale vineyards.
Alpha Omega 4:30
This is a must. This was our favorite wine on the trip, which is saying something. Based on this list, you will notice we tried quite a variety. On the expensive side, but totally worth it. It also has a beautiful setting for sitting outside and enjoying the view/ wine.
Dinner: Press restaurant. 7pm
https://www.pressnapavalley.com/
I drank a small amount of too much wine during the day, but this restaurant is great. I'd recommend doing it on a night where you don't have three tastings. But, it was still spectacular. We got the streak and the chicken dish, as well as the risotto gnudi, and the Lobster bisque. Lobster Bisque was the highlight for me.
Day 3
Bella Bakery- downtown Calistoga. We started most days getting a coffee and pastry from this place.
Schramsberg 10
We did the traditional tasting here. However due to the weather, we lucked out and had to have it indoors, so we got to do it in the caves. The caves were a really cool thing to see. Very cool to see, so if you don't bank on it raining, I suggest booking a tour that you get to see them.
We had some free time to go walk around downtown/ shop. All of the towns that you pass through have really cute shops (Yountville, St. Helena, Calistoga, Napa).
Tank Garage Winery in between. We stopped here just to check it out and have a glass. Really cool spot with cool wines. More artsy setting in an old gas station. Across from this spot is a BBQ joint we didn't get to try, but it looked and spelled great every time we passed by.
Davis Estates 2pm
https://www.davisestates.com/shop/?view=products&slug=current-releases
This was our favorite one. Great wine & great location. We did the food and wine pairing which is a must. We loved this one so much we became members. It was just the most beautiful setting overlooking a bunch of vineyards. Highly recommend this as a top one to visit.
Chateau Montelena 3:30
There is a lot of history on this one. In fact, it's what put Napa on the map for wine. For that reason, it's worth going. But. I honestly didn't love the tasting in comparison to the others we visited. It's just very touristy, and I tend to like the smaller, more intimate tastings. Nonetheless, it's still beautiful and enjoyable, just the lowest on my list of the ones we visited.
Dinner: Picobar at the Solage hotel.
Okay, so this place got added to our repertoire from a recommendation of someone along the trip. And thank god for her. This place was fantastic. The hotel itself is amazing, expensive to stay, but totally worth visiting the restaurants. This was a nice change of pace from the wine- had a great mezcal margarita. Must get menu items- the corn, the whipped avocado (basically guac on steroids), and the quesadilla. Great setting overlooking the pool.
Day 3
Breakfast: Evangeline for brunch.
This day was Matt's birthday so we had to start it off right with birthday brunch. We also took a break from the vineyards/ tastings this day, which was perfect timing. Great eggs Benedict and bloody Maria's. Also, they probably had the best ice cream I've ever had (and I've had a lot!) that they gave Matt for his bday.
We swung into The Charter Oak based on a recommendation from a friend. This place was really cool. Looks like awesome food based on what we saw coming out of the kitchen if you need another food spot. Totally cool atmosphere.
Spa. We spent the afternoon at our hotel. There are a few mineral pools on site, and a relaxed pool environment for hanging. So we did that, and each got a massage. The spa facility was really adorable. The tub/ mud bath station was closed due to covid, but our service, and the steam room were great. This was a perfect way to rejuvenate and break up all of the wine tastings. You will need it!
Dinner: Angele 7:30pm
https://www.angelerestaurant.com/
We went here for Matt's bday dinner. Really cute French restaurant. I would recommend! Our service was a little dicey, but I think they were just very swamped and covid effects for finding workers. But, overall the patio had heaters and was super nice, and then food was great! Also, our first glance into Napa. We would recommend visiting, but staying the majority of your time in the northern part of Napa (St. Helena & Calistoga).
Day 4
Zeitgeist Cellars 10:30am
https://www.heronhouseyountville.com/
This one came as a recommendation from a friend and was GREAT. The heron house is a small tasting room with a variety of wineries available for tasting. We met specifically with the winemaker for Zeitgeist Cellars, as that is what we were interested in. But, it looked like they had a lot of others as well. Wines were great, and Mark was great as well. Definitely a must on the list.
Domaine Carneros 1:30pm
https://www.domainecarneros.com/
This one was really cool. But again, much more commercialized, than the smaller wineries. If you do go, I suggest making sure you sit outside on the patio. The front patio didn't look too appealing when we were there, and on the side you get to overlook the vineyards. It's a much better view. We just did the normal tasting here. It was mediocre.
We were going to go the Prisoner afterwards, but had decided we had enough on the tasting and wanted to enjoy our dinner. So, we just drove around and did some shopping and exploring instead.
Dinner Cook St. Helena 6:30
Okay, so this was our second time at this place. On our trip from Seattle to San Fran a few years ago, we stopped here for dinner and remembered loving it, so we decided we'd give it another go. This was UNREAL. It's a must do. The food is incredible, and the place is super small and cozy. Matt got the gnocchi that was out of this world. But, seriously, you can't go wrong with anything on the menu. I would gladly go back again when I am in the area again.
Day 5
Travel Day home.
We decided to head out early and take our time heading back to SF. We drove through Sonoma to check that out. My initial impression was that I liked the Northern Napa area a little bit better. But, still willing to and explore Sonoma again in the future.
EXTRAS FOR NEXT TIME.
- Berringer. They have a tour of the grounds you can do, so you don't need to do a full tasting, you can just walk around and see it. This was quite the complex. Looked really beautiful.
- Silver Oak and Twomey- Wine we enjoy at home, but didn't make it to the vineyard
- Decoy- Also wine we enjoy at home, but didn't do a tasting at
- Ovid Napa https://ovidnapavalley.com/
- Theorum https://www.theoremvineyards.com/
- Covert Estate https://www.covertestate.com/
- Hot Air Balloon Rides https://nvaloft.com/balloon-rides-flight-options/
- Bike tours https://napavalleybiketours.com/self-guided-bike-tour/
- Farmstead at Longmeadow ranch for dinner
- Bouchon - Thomas Keller Restaurant
- French Laundry. Very high end, impossible to get a reservation, but worth a shot if you're into food.
-Cool company for tours/ traveling around if you're in the Sonoma area https://www.bohohwy.com/
= Simi and Scribe wineries will be ventures for next time in Sonoma.