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Napa Wineries to Visit/San Fran Traffic Question

Napa Wineries to Visit/San Fran Traffic Question

Old Aug 14th, 2014, 10:55 AM
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Napa Wineries to Visit/San Fran Traffic Question

My boyfriend and I will be visiting a friend in SanFran the weekend before labor day weekend then we're going to Sonoma from Sun-Wed to do the whole Napa/Sonoma thing. My question is about getting to and from SF-Sonoma and Sonoma to the airport.

This is what I'm thinking:

-SUNDAY: Rent a car in San Fran early morning then head to Sonomoa with a stop at the redwoods (most scenic route suggestions would be great!)

-MONDAY: visit 3-4 wineries in Napa. We're thinking maybe 2 tours and 1-2 just hanging out and tasting wines. I know we need resevations for many so hopefully I can get some insight. Here are the ones on my list, so thoughts about route or what to skip would be great.

*Pride Mountain: heard the views are great
*Castello di Amorosa: People rave about the castle... is it worth it?
*Sterling
*Cakebread
*Stag's Leap
*Rubicon
*Mumm: supposed to have neat art
*Frog's Leap
Round Pond (wine, olive oil, olives)
*Frank Family
*Hess: art, great wines

-TUESDAY: Enjoy a leisurely day in Sonoma. Maybe one winery and the plaza.

-WEDNESDAY: Leave Sonoma at around 8:00am and head to SFO to drop off our car/catch our 11:45 flight. Is that enough time?

Will this give us enough time? Suggestions on what to do and skip are very welcome as well.

Thanks so much, I'm so excited to visit!
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Old Aug 14th, 2014, 11:50 AM
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Planning a similar trip in Oct so I'll be interested to see what others suggest!
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Old Aug 14th, 2014, 12:10 PM
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Don't miss Hess.
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Old Aug 14th, 2014, 12:45 PM
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>> Leave Sonoma at around 8:00am and head to SFO to drop off our car/catch our 11:45 flight. Is that enough time?
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Old Aug 14th, 2014, 03:04 PM
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>>8:00am and head to SFO to drop off our car/catch our 11:45 flight. Is that enough time?
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Old Aug 14th, 2014, 03:39 PM
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>>My boyfriend and I will be visiting a friend in SanFran the weekend before labor day weekend
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Old Aug 14th, 2014, 03:58 PM
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oops -- sorry. I was thinking the wed after Labor day, not before.
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Old Aug 14th, 2014, 07:06 PM
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Pride and Cakebread are the only ones that I would get overly excited for (and Cakebread only to buy Rubyiat). Frog's Leap and Stag's Leap are good, but you can get them anywhere.

Ask yourself whether you are going to taste wines or go for scenery or something else. Something like Hess or Sterling seem pointless. You can get their wine at the supermarket. Personally, I go to Napa for the wine, not for art collections.
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Old Aug 29th, 2014, 07:49 AM
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TRIP RECAP!

I really loved both Napa (what I saw of the valley) and Sonoma (such a cute square, everyone was so nice and it was very laid back) and will definitely be planning a longer trip back. There is just so much to see. Even trying to do 4 vineyards in one day during our Napa day trip felt rushed. I can't imagine going on the tours that try and see 5-7 vineyards.

Anyways, recapping - we were staying with friends in SF the night the quake happened. My boyfriend and I slept through it (though I did have a dream we were on a boat or something) our friends/hosts did wake up and apparently the whole apartment was shaking then swaying, but they decided not to wake us.

When we woke up and saw all of the damage to downtown Napa we were very glad we had decided beforehand that we wanted to stay in downtown Sonoma rather than Napa. The hotel we had considered straying at in downtown Napa before we switched to wanting to stay in Sonoma would not have worked out and we would have had a much harder time getting into the city.

Another lucky thing was all of the vineyards we went to were not near the area hit by the quake (Pride, Beringer, Frank Family, Castello do Amorosa). We did stop at Sunshine grocery to pick up lunch and because they had lost power many cheeses were free.

We ended up hiring a driver and at $25/hr it was very much worth it. Our driver Mike was so knowledgeable about the area and all of the families who owned what. It was like a personal $25 guided tour.

Pride Mountain @ 11:15- The drive up made us even more glad we hired a driver - very steep and narrow and windy (especially coming from the flat land of Houston). We were worried it would be too foggy to take advantage of all the good views at first, but after we finished the cave tours the sun was out and it was amazing. Everywhere was just so beautiful. The tour was really great. Our guide had us taste the wines in various steps of the process and it really gave you a good insight to how different circumstances effect the wine. (warmer months, cooler months, blends, etc) A good mix of information, Q&A, and entertaining stories. We were lucky that one of the girls also on our tour was a guaranteed member (basically their wine club) so we got to taste some of their more rare and upscale selections. We loved this one reserve cab that we tasted, but couldn't take it home because the weather back home is too hot for shipping, so ended up taking a bottle of their Mistelle de Viognier back to the hotel. I don't care very much for sweeter wines, but this one was really nice.

Sunshine Grocery: Next we decided to pick up some food for a picnic lunch at Sunshine grocery. Our driver suggested Sunshine over others because the quality was good and it was half the price as some of the more tourist filled spots. We were glad he did. Because of the earthquake they had lost power and didn't have much available in terms of sandwich meat, so we settled on free cheese, very fresh fruit, and some great bread.

Beringer: This is one I was glad we saw, but wouldn't go back to. We did the reserve tasting and the wines were not very great, especially for the price points. We had a cab that was around $120/bottle and I have had so many other great cabs for less than half the price. The grounds were really lovely and we were able to find a nice spot to eat. I would not recommend it though. Just okay wines and a little overly manicured grounds for my taste.

Frank Family @ 3:30: I really, really loved this vineyard. We did the reserve tasting, and their reds are just so good. Although owned by a big Disney producer and exec the place had a very cozy charm to it. The family dog was wandering the grounds eating grapes. It was as if a friend or neighbor family had invited you over to their vineyard and I really liked that feel. I wished we could have stayed longer, but the boyfriend was set on seeing Castello di Amorosa. So we rushed over in hopes to get a tour before it closed at 6.

Castello di Amorosa: While it was cool to see this replica of a castle -very neat architecture- this was my least favorite. We didn't get there in time for the tour and I think that would have made it far more enjoyable. We paid extra to do the chocolate and wine pairing, but it really wasn't worth the extra money. A girl at the bar just handed us two tiny chocolates and said to eat one with the merlot and the other with ... some other of the wines. The wines were pretty bad and the chocolate pairing seemed like a joke and money grab. I can't imagine how much worse it would be on a crowded weekend visit.

The next day we spent exploring Sonoma Plaza. We ate a really nice breakfast on the back patio at Sunflower Caffe, went to a few of the tasting rooms, popped into a few shops, and had some great cheese at Vella Cheese Company. Then we took a leisurely drive back to SF through Muir Woods and saw the Muir Beach lookout then went over the Golden Gate back to SF. I would highly recommend this route back to the airport if you have time. The views were awe inspiring and it was another really enjoyable part of the trip.

Thanks so much to everyone for their suggestions and recommendations. They really made the trip easier and more enjoyable.
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