San Francisco/Wine country advice

Old Jul 16th, 2006, 05:09 PM
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San Francisco/Wine country advice

Hello. We are going to be in SF at the end of the month. Our flight arrives at 11 AM on Saturday, and we leave early Wed. AM. We are trying to decide whether or not to take a day trip to wine country. Any advice as to whether there will be enough time to see San Fran if we spend a day 9-5 in wine country? (Some background- we are in our late 20's/early 30's, mostly enjoy walking around and taking in the city. We aren't museum people, we will take a trip to Alcatraz, see the GG bridge etc)Thanks!
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Old Jul 16th, 2006, 05:14 PM
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Yes, a 1-day excursion to the wine country will not leave you short-changed with your San Francisco trip.

To make the most of it, ask your hotel concierge for suggestions on a day-only wine country tours. These are organized, large bus tours that picks and drops you off at your hotel.
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Old Jul 16th, 2006, 08:05 PM
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I agree with bill boy. If you do a wine tour do it through an organized tour.

However, if, after you come to the city and decide that you want to do more exploring in the city then scotch the wine tour. You will spend some time driving across the Golden Gate Bridge and through some pretty country and vineyards, and then be in crowds at wine tastings, but if you are not that much into wine it may be a waste of time.

The SF Visitor's Bureau has a lot of resources...walking tours (free and paid), suggestions on interesting neighborhoods to explore, etc.

I love just exploring and don't like to be rushed when I am in a city because I have "scheduled" the popular tour.

Just me. Lots to explore in San Francisco. Enjoy and discover. I hope you have a good guide book.
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Old Jul 16th, 2006, 08:23 PM
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You will definitely see San Francisco if you take a wine tour it all just depends on what your priorties are. I agree with the above folks who say to keep it flexible.

If you take a wine tour do it on the Monday as you will have much smaller crowds than if you go on Sunday and most of the major wineries are open all week.
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Old Jul 17th, 2006, 05:26 AM
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okay, I will be the sole voice to differ. You will spend a fortune on a limo tour, plus lots get kickbacks from popular wineries, so you won't be seeing the prettiest and friendliest ones.I absolutely hate those organized bus tours which take you to the huge wineries which pour drug store wine and could care less about you. I'd rather just skip it altogether. I've been there 4 times and love it. You have all of Sat, Sun , Mon and Tues...I would rent a car outside the city one day and drive 101 into Sonoma, choosing small wineries there and include a nice lunch in the town of Sonoma. Of course, if you are absolutely loving the city, save the wine country for another trip where you can stay in the beautiful area and be at leisure. But bus tours, yeccchhhh.
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Old Jul 17th, 2006, 05:54 AM
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Just for the sake of having fun with some former college mates who were visiting, I went along with them on an organized large bus tour originating from the Fisherman's Wharf area.

Our bus took us to about 6 wineries including the so-called small wineries that some here swear to be small and friendly ones, including Cline (my first time to ever go in there) and Schug. The other wineries were the usual supects - Niebaum (when it was still Niebaum-Coppola), Sattui, Viansa,
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Old Jul 17th, 2006, 06:04 AM
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(my computer seemed to have a mind of it's own this morning and submitted even when I wasn't finished). Anyway, just to continue, lunch was in the Yountville area (Washingto St.) where one had a choice of Bistro Jeanty, Bouchon, Pere Jeanty or, where my buddies and I ended up iun - Pacific Blues (food was actually quite decent and good, cold beers were so welcomed by our group).

Anyway, my point is it would be nice to do good wine tasting experience, which in my opinion would include nothing but the better small wineries in Napa and Sonoma, you know, like Harlan Estates, Grace Family, Colgin, Bryant Family, Shaffer, Rochioli, Kosta Browne, etc.

In any case, as it is a first time wine country experience for my college mates, we enjoyed our bus tour of Napa without anybody worrying about who has to do the driving.
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Old Jul 17th, 2006, 07:35 PM
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Thanks for the replies...I think we will try a day tour as suggested. One that stands out to me is Calif. Wine Tours Limo tour from SF to Napa. You have to take the ferry to Vallejo to meet the limo, which you share with other people. The wineries visited are Miner, V.Sattui, Andretti, Cosentino and Merryvale. Does anyone have any comments about either this company or the wineries that are visited? We figured it may be a little more personal than the big bus tours. Thanks!(The url is http://www.californiawinetours.com/tour_sf_pub.html)
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 06:14 AM
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True, that the limo tour would be a little more personal. BTW, I've seen that tour company with mini-buses (12 people) running aroung Napa. I just want to fyi you in case that they may not exactly show up with a stretch limo.

Another thing to consider is the hour-and-fifteen-minutes ferry travel from SF Ferry building to Vallejo. Actually, it's not that bad, considering that it would take about the same amount of time to drive from SF to Vallejo.

As far as the wineries are concerned, Miner is consistently one of the better producers in the Valley. Merryvale produces some exciting wines. With the exception of Miner, most are pretty much touristy wineries (Andretti may be another exception) as you'll probably see when you get there. Don't worry about this, it'll still be fun as one positive thing about being in an organized tour group is that you don't have to go through the hassles of waiting for your turn to be poured (as you would if you just drove up into a crowded winery), as your tour operator, most likely, have already arranged for a group tasting in a more private environment. You'll also probably be poured more of their quality wines than they do at their public tasting environment.

Enjoy.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 06:18 AM
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Personally, for me, wandering about Napa or Sonoma & finding great wine is half the fun. I'd skip the tour/limo & just do it yourself.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 06:32 AM
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Here's a couple of useful links for the wine road in the Russian River Valley areas. This one has links to proposed itineraries: http://www.visitwineroad.com/

Here's another useful link to the area: wineroad.com
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 08:31 AM
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I think you will find that one day in the wine country is enough to get the look and feel of the area and to try great wines.

I'm glad you're considering going through an organized tour, I think it's easier for day trips anyway. If you're going to be doing sightseeing you might like the Go San Francisco Card http://www.gosanfrancsicocard.com
because it includes a Wine Tour which is offered through Gray line as well as some sightseeing options in the San Francisco area as well. It includes a few walking tours and historic houses.

Have a wonderful trip!

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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 09:04 AM
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We took a small van tour with The Great Pacific Tour Co. and enjoyed it very much. Only 6 couples. Visited Cline, Viansa, and Domaine Chandon, with lunch in Sonoma. I also thought it may take time away from touring San Francisco, but so glad we did it. Beautiful scenery.
http://www.greatpacifictour.com/index2.htm
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 09:52 AM
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Word of warning - unless you want a very special bottling that is only sold there, wineries are about the worst places possible to buy wines. I only do it if I really love the wine, plan on drinking it at a restaurant on the trip, or if it allows me to avoid excessive tasting fees. If you have a rental car you would do much better to buy your wines at K&L Wine store or the Wine Club in San Francisco. K&L usually offers Thursday evening tastings and both offer Saturday afternoon tastings.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 11:08 AM
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I would go to Muir Woods instead, then to Sausalito, and ferry back. But that's me, I don't care for wine that much.

There is a shuttle (bus # 66 Golden Gate transit) to Muir Woods on weekends if you don't want a tour bus.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 04:35 PM
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FainaAgain, you don't care for wine? The OP is talking about going to wine country.

We took the ferry to/from Sausalito. Very nice trip.
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