My wife and I would like to make our first trip to the wine country of Sonoma and/or Napa this summer sometime...from June through August. Our plan is to fly into San Francisco, drive to and spend 2-3 days in Sonoma and Napa, then drive south to Carmel spend 1-2 days, then return to SF and fly home. I am getting a number of good suggestions from postings, but have a few questions...would June, July, or August be a preferable month? Where are some of the wineries, if any, that have overnight B&B accomodations? Pardon my naivete', but what are the hours and days of the week that the wineries are typically open during that time of the year? How many should you try and visit on a typical day allowing for eating, a little sightseeing, shopping, etc. in between? I am looking for some real picturesque settings and nice meals along the way. Any advice or suggestions for the first timer for getting the most out of our 2-3 days in the area and making this a memorable trip would be greatly appreciated.

Hello! June, July, and August are all nice months to visit. I would say you should go with whenever you are finding the best prices. Most of the wineries are open everyday (excluding Christmas, Easter, etc). I would say about three wineries (depending how close they are to each other).

I am not aware of any B&B's that are with wineries (this is not to say they don't exsist--I am a day tripper in Wino Land).

Nice meals--try for French Laundry. I still haven't been there as I do not have the foresight to make reservations two months out. Maybe this summer with my in-laws.....

Hi! I loved the Sonoma Mission Inn. www.sonomamissioninn.com It is a beautiful property. Actually, there is none like it in the area. They are undergoing remodeling right now. It should be complete in April.

I would go in June if at all possible. Our last trip to Napa was the last week of May and it was starting to get really warm. The first week of May is my favorite time to visit this area. ***kim***

Thanks for replies thus far.

The restaurants we have enjoyed in Sonoma are: The Girl and the Fig, The Swiss Hotel and The General's Daughter.

I have heard good things about Cafe La Haye and La Poste, also.

In Yountville we like Bistro Jeanty and Domaine Chandon. In St. Helena, Terra is very nice, open only for dinner. And Tra Vigne is probably one of my favorites. I love all the commaradarie in there and great wine list.

In Calistoga, we like the Wappo Bar & Bistro. Dine outside under the wisteria vines and sip on their cucumber water. Very nice. Catahoula's is closed, so we will have to find another dinner spot there. Have fun! ***kim***

My info for you is all in Sonoma County. There are 2 really good websites at the end of this that will help in your planning.You have been given some pretty good places to eat in Napa and I agree with kikahead that 3 wineries/day is enough unless you hire a limo! LOL! After 3, we are usually ready for a bite to eat by then. Most of the wineries are open 10AM-4PM some 4:30 or 5:00. In the summer most will be open every day. In my experience of staying at wineries it is because you are a preferred customer such as a restaurant owner or wine distributor that you get an invite. We have been invited as guests of friends in said buisnesses to stay the night in the guest suite or cottage at a paticular winery. So IME it's an insider's "perk". Usually there are seminars involved the next day-we did a really fun one sponsored by Riedel at Mondavi with lunch served-just what I need to be doing in the middle of the day on a Tuesday! These are some of my favorite Sonoma County eateries many are award winers and IME for cuisine and ambiance:
Madronna Manor-Healdsburg
Willi's Raw Bar-Healdsburg
Syrah-Santa Rosa
Underwood Bistro-Graton
The Girl and The Fig-Petaluma (on the river!)
Glen Ellen Inn-Glen Ellen
The Farmhouse Inn-Forestville
K&L Bistro-Sebastopol
Lucy's-Sebastopol
Latitude-Rohnert Park
Zazu-just east of Santa Rosa
Meritage-Sonoma
Cafe la Haye-Sonoma
just a few that come to mind....
Sonoma County has 13 AVA's-
American Viticultural Areas-You may note that most people here refer to them as "Districts".
Such names as Caneros,Russian River Valley, Alexander Valley,Rockpile (there are even sub-AVA's!)
Check out this site:
http://www.sonoma.com/wineries/index.
html
for winery maps by region in Sonoma County. Another good site for West Sonoma County is wineroad.com
Some of my favorite tasting rooms:
In Sonoma town, Glen Ellen, Kenwood, areas: Benzinger,Valley of the Moon,Ravenswood, Gundlach Bundscuh,Arrowood,Cline, & St.Francis
In and around the county you could spend a day in the Alexander Valley (and have a picnic lunch from the Jimtown store!),another on Westside Road/Russian River/Healdsburg and at least an afternoon in Sebastopol/Forestville.
If you would like some of my picks in those areas or by varietal I'll be happy to respond!
Have fun and Welcome!
R5

Ohhhh you are getting me excited about my trip there in a few weeks since I am also going to spend a little time in Napa and Sonoma. I highly recommend a hot air balloon trip, my husband and I did it on our first visit there several years ago. It is so early in the morning that by the time you come down and have your champagne brunch it is only about 9 or 9:30 and the wineries open at 10:00, perfect timing!!! We stayed at Villagio and loved it and we also ate at Tra Vigne and that was great, beautiful atmosphere. Last year I went to Somona with my girlfriend who lives in Folsom and we went to three wineries, one in Sonoma, and two in Healdsburg and still had time to shop the plaza in Healdsburg and have a great lunch there. Oakville Groceries are really neat stores in the wine country too if you are near one. We liked the Ferrari Carano winery, very pretty gardens and a palatial, villa type building for the tasting room. Have fun! I will be in wine country and Carmel in March so maybe my trip report will help when I get back.

Where did you have lunch in Healdsburg? I was thinking of the bistro at Chateau Souverain in Geyserville. Do you know of another nice spot? Thanks, ***kim***

You might want to check out LAvender Inn in Yountvile. It is very close tot eh French Laundry and really was was of teh best places I have stayed. I preferred teh rooms in a converted carraige hous off the main house with private courtyards,so nice after the hustle-bustle of wine roads. Lavender is part of the Four Sisters B & B group. I think Lavender is the best of the Four Sisters offerings in Wine Country. Four sisters has other locations including Dana Point, CA and Seattle area...www.FourSisters.com PS I stayed in room 5 at Lavender. PM hor douerves and breakfast fabulous.