hunter5

We will in be in Tahoe in a couple weeks (summer) for business Sat night-Wed morning and wanted to take the drive to wine country Wed-Friday and we fly out of Sacramento Friday night.....never been to wine country and wanted to know where we should base ourselves for the last nights in Cali to experience the area after being in Tahoe? should we stick to upper valley Napa region where we can access healdsburg or stay in sonoma and take day trips over to Napa? any help would be greatly appreciated!

janisj

I'd stay in/near Healdsburg but just about anywhere in the Sonoma Valley would be good.

One warning -- traffic toward Sacramento on Friday Afternoon is really hellacious. The drive from Healdsburg to SMF that takes about 2 hours at less busy times could take four hours on a Friday.

(ps: Cali is a city in Colombia)

sf7307

I'd also recommend Healdsburg area, but I'd probably stay in Sacramento Thursday night, or at least leave for Sacramento early Friday - spend the afternoon in Sacramento so you avoid the worst traffic.

BarbAnn

There are other "wine country" areas closer to Sacramento. El Dorado and Amador Co. have some fabulous wineries. Many of the wineries in the Shenandoah Valley near Plymouth in Amador County have some wineries that are just as nice as Napa...Renwood Winery, Helwig Winery to name a few.

My dad lives in Napa and the traffic on a Friday night can take longer than 4 hours to Sacramento. I know, I've been in it!

janisj

>>the traffic on a Friday night can take longer than 4 hours to Sacramento. I know, I've been in it!

MichelleY

I used to be on the same page as Janis and Barb, but nothing compares to Napa/Sonoma. Sorry, but it is not the same. If they just want winetasting, then do it closer to Sacto, in Amador County. It is still great and you will have a great time.

Gardyloo

One of the benefits of the Amador County (and nearby) vineyards is that you're able to visit the many terrific, historic, scenic little towns along Hwy 49 in the Gold Rush country - Murphys, Mokelumne Hill, Angels Camp, Columbia...

http://goldcountryvisitors.com/wine-tasting-and-tours

BarbAnn

Sorry, MichelleY, I disagree. There was a time when I thought Napa/Sonoma/Mendocino was the greatest wine area. That ended when the traffic became horrible, impersonal service became the norm, bottles of wine were VERY pricey and drunk bridal parties and groups made the tasting experience unpleasant. I would rather talk with the owner/winemaker/ staff that can inform me on why a vintage tastes different from another vintage. There are some very unusual varietals being grown in El Dorado and Amador.

Gardyloo makes a good point about the historic and scenic towns along Hwy 49. It is a fun area.

MichelleY

Barb- like you, I used to encourage others to try the other wine growing areas, but nothing compares to the scenery in Napa/Sonoma. So beautiful. The redwoods lining the valleys. I agree as far as wine, you can get great wine in many of our other great appellations, without the crowds. If they aren't big wine snobs, then by all means go to the foothills, Lodi or the even the Delta. If they can swing getting over to Napa/Sonoma, then they should see it.

jamie99

Napa and Sonoma make great wines, but their tasting fees are just too outrageous, I also like the wineries and region that BarbAnn recommended quite a bit. And to me the scenery is very pretty, and not normally crowded and full of traffic like Napa.