Brian

My friends and I are seniors in college and have always wanted to do a wine tasting tour either in Napa or Sonoma. Does anyone have any suggestions for good companies that do tours? There will be 5 of us going up there for just one day. Although we're most interested in some lower-priced options, any suggestions would be welcomed.

dee

I can't remember any specific wineries, but look into places in Glen Ellen.

Michelle

Dear Brian:
Get a guide book for the area or go on line for info on the Napa/Sonoma areas. Plan for only maybe 3 wineries at the most.
Napa Valley:
I would suggest the Neibaum-Coppola Winery. Has a museum of Francis Ford Coppola's family and movie career, props from some of his films.

Next, stop for a Deli picnic lunch at V. Sattui Winery. Then head to St. Helena, look around and do a final tour at Beringer's. Can't miss it with it's impressive Rhine House.

Good luck, have fun, don't drink too much and have a designated driver.

wino

Sutter Home has a nice tour.

O. N. Efile

Napa is so over run with tourists that many wineries are overcrowded and now charge for a visit. For a better time head to Sonoma, consider driving up to the Russian River area.

Dick

I was in Sonoma last week and saw a T-shirt in a wine shop that read:

Sonama is for Wine
Napa is for auto parts

fran

You do not really need a tour to enjoy. If you want to do Napa area there are some wineries off the beaten path that are nice --Artesa and Hess are two I think of that are very nice that you could stop at early in the day and then head to St. Helena where I hear Niebaum is nice and you could have lunch in St. Helena (V. Sattui is always crowded) perhaps at a restaurant instead of picnic. And head to Calistoga to see the town and try a few wineries between the two. I don't care for Sterling's wine, but the view is nice. Clos Pegas and Peju are also photogenic, but it all depends on whether sightseeing or wine is the real business at hand. Some wineries have both and some don't.

Girly

Hi Brian,

I hope this is not too late. If you are looking for a one day tour, try Blue and Gold Fleet. They have a website and they are the ones that do the Alcatraz tours and Angel Island Tours from San Francisco. I believe the cost is around $40 which includes about three winery tours.

winexpert

Good advice. I know this is late, but to anyone else reading this - avoid California Wine Tours. We did a limo tour and the driver was boring. Charges were hidden, and their brochure was misleading. A bus tour we did a few years before was much better oddly enough!

cmeyer54

we used california wine tours last weekend and had a fantastic driver named Marcus. all fees were included in the price quoted. i guess it depends
on who you get as a driver.