Bill44

We are going to Occidental/Somoma vicinity for one night and parts of two days in
Sept. Would like to visit one or two charming vineyards during our brief stay. Have previously visited Hess, Berringer and Korbel. Any suggestions?

easytraveler

There are several hundred wineries in that area. You'll have to narrow it down for us a bit. For example, by "charming" do you mean "rustic" or "grand estate"? What kind of wine is your favorite: red or white? dry or sweet? Chardonnay or Cabernet Sauvignon? With that little time, the more information you can provide on your personal likes and dislikes, the better the suggestions will be.

Michael

Benziger in Glen Ellen might be a good choice.

Rastaguytoday

It's a bit out of town, but the Bistro des Copains is, by far, the best restaurnt there.

Try these two links.

http://www.sonomawine.com/

http://sonoma.com/

You're too far away from Benzinger for one day. Look for wineries either in the Russian River Valley or West Sonoma County.

Michael

If one can go from SF to Jack London Historic Park for a day, I would think that one can do it from Occidental to Benziger which is next door.

Bill44

Easytraveler, sadly there aren't many wines we don't enjoy. We enjoyed the art gallery at Hess,the mansion at Berringer, the scenery at Firestone and Fess Parker. Views and ambience are as important for this whirlwind stop as the wines. Thanks.

Appreciate the other tips also.

Perigrinator

I would recommend a stop by Iron Horse vineyards - they do a good job and try to make your stop memorable and the scenry is spectacular. Not sure where you'll be, could make other recommendations - but depends upon whether you are in Occidental, closer to Sonoma, or going north toward Forestville and Healdsburg.

easytraveler

Bill44: OK, I'll take a blind stab at some recommendations.

Try Ferrari-Carano for their lovely estate and gardens. Surprisingly, their whites are quite good, we've been drinking their Fume Blanc for a few years now.

http://www.ferrari-carano.com/

For a really lovely wine country view, try Armida. This last barrel-tasting event (in March) we found their Poi-Zin a very drinkable red with an interesting label.

http://www.armida.com/

For a "rustic" small vineyard with really nice reds, try the Raymond Burr Vineyards.

http://www.raymondburrvineyards.com/

Both the Armida and the Raymond Burr vineyards are good places for a picnic lunch - bring your own lunch, order a glass or a bottle and sit outside and enjoy the views.

For a local favorite winery that produces exceptional wines at fair prices, try Rafanelli's. Their wines are sold only at their winery and tasting is by appointment only.

http://arafanelliwinery.com/

If you park in the central square in Healdsburg, there are a number of tasting rooms located on and slightly off the square and you could visit about a half dozen or more of them. I'm not certain how many of them are open daily nor of their hours. Our favorite Healdsburg winery is the Davis Family Winery which is not located in the central square. Both their whites and reds are good, but they vary year to year.

http://davisfamilyvineyards.com/

The above-mentioned Benziger Winery offers some interesting tours on biodynamic wine-making.

http://www.benziger.com/

You probably won't get as far north as Geyserville, but there's a really funky little tasting room in a dusty small-town shopping center - their wines are good too!

http://www.route128winery.com/about

I'll stop now. There are dozens more worth mentioning.

NewbE

Great ideas! I was going to suggest Ferrari-Carrano, too. Beautiful grounds, a well-appointed tasting room (two "bars", one upstairs for, I dunno, everyday wines, and one downstairs for the smaller production bottles), and, most importantly, good wine! Hartford Family Winery also has great wines--love their Chardonnays, and they have a laundry list of pinot noir and zin bottleings--and a very pretty setting. But yes, a lot depends on where exactly you'll be in the valley...

tenthumbs

If you DO make it as far as geyserville, Francis Ford Coppola winery is very pretty.

At Matanzas Creek winery (Santa Rosa), you can picnic on their shady deck or near the lavender field (smells like heaven).

Bill44

I appreciate all the interesting suggestions. We are staying at the Inn at Occidental.