This is last minute planning--just found out I will be in San Fran for business Thurs & Fri of this week. I will extend through the weekend & wanted to know if it's possible (time-wise) to visit the Napa Valley in one day--on Saturday. Our lodging will be in San Fran, so we would rent a car early Sat & drive back Sat evening. Does it make more sense to take a tour? Are any of the group tours worthwhile? (We don't typically take tours.) I don't really want to spend over $500 to take a personal limo tour.

A one day trip is very feasible. But when I take guests to wine country, I prefer Sonoma, which is a little closer. I go to the Jack London State Park to see the ruins of Wolf House and the house that Charmain built that contains interesting Jack London memorabilia, and next to it is the Benziger Winery (there are many on the way to Sonoma), there is a olive oil store in Glen Ellen where you can taste a variety of local olive oils. The square in Sonoma is worth a visit with it's historical buildings and General Vallejo's house is nearby.

We did Napa in a day from San Fancisco. We got up early in the morning and were able to liesurely visit 3 wineries over the course of the day. Our favorite was Sterling Vineyards - would recommend a visit.

The trip is easy. The hard part is not drinking too much wine for the drive back. Remember to just "taste" as much as possible,not drink.

I know this is a dumb question but I am going to ask it anyway. I recently became interested in wine when I traveled to Tuscany. I think it was the first time in my life I experienced good wine. It seemed to be so easy to find good wine everywhere. I discoverd Classico Chianti Riserva (to be specific) and I am not so sophisiticated to understand differences in producers/harvest years.

Wondering just wondering if this is the case in California. Do you have an abundance of good wine that is easily had without emptying your pocket? Or is the fact that these vinyards are in the states mean that I just need to explore California wines on my local wine store shelf?

If one is more cost conscious I would concentrate on Sonoma rather than Napa. The tasting fees alone in Napa can set you back $3-5 per winery. In regards to Sarah's question there are many reasonably priced wineries in Cali. There is even a consortium in Cali for Italian wines if that is your preference. The web-site for these wineries is www.cal-italia.org.

Sarah:Yes we have an abundance of good,even
great, affordable(not sure what your price range is for that)wine here in Sonoma, Napa as well.
Australia and South Africa produce some
outstanding wines as well.
Do travel to your local wine shop to get some advice about CA wine or simply checkout the Beverages and More website
and always there is Trader Joes!Do you have one nearby?
Avery-Michael's suggestion is a good one.
The folks at Benziger are quite informative.
Also check out wineroad.com
Minivan tours can be had for $40pp from extranomical.com-I have not used them
but do check them out
Enjoy!
R5

we've done the napa valley in a day several times. love Benzinger, Kunde, Ferrari Carrano, Chateau St Jean - easy to see them all, lounge a bit, take a tour and taste - have lunch in Sonoma; enjoy the day!

It's pretty standard for those in and around the bay area to do a wine tasting day without staying the night in Napa or Sonoma. If you like certain types of wines you should let that be your guide as far as which wineries to visit. I'd rent my own car rather than do a group tour.

BTW the wonderful wineries suggested by cmeyer54 (above) are in Sonoma valley rather than napa.

Thank you all for your responses. I took out a couple of guidebooks from the library today & I will consult the "Wine Bible" and my tasting notes to determine whether to visit Sonoma or Napa. We'll probably rent a car. I'll probably have more questions after I've done some research!

I live in SF and frequently do one day trips. My favorite route is: SF to Healdsburg, first winery Alexander Valley. Hop back on 101 and go an exit or two north to Chateau Souverain. After tasting there, have lunch in the cafe. Back on 101 north and exit toward Dry Creek Wineries. Next stop Ferrari-Carano. Beautiful Italianate Villa and gardens. Drive through Dry Creek area towards Westside Rd. and head to Korbel. Stop and take their tour and taste champagne. Then follow River Road to the Coast and Highway 1. Go south to Bodega Bay for sunset and dinner. Then head back to SF. If that's not enough wineries for you, there are plenty to pick and choose from along the routes. Other favorites include Seghesio, Hop Kiln, Davis Bynum, and Raffanelli. The previously mentioned www.wineroads.com provides great interactive maps and links to wineries, lodging and restaurants.

Have a great time! Enjoy SF.

Thanks SanParis and razzledazzle I will look into those websites.

A huge second to Sonoma. The drive is so much better than Napa. Ferrari is pretty far up there, but we loved it. Healdsburg is our fav town. Also, go to Geyserville and visit meeker for the most fun you'll have at a tasting! Call Raymond Burr for some good tastes and a look at his Emmys. Foppiano for the Petite Syrah. Limerick Lane and ask to see the wine shaped pool! Nice people there! Don't do a tour. In Sonoma, there are directional signs to all the wineries. You can pick up a map at the first one you visit. Enjoy- we're making another trip to Sonoma in April!

I can't remember the last time I was in the Wine Country.

No really. I CAN'T REMEMBER!!!!

I would like a suggestion My husband does not want to DRIVE .That is his one request. I would like to go to the wine country Can anyone please suggestion a tour we can take . We are leaving on the 16 of Dec

Hi mbtr!
Check out extranomical.com for no-drive tours.They will pick you up at your SF hotel.
R5

Thanks for the name of the tour company Have you every used them and when?

Be careful about taking recommendations from the tours about where to buy wines. They are given commissions by some wineries, so they are likely to push those wines. Don't buy unless you really like the wine and really want to. And a good company will let you pick the wineries if you do your homework, not try to talk you out of your choices and push other choices at you.

Thanks again for all the suggestions. We decided to go to Napa--a few people in my office gave me ideas & there were several vineyards we wanted to visit. Unfortunately, it was foggy and poured the whole day, so we didn't get to really enjoy the scenery. This did, however, allow us to concentrate on tasting wine--and how amazing it was. We really enjoyed the tastings at Grgich Hills, Duckhorn, and PlumpJack. Also, St. Clement had a holiday "party" with hors d'oevres and cookies. Their Oroppas meritage was quite enjoyable. Taylor's Refresher was perfect for a quick lunch. It's so hard not to get caught up trying to visit too many places. We had a great time in San Fran as well--the views from Russian Hill are spectacular. Also, although it was rainy, we got to miss the snow in NY!

I'll suggest a few to add Grasshoppers list since our tastes appear to be similar. Quivera, Preston (great bakery on site baked by the owner Lou), Viansa, which houses the welcome center & also has various foods, oils, etc. w/an Italian twinge, Ledson (awesome, call ahead & they likely will give you a private tasting) & BR Cohn, (also great olive oils).