Apologies for the length! My husband is having a "significant" birthday soon, and wants to spend two days in the Napa Valley, go golfing at the Ritz Carlton Half Moon Bay, and spend a day or so in S.F. (been lots of times). (Napa over Sonoma because I am hoping for the oportunity to go to French Laundry.)

He's hugely knowledgeable about wine, though mostly French and Italian. And he hates planning trips! (I love planning them, but I know nothing about wine or golf.)

I'd welcome any opinions on the Napa Valley experience for a oeniphile (I can't imagine him, for example, feeling the need for a tour showing how wine is made). Are there opportunities for trying the real high-end stuff? Are the personnel at the vineyards geared toward wine experts as well as the rest of us? Are there vineyards he should steer toward, for either quality of wine or the experience generally? (I've tried getting suggestions from him, to no avail). We're going in early October - is Napa going to be really crowded then?

Can anybody tell what the Ritz Carlton is like for golfers, and how's the restaurant at the hotel?

And lastly, for lodging in Napa, we don't like fussy or cutesy B&Bs, don't like big breakfasts, AND would rather spend our money on food & wine than on lodging (so no Meadowood or Auberge du Soleil). The Villagio Inn & Spa sounds like our style - any specific comments on this place?

Thanks for all your help...

Try Opus One. You will need reservations and it is $25. a taste.

http://www.opusonewinery.com/

Joseph Phelps vineyard is beautiful and they have some GREAT wines... we started collecting wine after our visit here (i think reserv. are needed). Also, I thought the tour at Mondavi was the most informative (even for someone who knows about wine making I though the tour was worth it), and the grounds are great too. Did not make it to the French Laundry.. but loved Bistro Jaunty and Mustards. One of our favorite vacations! enjoy!

HAve to disagree about Mondavi.

I think that an oeniphile would find Modavi to be overly crowded and geared towards a less sophisticated wine drinker.

A good tour that is very informative is St. Supery's. They have a modern facility and this whole education area that is more in depth than anywhere else in the Napa Valley. Opus One MIGHT not charge you if they think you are going to buy. There are different rooms for different budgets, they size you up at the entrance, and if they think you are a big spender you'll get better treatment (I, on the other hand, did not make the grade and got sent to the "Riff Raff room"). :0) I like the Culinary Academy for a different style dinner (get the special tastes menu and a "flight" of wine). Schramsburg has a good tour and excellent champagne tasting--you need to make a reservation for that the day before you go. As far as the personnell being geared towards wine experts, they sure are (well, unless you go into the tasting room at Beringer or something). There are lots of bed and breakfasts in Napa that aren't cutesy, you can look on the web for ideas and pictures.

Buy him a good book about the California wine country so he knows the geography and therefore the type of grapes and kinds of wines each winery makes. My husband is very knowledgeable and we find most of the people at the wineries immediately pick up on this and spend more attention talking with him than the casual tasters. I personally find Mondavi, Copolla, Opus, Hess overdone--kind of like the Neiman Marcus of wineries. Some of our favorites are Silver Oaks, ST. Clement, Folie aux Deux, Mayacamas, Clos Pegause, Schramsburg, St. Supery in no particular order. Domaine Chandon is a lovely place for a special lunch or dinner. French Laundry is extremely frustrating--don't count on it and make alternative reservations ahead.Bistro Jeanty is super. Go to www.napavalley.com to look for lodging.

It shouldn't be overly crowded in Napa in October, but if you could schedule your time so you are in the wine country on weekdays it would be better. The hotel rates in SF are sometimes lower on weekends too, especially in the financial district/embarcadero area which caters more to the business traveler. If you end up spending the weekend in the city be sure to visit the Ferry Plaza farmer's market on Saturday morning, where you'll have the opportunity to buy many of California's best food products like olive oil, cheeses, mustards, etc.

I've not eaten at the restaurant at the Ritz Carlton in Half Moon Bay but we visit the beach there frequently and it should be lovely in October. Be forewarned, though, that Half Moon Bay has a hugely popular Pumpkin Festival in October, so book your room soon and be prepared for traffic getting in and out of town if your trip coincides with the festival.

Don't hold out too much hope for the French Laundry. You need to make those reservations exactly two months in advance.

Good point about Half Moon Bay and the Pumpkin Fest. It's wildly popular and there are only two small roads out of HMB to the city. I think the heaviest pumpkin is judged on Columbus day but the Festival takes up almost the whole month (there's not a whole lot else going on in HMB) You know you can golf up in Napa as well at Meadowood for instance. Haven't heard much about the new Ritz Carlton locally---wonder if it's doing OK? For a very good site for your husband, go to www.winecountry.com It's about all the various California wine areas.