Napa valley area places to go

[lori1043]

Not sure if this is the right place to post, but since you were alll so awesome in helping me plan our spur of the moment, just DH and i DL trip back in Feb, I thought Maaaayyyybbbeeeee, you might could help me here.

Going to a conference in Napa Valley end of October, not sure WHICH winery to tour, and are the Redwoods that far down, or more north? Is there anything other than wineries to do in a half day? How close is San Francisco? Help!-from a ONE time vacationer to California and it was allllll about DL!!!

We go 10/22-10/26. Have a few half days. The Tuesday we arrive we have no plans-YET! I think we land around noon, your time, so we have a good part of the day.

I am budget concious, as this is an unscheduled but necessary trip for much needed CEU's. They are not offered at my place of work. grrrrrrr!

THANK YOU ahead of time. I am the type who likes to do what locals suggest are good places. I do not trust websites so much b/c of paid ads!!! They promote who pays them.

Lori

 

[got2travel]

What a beautiful time to visit Napa. It's harvest time, so the wineries are busy working the fields. The whole area will be overrun with a very strong grape/wine smell.

My personal favorite winery is V. Sattui. Their grounds are georgous and they have a fantastic deli. We always grab some french bread, cheese and nice bottle and have a picnic. There's a $5 tasting fee (could be $10) and you get several tastings. I also like going to the Mumm Cellars and do a champagne tasting.

The drive from SF will be about 1 1/2 hours. Maybe not quite that long.

You say you have half days, just a word of warning, most tasting rooms close about 5 or 6pm. So you might not be able to get much in, depending on when your 'half' day starts. Other than the wineries and the amazing food, there really is not a whole lot more to this area. However, it is a beautiful drive down any road you choose.

If the budget allows, a real fun way to see the are is the Wine Train. You'll get a great meal, some tastings on board plus a stop at a few wineries for more tastings!

 

[BillyFan]

I second V. Sattui and Mumm. They are my two personal favorites to visit. We also like Coppola, Cakebread and Berringer, for their beautiful grounds. Have a great time!!!!

 

[lori1043]

oh my gosh THANK you soo much- you ahve no idea how much help this is!!!

I cannot wait to tell my co-worker that I am going with!!! She LOVES wine!!!
Lori

 

[got2travel]

Just about any winery you go to will be great. If you have a favorite (or maybe your coworker's favorite) Napa wine, then defnitely make a stop at that winery too.

Any more questions, just ask.

 

[lori1043]

I have NO idea what wines are made in Napa-I enjoy a glass of wine here and there, but I never pay attention to the label. I do like Robert Mondavi, but heard thier vineyard/or whatever, is very commercial and not as cozy and you don't get the "real" feeling there, that is why I asked ya'll for places you like. My friend has never been and I have no idea if she knows what wines she likes that are there until we get there or look them up.

I printed up a bunch off the NapaValley.com website, but WOW, had no idea there were so many.

Looking forward to it, as much as I didn't want to put out the cash for it!!

Nervous also b/c DH will be in NYC and I will be on the other side of the USA(If I said this, it reflects my uncomfortableness with it)-kids will be safe with MIL/BIL at home-well, near home.
Thank you Jesus for cell phones and all the lovely communication we have now.

Lori

 

[fairycat]

I love it up there and second that almost any winery you do will be wonderful! I have so far done Ravenswood, Benzinger, Imagery, Sebastani and quite a few more. All have had their pros and cons but all were wonderful and you are going to have a great time no matter where you go!

 

[EmEyeSeeKayEeWhy]

As PP recommended, I also like Coppola....they have a really neat area with movie memorobilia from his movies that you can go through. V. Sattui is really cool and they have great wine that you can buy only through the winery or their online store. Have a wonderful time!

 

[got2travel]

Coppola is nice, but they are downplaying the movie connection now. They've renamed the winery to Rubicon Estate and it's a $25 Guest Fee, which includes entrance to the museum and 5 tastings. It's just not worth it to me at that price.

OP, I'd suggest just taking a drive and pulling into whatever estate appeals to you, whether it be a name you recognize or the winery just looks cute. You really can't go wrong.

 

[lori1043]

Thank you thank you thank you!!! I think we may do that V Sattui one you are talking about-Lori

 

[tinkermell]

You also might try posting this question on the California and West Board. You will probably get some more good info from there too.

Have fun, and yes...... cell phones are nice to have.

 

[minniebeth]

I 3rd, 4th and 5th V. Sattui....we used to live right outside of Napa Valley and this was our favorite place to go on a weeked for a picnic. We love their wines and it is just so pretty there. My DS was 3 and still remembers the picncs we had there...he is 12 now! If you like softer sweeter wines, our favorites are the off-dry Reisling and the rose.
Sutter Home was a nice winery too and it is right down the road.
Have fun with whatever you do in the area! It is all wonderful!

 

[lori1043]

I 3rd, 4th and 5th V. Sattui....we used to live right outside of Napa Valley and this was our favorite place to go on a weeked for a picnic. We love their wines and it is just so pretty there. My DS was 3 and still remembers the picncs we had there...he is 12 now! If you like softer sweeter wines, our favorites are the off-dry Reisling and the rose.
Sutter Home was a nice winery too and it is right down the road.
Have fun with whatever you do in the area! It is all wonderful!

every one is talking about picnicing-ha, that would be just wierd for us. I cannot imagine picnicing in a winery with my previous female boss!!
DH may think I changed teams!!

Is there a restaurant or other place to have a bite at at this V Sattui winery-I will look it up, too-Lori

Thank you sooo much for all the wonderful info!

 

[minniebeth]

V. Sattui does not have a restaurant, but a quaint deli/small market. They have all kinds of meats, cheeses, breads, spreads, pates, fruit, wine, soft drinks, etc. Some nice gourmet, some simple and all really delicious.
When I say picnic, we did in the traditional sense of the word, but we've also been there with business associates where we get some of each item and share it, like the wine, cheeses, pates, fruit and bread. They have picnic tables outside and the area is really pretty. I wouldn't feel awkward, like I said, we've been there for business too and it was fine.

 

[lori1043]

V. Sattui does not have a restaurant, but a quaint deli/small market. They have all kinds of meats, cheeses, breads, spreads, pates, fruit, wine, soft drinks, etc. Some nice gourmet, some simple and all really delicious.
When I say picnic, we did in the traditional sense of the word, but we've also been there with business associates where we get some of each item and share it, like the wine, cheeses, pates, fruit and bread. They have picnic tables outside and the area is really pretty. I wouldn't feel awkward, like I said, we've been there for business too and it was fine.

Okay, THAT sounds fine and YUMMY!!!

Thank you again, Lori

 

[barkley]

allot depends on if you will have a rental car and where you are staying in 'the valley'. 'napa valley' refers to so much more area than when i grew up there-it can refer to as far south as american canyon, napa city proper, yountville, st. helena, calistoga-even some consider angwin a part of it. depending on where you are staying and what time you have available some places may be do-able, others not.

as for your day of arrival-depending on where you are coming in and your transportation, you may find that you won't arrive at your hotel until late afternoon or early evening (i know some of the transporters only pick-up at sfo and oakland at designated hours so you sometimes have a bit of a wait before you're even picked up. driving you might make better time, so long as you don't arrive later and end up in commute or prime weekend traffic

if you go to v sattui and don't want to go the picnic route just keep heading up highway 29 into st. helena-there are tons of nice little restaurants and bistros there. if you go up a bit further into calistoga and turn onto the main drag, you can park and walk up and down the street to find neat little shops and places to eat (the bakery has killer stuff-grab some to take back to your hotel room ). if you want something FABULOUS to do-that won't cost a fortune (but not exactly cheap)-make an appointment for a mudbath at dr. wilkinson's hot springs in calistoga. if you've never done it-IT'S INCREDIBLE, and so relaxing-your dh and kids will end up with the nicest mommy in the world when you return

if you will post where you are staying i can offer more suggestions-i just visited back home a few weeks ago.

 

[lori1043]

Well, I wanted to thank you all for your wonderful advice!!

My co-worker booked the hotel and she didn't realize Orbitz has us in Santa Rosa until the day before we left. Bummer. BUT she tried to change it to the same hotel near Napa, but Orbitz said NO and then she called the hotels(the one booked and the one we wanted) and those managers wouldn't allow it either.
Anyway, we made lemonade out of lemons and one day 1 we rode PCH1 to Bodega Bay through Sebastopol(Loved that town) and got the smell of the trees and put my feet in the Pacific! The view was GORGEOUS!!
We may have not done that if we were staying in Napa. We were hungry and stopped at a place on the bay that happened to be that restaurant "the Birds" was filmed at(I have to go find the name,cannot remember).
Day 2-the next day we had the cardiology conference and that was ALL day-it was about an hour back and forth, but the views were soo pretty and amazing. I never need to see another vineyard!! There are sooooo many!
Day 3, the conference was about 2/3 of the day and after that we went to V. Sattui(thank you!!) and the lights were out! If our DH's were there it may have been considered romantic-everything was by candlelight! We did the tasting, ordered a half case of wine(had it shipped home), got paninni's(ham and goudeau) and I got a coke b/c I was the driver! Our "tender/taster person" was Gabriel-very cute, helpful and fun!
Then we took the LONG way back to see the views. We went up 29 and back around to 101(?), then decided to ride to San Francisco! We figured we may not be here again! The traffic at 7pm is amazing and frustrating. Drove the Golden Gate and back-then headed back-stopped at Applebees in Petaluma(got pulled over here, but THANKFULLY he was nice and let us go!) Got back to the hotel and were exhausted!
Day 4-conference let out at lunch time, but we had to be back for 5:30 for another session(it was at the Mariott in Napa Valley)-they had a wine class and tasting put on by Sequoia Grove after lunch for the people there for our conference, so we stayed for that and THAT was interesting. Then we went to Black Stallion Winery-it was okay. We liked V. Sattui better! Black Stallion winery was very pretty though.
Then we stopped at one that looks greek(starts with a "D")-gorgeous grounds, but a little hoity toity for me and my co-worker! Lots of flowering plants and roses.
We decided to go up Mount Veeder and got lost that night. It was a bit freaky b/c it was dark by then but the homes were so nice and cozy. We ended up BACK in Napa-our map showed we'd end up on Sonoma rd.-but HA! Nope!
We were laughing about being lost..
and ended up eating at Marie Callendars on 29. We do not have those here, and it was YUmmy!
Then we took our "normal" way back to Santa Rosa. We said, "no more senic routes"!!
Day 5- going home!! I was really missing my DH and kids and was ready to go! Went to the morning studies at the conference and headed out at about 9:30. It is CRAZY getting to Oakland AP from Napa. The MAP seemed like a nit of a straight run, and the signs on the freeways sucked-we got off on 580 but the wrong way, then another one came along that was wrong also. Then ANOTHER 580 showed up and thankfully THIS sign had the east, west, south, north directions on it-the others only said "580"-I MUST have a talk with Governor Schwarzenagger(sp?)!!!! AFTER you got off on the 580's it said the direction. The interstates are NOT well marked for travelers. PLUS they are so many! We both come from small towns and live near New Orleans-and you may know that it is not that big of an interstate system down here!

I was TOTALLY wigged out by the time we dropped off our rental-THEN I forgot my phone in the door handle and had to go back to the rental place-I was in tears going back! NEXT time I head to a conference I will have someone BRING me to my destination-THEN rent a car! Then have someone bring me back! AND the hotel will be MUCH closer to the conference! BUT I am glad we saw the Pacific Ocean-I can now say I have put my feet in both oceans (east and west coast)and the gulf-oh and Lake Michigan!! How lucky am I!!

Well, I do feel lucky and blessed!

I DID have a Bailey's on the flight home!!! I needed it!

Thank you again for all the info-Lori

PS I will post a couple pics when i photobucket them!

 

[BillyFan]

I'm so glad you had a nice time and enjoyed V. Sattui. Yes, driving in California can be very frustrating!!!!!!

 

[lori1043]

some pics!!