Over the lovely long three day weekend I was able to venture up to Nor Cal and visit my darling sister, as well, as make time to have a quaint AOII reunion in Napa. I have been longing to explore Napa and thought this was the perfect opportunity to use my Sunday wine tasting. Our van picked us up at about 11 am and we headed into Napa. To my surprise, the car ride from San Francisco to Napa is actually much longer than expected. Sure, it is a bit scenic, as going over the bay bridge is beautiful and getting into lush green hills, but it was by no means a quick little ride. We all consumed mimosas and the nine of us caught up with each others lives and other imperative gossip.
Napa Winery #1: Trefethen Winery, recommended to us by our van rental company. This was a cute little family wine estate with a lovly garden and fountain outside. I loved the small road linked with trees and vineyards on the way in. The inside was a bit dark with a very cozy atmosphere, and wine bottles of all sizes decorating the interior. The staff here was extremely friendly; probably the nicest bunch we bet all day. They set us up on barrels and gave us glasses we could taste from. Trefethan Winery has a wide variety of wines to choose from: riesling, viognier, chardonnay, red blends, cabernet, pinot noir, etc. My personal favorite was the viognier, and a white blend called quandary, which had viognier, riesling, and chardonnay. The staff made us feel very comfortable, answered all our questions, and even brought out some special, reserve wines for us to taste. I would definitely recommend this winery for small parties. They also have a nice long dinning room like table you can sit with bigger parties. The wine was excellent. Had the prices been a little more affordable in my range, I definitely would have bought some bottles, and in the future I will make it a point to find their wine.
Napa Winery #2:
Napa Winery #3: The notorious, Domain Chadon. Before venturing into the winery, we enjoyed the sunshine and ambiance of Domaine Chadon with a outdoor picnic lunch with some tasty sandwiches. Domain Chadon is a wonderland paradise. Complete with ponds, flowers, trees, a grand tasting room with glass windows, a private park for events, bridges that lead you over canals, it’s like a wonderland with wine, sparkling wine.
Napa Winery #4: V. Sattui. This winery was cute, and is suppose to be by the same wine makers of the infamous castle winery in Napa, Castello di Amorosa. Not going to lie, I could not tell you how the wine was or much about the tasting (it was the last one). But they have coupons, a friendly team, and a cute little winery, that is probably a good place to go if you don’t have the time or money for the castle.
I will say that Napa was fun but I think I was expecting much more ambiance. I’ve lived in the Central Coast for about 4 years and took full advantage of living near prestige San Luis Obispo wineries and Paso Robles. I think the wine there was just as good. Though, they do have different varietals and I really enjoyed the viognier and sweeter wines. I will surely be going back!
