Napa Trip - May 2010 and some questions
My girlfriend and I will be doing Napa/Sonoma over the three day presidents day weekend...hopefully its not CRAZY crowded. Here is the tentative plan and questions!!
Friday
Leave Los Angeles early am - Arrive 3pm or earlier
Walk-in tasting at Robert Sinsky or Pine Ridge. Which or other suggestions?
Evening terrace tasting at Silverado.
Late/Light Dinner.
Saturday – Napa Valley Tasting, Cab focused
Breakfast at hotel
Lunch: Picnic from Model Bakery
Tasting at four locations choosing between the following: (*=likely choices)
Spring Mountain=*Pride, Spring Mountain, Cain, *Barnett
St Helena= *Joseph Phelps or other in area?
Rutherford=*Frogs Leap
Oakville= Plumbjack or other in area?
For me, the spring mountain wineries are a must do, and my GF wants to go to Frogs leap. For some reason I’m not overly excited about Phelps (maybe $$). Any suggestions for a replacement that is in the vicinity??
Where possible, we are going to do tasting’s only (as opposed to a tour) to keep the day as unrushed as possible. We are hoping to get reservations for French Laundry for this evening.
Sunday – Sonoma Tasting, Pinot/Zin focused
Still unplanned but likely to include some of the following Merry Edwards, Ridge/Lyton, Hartford, Deerfield, Carol Shelton, Siduri, Rafenelli, bella, preston. Part of my concern will be places we can't buy wine will turn me off a little.
By LBCportagee
on Mar 12, 2010 02:52 PM
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This question gets asked a lot, you might want to do a search on Napa wineries. My advice is to plan no more than four wineries a day and prioritize them: two must-dos, and two extras. You'll burn out. Really. You don't want to hit the wall on the middle of day two and end up skipping something you really wanted (or forcing yourself to go and not enjoying it as much as you would have). The last person I gave this advice to didn't take it, ended up overscheduling, burning out and missing some things that would have been better than the ones he got to. Plan some time to get some fresh air and exercise, too.
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You didn't mention in which city you are staying, but in some cities(such as Napa) there is no such thing as a "late" dinner since many places close at 9 pm. You may want to research restaurants that you are interested in just to make sure that they'll still be open.
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Friday -- I would take Sinskey over Pine Ridge, but I'm not wild about either. I think Elizabeth Spencer or Hope & Grace have wine that's better and more interesting (I do like the small snacks that they provide at Sinskey, though).
Saturday -- No matter what, Spring Mountain tends to eat up the day, since every place requires an appointment, and getting all the way up to Pride may take longer than you think (and force you into an earlier start than you may want). Anyway, try to knock out the two Spring Mountain tastings in the morning, and then plan the Frog's Leap tasting for as late as possible in the afternoon. Frankly, I wouldn't even bother with Phelps, even if Parker is going to give the 2007 Insignia 99+ points (that's what I hear, anyway). I would drop into Plumpjack if you want to fit in a fourth tasting (and I wouldn't plan on much more than that, if you also plan to fit in a picnic).
Sunday -- My suggestions: Ridge, Unti, Papapietro Perry. Diavola for lunch in Geyserville.
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