Napa Valley recs

If you search on here there are quite a few Napa threads that have recommendations. Not a fan of whites so can’t really offer much insight.

Def doing Carneros, was thinking of doing Chandon, hadn't looked into Schramburg, thanks for that rec.

Hadn't looked into Honig either will give it a gander. Stag's Leap I just assumed would be on the very pricey end of the spectrum given their reputation.

Chateau Montelena. Not sure about pricing but arguably the most famous Napa vineyard because of 1976. It’s the only wine club I’ve remained a member of.

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Got restaurants down pretty good, but obviously any suggestions would be welcome.

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Ad Hoc is a must eat.

Having a burger and a shake at Gott's Roadside for lunch one day is a must. Great burger!

Was planning on doing Gott's Roadside for lunch one day, and Addendum another day (instead of doing Ad Hoc at night), but may do Ad Hoc as well.

Definitely doing Press one night, might try and do Auberge for lunch one day for the view.

Domaine Chandon is an interesting winery tour with a nice tasting room. Same with Chateau Monteleana. They have some great wines for tasting and the Japanese gardens are pretty.

I have never been to Bouchon in Napa but I have been to the one in Vegas a couple of times and it is very good.

If you want a casual restaurant owned by a celebrity chef I would suggest Bistro Jeanty.

Bistro don Giovanni is one of my favs.
Rutherford and R+D are owned by the previous owners of Houston's. Food is usually pretty good.
Cole's Chophouse is another idea.

Grgich Hills!!!
Domaine Carneros is a must.
Rombauer has beautiful gardens, and I love their wines.
Stags Leap are rather stuck up.
Hawkes Wine in Alexander Valley-Sonoma is lovely, and awesome reds.
Artesa has nice patio/balcony with nice views on a pretty day.

Some tourists love the Wine Train.

We just went 2 weeks ago (second week of December). Granted, we went to high-end wineries (I buy from all of these wineries). We also ate well. Several of these are not available to the general public, unless you already buy from them. We received complimentary tastings/tours from those that we already buy from. The others charged from $75-$150 per person, but all definitely worth it.

Here is my recommendation, in order of preference:

1. Colgin (Ann Colgin - from Waco, Texas)
2. Peter Michael (Sir Peter Michael)
3. Fantesca (Heidi Barrett is their winemaker who made the iconic wine for years at Screaming Eagle)
4. Opus One (owned by Mondavi and Baron Philippine de Rothschild)
5. Darioush (did wine and olive oil tasting)
6. Chappellet
7. Quintessa
8. Far Niente (also owns Nickel & Nickel)
9. Nickel & Nickel (also owns Far Niente)
10. Joseph Phelps
11. Silver Oak
12. Schramsberg (mainly sparkling wine (not my favorite), but JD Davies is a good cabernet)

I realize that Colgin and Peter Michael are not open to the general public, but you might know someone who can get you in. They both make some of the best wines in Valley, but very expensive.

On food, French Laundry was amazing as was Bistro Jeanty. Third choice was Bistro Don Giovani, an affordable Italian restaurant. We ate twice (on arrival and on departure) at Eiko’s at Oxbow Market and it was great sushi.

We ate lunch and loved Mustard’s, Oakville Grocery and Gott’s Roadside. We had breakfast several times at Model Bakery (St. Helena), but they also have a location in Napa and both locations have sandwiches for lunch. We dined at St. Helena’s Bistro for a casual first night dinner and it was ok, but nothing special. We loved the Napa Farmer's Market on Saturdays and Tuesday, but it might be closed now for the winter.

We stayed for 6 days and did 2 tastings per day (3 per day on 2 days), so we drove ourselves in a rental car. If you do 3 or more, you should probably hire a driver (drunk driving could be a problem). We had access to a house in St. Helena and it was a fantastic location.

Hope this helps. Make sure to make tasting appointments several weeks in advance. The only low for December, the vineyards were all brown and barren, but we expected that. We didn't have a lot of traffic and reservations (for meals and tastings) were easier. The temps were low of 32 to high of 55. We didn't go to Auberge this trip (but we have gone before), but someone mentioned it above and I would definitely recommend having lunch on the porch. The views and food are great.

Cheers!

wine tasting driver is great!