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San Fran & wine country in Sept.

DeacWatcher said:
I'll be going in October and we are heading for Sonoma but I have never been (wife has been to Napa). I know its gonna cost a chunk of change, but I'd like to limit the damage for lodging as much as possible as I don't plan on spending more than 8 hrs a day at a hotel or Inn. Are there any budget or non premium spots to stay that are not dumps? I'd rather spend my dough elsewhere.
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There is a Sheraton at the bottom of Sonoma County in Petaluma that is decent. We used points to stay there on one trip so we had more wine money in the budget! It definitely adds to your drive time though, especially if you want to spend a day up around Healdsburg. Great walking/running trail right off the parking lot with lots of birds, jack rabbits, etc. right above the river.
 
Lagunitas is another great brewery in that area. Keep in mind they're not open Mondays and Tuesdays which is something I didn't realize until I got there.
 
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We prefer Sonoma as well. Much more laid back and the wines tend to be a better value. The Vintner's Inn is a convenient location near Santa Rosa. You are only 10-12 minutes from Healdsburg and all of its great restaurants. We really like a lot of the Alexander and Dry Creek Valley wineries. Definitely a lot of great spots to do a pairings lunch on a patio and take in the scenery.

What kind of wines do you guys like? Winery recommendations are a lot easier to make if you know what you like to drink.

If you are going to spend a couple days in Napa, the Carneros Inn is a great spot. The hot air balloon ride through Platypus is pretty cool.

Things are probably pretty booked for Sept. I would start making reservations (hotel and dinner) ASAP.
 
Sonoma County location depends on where you want to spend time eating and winetasting. I like the wineries on Highway 12 between Sonoma and Kenwood, so the economic trade off there is between staying in Sonoma or Santa Rosa. If you want to spend time in Healdsburg, the economic trade off is between Healdsburg or Santa Rosa. Sebastapol is another option. All are clustered just off 101. Petaluma's a nicer, less funky version of Sebastapol, but it's a little far for Highway 12 or even Healdsburg. Languinitas has very good beers, but it's located in an industrial park in Petaluma. An added bonus of staying off 101 is the drive to/from SF over the Golden Gate Bridge. Lunch/drinks on the deck at Sam's in Tiburon is awesome.
 
Flanagan vineyards is owned by Eric Flanagan, Class of '85. I hear the wine is very highly rated. I know it's in the wine country, but I don't know if it's close to whee y'all are going.
 
bigdoublezero said:
We always have pretty good luck along the Silverado Trail. I'd start there. If you have particular kinds of wine you're into, a little research beforehand probably wouldn't hurt, as some of the better spots in the valley are by appointment only. (Although that can be flexible, depending on how busy it is.)

Lots and lots of great spots to eat, especially between Yountville and St. Helena. One of our favorites is the Farmstead Restaurant at Long Meadow Ranch. I'd skip V. Sattui if I were you. Don't really care for the wine and the service is meh -- when you're in wine country, ain't nobody got time for that. It's a tour bus stop.

Sonoma is indeed less pretentious, but wine country -- in either valley -- is essentially only there to be touristy. It's like Disney World for grownups. So roll with what kind of wine you like, find some good food (not hard to do), soak in the scenery, and enjoy. Above all, avoid the snooty wine people if you can. They're the worst.


6-7 days in wine country is a little much, IMO, though. You could do easy side trips up to the Russian River Valley (also great wine, fun towns, old resort areas, a redwood grove, some great breweries) and especially Point Reyes for a stunningly beautiful stretch of coastline (check out the elk preserve at the northern tip) and pound fresh oysters all day at Tomales Bay. The oyster houses are awesome, and the feds are threatening to shut them down, so better do it while you can before they're gone. Can't recommend a day out around Point Reyes highly enough.
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seconded point reyes. check out hog island oyster co. you could do a couple days in russian river valley and check out the towns there along with the redwoods. do a day trip to point reyes. hit up iron horse if you like sparkling.
 
84Deac said:
There is a Sheraton at the bottom of Sonoma County in Petaluma that is decent. We used points to stay there on one trip so we had more wine money in the budget! It definitely adds to your drive time though, especially if you want to spend a day up around Healdsburg. Great walking/running trail right off the parking lot with lots of birds, jack rabbits, etc. right above the river.
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lagunitas is in petaluma also.
 
If you were going to do 3 days if wine would you do 2 Sonoma and 1 Russian River or vice versa?
 
RJKarl said:
By the way, late Deac Tom "Flipper" Shelton was CEO of upscale winery Joseph Phelps.
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Thanks for mentioning this. I think I mentioned this on the other thread, but don't support Joseph Phelps or their wines. They stiffed Tom Shelton out of millions of dollars and battled him in court while he was dying from a brain tumor. Tom basically made Joseph Phelps what it is today.

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/csp/me...at/News/story.csp?cid=2175654&sid=555&fid=181

I believe that the Shafer family has some Wake connections, so spend money there instead.
 
I wonder if they knew of his love of Boone's Farm as a student. :)
 
sarcasdeac said:
I prefer Sonoma to Napa...Sonoma is where the locals go, Napa is where the tourists go. If you do happen to go to Napa try Rutherford Grill for lunch or picnic at V. Sittui. Recommendations on wineries would depend on your preferences...if your travel plans are flexible and you go labor day wkend you should try the sonoma wine country festival in Healdsburg on sat and then head to Sausalito on sunday.
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I agree - I prefer Sonoma to Napa...but the bottom line is all of wine country is fantastic.
 
Our friend that we are going to see while we are out there lives over in Danville on the Oakland side of the bridge. Is there anything to see out there? I am thinking we'll just stay in the city and have her come in and meet us.

After a couple days in San Fran, I am thinking a day in Sonoma, a day in Napa, and can a day be split between Point Reyes & Russian River Valley or would I be better suited just to hit Point Reyes out of San Fran on way to Sonoma?
 
Not sure how outdoorsy you are, but there's some good hiking in Danville. Mt. Diablo is pretty cool -- a serious hike. Probably not worth a special trip even so.

Logistics-wise, I'd hit up Point Reyes first and then cut over to Sonoma. You could do a loop up through Healdsburg and then down via Calistoga and St. Helena where you'd hit Sonoma, Russian River and then Napa.
 
i've done point reyes and sebastapool in the same day and made it back to the city by 6.
 
Stayed at Hotel Yountville for 4 nights. Perfect location, within walking distance of several awesome restaurants and just a cool little town. I would recommend that area highly if you choose to go/stay in Napa. I think the Napa vs. Sonoma debate also depends on what type of wine you like. If you like Cabs, go to Napa. If you like Pinots and white wines, go to Sonoma.
 
We stayed in pleasant hill and it was nice. About an hour to wine country and a little less to sf. It's a nice town and prices were more reasonable.
 
Danville and Alamo are very nice suburbs, but that's about it. Walnut Creek has very good upscale shopping and good restaurants, but SF and the Wine Country are way better. Yountville's the nicest town in Napa County (kinda a Napa version of Healdsburg). Next door neighbor, St Helena, is hardly downscale, but it's a more traditional Wine Country town with a very charming down town. One of the wine splits between Napa and Sonokma os Zin (Sonoma) vs Cab (Napa), Napa has three really good sparkling houses: Domaine Carneros (Napa), Domaine Chandon (Yountville), and Mumm's (Napa).
 
Budget, and how into wine are you and what kinds? How much do you spend on a daily bottle with dinner, and a special occasion wine?

I have a spreadsheet covering most of the wineries in Napa/Sonoma, but it's really only worth it if you are a wine geek. If you want to get hammered and don't care much about quality then this is easier.
 
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