Love the private tours! Perfect for both families and friends. It comes with both a walk tour and a formal sit-down tasting paired with complementary cheese and chocolates. Can a girl ask for more?
I'm in particular a fan of their Cabernet Sauvignon - very bold without being overtly tannin-ridden and their Violetta dessert wine - seriously off the charts!
The cave's ambiance is really neat... it's fun to explore the vineyard above the cave before or after your tasting and see where some of the grapes are grown and if you're an adventurous type, it's fun to take pictures by the giant Grape crusher statue on top of the vineyard. This is truly Napa's hidden gem! It's located at the Meritage Resort at the south end of Napa, and the tasting room is in a cave UNDER THE GRAPES. It's such a unique place to visit in Napa. The wines are excellent. The Mysterium is one of my favorite reds, and I love the Sauvingnon Blanc. The chardonnay is also very nice. The service in the wine cave is impeccable, and the employees are really knowledgable about the wine. They will also stay and have a friendly conversation with you if it's not too busy.
Tasting room is charming and served by caring staff who know the wines and vineyards. The solar panel roof is amazing. We enjoyed walking around the various garden beds filled with fresh vegetables and flowers. The "chicken condo" is amusing, and must be a delight for visitors with children.
Selby Winery Tasting Room is another great tasting room in downtown Healdsburg. The tasting room itself is small and well organized with enough space at the bar for 2-3 small groups. What struck me was the friendliness of the staff and of Susie Selby (the winemaker) herself, who was in the tasting room taking care of some business. The conversation was very comfortable and free flowing and Susie was wonderful. After such a positive initial experience, it was on to the wines, and they did no disappoint.
You definitely need reservations for this place as it's quite small and off the beaten path. Hopefully next time we visit we'll be able to meet Julie the owner, although our server (whose name escapes me at the moment) was outstanding, very friendly and fun.
The Riboli Family WInes Estates/San Antonio Winery in LA offers complimentary tasting and winery tours. The Winery features Riboli Family of Wines and a unique and varied selection from around the wine world. Actually have 3 locations in LA, Ontario east of LA and in Paso Robles.
Mac got into food and wine during his early twenties via his friends and coworkers at Trader Joe's in Southern California. He soon began taking trips up to the Central Coast to just to taste, but quickly found himself volunteering his time on his days off to help out at a number of wineries. After learning the process for a few years and spending more and more time on the Central Coast, Mac was ready to start making wine for himself.
Certainly located in the least likely place you would imagine a wine tasting place to reside. Its oddly situated in an almost vacant business center, just a block away from the DMV, along with an exterior portraying anything but a winery.
We fortunately were pleasantly surprised to walk into an exceptional, cozy, secluded, classy atmosphere. Similar to the living and dining room of a fairly decent sized nice home. All equipped with two absolutely cute lab dogs named Thora and of course Falcor. Some might be taken back with the presence of dog's in a wine tasting room, however, being the dog lovers my friend and I both are, it was an added bonus. We were also given a quick tour of the small establishment and which Stacy explained to us how they actually hand press there grapes in the barrels which explains why they of course only develop smaller batches.
I'm glad we found Falcor, which was the height of our Napa trip. What a great selection of tasting wines! And what STRONG wines those were! We had:
2012 Trousseau Gris, Russian River Valley
A great opener. A crisp wine flavored with honeysuckle, pear and melon.
2008 Chardonnay, Los Carneros ($36)
A gentle butterscotch flavor with a toasty oakiness.
2007 Bilancia, Napa Valley ($37)
A blend of 48% Zinfandel, 26% Syrah, 21% Petit Sirah and 5% Charbono.
2006 Syrah, Napa Valley ($34)
A strong wine with blackberry, wild plum and dried currants.
2005 Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley ($65)
A well-balanced wine that aged nicely! I enjoyed this one the most.
Gary Farrell Vineyards & Winery is known for their Pinot's, but I was very impressed with their Chardonnay's. We really liked the Zinfandel they were pouring as well.
Vines were plentiful in 1867 in Placer County. As gold was depleted the miners switched to planting vineyards and orchards to make a living. Secret Ravine's property at one time produced Zinfandel and Tokay grapes. In later years the vines were removed and cows grazed the area. In the late 1900’s the property was used for the raising and training of horses, consequently the need for the large barn (now the winery). In 1998 one acre of the property was once again returned to the production of wine grapes. Currently Secret Ravine has 3.5 acres producing, Zinfandel, Syrah, Sangiovese, Barbera and Sauvignon Blanc. Hours are Sat. and Sun. from 12:00pm to 5:00pm.
