Fall time means pumpkins, football, sweaters, and harvest season. What better place to go than Wine Country in Sonoma and Napa, CA. I went last year, and the trip was so incredible that when I was brainstorming where to go for my end of summer trip, I immediately had this place in mind! Having been just a year ago, I had a better idea where I wanted to go and how to organize the trip to make the best of it.
Having gone two years in a row, here are my suggestions for a great wine trip:
- Make a plan. Figure out which wineries you want to visit and roughly make a plan. Call ahead to see which places you need a reservation for a tasting. Smaller wineries are usually by appointment only. Be flexible and try to vary your wineries with places that require reservations to those that don’t. That way you can adjust as necessary.
- Don’t overdo it. I always think I can go more places than I can. The whole point of the trip is to enjoy good wine and relax. If you find a place you love, then take some time there and sit and enjoy the scenery.
- Note which places to return. You really can’t go wrong with any winery. There’s a reason this area is known for their wines, so just make note of which places you love and come back. Next trip try a few new ones and return to old faves.
- Get a convertible. If you can, book ahead and get a convertible, weather permitting.
- If you’re going to purchase wine, bring a wine suitcase. I brought two, which held 12 bottles each. It’s worth it if you love your wine!
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(Click on Suitcase for Colors & Prices)
I flew into San Francisco airport both times. I find that I get better direct flights into SFO than Sacramento, plus SFO has a great Centurion Lounge (AMEX), which makes my stay at the airport much more enjoyable. For those that aren’t aware, AMEX waives the annual $450 annual fee for military. In fact, they’ll even reimburse you for the years you paid and were eligible, if you ask. If you’re military, you must get this card. It gives you access to Priority Pass, Centurion lounges, gold status at Hilton and Marriott (and SPG), among other things. There is seriously no reason you shouldn’t get it. You also get other perks like monthly credits for Uber, for instance.
This time I got in a night earlier and just spent the night at a nearby airport hotel. The great part of doing this is that I can just take the hotel shuttle, then I coordinated to pick up my rental at the hotel the next day. I highly suggest doing this. For some reason, picking up rentals at SFO is very painful. I stayed at the Marriott Waterfront. For an “airport hotel,” this is the SPOT. Great and lively lobby, and with Gold Status or higher with Marriott, you get access to their club, which is pretty good.
Going into the trip, I had researched a lot of wineries, and I noticed in some blogs that wineries offer military discounts or free wine tastings. Boy was this right. Check out the discounts below and the itinerary to help plan your next long weekend!
Itinerary
DAY 1
We’re up and running. Got a good night’s sleep, so I feel much better starting off today than I did the last trip where I got up at the crack of dawn, flew in, then drove straight to wineries.
The first place we stopped at was V. Sattui Winery. While researching, I noticed the reviews seemed great. We got there right when they were opening. For military, you can have a free $20 wine tasting in their Marketplace. Although this particular tasting is the cheaper tasting, you still get to taste a lot. They are so very friendly, knowledgeable, and incredibly gracious with the pours. Most importantly, I really enjoyed their wines. They have some great cabs and ports. If you like port, ask about trying the different ones. Although it wasn’t part of our normal tasting, he was so great and poured us tastings for all of them. This place is apparently one of the busiest ones in the area. I came through on the wine train the following day, and it was packed. People picnic, eat, drink, and just hang out, so get there earlier in the day.
The second place we stopped was Hall Vineyards. I had discovered this place from the wine train stop a year prior. Really beautiful, modern-style winery with very nice wines, but quite expensive. If you use the bathroom here, you’ll think you’re in some club, with the dark red interior. The vineyard is one my favorites to sit and have a glass or two. There are many beautiful spots to find a seat and enjoy the atmosphere. For military, they waive the tasting fee, so you can have a $40 tasting for free, for each person. Here, as with V. Sattui, one military ID is sufficient to get a free tasting for whomever you brought with you, however, some do require an ID for each person to get a free tasting. We didn’t end up buying any wine here this time, but we enjoyed the experience and tasting.
On our next stop, we went to Charles Krug. I really enjoyed this spot. It’s on the more northern end of Napa, but not too far from Hall. For military, they will waive the $45 tasting!!! I repeat, they waive the $45 tasting. The downside is they only waive it for the person who has an ID. However, I really enjoyed this tasting a lot. By the time we got to Charles Krug, we were famished. We thoroughly enjoyed the cheese and charcuterie plate that we ordered. It pairs quite nicely with the wine. We needed to get going soon, because I had scheduled a tour/tasting in Sonoma, and it was going to take an hour to get there, so unfortunately, we hurried through the rest. Next time I come, I would like to come back and sit and take my good ole time here. We did, however, make use of their wood-fire pizza they make in-house there. We got one to go, and it was delicious. Highly recommend. We did buy a few bottles. They also gave us a discount on the wine purchased, which, if my memory serves me, was 20%.
We then made a one hour trek through Napa into Sonoma, via Waze, to the lovely boutique winery Hanzell. Ideally, I would have made this on the day we planned to be solely in Sonoma, but this was their only opening. For military, you get a free RANGE ROVER tour AND tasting, and the reviews were fantastic, so I couldn’t pass it up. I’m so glad I didn’t either, because this was really quite something. After having lived in Europe for five years, I didn’t feel a huge need to get many tours on my stops at the wineries, but this tour was personalized and lovely. When I say personalized, it was the two of us and our guide! He drove us through their vineyards in their Range Rover, we walked through their cellar, production area, then found ourselves in a private tasting room. On top of that, you get a 20% discount on wines purchased for military as well. Unlike the earlier mentioned Napa wineries, this is a low yield, small, organic winery. If you want exclusive, this is it. It’s lovely, not over the top, and just a nice ending to our first day in wine country. Unlike the earlier wineries, this place is by appointment only, so you can’t just stop in whenever you want. Make sure to call well in advance (a couple of weeks, or more, if you want a weekend appointment). Also of note, because we went on a Friday, we didn’t have any problem getting a tasting spot at the earlier wineries, but some wineries on the weekend do require tasting reservations. Just be aware.
DAY 2
We stayed at the Sheraton Petaluma Hotel, which was convenient to wineries. Depending on where you want to go, it might take you a 30 minute drive. This may sound far, but it’s really not bad. Part of the fun in Napa and Sonoma is the drive and the scenery. This is a very busy time of year, so hotels in the area are at premium prices. I was able to get a military rate here, and it worked out well. Our room was spacious, and we passed out every night from our wine days.
Today we are on the Napa Wine Train tour. I did this last year too, and I enjoyed it so much I thought I would do it again. It’s quite pricey though, but it includes a few hour wine train tour, a four course meal, and three wine tastings and tours. Last year I did the Estate Tour, and this year I picked the Collective Tour. The Estate Tour consisted of Domaine Chandon, Hall, and Inglenook, whereas the Collective Tour consisted of St. Supery, Beringer, and Raymond.
Both are great, but of the two, I’d probably recommend the Estate Tour. I particularly loved the blue velvet seats in the Estate Tour train and the food menu more. Also loved Domaine Chandon stop at the beginning of the Estate Tour, which consisted of canapes and sparking wine tasting. Domaine Chandon is beautiful too, and it’s a hot spot to sit and enjoy some good bubbly.
For today’s wine tour, we started at St. Supery, which I always have enjoyed for the Sauvignon Blanc. The grounds are lovely. It was quiet there when we arrived, but almost certainly gets busier later in the day. Although this was part of our wine train tour, they offer free military tastings, and even better, they offer 20% off wine purchases. Great deal. Get their estate Sauvignon Blanc.
We went to Beringer next on the tour. Really enjoyed the cave tour and had some tasty reserve Cabs. They do offer a military discount on purchases, but we ended up purchasing a few bottles with another deal they had. Don’t think of Beringer solely as cheaper wines. Yes, they mass produce, but there are some nice “higher end” wines as well.
The third stop on the wine tour was Raymond. This winery has a burlesque theme, as evident by the mannequin dancer hanging from the ceiling. You can also sign up to be a winemaker for a day and make your own unique blend. John Legend even has a wine here. Make sure to check this winery out. It’s fun, unique, and the vibe here sets this winery apart from the others. Wines were also quite delicious.
Also want to mention Inglenook, which I stopped at during the first wine train tour I took. This is grand, beautiful and rich in Francis Ford Coppola memorabilia. For active military, they offer one complimentary Heritage Tasting with the purchase of a Heritage Tasting but requires advanced reservations. Incredible wines too. Worth a stop!
After the wine train, we decided to drive to Sonoma Plaza in downtown Sonoma and stopped at Kamen Estate Wines tasting room. A friend highly recommended it, so we thought it would be a good ending to our day. This is solely a tasting room, so it’s completely different from the other spots. It’s small, but sleek and very chic. The wines are fantastic. They’re particularly known for their cabs. Loved them. Although they don’t have a typical military discount, we did get two free tastings, and we got a 10% discount on purchases. The lady who served us was so friendly and warm.
Afterwards we decided to get a little bite to eat for dinner. Although I’m always making reservations ahead of time, we didn’t know how hungry we’d be, so we just winged it. We ended up walking across the Plaza to The Girl and the Fig. You definitely need a reservation, but we were able to sit in the bar area, which was first come, first serve. We ordered the grass-fed steak tartare (with lavender sea salt) and the smoked salmon tartine. Both were absolutely delicious. They are just starters, but they were plenty for us to have a lighter meal.
DAY 3
Today is all about Sonoma. Last year I went to St. Francis Winery and really quite enjoyed it. I discovered that they have a renowned wine and food pairing. This year I had to go. When I first looked at reservations (via Open Table) they were booked, but one opened up and I snagged it. This splurge is well worth it! If you like food and wine, do this! It’s that good and you’ll thank me later. It’s a five course wine and food pairing. There are set times, usually 11am, 1pm, and 3pm. It’s a small group (around 20), and they explain the food and wine in great detail. If you are a foodie, then this is your mecca. Truly an experience to behold. I loved it so much and loved their wine that I joined their wine club, which is well worth it. I ended up getting 12 bottles shipped, which was a great deal, and minimal costs in shipping. If you just want to purchase a couple of bottles, military gets a 15% discount on wines purchased, but as a wine club member it was 20%. Regardless, their whites and reds are incredible and the food is out of this world. Have I convinced you yet to stop here?
The second stop was one of my favorite spots from last year, Kunde winery. Their water feature just makes this a lovely place to stop and enjoy. Last year I made a reservation for their cheese pairing with the wine tasting, and you sit outside in the serene deck area. This year, we just stopped for a wine tasting, which is free for military. We were inside at the walk up bar, but you can also go to the outside bar. I’m a fan of their Sauvignon blancs in particular. They offer a 20% discount on wine purchases too, so naturally, I bought some.
We then stopped by Gun Bun winery. Unfortunately, they were completely booked for a wine tasting. The place looks neat – more relaxed, rustic, casual vibe. They don’t give a military discount though. Since we didn’t have a lot of time before places closed, we left and went to our final stop.
We ended at Domaine Carneros. It’s a grand estate, that makes you feel like you’re back in France. It was packed too. Depending on the day and weather, you should make a reservation for a tasting. I opted for the sparkling wine tasting, and we purchased the caviar and smoked salmon plate. All delicious. They offer at 10% military discount on the tasting and purchases. They had a deal on a bundle of sparkling wines that I ordered to have shipped. Nice, lovely spot for some sparkling.
We ended up driving back down to the San Francisco airport, made a stop at In-N-Out Burger, then crashed at the Marriott Waterfront Hotel.
What a great trip. The next morning we got up and took the shuttle to the airport. With all of that, go ahead and book a trip to California Wine Country in Sonoma and Napa. It’s a magical place. You can also combine it with time in San Francisco and a stop to Muir Woods to see some redwoods, but if you love wine, you’ll be happy you came.
