Summer 2010 Wine Tour Season has Begun
I was out touring with two couples from the east coast yesterday in Napa and I realized that it was time for a change of strategy. The easy going, drop in any where you want to, ‘crowd, what’s a crowd’ winter tour season was over. Now we’re in the ‘Accck, where did all of these mini-buses come from?’ time of year.
We were doing an afternoon tour that started at the El Dorado Hotel on the Sonoma Plaza and heading to Napa, so in five hours you can figure on four wineries and a picnic lunch. I headed to wineries that just a month ago were quiet and gracious, and now there are tour groups all over the place and it’s a longer walk to reach the picnic tables.
Time for the summer plan to kick into action! That means spending more time at wineries that are way off the radar, by appointment, not marked with a sign, just a street number, and where the people pouring the wine often are the same folks that make it. It takes more preparation, but at least I’m not competing with mini-buses for the good parking spaces.
It’s funny that even in the busy season there are some big wineries that are still pleasant to visit, and while they may want to be busier, the combination of site design, spaciousness and diverse attractions mean that they can handle large crowds more easily. First on that list is Rubicon, with its great grounds, café and wine bar, museum, extensive gift shop and separate rooms for both the main tasting and the wine club, along with various private tasting rooms in the old wine storage areas, there is plenty of room to go around.
Even at that I don’t think that Rubicon gets the traffic that it used to, before it changed its name from Neibaum Coppola to Rubicon, raised its prices and focused only on the more expensive estate wines. I’m sure they hope that their newly renovated Alexander Valley site, The Frances Ford Coppola Winery, with its less expensive wines and a world of family friendly attractions, including restaurants, will enjoy hoards of visitors. We show the winery on our maps in our smart phone apps and books.
Even though it is farther from San Francisco Northern Sonoma has a nice collection of hotels, including a new project under construction in Healdsburg being built by the Healdsburg Hotel. Apparently their present location can’t handle the traffic.
Another large winery that handles the crowds better than most is Domaine Carneros. That’s the combination of wonderfully planned patios and elegantly appointed rooms. The size and enthusiasm of the staff is another significant factor.
Another larger winery that handles the crowds wonderfully is Rutherford Hill. Their picnic areas are famous among the tour guides, three different sections with great views of the valley. They are happy to sell you a bottle of wine to enjoy with your lunch, but make sure that you visit their tasting room because they make a fantastic collection of wines, something for everybody. They also do one of the best tours in the valley, and the variety of spaces that they have available means that you have a great time, even when there are lots of folks about.
Ralph & Lahni de Amicis are authors of the Amicis Winery Guides, and owners of Amicis Tours. They are authors of over twenty books on health, design, business and travel. Their iPhone Apps, The Napa Valley Wine Tour, and The Sonoma Winery Tour are a tour guides approach to these beautiful area, complete with 1000’s of photos and insights. Their articles and products can be found on the sites http://www.amicistours.com and http://www.spaceandtime.com
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