Is mid-August an OK time to visit Napa and Sonoma? I am planning a trip out to Napa and hoping that wineries and tasting rooms won’t be closed. Any thoughts and previous experiences appreciated. I will of course check the specific places I have in mind, but wanted to make sure I had realistic expectations.
That’s before most likely harvest dates, at that point most producers will be prepping and waiting for harvest, with a few exceptions depending on the summer weather. Expect it to be on the warm side that time of year, but that means quite pleasant for you, coming from mid-Atlantic 
All the businesses, restaurants, hotels, wineries, will be in full swing then, nothing to worry about - except lots of other tourists. Get your restaurant reservations early.
Prepare yourself for a lot of traffic along the 29. I would recommend you travel a bit east along the Silverado Trail to (hopefully) cut some time off your travels. Also make your tasting appointments as soon as possible since they will fill up…
Thanks all for the tips. I am hopeful that I can visit some of the winemakers that I have been introduced to through this board.
Here is my itinerary so far"
8/18 - Kapcsandy (morning)
Blankiet (after lunch)
TBD - (late afternoon)
8/19 - MacDonald (morning)
Schramsberg (after lunch)
Pott - (late afternoon)
8/20 - Realm (morning)
Gargiulo (lunchtime)
Nine Suns (late afternoon)
We arrive on Wednesday, so I was thinking of hitting maisonry to get “acclimated”.
I am hoping to arrange a tasting with Rivers-Marie and Bevan (if they get their license.
Really looking forward to the trip!
Looks like some nice visits. I don’t know where MacDonald takes visitors, but make sure to plan for enough driving time between stops. Assuming Pott is down south at Quixote, that could be a 30-40 minute drive from Schramsberg with traffic. Spit!
Alan, good tip on both timing of visits and spitting! We have engaged a driver who regularly organizes winery trips and he helped plan out the spacing of visits.