Larger group visit to Napa / Sonoma

WINE TALK
1

Hi all,

I’ve learnt a lot from reading this board for many years and hope to continue to do so!

I plan to go with a large group (approx 20 people in their 40s) to Napa/Sonoma in a few months and wondered whether any wineries are particularly welcoming/suitable for such a group. There will be a big mixture of people in the group (with people who know very little about wine and don’t want to spend a huge amount to wine geeks). I’ve been to many of the higher end places recommended by this board in the past (e.g. Realm) but know they won’t be suitable for this group. The only place I can think of would be Mondavi or something a bit more mass market.

Thanks in advance (I did try searching, but couldn’t find any previous recommendations for a group this size)! [cheers.gif]

2

Hi!

This is partly tough, but we have done this exact trip with 16 or so…

We have had good experiences at…

Silver Oak

Alpha Omega

Davis Family

Jarvis

Brasswood

Hess

Pine Ridge

Mending Wall

At these places, we have felt like we were privately attended to and we have had great experiences!

Please feel free to PM me if I can help give contact information for wineries.

3

Mending Wall and Alpha Omega would be great choices on the higher end. Clos Du Val would be a good option for moderate priced Cabs.

DiCostanza also has access to a larger tasting room at COPIA in Napa and could set up a private tasting there. Cab’s range from $55-115 and they are some of my favorite Napa wines right now. We had a great visit with Erin in September. https://www.mdcwines.com/. You could probably pair them up with a Pinot producer and do pinot/chard first then Cabernet. I had something like this lined up with Erin’s help but then my customer cancelled the visit.

cheers

4

Thanks very much both!

5

Might throw in Darioush. Large parking lot, good sized tasting room and broad range of wines and prices. You can also pick up some pistachio nuts and Persian rugs. Call ahead and see what they have to offer.

6

I know that Chateau Montelena does some tastings in a room where I have been with a bunch of people I do not know. You might see what their capacity is and whether they would do a similar tasting for an entire group.

7

Don’t dismiss out of hand but Beringer could be a good visit. Huge property and several different tasting areas if people wanted to break off from the group to taste from basic to their Reserve wines.

8

Since your group has a diverse interest in wine; one idea would be to pick houses that offer different levels of tastings. This way the more experienced could do the reserve tasting and the casual wine drinkers the “normal” and considerably less expensive tastings. Most larger wineries will offer different levels of tastings.

9

Cliff Lede is good for groups. There is a classic rock theme across the estate and some cool art too for those who are less wine oriented.

10

Not really thought of as a mid/high end winery, but V. Sattui is set up for this. They are a tourist-centric winery that I believe only sells wine at the winery itself, which appeals to some more novice people. Tour bus stop, which is a negative for most experienced winos. They also have a wide variety of deli foods and gifts. If your crowd is mostly wine drinkers v. collectors, it might fit.