… and make sure to taste the dry Muscat …
Michael
Oh yeah, and at Anderson Valley Brewery to rehydrate! Be sure to check out Brother David’s Triple.
I also agree with all the rec’s, and would add Londer Vineyards for sure. A terrific source for pinot noir and chardonnay.
While we’re on the subject, where does everyone stay in thr area? We haven’t actually stayed there in a while.
JD
I have stayed in a variety of places:
Boonville hotel
B&B out at the ocean
Rented a house
Some place in Philo whose name I cannot recall.
Mendocino, Anderson Valley is a little too quiet
Stay in Ft Bragg or Mendocino. Only about 45 wonderful minutes of driving. Better dining options.
BTW, if you would like to see some vineyard, I would welcome someone from the WB board.
Figured that. Stayed at Heritage House a couple of times before it closed. So not sure where to start looking.
JD
If you have a dog along and want a quiet weekend, The Other Place can be paradise for the dogs and fairly luxe for people too.
You can cook or pop down to the Boonville Hotel, or into Philo to Libby’s for a decent meal.
http://www.sheepdung.com/toptop.htm
This is just east of Boonville, and it looks like they have a place down in town now too.
We had many great weekends here and at the original Sheep Dung (sold off) during our SF years.
Albion River Inn is a nice, quaint place to stay.
Boonville Hotel is lovely and the people are very nice but there’s no denying it’s in the middle of nowhere.
And it is in the center of the busiest ‘town’ in the valley.
But like Casey mentioned, it is a beautiful drive to the coast with a good portion of it through old growth redwood forest.
Kind of the reason you go. Anderson Valley is the antidote to Napa. Rustic and laden with alternative life style folk.
Indeed. A few friends and I spent a couple of days in Anderson Valley on a wine trip about six years ago. There were few options for places to stay in the valley, and we ended up staying at a retreat outside of Boonville run by a guy named Trout.
The quaintness is a bit faux, but it’s definitely a great spot – on the ocean cliffs – and very civilized. I have very fond memories of a picnic dinner outside our room consisting of some local cheeses, a baguette and a bottle of Navarro’s cheap red blend (about eight grapes including some dolcetto), watching the fog work its way in.
The restaurant was a disappointment when I ate there in 2006, though.
Your notes from that trip were epic Ken. Really epic. I still look at them from time to time.
Were last there in 2005 and thought the restaurant was strong. I appreciated their wine list which was heavy on the Anderson Valley.
Berridge is not open any more.
Thanks for the recommendation. I would be happy to pour for you Matt, that is if you want to geek out over some wine. If you wanted to taste some barrels I could do that for you at Foursight. I have all the 2012 Pinots, Semillion and SB as well as a 5 gal trial of SB orange wine.
Kenez should be open by then in the same complex as Drew. There making some nice wines, Anthony of Anthill is the winemaker using fruit from Cerise and Demuth. Right across the street from Drew is Balo, great bocce court. Jason Drew is making the wines.
Staying in Boonville won’t require as much driving. A new great restaurant just opened up as well, Aquarell. Finally some great wine country food in our wine country. If you want a house The Other Place is great there are also a few listed on vrbo in the area. Otherwise the Hotel is your best bet. From there you would be able to walk to the Brewry (10 min), 4 tasting rooms (0-5min) Londer/Foursight are both in Boonville, and 4 restaurants (0-5min).
Just returned from Winter WINEland and Stuhlmuller was my stop of the weekend. Great Chards, Zin and Cabs all at reasonable prices. Highly recommended!
A couple of these have already been mentioned, but I would definitely consider Goldeneye, Breggo, Drew Family Cellars, Edmeades, Foursight, and Londer.
Here are a couple links to Anderson Valley resources that you might find useful.
Anderson Valley map and winery search:
http://www.americanwineryguide.com/wineries/region/anderson-valley-ava/66/
Anderson Valley region page with links to recent articles from the Enofylz Wine Blog, SF Chronicle and NYT.
http://www.americanwineryguide.com/regions/anderson-valley-ava/