Some good friends love Napa, and have a well-behaved eight-year-old. They have had the unfortunate experience of being told by several wineries that they absolutely could not visit, simply because they would have their kid with them.
So, I am hoping for some recommendations. Searching this forum, I was able only to find a single brief thread from recent times:
Appreciate any recommendations/advice.
I’ll be curious to see the replies here as well. I remember reading a FB post replying to a SF Chronicle article not long ago and folks got quite heated about the topic, with many ‘outraged’ that folks would choose to bring their kids to a winery.
Cheers
Depends on the winery and the event (and the kids) I guess. I brought my kids to a few Betz open houses back in the day- back when it was truly the Betz Family winery and they were received with open arms- Bob Betz even taking my son back into the barrel rooms and showing him some of the equipment, etc.
To the OP, no idea on Napa visits, sorry.
A couple of years ago my wife and I went to River’s-Marie/William&Mary and DiCostanzo, where Will Seguí and Erin DiCostanzo each generously accepted us with two boys (7 & 5). It’s not Napa, but in Sonoma, Bedrock also hosted us with our kids at their tasting room. In all cases the people/wine were fantastic (we are on all three lists).
For all of those visits, it was early (before 1pm) which may have helped.
Castelo di Amorosa in Calistoga is very kid friendly (fun castle to explore, non alcoholic kids drinks) although more touristy and the wine itself was not my style.
For what it’s worth, I’ve tasted in a lot of places with our young boys (Napa, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Oregon, Washington) and most places were willing to accommodate - but I always emailed first and offered to pay for the tastings for the kids (not wine of course but for the “seat”). Even places that said no kids on the website said yes when I emailed directly.
I would not expect the more fancy (ie $$$) Napa “experiences” to be as accommodating.
Maybe Hoopes?
They do have an animal sanctuary.
Rivers Marie did not accept kids when we tried to go in January. Dunn, EWCY, Bedrock, Red Cap, and Matthiasson were all ok with bringing kids.
Round Pond would be great. It was huge. Frog’s Leap had gorgeous grounds and gardens that kids would have fun outside. Not Elyse, Mending Wall, or Cimarossa.
Nate,
Not Napa, but we (Extradimensional Wine Co. Yeah!) are off Sonoma plaza and are kid friendly- My 7yr old daughter filled a storage bin with toys, games, etc. that she dubbed “the kids corner”.
Awesome! Thanks for the info, Hardy!
I can vouch for the Extradimensional Tasting Room being a cool place, great vibe and of course outstanding wines.
Another advantage is park the car and enjoy Hardy and Kate’s wines along with several other quality tasting rooms. Then enjoy the restaurants, shops and sights of the town of Sonoma.
If your kid gets a bit antsy (all kids do), no problem, Sonoma has a grass filled plaza that a child can run around and work it all out.
Tom