I’m trying to plan a 5-day to 1 week trip to Northern CA for next month. Travelling with the boss and Pebble Beach looks to be a must-stop so I am now rejiggering some original plans to only be in Napa/Sonoma.
Google tells me that it’s just over 2hr drive from San Fran so I guess we fly in there and drive around?
On the plus side, if we stay a couple of days in Pebble Beach (I am not a golfer) it looks like I may be able to book some appointments in the Santa Cruz area? I also have a college buddy in San Jose so I would take a day out to see him as well or he may tag along on some tasting appts.
I know “Monterey” is a wine AVA but are there any wineries around Pebble Beach? I’m not at all familiar with the area.
This is still a fluid situation so I haven’t even picked dates yet but any general info from those of you whom are local or familiar with the area would be great.
Thanks in advance! ![[thankyou.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/d/df165fe9c1593d19166ae7e1ffe5e272089cc07b.gif "thankyou")
There are several wineries in the Carmel Valley and one with a tasting room in Carmel-by-the-Sea. carmel valley wineries" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Bob’s post pretty much covers it. No wineries around Pebble Beach.
The two best wineries in the area are Bernardus and Galante. Galante, which is out Carmel Valley Road is absolutely lovely.
You may want to visit a couple of well known vineyards - Rosellas and Gary’s are out highway 68 towards Salinas. Not sure if they have tours or not.
Parsonage makes nice Syrah on Carmel Valley Rd.
+1
Bernardus would likely be worth your time, too…
JD
Hi Brent,
I just got back from there and I went to Chateau Julien and Heller in Carmel Valley, the latter had some good QPR wines, the former, not so much. Carmel Valley is an easy ride from the peninsula, and the road is very pretty and easy.
You’ll be driving, the ride down to Monterey from SFO is lovely. Santa Cruz is about 45 minutes-1 hour north on Highway 1, my understanding is that a lot of the wineries up there are on very switchbacked roads - 5 miles in 30 minutes types.
We stayed at the Hyatt Monterey, which is right off of Highway 1, and they just put $60 million into renovations and have a golf course at the hotel (not as fancy or pricey as Pebble Beach for sure) and it’s convenient to everything. I would recommend a trip down to Big Sur at least as far as Nepenthe, killer ride (about 1-2 hours each way), and have a $7 beer at Nepenthe, it’s worth it!
Also do dinner at Passionfish in Pacific Grove. Killer wine list and great prices.