My wife and I will be in Sonoma for a weekend, our first trip to the area since we got interested in wine. It’s our 20th Anniversary, so we’re probably not going to spend the whole time at wineries, but since her interests are in architecture and landscape architecture, are there any places between Healdsburg (where we’re staying) and Yountville (where we’re eating dinner on Saturday) that we should definitely not miss?
Schramsberg is always a hit. It is a good 1st tour of the day, hard to drink big reds for breakfast Seavey is very pretty with an old winery on the corner up in the conn valley. Macleod near the town of Kenwood makes a very nice sauvignon blanc and the tour by George is a highlight.
If you take the less scenic route from H’burg to Yountvegas and head through Carneros, you can check out di Rosa
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The place in Sonoma I would try are Lynmar - good wines and I loved the views from the patio. the other places we enjoyed didnt offer much in terms of Architecture but are Arista, Paul Hobbs, Merry Edwards, Ridge, Seghesio.
Depending on which way you go there are some options - over the mountains or through Sonoma -
For views and architecture - check out Artesa - wines are nothing special but they have a beautiful piece of property and if it is clear you can see forever.
If you go over the mountain - try to go over Spring Mountain - the wineries are andless - Pride, Barnett, Terra Valentine, Erna Schein, Spring Mountain, Keenan, just to name a few. Fun little drive too. I would say this is my favorite area of Napa and would be my reccomendation for wineries. Others probably have more insight.
If you go Oakville Grade - I am not sure of any wineries - others might know.
If you take Alexander Road and then 128 from Healdsburg to Calistoga, you can stop at Clos Pegase. They have some wonderful artwork and sculpture on the winery grounds.
When in Healdsburg, try and make some time to visit John Holdredge.
Hardy is right, your wife will dig The di Rosa Peserve. If you have any way to make a connection/appointment go to Hanzell. Lynmar is also a really good recommendation.
Add another vote for Lynmar to the list.
Spending time with Rod Berglund at Swan and John at Holdredge is always worthwhile. One thing I might think about non-wine-wise is a trip to Armstrong Redwood forest, just lovely.
Ken - Hopefully you have mapped/timed your drive from Healdsburg to Yountville and back and are comfortable with it That’s a huge distance to go. Not trying to rain on your parade, but just in case you have not, I would feel remiss in not saying that is one heck of a drive.
Thanks, everyone, for the ideas. I’ll take a look and figure something out, I’m sure.
Well, I had consulted Google Maps, which said it was about an hour’s drive. But I take your point, and we’ll think it over. Thanks.
I overlooked the part where you were driving back after dinner. Unless it is the French Laundry, reschedule dinner for someplace near H’burg. If it is the FL, find a hotel room nearby,or switch to Cyrus. A car will be more $ than a hotel room.
To echo Merrill-- I do the drive a lot, but any route you choose has some very windy spots. If you haven’t driven it few times before at night, you’ll be white knucklin’ in a few places. Not something you want to do with wine in you. 1st time at night, plan on 90min+
Places to consider for fine dining near H’Burg- Cyrus (two Michelin) , Farmhouse (1 mich) , Madrona Manor (1 mich), Dry Creek Kitchen.
It’s not FL (it’s Ad Hoc), so I think I’ll take your and Merrill’s advice. I’ll look into something closer to our hotel.
Thanks to both of you.
for architecture:
Artesa (beautiful inside & out)
Clos Pegase (falling into a bit of disrepair. take the free tour)
Darioush (too over-the-top for me)
Dominus (no tours or tastings)
Opus One (a bit stark)
for landscape the best I can come up with are the gardens at Chateau St. Jean
Ferarri-Carano for landscaping is a great option, too.
Find something closer to where you are staying. Cyrus is a fantastic but pricey dinner. Zin Wine Bar was good a few years ago. We liked Bistro Ralph for lunch but haven’t been to dinner there. Ravenous a long time ago was very good.
JD