ONE DAY IN NAPA VALLEY
MY FIRST VISIT TO NAPA
With a last minute invite on the table, and the fact that I had never been to Napa, how could I say no? My schedule only allowed for one day up, but as you will find reading below, it was a great intro to Napa and I can’t wait to go back!
This post recounts our one day adventure with Napa Native Tours, touring 3 wineries and a making a local lunch stop.
In this POST
Intro to Napa Native Tours
Stop 1: Goosecross Cellars
Lunch at Oakville Grocery
Stop 2: Saddleback Cellars
Stop 3: Frog’s Leap
Tips & Tricks
NAPA NATIVE TOURS
My sister’s good friend, Becca, booked us an amazing day with Napa Native Tours. Tyler, owner of Napa Native, worked directly with her to schedule and take us to 3 wineries through out Napa Valley.
Tyler, pictured below, picked us up in this beautiful van equipped to the nines! Not only was it super comfy, but equipped with chargers, wine holders, and a cooler with water and La Croix for us. I think what makes Napa Native so unique (and you can tell by the name) is that Tyler is a Napa native! As third generation growing up on a farm in Napa Valley, he seemed to know all the wineries he took us to on a personal level, and provides a truly local experience.
He picked us up from our Airbnb in Vallejo at 9:30am and began the tour by giving us the low down on Napa, history, science, all the good stuff regarding how Napa became an international destination for wine. I learned that we would not be solely in the town of Napa, but all over Napa Valley. On the way to our first stop, we took a detour through the town of Yountville, which seems to be the heart of a lot of well known restaurants. The downtown area was just so charming, I would love to make the trip again if only to experience one of the many Michelin rated restaurants.
STop 1:
GOOSECROSS CELLARS
Goosecross Cellars was such a great first impression of Napa, specifically located in Yountville. When we arrived a little after 10:30, they had a welcome tasting of Sauvignon Blanc, as they showed us to a lovely table on the patio looking out into the vineyard. This was our most expensive tasting of the day at $50. We had two flights to choose from- the daily flight or the estate flight. My sister and I each picked one and then exchanged sips of each tasting to get the best of both worlds. Everything we tried was delicious, but I think I enjoyed the Cabernet Sauvignon the most. I believe Tyler mentioned it was Cabernet season…but perhaps don’t don’t quote me on that ;)
We were welcome to walk the grounds as we tasted, so we went out to the vineyard and even tried a a few grapes.
LUNCH:
OAKVILLE GROCERY
Around 12:30 we arrived at Oakville Grocery to grab some picnic sandwiches. This reminded me a bit of Larchmont Wines & Spirits here in LA, but Oakville is much, much older! Oakville has been around more than a century and is one of California’s oldest, still operating retail businesses.
Tyler made sure we all ordered first, and then took a look around at all the goodies- there was olive oil, pastas, spices, jam to name a few. The place got SLAMMED right close to 1! You could barely move! At the deli counter I ordered the Tuna Nicoise Sandwich, which I would recommend. We all raved over how good the bread was. I also came away with some truffle potato chips and deviled eggs, running me approx. $20 for lunch.
They too had a lovely patio for guests, but we took our sandwiches to enjoy at the next winery.
STOP 2:
SADDLEBACK CELLARS
Saddleback Cellars is located in Oakville, and encompassed everything Tyler was trying to drive home through out the day- Napa is full of farmers. Small, family owned vineyards make a up a lot of Napa and the goal is always to keep it local. At Saddleback I felt like I was in a friend’s very nice back yard, listening music, enjoying some wine, and petting the dog every time she did her rounds.
This was not a traditional tasting, as Saddleback was hosting a harvest party this day. This means we paid for a tasting, but pretty much could ask for whatever we liked. We were not limited to going in a certain order although they had those recommendations available.
This tasting ran us $30.
STOP 3:
FROG’S LEAP
Our third and final stop of the day was to Frog’s Leap in Ruthford. This property felt so large and grand. We entered through a large estate feeling house. Our group was sat on a lovely back porch that wrapped around most of the house. Our host was very knowledgeable, walking us through each wine, and also brought us out some cheese, crackers, and nuts. At the end we were welcome to ask to revisit which ever wine we liked the most and then Tyler took us on a tour of the property.
We were allowed to taste the grapes here as well. Tyler also showed us the olive trees and even pulled a pomegranate off its branch and broke it open right then and there for us all to taste!
This is the only tasting I am not 100 percent on the cost- I think it was $35.
With bellies full of delicious wine, Tyler brought us to one more local grocer to pick up any goodies to enjoy on the way back to our Airbnb.
Tips & Tricks:
Tip 1: “Revisit” is the word
Ask to “revisit” the wines you like! And remember- you don’t HAVE to finish every taste! If you’re not into a particular wine, ask to revisit one you did enjoy!
Tip 2: Reconcile your bill as a group
These days with Venmo, Cash App, and Paypal its so easy to have one person collect the bill and instantly receive payment form the rest of your party. If you do it anywhere, do it here! Again, most of Napa is small businesses, and we learned their systems take a minute to process each check. If you’re in a party as large as ours, running 10 tabs will have you losing precious time at your next winery.
Tip 3: Layers
Layers! October was truly a perfect month to visit! Tyler did note that it’s one of the busiest times of the year, and I can see why— the sun was shining, but it wasn’t too hot to sit outside. The morning was only slightly chilly, so I was glad to have a light coat. If you’re visiting during a month when the sun goes down a bit earlier, you’ll be happy to have layers then as well.
Have you ever been to Napa?
What wineries did you visit? Please let me know if the comments below! I’m already planning out my next visit. Maybe a stop in Sonoma as well?
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