Los Carneros

Los Carneros

The Los Carneros region, which is one of Napa’s newest viticultural areas, characterized by its rolling, vine-covered hills, lies just to the southwest of the city of Napa, reached by way of the Old Sonoma Road and Highway 12. Los Carneros, typically, has cooler growing conditions than the Napa Valley, ideally suited to the early-ripening Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Noir and Johannisberg Riesling varietals.

Los Carneros also has in it a handful of small wineries, including Mont St. John Cellars and Domaine Carneros, situated just off Old Sonoma Road, and Acacia, Bouchaine and Saintsbury, are situated a little to the south on Las Amigas Road, Buchli Station Road and Los Carneros Avenue, respectively. All offer wines from the Carneros region. Two others, the Carneros Creek winery and Codorniu Napa Valley, are located, respectively, on Dealy Lane—which goes off Old Sonoma Road northwestward—and Henry Road, farther to the north of there. The last of these, Codorniu, a méthode champenoise sparkling wine producer from Spain, is especially to he recommended to first-time visitors to the area, housed in a unique, architect-designed winery building, with sweeping views of the Cameros district, and offering visitors a first-class tour of its facility, highlighting the méthode champenoise sparkling wine-making process. Codomiu also has an art gallery and museum on its premises.

Mount Veeder

Mount Veeder

Mount Veeder is another Napa Valley appellation, nestled in the Mayacamas mountain range just to the northwest of the City of Napa, at the southwest end of the Napa Valley. Here, among the most notable wine estates, situated on Redwood Road that heads directly northwestward from Napa, is the Hess Collection winery, housed in a restored, turn-of-the-century winery building that is built largely from stone. The Hess Collection also has an art gallery with a superb collection of paintings and sculpture by well-known American and European artists.

From Redwood Road, just south of the Hess Collection, Mount Veeder Road peels northward and into the small, lofty viticultural area of the same name. Mount Veeder, with roughly 200 acres or so of planted vineyards. On Mount Veeder Road itself is the small, family-owned Mount Veeder Winery, specializing in Cabernet Sauvignon; and a little farther, on Lakoya Road are the Mayacamas Vineyards—named for the Mayacamas Mountain range, in which the Mount Veeder area is located—and Sky Vineyards, offering estate-grown Zinfandel From their hillside vineyards.

Vintage 1870

Vintage 1870

Yountville’s chief attraction is its “Vintage 1870”—a surprising red-brick complex, formerly the Gottlieb Goezinger Winery, dating from 1870 and once claimed to be the largest winery in the Napa Valley. Vintage 1870 now houses some 50 specialty and import shops, gourmet restaurants and art galleries as well as one or two hot-air balloon companies, offering scenic flights over the Napa Valley.

Washington Square

Washington Square

Washington Square, another place of interest in Yountville, is situated close to “Vintage 1870.” It has in it some interesting shops and restaurants, and the Napa Valley Railway Inn where nine refurbished, turn-of-the-century rail cars—including three cabooses—offer luxury hotel accommodations to visitors. Try to also see the Bordeaux and Burgundy houses on Washington Street—two superb country inns—the latter housed in a charming, native-stone. two-story brandy distillery dating from 1874. Also to be recommended is a saunter down the Yountville Crossroad, passing through one of the loveliest stretches in the Napa Valley, where you can catch glimpses of an untouched part of the valley, much as it appeared before the vineyardists arrived in the mid-1800s.

Domaine Chandon

Domaine Chandon

Domaine Chandon, another great glory of Yountville, is located just west of town on California Drive, which goes off the highway (29). This is the best-known méthode champenoise sparkling wine producer in the Napa Valley, owned by Möet Hennessy of France, makers of Champagne Möet & Chandon and Hennessy Cognac. The winery is housed in a striking, architect-designed modern structure, built into the hillside, and with beautiful, landscaped grounds, featuring large shade trees, a stream crossing, and duck ponds. There is also a delightful little gourmet French restaurant here, and a patio for tasting wines. Besides which, Domaine Chandon offers an excellent tour of its facility, on which you can learn, step by step, the entire champagne-making process.

Oakville Wineries

Oakville Wineries

Among the wineries in Oakville is the landmark Robert Mondavi Winery, housed in an impressive, Mediterranean-style stucco building, with manicured lawns and modem sculptures. The winery has guided tours, an art gallery featuring works of California artists, and a wine and gift shop. It also schedules music concerts and other events in the summer months.

Another winery of interest here is DeMoor—formerly Napa Cellars—housed in a unique geodesic dome which has in it the entire winemaking apparatus as well as a visitor center. Others here include the Cakebread Cellars and Silver Oak Vineyards, located on the Oakville Crossroad, the latter a Cabernet Sauvignon specialist situated on the site of an old Oakville dairy. Also of interest, more or less across the street from Silver Oak, is historic Villa Mount St. Eden, originally established in 1881, and situated amid estate vineyards planted largely to Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay.

Among other wineries in the area are the family-owned Girard Winery, situated on an oak-studded knoll at the corner of Silverado Trail and the Oakville Crossroad; and the Robert Pepi and Sequoia Grove wineries, both located on Highway 29, the latter housed in a restored barn nestled in a grove of towering sequoias.

Oakville Grade

Oakville Grade

For first-time visitors to the area, a worthwhile detour from Oakville is westward on the Oakville Grade, passing by the mountain-top Vichon Winery, which has good views of Napa Valley vineyards below, then descending steeply into the adjoining Sonoma County wine country. The drive is in fact some 10 miles long, with the Oakville Grade changing into Dry Creek Road and, again, into Trinity Road; but it offers the motorist some spectacular mountain scenery, and rare moments of solitude.

St. Helena Attractions

St. Helena Attractions

St. Helena’s great glory is its Wine Library, which houses more than 3,000 volumes on wine and wine-related subjects, believed to be the largest such collection of wine literature on the West Coast. Also nearby is the Silverado Museum, devoted entirely to the life and works of celebrated Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson, who honeymooned at nearby Mount St. Helena in the spring of 1880, and where he also gathered notes for his Napa Valley classic, The Silverado Squatters. The museum has over 7,800 items of Stevenson memorabilia—including first editions of the author’s hooks, original manuscripts and letters, paintings, sculptures and photographs of the author, and several of his personal and work-related items.

St. Helena Wineries

St. Helena Wineries

Among the St. Helena area wineries, most notable is the historic Beringer Winery, one of the oldest wineries in continuous operation in the Napa Valley. Beringer’s chief attraction is its majestic Rhine House, an elegantly restored European-style mansion, originally built in 1876. There's an excellent tour of the winery, which includes a visit to the Beringer’s 1,000 feet of ancient limestone caves and tunnels, dug into the hillside by hand in the 1880s, and where fine wines are still aged.

Another winery here is the historic Charles Krug Winery, which has the distinction of being the oldest winery in the valley, originally founded by German immigrant Charles Krug, who was the first in the Napa Valley to make wine using a grape press. Public tours of the winery are offered daily.

Among others in area are the historic, 19th-century Markham Winery, which offers a “sensory evaluation” course to visitors; and Freemark Abbey, which has a tasting room in a small complex with two delightful restaurants and an unusual gift shop. Yet others here include the Round Hill Cellars, housed in a modest facility on Lodi Lane, which goes off the highway eastward; and Folie a Deux, a small, family owned and operated winery, situated on a knoll overlooking estate vineyards.

South of the St. Helena township you can visit a few more well-known wineries, among them Heitz Cellars, a family owned and operated winery; Sutter Home, which has the distinction of being the largest of Napa Valley’s historic wineries built entirely from wood, dating from 1874; and the tourist-alluring, native-stone V. Sattui Winery, originally established in 1885 by immigrant Vittorio Sattui.

Spring Mountain

Spring Mountain

Also to be recommended to visitors to St. Helena is a detour to the adjoining Spring Mountain area—a small, well-regarded wine-growing region, located high in the Mayacamas Mountain Range, to the west of St. Helena, and with a dozen or so picturesque little wineries situated there. It can be reached by way of Madrona Road west off the highway (29), from just south of St. Helena, then Spring Mountain Road northwest off Madrona.

Sightseeing in Calistoga

Sightseeing in Calistoga

Calistoga is a lively little town, notable increasingly for its hot springs and spa resorts. It was originally founded in 1868 by Sam Brannan, one of California’s first millionaires, who established here the first of the area’s spa resorts, and named it “Calistoga"—which, we are told, is derived from confusing the words “California” and “Saratoga.” In any case, the town has in it no fewer than eight full-fledged spa resorts, offering visitors a wide range of health and beauty treatments, and all sorts of exotic baths—steam, mud, mineral, herbal, sulphur.

The town also has a colorful little main street (Lincoln Avenue), lined with old and lovely buildings, dating from the late 1800s and early 1900s, mostly restored, and now housing modern shops and restaurants. Toward the upper end of the main street, of course, is the Old Calistoga Depot, one of the chief attractions of the town, dating from 1868 and claimed to be the oldest railroad depot in existence in California. The depot has been largely restored, and converted into a small shopping arcade, with gift shops, a wine shop, delicatessen and a well-liked café. Alongside the depot, on the railroad tracks are a half-dozen old Southern Pacific rail cars, refurbished and converted, again, into unique shops, specializing in rare gifts and old-fashioned candy. The Calistoga-based Once-in-a-Life-time hot-air balloon company also has its offices here.

Another place of supreme tourist interest is the Sharpsteen Museum on Washington Street, a block or so east off the main street, where you can view some excellent displays of Calistoga’s pioneer history, including three or four superb dioramas, one of which features Brannan’s original hot springs resort and the town as it appeared in the 1860s. Adjoining the museum—and, in fact, with its entrance through the museum—is Brannan’s old cottage, built in 1866 and now beautifully restored with original 19th-century furnishings and decor. The museum and cottage are open on weekdays, 10-4.
Also, not to be missed is Calistoga’s “Old Faithful” geyser, located just to the north of town on Tubbs Lane. It is one of the area’s oldest and most famous geysers, claimed to be among only three regularly erupting geysers in the world: it erupts approximately every 50 minutes, gushing forth in a fountain of boiling water and steam, some 60 feet or so directly into the air. There is a small picnic area at the site, and an admission fee is charged.

Calistoga Wineries

Calistoga Wineries

For wine buffs, Calistoga has much of interest. There are, in fact, in and around Calistoga, at least a half-dozen or so well-known wineries, some of them indeed quite historic. Just to the south of town, for instance, on a small side road off Highway 29 are the celebrated Schramsberg Vineyards, founded in 1862 by pioneer vintner Jacob Schram, and memorialized, in 1880, by noted author Robert Louis Stevenson in his book, The Silverado Squatters. Schramsberg makes bottle-fermented champagne primarily.

Two other wineries worth visiting. located on Dunaweal Lane which goes off the highway, eastward, are Stonegate and Sterling Vineyards. The latter is especially to be recommended to first-time visitors to the area, housed in a splendid, white Mediterranean-style building, perched on a hilltop overlooking valley vineyards. The only way up to the winery is by way of an aerial tram, which, again, has superb views of the valley. At the winery there is an excellent, self-guided tour of the winemaking facility, quite interesting to wine enthusiasts who can study, at their own pace, the winemaking process. There is also a comfortable tasting room here, and a delightful patio with panoramic views, where you can sample Sterling wines. A gift-cum-wine shop on the premises retails Sterling wines, as well as wine-related books, gifts and other paraphernalia.

Also of interest, not far from Sterling Vineyards, located just to the north on Dunaweal Lane, is Clos Pegase, one of Napa Valley’s newer but more prominent wineries, housed in a dramatic, Greco-Roman, architect-designed stucco edifice, built in 1986 as a tribute to wine, art and mythology. The winery is in fact named for the mythological flying horse, Pegasus, featured on its wine label. The winery is open to the public for wine tasting and sales, and tours of the facility can also be arranged.

Among other interesting wineries in the Calistoga area are the Robert Pecota Winery, just north of town, and Cuvaison which is situated at the top end of the Silverado Trail and housed in a lovely Spanish-style building. Chateau Montelena, also north of Calistoga, on a side road that dashes oft Tuhhs Lane, is housed in a picturesque, French chateau-style stone castle, overlooking the artificially-created, yet beautiful, Jade Lake, with its small. Oriental bridges and red lacquered pavillions, and a real Chinese junk beached at one end of the lake. Chateau Montelena and Cuvaison have good visitor facilities, and offer primarily varietal wines from the Napa Valley.