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 Napa Valley [all categories]
 Napa Valley - Wineries to Visit
 May Trip Itenerary
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| Author | Topic: May Trip Itenerary |
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gcb17 Junior Member |
posted 05-24-2012 03:05 PM
  
I just noticed that I misspelled Itinerary in this topic - sorry about that. We are back from another wonderful trip to Napa Valley and I will work to post a trip summary in the next day or so. IP: 108.9.21.136 |
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Hawkeye Member |
posted 05-05-2012 02:14 PM
Hi gcb, I am sure that you will enjoy your visit to Redmon. Lisa is a gracious hostess and loves to talk about her wines and how they got where they are. Be sure and tell her hello from the guy from Tennessee and we are enjoying her Chard that she had on sale. Always looking for a good deal. And, if you get to Chase, tell Jeff hello for me also [This message has been edited by Hawkeye (edited 05-05-2012).] IP: 173.247.28.96 |
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bigsemi Member |
posted 05-03-2012 05:52 PM
Cade is a good choice. Nice little tour, and good wine. Giving yourself time to enjoy and linger is definitely the way to go. Bennett is a good choice, I'd swing into Summers (On Tubbs Lane)when you are up that way too if you get a chance. Great Charbono. IP: 108.214.36.208 |
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gcb17 Junior Member |
posted 05-03-2012 05:37 PM
Thanks Hawkeye - your input is always appreciated! Based on your experience, and Scott's, with the Zahtila wines we have decided to visit another time. We already had Bennett Lane on our interest list based on what you have mentioned before; we enjoy interesting red blends and know how you feel about Maximus. We will definitely work to include Chase and appreciate that suggestion. I have to mention that when I called Redmon to schedule the visit, Lisa asked how we were directed to them. I mentioned that she was highly recommended by Lee from Tenn... - before I could finish the sentence she replied "We love Lee!". Could feel her smile through the phone! She was an absolute pleasure to talk to and we cannot wait to visit in person. Also, one last thing about the light schedule - we are still working through tasting at the wineries. We certainly don't go to get snockered, and do a fair bit of dumping. However, when we are tasting wines that we really enjoy (some Hall cabs for example)we sometimes fall into drinking more vs tasting. We're pretty new to this and still have work to do on that part. We try to play it safe, and hey, more reason to hopefully visit a couple times a year. IP: 108.9.21.136 |
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Hawkeye Member |
posted 05-03-2012 10:59 AM
Hi gcb, Great looking itinerary with plenty of time for "walk in" tasting. However, I wouldn't be Hawkeye if I didn't make a couple suggestions. Laura and Mike Zahtila are very personalble and interesting people, BUT, in my opinion, their wines are marginal. I would suggest substituting Barlow, just down the road on the Silverado Trail a short distance OR Bennett Lane on the north side of Calistoga. Both have exceptional wines. Another suggestion, after you visit Lisa at Redmon (please tell her Lee in Tennessee said hi) call and visit Jeff Blaum at Chase Family Winery on Sulpher Springs Road, on the south edge of St. Helena. They make a fabulous Zinfandel from some of the oldest Zin vines around, the famous Hayne Vineyard. Stand next to a 130 year old vine and it will make you feel younger. We will look forward to your report when you return. -Hawkeye IP: 173.247.28.96 |
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gcb17 Junior Member |
posted 05-02-2012 08:22 PM
Thanks Scott! We really love Hall as well; we visited the St. Helena location last November and wound up joining. We cannot wait to visit Hall Rutherford after all the great things we've heard on here. I will definitely post about our trip upon return. I have to say I am most intrigued with Dancing Hares - they were actually recommended by Lisa Redmon and appear to have highly rated wines. They make just two: Dancing Hares & Mad Hatter - both blends. Will be fun to check them out. Congrats on the half marathon. I have yet to run one, but hope to soon. Been running since last October and love it! IP: 108.9.21.136 |
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ssala Member |
posted 05-02-2012 07:42 PM
Oops. I also meant to agree with you that asking folks in the business about other wineries is a great strategy and we have found some of our favorites that way. IP: 75.70.79.148 |
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ssala Member |
posted 05-02-2012 07:40 PM
I like your itinerary. Good wineries with enough flexibility. I love the Hall wines. We were at the VC a couple of years ago and bought several bottles from these great small producers. For the last couple of trips we have stayed in Calistoga so haven't explored the southern end of the valley. We did stop by Zahtila last time through, and I was impressed with Laura's vision and persistence. She was wonderful to talk with. I will be interested to see what you think of her wines, so please give a recap of your visit. To me, they were good, but I didn't like them as much as some others. Of course, that was our last of 3 wineries that day and I had completed a half marathon that morning. It is a place I would certainly return to. We had an absolutely fabulous meal at Solbar after that. The menu is outstanding as is the wine selection (half price on many bottles on Sunday). Have fun, Scott IP: 75.70.79.148 |
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gcb17 Junior Member |
posted 05-02-2012 07:10 PM
I have been reading this board for awhile and have found the members here invaluable when it comes to planning visits to wine country. For my first post I wanted to share the schedule we have put together for our second visit later this month - as this board and members had a lot of influence. You will see that our daily schedule is pretty light when it comes to visits, and there are a couple of reasons for that. First, we like to leave space open for any recommendations we receive from the folks we already have scheduled, or any walk-ins. We also want to make sure and enjoy downtime and relaxation, so keep the schedule on the lighter side. This is what we have scheduled: May 18 May 19 May 20 (very light day/relaxation) May 21 May 22 - back to blazing hot FL [This message has been edited by gcb17 (edited 05-03-2012).] [This message has been edited by gcb17 (edited 05-03-2012).] IP: 108.9.21.136 |
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