There’s nothing quite like a fall getaway to one (or both) of California’s legendary wine regions
There’s a very good reason that the Napa Valley and the Sonoma Valley County are considered the best of the best for wine as they sit shoulder- to-shoulder just north of the San Francisco Bay. Both locales are all about viticulture and the unique terroir them places where world-renowned vintages are consistently created. And there’s no better time to go than autumn, as it is harvest time and the weather is sublime.
Both are also centers of culinary excellence, where every meal is a true delight. Consider this: There are 13 restaurants in the United States that have the coveted Michelin three-star rating and both Napa and Sonoma each have one (The French Laundry in Napa and SingleThread in Sonoma). That’s 15% of the top dining spots in the country, so it’s no wonder that the world’s best chefs migrate to this mecca of food and wine.
Join us on a delightful culinary adventure through Napa and Sonoma, and remember it doesn’t have to be the busy fall harvest season to plan a trip to those two Northern California gems. If you’re a foodie, go at any time of the year for an unforgettable gastronomic experience.
NAPA VALLEY
It’s only 30 miles long and five miles wide, but the Napa Valley has been America’s wine powerhouse since it was designated the first AVA (American Viticultural Area) in the country.
That federally regulated designation of origin marks a wine region that is defined as “a grape-growing region with specific geographic or climatic features that distinguish it from the surrounding regions and affect how grapes are grown.” Napa now has 16 AVAs within the valley, each one a distinct microclimate. That diversity is what drew nearly 4 million tourists to the valley in 2023.
Sips and Bites
Napa wineries used to simply offer wine tastings, until places like Robert Sinskey Vineyards put a kitchen into their Stags Leap District winery in the 1990s. This helped change the way people thought about pairing wine and food at a tasting. Today, it’s common for Napa wineries to have talented chefs creating five (or more)-course meals during daytime hours. Most pairings last 90 to 120 minutes, so plan to spend lunchtime at the winery.
At Davis Estates in Calistoga, the Estate Food and Wine Pairing ($100) puts their acclaimed current-release Cabernet Sauvignons and other varietals with Chef Mark Caldwell’s delightful seasonal bites. Or go big with the VIP Experience ($275) to taste reserve wines paired with elevated food offerings. Either way, it’s a memorable experience in this beautiful winery at the northern end of the valley.
Sequoia Grove Winery sits right in the heart of Napa’s famed Oakville and Rutherford AVAs on Route 29, and their Cabernets reflect the qualities of their terroir. At the winery, under those towering sequoia trees, do the “A Taste for Cabernet” wine and food pairing for tastes of older Cab vintages married to salmon, duck breast and other seasonal dishes.
The Prisoner Wine Company estate just off Route 29 is a relative newcomer to the valley, as their chic, modern tasting lounge proves. They offer an assortment of pairing tastes of their numerous wine brands (The Prisoner, Saldo, etc.) with food created by Chef Brett Young. Try the Wine + Dim Sum Experience ($213) for an unexpectedly wonderful combination.
Silver Trident Winery has shifted across Washington Street in Yountville into an elegant tasting room that showcases their lineup of top-notch red wines, including the full-bodied Benevolent Dictator Pinot Noir. They’re doing fun food pairings, including the Potato Chip Extravaganza ($65 with five wines) and the Pizza Pairings ($85 with five wines) in their very cool space.
For the most ultimately extravagant experience at one of Napa’s most renowned destinations for red wine, head for Shafer Vineyards in the Stags Leap District. Make a reservation for the incredible Hillside Select Experience ($500) and begin with Billecart Salmon Champagne and bites of Regiis Ova caviar. Then zoom up to the hillside where Shafer’s Hillside Select is grown. Sip the current vintage there, and then return to the spectacular tasting room for a library tasting of this Cabernet Sauvignon that routinely scores 100 points. It’s an unforgettable Napa Valley treat.
Sublime Dining
Throughout the Napa Valley, there are incredible restaurants to try, ranging from the famed French Laundry (reservations must happen months before you arrive) to some of the longtime classics that have stood the test of time.
So be sure to hit Mustard’s Grill, Chef Cindy Pawlcyn’s classic “truck stop” eatery on Route 29, where for 40 years she’s been serving up her wood-grilled Mongolian pork chop (the best chop you will ever eat) and much more. Don’t miss Bistro Don Giovanni, either, where 30 years of success means finding the greatest pasta, risotto, pizza and bar scene in Napa, all paired with wonderful wines (and cocktails, too).
Press Restaurant Napa is the spot with one Michelin star that we think deserves more, as dining here is always first-rate. Chef Philip Tessier’s seasonal tasting menus are a thing of beauty, utilizing local ingredients and offered with marvelous wine pairings. Don’t miss it.
Sleep Well; Dine In
Napa is filled with lovely, scenic hotels, some with gorgeous spas (Meadowood, Solange) and others with stinky (and traditional) mud baths (Dr. Wilkinson’s Backyard Resort, since 1953), but to sleep well and find fine dining right at your hotel, there are two that stand out.
Auberge du SoleiI is a five-star luxury resort perched on a hill above Rutherford off the Silverado Trail, which has it all, including The Restaurant with its Michelin one-star rating for the past 17 years. It’s worth it for the views alone, and the California cuisine by Chef Robert Curry is a true bonus.
The Estate Yountville is in a perfect Napa spot, just off Route 29 in the small town that hosts The French Laundry. Easy to range both north and south, as well as across the valley from here, the estate has two elegant and comfortable hotels, Vintage House and Hotel Villagio, and Bottega, one of the late Chef Michael Chiarello’s legacy Italian restaurants in Napa. Taste his risotto of the day and you’ll understand why he was beloved in the valley, and it will bring back memories of Tra Vigne, his first beloved Napa Italian eatery.
SONOMA COUNTY (AND VALLEY)
What many people call the Sonoma Valley is actually Sonoma County, which encompasses almost 1,600 square miles and beyond. The Sonoma Valley also includes the famed wine areas of Carneros, Dry Creek Valley, Russian River Valley, Alexander Valley and more - a total of 19 AVAs, in fact.
The region is so filled with wineries, vineyards, farms, restaurants and numerous other places to see (like the Charles Schulz Museum and the Jack London State Historic Park) that it’s recommended to devote one trip here and another to Napa.
Sips and Bites
With Sonoma County’s winning combination of world-class wineries and bountiful farms, the distinct farm-to-table symbiosis here is undeniable. Similarly to Napa, many wineries are dedicated to giving visitors a combined wine-and-food experience at these favorite stops.
St. Francis Winery has been one of Sonoma Valley’s mainstays since 1971. With the addition of a spectacular mission-style tasting room in 1999 and their acclaimed Wine & Food Pairing ($125) beginning in the early 201 Os, they’ve made themselves a must-stop visit in the county. Seasonal menus created by Chef Peter Janiak might include delectably spicy fried green tomatoes paired with their Sauvignon Blanc and hearty Eggplant Albóndigas enhanced by the “Caro Santo” Sangiovese.
Further north in the county, find J Vineyards in the Russian River Valley, whose elegant Bubble Room Tasting ($175) offers J’s famed sparkling wine, Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, discovered in a paired five-course culinary treat created by Chef Forest Kellogg. Hope for the gorgeous angel hair pasta with Calabrian chiles during this seasonal delight and don’t miss the “Shifting the Lens” special events, featuring diverse guest chefs doing the menus and pairings.
DaVero Farms & Winery in Dry Creek Valley is a fabulous biodynamic farm, complete with pigs, peach and pear trees, and grapes to make Italian varietals in the midst of Sonoma. Sip on pretty white Vermentino, dense red Barbara and even late-harvest Moscato, paired with creamy cheeses and the headily delicious jams and marmalades also produced here.
At Silver Oak in the Alexander Valley in the north near Healdsburg, their beautiful modern winery is home to the brand’s deeply satisfying Cabernet Sauvignon. The Wine and Food Pairing ($170 four courses/five wines) showcases seasonal foods that bring out the incredible balance in that wine as well as the Napa Valley Silver Oak Cabernet also included. Both are rich and satisfying with soft tannins, dense cherry and other red fruit flavors, longtime classic expressions of California’s famed Cabernets.
Selections at Cyrus (Cynthia Glassell)
Sublime Dining
While snagging a SingleThread dining reservation can take months to accomplish, Sonoma County is brimming with other gastronomic possibilities, including a visit to Cyrus, the incredible one-star Michelin restaurant in Geyserville.
The progressive Dining Journey ($295) that Cyrus offers moves guests through four different dining locations - the Bubble Lounge, Kitchen Table, Dining Room and Chocolate Room. It’s where Chef/Partner Douglas Keane giddily serves up fascinating small- and medium-sized bites (25 on one memorable evening) along with his crack culinary team.
Every bite is unique, beautiful to the eye and popping with fascinating flavor combinations on the palate. Keane’s incredibly creative Asian-influenced menu changes seasonally; a vegetarian option is on offer; and innovative wine pairings round out this slightly surreal and unforgettably wonderfuI evening.
More casual and satisfying spots for lunch and dinner are found up and down the county, including Glen Ellen Star (a multi-year Bib Gourmand Michelin awardee for “good quality, good value cooking”). That’s a very convivial spot where the wood-fire oven pops out pizzas like the winning Tomato Cream Pie, as well as roasted veggies from their nearby farm and a whole branzino cooked to perfection.
Italian, local-favorite Molti Amici in Healdsburg makes perfect cacio e pepe with house-made pasta, fires up squash blossom pizzas over a wood fire and specializes in memorable cocktail concoctions. Pizza-making champ Leah Scurto’s Pizzaleah in Windsor keeps winning awards for her artisanal pies; stop in for her yummy signature pies, the Nico and the Old Grey Beard. Down in the south end of the county, Valley Swim Club is a cool casual spot with a talent for frying everything from oysters to battered cod (but no swimming pool).
Sleep Well; Dine In
Favorite hotels with terrific food elements include the family-friendly Flamingo Resort and Spa in Santa Rosa, where spacious rooms and a large swimming pool delight, as does the poolside Lazeaway Club restaurant designed to satisfy both adults and kids. Try the maple-glazed edamame and the kraken calamari and your kids will even give them a try.
The Madrona in Healdsburg was built in 1881 as a private home; nowadays it is one of Sonoma’s unique boutique inns, complete with wraparound patio, gables and private balconies overlooking vineyards. Antiques and artworks abound, and well-prepared meals are served inside and out featuring comfort food created by Chef Patrick Tafoya, using ingredients grown right on the estate’s property. It’s a place that makes you want to stay and relax, but then again, Sonoma’s many delights keep calling you to explore some more. It’s a good dilemma to have.
-Jenny Peters