Wine Country is a dream destination for any wine lover.
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Just north of San Francisco lies Napa County, home to California’s wine country, Napa Valley. 45,000 acres of vineyards produce the highest-quality wines to come out of the state. Yet, the wine tourism this region sees extends far beyond wanting a great glass of Merlot. Wine tours in Napa Valley are serious business the wineries that have set up shop there. They all want your attention and they all have their own claim to fame.
So, where are you to go when touring wine country? You don’t want a blasé experience when visiting Napa Valley. Even if only for a day, you want to make your visit exceptional. These three wineries know what it takes to create the wine tourism experience of a lifetime.
Wine Country Wineries: Napa Valley
Kuleto Estate
If you’ve had time to plan and book a reservation, it’s time to take a winding drive up the mountain upon which Kuleto Estate lies. This impressive winery has achieved fame for its incredible selection of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Zinfandel, and Chardonnay. That’s not all. The mountaintop views from this off-the-beaten-path winery are breathtaking and the sommeliers on-staff are low-key and kind. This isn’t a place to go if you’re wanting to learn all the mechanics behind viticulture. Rather, Kuleto is a winery to visit if you really want to get acquainted with the flavors of California’s wine country.
Tours of the estate begin in the wine tasting room. From there, visitors may walk through the gardens that overlook Napa Valley. Instead of creating a strictly formal wine experience, the staff at Kuleto Estate treat their guests like friends. Wine tastings here are casual yet still sophisticated, with a lot for you to choose from. This winery benefits from its mountainside location, as the 82 separate vineyard blocks have a host of different elevations, soil types, and conditions. This gives the winemakers of Kuleto Estate a lot to work with – and it gives you more options to choose from.
Book an estate tour today if you’re making plans to head to Napa Valley. This popular winery fills up fast!
Learn more about Climate Change Affecting California Wineries!
Furthermore, Guests can even don a lab coat and get their winemaking on in the estate’s Blending Room.
Del Dotto Wine Gallery
This 5-star winery should be a stop on any wine tasting tour. Instead of the traditional sampling of wines from the bottle, visitors get to enjoy wine tastings straight from the wood barrels. Each tour is different, depending on the guide, but the tours will always provide some valuable insight into top-quality Napa Valley wine production. You’ll get the freshest taste of the qualities that barrels instill into their wines. You’ll think you’re in Heaven if you catch a whiff of an emptied wine barrel.
The tours at Del Dotto Wine Gallery are the most informative of winery tours that you could ever embark on. Moreover, if you want to learn how the process of winemaking impacts the quality of the final product, you need to look no further.
As well, Instead of the traditional cheese and nibbles pairings that accompany many winery tours, Del Dotto pairs their wines with delectable chocolate! Pairing wine with chocolate is an art form and it’s one that the sommeliers at this winery have mastered.
Raymond Vineyards
Are you tired of the stuffy and pretentious wine tour circuit? While many wine country establishments have made reputations for themselves based on the “traditional” expectation of wine tourists, Raymond Vineyards stands out because it is fundamentally different. A chic space that clearly belongs in the modern 21st-century host’s incredible wine tours and wine tasting opportunities for lovers of Cabernet Sauvignon and Napa Valley’s many other flavors.
Upon entering the sunlit space that greets visitors, you might not yet be aware of what you’re getting into. Yet, as you travel further into the winery, you’ll feel like you’re at a modern art exhibit instead of going on a winery tour. Don’t let the emphasis on style make you think that Raymond Vineyards lacks substance. Personable sommeliers serve up the finest Cabernet Sauvignon you’ll ever enjoy. Furthermore, guests can even don a lab coat and get their winemaking on in the estate’s Blending Room. Few wineries offer such a hands-on experience, and none do it better than Raymond Vineyards.
Raymond Vineyards is the place to be if you want to take a step away from the expected. As well, immerse yourself for a while into a world where high-quality wine reigns supreme and guest experience takes priority. Moreover, after an hour or two spent here, you may never want to leave!
There are over 400 wineries with wine tasting rooms in Napa Valley alone. This can make it a challenge to formulate your own custom wine tourism experience. How are you to create an itinerary with so many options available to you? No matter where your journey across wine country takes you, it is worth it to add any of these three wineries to your schedule.