Wifey and I were here in July 2019, after which we became members. Seven years later came back with…read moremy cuz and his esposa. Jeff was our host then and now. The facility is gorgeous with a unique cave. The wines are world class. Their Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are elegant and delicious. They age well. These wines are great as sippers but improve when paired with food. Truly special.

Outstanding Wine Tasting In A Cave!…read more SITREP My dear friend Jennifer - one of my true wine connoisseur friends - has made an appointment with the good people at Chateau Boswell, since it is a winery you can see by appointment only. And it is truly an outstanding experience. THE SETUP We actually arrived to Chateau Boswell in Saint Helena (from Sacramento) about 60 minutes before our appointment, but we were received warmly and were able to engage in our truly unique and fun wine tasting experience right away! Chateau Boswell is on the Silverado Trail side of the Napa Valley - not on the HWY 29 side of the valley - so it will be a pleasant drive away from most of the tourist traffic. MATT SIMPSON Marketing Expert, Wine Docent, Vintologist Extraordinaire, and Napa & Sonoma Valley (and European AND Chinese AND South American, etc. etc.) Wine Region expert, Matt is definitely the best "go to" guy you could ask about wine - it's acidity levels, it's pairing with foods, what vines we could grow in our backyard in Sacramento, etc. etc. - and so we were lucky from the start to get his one-man history lessons filtered through the most hiLARious stand-up comic. IN A CAVE Matt guided us through what can only be described as a cave in the hillside of where the Chateau Boswell winery is, and THAT was fun! We went through the labyrinth of several different well-lighted & interior-altered tunnels of this wonderful cave, seeing rows upon rows upon rows, levels upon levels upon levels of the vintage barrels all stacked up nicely & neatly. The white wines were in uniformly plain barrels. The red wine barrels had a giant band of red coloring around their perimeters. [As part of the due diligent maintenance of the storage areas, I found it interesting to see the ultra-violet bug zappers were uniformly distributed throughout the cave, zapping any of the small groups fruit-flies that might sprout up because of the sugars that might excrete from the barrels and dripped onto the ground where the little gnatty creatures liked to congregate.] CAVE-TASTING It was so much fun to be in what can only be described as our own special alcove in the cave, with a wine-barrel with glass-top serving as our wine-tasting station. It is here where Matt delivered some of the most incredible wine knowledge I've gotten to date about the current state of the wine industry, comparing ours to the burgeoning development going on with China's wine industry, all while serving us up some excellent glasses of Chateau Boswell wine. The white Jacquelynn Cuvée Blanc was decidedly by far my most favorite of the bunch we tried, with it's light dry taste and an excellent light-fruity finish, though the red Cabernet was rich with fruity notes that I enjoyed too. The wines are not cheap, and will run you between $50 - $150 a bottle. But if you are truly a wine connoisseur, you are bound to find a unique and quality red or white in this winery that you will truly enjoy. THE LOWDOWN An excellent wine-excursion stop in Napa Valley along the Silverado Trail.

We visited for the first time this Sunday for a wine tasting party they were throwing for members -…read moreour friends recently joined and invited us. Beautiful place, friendly staff and ownership, the wines were fantastic! We ended up buying a couple of cases of their cab. Looking forward to stopping by again!

Omg loved this place! Amazing wine and amazing experience thanks to our excellent guide Gabe. Loved…read morethat we got to try really old vintages from the 70s and 80s. The wines were delicious, the estate was gorgeous, and it was definitely our favorite winery of the weekend. So great that I joined the club! Thank you Gabe for the memorable experience!

We arrived last minute for a wine tasting at a birthday party, and it turned into an incredible…read moreexperience thanks to CJ and her outstanding service. She answered all our questions and made it so much fun with her explanations! So easy to understand and non-judgmental, she was the best and made the whole experience memorable! If you want an unforgettable experience, come here and ask for CJ

We had a private indoor tasting w/ a host who walked us through each wine. We had a choice of 2…read moredifferent flights that showed off a range of wines. The wines were pretty tasty overall though most of the bottles were quite expensive.

I had the pleasure of attending a tasting for a friend's birthday here. Aside from the GORGEOUS…read morebuilding and INCREDIBLE decor, we had the most knowledgeable som pour for us, Brandon. Right up front he asked what kind of information we would like to discuss with each wine, giving us the opportunity to prioritize our interests. And the wine! The WINE! It was hard to believe that the reds poured for us would still require aging as the vintages (2020 & 2021) felt so perfect as is. All they lacked was a plate of ribeye and buttered greens, perhaps a beouf bourguignon. I went home with three bottles, '24 estate Chardonnay (crisp, neutral oak, had to have a glass after tasting), '21 Oakville cab, and the '21 reserve cab (absolutely outstanding, I nursed this pour for a while) Highly recommend! Then treat yourself to lunch at the oakville general store. A heavenly way to start the day and end our trip in the area. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!

Having had Groth wines at a dinner party and how delicious it was, I was looking forward to…read morevisiting Groth for wine tasting. The winery building reminds me of a Mission. We were there on a recent Sunday for a 2:25 tasting and were seated in a table in the ornate tasting room. There was a carafe of water and bread sticks on the table. There were three tables and a large table of eight in the middle of the room. The room opens up to a beautiful garden. We were here for A Taste of Groth experience and were greeted by Curt who was our host for the tasting. Curt was personable and gave us a history of the Groth, which was founded by the former CFO of Atari, the video game company. For the tasting we were served a Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Proprietary Red and a bonus pour of the Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. All the wines were delicious with my favorites being the Reserve Cabernet for the red and Sauvignon Blace for the white. Curt was informative and explained the background of each wine that was poured. We were invited to take our last pour and enjoy in the garden and winery grounds. We had a great tasting experience in our tasting of the delicious Groth wines. It was enjoyable two hour visit. We now know what is Groth and its history from our great pourer, Curt.

I used Yelp to score this amazing find of a winery. Slightly off the beaten path in the Mt. Veeder…read moreappellation, is where you'll find this incredible winery. I recommend you call and make a reservation. Frances helped us tour their variety of wines. She was 2 days on the job, but you would have never known as she was personable and up to date on the history of the winery and the wines themselves. We received a small complimentary plate of cheese, crackers, and almonds. There were a couple of whites and a few reds. We ended up buying 3 bottles which waived one of the tasting fees. The red we chose was their Rebob Red. Delicious and well balanced. The view while you get to taste is amazing. Highly recommend giving this winery a try while in the area.

Amazing people + amazing wine = 5 star tasting. This was our first visit to Fontanella Family…read moreWinery and it was beyond outstanding. The winery is in the Mt Veeder AVA and venue is absolutely gorgeous. We were greeted by the Fairy Godmother Marianne in the parking area with a glass of Chardonnay. Entering the tasting room we were introduced to Rachel who along with Marianne conducted our tasting. Fontanella was very generous allowing us to sample several wines not on the menu including a barrel tasting in the barrel room. They even provided a plate with cheese, nuts, bread and some pickles to accompany the wines. We spent over 2 hours at Fontanella and enjoyed every second of our visit. Reds seem to dominate the wineries portfolio with wines priced from $40 a bottle to a multi-year blend cab priced at $300. Our experience at Fontanella was perfect. We look forward to our next visit in which we plan to bring friends along with us to enjoy the fun. Easy 5 star rating.

Had a mazing wine pairing with food today! It was a meal!!! We started with an elote dip to die…read morefor!! Followed by surf and turf. A lobster avocado tostada and beef mole over black rice. Wow!! Finished with a cheesecake that was sooo good! Great service, wine and views!!

We were out in Napa for a wedding and we could absolutely not skip a visit to ZD! They have plenty…read moreof parking and a beautiful entry. We did not have reservations but it was a Thursday. We checked in at the front desk and they were able to accommodate us. My bf and I decided to do 2 different tastings so we could taste more wines. Once you go upstairs they have a very nice seating area with overview of some vineyards (not theirs). Their staff were super friendly and made suggestions on appetisers. We got the dip that was very tasty and a small charcuterie board to share. We really enjoyed our wine and food. Since we don't have a membership for them, we wanted to buy some wines to take home. They were really nice to allow us to taste other wines that we were interested in purchasing. We ended up buying 6 bottles. If you come in the right season, they give their wine boxes away at the entrance which make for a beautiful gift or decor! We were lucky enough to get one on a previous visit. This was a great stop as always and will be back!

My new favorite winery in the Calistoga/ St. Helena area. We were greeted with a chilled glass of…read moresparkling wine, then were taken on a very cool private tour by Guillermo in his little ATV. The views from the gazebo at the top of the property are stunning and peaceful, and we enjoyed our tastings up there. My favorite was the Can Franc, which is absolutely incredible. But also loved the white, sparking, and Mountain cuvée. All the wines were great. We got a membership, and also bought some wine to enjoy while we were in town. Thanks, Guillermo!

Without. A. Doubt. - my favorite wine tasting in Napa. When I think of returning to Napa, my mind…read moreinstantly goes to Reverie and wanting to go back. Of course, the wines were delicious (the cab franc was my favorite) - but the hosts (we had John), the ambiance, the views, the stories about the vineyard (and even the staff) are what truly tie the experience together and make it so phenomenal. When my party arrived, it was a little chilly out, and they offered us blankets! You instantly feel comfortable and like family. If available, MAKE SURE to take the ATV (hopefully with John's dog) to see the gorgeous views of the vineyard and wider Napa (photos attached). LOVE!

Calistoga is a beautiful section of wine country, and Amici is a small intimate winery where you…read morecan enjoy private, outdoor tastings. I found this winery through scrolling through blog posts, and when I called to make a reservation, it went to Jeff's cell phone. It spoke volumes that he picked up during his sons little league game & then easily made a reservation with a quick email. It was a beautiful warm day in Calistoga, and the shade was perfectly over our tasting table. Everything about the outdoors was aesthetically pleasing, and Jeff was very down to earth and helpful. Amici wines are truly deluxe and made for people who enjoy quality wine.

What a disappointment!!! It was lightly raining when we got there l, despite this we were still…read moretold to sit on the picnic benches outside specifically on the far end. We didn't sit at the far end and when the hostess came she made the request again and we pointed out the fact that that end of the table was wet. She moved us to the screened in porch. This wasn't a problem except for it was lightly raining before we arrived and it got heavier and there didn't seem to be a real plan in place. She did state that since they had guests staying the home they don't host tastings inside. Well not sure if the rule changed because 3/4 of the way through our tasting the next tasting arrived and they were set to have their tasting in the house. This was only one disappointing aspect of the visit. The hostess was not dressed professionally and we were served what seemed like boxed breadsticks that were extremely hard and tasteless. The wines were okay but definitely priced higher than in the store. We visited because the other couple in our party buys Amici at home and they thought it would be great to schedule a tasting. The experience was overall disappointing.