Top 5 Wine Experiences in Napa and Sonoma
I lived in California’s wine country for 6 months during a travel nurse assignment. My goal for that stay was to learn and experience as much as I could about wine. If you are interested in getting the most out of your stay in Napa or Sonoma, this article is for you!
Here are the top 5 experiences I had during my 6 month stay. They are the experiences that taught me the most about wine and were the most fun!
Geographical context:
When most people think of California’s wine country, they think of Napa. In reality, both the regions of Sonoma and Napa make up California’s premier wine region. These areas are next door to each other in northern California, just above the Bay Area.
To make things more confusing, you have Napa (the city), Napa county and Napa Valley. With this, Napa is the broad region that encompasses both the city of Napa and the Valley (where you will find more of the vineyards).
Sonoma also has Sonoma, the city, and Sonoma, the county.
1. Take a Wine Class with a Sommelier
One of the best ways to really learn about wine is to book a class with a sommelier. I recommend doing this early in your journey since it will give you insights that will help going forward on your wine tasting journey.
My husband and I booked a class with Nilu at California Tastings. Nilu is a sommelier in Sonoma County. Her Wine 101 class is aimed for beginners. You will learn everything from wine production to tasting room etiquette and how to detect different attributes of wine. Seriously, this class was a ton of fun, and we learned much more than we could have otherwise.
*If you decide to book a class with Nilu, let her know that you were referred by me, Juls. It would be greatly appreciated and help to support my ability to continue making content like this :)*
2. Go to a Wine Bar on a Weekday Afternoon
Many of the small towns in both Sonoma and Napa have a variety of wine bars to choose from. My favorite areas were Healdsburg in Sonoma County and downtown Napa (in Napa County of course). They are both super cute, walkable towns with a variety of wine bars to choose from.
My advice is to try to go during the day on a weekday when the place is empty. If you are lucky, you will get a bartender that knows a lot about wine.
I did this with a friend I met on MedVenture. Not only did we have a blast, but but the bartender had time to teach us a lot about each wine we tried. This is why it’s best to go when the bar is fairly empty.
3. Bike the Napa Valley Vine Trail
The Napa Valley Vine Trail is a 47 mile walking/biking trail that runs from Calistoga to Vallejo. Don’t worry, I’m not recommending you do the whole thing!
What I do recommend is pick a portion of the trail that passes by several vineyards. This way you get to both take in the scenery of vineyards and rolling hills, as well as stop for a winery visit. Just be mindful of how much wine you drink so you can make it home.
My husband and I rented bikes in Yountville from Napa Valley Bike Tours. We rode from that shop towards downtown Napa on the Napa Valley Vine Trail. We stopped at Silenus Winery halfway for a wine tasting and a cheese tray. I think they are used to tourists taking a similar bike path because no one seemed to mind our sweaty athletic wear.
4. Enjoy a Food and Wine Pairing
I did not actually believe that the flavors of food and wine could influence each other drastically until my first official food and wine pairing. I had definitely paired wine with my dinner countless times before and didn’t notice anything crazy happening. The difference comes in when you get the right combinations- which is a skill to learn (if you book the wine 101 class with Nilu mentioned above, she can help explain this better than I can).
My favorite food and wine pairing from my time in Sonoma was the lunch tasting at Williamson Wines in Healdsburg.
Just a quick tip- make sure to make a reservation online ahead of time as they tend to book up quickly.
5. Discover your Favorite Wine at a Self-Pour Taproom
After you have had some time to learn about wine with the help of experts, you’ll want a chance to sip a lot of different wines on your own. For this, I recommend trying out a wine taproom.
My favorite taproom is Region Wine Bar in Sebastopol (Sonoma County). This bar has over 100 self pour wine taps. You simply choose the wine you want to try and pay by the ounce. This way you can try several wines and really narrow down what you like. Again, make sure you have a designated driver.
I hope you get to enjoy your stay in wine country as much as I did!
If you want more things to do and explore check out some of these ideas:
Julie (Juls for short) is the founder of travelingwithjuls.com. She is a registered nurse turned travel nurse. She loves adventure and learning about new places. Her goals are to help other nurses learn about travel nursing, and to share information about the locations/destinations she lives in for 3+ months at a time.
