Having never experienced the Napa Valley, Chris and I thought it was essential to visit this US staple. Talking to our friends who had visited the area, we were prepared with a list of wineries to try and, what we thought, was a game plan. However, those have never seemed to work out for us in other cities, so I don’t know what possessed us to think it would work here. First kink being that we were told to rent bikes to experience the valley. Except that the valley is HUGE. It took us 45 min by car to drive up the west side, plus it was extremely hilly. So that idea was out. Second kink was when we looked at a map of wineries, we noticed that there were a lot of wineries north of where our friends had suggested. We assumed they just didn’t get there far, so we needed to find out a little more about the other wineries they missed. Therefore, our first stop of the day was the Napa Valley Visitors Council.
I would suggest this stop to anyone coming to Napa. They are extremely helpful, knowledgeable and provide coupons for discounted and free tastings. Lesley, a visitors council representative, became our British tour guide as she walked through wineries she thought we would be interested in. Chris and I agreed that we wanted to visit the smaller, family-run wineries as opposed to stopping at the larger wineries. It proved to be the better decision. Lesley was able to customize an itinerary for our 2 days in Napa. Day 1: the west side of the Valley along Highway 29. Day 2: the east side of the Valley along the Silverado Trail. With our maps and coupons in hand, we began our adventure.Highway 29 is where all the well-known wineries are located. We didn’t stop at any but we stopped for pictures between our other tastings. In order of sightings from South to North, we saw Robert Mondavi, Sutter Home, Beringer Bros. and Sterling.
Our first stop of the day was at a family run winery called Arger-Martucci. Off the main road about ½ a mile, you would never guess that this unassuming winery would spoil us for the rest of the trip. The tasting room was located in the courtyard behind the family’s home right next to pool overlooking the vineyards and mountains. We got a private tasting, as we were the only people at the winery. Fred, our host, sat us by the pool and began our 5 flight tasting. He was very helpful, offerings in-depth descriptions of each wine and how it was made. My favorite was a white blend called the Illiad. They don’t distribute their wines, so I felt I had to make the purchase. Being the practical one, 
Chris reminded me that we had a whole 2 days of tastings left and that I shouldn’t already be buying wines. I didn’t care. It was so good, I walked away with 2 bottles. After our tasting, we asked Fred for any suggestions for wineries to stop at. He suggested a few and we adjusted the itinerary accordingly. Tasting Fee: $10. Final Ranking: 5 out of 5 stars!
Being that we had started the day with wine and no food, lunch was essential. Across 29 from the turn-off for Arger-Martucci is V. Sattui. This is the only winery in Napa Valley with a deli, expansive cheese selection and beautiful picnic area. Upon the suggestion of Lesley and Fred, we headed there for lunch. After making our lunch choices, we headed outside to enjoy the Napa sun. Full of yummy food, we headed back inside for a tasting. You had your choice of 5 wines out of 12 listed. Nothing blew me away and Chris was actually repulsed by the port. Tasting Fee: $5. Final Ranking: 3 out of 5 stars, mostly because the amazing food!
Next stop on the Highway 29 tour was Charles Krug, the oldest winery (est. 1861) in Napa Valley and a certified historical landmark. Started by the Mondavi family, you would figure that this would be a busy winery. On the contrary, besides us there was only one other group in the tasting room. Anya was our host and was lot of fun. As she told us about the various wines in our 6 flight, we learned about her background and she asked lots of questions of us. We even talked to her about MonaVie. Again, being taken aback by the quality, I ended up purchasing their Rose. So yummy! Tasting Fee: $10. Final Ranking: 4 out of 5 stars, mostly because the tasting environment (host not included) was slightly stale. 
Continuing our trek northward on Highway 29, we saw some of the most beautiful vineyards. Most were changing colors from the cooler weather, so the valley popped with reds, oranges and yellows. Even the mountains in the background weren’t immune. It was spectacular. An equally beautiful site was the Castello di Amorosa. Tucked into the side of the mountains, this castle is reminiscent of those found in Tuscany. The driveway was lined with vineyards and those typical, Italian tall trees (I don’t know the name). Even though there’s a winery inside, we decided to skip it and just get our photo. 
The last stop of the day was at a little winery on a road that connects the west and east sides of the Valley. Upon entering the property we were greeted by the wine maker’s chocolate lab. Very cute! With that, we knew this would be a great place to end the day. The Frank Family Vineyards was the only stop of the day that offered a 2 flight of champagne, included with the 4 flight of wine. Neither Chris nor I are champagne drinkers, but we still took the opportunity to have a taste. Still don’t like champagne, but at least we tried. The 4 flight of wine proved more up our alley with a mix of whites and reds. We made friends with a nice couple in the tasting with us and ended up talking for 30 min with them. Tasting Fee: $10. Final Ranking: 4 out of 5, because the setting and wines were good but not good enough to compel us to buy anything.After a full day of drinking we were in need of some food and some rest. So we grabbed some Subway (no comments from the peanut gallery, please) and headed to the hotel for an early night. Sleep is good!
