San Francisco & Napa Sonoma

Hi David,

My wife and I just did Napa, Sonoma and San Francisco in April. We stayed at the Chancellor Hotel http://www.chancellorhotel.com/ on Union Square.

Thanks for the information. I booked the Chancellor for the same reasons you mentioned: good reviews on Trip Adviser, reasonably priced, and in the middle of the action. I'm also leaning towards Sonoma and the Russian River Valley as part of an action packed day.

Dave

That sounds like a very reasonable plan, Dave. One piece of advice: don't plan on visiting too many wineries on a day trip to the RRV. Figure on a 2 hr one-way trip between SF and the RRV on US-101. Your best bet is to get to the Golden Gate Bridge and then just follow 101 North until you've passed Santa Rosa. Most wineries don't open their tasting rooms until 10 am and most close by 5 pm. I find that, if you want to actually spend time talking to the staff and taking notes about the wines, 3 winery visits in one day is a good number (I usually try to schedule one before lunch and two afterward). My two favorite places to visit in the RRV are Joseph Swan and Merry Edwards. Porter Creek on Westside Rd is quite close to the RRV as well. I would also recommend making appointments wherever you visit (Swan requires an appt) as you'll generally get better treatment than if you just drop in.

Have fun!
Mark Lipton

That sounds like a very reasonable plan, Dave. One piece of advice: don't plan on visiting too many wineries on a day trip to the RRV. Figure on a 2 hr one-way trip between SF and the RRV on US-101. Your best bet is to get to the Golden Gate Bridge and then just follow 101 North until you've passed Santa Rosa. Most wineries don't open their tasting rooms until 10 am and most close by 5 pm. I find that, if you want to actually spend time talking to the staff and taking notes about the wines, 3 winery visits in one day is a good number (I usually try to schedule one before lunch and two afterward). My two favorite places to visit in the RRV are Joseph Swan and Merry Edwards. Porter Creek on Westside Rd is quite close to the RRV as well. I would also recommend making appointments wherever you visit (Swan requires an appt) as you'll generally get better treatment than if you just drop in.

Have fun!
Mark Lipton

Dave,

I think Mark is quite right, although it depends on where you go in Sonoma for the drive time. We drove from central Sonoma (Healdsburg area) to the Chancellor hotel in just under 90 minutes in the mid-afternoon but we were going against the rush hour traffic. I take notes at the wineries that I visit and I figure 3-4 winery visits per day is about right. I pick the wineries carefully choosing ones that have the wines that particularly like or the type of tasting with food that I find the most helpful to pick out wines. Trying to cover too much territory in one day is not a good vacation experience.

We spent 3 days touring Healdsburg and northern Sonoma County back in June 2007. We particularly enjoyed visiting the Gary Farrell Winery in the Russian River area (try the reserve tasting menu for their top end wines), J Vineyards near Healdsburg (they served food with the tasting, and gave us 2-3 extra wines to taste beyond the regular tasting menu) and Lancaster Estate in Alexander Valley. The later requires an appointment, but we got a private tour of the vineyards in a Cadillac SUV, plus a cellar tasting of current and library wines.

If you're not averse to staying in a hostel, I'd recommend Fort Mason. It's right on the Bay, close to the Wharf, close to major bus routes: http://www.sfhostels.com/fishermans-wharf

Last time we stayed, we rented a car and spent a couple of nights in Napa at a B&B. We really enjoyed our visit to the Truchard Winery in Carneros; Joanne and Tony Truchard were our guides (they only do tours and tastings by appointment). We also liked the Chateau Montelena tour. Mind you that was in the off-season - there were only four of us and the guide kept refilling my glass of '99 Montelena Estate. Don't know if their tours have changed since the winery was sold.

Is it winter in San Francisco?! Highs next week in the low 60s? Seriously though, I knew SF was cool but didn't realize it was that cold there right now (DC is rather balmy today, only in the low 90s). It looks like Sonoma will be in the low 80s next week.

What about the Russian River Valley? Does it stay about the same temperature as Sonoma?

It looks like long pants / shirt in SF and shorts and golf shirts in wine country.

Is it winter in San Francisco?! Highs next week in the low 60s? Seriously though, I knew SF was cool but didn't realize it was that cold there right now (DC is rather balmy today, only in the low 90s). It looks like Sonoma will be in the low 80s next week.

What about the Russian River Valley? Does it stay about the same temperature as Sonoma?

It looks like long pants / shirt in SF and shorts and golf shirts in wine country.

RRV can hit 3 digits this time of year. We toured there Labor Day weekend in 2007. Wineries told us they had a lot of heat during the summer. IIRC, SF was moderate....could wear shorts and golf shirts, at least this Yankee could.

It's called the "marine layer". You'll get fog or low clouds in the evening, coming off the ocean, and especially in the Russian River Valley or the valleys of Sonoma Creek or Napa Creek, fog in the morning rising as the sun vaporizes the dew from the evening fog. That's part of why such a warm area is good for wine growing.
San Francisco is the place for layering. Probably long pants, and at least a windbreaker, and probably a light sweater or fleece, especially if you're walking across the Golden Gate Bridge.
In the Russian River Valley, mornings are likely to be in the mid 50s, but when the sun burns off the fog, usually around 9 or 10 AM, the sun will feel hotter than the thermometer will say. Despite the fog, it's dry. (Especially compared to the soggy horrors of DC!) Afternoons n July and August commonly peak in the mid 80s, but you can get two or three hot days around 100.
One thing: it won't rain. Period. (Well, Ok, I can remember three occasions in the last 50 years when it rained in July or August.) I'd have to look it up to be sure, but I believe the 30 year average for rain in Santa Rosa in July is about 0.03 inch.
The hillsides (except for vineyards and trees) will be brown.
Again, dress for warm, but bring a light jacket for morning and evening.

John

Is it winter in San Francisco?! Highs next week in the low 60s? Seriously though, I knew SF was cool but didn't realize it was that cold there right now (DC is rather balmy today, only in the low 90s). It looks like Sonoma will be in the low 80s next week.

Have you never heard Mark Twain's quip that the coldest winter of his life was a summer in SF? Avg June high in SF is low-to-mid 60s with lows in the low 50s/high 40s at night. Generally, as John explains, the fog will enshroud SF until about 11 am, at which point it'll burn off, giving you a few hours of sunshine before the fog rolls back in off the ocean at ~4 pm. It's quite a sight, like a white down comforter being drawn over the whole city, though when the fog spills over Mt. Sutro it looks more like sea foam. Yes, dress warmly, in layers. Also be aware, though, that elsewhere in the Bay Area (let alone the surrounding area) in can be easily 10-20° warmer than in SF. The South Bay communities usually have daily highs in the 80s.

What about the Russian River Valley? Does it stay about the same temperature as Sonoma?

The RRV encompasses a lot of area, with the Westward section (e.g. Guerneville) being far more influenced by the Maritime layer than the inland communities such as Windsor. Inland, it'll be hot. Sonoma is even further inland and hotter still, but don't expect temperatures to exceed the 90s very often even there.

It looks like long pants / shirt in SF and shorts and golf shirts in wine country.

Yup. That sounds about right.

Mark Lipton

If you're not averse to staying in a hostel, I'd recommend Fort Mason. It's right on the Bay, close to the Wharf, close to major bus routes: http://www.sfhostels.com/fishermans-wharf

Last time we stayed, we rented a car and spent a couple of nights in Napa at a B&B. We really enjoyed our visit to the Truchard Winery in Carneros; Joanne and Tony Truchard were our guides (they only do tours and tastings by appointment). We also liked the Chateau Montelena tour. Mind you that was in the off-season - there were only four of us and the guide kept refilling my glass of '99 Montelena Estate. Don't know if their tours have changed since the winery was sold.

Mike, the Monte Riesling? Did you bring that bottle to Mishy`s off line?