D Cubed Cellars , if you are looking for Zinfandel this is the winery for you. It is run by Duane Dappen, Napa ZinMaster, whose first vintage was in 1994. Duane had an interesting start and inspiration to become a winemaker. When he was in 4H one of his projects was to make wine. He used donated must from a local winery as well as made wine from blackberries. They entered some of this wine into the county fair and won a best of show. Well this was enough inspiration to study winemaking and with a brother already at UC Davis he went to Davis and completed the enology program. Before Duane started D Cubed he worked at a variety of high end Napa wineries including Grgich Hills, Storybook Mountain (a top notch Zinfandel producer and grower), Rombauer and Frank Family. Besides his own winery, today he also consults for several other Napa Wineries. Duane is heavily involved in the vineyard management aspects of the vineyards that he sources fruit from. Duane subscribes to the old adage that states "80% of winemaking is done in the vineyards" and as a result he takes a very hands on approach to maintaining specific control of the vineyards. We loved their 2005 Primitivo. Primitivo is produced by only a handful of Napa area wineries and when we find a winner version, we definitely want to "toot" the horn in a good way! This varietal is a clone or cousin of Zinfandel and in general is not as peppery or cinnamony (if that is a word), as a normal Zinfandel. This wine is a bit more rustic than a Zinfandel especially in the aromas. It has a bit of earthiness and moss, think damp forest floor with hints of strawberry on the palate and smokiness on the finish. Oh and we did not yet mention that the 2005 Primitivo was the first non Zinfandel wine made by D Cubed! The 2005 Howell Mountain Zinfandel is sourced from two high altitude vineyards, one at 1800 feet and one at what is among the highest vineyards in the valley at 2400 feet. One of the vineyards contains the youngest Zinfandel on Howell Mountain. This medium to full bodied wine has great spice aromatics on the nose followed by notes of berry including raspberry and blackberry. A bit of dry cigar smokiness follows on the finish. As of press time, D Cubed makes 4 different Napa Zinfandels plus one Zinfandel Port. You can taste D Cubed at the walk-in Vintner's Collective, near downtown Napa. Also visit: www.dcubedcellars.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Private Appointments: No, No, but you can taste at Vintner's Collective Regular Tours: No Hours: N/A Phone: 963-5212 Address: P.O. Box 694, Napa Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Darioush is a flashy winery specializing in high-end ultra-premium wines. It was founded in 1997 by Iranian born, Darioush Khaledi who made a passionate global multi-year search for the world's ultimate wine estate before settling on Darioush (which if you are visiting Napa Valley, you are in luck as this wine estate happens to be situated just off the Silverado Trail!). The current winery building dates from 2004. Besides their wines, this is a destination winery (one of only a few "Destination Wineries" along the Silverado Trail). At the entrance, you drive past the metal gates which are always open during their normal operating hours. Then you drive down a very long narrow road with water bubbling up in the grass median and arrive at the winery. In the prestigious tradition of Opus One, at this point you have to choose whether you are a "right side" or "left side" parker - as parking lots are available on both sides. If its raining courtesy umbrellas located under a larger umbrella are available for you to carry between the parking lot and the winery. Walking up to this winery is like walking onto a Hollywood set. This winery is a modern looking building which "looks old" as it takes its historical influences from ancient Persian looking columns and general architecture. Many columns supporting nothing greet you at the main entrance. You saunter into the main room and may well see chic well dressed men and women lounging at the nearly 360 degree square wine counter. If they look up at your entrance, they are merely looking to validate that you are one of them. If they don't look up, they are too into their wine and this is a better sign. If tasting in the winter, enjoy a seat in front of the blazing fireplace. The fireplace's headstone, appropriately rests on the heads of two metal men and contains what appear to be ancient hieroglyphic scribbling. Ask the wine pourer at the wine counter to translate for you. The wine tasting fee is $20 and includes at least one white, a red or two, and their signature Cabernet Savignon. What sets this winery apart from other wineries other than the very unique architecture, is their distinctive partnership with Marin County's, Cowgirl Creamery. On Darioush's $50, 90-minute tour and tasting called Fine Wines, Artisan Cheeses, you are treated to hard-to-find limited production cheeses from family farms, and special winery release and library wines which you cannot find outside of this winery. This tour taste is offered once a day at 2pm. Advance reservations are a must. Two outdoor spots worth mentioning are the amphitheatre which is for small intimate performances - only seats about 180. They also have a special section setup in the vineyard just north of the winery for private tastings - this is a beautiful spot in summer as you are entirely surrounded by vines. For more information visit: www.darioush.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Yes Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: 10:30-5pm Phone: 257-2345 Address: 4240 Silverado Trail - Napa Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

David Arthur Winery is located at the end of what is probably the most scenic "driveway" on the eastern side of Napa Valley. It rises well above the valley floor on the edge of the ridge top with incredible views on a clear day up and down the valley. The road is Long Ranch Road and is prime real estate - besides vineyard land, the owner of the San Diego Chargers has a house here as does an ex governor of New Jersey. David Long runs this winery with his brother Bob and tours and tastings are always with David or a family member. Weather permitting the tasting starts under a large oak tree set right among the vineyards - and then proceeds to the actual winery building for barrel samples. Because tours are not always scheduled, call for a reservation. When we visited the group size was 25-30 people. Out of these people many were friends and almost everyone had been on one of his tastings before! A big plate of food was brought out - several folks brought David wines and other spirits from around the world. Many people at the tasting were from Texas and other mid-western states. David spoke about his family's history and then his daughter started pouring us wines. The tasting was very casual - just standing around talking to other people on a warm Spring day. This is Napa Valley personal at its best. We enjoyed a rich Chardonnay from 2006, an excellent Cabernet Sauvignon, and also their Meritaggio which is a super Tuscan styled wine (a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese). Their flagship wine is the Elevation 1147 named after the elevation of the vineyard that this 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine is sourced from. The fruit for this wine represents the best selections from their vineyards. One of their late 90's vintages received an amazing score from the Wine Spectator which helped put them "on the map". This winery actually started by exclusively making Chardonnay before branching into other varietals. We are glad they did! Their new winery and fermentation room has been completed - for a personal tasting and tour call for an appointment. Mailing list signup available online. Visit: www.davidarthur.com

Quick Info Open to Public: No Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: M-F Phone: 963-5190 Address: P.O. Box 112 Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

David Fulton Winery is appropriately located at the end of Fulton Lane in the town of St. Helena - just minutes walking from downtown. Part of their vineyard touches the northern fringes of St. Helena's residential neighborhoods and you can easily see homes as you look across their vineyards. You cross the train tracks to reach the winery which is located towards the end of dead end Fulton Lane. As a side note, this is the furthest north the popular Napa Wine Train reaches; it stops and heads south where Fulton Lane crosses the tracks. This is the oldest continuously owned and operated family Vineyard in California. Records show they first planted vines here in 1860 and established the winery facility a year later in 1861. The first three wineries in Napa Valley were under construction in 1861, Krug, Crane & David Fulton - and of those, Crane is no longer in business and Krug while still family owned, isn't under its original family ownership. David Fulton was quite an individual. He ran the towns first saddlery and was a blacksmith; he sold his saddlery shop in downtown St. Helena to help fund the vineyards. When you drive down busy main street St. Helena think of David Fulton; he planted St. Helena's first vineyard here in 1858. He also was instrumental in helping create the area's first viticultural organization which at the time was called the "Sonoma, Napa, Solano Grape Growers Association. In later years he invented what today is called the "Fulton Plow" (the one horse plow) and there are one or two of these sitting on the property. An image of this appears on their label. 130 years passed between commercial vintages at this winery. The "new wineries" first commercial release was made at a nearby winery in 1999 and relatively soon after they were producing wine on the site of their original winery. 14.5 acres of vines are planted mostly to Petite Sirah and the majority of these vines date back to the 1950's and 1960's. Unfortunately Fulton's original wooden winery building blew down during a violent wind storm in 1973 leaving just the stone foundation walls. The historical house located nearby is still standing and dates from the mid 1860's. Today this winery has been reconstructed in the exact same location as the original winery. In fact the two massive oak trees which surround the new winery even predate the original winery. A visit is for serious wine enthusiasts looking to meet with the owner and try limited production hand crafted wines. Fulton Mather (David Fulton's great grandson), his wife Dink and their son and daughter also help run the winery. Fulton and his son are the winemakers and they also have two consulting winemakers. They will celebrate their 150th anniversary in 2010 - not bad for a small winery that started when you could count the number of commercial producers in the valley on one hand and considering today there are approximately 750 commercial wine producers in Napa County! Because of its rich historical presence in the Napa Valley a visit here typically includes an overview of their history, a quick tour and the tasting which is held within the new winery building or if the weather permits outside on their spacious deck. This outdoor setting overlooking the vineyards is a beautiful spot to relax with a glass of wine from one of Napa's finest Petite Sirah producers. Their vineyard and winemaking focus is on Petite Sirah with this varietal comprising the majority of their total production. As of press time they produce about 700 cases of this wine as well as smaller quantities of Zinfandel & Cabernet Sauvignon - all blended with smaller amounts of Petite Sirah. David Fulton does sell some of their grapes to other vintners and in 2007 had a batch of Petite Sirah that was supposed to be purchased but never was. They decided to make Port of this and are planning to make very limited quantities (maybe 25 cases total) of this each year. They typically age their wines a bit longer than many wineries - at least 2.5 years in barrel with another half year in bottle. We tried the 2005 Petite Sirah mere days after being released. This is one of the nicer Petite Sirahs coming out of Napa Valley that we have enjoyed on this project. The nose is deeply layered with rich aromatics. Aromas of baking spices, berry and cassis are pronounced, followed by a rich very juicy palate with minor touches of oak; a wine that is all about the dark fruit flavors including black cherry and blackberry. The wine is full bodied with a velvety mouth feel that persists from the entry all the way to the smooth finish. The tannins are delicate but structured. While they typically have not submitted their wines for review, word has already gotten out. One notable Napa winery has an internal tasting every year of their own wine as well as other Napa wineries. Their winemakers actually chose David Fulton's wine as their favorite, even over their own wine! In addition the International Wine Review gave Fulton's 2004 Petite Sirah their highest rating (only 7 wines out of 185 were given this score). Their wines are typically found in very select wine shops in California with a small distribution in just a handful of other other states. Locally they have good distribution at wine shops ranging from JV wines in Napa, to Dean & Deluca in St. Helena to Cal Wine Shop & Enoteca Wine Shop in Calistoga. Visit: www.davidfultonwinery.com

Quick Info Open to Public: No Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: Call Phone: 967-0719 Address: 825 Fulton Lane, St. Helena Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Del Bondio Wine Company opened their winery in 2004; the Del Bondio family originally purchased Napa land in the late 1890's and grew prunes and other agricultural products. The original land is still farmed by the family and is the source of fruit for all of their wines. They slowly evolved into a grape growing business selling fruit to other producers and then more recently began producing their own wine. The winery is run by two brothers who over 20 years ago decided to farm all their vineyards organically. Today they are fully certified organic growers which puts them into a very select class of Napa growers. Being organic has the obvious advantages to the environment but they also typically use much less water than their non organic counterparts. The winery is located about a minutes drive off of the busy Highway 29 just north of the Robert Mondavi Winery. A visit here is a complete contrast to the often busy nearby Highway 29 walk-in winery scene. You will always meet with one of the family members for your tasting and tour. We met with Rich whose tasting and tour provides an invaluable look at the behind scenes of a small winery operation. Del Bondio produces a Chardonnay, Syrah and a Cabernet Sauvignon. None of these wines are blended - they are true to their varietals. We tried the first vintage ever produced of their Chardonnay - not bad at all for a first effort and it is extremely reasonably priced. It is a very well balanced wine with lots of citrus on the nose. Syrah can be a very finicky wine to coax along during its fermentation and can really vary in flavor and concentration depending on many factors in the growing and winemaking. Del Bondio has spent the last few years working very carefully with this varietal and their resulting wine shows extremely well. Their Syrah is not characterized by the pepper flavor and boldness that some Syrahs exhibit - rather it is an elegant wine, full of ripe fruit with a very long finish. A visit here is highly recommended for those looking for a more intimate one on wine wine tasting experience at a small Napa winery. www.delbondio.com

Quick Info Open to Public: No Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: Call Phone: 963-2805 Address: 1333 Bella Oaks Lane, Napa Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Del Dotto Estate Winery & Caves opened for tastings by appointment in early November 2007 and was fully open for appointment only tours on Thanksgiving Day 2007. If you think Castello di Amorosa is impressive, you have to visit this winery! It is just as impressive but on a smaller more elegant scale. We visited several times during the construction and took a more detailed tour just before they opened. The winery is located just off the west side of Highway 29 south of St. Helena. Look for the two large 300 year old amphora ceramic vases at the entrance to their driveway. Not many wineries can boast of having two wineries within the Napa Valley area and this is Del Dotto's second winery. It is everything a classic Italian villa should be from the ancient gnarled olive trees in front to the marble façade on the outside of the building to the gorgeous 1 ton marble columns inside. In addition, check out the colorful and ornate tile work, the Venetian chandeliers, the ancient mosaic marble floors, and a beautiful bright orange onyx window upstairs. Oh and did we mention their sound system is tops with fantastic acoustics in the main part of the winery and into the caves? No expense has been spared on the construction and furnishing of this winery. As you look at the main winery building from the parking lot it appears to be quite low to the ground - however as you walk towards the building you will see that most of the building is set into the ground so the inside two stories are actually quite spacious. This is the only Napa winery that we know of and have visited that has a cave built right into the valley floor! Almost without exception, winery caves are built into hillsides. Del Dotto came up with some unique engineering to construct this cave. Vines are planted on top of the cave - and from the outside of the winery you have no idea this winery even has a cave. The tour takes about an hour and includes stops at murals built into the walls which correspond to historical winemaking events. Besides being functional, the cave is really a shrine to the history of winemaking. The tour also includes healthy barrel samples of very high end wine. Thanks Dave for turning us on to the modern opera band, Amici - good taste! Hopefully by now after reading this review and our review of their parent winery, you will have concluded that Del Dotto is known for fun, experimentation, and creativity. This carries through to their wine aging program. They are already a Napa winery leader in oak barrel experimentation as they use many different coopers and types of oak, but now they have taken this a step further. For some of their wine (Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese, etc) starting with their 2005 vintage, they are conducting the fermentation and aging of the wine in large clay amphora vessels built into the earth. The original vessels they used for this are over 300 years old. This is how wine was made thousands of years ago and Del Dotto is even burying several of these vessels to represent historical duplication. This type of aging brings a certain earthiness and softness to the wine. A high end kitchen is located on site and food made by a top former French Laundry chef is often paired with the wine. No specific website exists for this second winery so visit their main page: Visit: www.deldottovineyards.com

Quick Info Open to Public: No Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: Call Phone: 963-2134 Address: 1445 Highway 29, St. Helena Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Del Dotto Vineyards is a winery "going places" and having a lot of fun at the same time. We walked in and Botticelli arias were echoing throughout the winery. Del Dotto is located right next to the Silverado Country Club - there is very little signage in front, but look for all the ivy covering a historic looking building on the west side of the road. We were tired of those in the Napa wine industry asking us if we've been to Del Dotto yet and only being able to reply in the negative. So we finally joined one of their infamous tours. The industry name for this winery is "Dumplotto" due to their tendency to provide lots of wine on the tour. Our tour guide even referred to this term during the tour. The tour is 90 minutes and for most of it, you walk through the very historical caves - hand dug in 1885. You wander around following your guide from one wine barrel to the next sampling wine. That is the core of the tour. Because of this focus, you taste a lot of wine here - if you like a particular wine, you can even request another taste. Each barrel that you taste has laminated cards in front describing the wine - if you like the wine from a particular barrel and are ok with the price take the card with you. At the end of the tour you can actually choose to have wine from barrels blended together to make your own wine! This is by far the most humorous tour that we've been on in the Napa Valley. You will be laughing. If its busy there may be several tours circulating through the caves at once - the tour guides all seemed to be extremely happy with big smiles across their faces (our guide was enjoying each barrel sample along with our group). One side cave we entered was completely covered with slimy moss and our guide told us that if you lick it with your tongue, you would probably end up naked in a desert somewhere. Try their "mofo" barrel blends - which in this case is not a derogatory term, rather it stands for "Missouri Oak, French Oak" aged. Red stoppers in a barrel means that barrel is already sold out. One of their barrels is a Colbert, which at press time runs about $1600 each. Its French Oak and only 200 of these are made each year. The tour starts with a very interesting explanation and display about oak barrels. This winery does a lot of experimentation with various oaks. Oak trees in France have to be at least 80 years old by law before they can be cut down. One of their French Oak barrels has staves (wood) from 9 different coopers (suppliers). Their wines consistently receive high awards. The highlights of the wines we tasted are their Cabernet Sauvignons and various blends. Also their Cab Franc was excellent - you cannot always find a great Cab Franc in Napa. In addition they offer 6 different ports (only one is included for tasting on the tour). Del Dotto understands the importance of having top brandy fortified in their ports. One of Napa's best Port houses is "behind" the brandy which contributes to the high quality of these ports - and its not Prager. The winery boasts a great collection of International wines as well as small harder to find wines from other Napa Valley wineries. We mentioned above that this winery is "going places" - right now they are still "boutique" in size as far as having a small production however their tour feel certainly isn't representative of a small boutique winery - and in late Fall 07' they opened an elegant new Italian style winery & caves just south of St. Helena along the "wine strip". (See above) The owner of this winery is Dave Del Dotto who traces his family back to Venice in the 1100's. He was famous for a nationally syndicated program about get-rich investment strategies. Visit: www.deldottovineyards.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Yes Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: Yes, For tours Hours: 11-5pm Phone: 963-2134 Address: 11055 Atlas Peak Road, Napa Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Delectus Winery is located just south of Napa; it is one of only a handful of wineries south of Napa that we are aware of located in an Industrial/Business park. From the outside, this is one of the most "humble looking wineries we have visited. When you pull into the parking lot there is no sign - you are surrounded by metal framed industrial buildings - and we were told that some people assume they are lost and end up calling the winery even though they are parked right in front of the winery building! Once you step inside however, you are treated to a beautiful tasting room complete with many of the original wine labels hanging on the walls. This winery was founded in 1995 by Gerhard Reisacher & his wife. Gerhard (who is also the winemaker) is originally from Austria and comes from 8 generations of wine making. He fell in love with the Napa area when he visited at 19 years old, and never left. Delectus purchased & planted a large piece of property north of Calistoga in neighboring Knights Valley - and long term plans include building a winery on site. 40 acres of vines have been planted and Delectus is looking forward to producing wine from these vineyards. The location is historical as well; there is old toll road that used to be used by miner's going up to Lake Counties quick silver mines. Also of note, famed author Robert Louis Stevenson used to spend time on the property writing his poetry. A typical tour and tasting will include tasting in the tasting room and barrel samples from the actual winery which is located in the back of the building. The crush pad is in the back and all wine is produced on site. The highlight here is tasting the wine and the individual attention you will receive from the Reisacher family. Their focus is purely on premium hand-crafted red wines and the high quality is quite apparent during your tasting. We love Cabernet and their Cabernet from the Sacrashe Vineyard does not disappoint. It is a big wine, full of flavors with lots of fruit. Their wines are meant to be consumed when you purchase a bottle - but they will hold up very nicely for many years. We tried one of their 99 Cabernet vintages - it was like drinking velvet, smooth and soft - everything you want in a high quality Cabernet. All their labels have stories behind them - their daughter Julia has a very small production Cuvee named after her - and the labels contain her artwork from each year. Also be sure to try their Dog-Gone Good - a red wine blend tribute to their dogs. Great low key atmosphere to the tasting and very friendly staff. The owners are usually on site. Visit: www.delectuswinery.com

Quick Info Open to Public: No Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: 10-5pm M-F Phone: 255-1252 Address: 908 Enterprise Way #C, Napa Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Destino Wines is owned by Chris Calkins. The winery name in Spanish means destiny, fate or journey. It is Chris's philosophy that the journey of winemaking itself is in fact the destination. Chris has a long background in the coffee industry, working with Starbucks in Seattle and then later co founding the well-known Spinelli Coffee Company based in San Francisco. He sold the company in 1998 and then soon after founded Destino Wines in 1999. He has always been interested in wine having made home wine off and on for a number of years. Making high end wine is similar to producing excellent coffee. It all starts with the specific terroir source (influence on flavors and aromas) and in this case Destino sources from a number of very high end vineyards mostly in the Napa area. For the most part their vineyard sources are consistent from year to year and Chris is personally involved in various vineyard management aspects (determining crops loads, when to pick etc). He has been the winemaker since day 1. His wines are made in a style where they are approachable early on and the tannins are well managed. Destino makes a wide variety of wines (each wine is under 1000 cases totally and all are quite reasonably priced) including two Chardonnays, one from the Russian River in Sonoma County and a Napa Valley Chardonnay. The 2005 NV Chardonnay has a very aromatic nose with notes of citrus and other herbs followed by a palate that is rich in fruit - pear, melon and more citrus with hints of toasted oak and almond to round out the finish. The 2007 Rose of Syrah was the first year Destino produced a Rose. This is not your typical light Rose. It is a robust Rose with very distinctive flavors - some raspberry, watermelon mixed with various spices which round out the palate. This wine was made by the French saignée method in which juice is "bled" out of the red wine during an early stage in fermentation (rather than merely letting the juice sit on the skins for a set amount of time). The 2005 "The Mask" was the first vintage released of this proprietary blend. Chris has a mask on the wall from Guatemala and the image of this mask now graces the label. The wine is Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel and Syrah. This is a wine with big fruit aromas that carry into delicious flavors on the palate. Very smooth mouth feel with a nice long finish. The 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon is made in a Bordeaux style but wines such as this do no harm to the well-deserved image of Napa's Cabernets! Bordeaux yeast is used during fermentation and the wine sees extended maceration. This is an excellent wine at a great price. Hints of chocolate and mocha on the nose lead to berry & cherry flavors on the palate. The tannins are well managed and soft on the finish. You can taste Destino's wines at the multi-winery tasting room Vintner's Collective, located near downtown Napa. In addition, Chris owns a cruiser Yacht and serious wine enthusiasts can taste with Chris at the dockside guesthouse in South Napa. Destino club members who order 2 or more cases in a single calendar year can also enjoy a cruise of the Napa River and nearby wetlands. Visit: www.destinowines.com Chris has interviewed a number of Napa winemakers and other notables in the industry on his podcast here: http://winepeople.podbus.com/Podcast/Podcast.html

Quick Info Open to Public: No, Taste at Vintner's Collective Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: See Vintner's Collective Phone: 800-862-1737 Address: Napa Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Diamond Oaks is located almost halfway up the steep Oakville Grade just minutes from the valley floor and Highway 29. Trust us, this is not a bad location for a winery - nearby neighbors include cult winery Harlan Estate (you can see Harlan's vineyards from this property), and high end producer, Far Niente. As a result of its higher than the valley location, on a clear day - there are dazzling views of the Napa Valley spread out below. Diamond Oaks is a fairly new winery as it opened its doors in 2004 - Robert Mondavi used to own the current winery facility. Diamond Oaks released their first vintage in 2001. However, the Maniar family has been accumulating vineyard property and growing grapes since 1977 - its just they were selling their fruit to other wine makers rather than making their own wine. Dinesh Maniar comes from a real estate background and in the 1970's had the foresight to begin purchasing Napa & Sonoma vineyard property with the intent to grow and sell grapes. Land was significantly cheaper back then! It makes sense to start a winery when you have a large portfolio (over 550 vineyard acres). With acreage like this they can afford to pick and choose only the highest quality fruit from these vineyards. Their long time experience in the valley has really carried through to their wines as a number of their wines have already placed very high in various competitions. As of press time their total production is about 5000 cases which is actually fairly small. As you stand at the counter its easy to become drawn into the large bucolic old world mural that covers the wall in the tasting room. Choose from several different tasting options. We highly recommend the Chardonnay's - these were the first wines produced by Diamond Oaks and their commitment to the quality of this varietal definitely shows in the Chardonnays we tried. The 2006 Carneros Estate was fermented in both oak and tank and has a subtle nose that hints of pineapple. Its crisp, clean and a very good everyday wine. The fruit for this wine come from their Carneros Vineyard located in the southern part of Napa Valley - a cooler growing climate ideally suited for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The 2006 Chalk Hill is very golden in color and has totally different aromas and flavor profile than the Carneros. The aromas are more toasted almond, with hazelnut and caramel notes on the palate intermingled with nice tropical notes. Quite nice! Not many wineries in the main part of Napa Valley have a Pinot Noir - but this winery has a delicious one - from the Carneros region. The 2006 Carneros Pinot Noir is an aroma spice box with notes of cedar and pepper leading to a palate also rich in spices with cinnamon and cloves. The palate also shows nice fruit including raspberry, cola notes and strawberry. They make a Merlot and also several Cabernet Sauvignons. Picnic tables are available under the oaks on a small hill just outside the main entrance. If the tables are not reserved for other parties and the weather is nice you can elect to have your tasting outside. For a winery that doesn't require any appointments to visit - this is definitely one of the more private Napa experiences. They are one of just a couple "hillside" wineries anywhere surrounding Napa Valley that you can simply walk in for a tasting; most hillside wineries are either private or require appointments. Also of note are their prices - based on Napa standards all their wine is priced quite reasonably. Visit: www.diamond-oaks.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Yes Appointments: No Regular Tours: No Hours: 10-5pm Phone: 948-3010 Address: 1595 Oakville Grade, Oakville Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Diamond Terrace has been producing high quality low production 100% Cabernet since 1999. Their vineyards are in the well-known Diamond Mountain and Howell Mountain areas of northern Napa Valley. The vineyards are entirely hillside grown. The winery is private and closed to the public. The owners Hal (an architect) and Maureen (background in wine sales) have always been interested in owning vineyards and producing wine and were able to acquire their hillside Diamond Mountain vineyards just before Diamond Mountain was made into a sub appellation. In addition the already planted steep hillside vineyards were planted before today's county regulations permit plantings on such steep slopes. Good timing on those two things! As of press time their total production varies between 250 to 300 cases making them one of the smaller Napa area wineries we have visited. However their Howell Mountain Cabernet has recently been brought into production. Their winemaker was originally Joe Briggs who owns the August Briggs winery (designed by Hal) and now Thomas Brown of Outpost Winery makes the actual wine. Their Diamond Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon is very smooth with notes of berries in the mouth with a pleasing finish. We also tried their Howell Mountain Cabernet a year before being actually released (vintage 2005). It was a young wine but already was very pleasing on the palate with lots of berry fruit. It is nice to be able to come back later and try a fully finished wine after trying it early on as we did with this one. As a result, a year later we tried this 2005 vintage after being released. Oh this is a nice wine! The problem is only 90 cases are available - unable to get hold of this?...wait until the 2006 vintage - it has more than 3x the production and from what we hear, is supposed to be superb. It is very interesting to note the differences between their Howell Mountain and Diamond Mountain fruit. The Howell Mountain wine has a lot of subtle chocolate flavors in the mouth, a very aromatic nose and a beautiful long finish that just lingers in the back of your mouth well after you swallow. Both wines are high quality and represent very well the respective soils they are grown in. For a wine of this quality they are decently priced. Diamond Terrace has two interesting labels both with the same overall feel - but one has a holographic grey "soils" image representing the whitish gray ash soil from Diamond Mountain and the other "soils" image is a reddish copper color representing the deep red soil of the Howell Mountain Area. Diamond Terrace's wines are found in several high end wine shops within the Napa Valley and they have a mailing list you can join. Visit: www.diamondterrace.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Private Appointments: No Regular Tours: No Hours: N/A Phone: 942-1372 Address: N/A Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Domain Carneros is a winery building that you won't easily miss when you drive through the Carneros region of Napa Valley. The main building looks very European and it sits high on a hill so it is easily seen from the well-traveled Highway 12. As a result, weekends combined with good weather can make for a very busy tasting experience. We have been here a number of times and in our experience, Domain Carneros is very popular with young, well dressed, beautiful & sophisticated looking people. The main building was only completed in 1989 but exudes old world charm as it was modeled after a chateau-style building inspired by the historic Chateau de la Marquetterie. As you may have guessed by now, this winery has a connection to France; it is owned by Taittinger, a French company who traces their roots back to the 1700's. Taittinger has identified merely several high end sites around the world for growing Chardonnay and Pinot Noir - the two essential varietals for making sparkling wine and the Carneros region is one of these sites. You walk up a the long outside steps until you reach the top where tables are available for outside tastings. If its a warm day chances are you will see many people sitting around drinking at these tables. Because of this wineries' location, uniqueness of being one of only several high end sparkling wine producers in Napa, incredible French history, and memorable appearance of the building, Domain Carneros sees more people than many area wineries. Because of its elevated height over the Carneros region, you have great views of the Carneros hills from here. Inside you have the reserve tasting room located downstairs or the main wine counter located in the room to the right of the entrance. You can either stand at the wine counter or sit down at the indoor tables. Not all wineries have as many tables setup for wine enjoyment as this one. You come here for their Champagne and our recommendation is to choose their Sparkling tasting flight rather than their regular wine (this is no comment on their wine; they are mostly known for their Champagne). Our favorite sparkling is their Le Reve Blanc de Blancs - this wine ages longer than most of their other current vintage bubblies and as a result is very smooth. It is a blend of several different Chardonnay clones, each of which brings a unique characteristic to this wine. It means "the dream" and was created to be the answer to their French high end counterpart - but in this case using only the delicious estate grown fruit. When we mentioned this was our favorite our guide's response was "good taste is both a blessing and a curse"! Right, this is among their most pricey selection. Of the non sparkly wines they have several Pinot's including the nice California styled Estate Pinot as well as a Merlot. Their winemaker has been with them since the inception and has been working at Napa/Sonoma wineries who make sparkling wine since 1978. Their flagship tour is offered daily year round. In addition, seasonal summer tours are also offered usually in regards to their still wines. The general tour takes about an hour. No reservations are required and its best if you show up about 10 minutes before the advertised tour time to pay for your ticket and ensure your space on the tour (especially during busy summer weekends). The tour starts in the reception room and then enters the small vineyard near the main steps leading up to the winery. This is a good time for viticulture questions. Then you walk up to their "media" room for a glass of sparkling and a 10 minute video about Taittinger and Domain Carneros. At the end of the video the screen moves up and lo and behold you are staring through a glass window at large steel tanks. Watching employees walk by, some of whom wave at you - is like looking at fish in a tank. Next you proceed to a windowed area which looks down on their large aging rooms, bottling line, and the automatic riddler machines. A few antique wine making pieces of equipment are located here as well as a display on how riddling works. You finish the tour in the Reserve room for a sit down tasting of one of their still wines. Your tour guide might tell the story of a Japanese distributor who wanted to buy 5 cases for his daughter's wedding. Domain Carneros doesn't do much international shipping so they were trying to figure out how to get this to the man asap. Well it turns out his daughter was 2 years old - and he was trying to make a point that yes, Domain Carneros's sparkling wine will age! As a side note, in the back of their building they have one of the largest photovoltaic systems of any winery in the world and they recently earned CCOF which means all their estate vineyards are certified organic. Visit: www.domaine.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Yes Appointments: No Regular Tours: Yes Hours: 10-6pm Phone: 800 716-2788 Address: 1240 Duhig Rd, Napa Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Domain Chandon is truly a destination winery with their focus being sparkling wine production, i.e. Champagne style wines. This winery is owned by the largest luxury group in the world - Moët-Hennessy / Louis Vuitton. Your are drinking classy bubbly here! Their Napa winery was founded in 1973 and for many years they just produced sparkling wine. In fact they were the first French owned sparkling producer in the USA. In 1999 their long time "riddler" retired (a riddler is one who turns the bottles by hand in order to allow the yeast to slowly work its way out to the stem of the bottle where it can then be removed by a process called 'disgorging'). When their riddler retired, the time was right to start making still wines. Riddling racks take up much space and like most larger sparkling/Champagne wineries, the riddling process has become automated (they call the riddling machines at Domain Chandon, VLM or "very large machine!") Their former riddling rack storage space now serves as home to barrel aging for the still wines. They use three varietals for their sparkling as well as their still wines - Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. This winery was the first California winery to use Pinot Meunier in their sparkling wines; it is a lesser known cousin of the Pinot Noir. Today out of 500+ commercial Napa wine producers that we have personally visited and tasted with, only a handful produce a still wine, or a sparkling wine from this varietal. Meunier means "miller" in French as in a flour miller. For those with a passion for etymology, when you look at the back of a leaf from this varietal, you will see lots of fine white hairs - possibly resembling powdered flower to those who originally came up with this name! Domain Chandon has been voted Winery of the Year in past years by the California Tourism Association. It is located just off of the main road leading to the Yountville Veteran's home just west of the town of Yountville. If you drive up Highway 29 from the town of Napa, you might see a billboard that contains a picture of a champagne cork and a regular wine cork with the line above saying "Which is more fun?!" From this image, obviously its the sparkling wine. Hmmm. Clever. As you enter this winery you are greeted with signs publicizing their own winery radio station - the only Napa winery to have their own station! Be sure to tune your dial to 88.1 as you enter the winery grounds. Very nice landscaping graces the property including rock sculptures held together with rebar and a nice rock "mushroom garden". There is a large rather long parking lot divided into an upper and a lower section. The long driveway enters the first lower parking lot; if the first 2 or 3 spaces are free take these as they are shaded under the oaks and you do not have to drive all the way through the long parking lot and around to exit when you leave. Rather if you back in, when you are ready to leave you can just pull out and be right at the exit already. The entrance to the winery is right next to this first parking lot - cross the small wooden bridge over the water to walk up to the main building. Once you enter you will be greeted by front counter attendees who will provide you more information about any tours and tastings. They offer 3-4 tours all at set times (check their website for the latest, first tour typically starts at 11am). The tours of course range in price depending on which one you choose. During busy summer, fall and holiday weekends it is recommended to arrive at least 10-15 minutes before the tour starts as tours are served on a first come first served basis. This will also give you additional time to browse their main lobby as rotating artwork is commonly displayed on the walls, education displays might be available and there is a small gift shop as well. Note the presidential menus - as of our latest visit, we saw several menus from this year - during previous visits we saw older menus. Obviously, their wine must be served at the White House fairly often if they are rotating these menus every year! A good photo opportunity is next to the curving wine cellar in which hundreds of bottles are on display near the main entrance. These bottles must be rarely moved as if you look past the stem of the bottle, you will notice that quite a bit of dust has collected. A typical introductory tour takes about 40 minutes - you can choose to pay extra for a taste at the end of the tour or just take the tour. Domain Chandon has built raised beds, planted to specific plants depending on the time of the season. This is their sensory exhibit and you can touch and smell the plants, each one representing some odor commonly found in wine. There is also a small demonstration vineyard planted which contains the main varietals used in their winemaking. Domain Chandon actually owns about 1000 acres, mostly in Napa but also in part of the Sonoma side of the Carneros region. The tour takes you through part of their main winery - huge stainless steel tanks dominate the inside of the winery. A small educational exhibit makes for a good stop with a question and answer session about the production and methods unique to making sparkling wine. Here you will find out that most bottles of sparkling wine contain about 56 million bubbles - apparently a French Champagne house has conducted extensive research on this! A quick stop in the lower part of the winery allows you to see their barrel aging facility. Domain Chandon has a wonderful modern tasting room in a lounge style setting. On warm days the entire glass wall behind the pourers opens up and you are treated to views and fresh air of the surrounding grounds. Excellent appetizers are served here and also at the sit down tables. They offer several unique tasting flights. We enjoyed the "classic" taste -these wines are younger and a bit more fruity then their other tastings. Depending on the type of sparkling wine, they will age the wines from one to 8 years. Domain Chandon often holds fun events on a rotating basis. Of mention is the "Bubble & Oysters Hour" featuring fresh oysters from Hog Island Oyster company (located to the west on the coast). They are also open quite late on certain days - ask or check their website for the latest hours. Their eToile restaurant is rated 4 stars and is the only fine dining restaurant located within an actual winery in Napa Valley! Etoile means "star" in French - yes there is a story about this name that dates back to the Benedictine monk, Dom Pérignon who is credited with founding (accidentally) the Méthode champenoise way of making sparkling wine. Supposedly while drinking his "accidental" Champagne he called to the other monks, "Come quickly, I am drinking the stars!" This restaurant has also been voted among the top winery restaurants in the world by the popular Travel & Leisure magazine. Visit: www.chandon.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Yes Appointments: No Regular Tours: Yes Hours: 10-5/6pm Phone: 944-2280 Address: 1 California Drive - Yountville Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Dominari Winery is currently located in an industrial park about 10 minutes south of downtown Napa and is owned by Jurgen & Marie Schutz. They are trying to move to a more visible to the public location sometime in 2008 or 2009 and we will update our description as soon as we have a chance to visit their new winery. Currently the winemaker/owner manages her own wines as well as a fair number of clients who custom crush and store their wine at this location. She runs three labels, the main Dominari, Monet's Palate (Cabernet Sauvignon), and Baccabella. The Dominari wines are all made from fruit from their vineyard at 1700 feet up in the remote Atlas Peak area, in the hills east of Napa Valley. This vineyard produces under 2 tons an acre, all fruit is hand picked and hand sorted before being fermented. The name Dominari in Italian can mean "protected farm house", but in Latin means superior - in this case superior quality. Jurgen has lived on Atlas Peak since the early 1970's. He has an amazing survival story that took place during WWII. His house was bombed in England, he was in the basement when the floor collapsed and survived because he was in between two suitcases when a huge beam came crashing down. His family fled thinking he was killed and he was found several days later by Red Cross workers who took him to a Monastery where he lived and learned Latin for 4 years until his grandfather finally located him. It is of course appropriate that the name of their winery is a Latin one. He and Marie began growing grapes in 1992 and sold their fruit to other premium wineries until they started making their own wine in the early 2000's. When we visited, the winemaker Marie was in the middle of harvest and had just finished several back to back 17 hour+ days as grapes for her and her custom crush clients were flowing onto the crush pad like wine. Needless to say we appreciated her taking the time to see us for a tasting during this hectic time. Owning a winery is not all glitz and glamour! The Merlot and the Cabernet Sauvignon are both 100% varietal made from the Atlas Peak fruit. Her philosophy is to make wine that is true to the fruit -i.e. use traditional wine making methods that do not deviate from or hide the original flavors of the grapes. We tried the 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon; this wine is full bodied with a mouth feel that is soft and silky smooth. It is a high quality well-balanced Napa Cabernet which differs from some area Cabernets we have tried which are bold, biting and can be overpowering until they are aged properly. Finding these types of rarer Napa Cabernets is always very enjoyable. The 2004 Merlot is full bodied with notes of chocolate, cherry and nuances of vanilla both in the bouquet and on the palate. Visit: www.dominari.com

Quick Info Open to Public: No Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: 10-4pm Phone: 226-1600 Address: 210 Camino Oruga, Napa Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Dominus Estate is owned and operated by Christian Moueix who first came to California from France when he was in his 20's. He studied viticulture and enology at UC Davis in the late 1960's. This was shortly after several of Napa's early wine pioneers had graduated from Davis - most notably industry pioneer Napa winemakers including Justin Meyer (Silver Oak Cellars), Rick Forman (Forman Vineyards) and Nils Venge. However, it wasn't until 1982 when he was able to purchase the Napanook vineyard with Robin Lail and Marcia Smith (daughters of John Daniel of Inglenook Winery). Today Christian is the sole owner and as well as running Dominus he is also general manager for the famed Chateau Petrus in France's well-known Pomerol (Merlot) region. Dominus Estate is an amazing piece of property both for the quality of terroir, the historical aspects and the very unique winery architecture. Historical records show that George Yount (for whom Yountville takes its name) planted the first grape vines in the Napa Valley in 1836 on what is now the Dominus Napanook Vineyard. The building is stunning yet at the same time a humble testament to Christian's desire to build a winery that that does not destroy the natural beauty of the land. The exterior walls are called Gabions which are essentially galvanized steel cages containing natural rock. This basalt rock was mined from nearby American Canyon and sits loosely in the cages providing protection from the heat of the summer as well as allowing natural light to shine through during the day. Both barrel rooms, main tank facility and offices are contained within this one building. This was the first winery design as well as project within the United States for the Swiss architectural firm of Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron. Not a bad way to get noticed at all. This firm has since designed the M.H. de Young Museum in San Francisco, the Tate Gallery in London, as well as the Beijing Summer Olympics stadium in China. Pretty heady stuff for a firm that wasn't even on the International radar 10 years ago! When you are making world-class wines incredible attention to detail is given to the vineyards. Since Christian divides his time between France and California - his time here is mostly spent in the vineyards. Part of the vineyards are dry farmed, only the highest quality clusters are left to fully ripen, the grapes are washed of dust during the dry season to ensure better maturation, clusters are separated from each other to help soften tannins and a number of other meticulous details are conducted. Dominus specializes in two wines each vintage; the Dominus and Napanook - both of which are predominately Cabernet Sauvignon blends which differ in blend percentages each year. There are some notable differences between the two wines. The Bordeaux style Dominus has very long ageability (20+ years), the vines are typically older and are dry farmed - this wine tends to have earthy qualities so representative of its unique terroir. The Napanook on the other hand is a different styled wine. It is very much food friendly meant to be consumed earlier than the Dominus - with bright lively fruit and refined tannins. The 2005 Napanook with 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Cabernet Franc and 10% Petite Verdot is a very dark wine rich in aroma with subtle earth driven undertones. This is a well balanced wine with a rounded mouth feel. The palate is full of cherry and other blackberry flavors complemented with herbs and spices with a nice slightly smoky finish. A Dominus saying is "Napa terroir, Bordeaux Spirit". This motto well describes their Dominus wine. We tried the 2005 vintage only days after release (92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc & 3% Petite Verdot). This is a Bordeaux styled wine, again very dark in color (thank the Petite Verdot in part for that contribution). However, you cannot help but notice the beautiful Napa fruit as soon as you smell the elegant nose - ripe blackberry and blueberry aromas lead to rich fruit flavors on the full bodied palate. The finish is like a crescendo in a Beethoven symphony - long, elegant, inspirational - leaving you wanting more. A wine like this should be left to open up or decanted; it will respond wonderfully to just several years of aging, although it can certainly be laid down for much longer. Dominus is a private wine estate and is not open for tours or tastings. You can find their wine locally at JV Warehouse in Napa and also nearby V Wine Cellar in Yountville. Visit: www.dominusestate.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Private Appointments: No Regular Tours: No Hours: None Phone: 944-8954 Address: 2570 Napanook Road, Yountville Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Dovetail Vineyards is an anomaly in the Napa Valley winery scene. At the time of this review their focus is entirely on very limited productions of two varietals, each quite different from each other - a Pinot Noir and a Cabernet Sauvignon. This winery is owned and operated by Michael Logan who is also the winemaker. His first vintage was in 2003. These varietals are two of Michael's favorites having long enjoyed Cabernet Sauvignon from Bordeaux France and the Pinot Noirs coming out of Burgundy, California and Oregon. He took his first trip to the Napa Valley while he was in college which spawned an International interest in wine - his travels abroad helped him become an International collector of fine wine. His background actually involves technology and computer consulting so without any wine making experience, he hired a winemaker for the first few years. However, Michael would work side by side with his winemaker and finally became proficient in winemaking to be able to produce his own wines. No, Dovetail is not named after a Dove's Tail - rather those who are familiar with woodworking will know that Dovetail is a term that describes a joint which tightly locks two distinct pieces of wood together. Taken in a winemaking context, Dovetail Vineyards uses this term to describe how their farming practices are tightly interwoven and tied into their artisan winemaking. Finding inspiration for the name came from an unlikely source - Michael was listening to the radio one day and heard this term from a National Public Broadcasting (NPR) broadcaster! Dovetail understands the importance of hands on control in the vineyards. As Michael says, "we are growing wine instead of simply farming grapes" - this sums up their philosophy very well. They spend significant time within the vineyards throughout the year - working on trellising, thinning, canopy management and other vineyard details. His Pinot Noir is all Sonoma County grown and is sourced from various locations including the well-known Russian River region. He produces one appellation blend and two vineyard designated Pinot Noirs. Native yeasts are used whenever possible for the fermentation of his wines. We started our tasting with the 2006 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir. This is a stylish wine with good color and clarity in the glass. It is fruit forward, easy drinking and medium bodied. His two vineyard designated Pinot Noirs are made in extremely low quantities usually in the 100 to 200 case range. The best way to secure any of his wines is by joining the mailing list. The 2006 Windsor Oaks Pinot Noir (sourced from the Russian River in neighboring Sonoma County) is described by Michael in the following way, "this wine stylistically takes Pinot Noir to the edge"! It is a darker than your normal Pinot Noir but has a subtle nose that is not indicative of the actual richness and complexity in flavor on the palate. Lets just say it doesn't have many characteristics of a "typical" lighter style Pinot Noir. In any case it is big, both in flavor and structure and Cabernet lovers who don't normally drink Pinot would be well off trying this wine! Michael also owns a vineyard (the Ashley Vineyard - named in memory of his mother) in the Oak Knoll district. It is a small vineyard - about an acre and he handles all the vineyard management for this. He farms this intensively and in late Spring often drops up to 1/2 the grapes (always a farmer's nightmare to lose fruit in this fashion!) to ensure only richest most flavorful fruit is used. As a result he limits the vines to merely 1 cluster of grapes per shoot. Depending on the size of crop this acre produces between 100 and 200 cases/vintage. The 2005 vintage is a rich wine both in aroma and on the palate. The bouquet starts out slightly floral with nuances of graphite and pencil lead. The palate has great depth of fruit including black cherry, wild currants and blackberry. The finish is well structured and lingers long after you swallow. Visit: www.dovetailvineyards.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Private Appointments: No Regular Tours: No Hours: N/A Phone: 258-0129 Address: N/A Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

DR Stephens is a beautiful wine estate located in the hills off of Howell Mountain Road just minutes from the Silverado trail. This location is peaceful, secluded and while minutes removed from the valley floor feels much further removed from parts of the busy Napa Valley. The tastings are held at the estate and are for serious wine enthusiasts. A visit here is always with one of the family members and weather permitting is outside on a long wooden table overlooking their rock styled pool and nearby hills. A beautifully furnished tasting room is available during bad weather. Don and Trish Stephens are the owners. During Don's time in law school in the Bay Area he and some partners started a steakhouse restaurant in San Francisco. At this time he gained appreciation for fine wine and especially for how Cabernet Sauvignon paired well with steak. The seeds were planted! Fast forward many years through a successful career in which he ran a real estate and private equity investment business - to 1996 when he and his wife acquired 35 acres and soon planted 9 acres of this to vineyards. They released their first commercial vintage in 1999. The family grew up in the northern Napa Valley, just up the road from their current wine estate. Their original intent with the property was not to get into the wine making business but the acreage they purchased, while never historically planted to vineyards is mostly hillside and is perfect for growing Cabernet Sauvignon as they later discovered. DR Stephens primary focus is on Cabernet Sauvignon although they do make a delicious Chardonnay sourced from the Hudson Vineyard in the cooler Carneros region to the south. Their winemaker, Celia Welch Masyczek specializes in consulting for ultra-premium wineries and is well known throughout the valley for her attention to detail and high quality wines. They make two Cabernets Sauvignons - one is their impressive Moose Valley Estate which is 100% varietal entirely grown on the property and the other is the DRII produced from estate fruit as well as from other Napa Vineyards. The Moose Valley Cabernet is aged predominately in new French Oak and typically sees no fining or filtration. All grapes are harvested by hand, de-stemmed and then re-sorted so that only the ripest berries are left. These berries are then fermented on the skins before pressing. The 2005 is a very dark wine and its aromas are full of the smell of ripe blackberries. The palate bursts with ripe cherry and dark chocolate. The tannins are gentle and delicate with a finish full of vanilla and tobacco that lingers well after you swallow. Their wines are well placed within the Napa area, usually found at the higher end restaurants and resorts including Auberge du Soleil and Meadowood. Cases of their wine have received some of the highest bids at the annual Premier Napa Valley which is a mid-winter event mainly for trade to benefit charity organizations. The owner's son also has his own label called Hunnicutt. Note that their mailing list is currently full - but you can join the waiting list for the mailing list. For more information about DR Stephens, visit: www.drstephenswines.com Also of Note: DR Stephens has located land for their own winery - which will house their brand as well as the Hunnicutt Wines (their son Justin's winery). Construction is supposed to start in late 2008 and they hope to be completed with the entire winery facilities by mid 2010. At that point any tours and tastings will take place then. We will revisit once this is all completed!

Quick Info Open to Public: No Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: 10-4pm Phone: 963-2908 Address: 1860 Howell Mountain Road, St. Helena Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Duckhorn Vineyards Duckhorn Vineyards is part of three winery estates and is located just off the west side of the Silverado trail at 1000 Lodi Lane. Typically this winery is not open to the public but we have found if its not crowded and you show up they are welcoming and will let you taste. However be aware that during many weekends due to crowds this is not possible. As a result appointments are suggested for weekdays and required for weekends. Tasting is in a very elegant country style building called their Vineyards Estate House. There are several private areas for tasting but for a general tasting you sit at marble covered tables with the glasses in front of you and your server fills each one with a taste. The semiprivate estate tastings are offered daily and appointments are a must. These are educational tastings in which you taste the best wine they offer (estate and limited production) which is paired with a variety of cheeses. Along with Paraduxx their "sister" Napa winery, this tasting facility is first class and one of the nicest in the valley. Think restaurant dining but for wine instead. The room is surrounded with windows and you have good views out on their gardens. The small circular wine bar is in the center of the tasting room and the tables surround it. You can choose from one of two "classic" tasting or choose their "reserve" tasting which includes a tour and pairs food with the wine. The majority of the wines served are various Merlots and Cabernet Sauvignons - they specialize in Bordeaux varietals and have been producing wine since 1976. All wines are artisan in style as they are hand crafted and during fermentation and aging are treated in small lots depending on specific blocks within the vineyard. Duckhorn was among the early Napa Vintners to make Merlot as a stand along varietal wine rather than use it in blending. The owner had been to Pomerol France (premier Merlot region) and fell in love with this varietal. As of press time, they own and manage 7 different vineyards in the Napa Valley area including several on Howell Mountain. Winemaking starts in the vineyards and teroir is extremely important - their website provides detailed information about each of their vineyards. The gardens are very nicely laid out and it is worth a few minutes to stroll around the estate or admire the grounds from their porch. Also take a look at their "duck" collection - which of course is a tribute to the owner's last name & the name of this winery. www.duckhornvineyards.com

Quick Info Open to Public: No Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: 10-4pm Phone: 963-7108 Address: 1000 Lodi Lane - Calistoga Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Dunn Vineyards dates from 1972 when Randy and Lori Dunn purchased their original property high on Howell Mountain (which as an appellation came into existence in 1984). Their first commercial vintage was in 1981 making them one of the oldest continuously producing wineries in the Angwin area. This is a small family owned winery and they are not setup for general visits & tastings. You won't find them on any tourist maps; it is a private wine estate. If you have enjoyed their wine before and are a serious wine enthusiast and collector you may request a visit but note that they are not open to the public. During this project, we have met a number of Howell Mountain vintners who have been influenced by owner Randy Dunn - i.e. he has helped them with their initial winemaking and provided advice on a variety of vineyard and winemaking matters. The second generation is actively involved and Randy and Lori's son and daughter are working within the winery. Dunn Vineyards sits in a very rural location surrounded by native vegetation - Randy and Lori actually purchased 63 acres of additional nearby land and then quickly donated it to the Napa Land trust so it will never be developed. This is the refreshing type of philosophy they have in regards to keeping a natural balance between the native vegetation and their vineyards. We recently had a chance to walk the vineyards - they are all small hillside vineyards at about 1800 feet - and do not dominate the landscape as there are always parts of the natural forest nearby. As they outgrew their storage facilities they built a cave for barrel storage in 1989. Since the early 1980's they have always specialized in two types of wines - a Howell Mountain Cabernet and a Napa Valley Cabernet. Both wines are not blended - they are 100% varietal. As of press time, their total production is about 5000 cases. We recently had the opportunity to try the 2004 Dunn Vineyards Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon. It is crimson ruby in color with an elegant nose showing dark chocolate and even nuances of raspberry as the bouquet opens. There is a lot of fruit in this wine especially up front with black currant and plum flavors. The tannins are dusty and structured - there are good layers of flavor in the wine, good acidity and good structure. While rich in flavor now, this wine needs some time to cellar and it will continue to evolve and show new complexities. Note the unusual design and placement of the labels - they are set on the bottles at an angle and spiral around the bottle. This design has not changed since the founding of the winery. In addition their Howell Mountain Cabernet is always coated with wax which definitely makes it stand out while their Napa Cabernet has a foil seal. Their Napa Cabernet tends to have softer tannins whereas their Howell Mountain Cabernet is a bigger wine with larger tannins and more fruit. Both wines are built to age for a long time and will only become more complex if you are able to cellar these - but can certainly be consumed now. Dunn keeps the alcohol percentage lower than most area vintners, typically in the high 13 range which is done by several processes including de-alcoholization if need be, a process that can be conducted by reverse osmosis. His focus is on terroir driven wines; his philosophy is that you need to be able to taste where the wines are from. When you have wines high in alcohol you lose the distinguishing characteristics that allow you to distinguish the "home terroir". In addition, his wines are not trophy wines meant to catch the high scores or wines that will put you under the table due to the alcohol - they are meant to be enjoyed with food. As Randy told us, they are not "cocktail wines"! Dunn has a very popular mailing list that is currently full - however you can contact them to be placed on the wait list. For more information about their wines, visit: www.dunnvineyards.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Private Appointments: No Regular Tours: No Hours: N/A Phone: 965-3642 Address: N/A Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Dusinberre Cellars is run by Napa area vintner Jeff Smith who released his first vintage under Dusinberre in 1986 after establishing the winery in 1982. The name of the winery is traced back to his families' name when his Dutch relations settled in what is now New York in the 1650's. He was living in Calistoga in the 1970's working in a non wine related industry when his neighbor asked if he would be interested in working as cellar foreman of nearby Schramsberg winery. Jeff having no experience in the wine industry at the time did not know what to expect. Perhaps the owners of Schramsberg saw a future wine maker and he was given the job and gained valuable experience with Champagne & the wine industry during this time here. In later years Jeff worked with well-known Napa notables including vintner Philip Togni and the famous Andre Tchelistcheff. Today Jeff consults for a variety of clients both in Napa & Mendocino counties and beyond. He maintains two wineries - his bonded garage in Napa and another one in Kelseyville to the north. Jeff's wine has made an appearance at an official White House dinner and also at a U.S. Economic Summit of Industrialized Nations. In addition, over the years his wines have earned a number of high reviews and honors at various tasting competitions. His production is extremely limited and he does not distribute outside of northern California. The wine stop in Calistoga has some of his wine as well as Brannan's Grill, also in Calistoga. You may visit his website (listed below) or contact Jeff directly for purchasing. Because Jeff chooses fruit from various sources each year, his production varies somewhat. Dusinberre is a very small winery but they have a good overall selection of different types of wines and varietals. All wines we tasted are from grapes sourced from the Napa area. Their 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon is a bright well-balanced wine with lots of color. The nose is decidedly a mix of ripe blackberries with black currants - great fruit flavors on the palate with a soft finish. Jeff also makes Champagne and the bottle vintage we tried was 2004 Cuvee Rouge. First of all there are very few champagne producers in the Napa area and its guaranteed you won't find this type of champagne anywhere else. It is a blend of Zinfandel, Gamay and French Colombard grapes - two of these varietals not often seen in Napa wines (Gamay is a very old French varietal and Colombard used to be California's most planted "white grape" before Chardonnay took over this status). This Cuvee Rouge is soft red in color with some nice strawberry notes, rose petals and hints of white toast in the aromas and kiwi & strawberry on the palate. It is a very nice wine and if you are looking for an out-of-the-ordinary limited production Napa Champagne, this is a very good choice. Last but not least, the dessert! We enjoyed his incredible 2004 Late Harvest Muscat Cannelli named Tesoro del Sole or in English, the "treasure of the sun". The grapes for this wine are typically picked in late November which is well after the normal area harvest is finished. The Brix at harvest was an amazing 41%! This wine is un-fined and unfiltered but remains remarkably clear. Some wines that do not go through these processes are cloudy and have some sediment - not this one. It is a golden amber hue that will only become more golden as it ages. It is a concentrated late harvest wine full of aromas of honey with some notes of orange peel. The orange peel is more noticeable if you breath right from the stem of the bottle rather than from the glass where the wine opens up more. We also use a touch of this wine in our salad. Weird? No, its delicious! www.winecal.com

Quick Info Open to Public: Private Appointments: No Regular Tours: No Hours: N/A Phone: 326-3220 Address: Calistoga Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Dutch Henry is small family owned winery in the northern part of the valley just off of the Silverado Trail. Peaceful and relaxing are two words that can easily describe this location. This is a mostly men-owned & operated winery (course you hardly ever see that term used in marketing circles!) and they refer to themselves as the "Dutch Henry Gang" - they love hunting and shooting guns and often you will seem themselves pictured in Black & White photos, wearing western attire with various weapons in hand. Pick up one of their business cards on site - their titles say things like "man of many hats, shipping dude, or ace photographer". They have no distributors and you have to visit the winery to actually purchase their wines. The winery was named after "Dutch Henry", a mercury prospector who lived in the hills behind the winery due to the fact there were rich pockets of mercury ore located there. One of the uses for Mercury is to extract gold from quartz - visit our Gold Mining Page for more information on our travel site. The original Silverado Trail used to run through the property and the famous stagecoach robber Black Bart used this road for his hold ups. Dutch Henry may have been working with Black Bart in these nefarious affairs. Their first vintage was from 1992 and as they say, the name Robert Mondavi was already taken, so because of the history associated with the property, the name Dutch Henry was an obvious choice! Their wines are individually hand crafted and complement various meat dishes nicely. Sometimes they have older vintages available for sale. The wines range from Chardonnay & Pinot Noir, to Argos a proprietary blend to their estate grown Cabernet Sauvignon & Syrah. Their vineyards are all organically hillside grown and hand harvested. The small tasting room is surrounded by many stacked wine barrels and there is always at least one of the "gang" there to entertain you while you are drinking...and yes they do love to entertain! Our favorite wine during a recent taste was their Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine is built to age but can also be consumed now. A number of picnic tables are located in the shade of the oaks next to the hills near the tasting room and several small winery dogs are usually lying nearby. Looking for a romantic place to stay situated right among the vineyards that most people will never find during a visit to Napa? Dutch Henry has a 3-bedroom private cottage on site and there are no minimum stays. Also of note is the cave behind the winery facility is almost completed. The tasting fee is waived with a purchase of a bottle or more. Visit: www.dutchhenry.com

Quick Info Open to Public: No Appointments: Yes Regular Tours: No Hours: 10-4:30pm Phone: 942-5771 Address: 4310 Silverado Trail, Calistoga Winery Photos Winery Website | View Comments (0) | | Add Comment |

Dyer Vineyard is one of Napa Valley's smallest producers as their entire vineyard is merely 2.5 acres - not the smallest we've tasted with but certainly among the smallest! This winery is run by a husband wife team Bill & Dawnine Dyer who both have a long history in the Napa Valley dating back to the mid 1970's. Bill worked his way up to winemaker at Sterling Vineyards and was instrumental in developing their single varietal wines, including a Diamond Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon. Diamond Mountain is where their small hillside vineyard is located. This vineyard is extremely rocky and the yields are fairly low. When they first put in the vineyard huge boulders had to be removed. They are in a good neighborhood! Wineries such as Diamond Creek, Diamond Terrace, Von Strasser, and Reverie are nearby. Dawnine worked for many years with sparkling wines as winemaker at Domain Chandon. Today both are still heavily involved in the local wine industry with several consulting projects as well as focusing on Dyer. Dyer's first vintage was in 1996 with merely 75 cases. Current vintages typically are around 400 cases which means distribution is extremely limited; the best way to secure wine is to join their mailing list so you are notified about upcoming releases. Dyer specializes in one type of wine each year, a field blend that is predominately Cabernet Sauvignon with Cabernet Franc and Petite Verdot rounding out the blend. These varietals are all grown together, and are situated on the vineyard such that each varietal is harvest at similar ripeness of each other. In addition all varietals are co-fermented and aged together. We tried their 2004 vintage. It is a refined elegant wine that is extremely well balanced. It is a wine that can be consumed young, yet won't overwhelm your palate. Pleasant aromas of lavender and other fruits on the nose followed by a mix of blackberry and cherry on the palate. The finish is long and smooth. Of interesting note is their label - it was inspired by a mural they saw in a monastery in Tibet during one of their travels. Incidentally it was of high peaks and glaciers called the "Diamond Mountains" featured in the Buddhist Scriptures. Perfect! A San Francisco based painter then produced their label artwork from a photo of this mural. Visit: www.dyerwine.com