Joseph Phelps Winery is located at 200 Taplin Road off of the Silverado Trail on the east side of Napa Valley not far from the town of St. Helena and was founded in 1972. There is only a small sign marking their winery on Silverado Trail - you drive in about 1/4 mile on Taplin until you arrive at their main sign which is hanging above their driveway. Follow the road up the hill to the winery parking. There are great views from the parking lot and from the back of the winery. Joseph Phelps Winery is open to the public by appointment only. The founder (Joseph Phelps) has a long history in Napa Valley winemaking and is certainly one of the area's winemaking pioneers. Mention the word "Insignia" to someone who has a reasonable knowledge of Napa based wineries and Joseph Phelps will immediately pop to the tip of their tongue. This high end big Cabernet Sauvignon has quite a following across the country and more about this in a bit.
Joseph Phelps is also known for having excellent wine education seminars in which the topics vary from time to time. Your small group will sit at a large table in their posh wine room and you will listen to the wine guide discuss wines and how to properly taste, identify color, aromas and flavor. This seminar will also provide insights into how wines are made and is a great venue to ask lots of questions. One of the most popular seminar topics is the Insignia blending in which you are given the components of what makes the final Insignia blend. You get to create your own blend and then compare how your blend tastes against the current vintage of Insignia. Their "normal" Terrace tasting experience is by reservation only and is available every half an hour. It is not private as usually several pourers will be on site next to each other serving different groups simultaneously. However, if you need a moment to yourself to enjoy the wine, weather permitting, walk out onto their terrace overlooking the vineyards and nearby hills. Great views!
The tasting takes place in their "Terrace" room which is surrounded by empty bottles from Joseph Phelps' private collection. From the size of the collection and quality of the labels it appears he has enjoyed some remarkable wine in his lifetime! Large wooden casks which used to be used in the making of Riesling now sit empty and serve as decoration and conversation pieces only. This room was actually added on as where you taste and where the casks are located, used to be out doors. Your tasting will typically include 5 or 6 wines including several whites and some of the Fog Dog wines from their new Sonoma County based winery called Freestone. Their Cabernet Sauvignons are typically big wines with large tannins; we tried the 2004 Insignia which contains the "good juice" from several of Napa's most well known Cabernet Sauvignon producing districts including Stag's Leap, Oakville, and Rutherford. This is a big wine for serious Cabernet Sauvignon drinkers with nice spices and fruit flavors; the finish is more rounded than found in their other Cabernet Sauvignons. When you are finished with the Terrace tasting deposit your wine glasses outside in the large copper pot. Phelps donated land for the nearby River Ranch Farm Worker Center which provides housing to seasonal workers. Advance reservations are a must for their wine seminar. Visit: www.jpvwines.com
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Open to Public: No
Appointments: Yes
Regular Tours: Yes
Hours: M-F 9-5pm, Sat-Sun 10-4pm
Phone: 963-2745
Address: 200 Taplin Road, St. Helena
 Winery Photos Winery Website
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