The 7 best Napa wine tastings

Located in St. Helena, Clif Family offers small production Napa Valley wines as well as olive oil, savory nut mixes, fruit preserves, spices and chocolates. If the name sounds familiar, it’s because it is the same people who created the Clif Bar. For cycling fans they also offer bike rentals on site as well as a Bruschetteria food truck where you can have a snack or lunch. For $50 you can partake in their seasonal red and wine tasting which runs about one hour.

What was formerly a large, industrial 1930s warehouse has been fully renovated and reopened as a tasting center. Head to the counter and choose an experience that suits your mood and your budget. The Crown Bar is open daily and offers a tasting for groups of 1-6 for $50. Other options include spending time in the beautifully landscaped park, an underground cellar tour or a food pairing in the clubby Heritage Lounge.

Named for its owners' nicknames (two sommeliers turned winemakers from Minnesota), Gamling & McDuck is in its tenth harvest making cabernet franc and chenin blanc. The artsy and funky tasting room is lots of fun, even if their critically acclaimed wines are serious. Their classic wine tasting experience can be booked for parties of 1-8, where you get to taste five wines for $35.

Downtown Napa is filled with tasting rooms and the Alpha Omega Collective is popular with locals. Drop by anytime from 11am until 6:30pm to taste wines from Napa, San Luis Obispo and Spain. The signature flight is $50. If you’re feeling peckish, snag a table and order from the menu of Pennington Provisions or from The Dutch Door around the corner. Fried chicken and chardonnay, anyone?

At the Ackerman Heritage House, a fully restored 1888 Queen Anne Victorian located downtown on a quiet side street, there are a variety of different tours and tastings, but for walk-ins, the wine tasting salon, also known as the aviary, is open Thursday through Sunday from 10am until 5pm. Here you can try three small-production time-intensive aged wines—a sauvignon blanc, a red blend and a cabernet sauvignon—for $55. After, enjoy a bottle on the idyllic garden patio. 

Views of the bay, plenty of outdoor seating and stunning pyramid architecture, not to mention the wines, make Artesa worthy of a stop. Located in the Carneros region that straddles Napa and Sonoma, it’s just minutes from both cities. Owned by a Spanish company, the winery makes cooler climate wines including albariño, sparkling, rose, chardonnay, pinot noir and other reds. Wine tastings are available and bookings are recommended, including the 75-minute terrace sitting for $60 pp (takes groups of up to eight). 

Inside the restored filling station at the intersection of Highway 128 and the main drag in Calistoga is a winery tasting room. With a rock and roll vibe, this quirky winery never produces the same wine twice so every visit is an opportunity for exploration and discovery. Pony up to the lubrication bar for the affordable $30 wine tasting, available for walk-ins daily. In addition, weekdays from 3–6pm glasses of wine are available for purchase. The wines are affordable and one tasting fee is waived for every three bottles purchased.