San Francisco - Alison Bing [210]
Wineries
Ditch the car and mellow out in downtown Napa at the Vintners’ Collective ( 707-255-7150; www.vintnerscollective.com; 1245 Main St; tasting $25; 11am-6pm Wed-Mon) with a sampling of six wines from 20 boutique wineries in a former 19th-century brothel, then discover affordable pinot blends in the spiffy mural-lined tasting room of Ceja ( 707-226-6445; www.cejavineyards.com; 1248 First St; tasting $10; noon-6pm Sun-Thu, to 10pm Fri & Sat).
Blue-chip art and big red wines are the pride of the Hess Collection ( 707-255-1144; www.hesscollection.com; 4411 Redwood Rd; 10am-4pm), a winery/gallery northwest of downtown Napa that pairs monster cabs with art by mega-modernists like Francis Bacon and Robert Motherwell.
Head northeast of Napa for boutique wineries along the Silverado Trail, starting with super-Tuscan-style sangiovese at Luna Vineyards ( 707-255-5862; www.lunavineyards.com; 2921 Silverado Trail; 10:30am-4pm). Stone bulls glower from atop pillars lining the driveway of Darioush ( 707-257-2345; www.darioush.com; 4240 Silverado Trail; tasting $25; 10:30am-5pm), a jaw-dropping new winery styled after the ancient Persian temples of Persepolis that offers monumental merlots. Oenophiles (aka wine geeks) need no introduction to Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars ( 707-261-6441; www.cask23.com; 5766 Silverado Trail; tasting $15-30; 10am-4:30pm), which produced the first California cab to beat French competitors in 1976. Pull off Silverado towards Rutherford to Frog’s Leap ( 707-963-4704; www.frogsleap.com; 8815 Conn Creek Rd, Rutherford; tours with tasting $25; by appointment 10am-4pm Mon-Thu) for affordable, organically grown cabs and irreverent tours of its ecofriendly, LEED-certified winery – limber up for basketball free-throws to win free wine.
Further up Silverado, you’ll spot the tasting barn and pet goats of laid-back, solar-powered Casa Nuestra (866-844-9463; www.casanuestra.com; 3451 Silverado Trail, St Helena; tastings $5, refundable with purchase; by reservation 10am-4:30pm Mon-Sat), ideal for picnics with melon-accented, dry chenin blanc made from 50-year-old, organically farmed vines. Try top-of-the-line Napa cult wines off Silverado at Joseph Phelps ( 800-707-5789; www.jpvwines.com; 200 Taplin Rd, off Silverado Trail; 9am-5pm Mon-Fri, 10am-4pm Sat & Sun), makers of complex, highly collectible Insignia, the reigning Napa Meritage red blend reinvented every year since 1974 with a simple recipe: ‘five grapes, no rules.’
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TRANSPORTATION: WINE COUNTRY
Distance from San Francisco Sonoma 45 miles; Napa 50 miles
Direction Northeast
Travel time One to two hours
Car From San Francisco to Napa/Sonoma take Hwy 101 to Hwy 37 east. At the split take Hwy 121 north, then north again on Hwy 12 to Sonoma. For Napa, stay on Hwy 121, turning east, to Hwy 29 and turn north.
Public Transit Take the scenic route to Napa via ferry Click here, or go by bus with Golden Gate Transit to Santa Rosa or Greyhound to Sonoma Plaza.
Bicycle The best way to explore Wine Country’s scenic back roads. Bring your own via ferry or bus, or rent one for $30 to $45 per day at Calistoga Bike Shop ( 707-942-9687, 866-942-2453; www.calistogabikeshop.com; 1318 Lincoln Ave, Calistoga), Sonoma Valley Cyclery ( 707-935-3377; 20093 Broadway, Sonoma Valley) or Healdsburg’s Spoke Folk ( 707-433-7171; www.spokefolk.com; 201 Center St).
Enjoy sunshine and wine without parking hassles by taking the ferry and Napa Valley Vine bus from SF Click here, and switching to adventurous alternative transportation:
Napa Valley Hoppers ( 707-224-4677; www.nvhoppers.com) Motorized rickshaw excursions make three to four winery stops from 10am to 2pm ($89 per person for five hours); reservations required.
Napa Valley Adventure Tours ( 707-259-1833, 877-548-6877; www.napavalleyadventuretours.com; Oxbow Public Market, 610 1st St, Napa; 6.5hr tour $139) Wine-tasting bicycle trips with organic picnics and personal introductions to winemakers, artisans and organic farmers along the Silverado Trail.
Napa Valley Wine Train ( 707-253-2111,