Napa Wineries
...some tips from a local

Updated October 28, 2025

Visiting the wine country is a great side trip to do when you're in San Francisco. It's beautiful and the wineries are so much fun to visit.

Allow at least half a day to explore and do some wine tasting.

Wine Tasting: which are the best Napa wineries to visit?

There are over 400 hundred wineries scattered up and down the Napa Valley. So which ones to choose? To make it a bit easier, I've listed some suggestions...a small sampling of Napa Valley wineries that I personally think are worth a visit.

Trying to see too many in one day detracts from the relaxing nature of the experience; three or four is about right. Leisurely sipping and peaceful enjoyment is the ticket!

Guided Tours
Winery Suggestions
Wine Train

Visit the town
Getting to Napa
Winery Maps

Napa Valley

My parents lived in Napa for over 20 years, so I've made countless trips from San Francisco to the Napa Valley, and explored it top to bottom.

Napa's been like my second home for a long time, so I'm practically a local.

Chapel at entrance to Napa Valley winery

Winery Chapel, Castello di Amorosa

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Take a Wine-tasting Tour or Do It Yourself?

Best ways to explore the Wine Country...

Take a Tour:

Pros:

Everyone can do the wine-tasting. A biggie! No worries about drinking and driving, or missing out on one of the most fun aspects of visiting the Napa Valley.
No stress about navigating to the wineries.
No stress about hitting traffic coming back from Napa. Very important! Late afternoon traffic coming back to the city can be ugly.
No additional expenses like renting a car and paying the bridge toll.
Wine tastings are included on some tours. Tastings generally start at $15 and go up.
Interesting information about Napa wine production and the wineries from the guide.

Cons:

They choose the wineries.
You're on a schedule, no wondering off to explore.
Traveling with a

Do It Yourself:

Pros:

You go at your own pace; spend two hours hanging out at a winery if you want.
You choose the wineries. Is there a particular type of wine you're interested in? Have you heard about a particular winery you want to visit?
Time to explore some of the wine country towns: Calistoga, St. Helena, Yountville.
Travel without a group

Cons:

Expensive to rent a car.
Stressful driving in Bay Area traffic.
Need a non-drinking driver. Someone gets left out of tasting.
You have to educate yourself on winemaking. etc. The guide who takes you there usually fills you in on a lot.
You have to pay for all the tastings and tours, gas and bridge tolls. It can add up.

If you're here without a car, I recommend doing a tour. By the time you rent the car, pay for any insurance, pay the Golden Gate Bridge toll ($10), pay for gas, and pay for the wine tastings ($15-20) and tours at three or four wineries, it's probably a lot cheaper and easier to do the tour.

On a tour you can sit back and admire the scenery, and taste as much as you want. Traffic jam on the freeway on the way back to the city? No problem, just sit back and enjoy the view!

Some popular tours to check out:

Napa Wine & Food Tasting Tour.

Visit two wineries in the Napa Valley, including the Castello di Amorosa. Wine-tasting (plus charcuterie, chocolate, and cheese sampling) included. Small group. Free time in the town of Napa for lunch. Highly rated.

See Napa Wine & Food Tasting Tour for info and booking.

Napa and Sonoma Wine Country Tour.

Visit 3 wineries in Napa and Sonoma Valleys, and have lunch (on your own) in the cute town center of Sonoma. See both wine areas. All tasting fees included: good deal. 8 hours.

See 3 Winery Napa & Sonoma Tour for more info and booking.

Sonoma Wine Tasting Tour.

This shorter, half-day tour, visits two wineries in the Sonoma Valley, the beautiful, but "less-traveled" wine country. Join a small group to sample the wines and also visit the quaint, historic town of Sonoma. Tastings included. Hotel pickup and drop off. See Small Group Half-Day Wine Country Tour for info and booking.

Small Group Napa Valley Tour.

This is an all day tour of the Napa Valley with wine-tasting at 3 wineries and a tour of my favorite Napa winery, the Castello di Amorosa, an actual 14th century Tuscan castle reconstructed in the Napa Valley. Learn the art of wine-making and see several of the charming Napa towns of Yountville, St. Helena and Rutherford. All tastings included.

See Small Group Napa Valley Tour for info and booking.

Sonoma Vineyards

Doing Your Own Winery Tours

I like to do some research on interesting wineries before I set out, and check for wine tasting coupons. If you can, it's much more enjoyable to go during the week and avoid the weekend crowds and traffic.

Tips for saving money on wine tasting.

Get coupons for free wine tasting!

Often hotels and B&B's will have coupons given them by certain wineries for free or discounted wine tasting. Be sure to ask if you're you're staying in a hotel.

Also, sometimes wineries will have coupons on their websites for free or discounted tastings. Requires some research, but could be worth it.

You can sometimes get a free tasting if you buy a bottle of their wine. Ask.

Winery suggestions

My suggestions for a do-it-yourself wine tour. Here's a trio to try out:

A famous winery: Mumm Vineyards
A pretty winery: Pine Ridge Winery
An unusual winery: Castello di Amorosa

A "Famous Name" Winery

Mumm's Winery

Mumm in Napa is the place to stop if you like champagne and other sparkling varieties.

Mumm Vineyards

The buildings are unpretentious and placed in a low-key, garden-like setting. You can do the tasting in a choice of settings: a glassed-in patio, an open air patio or a terrace area, all overlooking the pretty grounds and vineyards.

Mumm Napa Winery

Mumm Napa was named one of America's best tasting rooms by Wine Enthusiast. They also have a nice art gallery with Ansel Adams photographs.

Mumm's Winery

Tastings: $48 to $55 per person (and up), depending on which tasting option you choose. We also shared a yummy Artisan Cheese Tray ($25). Reservations are recommended, but not required. Everyone in the group must be 21+. Up to 8 in a group.

Tours: 2-hour tour of the vineyard and winery. Tours offered daily and include wine tasting of 5 wines and a cheese plate: $125 per person, must over 21. Limited to up to 6 people. Reservations required.

Hours: Daily 10 to 6.

Location: 8445 Silverado Trail, Rutherford (20 min north of Napa).

Very crowded on weekends; get there early. Better on weekdays.

Mumm's Napa website, (866) 783-5826 (reservations), (800) 686-6272.

A Beautiful Winery

Pine Ridge Winery

The Pine Ridge Winery has one of the loveliest settings I've seen, tucked up against a steep hillside covered with grape vines.

Pine Ridge Vineyard

They've also created a demonstration vineyard for guests to explore just outside the building.

Pine Ridge Winery

Tastings: choices of five wines: $60 for a selection of current Pine Ridge wines. Reservations required.

Tours: extensive 2-hour tours of the vineyard, wine production, and caves, followed by a tasting. Reservations required, ages 21 and up only. $125 per person, max of 6 people.

Hours: open daily, 10:00-4:00. Last tasting at 3:00 pm.

Location: 5901 Silverado Trail, just north of Napa.

The San Francisco Chronicle named Pine Ridge Winery as one of the "Best of the Best Tasting Rooms in Napa".

(800) 575-9777. Pine Ridge Vineyards website

Pine Ridge Vineyard

An Unusual Winery

Castello di Amorosa

This one is great fun: a full-scale medieval castle has been created in a gorgeous Napa Valley setting.

Castello di Amorosa

The owner has a passion for medieval architecture, so along with tasting some excellent wines, you get to explore a huge, authentic Tuscan castle! Truly amazing (and odd).

The Great Hall

Courtyard at Castello di Amorosa winery in Napa Valley

Castle courtyard

Check out our visit to the Castello: more info and photos on the weird and amazing Castle of Love winery.

Castello di Amorosa

Tastings and entry: $50 or $60 (ages 2-20, $25). Includes 5 wines and entry to the castle. Reservations are required for entry to the castle.

Tours: $75 (adults 21+ only). One hour, 50 min, includes tasting of 5 wines. Reservations required.

Hours: Daily, weekdays 10-5:30, weekends 10-6.

Location: 4045 North St. Helena Way (Highway 29), Calistoga.

Castello di Amorosa website, 707 967-6272.

This winery is unusual in that kids are allowed at some of the tasting options.

drawbridge entry to Castello di Amorosa winery

Entering the castle

Wine Country Tours that include the Castello di Amorosa.

1. Napa Wine and Food Tasting Tour. Visit two wineries in the Napa Valley, including the Castello, and do wine tasting, plus sample cheeses, chocolates and charcuterie. Ages 21+. $289 per person.

See Napa Wine and Food Tour for info and booking.

2. Small Group Wine Tour. If you want to explore this cool winery and two others, there's a highly-rated tour from San Francisco that takes you up to three Napa Valley wineries for tastings. This is an all-day, small group luxury tour, limited to 15 people, accompanied by a guide to fill you in on winemaking in Napa. About 9 hours. Ages 21+. $299 per person.

See Napa Wine Country Tour for more info and booking.

More wineries to consider

Domain Carneros winery in Napa Valley, a French chateaux

Domaine Carneros Winery

There's an impressive-looking building sitting on a hill as you're approaching Napa on Highway 12, that looks like a lot like a French chateaux...because it is.

The French family that created Domaine Carneros modeled the building on a chateaux they owned in the Champagne region of France. It was only established in 1987 but seeing it rise on the hill as you're driving in, you could swear you'd stumbled into the Loire Valley somehow.

Domaine Carneros makes sparkling wines and Pinot Noirs.

Domaine Carneros Winery

Tastings: 10-5:30, one hour, 4 wines, $45-65 per person. Bookings every 15 minutes. Plus other tastings and food pairings.

Tours: Scent and Savor Tour, 90 minute tour of the vineyard and cellars. $125 per person. 11:00, 1:30 & 3:30. 72 hour pre-booking required.

Hours: open daily 10 am - 5:30 pm, ages 21+ and above only permitted in the winery.

Location: 1240 Duhig Rd, Napa. It's right on Highway 12, just southwest of Napa.

See Domaine Carneros for booking and more info.

The Napa Wine Train

Travel back to 1915 on the elegant wine train, enjoying a multi-course, gourmet meal while the beautiful Napa Valley vineyards glide by the windows.

I went on this years ago and it was great fun! The vintage cars are decorated like the European trains of the early 1900's: a nostalgic experience of the life of the leisure classes in years gone by.

Tip: the wine train is available for either lunch or dinner. During the summer when the days are long, either one is a great experience. However, during the winter months, I recommend doing the lunch trip, because after dark you can't see any of the gorgeous scenery.

I was in Napa when the Wine Train was pulling into the Napa train station.

The Wine Train Arriving in Napa

Booking a trip on the Wine Train

If you are going to be in staying in Napa (see Napa hotels), or have transportation to Napa (an hour and a half drive from San Francisco), you can book either the lunch trip or the dinner trip. They have a large variety of dining experiences available.

See Napa Wine Train for info on all the trips.

The lunch trip has a 10:30 am check in at the Napa train station, and the dinner trip checks in at 5:30 pm. The train journey itself is 3 hours, plenty of time for a leisurely meal in your very own Orient Express.

Wine Train Tours starting in San Francisco

At the moment, there's only one tour that I know of that takes you from San Francisco up to Napa for a ride on the Wine Train, and back to the city. This one's super expensive but includes a winery visit as well.

See Napa Valley Wine Train Tour for pricing and availability.

Getting to Napa from San Francisco

How to get to Napa from San Francisco:

Take a tour to Napa from SF (jump to tours)
Drive yourself

If you don't have a car, taking a tour is the easiest. Not only does it avoid the expense of renting and the hassle of driving in Bay Area traffic, you don't need a designated driver, so everyone gets to partake in the wine tasting.

But if you have your own transportation, you also have more flexibility in how much time you want to spend at each winery and you can choose the wineries. And explore some of the charming wine country towns and spas. So it's a trade-off.

Ubers and taxis are really too expensive for a trip to Napa and the wineries. The drive up to Napa is about an hour and 20 minutes from the city, and a lot of the wineries are north of the town of Napa, so that's a lot of time and mileage.

Renting a car for your trip to the Napa Valley

Driving up to Napa to explore the wineries and the charming wine country towns is a fun way to explore this beautiful area in a leisurely way.

I always drive up in my own car when I visit Napa, but you also have the option of renting a car to get up there on your own.

I recommend checking out Discover Cars to find a good deal on a rental car. They cover the major car rental companies and offer a one-stop way of checking for the best prices and car availability.

If you're flying into SFO, see my tips on how to rent a car at the airport. They don't make it easy to find the rental car offices!

See my article on renting a car at SFO.

Map of Napa Wineries

Two parallel highways travel up the length of the Napa Valley: Highway 29 and The Silverado Trail.

Tip: the Silverado Trail runs close to the mountains on the east side of the valley; it's prettier and less crowded.

Recommended route for driving to Napa:
Most scenic and easiest.

The Town of Napa

Napa itself is not an especially attractive town, compared to a charmer like Sonoma, but it is a pleasant spot for a stopover.

A few years ago, the city decided to spiff up the downtown, which was a typical, pokey Northern California small town, with a court house on the main square and a few blocks of Victorian houses.

They built a series of buildings along the Napa River (a small and unremarkable river) that are new-looking but surprisingly attractive.

Napa Riverfront

In addition to condos and offices, a handful of excellent restaurants have been tucked in there, making it an enjoyable place to stop for lunch or dinner.

Angele, French Restaurant

More restaurants and businesses on the Napa Riverfront to explore...

Outdoor dining patio

In June of 2025, the City of Napa approved a plan for major redevelopment in downtown Napa, which includes a building with 75 condos and a hotel with a four-story conservatory and grand ballroom, to replace a commercial area. An improvement for the low-key city center? Time will tell.

See the SF Chronicle article on the Napa project.

Restaurant Suggestions

Angele. Gourmet French cuisine. Delicious food, pretty patio setting on the river. Somewhat pricy, but worth it. 540 Main St.
Celadon. Hard to classify; Asian, Mediterranean, Latin American selections. Yummy. In the Napa Mill, 500 Main Street.
Cole's Chop House. In the mood for meat? This is the place. Try the onion hash. Great desserts, too. 1122 Main St.
Grace's Table. Wide geographical variety. Friendly and tasty. 1400 2nd St.

Exploring the Napa Valley

There's a lot more to do and see in the Napa Valley besides the wineries! Safari parks, lakes, museums, geysers, petrified forests, and more.

For a great guide to the valley, including things that kids will enjoy, what to see, where to stay and where to eat, check out a local's article, the Napa Valley Wine Country with Kids