Every season, Northern California tourists flock to the various wineries and vineyards to explore and taste the unique collection of wines this region of California has to offer. Other than wine tasting, there is a multitude of other activities this area of California has to offer; from outstanding restaurants, beaches, and shopping to golfing, museums, and camping.

With such a selection of activities for tourists to pick from, it is helpful to be aware of some insider tips for each area of Northern California. This will maximize traveler’s time and give them the best opportunity to experience what California’s wine country has to offer.

Amador County

Positioned in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and only a couple of hours from the San Francisco Bay, Amador County has over thirty wineries with some of the state’s best old-vine Zinfandels, breathtaking scenery, and a Gold Rush theme to its cultural attractions.

Some popular attractions include:

-The Amador County Museum in Jackson, which contains a large amount of authentic Gold Rush memorabilia

-Indian Rock Grinding State Park in Pine Grove

-The Gold Rush town of Volcano, home to the historic St. George Hotel and the Black Chasm Caverns

-Sutter Creek—a perfect spot to explore quaint shops and more Gold Rush architecture and culture, also home to Susan’s Wine Bar and the Sutter Gold Mine

-Sutter Ridge Vineyards, which offers one of the few Tempranillos available in California

-Plymouth—bridges the gap to the amazing wineries of the Shenandoah Valley—have a blast at Incahoots and book a room at the Plymouth House Inn

-Make sure to stop at the gourmet Amador Vintage Market

-Montevina, the esteemed producer of old-vine Zinfandel and Shenandoah Vineyard, a top producer of a wide variety of amazing Amador wines

-Avio, a newer winery specializing in various Italian varietals, and Dobra Zemjila, one of the honored producers of Amador County’s “Big Reds”

Lodi

Lodi Wine Country is an often undiscovered jewel hidden away in California wine country. Home to some very quaint but beautiful spots, Lodi offers over 200 different wines. Some great tourist spots that should be visited while touring Lodi’s wine country include:

-The Amarosa Inn and Gardens at the Vino Con Brio Winery

-School Street Bistro

-Jessie’s Grove Winery, a historic farm property that illustrates the history of the town of Lodi

-The Consumnes River Preserve, which is home to countless species of birds, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals, offers year round hiking and exploring trails as well as an educational visitor’s center

-In November, Lodi celebrates the Sandhill Crane with the Sandhill Crane Festival

-Wine and Roses, a luxurious hotel with amazing spa facilities and delectable cuisine

-The Lodi Wine and Visitor Center where tourists can view a demonstration vineyard and learn about local grape growing and wine making strategies

Monterey County

Boasting over 40,000 acres of grapes with distinctive wine tasting experiences, Monterey County is one of the most beautiful regions of Northern California. It is definitely recommended to take a couple of extra days taking in all of what Monterey County has to offer, such as:

-Carmel-by-the-Sea

-Monterey Bay Aquarium, rated the top aquarium in the nation by Zagat Survey and the third highest attraction overall

-Horse-back riding on the beach, tide pooling, hiking, kayaking, sailing, and whale and seal watching over the ninety-nine miles of Pacific Ocean coastline

-Cannery Row

-The 17 Mile Drive

-Exclusive tasting rooms in the Carmel Valley Village

-Pebble Beach, Quail Lodge, and several incredible golf courses, not limited to Spyglass Hill and Poppy Hills

-The Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca

-The National Steinbeck Center that takes tourists through the world of John Steinbeck via interactive, multi-sensory exhibits, artifacts, and archives

-Various tasting rooms along River Road, including the Chalone Winery, located adjacent to The Inn at the Pinnacles

Napa Valley

The Napa Valley is world renowned as a top winegrowing region that is the first recognized American Viticultural Area out of the 107 areas in all of California’s wine country. With well over 400 wineries, Napa Valley is best known for its full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignons, but also produces top-notch Chardonnays, Pinot Noirs, Zinfandels, Rieslings, Pinot Grigios, and Sauvignon Blancs, among others.

When visiting Napa, make sure to include these amazing attractions on your list of things to do:

- The Hess Collection on Mt. Veeder winery, complete with an outstanding collection of contemporary art

- Domaine Chandon’s restaurant featuring sparkling wines from the winery

- The Robert Mondavi Winery off of Highway 29

- The Meadowood Napa Valley Resort or one of the countless bed and breakfast inns in this area

- Wineries including Groth, Beringer, Sterling, Duckhorn, Clos du Val, Stag’s Leap, Rudd, and Miner Family

- Corn Creek Winery, which offers a wine blending seminar

- St. Helena, a charming little town with great shopping and restaurants

- Calistoga, home to historic spas that offer relaxing mud baths, massages, and a natural hot spring

While these four areas of Northern California wine country are an amazing inclusion on your tour of California’s wine regions, they are only a selection. Don’t forget to consider Paso Robles, Santa Cruz County, and Sonoma County for more spectacular wine tasting.
 

 

 

 

Tags: cabernet sauvignons | cabernet sauvignons | tempranillos | tempranillos | wine tasting | zinfandels | zinfandels

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This entry was posted on Monday, August 4th, 2008 at 1:29 pm and is filed under Dining. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.