We left the campground at Modesto Reservoir and instructed "Rhoda" (our GPS) to take us to Napa Valley. Like most women, they can be stubborn at times, so I supplied a little more detail and she became very cooperative. Beringer Vineyards, St. Helena, Ca. here we come. We have a tour appointment for 4:15 and a 4 1/2 hour drive to get there. We should make it between 1 & 2pm.
This morning, Sharon told me that she has misplaced her wedding rings. She has been trying to remember the last place she took them off and she is pretty sure it was in the MH. She has looked everywhere she normally puts them and areas close by. This has bothered both of us all day leading to not much communication and a lot of thinking. Sharon has promised these wedding rings to Whitney (daughter) in her will and I was wondering how we would tell her that they are lost.
I don't know if I could ever replace them because we had them made special for us.
We tried really hard to enjoy the tour. Beringer Winery has several tours and the one we took was for 90 minutes. There was only 12 people in our group and our tour guide not only like the wine she tasted but she was very informative, too. We sampled two wines at the start of the tour, another bottle in the vineyard, and 3 more bottles plus a keg while in the cellars. Marissa, our tour guide, sampled all the wines that we did and she does 3 to 4 tours a day. Nice fringe benefits to this job, huh?
Overall this was an excellent tour from Beringer.
Here's some facts I bet you didn't know.
Beringer is owned by Foster (Yep - the beer guys from down under)
For those Merlot drinkers you will be as surprised as we were to find out that White Zimfandel is the most popular wine ordered.
Of course, you will not catch me ordering a PINK wine in a bar. (haha)
We left about 7pm for a short drive to Larkspur, Ca. which is just across the Bay from San Francisco. Enjoy the pictures & comments.
Napa Valley - the valley of grapes.
Of all the California vineyards, less than 5% of the grapes come from Napa Valley.
Beringer Vineyards was founded in 1876. When other wineries were shutdown do to Prohibition, Beringer continued to operate through Prohibition by selling sacramental wines under a federal license allowing wine to be made for religious purposes.
We took many pictures of the Rhine House which was built for Frederick Beringer as his residence.
The 17 room mansion was completed in 1884.
There were several rooms with fireplaces with different designs and beautiful wood carvings.
Beautiful scenes made from stained glass enhanced the lighting and accented the doorways & windows.
One of the scenes above the door.
The main entrance door to the house.
Sharon cooling her heels on the front porch and looking forward to some wine.
Another great view of the house.
The vineyard behind us bears the grapes for Beringer's Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve.
A trip through the cellars - all under ground.
We sampled wine before the tour, in the vineyard, and in the cellar tasting room we sampled 3 more bottles and 1 keg. I was feeling pretty good when the tour ended.
It was 56 degrees in the cellar where we did the most wine tasting. It felt great after a walk through the vineyards.
Beringer Vineyards , the oldest continuously operating winery in Napa Valley, was the first to offer public tours. If you take the $35 tour you can experience the Beringer Brothers’ vision from vineyard to bottle. With a glass of wine in hand you will tour the St. Helena Home Vineyard, part of the original estate vineyard site from 1875. This tour then proceeds to the Old Stone Winery and wine-aging tunnels for a barrel tasting of a pre-release wine. The tour finishes with a sit-down tasting in the Cellar Room where we sampled 3 current-release wines.
Sharon & I have been to several wine tastings and tours. We both agreed this was the most informative and creative tour we have ever done.
Cheers and Happy Trails!
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