This is indeed the winery of the famous Mario Andretti of Indy race car fame. Mario Andretti founded the winery in 1996, and it has since has become a public company trading shares under the name Andretti Wine Group. This beautiful Tuscan style winery is tucked away on Big Ranch Road near the Silverado Trail. Since is it off the beaten path the winery remains largely hidden from the tourist frenzy and traffic on Highway 29 and the Silverado Trail. The countryside on Big Ranch Road is beautiful and serene.

The tasting room is very inviting done in Tuscan style colors. The outside area has a great view of the vineyards and there is an appealing set of picnic tables in view of the tasting room. However, as inviting as those tables are, we were told that the area cannot be used for picnicking but only for tours and tastings by appointment. That is very unfortunate because the area is so beautiful and peaceful looking.

The tasting fee is $10 for a choice of four wines, but the fee cannot be applied to a purchase. We were a little put off by our server, so we decided to share one tasting. Maybe it was the bad start but none of the wines seemed outstanding and not worth the price they were charging for the wines. We were in and out of the tasting room in about 10 minutes. We did spend much more time outside gazing at the Tuscan winery and the surrounding vineyards. The scenery is very enticing and brought back many memories of our 2005 trip to Italy.

The winery offers winery and vineyard tours by appointment and wine and food paring classes. To get to the Andretti Winery, the easiest route is to head up the Silverado Trail and turn left on Oak Knoll Ave. Turn left on Big Ranch Road and go about ¾ of a mile to the winery. You can also pick up Oak Knoll Ave. on Trancas St. in Napa.

The Good: Lovely Tuscan style and setting throughout, Andretti race memorbilia
The Bad: Tasting fee too high, wines a bit overpriced

The immensely popular Taylor’s Automatic Refresher of St. Helena and San Francisco’s Ferry Plaza now has a third location, the Oxbow Market in the city of Napa. St. Helena is the original 1949 location of the once drive-in burger joint revitalized in 2000 by winemaker Joel Gott and brother Duncan. You have probably seen Joel Gott’s value priced wines at various wine shops. Both the St. Helena and the San Francisco locations are jammed around the lunch hour. You will see long lines at both locations but the lines move at a remarkable speed.

We decided to check out the Oxbow Market location for lunch last week. Early this year we posted a blog about the Oxbow Market and how deserted the place was shortly after its grand opening. The place is busier now, more merchants have moved in and the weather has improved. However, it was not bustling with tourists on a Thursday in mid March. For example, the newly opened Oxbow Wine Merchant had no more than 8 people roaming their vast wine store and tasting bar.

The newly opened Taylor’s Refresher is on the corner in one of the adjunct buildings to the main Oxbow Market facility. They too were doing an okay business but not the long lines you would find at the other two Taylor’s. At the height of the lunch hour, we were third in line and had a wide choice of where to sit both inside and outside.

It is remarkable how good the food tastes considering it is basically a fast food joint. Everything seems to be of high quality and burgers of various sorts fly off the shelf. The wine list is terrific with good choices for folks who want just a glass or a half-bottle. We shared a half-bottle of Chappellet Chenin Blanc, a great wine with the Chicken Club and the Fried Calamari. The wine is served in those fancy stemless Riedel glasses and that is a much better choice than a plastic glass. Almost everything else is served in plastic containers.

Taylor’s Refresher is a good choice when you want something that is good and very quick. Otherwise, try one of the fine eateries inside the Oxbow Public Market.

The Good: Very good menu choices, good wine list, speed of service remarkable.
The Bad: Plastic containers, the pour for the wine glass servings is too small.

Whitehall Lane sits on Highway 29 just south of the town of St. Helena. The winery looks especially beautiful in the winter when the mustard is in bloom. The vibrant colors of the winery blend in perfectly with the surrounding environment. The winery is most famous for its Cabernet Sauvignon. The Wine Spectator and other wine critics give both their Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon consistently high ratings. This recognition and the fact that the winery is very visible from Highway 29 make it a popular tourist spot. The best time to visit the winery is during the week or on weekends during the off-season.

We visited Whitehall Lane mid-week a couple of weeks ago. There were six visitors in the tasting room including the two of us, proving that mid-week visits are the perfect time to get some quality time in the tasting room. Sometimes the crowd can be too small. Two men were working the tasting bar and they were not the greatest conversationalists. There were several moments of awkward silence. Maybe they are used to having bigger crowds and maybe younger ones too. Or maybe the winery did not have their “A” team on duty for a slow mid-week winter day.

We liked all the wines we tasted for the tasting fee of $10. Normally the tasting includes five wines but on a slow day we received a couple of bonus wines to taste. The Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley Cabernet, and the Napa Valley Merlot are widely distributed in wine shops, including the big warehouse wine stores. These wines are considerably discounted at the stores so you are better off tasting the wines at the winery to discover which of these you like and then buy them at the discount wine shops. However, if you are interested in the delicious reserve Cab, you should buy it at the winery. It is a delicious wine and stands up against any of the “cult” Cabs selling for well over $100 or $200. Another wine we liked was a white wine made of 62% Sauvignon Blanc and 38 % Semillion. It is a very crisp white and quite different from the usual fare of California white wines. It is available only at the winery for $18. When we find the Whitehall Lane Sauvignon Blanc on sale for $12.99 at our local wine shop, we scoop it up. It is very nice Sauvignon Blanc at that price.

The Good: Very good wines especially the reserve Cab, family owned.
The Bad: Tasting room crowded during the busy season.

The first time we looked into the window at All Seasons Bistro in Calistoga, we thought this restaurant couldn’t be very good. There are no fancy tables and chairs and the décor sort of gave us the impression that we shouldn’t expect too much. That was our mental picture five years ago. Since then we have dined at All Seasons Bistro several times and it remains today our favorite Calistoga restaurant by a wide margin. A couple of weeks ago we dined there again and we were not disappointed. Our meal and experience were perfect.

We dined on a Friday night and were surprised to find that the restaurant was not that busy, while on the opposite corner, Brannan’s restaurant was packed. We’d stopped at Brannan’s first for a glass of wine and to enjoy their beautiful mahogany bar and a jazz combo that plays on weekends. Brannan’s is cool but All Seasons Bistro has the food.

For dinner at the All Seasons Bistro, Janelle had the red wine braised beef ribs and Joe had the house made pappardella pasta with a bolognese meat sauce. For dessert we split the warm chocolate torte with strawberry ice cream and chocolate sauce. What a delicious treat! Everything was prepared exquisitely by bistro chef Daniel Holt and pastry chef Summer Sebastiani. Another big plus for the restaurant is the wine list. It is huge. So big that All Seasons Bistro does their customers a favor by preparing two wine lists. There is a one-page list of the more recognized labels and there is also a binder with their complete list of wines. We chose to browse through the larger list and we were delighted to find a wine that we had tasted during our day of wine tasting in the Calistoga area. It was one of our favorites of the day. The wine was a Zinfandel from Summers Estate Winery. The wine was just perfect for our lovely dinner. Our total cost of the meal including tip was a reasonable $120.

We are not the only ones who think the All Seasons Bistro has good food. The Michelin Guide for 2008 gives it a one-star recommendation. That is quite an honor for this small, nondescript Calistoga restaurant. The restaurant also has a great reputation for its catering services and caters many of the weddings and events in the Napa Valley.

The Good: The food is excellent, terrific wine list
The Bad: Not open seven nights a week.

Chappellet winery is one of those wonderful hidden wineries and a secret place that remains largely an undiscovered treasure in the Napa Valley. The location is off the beaten path on the eastern mountains of the Napa Valley and open by appointment only, so visitors tend not to flock to the Chappellet winery.

We visited this winery for a special wine tasting event. Chappellet and its neighboring wineries hold a mini wine tasting event each year, the day before the Napa Valley Vintners Association Annual Barrel Auction. Besides Chappellet, the other wineries present were Cloud View Vineyards, David Arthur Vineyards, Krupp Brothers, Versant, and Kuleto Estate Vineyards.

The tasting was held in Chappellet’s attractive barrel room. The six wineries were stationed around the barrel room with owners and winemakers present to share information about their wineries and wines. For the most part, these are all boutique wineries specializing in Bordeaux style wines. The area here is known as Pritchard Hill. This hillside area is high off the valley floor presenting a climate conducive to growing the classic Bordeaux varietals.

With the festive atmosphere and the lovely appetizers prepared by Janelle Weaver, Kuleto Estates executive chef, it was hard not to find any of the wines anything but delicious and wonderful.

The Chappellet winery is one of Napa Valley’s oldest wineries, making wine since 1967.
Over these years, they have distinguished themselves among wine critics and collectors as one of the great producers of high-end wines in the Napa Valley. The estate vineyards include 110 acres. The winery practices sustainable farming throughout. At the tasting, members of the Chappellet family circulated and chatted with just about everyone in the room, making us feel all quite at home. The founding parents and five children work at the winery and you can certainly feel their passion and excitement about the winery and the wines that they produce.

Chappellet is located near Hennessey Lake on Highway 128 about three miles from the Silverado Trail. The views are fantastic. If you would like to visit Chappellet, call the winery or visit their Web site to reserve a scheduled tour spot. Sunday the winery is closed.

The Good: Family owned, exquisite wines, beautiful views, hidden winery, sustainable farming.
The Bad: Open by appointment only.