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Round Pond
Rating Details »
875 Rutherford Rd
Rutherford, CA 94573
(888) 302-2575
Rutherford, CA 94573
(888) 302-2575
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
18 reviews for Round Pond
When you consider what other wineries in the valley are charging for tastings I think that the Round Pond tasting is worth the price. Appointments are required. The tasting room is large and there are several cozy areas to relax, inside and out on the lanai. Pick a comfortable spot and everything comes to you. There's no standing at the bar, 2 people deep, elbowing your way in to get a pour. It's very civilized and put us a good mood to enjoy some vino.
They poured 3 wines: 2005 and 2006 Cabs and a 2008 Sauvignon Blanc. The pours aren't huge but a little more than you get at most places it seemed. Each wine is paired with a little snack, like an amouse-bouche. 2005 Cab went with spicy carrot soup. 2006 cab went with a ricotta, prosciutto, fig crostini. The Sauv Blanc went with a pita chip with red pepper jam. In a bit of cross promotion all the snacks incorporated their olive oils. The snacks were all good, not just afterthoughts, better than some of the food we had at a fancy restaurant that evening.
When you consider the wine, the snacks, and the aggravation saving atmosphere, $25 isn't such terrible price for what you get. I thought the wines were excellent and bought a few bottles to take home with us.
This is for the olive oil mill tour.
The tour for the olive oil mill is $25 per person. It is a bit pricey, and requires a reservation. However, it was fun and unique enough that I would give it 4 stars. The specific tour I went on had a total of 8 people, including myself. The tour itself was pretty short. The tour guide shared some information about different olives, and then took us to the mill and talked about the process.
After, came the tasting, which was of course the best part. We tried 3 different olive oils, red vinegars, and citrus syrups. I loved the orange olive oil and the citrus syrups. The vinegars just weren't for me. Be forewarned that this tasting isn't really "just a sample." There was enough food there to feed to pretty much be a meal. They had bread, different cheeses, strawberries, salad greens, cucumbers, and tomatoes. Trying all the different combos was fun and filling!
I would recommend going to this place at least once. It was definitely nice to take a break from wine tasting! This place is located across the street from the Round Pond winery, right by Honig.
The property is gorgeous, and that's what made us decide to check out this place. We had just come back from a fantastic tasting from Caldwell Vineyards, and maybe that's why we were so disappointed. But there wines were nothing to write home about, neither was their service. The property was gorgeous, so it's great to sit on their terrace and enjoy a glass of wine. But that's about it.
AMAZING Winery and Olive Mill!
Our 3 day trip to Napa started with Round Pond and boy did they set the bar high!
We arrived at the winery and entered some large metal doors. Inside, you will find a large executive table with a nice person to check you in. Once we were inside, we were led upstairs to an open room with a wine bar, tables and large bowls of oranges.
We were then led to an outdoor patio with a huge fireplace and outdoor seating and were told to sit anywhere we liked. Each party gets their own table and setting so you can enjoy it privately. We practically had the entire patio to ourselves - sweet! Immediately they came out with wine glasses, silverware and settings for us. I didn't realize that there would be a food pairing also!
Our guy was really friendly and down to earth. We cracked a few jokes, enjoyed the wine and food pairing and also wolfed down a few of the oranges we saw inside. Apparently, most of the food they serve are grown on this property or in Napa... I like!
We tasted the 2003, 2004 and 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon side by side. I've never tasted wine this way before, but it allowed us to learn how grapes can vary by year depending on the weather, soil and conditions. We fell in love with the 2004 Cab.
After our wine tour, we drove across the street to the Olive Mill. There, our guide was waiting for us (the tour consisted of 6 people) and she took us around the back where we learned about Olive trees, the varieties and how to spot the different between an Italian and Spanish tree. Apparently, you can spot a Spanish tree based on the overgrown exposed roots.
Our guide then led us to the Mill where the magic happens. There was a large fancy machine from Italy and lots of equipment. If you're a photographer, you'll love all the angles and lines you can take.
Once we were done with the talking portion of the Mill, we were led into a small room filled with sun light. There were table settings for everyone and also a variety of bread, cheese, strawberries, fruit, olive oil, balsamic vinegar and syrups. We were briefed on how to sip olive oil, swirl it around and smell the fragrance. This is where I instantly fell in love with Olive Oil...
In short, if you have time please visit Round Pond. Enjoy the mountains, the scenery and great wine or olive oil. You will not be disappointed and will be pleasantly surprised. This is how a wine tasting SHOULD be!
The olive oil tour is fantastic. I highly recommend this unique experience. If you're going to be in Napa for a number of days it's a wonderful alternative to going to yet another wine tasting.
More details here: http://bayareafoodiebl...
**Olive Oil Mill Tour Review**
There's not a lot for teetotalers like us to do in Napa - or so we thought. But once fellow Yelper Yusuf B. told us that his partner agreed to marry him after he took her to Round Pond, we knew that must be some pretty special olive oil and we had to check it out.
Our guide was the friendly and knowledgeable Ross whose topics ranged from biodynamics in France, to the symbolism of the olive in world religions, to in-depth explanations of the annual running of Round Pond, its olive groves, and delectable oil harvest.
Afterwards, Ross ushered us to an elegant set table for our group of 5 as well as a group from Seattle and led us through tastings of four olive oils and two vinegars paired with food and sugar cubes respectively.
Although when I'd signed us up for the $25/head tour it said food/oil pairings would take place after the tour I thought it would be quite basic. Instead there was a generous spread of delicious fresh breads, mozzarella and tomato salad upon which we tried the Italian and Spanish Varietals as well as the Blood Orange and Meyer Lemon olive oils. The last two were very surprising and enhanced the vegetables in unexpected ways but it was the peppery Italian that caught my fancy.
We also tried a couple of sugar cubes soaked in the vinegars but I wasn't a huge fan. I'm sure they were great, but as I was just getting over the flu they tasted too acidic to me.
We spent almost two hours there total, were never rushed, chatted at length with the delightful Ross, and came away with multiple bottles of our favorites.
For teetotalers or Bacchus devotees alike, a trip to Round Pond is highly recommend for anyone looking for a special outing in Napa before hitting the vineyards.
We were referred to Round Pond by another winery. We had no idea what to expect.
What we got was a Cancun resort entrance and a super chic spa-like designed visitor center.
Sneezing costs $25, but you will not see the prices of your experience listed anywhere.
The wine and food pairing/degustacion were superb, but the discussion was sterile... the same routine was repeated over and over and over again to other couples on the deck. Used car anyone?
The setting in the middle of the vineyard was remarkable.
When we stated our concerns about the tasting pricing being a little vague, we were met with indifference and arrogance. If this were a restaurant, we would have been taken care of/pacified in some way immediately in most cases.
We would not go back to Round Pond, nor would we recommend it. If you are looking for Vegas-come-Napa, stop here. Otherwise, go somewhere else. I don't know what all these other people liked so much, but I guess they buy books based on the covers.
I might mention here that my brother and I practically consider olive oil a food group and consume it in inordinate quantities, therefore we were HUGE fans of the olive oil tour and tasting at round pond. But my bf, brothers gf and parents were also all sold on the experience.
First we learned how the olive oil was made, and I can't say I paid much attention because I happened to peak at the layout of fresh foods and olive oils where the tasting was to happen and my stomach was grumbling. Then we learned how to professionally taste olive oils and vinegars-a weird process I am wondering who came up with the techniques-you put oil in your mouth and then make slurping noises as you suck in air and try not to let the oil drizzle out of your mouth, then you put vinegar on sugar cubes and suck the vinegar out of them....the real fun came when we paired all of the different oils, vinegars and blood orange and meyer lemon syrups with bread, mozzarella, tomatoes, strawberries, cheeses, and organic greens from their farm. We devoured all of the food on the table and left extremely happy. I would go back in a heartbeat, make sure you come hungry!
We had a 3:30pm appt with Round Pond at the olive oil mill. The tour was very intimate with just another couple joining us. We started with a small tour of the production of olive oil. Next was the tasting of the olive oil. We started with sipping olive oil which my bf did not really enjoy. After that we enjoyed the olive oil and vinaigrette with salads, cheeses and fruits. My favorite was the meyer lemon olive oil which i ended up buying a mini bottle for $7. They also offered a wine tasting with our olive oil tasting which we declined since we have been wine tasting earlier that day. The olive oil tasting is $25/person and the wine tasting is $10/person. It was a little pricey for what you got. It was definitely an experience but we probably will not do it again.
This was the second to last winery we visted in our latest tour of the valley, and probably the most memorable one. everything about this winery was top notch. the person greeting us at the door was very nice, and led us to our table on the patio where the experience began. I think that is the only way to describe this tour is an experience. The view from the patio of the fields of grapes and the barn, and the plam tree lined driveway were very much awesome. The weather was perfect that day.
The wines were superb, the '03 and '04 cabs we had were magnificent, the Sauvignon Blanc was also very very good (we got 2 bottles to go to drink in the limo) and the food pairings they gave us were delicious.
If we didn't have to get back to the city I could of stayed on the patio all day.
Definitly a great experience. Would recommend this winery to EVERYONE.
About a year ago when we were out and about in Napa a winery that we had planned to visit ended up being closed and as we drove away from that winery we came upon a long drive way lined with tall, beautiful palm trees and immediately turned into the driveway.... we had ended up at Round Pond! Usually you have to have a reservation for a tasting but they had room and were great about setting up a tasting for us.
The property is beautiful, the food pairings are incredible and the wine is PHENOMENAL! We did not belong to any wine clubs at the time because one of us works in the wine industry but we were so impressed with their wine that there was no question as to whether we were joining and singed up immediately. We have visited on several occasions and have the most wonderful experience each and every time. We love Round Pond and recommend it to everyone! Do not miss out on this gem!
The Olive Mill tour is awesome!
In addition to having an informative look at the machinery, complete with explanation, the tasting is divine.
I have never before been encouraged to (or wanted to) drink olive oil directly from a glass, but I am a changed man.
We took a day trip to Napa to visit the Round Pond olive oil mill. We took the tour and it was very pleasant because my BF and I were the only ones, so we had a private tour. The tasting was the best part! Very informative, very nice tourguide, Jill. We will return again, and recommend all our friends to go. This is great for people who don't drink wine but still want something to do in Napa.
Round Pond Winery was a great experience! The winery is absolutely gorgeous! You enter on the first floor and take an elevator to the second floor where they do the tasting. I think they might also have a bar tasting, Im not sure, but what we did was a little sit down food and wine pairing for $25 a person. It was a vertical tasting of the cabernet and they were all out of this world! Not outrageously priced either, they were around $60 but they easily could have charged more and gotten away with it. So anyway, there are little tables and couches where you sit and they bring you the wine, some almonds and dried fruit then after you've had a chance to taste the wine on your own they bring out little amuse bouches, 3 of them to go with each wine. The snacks were delicious and the service was also fantastic. The man pouring for us also took several photos of us, he had obviously done this before. He had us go outside where there was a huge porch with 180 degrees views of the vineyards and a huge modern fireplace. He also had us a do a "funny" photo which at first I felt dorky doing it but now I laugh every time I see it! It was a great experience; we will come back next time!
Expensive tasting, expensive bottles, but totally worth it! They have the most beautiful outdoor patio where their tastings - complete with amuse bouche pairings - are conducted. We tried three cabernet sauvignons. I'm not into cabs (too tannic) but we did find a softer one that should age nicely. If you want, they'll let you share one tasting among two people. I believe tastings are meant to be done by appointment, but we were there on a slow day and they let us go right in. According to their calendar of events, they sometimes do a dinner and tour, which I imagine must be a lovely experience. Price is $175 per person.
Alright dude, this place rocks.
First off, the place is not cheap. Fine, nothing in the Napa Valley is. But, if you're going to charge me, at least do things right, right?
And Round Pond does.
We went on the Olive Oil tour on the north side of the propertry. The tour was given by Ross who was awesome. He's an organic kind of guy that explained the olive milling process and showed us the machinery that they used. We also got a short history on the Round Pond Farm and the family that runs it. We were also told why Round Pond choses NOT to be an organic farm(ask them when you are there is you are dying to know).
We then went into a nice little room where we were able to taste the oils and the vinegars. They had an awesome spread of organic food that helped bring out all the great tastes and layers of the oils.
Overall we were very impressed with the tour and would do it again in a heartbeat. The trip to the south side was just as nice. This is where they do their wine. The tasting room is on the second floor for better views. When we were there, the vines were starting to turn and things were gorgeous. Their outdoor lounge is very cool and we would like to visit again. Great wines and fun staff.
Anyways, when in Napa, hit this place for sure.
Pricey but worth it.
Round Pond is a winery and olive oil producer. Their tours are informative, fun and very tasty! Their products are delicious and high-quality. We had a very nice time in February; I'm going back twice in May, once with co-workers and another with mom and MIL!
Far and away the best experience I've had in Napa. Instead of sitting in a dark, smelly dungeon-like room, you sit outside on a beautiful terrace overlooking Napa. We had fabulous wine with an excellent food pairing under a breathtaking Napa sunset. The outside seating area is warmed with heat lamps and the most beautiful outside fireplace I've ever seen (trying to figure out how to get one of those for my back yard!!!). The 03 Cab was pretty good -- very good for the price, and seeing olive oil made was fantastic! We literally walked through the process -- men and machines -- and were able to get 2 cm from the press. I was shocked to discover they actually have people cutting lemons into quarters for the olive oil -- I guess that's what your $24 bucks goes to. The olive oil tasting would have been better with bread, instead of drinking oil from a glass, but all in all, amazing experience! I will be back. Especially for the price -- a great deal.
