- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Sterling Vineyards
Rating Details »
1111 Dunaweal Ln
Calistoga, CA 94515
(707) 942-3345
Calistoga, CA 94515
(707) 942-3345
Discount Passport - $5 Off
$5 off for up to 4 adults 21 & older before 1:00 pm…
More »
- Hours:
Mon-Fri. 10:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Sat-Sun. 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
154 reviews for Sterling Vineyards
This business is a Yelp Sponsor
2/27/2008
11/5/2009
10/27/2009
11/1/2009
9/25/2009
9/16/2009
8/23/2009
11/4/2009
9/9/2009
10/7/2009
8/2/2009
8/25/2009
7/26/2009
6/4/2009
8/10/2009
6/15/2009
7/4/2009
5 photos
8/17/2009
7/9/2009
6/26/2009
8/16/2009
6/9/2009
9/6/2009
5/29/2009
5/26/2009
5/24/2009
8/3/2009
2/10/2009
6/28/2009
2/5/2009
5/11/2009
5/21/2009
2 photos
12/30/2008
10 photos
3/23/2009
12/22/2008
5/2/2009
3/11/2009
1/28/2009
3/24/2009
8/5/2009
One of Sterling Vineyards' Favorite Reviews What's This?
If you want the Napa Valley experience Sterling is a must do on you list. I've been to Sterling a few times, and it's always a good time.
You can do a self tour and read the art of wine making at every stop. They have a nice patio with plenty of seating to do your wine tasting in scenic surroundings.
People thought this was:
- Useful (1)
For the most novice to the most experienced wine country goer, Sterling is unique in that you really get a great tour for a reasonable price ($20).
This includes 5 wine tastings (quality is up for debate), a gondola ride up the mountain side (interesting), terrace views of the Napa region (worth the whole price of admission itself and a great photo op) and a self-conducted tour with beginner tidbits about the wine making process.
Overall, if you're visiting for the first time, a can't miss experience.
Sterling Vineyards is one of four wineries that I like to visit when I am in the Napa Valley Region. My last visit (10/25/09) to this area has to be the best ever in two decades, the weather was nice, the crowd was thin, no camera in my hand, and the drive from/to was very easy. Anyway, I digress, Sterling Vineyards in the past and now will get four stars from me (not 5 because they could get very crowded) because of location, scenery, value, and self guided (where I don't have to feel like a sheep being led to slaughter). Just take your time, wander at your own pace through their vineyard/patios etc.
Currently, I favored their 2005 Oakville Cab and am taking a liking to the 2008 Muscat Canelli (thanks to the wifey for getting me to taste "sweet wine").
People thought this was:
- Useful (1)
I love sweet wines and dessert wines.. therefore my advice is to get their Malavasia Bianca. Definite FTW! :)
I'm not much of a red wine person..so when the description of the red wine said "very tannic" .. = very true!
$20 -- but there was a $5 coupon on their website, which I believe they said is valid if you come before 12:30 pm.
For the price, you get the aerial tram ride up and back, 5 wines, wander through the winery at your own pace, and lovely staff. As well, they hook ya up with a $10 coupon per person if you buy wine for $25 or more. So that came in handy :)
FTW -- the lovely Napa scenery seen from the Aerial Tram as well once you wander through the winery, you come to an outdoor area that overlooks the valley as well as you can see Castello di Amorosa.
Mother's Day 2009
So, my bf and I just started getting pretty serious around this time and funny enough before I met his parents we already planned on taking both sets out to Napa for Mother's Day. So, as you can imagine the pressure was on...
This was the first stop of our Mother's Day outing. We purchased tastings for everyone which included a ride up to the top of course! I was a bit hesitant about the whole thing since my mom is afraid of heights, but she seemed relaxed to ride on the aerial tram without my pops. The view on the way up was definitely worth the trip to this vineyard.
Tastings were fantastic, we were hosted by a kind and laid back attendant. When you finally get to the large patio, you'll get a fantastic view of the valley.
If you're thinking of a place to take somebody who's never been to Wine Country before, this is definitely a great place to take them for the experience alone.
People thought this was:
- Useful (1)
- Funny (1)
- Cool (1)
I'm not a wine expert. In fact, before last month, I had never been to Napa before. But, I can tell you that I had a great time at Sterling Vineyards. For $20, you are able to ride on their aerial tram, overlooking beautiful Napa scenery. You are also able to taste 4 different wines and take a self-guided tour. We (me and the group of friends I went with) were able to take our time and wander through their vineyard at our own pace. At the last station, you are whisked off to their outdoor patio (on a nice day) or may opt to sit indoors, and are served your last (my most favorite) wine.
For a place to relax, unwind and to be able to go at your own pace, I'd definitely suggest Sterling Vineyards.
PS. Malvasia Bianca = YUM!
I liked the fact that you took a tram to get there. Also, the tastings happen throughout the self guided tour. The patios have amazing views as well.
Wine wasn't bad but, this is more of a touristy type of winery...
People thought this was:
- Useful (2)
- Funny (2)
- Cool (2)
I took some friends to the Sterling for our Napa/Calistoga trip and must say that this one was a really good choice to go to. The price includes 5 wine tastings and roundtrip aerial tram, as well as $10 off a bottle of wine. I also ended purchasing a bottle of the Bianca. :) The view from atop the Sterling was gorgeous and it was very close to the little town of Calistoga if you want to grab a meal afterwards. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was because the self-guided tour did get a bit confusing and we were lost after our 3 wine sample for a while before we found out that we were supposed to have the last 2 at the gift shop. It wasn't clearly labeled, and it would be helpful if they could make it more clear. Otherwise, it was a great experience and I've already recommended my in-laws to go, which they did just the weekend before this past one and they also enjoyed it.
My husband wanted to take the gondola ride so I forced myself to go although it wasn't on my list of wineries to go. Forgot to print out the $5 coupon, which was a big mistake as we each had to pay $20. Luckily, we got their at 11 so we didn't have to wait long to buy tickets or to get on the gondola.
The ride was about 3 minutes long. Once we got there, we were poured a glass of wine and we were off on our self-guided tour. We followed the signs and quickly went through the tour as we were more interested in the tasting. The rooftop had a nice view of the Napa Valley. Good for pictures. Got to taste 5 wines, but it wasn't for me.
Compulsory cable car ride to top for decent view/snappy-snap photos. Kind of a cattle-herding experience once you get there.
People thought this was:
- Cool (1)
This is one of those must-see Napa wineries. It's very impressive but in a Disneyland sort of way. For starters, the only way to get to the tasting room is via the gondola, which will set you back $20. The gondola drops you off at the top of the hill. From there, you enter into a modern building which has signs with arrows indicating which direction you should proceed.
The tasting was interesting. Instead of one tasting room, wines were scattered throughout the property in tasting stations. As you progress along the maze, you run into these tasting stations with a particular pour. Some of these stations are situated on beautiful open patios with breathtaking views. The wines were pretty good and like any good tourist spots, at the end of the maze is a gift shop and wine store. Everyone should experience Sterling at least once, even though it is very fabricated and touristy.
People thought this was:
- Useful (3)
- Funny (2)
- Cool (4)
The tram is what is the best part here and I also could see if being really helpful and informative for first time wine tasters/visitors to the area (ie we skipped right past all of the info explaining how wine is made since that is old hat to us now!)
Its $20 pp for the tasting and tour and I think the tram ride up the scenic side of the mountainside/finishing your last tasting up on the rooftop is well worth it. We did not purchase any wines there so I would not say its our most favorite wine but their prices are decent (I've just had better at the same price point)
Their gift shop is quaint and has souvenirs to bring home etc
I highly recommend making the extra drive up to this winery just for the views/tram ride alone. Just don't be too sad that the wine is only so-so.
Not my favorite winery as far as wine goes, but it is definitely a great Napa Valley attraction.
The winery sits atop a mountain, and you must take a "people mover or sky bucket or tram" to get to the top. Once you reach the top, you can go on a self guided tour of the property, and you finish with a tasting overlooking the valley. Definitely something you have to do at least once.
Probably deserves 3.5 stars, but I'll give it an extra half star for the gondola ride and for allowing me to scare the crap out of the wife for a few minutes on the rides up and down.
The drive to Calistoga is beautiful. The view from Sterling Vineyards is beautiful as well. You can see the castle from afar and acres of vineyards.
We paid $15 for a gondola to take us to the top and sample about 5 different wines. They poured only splashes of their wine and was rather stingy with it. I guess this is where you practice saying "Can I revisit the cab...?" But I didn't mind splahes of their wine because it wasn't wowing, just mediocre -- nothing to rave about.
Come to Sterling to enjoy the beautiful scenery!
People thought this was:
- Useful (8)
- Funny (7)
- Cool (7)
Sterling is such a famous winery that even a non-wino like me has heard of it. My overall opinion of the vineyard is about what I think of their wine: it's ok. Everyone coming to Napa should visit their first time, if nothing else to ride the gondola and say they went to Sterling.
The main feature of this winery is that you take a gondola up to the tasting area after you pay for your ticket. The gondola ride is fun, and the views on the ride and after you arrive are stunning. At the top, you walk through a series of hallways and rooms with videos about the wine-making process. in-between these videos you go outside and sip wine to pretty views. The video tour was somewhat boring for me, since I've had much better personal tours at wineries before, but for someone who knows nothing about the process it could be interesting. At the end you sit at a table in or just outside the tasting room and try a few more wines. Then, of course, I got to take another fun gondola back to the car, with the ride reminding me of skiing and leaving a pleasant feeling in my stomach.
It was all a bit too commercial and 'meh' for me, but it was still a pretty pleasant experience.
Sterling has an AMAZING view! It is rivaled by none... and actually they have some really good wines, I just don't know why they don't serve any of them at the winery. The wines that you get on the tour are really the lowest end of their wines, and you'll see people sucking them up just because they're at a winery in Napa.
My rule at big name wineries... always go for the high end tasting menu... it'll be the good wines. Though if I recall correctly I didn't have access to another wine tasting menu at Sterling.
BONUS: The ride in the tram up to the top will blow you away. Go to this winery for the experience and not the wine.
People thought this was:
- Useful (1)
- Funny (1)
- Cool (1)
The only winery I know of that has a gondola. Admission is $20, but my group and I had a 50% off coupon so for 5 tastings, the walking tour, the gondola, and an amazing view it was only 10 bucks!
The winery is set up so that you do your own paced walking tour through the fermentation rooms, barrel rooms, etc. I loved how it was set up because you were greeted by a guy who serves you your first wine (ours was a Pinot Grie) and you take your class and stroll through the buildings while taking pit stops to get your glass refilled with the next taste.
The view at the terrace is quite amazing, the patio overlooks the vineyard and the mountains surrounding.
At the end of your self guided tour you're invited to sit down to enjoy the last of your 3 tastings, this was the funnest part. The servers were all so friendly, they even gave us capri sun and water to hydrate us since it was so hot, totally complementary. We loved the 07 Malvasia Bianca, and the guy was super nice and gave us a 2nd tasting!
The let down was the they don't serve or have any snacks on the premise, so you can't have some cheese and crackers with your wine. There also isn't any picnic grounds.
The concept of riding a gondola to a winery at the top of a mountain with a self-guided tour definitely lured me in. The winery is very modern with interesting facts about the winery and the wine making process on boards all over the winery. I have to admit that I got bored reading these boards =X The self-guided tour is informative though. The staff was very friendly, but I felt that the servers didn't really tell us much about the wines, other than the name, and maybe one interesting fact about it. They basically just pour you the wine and you move on.
One great thing about Sterling is that the back patio has breathtaking views!!! It was very nice and beautiful...very picturesque! You could see Castello di Aromosa in the distance. Once you hit the back patio, you backtrack back to where you started and take the stairs to the retail center and another tasting room. Upon entering the 2nd tasting room/dining room, you get one of their red wines (Pinot Noir) and head out to their back patio. This is a shaded patio area that saves you from burning in the hot napa sun. Once here, you can sit and relax... enjoy your wine. Once you're finished with your wine, a server comes and pours you their cab --which was very smooth and not too dry! I'm not a big cab fan, but this one was good. The last serving of the wine was a sweet white wine, not to be confused with dessert wines... it has 3% sugars, whereas dessert wines have 13% sugar. The last wine (Malvasia Bianca) was really good! I liked that one the most out of all of them. It was similar to Castello di Aromosa's Dolcino. YUMMM
Overall, it was a good experience for the first timers, but now that I've gone to it, I probably would not come back. The wines were not that impressive, other than the cab and Malvasia Bianca.
Make sure you get their $5 off coupon! Otherwise, your wine tasting/gondola ride = $20. It's WAY WAY WAY up in Calistoga, so make this your #1 or #2 stop and work your way down... you also hit less traffic this way and get to use the coupon (valid before 12:30pm).
People thought this was:
- Useful (3)
- Funny (3)
- Cool (3)
Okay..where do I start here...well, this place located in Calistoga, has an admission of $20, which starts off with you standing in a line, (which was short when we arrived but long when we were leaving) for a ride up the hill to the winery, in a skylift!! That was already a cool experience, the view was spectacular! We were let off of the skylift at the top and given a glass of chilled Pinot Noir, the first of 5 wines to taste, as we walked around the premises. This place had awesome views, was very clean, and had friendly and knowledgable staff.
I would suggest coming here for a first timer or an experienced wine taster. Everybody seemed to have their favorite wines, but a lot of us liked the Malavasia Bianca, a sweet dessert wine. My cousin ended up buying a case, and generously shared with the rest of us. I would recommend stopping by Sterling Vineyards, its one of the best wineries I have been to myself.
Wonderful Winery, Great View: Sterling Vineyards is truly the most beautiful winery in the Napa Valley. To access the self-guided tour, you need to ride a cable car to the top of the mountain. From there you stroll at your own pace thru a self-guided tour. Plenty of TV monitors providing descriptions of what you are seeing. Dramatic views of the whole Napa Valley from their patio deck. The best tour in the valley!
Every person has their own favorite wines and each has their unique tastes in wines, alas, I give it a 4 stars (out of 5) as every time I have tasted each of their wines, they are really good, just not great.
You can find my collection of photos from Sterling Vineyards on Flickr at this URL: http://www.flickr.com/...
One of my favorite winery tours, not necessarily for the wine itself unless you do the VIP tastings which then is excellent. I mainly love it for the scenery, the gondola ride up to the winery is beautiful and the patio is perfect for pictures and enjoying the view. I like the fact that it is more of a self guided tour and you don't have to sit around and wait to listen to someone talk for hours before you can try a glass of wine like some other wineries.
People thought this was:
- Useful (1)
Amazing and gorgeous view by far! and of course their aerial tram was quite a treat up if you're afraid of heights. There's a discount of $5 if you can use it or else the original $20 and you get about 5 drinks and $10off on a wine purchase. Too bad I couldn't find a wine I really liked~
Wish I could sit out there on the terrace all day-breath taking =)
I love the cellar sales! They have them Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends. The sale is only for full cases but most of the wines are 50% off and you don't have to sign up for the club.
My parents are wine club members here and the winery goes out of their way to treat club members well. I'm not a fan of standing at a packed bar with 30 other people. At Sterling, they have tables, the servers come to you. and there is a special members tasting room with excellent reserve wines.
I really liked this vineyard. I'm trying to be as objective as possible in reviewing it because, you see, I got engaged there, out on the terrace, overlooking the vineyard, on a beautiful sunny day. That alone makes me want to give it five stars, but the credit would be due to my ... my fiance. (That word is still new.)
I loved the gondola ride and wandering through the place and hanging out on the terrace, looking at the great views. Very relaxing and beautiful. I mean, maybe the gondola ride is gimmicky, but who the hell cares? It's a RIDE. At a VINEYARD. I would recommend this place-- especially for first timers in Napa, and I will definitely go back, as I made some great memories there.
Came here over Memorial Day weekend....best idea! The drive past St. Helena up to Calistoga is amazing, too =)
Although at 3pm due to the massive lines of visitors, skipped the: gondola ride, tour, main tasting
Instead went out back to the cellar? for the:
- $10 tasting + complimentary wine glass to include seemingly unlimited tastings of among ~10 great Sterling wines, including some of their reserves. Staff was very attentive, friendly, zero pretentiousness, helpful yet left us to ourselves as well
- amazing weekend SALE and friends picked up 12 bottle case of Malvasia for $105!!
This place is like Disneyland for wine lovers, except there are no people in creepy costumes, no children and they serve wine. In that case, it's actually better than Disneyland. Oh, and they have a tram that you take to get from the parking area to the winery. Perfect.
I was greeted by a woman at the top with a tasting of their Pinot Gris (which I had never had before and let's just say they had me at hello). It was my first wine of the day and really not many of the others there or elsewhere were able to hold a candle. And what is most surprising is that usually, white wine doesn't do much for me. I've been converted.
The staff were pleasant, knowledgeable and not pushy. Beautiful scenery and great wine. I will be back.
Worth the price!
I've been to Sterling Vineyards on several occasions and although I'm not the biggest fan of the wines I believe the experience is worth the price every time. The tram ride to the top of the mountain far outweighs the cost. A great experience for anybody's first trip to Napa.
People thought this was:
- Cool (1)
My parents, S.O., and I lucked out with a BEAUTIFUL day in Napa, so we took my sister and brother-in-law's advice to visit Sterling and take advantage of the clear sky, tram ride, and potential views of the countryside.
This was a great decision, though an expensive one. At $20 per person for the tram ride and tasting of 5 wines, I thought it was a bit pricey. In case you are math-challenged, that's a whopping $80 for 4 people, which is more than we spent on tastings at all of the other wineries combined. (We most often split one tasting or took advantage of wine club membership for free tastings.)
The views, however, made it worth a visit, though I don't think I would visit again just for the wine. It seems to me that it's more of a novelty stop, rather than a staple "must return every time I'm in Napa" requirement.
We didn't purchase any wine from Sterling, but I did particularly enjoy drinking the Malvasia Bianca (I *think* that's the one we tasted last....), as it was sweet and refreshing and a nice way to end the tasting.
Again, visiting Sterling was a fun experience, but I think I'll leave it at the one visit. And if anyone offers me the Malvasia Bianca at home, I wouldn't turn it down.
People thought this was:
- Useful (3)
- Funny (1)
- Cool (2)
You must come to Sterling Vineyards especially if this is your first time coming to the wine country for your wine tasting experience. I would suggest you buy the general admission for $20 which includes cable car ride and taste 4 type of wine. The ride to the top of the mountain was rather pleasant, bit hot in the cable car because it's very small. We were greeted by a friendly attendant who pour some chilled, refreshing Riesling to start off with. We then holding on to our glasses and start exploring. The self tour begins! I like the way they guide you around the building and be able to admire the view and do tasting at the same time. The tour ended back at a nice air-conditioned seating area with attendance to serve you the rest of the wine on the tasting list and the gift shop is right next door. Then you can proceed to take the lift back down to the cable car ride back to the parking lot. I say, $20 is a very reasonable price for the visit.
The establishment opens at 10:30am and it is refreshing to go early to avoid crowds in the afternoon. Traffic is lighter in the morning also. The tour was leisure, you can read it on the sign post and watch a video on the TV. You learn about wine making in a relaxed, leisure enclosure - air conditioned! It is very educational and informative. The view at the Terrace is BREATH TAKING. Charged your IPhone and your camera! We were advised to come back in September when the grapes are ripe and in red colour. I know, the whole freeway 29 will smell of this sweet intoxicating aroma of ripen grapes! Can't wait to come back in a few months :)
p.s. visit the website and get a print out for $5 discount on the admission :) Have fun!
People thought this was:
- Useful (2)
- Funny (1)
- Cool (1)
Napa's Disney.
If you are serious wine snob, you will probably not be overly impressed by the wine.
But you should till go and ride the gondola, take the neat tour, see the beautiful grounds, and enjoy the tasting.
If you are like me, and I suspect that most of you are, and are not a wine snob, this is definitely a great place to start your Napa trip.
People thought this was:
- Useful (2)
- Funny (2)
- Cool (2)
Sterling Vineyards is on a small hill near Calistoga in the infamous Napa Valley.
The entrance to the winery is very nice and the gondola ride is a fun addition to the winery's charm.
I sampled quite a few wines on my visit. I had the 09, Malvasia, Pinot Gris and Sauvignon Blanc. All were fairly good wines which remain competitive with other wineries.
The self guided tour is nice, but the videos are a bit long winded.
I purchased the reserve tasting and the staff was wonderful in both attention and in the description of the wines.
I would recommend this place for someone who likes to purchase mid-range California wine in bulk.
Their 2002 Red Carpet Cabernet is a must drink but at $100 a bottle it is an expensive indulgence.
This is a must for when visiting wineries in Napa. Well, at least once.
For us, we thought this was a good place to start our winery tour because we were staying in Napa and this was as far north as we were going to go, near Calistoga. Then after that, we would be able drive back to the city from there.
It was probably the most expensive tour/tasting we paid for. There are coupons online to save you $5, but our hotel didn't have a public printer so we couldn't get the discount. So the tour was $20, which includes the tram ride, self-guided tour and the tasting.
The tram ride is beautiful and scenic. Lots of photo ops up there.
I like the self-guided tour as you can go at your own pace and stay around at certain areas just so you can take pics or go to the bathroom or anything. Because the observation deck is just so beautiful, we spent a lot of time up there taking pictures and video and setting up the tripod and just hanging out. It's great up there!
The wines were surprisingly good to me--I was definitely not expecting much from them. I thought more of the enjoyable parts of this winery would have been the tram ride and the views.
But now that I've been here, I don't feel the need to go again... unless I'm there with others who have not been here before. Then I'd be happy to go again.
The Good:
+ The gondola is cute and short scenic ride to the grounds.
+ Our server was entertaining and gave us great insight on the tasting wines.
+ The tasting was good. I took notes:
In the Atrium:
2007 Cellar Club Pinot Gris ($24/bottle)
- fruity, light, sweet
At the Table:
2005 Reserve Chardonnay ($36/bottle marked down from $45)
- "no taste" crisp
2005 Cellars Club Carneros Pinot Noir ($28/bottle)
- I wish I had more.
2005 Rutherford Cabernet ($35/bottle)
- big bite
2002 Reserve Cab (compared with above)
- strong leather scent
2007 Cellar Club Malvasia Bianca ($28/bottle)
- Oooh, is this muscat grade? Sweet.
The Bad:
- The self guided tour was an uninspired snoozefest. Useless.
- We had some dirty glasses.
- Sometimes I wonder if paying extra for the reserve was worth it.
The Ugly:
-- Although the tasting experience was pleasant, I felt that Sterling was more a commercialized amusement park. I'm glad I experienced it once.
IFHTP 1
People thought this was:
- Useful (7)
- Funny (5)
- Cool (5)
Very cool winery-love the whole amusement park meets Greece feel.
$20 gets you:
-a few hours of entertainment
-a R/T ride on the gondola
-fantastic views
-5 wine tastings from super friendly Staff
-self directed tour, love this aspect, I hate feeling like a herd of sheep & straining to hear the boring banter from the tour guide, there are info boards, maps, diagrams, open areas to peer into the wine fermentation barrels and tvs w/directives throughout.
One of my favorite places as a whole because it's a great combination of wine and venue.
The $20 admission includes the tram ride up to the vineyard at the top of the hill. Once you get up there, you go on a self guided tour, just following the signs around the vineyard, similar to a museum. There are four "bars" for tasting a long the way - kind of like a bar that serves only one kind of wine. At one of the wine tasting stops is the gorgeous views of the valley, especially gorgeous on a nice day. The tour also takes you indoors to see the wine making process. The last stop of the tour is their "cafe" area - it is the last wine tasting stop where you can actually be seated (if you want), and they come to you with the wine tasting. Very relaxing with more views if you're seated outside. Our server chatted with us for a bit, and even brought us a 6th wine to try.
I also happen to like the wine here. I usually buy Sterling when I'm at home, if I'm not sucking down Two Buck Chuck.
Great place for a first time Napa visitor. Unfortunately, it's bit farther north on Highway 29 which means you have to drive farther to get there.
People thought this was:
- Useful (4)
- Funny (3)
- Cool (3)
$20 get's you a gondola ride to a nice view, but everything else is just sterile and boring. The building is huge, white and bland. I swear they filmed a Proactiv commercial here. The wine "experts" were so drab and same goes for the little iti biti samples we got.
The lounge/patio on the top reminded me of the nursing home I used to work at during high school.
Total wine buzz kill.
Next.
$25, gets you a ride on the gondola from the bottom of the winery, to the top, a self guided tour with a 70 step climb of stairs, and about 5 tastings (maybe more if you smile at the nice gentleman with the wine bottle).
You can enjoy your tasting on the top rooftop patio with a view of the hills and the surrounding scenery. Oh, and the wine is good too!
The only thing that made me not want to give the full 5 stars was the fact that there were no food options for us to purchase if we were hungry! You'd think after we had been wine tasting all day, and you know your patrons are coming and going from winery to winery, it'd be a great idea to maybe have some simple bread and cheese and meat platters maybe!!!!
***My winery/tasting room reviews are rated based upon many factors. First is QPR or quality to price ratio of the wine. In other words, is the wine priced according to how good it is. The second factor is the tasting room experience. This involves the staff, grounds and anything unique about the winery.***
Tasting room fee: $20
Wine price range: $20-$75
This is a mega-winery that produces a lot of wine. You take a gondola to the top of a mountain to taste and see the facility. The self guided tour is nice. The tasting room lacks all intimacy, it is more like a cafeteria where people walk around giving you your next taste. Topping it off is the large gift shop where the wine is sold.
Sterling is a respected large producer for turning out good quality wine at a fair price. I am not a big fan of mega-wineries but they would be my go-to if I was unsure of a wine to pick and was in a hurry. You always know what you are getting with them. As far as a tasting experience, I prefer a more intimate environment where I can discover something new and perhaps chat with the winemaker or knowledgeable staff.
Definitely a touristy place. If that is what you are looking for, then go here. In all honesty, it kind of turned me off to their wine. Yeah, go ahead and call me a snob.
People thought this was:
- Funny (1)
- Cool (1)
I was a first time vistor to the fabulous Napa Valley and was told to check out Sterling Vineyard.
The Gondola ride was fun and you get a birds eye view of the vineyard! Once you hit the top you are welcomed with a first taste of wine and are free to roam as you please. Make sure you take some time and enjoy the terrace - the view is Fabulous! I went during a cloudy rainy day, but I found it to be just as beautiful as a bright sunny day. I definitely would give this winery kudos for Presentation.
You finish your tour with the final tastings in the wine room with quaint little tables set up where you can enjoy good wine in good company.
Overall Sterling Vineyard is a great spot for a first time visit to Napa. As for the wines, I'm no expert......yet, but have tasted better wines.
$25 to ride the tram, tiny tastings, an average tour, and one reserve wine. Oh, and the bottles are ~$50. What do you expect from a winery OWNED BY COCA-COLA?!?!
