To me, a trip to Napa does not need to be a marathon. After 16 years as a food and travel writer, I have learned that the best tastings are rarely the loudest or flashiest. They are the wineries that feel unhurried, where you can grab a seat outside, ask a few nerdy questions about varietals without the eye roll, and actually taste without watching the clock. That easy, low-fi energy is exactly what San Francisco Chronicle wine reporter Jess Lander points readers toward: “For a chill, no-frills visit, head to Corison, Tres Sabores or Prager Port Works,” she wrote.
Not surprisingly, those options (and the ones below) are also the places locals swear by. They keep the focus on what is in the glass, and they make you want to linger and leave with a few bottles tucked under your arm.
On my most recent trip, I only booked tasting rooms with that vibe. The kind that feels like the quiet, family-run stop in Sideways, where you sit down for one flight and somehow end up staying for another, chatting with the staff and collecting a short list of their favorite under-the-radar places to go next. Napa can be many things, but it does not have to be pretentious or stressful. Some of the best wines I have had there came from the most unassuming addresses. Below, the six I’d recommend for your next trip…