Gibbs Vineyards

TL;DR

  • Cute for pictures: 4/5

  • QPR: 5/5, average price $25-30

  • Main varietals: Cab Franc, Cab Sauv, red blend, Sauv Blanc, Chardonnay

  • Tasting fee: Waived with purchase

  • Average wine rating on Vivino: 4.1

Small family owned Napa winery mostly only known to locals and their referrals. The most amazing quality to price ratio in Napa with average red wines priced at $25-35/bottle. Don’t let the price fool you though, their wines are as good as $60-80 wines in the area. They have owned their land since long ago and do a lot of private label sales, allowing them to keep the price lower on the Gibbs label. They don’t have a formal tasting program but take referrals to do a tour of their vineyard and tasting in the private property. Really personal and private. I’m imagining the experience I had at Gibbs to be a typical Napa experience 10+ years ago and loved every minute of the visit. No fancy buildings but great view of the vineyard and a walnut tree lane. Definitely planning on going back when it will be more lush and green.

More about Gibbs Vineyard: Website, IG, no Yelp page

Thumbnail image of walnute trees from Gibbs' official IG

Quady North

TL;DR

  • Cute for pictures: 3/5

  • QPR: 5/5, average price $20-50

  • Main varietals: Cab Franc, Syrah, Sparkling, Merlot, Whites

  • Tasting fee: $8, waived with purchase

  • Average wine rating on Vivino: 3.9

Found this gem during our road trip to southern Oregon and am so excited to tell you more about it. First of all, yes, it is not Napa but $8 for a tasting? Take my money! Bottles are also all affordable but worth noting that we really liked their wine and ended up joining the club. Yes, I’ve probably had better wines but for the price, we thought it was worth it. The big factor was their main varietal being Cab Franc (we love this varietal as it usually delivers such great quality to price ration compared to Cab Sauv) and they have a unique sparkling Cab Franc (probably not for everyone but super fun). Syrah is normally not my drink of choice but I also enjoyed it. It’s in downtown Jacksonville so don’t have much of a view but still a cute spot with a green patio for tasting. Definitely recommend if you are in the area.

More about Quady North: Website, Yelp, IG

Thumbnail image from Soter official IG

L'aventure Winery

TL;DR

  • Cute for pictures: 4/5

  • QPR: 3/5, average price $50-100

  • Main varietals: Cab + Syrah blend, Rhone style blends

  • Tasting fee: $40, waived with membership

  • Average wine rating on Vivino: 4.3

L’aventure is a great stop in Paso. They have interesting big bold reds that are all smooth to drink. Tasting fee is on the pricey side for Paso and they only waive the fee if you join their membership (requires purchasing 6 bottles). However, we liked the wines and our friends in our group did as well so we ended up purchasing 3 bottles each to join the membership and get the tasting fee waived. View of the vineyard on a hill is really nice, worth a visit if you like GSM blends or big reds.

More about L’aventure: Website, Yelp, IG

Goldeneye Winery

TL;DR

  • Cute for pictures: 5/5

  • QPR: 3/5, average price $35-85

  • Main varietals: Pinot, Whites, Sparkling

  • Tasting fee: $15. waived with purchase

  • Average wine rating on Vivino: 4.3

Goldeneye is part of a larger winery family with Duckhorn, Paraduxx, Decoy in Napa. You start your tasting with a glass of Rose and their flight usually includes 3-4 different types of Pinot + few additional pours of sparkling and higher-end Pinots if they have them opened. Front of the winery and the garden on the side is adorable but the view when you get to the tasting area in the back is so pretty.

More about Goldeneye: Website, Yelp, IG

Lichen Estate

TL;DR

  • Cute for pictures: 4/5

  • QPR: 4/5, average price $25-65

  • Main varietals: Pinot, Whites, Sparkling

  • Tasting fee: $15

  • Average wine rating on Vivino: 4.1

This is a cute little family owned winery in Anderson Valley on the way to Mendocino from SF. Lots of wineries with Pinot but Lichen is a fun spot where you can find unique Pinots, whites, and sparkling. White Pinot, multi-vintage blend of Pinot, Blanc de Noir sparking from pinot to name a few.

More about Lichen: Website, Yelp, IG