Today we had a group of guests from Turner Broadcasting. We started out at the Calistoga Ranch, rode up the Silverado Trail and took the bike path to Calistoga. We continued to Chateau Montelena where they had a private tasting. They we went to Bennett Lane for another tasting and a yummy lunch, and rode back to Calistoga Ranch for their 2pm massages.

En route into town they saw some grapes being harvested and got to taste some Zinfandel fresh off the vine.

-Bill and Tom

Two married couples, one each from KY and VA were on the road today. They did the full 18 mile loop. The day was glorious warm, but breezy and very comfortable to cycle. They found a fair amount of wine that they liked and made some wonderful purchases.

-Jessie

A very nice young couple from Ontario, Canada took the plunge today in the Dry Creek AVA. They were very good and experienced cyclists and really enjoyed the ride.

We went to four wineries and ended up having lunch at Quivira. The day started out a little overcast and chilly, but that burned off by 10:30am, and rest of the day was sunny and warm.
-TWS

Hidden Wineries van tour. Two friends, Barb and Amy out to find some “undiscovered” wineries. We started off barrel tasting at Zichichi which both of them loved. Sampled the Rhone varietals at Preston. Then for a change of venue we had lunch at Matanzas Creek; finishing off the afternoon at Hop Kiln and Porter Creek. We had a great time and shared a lot of laughs.

-Tom

A hot day was on tap for our guests today as we set out for our Alexander Valley Pedal and Paddle. We all met at Alexander Valley Campground at around 09:15 and, after our bike fitting and safety talk headed out for a little cycling and wine tasting.

On our way to Robert Young Winery we were passed by an abundance of cyclists who were participating in the “Breathe California” ride. After our tasting, with temperatures already beginning to climb, we headed off to Mosaic Winery for our second tasting and our lunch.

By the time lunch was done, the temps were popping up near the 100 degree mark, so diving into the Russian River for the kayak portion of our trip was eagerly anticipated. After a cooling and relaxing 2 ½ hour paddle, we arrived at the end of our day.

-Fred and Lisa

Rob and Sandy from Memphis were on their second day of touring. Even though it was hot both days they were real troopers. They particularly like white wines. So we sought out some of the best in the valley. We started off at Frank Family with their Chardonnay and tried the Sauvignon Blanc after taking the tour at Clos Pegase. Lunch at Cuvaison with the whites and topped off the afternoon at Bennett Lane with their white Maximus blend.
-TWS

It was a beautiful, cool, clear morning in Calistoga: A fine relief after several days of temps in the 100’s. We tasted on the north end of town so as to be able to ride flat, secondary roads and keeping travel on busy roads to a minimum. Owing to the size of the group, all tastings were scheduled 2 days in advance with the wineries. All that was left for us to do was to follow the schedule and enjoy the ride. We started off at Bennett Lane Vineyards, then on to Envy. Next up was Summers Winery where we also enjoyed our lunch. To finish the day we rode back through town and picked up the bike path which took us to our last tasting at Clos Pegase.
-Fred

What a scorcher! It was over 100 degrees in Calistoga today. But everybody on this trip were real troopers that all went the full 18 mile loop. The group was pretty diverse one couple was visiting from WI. A young lady from NJ was accompanied by her guests visiting from the Philippines. We had another couple living in Atlanta and a couple visiting from Germany.

We got most of the riding done in the morning so that we would not have to do the longest stretches in the heat of the afternoon. We started off at Clos Pegase and then rode to Frank Family.

The crew at Frank Family were happily ensconced in their new tasting room– house that has been redesigned in Craftsman style. We had lunch at Summers and finished off the day at Bennett Lane.
-Tom

Michael and Karen from Austin, Texas, a very nice couple. Michael was a little bit tentative about wine so I made him my project for the day. We barrel tasted at Zachichi, munched the zin-sauced meatball at Yokam Bridge, had lunch under the trees at Dry Creek Winery, and enjoyed the view at Everett Ridge
-Tom

Fantastic tour. Great people, great weather, great fun. A group of three from NH; parents and grown son who now lives in SF. A couple from CO, and a couple from OR. As a group, all the participants melded together and enjoyed each other’s company as much as I did.

We hit all the usual places and saw all the usual suspects, but with my verbal magic and quick repartee I made is seem new and magical. Like Madonna’s virgin, “touched for the very first time”.
-Tom