Lambert Bridge of Dry Creek, Sonoma
The only problem with the Lambert Bridge winery is that if you put them at the beginning of a wine tour you’re going to be stuck to find another winery where the wines are better, or even as good. This small, charming winery on West Dry Creek Road in northern Sonoma produces wines that I consider to be as good as anything you find in Napa. I’ve brought dozens of clients here over the years and they continue to be impressed.
By the way I noticed some reviewers on Yelp said that the staff was unfriendly. I've been there dozens of times and I noticed something odd. If people stand at the tasting bar with their backs to the door their tasting experience is not as good. Go around to the side or even the far side of the bar and you will have a better time.
The Dry Creek Valley is especially blessed by weather and location because it produces both excellent Zinfandel as well as wonderful Cabernet Sauvignon, that ever popular grape. They bring the grapes in for their Chardonnay from outside the valley but my clients yesterday said that it was the first Chard they ever liked. Yet it wasn’t a big buttery Chardonnay but a more sophisticated, French style wine. The wine making team is first rate.
The staff is always friendly with my clients and the tasting room is comfortable in a wealthy hunting lodge style complete with fireplace. The barrel storage room is on the other side of a glass wall from the tasting bar. The site is very pretty with great picnic tables out front on the lawn under market umbrellas. If the day is a little cool this is a good place to picnic. But best of all the wines are stellar. Don’t to expect to find them on any store shelf, the majority goes to the wine club and the rest is sold at the winery. I noticed yesterday that they were the featured wine at the Sundance Film Festival. Apparently Robert Redford, who has a home in Napa, is a big fan of their wines.
Ralph & Lahni de Amicis are authors of the Amicis Winery Guides (Find them on Amazon), and owners of Amicis Tours which does both group and private excursions. They are authors of over twenty books on health, design, business and travel. Their iPhone Apps, The Napa Valley Wine Tour, and The Sonoma Winery Tour are a tour guides approach to these beautiful area, complete with 1000’s of photos and insights. Their articles and products can be found on the sites http://www.amicistours.com and http://www.spaceandtime.com. Their Apps can be found at http://www.sutromedia.com/apps.html
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