Chelsea E.
Yelp
Got recommendations to head to Silver Oak on my first visit to Napa and I had never made it there. So I made sure to prioritize a visit on my second Napa trip! I'm glad I was able to make it there! I made a reservation in early February, a month out from our visit. I scheduled the $40 Silver Tour and Taste.
We were there on a Sunday in early March and scheduled our visit after we had completed the Napa Valley Half Marathon. Our tasting was scheduled at 3pm which gave us enough time to finish the race, shower, eat lunch and head over. We got there a little early, which was great because the grounds are beautiful. After we checked in, the hostess gave us each a glass of Cab. My sister and I snapped pics of each other out front while sipping our wine before the tour started. It was a beautiful day out and the views are gorgeous!
Our tour soon got started with two other couples. Bruce was our tour guide and he was nice and knowledgeable. We walked to a few different rooms, past a seated tasting room (I would have loved to just sit down there and relax!) and into the barrel room (my fave...I just love how it smells). As we walked, Bruce continued to pour us wines. He was very generous with the pours. At one point, I had to politely decline when he offered to refill my glass again (after all, I had to drive!). We walked outside for a bit, and also into the fermentation room. We ended our tour in a private area that has many old wines bottled (I loved seeing the one from 1988- the year I was born!).
Overall, I really enjoyed the scenery, wine and Bruce. However, my only feedback is that this tour is all walking and no sitting whatsoever. Most tours I go on also include a seated tasting as well. Also, as I mentioned, my sister and I had ran the Half Marathon that morning. I ran it with an injury (which I later found out was a pelvic stress fracture. OW!). So you can imagine how much it impacted my experience with no sitting (and for the record, running a half marathon with a stress fracture makes me a total idiot). Just wish they had done the tour more quickly and then allowed us to sit in that tasting room. The tasting room was gorgeous and had so many windows all around. I felt like it was a missed opportunity.
I would definitely go back and recommend it to others. Maybe next time, I will just do a seated tasting at the bar!