A wine country picnic in Napa Valley or Sonoma Valley is a snap.
Head to a Napa Valley market for the goodies, perhaps crusty bread, local fresh cheese, plus just-picked strawberries.
Then just add wine--with help from a picnic-friendly Napa or Sonoma winery.
Pack up locally produced treats from gourmet markets for your Napa or Sonoma Valley picnic. — Photo courtesy of Jordan Winery
Pack a Napa Valley feast
Bread-lovers, as you hunt picnic goodies, scan Napa Valley markets for Acme Bread. The sigh-worthy bread is served in top Napa Valley restaurants.
Oxbow Public Market in the city of Napa is a good jumping off point. Your drive up the valley lies north from Napa.
Rev up the day with organic coffee at Ritual Coffee Roasters.
Consider cheeses at Oxbow Cheese and Wine Merchant. Local favorites are Cowgirl Creamery and Cypress Grove (try "Purple Haze"). Top your basket with Frog Hollow cherries from Oxbow Produce.
Yountville
Happiness awaits at Bouchon Bakery in Yountville, north of Napa on Highway 29.
Baguettes sold out? Pain au chocolat makes a delectable consolation prize.
Rutherford
Next up, Rutherford, the Napa Valley town where Dean & Deluca dazzles with world foods, plus picnic fixings galore.
You're also close to Rutherford Hill and Napa Cellars, wineries welcoming picnickers.
Enjoy a wine picnic with a lovely view of Napa Valley and a bottle of Rutherford Hill wine. — Photo courtesy of Rutherford Hill Winery
At Dean & Deluca's deli, pick up tasty salads and sandwiches. Try roasted veggies on rosemary bread. Or turkey, bacon and avocado on a Dutchy Crust roll straight from Yountville's Bouchon Bakery.
One step out Dean & Deluca's door inspires impromtu picnics by the vineyard. Seating requires imagination. You might map out a nearby Napa Valley park before ripping open the sandwich bag.
It's tempting to have an impromptu picnic as you step outside Dean & DeLuca. A lovely vineyard is right there. But it's bring your own seating, or get creative. — Photo courtesy of Anne Chalfant
Another Napa Valley option in Rutherford, right across Highway 29 from Dean and Deluca, is V Sattui Winery. Find panini baked fresh daily, plus cheeses, salami and pâté in the deli.
You might linger amidst aromas of barbecue grills sizzling tri-tip and salmon. It's a picnic option, complete with picnic tables, if you buy V Sattui's wine and food.
BYOPB . . . wine is available!
Rutherford Hill and Napa Cellars welcome you and your picnic basket, as long as you partake of their wines. That's a no-brainer; choices are stellar.
Rutherford Hill's lovely valley view creates an idyllic picnic spot. Reserve a table in advance (for a fee), or get lucky. Sip their signature merlot.
At Napa Cellars, picnic tables dot a leafy grove. Try Napa Cellars' Folie á Deux Sauvignon Blanc for a cool sipper. Or choose a cab by the same name.
Napa Cellars provides the tables, you bring the picnic and add a Napa Cellars wine. — Photo courtesy of Napa Cellars
Heading north on Hwy. 29 in Napa Valley, Oakville Grocery is Napa Valley's oldest picnic source, a retro rock star among those who have long visited Napa Valley. Browse the gourmet sandwiches and picnic goodies.
Sonoma Valley picnics
Head over to Sonoma Valley, a pretty 20-minute drive on Highway 12/121.
Wineries that are Great Settings
Steer your picnic to Chateau St. Jean Winery; spread your blanket on their grass. Uncork St. Jean's Fumé Blanc, or perhaps their notable Cinq Cépages Cabernet Sauvignon. Add to your feast from their charcuterie, cheeses and fresh local salads. Stroll formal Mediterranean gardens.
Hop Kiln Estate Wines in Healdsburg welcomes picnickers to enjoy a pond-side picnic with a bottle of Hop Kiln wine. Stock the basket at Big John's Market in Healdsburg. Choose from gourmet cheeses, fresh-baked breads, deli choices and even fresh sushi.
Paradise Ridge Winery in Santa Rosa claims the name "paradise" for its pretty postcard of rolling vineyards and distant hills. Picnickers who drink their wines are welcome. Award-winning wines cinch that deal.
Picnics are welcomed at Paradise Ridge, where the stunning ridgetop view is part of the feast. — Photo courtesy of Paradise Ridge Winery
Ram's Gate Winery, with its nifty, contemporary wine-tasting center, packs a tasty picnic basket for a fee; reserve ahead.
Sebastopol/The Barlow
For a park-once picnic with wine-tasting and other goodies, head to The Barlow in the town of Sebastapol.
Here you'll find a host of stores selling picnic goodies. Make it easy and get sandwiches at The Community Market; feast at their picnic tables.
Then taste wine at La Follette and cruise other treats at The Barlow, which is an an apple-processing-plant-turned-marketplace.
Pick up some wine and picnic goodies at the Community Market at The Barlow in Sebastopol. — Photo courtesy of Anne Chalfant
