wine tasting without breaking the bank...

1krazykitty

My bff and I are taking our boys wine tasting in a couple weeks, we have had this plan for a while...then she lost her job =( we still want to go and plan on picnicing, but can we wine taste without going broke?

torylynn1

Yes-check out Amador county. You should be able to see which wineries don't have a tasting fee. Have fun!

rachie17

I have been meaning to ask about this as well. I don't want to hijack your post but my bff and I want to go with our boys as well but I have no idea how it works. Do you just show up at wineries during open hours or can you sign up for tours at different places? I'm clueless.

PinkHighlighter

Yes, you can totally go wine tasting without breaking the bank!  Lots of wineries have no tasting fee.  You just have to do a bit of research ahead of time.

Most wineries in Napa have tasting fees, so I wouldn't recommend looking there.  But a number of Sonoma wineries don't.  Check the wineries' websites and see what their tasting fees are and if they require an appointment.  Also, sometimes there are coupons online or in those visitor's guides (free tastings or 2-for-1).

If it's their first time wine tasting, taking a tour can be fun, too.  The tours can really vary, so it's worth reading descriptions and reviews online.  I'm not sure if tours are ever free, but I'm sure the price can really vary. 

I'd recommend also just going to bing.com and typing in "free wine tasting in sonoma" or "wine tasting coupons sonoma".

1krazykitty

rachie17:

I have been meaning to ask about this as well. I don't want to hijack your post but my bff and I want to go with our boys as well but I have no idea how it works. Do you just show up at wineries during open hours or can you sign up for tours at different places? I'm clueless.

hijack away! The more the info the better

Roni.Cedra

I would suggest going to the Russian River/Dry Creek area and north. They have very low tasting fees (if any) that are waived if you buy a bottle. Also, they let you share your tasting, so if you and your DH share the wine, you only have to pay for one tasting. 

kala1682

Ditto Russian River/Dry Creek area or Livermore. 

debdebdol

It always helps when you know someone in the industry.  My aunt works at a winery in Santa Rosa.  When we go wine tasting she just drops off her business card and we get to taste for free.  In the past 7 years we have never paid for a tasting except for the bubble room at J but that was because we had a meal and wine pairing.

hannikan

I also recommend Sonoma over Napa. I don't think we ever paid a tasting fee and we just went to random places in Sonoma. This was years ago now. My understanding is that Napa is incredibly overpriced from the tasting to hotels. Have fun wherever you go!