This place looks cool!

Wine Country Gets Downtown Address

Eight Northern California wineries open tasting room at The Press Club.

This is a must do on my next trip up to S.F.

Thanks for posting the link, Shannon!

I'm sticking close to home next week for a "stay-cation," and I think it will be the perfect time for a visit to The Press Club!
All are new-to-me wineries.

Nice article - thanks.

Have any ST'ers tried this place? I have guests coming in 2 weeks who want to "do wine tasting" and also will want to see San Francisco.

Alternatively, any recommendations for wine tasting within an hour or so of Menlo Park? This group is definitely budget conscious about wine purchases!

There are many wineries around Santa Cruz. Would that be close enough? It is the opposite direction of SF. Here is the Santa Cruz Winery Association. It also covers wineries that are around Los Gatos. If you are interested in going as far as Santa Cruz, Bonny Doon Vineyard is a fun place to visit and they have a wide variety of prices. I have not been to very many but I bet some of our other California members might have a couple of suggestions.

A 'different' suggestion might be to go to one or two of the wineries on the East Bay. Rosenblum Cellars has a tasting room in Alameda. JC Cellars has a tasting room near by in Oakland. Dashe Winery is next to JC. These tasting rooms are in industrial areas - not the typical tasting but all of the three wineries are very good.

Joan,

Marta beat me to the recommendation for the wineries in the Los Gatos area; this should not be very far for you. If your guests are also interested in a day trip to the lovely beaches of Santa Cruz for a seafood lunch, I would also suggest stopping by Bonny Doon. They have a beautiful new tasting room not far from downtown and while some of their wines are pricey, they do have a few less expensive ones.

If it is budget you are after (good wines too) you could also check out Gugliemo in Morgan Hill and J. Lohr in San Jose. They are from the Old School.. history and quality for a decent price.

Joan,
I walked by the Press Club during last year's staycation, but didn't have time to go inside. I took a picture of the outside, though!

The J. Lohr tasting room in San Jose has gotten high marks from friends who've been there.

There's a wine tasting room in San Carlos http://www.domenicowines.com - I tasted some of their wines at the Scotts Valley Art & Wine festival last year - they're pretty good. It looks like they're priced in the $20+ range.

In Santa Cruz, Marta's recommendation for Bonny Doon is good. Note that the tasting room has moved to the north end of Santa Cruz; there are three (or more) other winery tasting rooms in the same location on Ingalls Street. I'd also recommend Bargetto Winery and Soquel Vineyards (run by the same family) in Soquel. The views from Soquel Vineyards are beautiful, and it's a pretty drive!

If you want to go to one spot in Santa Cruz and taste a variety of Santa Cruz Mountain appellation wines, visit my buddy J-P at the http://vinocruz.com tasting room. It's downtown in the Pacific Garden Mall.

**edited to add: I see several of us posted the same recs at the same time

Super! Why am I not surprised that winetasting brings on a quick, energetic response? Looks like we have many good choices. Grazie!

My son (who lives in Half Moon Bay but works in Palo Alto) is a member of the wine club at Thomas Fogarty in Woodside. I don't think their wines are particularly bargain-priced, but it is a stunningly beautiful spot to go for wine tasting.

- Roz

Joan,
Now that Colleen has mentioned them (Bargetto and Soquel Vineyards), I will also put in a plug. My younger daughter works for Bargetto, right now in the Wine Club but transitioning to the lab (she wants to learn winemaking), and her boyfriend works part-time for Bonny Doon. If you have a plan to actually visit either one, let me know, and if it is a weekday (for Bargetto), I can see if Rachel could take you and your friends on a tour, or at least hook you up with someone who could. I believe the bf is only at Bonny Doon on weekends.

The wines at Soquel are pricey, but the views are stunning and well worth the drive for the tasting alone.

Yep, lots of good wine advice always comes from this crowd.

Interesting! A local friend was telling me just last weekend about going to Barghetto and joining their club. She was extolling their premium (estate? reserve?) chardonnay.

I will place this array of choices before said guests. So many variables: beauty of the drive, ambiance for tasting, distance, and, oh yes, the wines themselves. Thanks all!

The Bargetto's are an Italian family, originally from Piemonte, who have been making wine in Santa Cruz for a few generations. FYI, it was my first 'winery' since I attended UCSC in the early '70's; David and I spent many a Friday afternoon in my senior year tasting at their oak bar, so we have seen all the changes over the years. Who knew the daughter would end up working there?

They do make some nice wines, some better than others. Our son served their wines at his wedding a few weeks back (sister gets a very nice employee discount) and we served a Pinot Grigio at the rehearsal dinner. The other wine we served was from Bonny Doon, so you see our particular prejudices.

Have fun,

We decided on Thomas Fogarty and were very pleased. The nearby location and interesting drive helped tip the scales.

On a summer Wednesday afternoon they did not offer their usual longer list of wines, but to compensate they presented 5 wines for tasting at no charge, 2 white and 3 red, all from their mid to low price range. We came home with several bottles to enjoy. Their Barbiolo seemed especially nice to me for a light red.

Thanks for all the hints. I really would like to do the Bonny Doon/Bargetto combo. Perhaps with the next set of houseguests...

We have enjoyed wine tasting at Fogarty; I am glad it worked out well for you and your guests.

Honestly, we have talked about doing a Santa Cruz GTG, so maybe once San Diego is over, we can figure out something in that area, for wine tasting, fish dinners, etc. It really would be a nice place to spend a long weekend with ST friends.

The next set of houseguests with an interest in wineries is rolling in this weekend. I think the most likely day is Sunday, depending on weather and all the other factors. I'm hoping the Bonny Doon/Barghetto combo works this time.

Nice to have this thread all safely stashed here to review.

I have heard this place is great. Shame on me, I haven't been there! It is only a few minutes from my workplace.

Thanks for putting it on my radar. If and when I go, I'll report back.

I'm going to San Francisco on Memorial day weekend. I got a unbelievable deal on Priceline
for 60 dollars/night! I am bookmarking this place RR