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Open 10:30-5:30, Mon-Sat; 10:30-4:30 on Sunday
Appt required? No
Last barlinwine.com visit: 2013
Directions
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Tasting:
An unplanned visit to the Hope & Grace tasting room found it's way onto our schedule during a recent trip to Napa Valley. After breezing through our planned afternoon, we found ourselves with about an hour to kill before an appointment at Bell Winery. While intending to pass the time window shopping in Yountville, I happened upon a window that especially interested me -- a tasting room window! My generous wife reluctantly allowed me to "shop" inside, but neither of us imagined that it would be our best new find of the trip.
The Hope & Grace tasting room is a small space situated in the Edward James Courtyard on Washington Street in the quaint town of Yountville. Winemaker Charles Hendricks is well known in Napa Valley, with stints at Viader, Paoletti, and Regusci, among others. But along the way he decided to open up his own winery, named (as so many wineries seem to be) after his daughters. He currently continues to assist some wineries in a consulting role, but he is focusing his attention now on Hope & Grace.
The tasting room is interesting. Half mini art gallery, half tasting bar, the room seems to be slightly confused with its identity. But the staff is friendly, every wine is fair game, Romeo the dog is awesome, and the wines are excellent. We sampled everything that Hope & Grace produces, including the Charles Hendricks Reserve Cab, and there wasn't a bad wine in the bunch. Hope and Grace makes a Chardonnay, 2 Pinot Noirs, an outstanding Malbec, a Napa Valley Cabernet, and the aforementioned Reserve Cabernet.
The tasting experience was straightforward and enjoyable (and free). We were able to taste both the 2006 and the 2007 Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir, the excellent Malbec, and the 2 outstanding Cabs. Overall, the only wine that I don't remember with "taste lust" is the Chardonnay, but I think it's likely because the reds were just so good.
There's nothing particularly fancy about the tasting room or location (although the art does make it interesting) -- this stop is all about the wine. While Hope & Grace wines ran on the pricey side (the reds start at $45 and go up from there), I felt the quality justified the price tag.
Highly recommended stop to sample some wines you may otherwise not have encountered.
An unplanned visit to the Hope & Grace tasting room found it's way onto our schedule during a recent trip to Napa Valley. After breezing through our planned afternoon, we found ourselves with about an hour to kill before an appointment at Bell Winery. While intending to pass the time window shopping in Yountville, I happened upon a window that especially interested me -- a tasting room window! My generous wife reluctantly allowed me to "shop" inside, but neither of us imagined that it would be our best new find of the trip.
The Hope & Grace tasting room is a small space situated in the Edward James Courtyard on Washington Street in the quaint town of Yountville. Winemaker Charles Hendricks is well known in Napa Valley, with stints at Viader, Paoletti, and Regusci, among others. But along the way he decided to open up his own winery, named (as so many wineries seem to be) after his daughters. He currently continues to assist some wineries in a consulting role, but he is focusing his attention now on Hope & Grace.
The tasting experience was straightforward and enjoyable (and free). We were able to taste both the 2006 and the 2007 Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir, the excellent Malbec, and the 2 outstanding Cabs. Overall, the only wine that I don't remember with "taste lust" is the Chardonnay, but I think it's likely because the reds were just so good.
There's nothing particularly fancy about the tasting room or location (although the art does make it interesting) -- this stop is all about the wine. While Hope & Grace wines ran on the pricey side (the reds start at $45 and go up from there), I felt the quality justified the price tag.
Highly recommended stop to sample some wines you may otherwise not have encountered.
Recommended wine: The Santa Lucia Pinot was outstanding (I preferred the 2007 to the 2006, but only slightly), the Malbec is one of the best I've had from California, and the Cabernet was very good. The Hendricks was excellent, but the price tag (over $100, I believe) probably wasn't justified.
Ratings (out of 5):
 WINE | 5.00 |  TASTING ROOM | 4.50 |
 ATMOSPHERE | 5.00 |  VALUE | 4.25 |
 OVERALL | 4.69 | ||
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Ladera Winery