Welcome to the Swirl, Sniff, Sip, Spit Winery Resource! This community resource is the result of recommendations made by a variety of wine aficionados. It is intended to provide people in search of good wine tasting experiences with recommendations on various wineries and tasting rooms around the world. Entries are made by going to the Entry Page. The results shown can be sorted in various ways by using the “sort by” links below. You can also search by key words using the filter to select the entries of interest to you. We welcome your entries and your feedback. Of course, the opinions expressed are those of the people making the recommendations. Enjoy!
We also have our own list of wineries at our Wineries page.
Posted by Dave O‘Brien on 18 Feb 2009
Its the "friendlist" winery in Napa. Tasting is complimentary. Yes it is still free and if not too crowded you can spend hours just talking wine. The best feature of the tasting is that the entry room is for tasting their sparkling wines. Brut, Blanc de Noir, Rouge. If your tastes are to the fruity sweeter wine the rouge will be a treat. The middle room is for the whites and the back room is where my favorites are--the reds. They have small lot Zins, Cabs and their rising star is their Sangiovese. I purchased a case of the cab and Sangio. No regrets! Tasted as good at home as in the tasting room.
The tasting rooms have a number of Disney memorabilia, as Rich Frank is the past president of Walt Disney Studios. You will enjoy!
This winery is located in Calistoga, CA, USA
Posted by David J. Whelan on 03 Feb 2009
Any visit to the Napa/Sonoma area demands a stop at Clos Pegase. Jan and Mitsuko have created a beautiful world that melds wine, food, art, culture, and fun. From the moment you drive up to Clos Pegase, you know something is different. The winery is architecturally stunning, blending into the hillside, enhanced by whimsical sculpture. Inside, the themes of art and wine continue. Sculpture is joined by paintings of the Pegasus, new versions of which adorn their special Pegase Circle releases every year. Wine dinners, tastings, and cruises with the Schrems are part of the annual cycle at Clos Pegase. And what about the wine? Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon are grown and bottled at this estate winery. I can't remember ever having a bad bottle. Just writing this makes me want to hop in the car and drive up from Los Angeles! Perhaps we will cross paths there....
This winery is located in Calistoga, CA, USA
Posted by Diana on 05 Feb 2009
It's a really nice small vineyard near the Shenandoah's. While vacationing in the Shenandoahs, we visited a small winery. It has a raspberry dessert wine. When you do your tasting, they give you chocolate, and have you put it in your mouth and then swirl the wine with it.
Delicious.
This winery is located in Edinburg, VA, USA
Posted by Diana on 14 Jun 2009
It's not a vineyard, but a way to experience Virginia wines. The park invites different vineyards (one at a time) to have a wine tasting at either Skyland or Big Meadiows Lodge. There is a small gathering of people, wine, cheese and crackers. The servers refresh your glasses throughout while the vineyard representative pours your wine and describes it for you. Barboursville Vineyard was there when I went. While I can't tell you about my visit to the vineyard or winery, I can tell you that the wines were very good and the presenter did a wonderful job. My husband and I enjoyed this visit to the park for the wine tasting, for a vineyard that we knew we wouldn't have time to visit because it was further than we were going to travel for a short visit. I recommend visiting SNP for the wine tasting if you are in the area.
This winery is located in Luray, VA, USA
Posted by Diana Hayes on 09 Feb 2009
This is a small micro winery up in the mountains of New York. According to their website they are the highest elevation vineyard in the Northeast USA. I enjoyed their wine when we visited the town of Windham. They have a day in the fall when they invite the locals to come and help pick grapes. You pick the grapes, have a sumptious feast for lunch and then get to use certificates to pick out wine to bring home. I found it while visiting my sister, introduced her to their wines and she went for the picking. She then picked out the wine for the family Christmas dinner.
My sister brought the rose and chardonnay for dinner, but the maple syrup dessert wine is one of my favorites to pour over my ice cream.
This winery is located in Windham, NY, USA
Posted by Diana Hayes on 23 Feb 2009
Put in Bay is a party town on South Bass Island in Lake Erie. On the back of the Island - or is it the middle, is where the winery is located. You get around the island by renting a golf cart.
Their wine is pretty good. My favorite, since I like sweet wine is the white catabwa - that come from the white catabwa grapes grown on the island. They also have ice wines too.
The winery will even deliver the wine to the ferry for you so that you don't have to lug it around on the golf cart.
This winery is located in Put-in-Bay , OH, USA
Posted by DK on 05 Feb 2009
Small winery, kind of tucked away in the hills of the East Bay, CA. But really a gem of a place, especially in the summer. The 2003 cab is a winner in my book - very easy to drink, as my wife can attest! I like to bring the whole family here, and let my kids run around and enjoy the place, while my wife and I sample the wines. Also try the Riesling.
This winery is located in Castro Valley, CA, USA
Posted by Dottie on 31 May 2009
Twomey Cellars has two tasting rooms, one in Calistoga and one in Healdsburg. I've only been to the one in Healdsburg. It is absolutely stunning. The tasting room is spacious and modern. You stand at the tasting bar and look out through a huge bay window onto the vineyards and parts of the Russian River Valley. The staff is friendly and the wines are tremendous. I especially love their Pinot Noirs. Surrounded by the amazing view, the stunning tasting room and nice people, enjoying some fantastic wine. What could be better than that?
This winery is located in Healdsburg, CA, USA
Posted by Edward Lo on 09 Feb 2009
Very interesting winery with strong Italian roots, producing a great tasting Nebbiolo and Super Tuscan. Had a delicious lunch as part of the GrapeLine tour. They have an outdoor area that can be setup for small weddings and their cask room can accommodate a small reception. The guide on our winery tour told us that on certain days, they will let you taste the wine straight from the fermenting vats. The wine club gives some decent discounts, especially if you buy in quantity.
This winery is located in Temecula, CA, USA
Posted by Erica on 12 Sep 2008
Bedell Cellars is one of the oldest vineyards on Long Island's North Fork, producing truly wonderful original blends on their gorgeous grounds in Cutchogue. I treated myself and my partner and parents to a VIP tour of the vineyard and winery for my birthday this year, and couldn't have been more pleased with the experience.
Our guide, Matt, was friendly, courteous, and knowledgeable, and the tour and tasting was shockingly generous. We were given a glass of their Taste White to enjoy during the tour itself, which led us down among the vines themselves, then into the barrel rooms and bottling room, and lasted approximately an hour. Matt gave a great overview of the wine-making process at Bedell, and was very good-natured about answering our sometimes-stupid questions. Then we were led into the owner's private garden for an incredible wine and cheese tasting - 6 different wines and what must have been over a dozen kinds of cheese plus accompaniments over the course of about an hour and a half, all of them delicious. And at the end of the day we were given an extra discount on our inevitable wine purchases, as well as a percentage break on part of the cost of the tour itself, supposedly due to "the heat in the garden" that day. Perhaps they were only being generous, or perhaps this is their standard procedure to get people too come back, but either way it worked - I am now a dedicated customer of Bedell and will absolutely be going back.
One word of caution - avoid the North Fork during harvest season if you can (early fall) and think twice about visiting on summer Saturdays when the weather is perfect, because rest assured that many, many people will have had the same idea you did and the wineries will be crowded. It can get a little wild out there when there's too many people around.
I've written a more thorough review of our visit to Bedell in my blog, "Table for Two?" - you can read it at http://tabletwoblog.blogspot.com/2008/08/we-3-wine.html
This winery is located in Cutchogue, NY, USA
Posted by Erin Leary on 05 Feb 2009
A relatively new winery, they are putting out some very impressive wines. The 2006 Zinfandel in particular is a stand out - very full flavor, lots of fruitiness and packed with other treats for the senses. I enjoyed this wine with hors d'oeuvres, as a part of a pairing at a chef's table dinner, and at home by itself. It is a wine that really delivers.
This winery is located in Fair Play, CA, USA
Posted by Esmeralda on 03 May 2009
The winery is dog friendly, with a picnic area and gardens. They practice sustainable farming and are located on a beautiful piece of property. Napa Valley is just gorgeous and easily accessible from San Francisco. The staff here was very friendly and took the time to introduce us to their wines. It was fun to sample the wines and then be able to sit outside in the picnic area and enjoy a picnic on a beautiful summer day.
This winery is located in St. Helena, CA, USA
Posted by Esping on 14 Sep 2008
Cechetto »
The Piave district is one of the lesser known DOC's in Italy. And for a good reason too. In this zone in eastern Veneto a lot of wine is produced. Not bad but mostly it's unremarkable. The Piave district is right in the middle between the famous red-wine district of Valpolicella and Italys best white wine region, Friuli. But the Piave district has one great asset, the Raboso grape. And if you are looking for good Raboso, and if you haven't tried this great variety you definately should, look no further.
Cechetto started the Raboso revival a couple of decades ago when the grape was on the verge of extinction and is now leading the campaign for giving Raboso di Piave DOCG-status. So if you visit Cechetto winery you will meet one dedicated winemaker with a very strong vision.
Raboso is a tough a grape with a lot of character. In the hands of a winemaker who doesn't know how to handle it you will get a wine with a volatile acidity, very rough tannins and not very much else. Cechettos wines are full of berry-fruits and cherries with hints of violets and tobacco. It's full bodied with food-friendly acidity and a long nice finish. Cechetto also produces Gelsaia which is made from semi-dried grapes. A dry wine but with more of everything compared to the normal bottling. There is also a passito, a sweet wine made from Raboso that I have yet to try.
You will recieve a warm welcome at Cechetto and meet a very proud and dedicated winemaker. There are also a couple OK whites and a very interesting and promising Merlot to try.
This winery is located in Tezze di Piave, Veneto, Italy
Posted by Gerry Gollwitzer on 24 Feb 2009
Great Mardi Gras celebration. $15 included great gumbo, dessert, live entertainment, and tasting a full flight of their fine wines.
This winery is located in Mocksville, NC, USA
Posted by Gerry Gollwitzer on 17 Mar 2009
This vineyard is in the Yadkin Valley of North Carolina. It is a beautiful place. They have events with great food, entertainment, and, of course, great wines. Don't miss their Cabernet Franc.
We had a wonderful experience at our last tasting there.
This winery is located in Dobson, NC, USA
Posted by Gerry Gollwitzer on 21 Mar 2009
A large variety of wines to taste included with the admission to the Biltmore Estate. They often have entertainment. Visiting the Bilmore Estates is always a great time.
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This winery is located in Asheville, NC, USA
Posted by Gerry Gollwitzer on 31 Mar 2009
A visit to this small vineyard is like visiting the wine makers in their home. The production is in their lower level. The Sangiovese, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon were wonderful.
This winery is located in Kings Creek, NC, USA
Posted by Gregg on 13 Apr 2009
This is a small boutique winery located in the Dry Creek Valley area of Healdsburg. It's a spectacular setting to enjoy a bottle of their award-winning chardonnay with a sandwich from the local General Store (they have picnic tables out back with a view of their vineyards and the valley). Kudos to the staff for being very knowledgeable, friendly and best of all, not pushy! All in all, a great winery experience that we plan on returning to when we're in the area again.
This winery is located in Healdsburg, CA, USA
Posted by Jeffry Gordon on 21 Feb 2009
The design and access of the facilities at WVV are, to say the least, stellar. The vantage point from which you view the vineyards, and the proximity to the wine cellar brings the experience of tasting their wines to every sense you can imagine.
The 'tenders' are knowlegable and emblematic of the persona that is Oregon and this region of the wine world.
My tasting experience provided a unique opportunity to meet with Jim Bernau, the owner and CEO of WVV. His passions and drive to bring green and a distinctive communal business model to his vineyard and beloved Pinot are present in every word.
Next, Forrest Klaffke—the wine maker. Hard to find words to describe him—I would ask you to seek out his 2005 Cuvee which will give you pause as well. A master vintner, and gracious beautiful man. Our walk through the cellar was incredible—no more excited thief have I met… my favorite moment was the 'special' barrel of one of his 'babies'—a small cluster experiment that could be a Nuvo rage if ever they decided to jump in that direction.
All of this, and the vineyard access is thirty seconds off of I-5—the main north south freeway—just south of Salem…
If ever you happen through the cellar doors of this welcoming, hard to rival vineyard experience—hug a pinot for me!
Cheers!
This winery is located in Turner, OR, USA
Posted by Jennifer Dong on 28 Feb 2009
My friend actually picked. I had only recently begun drinking wine and she wanted to broaden my experiences so she took me here one day. The wine was amazing.
This winery is located in Riverhead, New York, USA
