Sip & Shop in Downtown Calistoga
It’s easy to get wrapped up in Calistoga’s natural surroundings, but it’d be a shame to not spend some time exploring downtown Calistoga. Calistoga has lots of boutique shops and tasting rooms all within walking distance, which makes it easy to sip and stroll all afternoon.
Plan to peruse the assortment of artisanal goods for the home and garden at Blackbird, shop for antique goods and vintage posters at Rags to Riches, and check out Calistoga Pottery for their selection of handmade pottery. Also downtown is Copperfield’s Books, featuring a wide range of books from local and international authors, Flourish Chocolate, offering one-of-a-kind chocolate creations, and Monastery Books and Gifts (yes, actually located inside a Christian Monastery for women) for a selection of spiritual books, homemade goodies, olive oils, teas, and honey. You’ll also find a variety of art galleries and clothing shops around town that are worth popping into.
When you’re ready to whet your palate with some locally made wine, Calistoga’s tasting rooms offer something for everyone. Located in a vintage 1930s gas station, Tank Garage Winery charms with its hip vibe and limited-edition blends and natural wines, while nearby T-Vine Winery offers a friendly ambiance and single-vineyard wines from some of the last remaining old-vine vineyards in California. Around the corner on Lincoln Avenue, Olabisi features limited production wines from a husband-and-wife-duo.
Visit a Nearby Winery
You could easily stay in town to taste great wine, hopping from tasting room to tasting room, but it’s certainly worth jumping in the car and driving a few miles to explore some of the surrounding wineries.
Just three minutes from downtown Calistoga, Sterling Vineyards offers more than just Napa Valley wines to taste. The winery is perched atop a picturesque hillside, providing visitors with epic views while they taste. What makes this winery unique, though, is that it’s accessible by aerial gondola—and the journey to the top is as memorable as the destination itself.
Also a few minutes from town, but in the opposite direction, is Tamber Bey Vineyards. This winery is unique in that it’s located at a working equestrian facility, and every part of the wine tasting experience reflects the owners’ love of horses and wine. Tour the winemaking facility, which was once a covered riding arena, before sampling wine in the courtyard of the original barn, where you can sip wine while admiring the horses. Be sure to add a picnic lunch or savory cookie pairing to really round out the experience.
At Brian Arden, the best way to experience the great wine and hospitality of this super small, family-owned winery is to book the Chef’s Experience Tasting. You’ll not only get to tour the winery’s picturesque grounds, featuring a culinary garden, chickens, and estate vineyard, but you’ll also be treated to a seated wine and food pairing experience featuring five seasonally-inspired courses.
Another smaller, hidden-gem winery is Canard, which only recently reopened its 25-acre property to visitors. From their sustainably-grown, dry-farmed grapes, owners Rich and Carolyn Czapleski carefully produce nine single vineyard wines to showcase the complexity of their estate’s terroir. Don’t miss the Estate Zinfandel, sourced from the property’s nearly 140-year-old Zinfandel vines.
Finally, serious Cabernet fans won’t want to miss a visit to Larkmead Vineyards, one of the oldest family-owned wineries in Napa Valley. This tranquil winery offers a personalized tasting experience tailored to each group’s preferences, along with an idyllic Wine Country setting looking out at the vines.
Savor Gourmet Fare
Whether you’re hungry for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, Calistoga’s restaurants and cafés offer a perfect mix of casual ambiance and good food.
For gourmet coffee and a scrumptious pastry or breakfast sandwich, stop by Sam’s General Store, located in the original cottage of Calistoga’s legendary founder, Samuel Brannan. Or, grab a selection of goods to curate your own picnic lunch later in the day. The long-standing Cafe Sarafornia is another top spot for the breakfast/lunch crowd, where a menu of comforting classics is offered all day from this quaint, casual spot. While the southwestern-inspired breakfast and lunch offerings at House of Better are a delight, it’s worth dining here for the unique homemade pies alone. Green chili apple pie, anyone?
One of the most popular restaurants in town for dinner is Evangeline, a French bistro “with a Creole soul” in downtown Calistoga. The covered outdoor patio makes for a lovely setting to enjoy the restaurant’s French bistro classics and creole-inspired dishes. Down the road Sam’s Social Club is another worthy dining choice, where California focused-cuisine highlights fresh, local ingredients in a playful, creative way.
Go Rogue Sampling Beer
We know, we know… you probably didn’t come to Napa Valley to try beer. But the Calistoga Inn, Restaurant & Brewery is a great pit-stop for a brewski. Its Napa Valley Brewing Company was actually the first brewery that opened up post-Prohibition. Today, the brewery puts as much love and care into making their Pacific Pale Ale and Blitzen IPA as if they were fine Cabernets. Sit in their Beer Garden—one of the best outdoor spaces in UpValley—and don’t forget to order up some grub from the Calistoga Inn Restaurant.