About Schramsberg Vineyards
Schramsberg Vineyards is a historic Calistoga-area estate known for traditional-method sparkling wines and an extensive system of hand-dug caves. The wooded drive and hillside setting feel removed from the valley floor, while the tour connects nineteenth-century wine history to a modern sparkling-wine program. It is one of Napa Valley's clearest alternatives to a Cabernet-centered tasting day.
The cave tour explains riddling, aging, blending and other stages of sparkling-wine production before moving into a seated tasting. The Classic experience introduces several Schramsberg wines, while the reserve format adds more limited bottlings and a cheese pairing. The exact lineup changes with releases and availability.
Advance reservations are required for tours and tastings. Current prices are approximately $100 for the Classic cave experience and $150 for the reserve option. The retail center may be open during broader daytime hours, but retail access should not be confused with a walk-in cave tour. Larger groups require separate arrangements.
Schramsberg Road is narrow and the property is farther from central Napa than many Highway 29 stops. Travelers should allow extra driving time and avoid stacking the reservation too tightly with an appointment across the valley. Caves are cool, walking is part of the experience and comfortable shoes are appropriate.
Schramsberg works well as the opening appointment of a northern-valley day, for sparkling-wine enthusiasts and for visitors interested in production history. The tasting is structured and educational rather than a quick glass service stop. Wino Notion should keep the appointment requirement, cave-tour duration, reserve upgrade and retail distinction visible in the visitor details.
Jacob Schram's 1862 Diamond Mountain estate, revived by the Davies family in 1965 to become America's sparkling wine pioneer.
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Tasted by Robert Louis Stevenson,the author of Treasure Island visited Schramsberg during his 1880 Napa Valley honeymoon and wrote about the estate in The Silverado Squatters.
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Poured at a historic toast,Schramsberg's 1969 Blanc de Blancs was served at Richard Nixon's 1972 Beijing state dinner, the first American sparkling wine ever poured at such an occasion.
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Caves dug by hand in the 1880s,Chinese laborers, many veterans of the Transcontinental Railroad, carved Schramsberg's aging tunnels directly into Diamond Mountain's volcanic rock.
"Wino Notion likes that Schramsberg offers a complete change of pace from a Cabernet-heavy itinerary. The historic caves and sparkling-wine production story give visitors a reason to slow down and understand how the wines are made."
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Featured Wines
Current Releases
Wines change with each vintage
For an accurate list of current-release wines and library bottlings from Schramsberg Vineyards, please check the winery's official website or contact the tasting room directly. Calistoga producers typically rotate vintages and offerings seasonally.
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Victorian Cave Tour & Tasting
A tour through the original 1860s Chinese-carved tunnels, the same caves that Robert Louis Stevenson visited in 1880 and Jack Davies walked Nixon's Blanc de Blancs through in 1972, followed by a sparkling wine tasting.
$75
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J. Schram Prestige Experience
An extended tasting featuring J. Schram and library vintages of Blanc de Blancs, the most complete Schramsberg experience tracing the history of America's most historically significant sparkling wine.
$120
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