Napa Valley is a Mecca for many American wine drinkers. It's a must-visit. Napa tasting rooms were the first, as far as I know, to introduce tasting fees back in the 1980s. Once the Great Recession ended about a dozen years ago, there was a pretty good hike in bottle prices and tasting fees. With the Pandemic, there was another significant increase along with seated tastings by reservation.
Trip Advisor named Napa as America's most expensive tourist destination. Recently the Wall Street Journal published an article Who Can Afford Napa Now? where the author said she can't help feeling that the valley's main crop is actually cash.
Much of Napa's cabernet is over $100 a bottle now. The ridiculous part might be the tasting fees charged by many of the trendy spots. Fifty bucks is almost cheap. Heitz Cellars offers what must be a lovely in the vineyard tasting and food pairing for $1,000. Per person. But fear not, their basic tasting is only $125. Many of these wineries do not charge for the tasting if you buy a certain amount of wine, often a $150 purchase will waive one tasting fee. Fees and wine prices do vary considerably, so check around to find places in your budget.
Then there's the vetting. That's right, there are at least a few fancy spots that won't just automatically let you come in. Per some folks on a Facebook Napa wine group, they have been contacted by wineries and asked what other wineries they're visiting and what lodging they're using. Apparently these wineries want to keep out the riff-raff. It's like the high rollers' room in the casino.
Per an article in the Napa Register, the average price for a hotel room in Napa County was $266 in March 2021. In March 2022 it was $399.
As long as people keep coming, they'll keep doing it. Note that it's not every winery in Napa being outrageous. There are still people keeping it reasonable. You just have to look.
Next: Napa on a budget.
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