Lodi Trip

[MetsFan5]

 My husband and I will be in CA in November. We’re going out the weekend prior to Thanksgiving for the Big Game in Palo Alto (go Bears) and then will make our way to the Sacramento area to have thanksgiving with the inlaws. 

 

  Some preliminary research shows Lodi would be a nice place to spend a couple days. It seems like there’s a lot of wineries, focusing on Zinfandel and good restaurants, etc. 

   Would anyone from CA recommend this as a nice stop off before going to the in laws? Any recommendations for hotels and restaurants and what to do? 

 Thanks in advance! 

[Jacksoup]

@MetsFan5  here’s a link to Lodi wineries. https://www.visitlodi.com/wineries/lodi-wine-trail-map/.  Friends of mine love Harney, I haven’t been to Lodi for quite a while.  There is a nice hotel in Lodi, Wine & Roses that I have been to, lovely grounds.  You may want to consider the Amador wine country, about 40 minutes east of Sacramento, they are red wine country.  I go there often, the foothills are more scenic than flat Lodi.  And Go Bears!

Edited August 19, 2019 by Jacksoup
Bears (log)

[MetsFan5]

@Jacksoup thanks— I will consider both locations. I just... don’t want to go right from Palo Alto to my inlaws and sit around for days. I’d rather spend a couple of days exploring any area en route. 

   My inlaws are Stanford fans, my husband played in the marching band at Cal. I’m a totally east coast girl but love experiencing the great agricultural areas of CA. On many levels. 😆

[KennethT]

I don't know anything about staying in Lodi, but there are some very good wines from there...

 

Shameless plug of a recent article written by my wife about some Lodi wines...

http://damewine.com/2019/07/what-is-success/

[Smithy]

I'll preface this by saying I'm biased against Lodi, with its hot climate and flat terrain. The Credence Clearwater Revival refrain "Oh Lord, stuck in Lodi again" keeps ringing around my head, no doubt in part because I put up with those summers when I was growing up. Keep in mind that bias when I say I am always pleasantly surprised when I find a nice Lodi wine whereas I expect to find good wines only a short distance west.

 

If you are willing to drive to the Amador area, then I'd suggest the Sonoma Valley region, which is closer. I've had delightful visits and wine tours around Santa Rosa and Healdsburg and down into the Alexander Valley. The Hotel La Rose is situated in the historic downtown area of Santa Rosa. It's been about 10 years since I last visited there, and of course things may have changed, but when I last stayed at that hotel there were good places to eat within walking distance and even more good places to eat -- and wineries to visit -- with the help of a car. The historic downtown region has a very different feel from the actual, current downtown Santa Rosa...history, rather than strip malls. If you're interested in botany, take the time to visit the Luther Burbank House and Gardens. I don't think you'll get anything to eat there, but you'll see a number of cultivars of our current food...not to mention lovely flowers.

 

In the Sonoma Valley, I recommend Sunce and Seghesio Wineries for good treatments of zinfandels, but there are dozens more good wineries in the Dry Creek Valley and along the Alexander River, where zinfandels flourish. The Sonoma Valley wineries hadn't decided on super-expensive tastings when I last visited, even though the Napa Valley wineries, in the adjacent valley, were already placing a premium on tastings.

 

Of course, if you have wonderful (or bad) surprises, we'd love to hear about them!

[mgaretz]

Oak Ridge. Great wines and great prices. 

[Margaret Pilgrim]

We pass through Lodi, going and coming, at least twice a month.    We love the Mexican food trucks and farm stands.   And its enormous Walmart Superstore.  😝   

 

But If i had several days to spend between SFO and Sacramento, I agree that the Shenandoah Valley offers a more scenic and stylish stay.    (While we frequently attend events in the Sonoma area, I find it's become very trendy and upscale with much of its charm contrived.    If you do go this route, make sure to book far in advance as lodging sells out early.)  

[MetsFan5]

The thing is, we need to stop somewhere directly within a route from Palo Alto to the Sacramento area. We went to Napa last spring and are going to Sonoma this spring. I’m not hugely focused on vineyard/ winery visits as I’d imagine that week of thanksgiving will impact visiting hours. I’m looking for a town with some solid wines/ wine tastings/ rooms and good restaurants. 

  Am I on the wrong track with Lodi? 

[Jacksoup]

You should be fine with Lodi, lots of wineries there.  Scenery is rather blah but enough wine can make it beautiful.  Or you won’t care!

[Margaret Pilgrim]

As Jacksoup suggested upthread, Wine and Roses would be a lovely stop.    And I, personally, could easily spend a few days in Lodi.   

 

Actually, I am smiling because this is exactly the kind of place DH and I visit in France.     Offbeat with a handful of interesting food and wine places.    When we get home, our friends no longer ask us where we've been because they and we realize that they'd never have heard of them.    Their loss, not ours!

 

Enjoy!

[heidih]

This is probably less than helpful but I gotta say my best trips have involved discovery. Even in a place as much discussed as New Orleans - what I found/stumbled on created the lasting memory. Have fun!

Edited September 10, 2019 by heidih (log)

[syrah girl]

There are some great wineries in Lodi!  Klinker Brick is one to check out.  Have a meal at Wine & Roses. 🍷

[MetsFan5]

Thanks everyone! I think we will book our stay at Wine and Roses and explore as we go! I will take pictures of meals and update. 
 

ETA— I reserved a kind standard room at Wine and Roses. Gorgeous rooms all with patios or balconies. Less than $300 a night, which to me, for a boutique hotel during a holiday week is a good deal. 
  Now to glance around d at the local restaurant. Apparently there’s a very good Thai restaurant nearby— but the only have 7 tables. Looking forward to having my first dinner of two there! 

Edited November 12, 2019 by MetsFan5 (log)

[Jacksoup]

@MetsFan5  how was your visit to Lodi?

[MetsFan5]

@Jacksoup thanks for asking. It was embarrassingly lazy. After Cal best Stanford the night before we stopped in a very crowded downtown Pall Alto to get onigiri from Onigilly as road food. They were  really good! 
  Wine and Roses was gorgeous. Beautiful grounds with the Lodi visitors center on site so we were able to sample and by wines. They had three birds who spoke which was neat too. Then I slept for 4 hours straight, woke up and had KFC delivered and went back to bed! 🙈 we didn’t even visit a winery. We went to a nice pub for dinner the second night but really used the time to recharge and relax and enjoy being alone and with a tv!