Hall Winery

St. Helena, CA

The sign on the road outside Hall Winery says Great Cabs and that really is the case.  We have been visiting Hall since we became Wine Club members shortly after they opened their tasting room 6-7 years ago.  On top of having great wine, whenever we stop by, we have always been treated like we really were part of an exclusive club.  Any winery thinking about opening a tasting room should make a couple of visits to Hall to see how customers should be treated.  

Hall Winery is owned by Craig and Kathryn Hall.  Both have had varied and illustrious careers; Craig, mainly in the Finance arena while Kathryn’s family has been in the wine/grape business since the early 70’s.  Craig was once part owner of the Dallas Cowboys while Kathryn served as the United States Ambassador to Austria in the late 90’s to 2001.  In addition to the Hall St. Helena winery facility, the Hall’s has a second facility in Rutherford very close to Auberge du Soleil. 

The Hall’s tasting room is in a small stand alone building and the tasting takes place either at stand-up tables or the bar inside or outside under trees as various table and chair configurations.  The Hall’s are art collectors and art objects are found throughout the property.

Tastings start at $15 and more can be spent which will yield you some additional Cabernet tastes.  Although I counted nine different Cabernet’s on the tasting list, the varieties also include Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Syrah and Malbec.  We always start with the crisp Napa Valley Sauv Blanc and then quickly get into the Cabs.  The Kathryn Hall 2008 Cabernet was named the #2 Wine in the World for 2011 in Wine Spectator.  Some of the wines are not inexpensive.  Our favorite is the Jack’s Masterpiece Cabernet that checks in just above $100 (we get one bottle a year).  Their standard Napa Valley Cabernet is available at my Costco for under $40.  The last time we were in the tasting room they were pairing the Cabernet’s with three different chocolates as a Mother's Day treat. 

Since the tasting room does see some pretty heavy traffic at time, there are quite a few staff members (hosts). For the higher-end experience but still without any stuffiness, inquire about visiting the Rutherford facility.

What we like- Everything.  One of our favorite Napa wineries

What we bought- We have a Hall section in our wine closet.

Vitals-

401 St. Helena Highway South
St. Helena, CA 94574
(707) 967-2626

www.hallwines.com