Girard Tasting Room in Yountville, CA
6795 Washington St, Yountville, CA 94599
Website: http://www.girardwinery.com/
Girard is a fun tasting room in downtown Yountville. It is literally in the center of town surrounded by homes and a gas station. My husband and I visited this tasting room at the end of the day. I had checked in with my in-laws at home to make sure the kids were doing ok. I was feeling happy after a day of tastings. This is a hangout type of place with a hip vibe. It used to be an art gallery converted to a tasting room.
Girard Tasting Room
This winery started in 1975 with a father-son team. It is currently owned by partners Pat Roney and Vintage Wine Estates, the same group that now owns Clos Pegase and Cosentino Wineries in Napa, as well as Windsor Vineyards, Sonoma Coast Vineyards, Kunde, Viansa, and Cartlidge & Browne Winery. The exterior of the tasting room is a modest building with dark wood paneling. There is a patio in front next to the street shaded by trees. The tasting room has dark wood plank floors, a couple of high tops for people to gather around, and a bar made of weathered wood. It is not very large inside. There’s enough space for about four people to stand at the bar. This tasting room’s focus is less on having guests huddled around the bar and more on getting people to hang out at one of the tables inside or out, or just stand around with friends sipping wine away from the bar.
The inside tasting room was busy when I visited, so we went outside to one of the tables on the patio. One of the woman servers brought the wines out to us and explained each one. She was very amiable. My husband and I sampled six wines that included a Viognier, Old Vine Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and their red blend Artistry. One of my personal favorites was the 2013 Old Vine Zinfandel made from over 100-year-old vines mostly from Calistoga. It was jammy and chocolatey. I also really liked the 2012 Artistry Bordeaux blend with rich black fruit and well balanced tannins, as well as the 2012 Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon that was so big and rich that it should be paired with a dish like short ribs. This winery requires advance reservations. It is easy to do online. They are open until 7 p.m. with the last reservation starting at 6 p.m. It was a nice way to wrap up the day.
The outdoor patio at Girard Tasting Room