Just wanted to give an update on this topic and a shout out to Wayne, the owner and tour guide at Sierra Wine Experience. I stumbled across his site while researching my trip and thought it was exactly what I needed! I just gave him some general ideas of what I wanted for the day and he did all the work to make it happen.
Wayne is a local Folsomite that knows a lot about wineries in the area and personally knows many of the owners and winemakers. Rather than a day in a limo with a driver that doesn't know much about wine, he works with wineries to provide a wonderful wine tour for customers and to help promote the local wineries. For example, he does not allow drinking on the bus to eliminate one of the main things wineries hate about limo groups.
Because of things like that, many of the wineries work with him. A couple wineries setup a special tasting area away from the main tasting room for our group. The wine maker gave us a private tasting, along with some great education and insight into wine for those that wanted to hear it. Most also waived the tasting fee and limits for us (many wineries allow you to pick 5 or 6 wines to taste, while we got to taste the entire selection). We even tried a couple wines that weren't on the normal tasting menu. Some wineries also gave our group discounts normally reserved for club members or bulk purchases.
Wayne also put together a picnic at one of the wineries (Holly's Hill) that we all thought was amazing and way better than I would have done myself, which I was glad to not have to do! He even surprised us with a cake for my wife's birthday, which was totally unexpected.
Overall, it was a perfect day. My wife and guests all said it was way better than they ever expected. We plan to do this more often and explore more wineries in the area.
"Just think of how stupid the average person is, and then realize half of them are even stupider!" -- George Carlin
