Uber had something called Uber wine last time we were in Paso Robles. The driver stays with you and drives you around to different wineries, and you pay for the distance and time once you ate done. Not sure how much it costs, but I’m assuming it’s cheaper than a limo.
Wanted to ping this. I’m hitting two wineries and lunch, and the idea of forking over between $550 and $700 for a car service from 9:45 to 4:45 at the latest seems like utter insanity. I’m looking at $350 or so for a designated driver service as well. Anyone have any updates on availability of Uber/Lyft? Wineries are along 29, but appointments and with lunch thrown in.
Any news here?
You can try it at different times of the day, just put in the location you will want to be picked up, and see the cost and how many cars are around. I just did it with Yountville, there were a couple of cars available, $15 to Napa. I would think that if you plan ahead, it shouldn’t be much problem to get a ride, and come out far ahead of a dedicated driver for the day. If worse comes to worse, I’ll do it for $200 
So I ended up hiring a car for the day, and don’t think it was really necessary (plus the driver was an idiot and got lost a couple times, but that’s another story for another day). I did check my phone fairly regularly and always saw lots of uber/lyft drivers close by my locations, though my service was spotty at times. Keep in mind though that this was on the Saturday after July 4, which I expect was a super busy time in the valley. So, if I had to do it over again in the same circumstances, I likely would have just done uber/lyft. We also met some other people at our tastings that did just that and they said everything was fine.
I will say though that the prices you quoted above for car service seem very, very high. Our driver was $55/hour, and we were driven around in a Chevy Suburban. I saw some DD services and they were like half that price, so I expect you can get a much better price for a driver than what you’ve been quoted.
Can I book you now? I’ll even spot you some pastries from Bouchon Bakery!
There are always ubers available all over the valley. only problem is off the beaten path places. Difficult to gett cell service in Parts of Howell Mtn, Mt. veeder, spring mtn, Diamond mtn, Soda Canyon rd, Atlas peak, Pritchard hill etc etc. Will work great if you plan on going to wineries mostly on the valley floor.
Then again you could always spit and drive.
There are a number of reasonable drivers available. You can hire somebody to drive your car, which is cheaper than a Limo, but more expensive that Uber/Lyft, BUT, no wait, no cell phone hassles and they know their way around the valley.
I visit quite often and I’ve found this approach to work best
While I appreciate the sentiment, I’m going to be out there having a fun time with my wife for our anniversary, not preparing an article for The Wine Spectator, and plan to swallow some wine while I’m at it. Probably not all of the wine, but enough that I would like to plan for the safety of my lovely wife and me once we’ve got a little buzz working.
John, spitting is not a bad thing, even if you’re not driving. As many wines as you’ll taste, even with spitting, you’ll absorb a ton of alcohol. You (and particularly your wife) will enjoy the entire day, and dinner, a lot more. Don’t be shy at all about spitting, it’s actually the sign of someone with experience tasting lots of wines. ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
I love that, through active board participation, I’ve gained additional dads.
John, also don’t forget to call us when you arrive, dear.
Deal with it 
A text will be good enough.
You’re such a hip dad.