The Silver Service was founded in 2009 by Steve Thomasson, who decided it was time for a change after running his excavating business for 30 years. A California native like his parents, Steve spent a few years growing up in Texas but has called Sonoma County his home since 1965. All the experience working around and on Sonoma County’s back roads, ranches and wineries, combined with his love for fine cars, driving the open road, meeting new people and his pride in Sonoma County, come together with The Silver Service.
With a desire to offer something unique and high-end but casual, Steve began researching the chauffeur business. The goal was to establish a luxury transportation service with a “no jacket required” friendliness. The drivers, the service they provide, and the vehicles should all compliment the Sonoma County lifestyle. Since 2009, Steve has been behind the wheel both literally and figuratively, driving visitors and locals alike to the best restaurants, wineries, events and scenic attractions.
Steve, his wife, their three grown children and six grandchildren, all live in West Sonoma County, which keeps Steve plenty busy when he isn’t showing off Sonoma County’s best.
Our Beautiful, late model S-class Mercedes-Benz carries 1 to 4 passengers for a more intimate experience. After much research, we believe this high performance flagship model of this famous marques, is one of the safest and most comfortable sedans on the road today. After your ride, we hope you’ll agree and see that the S-Class is the ultimate in luxury class.
For groups of up to 11 passengers, we can dispatch our beautiful Mercedes-Benz Sprinter. We chose the Sprinter because of its safe comfortable ride, large viewing windows, quiet efficient operation, extra headroom and its large sliding door for easy entry and exiting. The Sprinter is the best vehicle for large groups when discovering what the wine county has to offer.
Nothing compliments the Sonoma County lifestyle like a Land Rover. With luxurious seating for 7 and rugged off-road Capabilities, this rig is just as happy with a night on the town as it is rumpling up a steep vineyard row. A powerful jaguar V-8 engine, full air suspension and stadium seating makes the Land Rover the perfect vehicle for your wine country adventure.
Additionally, all our vehicles are professionally and impeccably maintained at all times and were chosen for The Silver Service because we believe they are the best the industry has to offer. All of The Silver Service vehicles are (you guessed it) “silver”, not the usual black. We believe silver is more discreet. Silver is more elegant. Our vehicles stay cooler on hot days even when parked in the sun and they look better after a long day of touring and tasting at some of our best kept secret spots, which are often at the end of a gravel road.
The Silver Service offers silver luxury tours. These are tasting experiences chosen based on overwhelming positive feedback from our guests and from our local expertise. A silver tour stop includes a unique setting with breathtaking views, décor ranging from fun to absolutely chic, incredible wines from some of California’s best wineries, and great stories told by the people who are passionate about their wines. Scroll below for a look at four Sonoma and Napa wine country silver tours.
Napa Valley is a worldwide destination known for its beauty and fine wines but with traffic, buses of tourists and long lines, the tasting room experience is often spoiled for many visitors. Just over the hill lies Sonoma County and the Alexander Valley. With no crowds and uncorrupted views, this is Cabernet country with wines that rival the best Napa has to offer. Bordered by the Russian River on its north side and Mount St. Helena on its south side, it’s a beautiful place with a slower pace ideal for sipping great wines and enjoying the scenery.
While mostly known for its smaller, appointment-only wineries, Alexander Valley is no slouch when it comes to the big names. Both Silver Oak and Jordan wineries are located on the valley floor, while smaller vintners such as Garden creek, Stone-Street, Stryker Sonoma and Robert Young are tucked back in the vineyards. Just a stones throw away, lies Lancaster and Chalk Hill Estates in the more remote Chalk Hill Appellation region of Sonoma County.
Let The Silver Service design a Silver Tour for you in Alexander Valley, where Cabernets are king and the variety of guest experiences are unparalleled.
The beautiful Dry Creek Valley Appellation in Northern Sonoma County is surrounded by mountains and more protected from coastal influences than its neighboring valley to the south, the Russian River Valley. This warm fertile valley boasts world class wines of its own, including Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc. Grapes love Dry Creek Valley and the abundance of different varietals here are as diverse as the premium wines the valley produces.
With the perfect climate, incredible scenery, dedicated people and a huge selection of wines, Dry Creek is a must-see for any wine country vacation. Our connections within Dry Creek Valley offer our guests some behind the scenes access to some of the valley’s best vintners. From a private picnic lunch at Lambert Bridge winery, or a creek side tasting at 32 Winds, or possibly a sit-down tasting atop the hill at Pezzi King, to a tour of Quivira Vineyards’ Biodynamic gardens – the sky’s the limit.
For visitors looking for a variety of wines and experiences in the Dry Creek Valley, Talty and Zuichini offer amazing Zinfandels and the caves at Bella are not to be missed. Other family-owned wineries such as Montemaggiore, Kokomo, or Kachina all offer visitors a more intimate experience, perfect for couples and honeymooners. Whether you want to tour gardens or farms, taste the best Zinfandels in the country or simply sip wines looking down on the valley floor, let us design a Dry Creek Valley Silver Tour.
Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from the Russian River Valley are known world wide. Tucked away in the hills and small valleys of the Russian River basin are micro climates of diverse territories perfect for the dozens of small vineyards and wineries. These micro climates are home to some of the most widely known Pinot Noir vineyards in all of America. Navigating the narrow back roads and terrain, The Silver Service will bring you face to face with the farmers, vineyards owners and winemakers of this exciting area. Their passion for wine making is something that we’d love to share with you.
Two of our favorite venues include the stunning Iron House Vineyard and the small 4th generation family farm and winery, Graton Ridge Cellars. For those that want some great but hard to find Pinot, try Adrian Fog or the larger but still great Hartford Family. The Silver Service also has a couple of hidden treasures at the south end of this amazing appellation, let us share that secret with you.
After a picnic lunch or a stop at a roadside café, we’ll make our way north where our special stops will include Viognier, Chardonnay, Rose Zins, Sauvignon Blanc, and of course more of those world famous Pinot Noirs.
High in the Mayacama Mountains and straddling the Napa and Sonoma County lines in the little-know appellation of Spring Mountain. The steep terrain, high elevations, terraced vineyards and it’s sometimes hard-to-reach location, make this a more difficult wine growing region. That said, the appellation boasts some of the best Bordeaux varietal wines in California that we’ve had the privilege to trying – plus its stunning views and breathtaking estates are just waiting to be discovered by visitors.
For the guest dipping their toe into the Spring Mountain water for the first time, we’ll take you to some of our favorites venues for tastings, where you’ll meet some of the friendliest people in wine country. Along with the area’s friendliness, experience amazing views and wines that will make you change your mind about how Merlot’s should taste. For the more experienced Spring Mountain guests, we’ll dive deep with our Summit Tour. This specialized tour offers private tastings at a chateau, private tours and a sit-down tastings at Pride Mountain, Barrnett and a couple of other hidden gems.
Discovering Spring Mountain is an 8 to 10 hour experience – trust us, it’s worth an entire day. There are no cafes or delis here but we’re more than happy to bring along our famous Artisan Picnic lunch for $30/person.
California’s incredible year round climate, beautiful scenery and wonderful winding but quiet two lane back roads make the wine country famous for motorcycling too! That said, wine tasting and motorcycle riding don’t go together, or do they? This great idea was envisioned by one of our satisfied guests, who like ourselves, is an avid motorcyclist and wine lover.
Your Silver Service motorcycle guide will meet you and your group of riders at a predetermined time and place, then guide you up the Marin and rugged Sonoma County coast – through the redwoods, mountains and vineyards of Sonoma, Napa Mendocino and Lake Counties for a fantastic motorcycling experience in the Northern California Wine Country. We’ve loved riding these hidden back roads for years and would love to show them off to you. At day’s end, we’ll escort you safely back to your hotel for an evening of rest and relaxation. On day 2, our beautiful Mercedes-Benz Sprinter “chase” van becomes your private chauffeured touring and tasting bus, as we embark on a carefree day of tastings at some of the wine countries best tasting venues. When your taste buds have had enough, you’ll be safely chauffeur back to your hotel.
Give us a call for more info and ideas. Here’s to happy and safe motorcycling and tasting in the California wine country.
Our rates are simple – a straight hourly rate for the vehicles, which includes your personal chauffeur/guide. There are no add-on charges for fuel, taxes, etc and gratuity is at our guest’s discretion.
We are a small tour and transportation company and cancellation deeply affects us. Cancellations must be received 72 hours prior to scheduled pick-up.
