The rest of the Mountain Winery season, appraised
Who is left on the hill this year — and how to choose your night. Dates below; the village takes care of the rest.
The amphitheater up Pierce Road runs its 68th season through late October, and the back half of the calendar is arguably the better half. What remains, as of this writing: Wynonna Judd with Melissa Etheridge (July 21), Gladys Knight (July 22), the Happy Together Tour (July 23), Lauren Daigle (July 24), three nights of Trevor Noah (July 26–28), Bill Burr (July 30), and Robby Krieger of the Doors (July 31). August opens with the Stray Cats (August 1), Nile Rodgers & Chic (August 2), a Classic Albums Live run through the Eagles catalog (August 5), and Los Lobos with Los Lonely Boys (August 7). Then the season stretches out gracefully: America (September 20), José González (September 23), Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo (September 30), and Foreigner closing things down on October 28. Confirm dates at the venue's site before you book anything — lineups shift.
Choosing your night
The comedy nights sell to people who plan; the legacy acts sell to people who feel. Either way the evening has the same shape: the show is at the top of the hill, and everything else you need is at the bottom of it, on Big Basin Way.
Eat before, in the village. Bai Tong is the efficient masterstroke — Thai, excellent, and out the door in time. Bella Saratoga is the sit-down version when the show is the second-best part of the evening. Afterward, if the night deserves a coda, Enoteca La Storia pours wine until you have properly discussed the setlist.
If you are coming from out of town
Book the bottom of the hill, not a freeway exit. The Inn at Saratoga puts you a short walk from dinner and a short drive from the gates, which on a show night is the entire game. Leave for the venue earlier than feels necessary; the hill forgives no one who arrives at showtime.