This weekend
we had an amazing time in ‘wine country.’ We were lucky enough to see the all
areas of Napa County – Sonoma, Napa, Rutherford, Yountville, St Helena and all
the way north to Calistoga. We arrived
at the Fairmont Sonoma on Thursday at noon, unfortunately empty handed as AA
lost or bag. However, we didn’t let this
ruin or day. The hotel had arranged for a private car to pick us up at the
hotel at 1pm and suggested 4 vineyards to see.
The concierge did a fabulous job of choosing a great mix of
vineyards.
The first one
we visited was Annadel, which required an appointment. It was well worth it - an amazing
experience. We sipped vino and talked
with the owner for hours, walking the grounds, and learning a ton about the
incredible history this winery has. We
also both learned more about wine during this stay than we have in seeing
dozens of other wineries in a number of countries. The owner purchased the place about 5 years
ago – leaving the big city life behind for a quiet strip of Sonoma. She and her husband have worked to restore
much of it to its roots dating back over 130 years.
After a
couple hours and a lot more than a few tastes of wine, we journeyed on to our
next stop, Chateau St Jean. This was a
lot bigger place, and while it lacked the quaintness and history of Annadel, it
still was a great experience. Hundreds
of acres of vines, flowers, gardens, quant sitting tables and pergolas were mixed
in everywhere. The staff was extremely nice, even dipping into their private
reserve to give us a few “freebie” tastes.
Given our long stays at these first two places, we only had time to stop
at one more, Deerfield. This again was a
larger public winery, but its tasting room was set in a wine cave, whose walls
were lined with dozens of barrels of vino.
Once you got to the back of the cave there were Tuscany-like stone
walls, and a number of rustic wood tables and chairs to lounge in. We closed this place down, sipping vino till
about 5PM, until heading back to the hotel.
We ate at our
hotel’s signature Michelin Star restaurant called Sante. Dinner started with a couple glasses of
complimentary champagne (the hotel knew about our baggage trouble). This was a nice gesture and was a great start
to our meal. The food was all very good;
however, our beginning courses of “Adult Mac and Cheese” (lobster mac and
cheese with black truffles and aged cheddar) and Roasted Scallops and Escargot
were among our favorites.
Friday we
woke up bright and early at 5am and got ready for our Napa Valley balloon ride. We were a bit tired and it was a bit chilly, but
the experience was amazing. We were
fortunate enough to ride in their newest balloon, the Fiesta Also, which
travelled almost 3,000 feet high. It was
its second time up. Ken, our pilot, told
us that it was the “Cadillac” of balloons!
We could see miles of Napa Valley
in all directions. After the 2 hour ride
we headed back to Domaine Chandon vineyard, where we had a beautiful brunch
with mimosas and champagne! .
We soon got
back to the hotel and it was only 11am, but it felt like late afternoon. We decided to take the rest of the day and
enjoy the amazing hotel spa. There’s
only one way in and out of the indoor/outdoor spa which helps keep for a nice
relaxing experience. They have more than
5 indoor and outdoor mineral pools, spas, and heated baths. All are co-ed so we were able to enjoy
everything together, as opposed to many spas that are not comingled. With such a long day of waking early, eating,
and sipping cocktails, we slipped into bed for a 5pm nap….which lasted till the
next morning. It may sound boring, but
it was the end to a perfect day.
Saturday we
had a lot of time to kill before heading to the city for a 5PM wedding. We decided it would be cool to see the entire
area, all the way north to Calistoga. The
area is quite easy to navigate and drive, it probably only took a little over
an hour to drive to Calistoga, which is the northern most point of wine
country. We pulled off and took a short
self guided tour of the CIA (Culinary Institute of America) which was in an
amazing castle-like stone building, with interior winding staircases and a
number of cooking antiques on display. They also have their own retail store
that pretty much had any appliance and utensil you could image. We also stopped at Old Faithful in Calistoga
and viewed the property, which was full of goats, donkeys, and the geyser (of
course).
We wanted to
stop at one last winery before we made our way to the city. One of the many great suggestions we got from
Abi at Annadel winery on Thursday, was Turnbull. We decided to stop here for a reserve tasting
and take a peek at the grounds, which were full of beautifully thick rooted wisteria,
which were already starting to bloom. We
exchanged restaurants with a lady working there – great Chicago spots for her
local Valley favorites, and were on our way to the city.
We have
enough new winery and restaurant recommendations in the Napa Valley area for
another much longer stay…and we cannot wait to return later this fall to see
the grapes in harvest and the flowers in bloom.
We highly recommend visiting Sonoma Square, which is full of quant
boutiques and some of the best restaurants in the county. St Helena also has an amazing little
town. Until October…
