It takes substantial planning to make that happen though. The area is far more extensive than we knew and really needs to be done in segments to see as much as possible. Without question, the first stop should be the Napa Visitors’ Center in the Napa Town Center. It looks like more of a store than an information center, but all these people were in line, so like lemmings, we got in the que. It’s well worth the wait. We also found it helps a great deal if you had a pretty good grasp of what you want to do....there are numerous websites that help get the lay of the land. Our “guide” had tons of literature, coupons and hints after we told her what we were interested in.
What we also discovered very early on, is you can have a terrific vineyard visit without having a tasting. We couldn’t possibly taste at all the places we wanted to see over the next four days and remain standing. And it could get frightfully expensive….tastings at the good places run between $15 and $50 a person. We learned to pick our poison carefully!
Our first foray was up the Silverado Trail to a recommended new boutique winery called Black Stallion (blackstallionwinery.com), built on the grounds of a historic equestrian center. Napa is all about the “reds” and they had some good varietals and a nice little shop where we picked up a divine cabernet chocolate sauce. There’s a pretty little patio where we sat under the wisteria and had a picnic. Didn’t notice until we were leaving the notice “no picnicking”!
At the suggestion of our visitors’ center guide, we visited Artresa (artesiawinery.com), a most unusual complex. In essence, the top of a very steep hill was cut off and a modern bunker-like building was built into the land. They gentled it up a bit with ponds and sculptures. We didn’t find it very pretty, but the views from the top were spectacular.
Where everything was exactly like it’s “supposed” to be is Rubicon (rubiconestate.com). This 1887 chateau was originally home to Ingelnook Wine. Owned by Francis Ford Coppola since 1975, it is a stunning combination of old-world grace and movie museum.
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| This is "The Tucker" from the movie of the same name. |
We planned on having a tasting of the very pricey Rubicon wines, but unfortunately encountered two couples who obviously weren’t on their first stop. We opted to just buy a glass in the tiny bar with a lovely patio. We are so glad we did. Lovely chat with the sommelier, gorgeous views, wonderful wine….this was the pinnacle of our visit.
Beringer (beringer.com) has a lovely building and grounds and a store with some good tabletop accessories. 
We went to Mondavi (robertmondavi.com) to see the art collection, mostly Asian sculptures. Domain Chandon (chandon.com) was the antithesis of what I thought. I envisioned graceful; it's very modern, but the extensive grounds are handsome.
Stopped by Rutherford Hill (rutherfordhill.com) and were really sorry the last cave tour had left. I should have planned this better....it was something I really wanted to see. Stag's Leap (cask23.com) is a personal favorite of mine.....had looked forward to it, but by the time we got there, the last thing I wanted was another glass of wine.
Napa, to me, is just as much about the food as the wine. Rick was thrilled we couldn't get a reservation at the French Laundry (frenchlaundry.com) since it's up to about $1000 a couple. I had wanted to go for years, but frankly, somehow that kind of money for a meal just doesn't seem right anymore. Anyway, if you want to pop for it, book two months in advance.
While we didn't get inside the restaurant, anyone can stroll Thomas Keller's garden across the street. I think I had just as much fun doing that!
We ate at Keller's bistro restaurant down the street, Bouchon (bouchonbistro.com). I had roast leg of lamb, Rick, mussels and frites. It was good, not great, but at least not financially debilitating.
We had a better meal at the Culinary Institute of America Greystone (ciachef.com) in St. Helena. The building is imposing. The terrace very pretty.
Started with an appetizer called "Today's Temptations", a terrific and beautiful presentation of five small bites. I then had steak tartare and Rick soft shell crabs. Both were wonderful. There's also a very large kitchen store with more equipment than food stuffs. Better market choices for ingredients are at some of the vineyards and at Oakville Market. Another good place is at the Napa Farmer's Market, held every Tuesday and Saturday. The produce is great, but we mostly bought prepared items; tasty humus, capanota, tzaziki, homemade pita chips and some mexican goodies from a delightful, cheerful woman who sells at 36 California markets. Her chipolte cremosita is spectacular.
What we found hysterical is that there is not one square inch of land around here, including this little strip in the market parking lot, that doesn't include vines.
Four days is not enough. The only down side of this stop is the place we had to stay. There is nothing nice that we could find here at all. Napa Valley Expo RV Park (napavalleyexpo.com). It's exactly what it sounds like, a fairgrounds with RV sites. Not nice, but convenient.
San Francisco tomorrow.
Great recap of your journey. Thanks for sharing.
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