Napa Valley

This last weekend I went to Napa Valley to wine taste with some friends from Sacramento. There were 5 girls to be exact. We were celebrating my friend Rene's birthday. It was an absolute wonderful weekend. I left my house at 6:20 am and arrived in Napa at exactly 9:20 am (3 hours!). The other girls had just barely left Sacramento, so I conveniently got to hang out at the outlets in Napa before heading up to Calistoga. We checked into the Roman Spa then headed out for some wine tasting. The weather was incredible! We visited 6, yes SIX wineries that day. Twomey, Frank Family, Markham, Freemark Abbey, Hall and Alpha Omega. Dennis from Frank Family was the most fun and their wines were fabulous.

That night we hung out at the local bar in downtown Calistoga and made some friends with the locals. We were invited to a winery by a particular local boy named Keegan. I was aprehensive to go but Rene insisted, so we made it our first stop on Sunday. At this time our group of five was now 3. Ehler winery was fabulous! A georgous boutique non-profit winery with all proceeds going to cardiovascular research. We received the grand tour. I would highly recommend a visit to this winery if you are ever in the area. Our other stops for the day were at Mumm Napa, and Rombauer. Then a quaint dinner at a little restaurant in downtown Calistoga. That night we stayed at a cottage at Sterling Vineyard that Rene's ex-husband set up for us with one of his wine representatives. Definately a highlight of the trip and it definately pays to know the right people.

The next morning we had coffee with the locals and I got to name my own bag of Coffee to take home. "Steve, Take me to Calistoga or lose me forever. Patty" Then it was home for me with a stop in San Francisco for lunch with Kristi R. Memories to last a lifetime. Anyone intrested in Wine Tasting in Napa let me know, "I'm IN!"