November 12, 2015

The first full day of our adventure is here!

Some woke up early and ran 8 miles. Others slept in after a late night.  One car made a Starbucks stop and picked up some caffeine to fuel the gang through the day.  First stop–Joseph Phelps Vineyards.  Our very knowledgable and personable sommelier, Mike, was so patient with our elementary questions. We tasted some amazing wine here. The favorites for most of our group were the 2012 Insignia and the 2012 Backus Cabernets. The Savignon blanc also was another popular choice. Yum!  The Backus hasn’t been opened for tastings in about eight years. We were very lucky to have visited today!

Next, we stopped for a bite to eat at Oakville Grocery, a gourmet foods grocer and deli.  I had the crab cake sandwich.  I had an extra tomato since Wendy doesn’t like tomatoes. The salads and sandwiches all looked appetizing here. They have a patio where you can sit and enjoy your purchases. Far Niente was the second winery stop of the day at 2 p.m.  The gates opened up to a beautiful, serene property. The staff was so accommodating to our group of 12 ladies. Katherine, our guide, gave us a cool (literally) cave tour.  This winery served us delicious cheese pairings with our wine. We were just as impressed with our cheese as we were with the wine. Delicious!We ended the winery tour at Hall Napa Valley at 4 p.m.  Our tour guide, Hannah, was young, hip, and funny. The art displayed on property was colorful and interesting. Some made us laugh and others made us ponder. What a great end to our winery visits. All three wineries were great and had very different personalities

For dinner, we were able to get a reservation for our entire group of 17 ladies at Celadon Restaurant at 8:15 p.m.  We laughed and ate our delicious pork belly, pasta, lamb, chicken, dessert and so much more.  We were the last table to leave the restaurant.

It was a great day in Napa.  Can’t wait for day #2.