Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Napa Day 1

Wine Way Inn, Calistoga
The Wine Way Inn
"Forget mistakes.  Forget failures.  Forget everything except what you're going to do now and do it.  Today is your lucky day."   Will Durant

Backyard of the Inn
    Easy, quick uneventful flight from Vegas got me to San Francisco with plenty of daylight for the drive to Calistoga which is at the northern end of Napa Valley.  God Bless the Genius who made portable GPS systems, they really make driving easier in unfamiliar places.  Got to my B&B, the Wine Way Inn just as the sun was setting.  I chose The Wine Way Inn (http://www.winewayinn.com)/  solely on the fact that my Daughter stayed here last June on her vacation up the coast of California and stayed here.  She said the breakfasts are amazing (absolutely true), and the owners are from England.  Sold.  It is lovely, charming, and a quick walk to “downtown”.
                     The Inn-Keeper, a Gent originally from the Bristol area of England, showed me to my very quaint room.  Definitely more my style than Vegas.  After unpacking, I walked to town for dinner at Jole (707) 942 5938, on Lincoln Ave) , on Nick’s recommendation.  An amazing experience, it is farm to table, and I treated myself to their four course tasting menu with wine pairings (remember, I said I was walking.)

                         Fully satisfied and satiated I meandered “home”.  Waking up Sunday morning to the smell of bacon and coffee was awesome.  Went down stairs and had my first cup of coffee on the porch chatting with a very nice couple from Colorado.  We ended up sharing breakfast with another young couple from the Bay area.  The beauty of B&B’s besides their charm is the feeling of camaraderie, even when traveling alone.
Downtown Calistoga
                Decided to poke around downtown for awhile and managed to help the economy a bit.  Great shops, galleries, consignment shops, etc…even shipped some gifts home (found wonderful things @ Calistoga Olive Oil Company) !  After a few hours I decided it was time to explore, venture out to some wineries.  Being alone and driving, I was limited, of course.  And, truth be told, this is something more fun shared…but off I went.
BCellars Patio
                Having read that the Silverado Trail is less congested than the main artery, Rt 29 through Napa, I chose that.  There are so many hundreds of vineyards and wineries, unless you’re “in the know” it’s a true toss of the dice (still have some Vegas mentality left..).  So, I chose one and pulled into BCellars, lovely, beautiful deck to sit on with a sweet young Lady to guide me through my tasting. 
 



Castello di Amorosa courtyard

Back on the road, I just started driving.  The countryside is beautiful.  I had read about a Gentleman who had built a Tuscan Castle, Castello di Amorosa Vineyard, which gives tours.  I decided what the h…, I adore that area of Italy, I’ll go see Disney in Napa (as I feel much of Napa thinks of it this way..).  But, you know what?  It was a very enjoyable way to spend a couple of hours.  Damion, our Tour Guide was a hoot, very knowledgeable, and proud of the Castle (which was built with original stone by artisans from Tuscany and Umbria,) and loved his job.  The Owner’s story is great, a real rags to riches, labor of love.  Good for him!  (Back to Damion loving his job, I’m finding that not many people here in Napa don’t love their jobs?!)  I bought a bottle of their Pinot Bianco.

SolBar
SolBar Patio

     I had read of an oh so foo-foo Spa that had an amazing Bar on which to watch the sunset.  I ended up at a different oh so foo-foo spa, Solange by mistake.  I stayed anyway, and had a great light dinner at their SolBar.  My young Waiter felt he hadn’t given me great service (I thought he was wonderful) and gave me my drinks gratis.  I tipped him well.   Enough fun for my first day in Napa.  Happily headed home to the Wine Way Inn.

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