5th Annual Napa Trip

Every year we try to make it out to Napa for wine tasting. This year was no exception and the weather was gorgeous so why not? We met everyone at our hotel and then caravaned over to a local market for coffee and a bite to eat before wine tasting. It was a charming little place that had a good homely vibe to it. I ended up getting apricot jam with brie on a dutch crunch roll which was divine. I'm not normally a brie person but the apricot jam really worked with it. We ate outside in their cute little patio area.

We started at the winery we always seem to start with which was Peju. This year we got to sample their Peju Pink wine which has a lovely watermelon flavor to it. Nearly everyone in our group bought a bottle of it.

The next place we went to was Alpha Omega. Originally we started inside, but Jen asked if we could sit outside which was awesome because they had a little patio area with sofas and a great view of their fountain. "Ask and you shall receive" is what Jen said and it worked :) Vincent was our fantastic host for the tasting. He really made us feel special and welcomed. Oh, and the wine? Amazing. The wines at Alpha Omega are a little on the pricey side, but once I tasted what they had to offer, I could clearly see why. Justyn and I ended up buying a bottle of their 2007 Chardonnay & 2008 Petit Syrah.

After the couple wineries that we went to, lunch was in order so we stopped at V. Sattui. I really wanted to like this place but it was such a HUGE tourist trap. Buses and cars full of people were unloading by the dozen. The lines for lunch were terrible too. Three people including myself got in line for the mozzarella sandwich and the chick (I won't even give her the respectful title of a chef) behind the table was slicing mozzarella, bread & basil to order! I really did try to be patient but seriously.. a little prep would've made the line move a lot faster. So about half an hour later or more, we finally all got our food and sat down in the grass under some shade for lunch. I was still pretty irritated so I bought a bottle of wine to wash my sandwich down with heh.

Our bellies were full from lunch so afterward we went to our last winery, Milat. I was hoping Mike, one of the vintners was going to be there but he wasn't. He was quite a character the last time we went to Milat but we still had fun.

After Milat everyone was pretty beat from the warm weather and tasting wine so we went back to Stefano's hotel to dip our feet in the pool and have some cocktails. It was so relaxing, I lost track of time for a bit. We had about an hour to get ready for dinner! I brought a dress that I had been keeping in the back of my closet for special occassions and this was the perfect time to wear it.

For dinner, we went to my favorite restaurant, Bistro Jeanty. I had been hyping up the tomato soup to everyone so they were all anticipating the greatest tomato bisque in the world. Bistro Jeanty did not disappoint, it was just as good as I had remembered it. Some of the pictures didn't come out due to the lack of lighting but everyone was telling me that they really enjoyed the food :) For dessert, Lora ordered the bread pudding which was soooo good. I don't normally like dessert but I couldn't resist this stuff.

The next morning we went to Boon Fly Cafe at the Carneros Ranch Inn for breakfast. It was an adorable little restaurant with porch swings on the outside. It had a very quaint yet upscale feel to it. I ordered the Green Eggs & Ham while Justyn got the donuts & Chilaquiles. Every little bite was delicious and it was utterly the perfect place for brunch. Of course, I couldn't have brunch without a refreshing cucumber mojito.