The end of the California journey meant it was time to wine-d down. We stayed at the beautiful Wine Country Inn with a room that greeted us with a balcony overlooking fields of growing grapevines.
Our first day in Napa we had as a bonus day so we winged it as you should have reservations lined up however; it is possible to still go do tastings. We were able to stop at three our first day. Joseph Cellars, Madrigal, and Alpha Omega. We had lunch at Brasswood where we split a mussel & clam pasta and a grilled chicken sandwich.
It was amazing to thaw out in the sun after having spent the majority of our vacation in the mid 50s. Here, there was sun, warmth, and smiles!
We had dinner then went to bed early to rest and reset our sleepy bodies.
Our last day in Napa and our last day in California, we had an amazing breakfast and got coffee in the most beautiful breakfast room again with a lovely Napa view. We began the day at a castle! A true Tuscan castle built on the Napa hillside. The methodology and materials for the caste were all authentic to the 14/1500s and from Italy. Crates beyond crates of hand cut stones and other such materials were chosen and delivered from Italy. The wine was fantastic, the tour of the castle e was breathtaking and amazingly interesting. Their cave was endless! This was probably my overall favorite just for the experience alone. We spent a lot of time there so we were rushed at the end to make it to our next reservation. I only wish we could have not been in a rush there.
Next we went to Chateau Montelena and had a private room tasting. I loved this. We got to learn a lot here and understand more about what affects the grapes. We had a 2003 red and it was just perfection.
Our next stop was at Inglenook. Another favorite. This property also had quite the history. They are an estate and therefore must make their wine 100% from their own grown grapes. They had astounding reds which we tasted in a private room open to the courtyard. We lounged on the leather sofa pairing our wines with charcuterie, cheese, olives, nuts, and fruit. Our sommelier took us to show us where the 1998 Lindsay Lohan “The Parent Trap” had a scene shot on their property overlooking the grapevines. She told us where to find the Napa home from the movie though reluctantly we didn’t go out to it because we had one more beautiful stop for the day at V. Sattui winery which is the first winery in Napa by the creator of Castello. We ate and returned back to our cozy room to prepare for a very early morning of traveling home to the kids. Napa was a dream and I can’t wait to return one day.
