CALIFORNIA
Napa Wine Tasting
You’d think as a California native I’d have more experience in wine country but in fact, I’ve never done wine tasting in Napa before! I have been to Sonoma, Paso Robles and Livermore but Napa is the real deal!
We were there for a long weekend, and stayed at Silverado Resort and Spa. I didn’t pick it out but it’s pretty dang nice and has pools, a grill, a golf course and of course a spa. It’s also very conveniently located to downtown Napa and wineries.
We arrived and settled in Thursday night. We went downtown for dinner and ate at Zuzu’s for tapas. I was a big fan of the sangria and the shrimp in oil.
Friday we did our first wine tasting at Castello Di Amorosa which is a truly wild place. Apparently a billionaire got the idea that he should recreate a 13th century Italian castle in Napa and sell wine there. A lot of it is closed off due to COVID but the things we could see were beautiful! You can walk around the parapets of the castle, see a trebuchet, and peer out of the windows in the towers. There’s also a feast hall with paintings, and the big courtyard.
We got the chocolate and wine tasting. We each were able to pick out six wines to try. I think the clear winner of the day was Il Barone. Personally I thought the chocolates were a bit unnecessary and I kept getting chocolate on my hands.
On our way out we went through the gift shop which is downstairs, more in the cellar. The castle has a huge underground presence apparently. Outside the gift shop is where they’ll give you the wine you bought during your tasting, and they have an enclosure with goats, chickens and an emu (not pictured). There was a sign implying this is the most photographed goat in the world so of course I had to post a picture of him. Of course my picture is the worst angle ever so sorry about that.
After our tasting we needed lunch! So we headed to Farmstead. We started out with fresh oysters and burrata. I don’t really like oysters but the burrata was insane! It came with a whole head of roasted garlic and the cheese itself was so creamy and decadent. I ordered the pulled pork sandwich with a farm fresh egg on top. It was so good and so rich and I managed to eat it all.
After that I was so full I needed to rest for many hours. We got dinner at probably 9 PM for my stomach to settle down. We just ordered pizza from Mod Pizza. It was actually also pretty good.
Saturday we had two wine tastings. The first was at Spring Mountain Vineyard. Compared to the Castello, it was completely empty here. That said, with masks we never felt unsafe anywhere in Napa. Anyways, at Spring Mountain the guide was very informative. The view was nice but it was a bit chillier than the valley! I can’t remember any of the wines anymore but they were quite tasty.
We had a few hours to go back to the resort and rest by the pool before heading over to Domaine Carneros. I guess this winery is a favorite amongst instagram influencers for its french estate styling. Their specialty is sparkling wines which I took full advantage of. Le Rêve was my favorite and I also think it’s their most popular sparking wine.
For dinner Saturday we headed to the grill at the resort. I got a truly terrible cocktail which I can’t remember the name of. But the crab cake appetizer was quite good, and I got the salmon and enjoyed it quite a bit.
Sunday was our last day but not our least day! After packing up our room we got our nails done at the spa. The ladies who helped us were so friendly and fun and my nails look great afterwards. We headed over to Compline on recommendation from one of the winery guides from the previous few days. There I had lunch of duck fat fries, another final glass of wine, and mushroom gnudi. I’ve never had gnudi and it was very good and creamy. Although I think shiitake adds a bit too much sourness to the dish.
Afterwards we had to make the drive back to San Francisco and go back to the real world.