I know I already told you about the amazing Healthy Kitchens, Healthy Lives Conference that I was lucky enough to attend in Napa, California, but how did we spend our time off? We definitely made the most of it- Napa Style!
We started our California trip by flying into San Francisco. The cheapest car that would hold all of our luggage was a Mini Van. I’ve never driven one before but we rented our San Fran Mini Van and headed out into San Francisco traffic-yikes! (And PS-San Fran Mini Van will definitely be the name of our band if we ever start one!)
As all of us love food, we were looking for an iconic restaurant to start our trip right! What is more iconic than Alice Waters’ Berkeley restaurant, Chez Panisse? Concentrating on farm-to-table, locally sourced, sustainable food, the restaurant publishes it’s menu at the beginning of each week. Despite the fact that duck was on the menu for the day we were dining (and I don’t like duck) we were super excited to dine here! The meal was phenomenal, we were able to walk through the kitchen, and it turns out I actually like duck!
After dinner in Berkeley we headed up to Napa where we spent the rest of the week. The conference, at the Culinary Institute of America at Copia, took up most of our time until Friday when we met up with another colleague and his wife. After a quick happy hour at our hotel, we headed out to my friend Adam’s tasting room, Gamling and McDuck. A super fun place located right in downtown Napa, this was the perfect place to enjoy a before-dinner-wine-tasting.
Now, to be fair, we spent MANY hours in conference. It was fabulous information presented in a super fun way so we weren’t willing to miss any of it. We learned a ton and are so excited to put our new knowledge into practice! But it was Napa after all, so we did schedule in one full day of free time so that we could do some exploring!
On our one full day in Napa, we had decided to book a wine tasting tour through WhySpit. Recommended to us by some other mama docs, we had a blast being treated like royalty by the owner, Barry.
When I first talked to Barry he listened carefully to what was important to us. He set up a completely customized trip based on our love of food! He picked us up at our hotel with chilled champagne and drove us to Starbucks, so we could start our day caffeinated! Hooray!
As bubbly lovers, we started our touring at Schramsberg, a winery that makes lovely sparkling wines! We went on cave tour, complete with sparkling wine tasting.
We then moved on to a private tasting at Parallel Wines. Our hostess had trained at the Culinary Institute of America and did a fabulous wine and appetizer pairing for us. Sitting and sipping in the bright, sun drenched tasting room was heavenly.
Next up was Clif Family Winery. Barry picked this one for us because of the Michelin Starred Food Truck parked outside. How much fun is that? We were shown to a private room where we dined on delicious foods, sipped delicious wines and appreciated everything this magical place had to offer!
The last winery of the day, Sinegal Wines, was on a gorgeous piece of land complete with a beautiful lake, lush gardens, and goats. Yes goats. The tasting room was beautifully decorated and our host was amazing. We learned about what goes into producing an organic wine and enjoyed some wonderful California hospitality.
To end our night, Barry dropped us off in Yountville where we had dinner at Michael Chiarello’s restaurant, Bottega. If only we had been hungrier!
As usual Napa, California did not disappoint. From the amazing food, to the fabulous wines, to the much needed California sun, this trip was fantastic.
Has anyone else been to Napa? Any favorite places (wineries, restaurants, etc)? Let us know below!
[…] with a sweater or down with a knotted tee and sneakers. I picked up a cute one at a little shop in Napa that I can’t wait to wear all spring. I’m also eyeing this little […]