Napa for Todd's 30th

Yes, we went to Napa, again. I think we might have a slight problem with loving that place too much. We got invited by Todd and Christina for Todd's 30th birthday celebration, and weren't about to say no.  We went over Memorial Day weekend and got to visit a ton of wineries. 

Since I am a lush and have been to Napa three times, here are the wineries I would recommend (in no particular order) for people heading to Napa. In a long weekend, five or six wineries is a good number to aim for. This time, we did nine and it was a bit much for me. 

1. Caymus - tied for my all time favorite

2. Cliff Lede, its just so cute

3. Kelham Vineyards - super small boutique, but awesome, other tie for favorite

4. Silver Oak, well just because

5. Del Dotto, for a party

6. Palmaz, it's just so different

First up, Luna. We grabbed lunch at a little sandwich shop the first day we got there and drove by this place and just decided to stop without having heard anything about it. It was probably one of my least favorite of the trip, but that doesn't mean we didn't enjoy ourselves. 

 First tasting of the trip and so so happy. 

Next, was Judd's Hill. It was was recommended to us by our waiter at Luna. It's a pretty small one, but we really enjoyed sitting outside there. 

 That night we had dinner at Morimoto, a great sushi/Japanese restaurant in downtown Napa and then went to Fagiani's for a roof top drink. That place had a really cool vintage vibe. 

Day two was a intense day of wine drinking. The only way to do Napa is with a driver. IT. IS. A. MUST. It takes all the worry away so you can enjoy every second of being there. 

We started the day at my second favorite winery of the trip, Cliff Lede. The grounds were awesome. It was small, quaint, and had good wine.

We had lunch at Farmstead, which is a casual organic farm to market place. I would highly recommend. 

Next up, Frank Family. This one was only alright, but they did have sparkling wine which was a plus for Christina and I. There are others that are more worth your time. 

Next up was an event where six different wineries came to do a tasting. This is what through me overboard. It was really hot this day and there were so many different wines…. but we found some great pretty inexpensive bottles to bring back home. Jax was among our favorite.

A winemaker asked Blake to cover for him while he stepped away, so as expected, Blake began pretending to be a wine maker and spouting off all sorts of BS to eager wine tasters. 

Then came Rombaur. The grounds were just stunning with so many flowers. This was about the time my stomach started to feel a little iffy so I didn't taste here. If I would have, it probably would have made the list up top. 

Chrissy!

Last, Silverado. I didn't taste here either due to me being a light weight, but it was a cool place. 

 We had dinner this night in town at The Pear. It was good causal southern cooking eats.

The next morning we took a break from wine. The boys golfed, while we spa'd. Lunch was at the famous Mustards. Go there. It was awesome. 

Pretty cool golf pics. 

After lunch we headed to my favorite of the trip, Caymus. The grounds, the wine, and everything about this place was fabulous.

I hate selfies and am 100% against them, but had to do one here. So happy! 

Cheers!  

 Last up for the trip, St. Supery. We chose this one partly because I liked a particular bottle of theirs, and partly because it was one of the only ones open until 5:00 p.m.

We stayed at the Westin which was great because it was walkable to all the restaurants and shops in downtown Napa. It was nice for everything to be so close. 

Good trip.  Till we meet again, Napa!