Day 4 - Ideology and a Wild Blondie
Monday, May 14, 2012We said our fair well to our chateau in Dry Creek Valley and made our way into Napa. Our first stop on the journey was
Ideology Cellars. Ericka and Erika, two great tour guides.
Ericka started us off with a picnic wine tasting. Is there a better way to wine taste? Don't think so... this is their courtyard leading up to the tasting room.
Bob, the owner, came out and joined us. We got to hear the history of starting and naming Silenus Vintners. Then, making their own line
Ideology Cellars. That monster of a bottle Erika is holding is 6 bottles in one and had jewels for the eyes. If you zoom in closely, you can see Bob saying, "if you drop that..."
Jamie getting up close and personal with a bundle of baby budding grapes.
Bob showing Erika his thief. Come on, get your head out of the gutter a thief is the glass object he is holding. That is how we tasted the wine from the bunghole. Really... A bunghole is the opening on the top of every barrel of wine.
They said bunghole...
Wine from barrels makes you feel pretty special. Thanks Bob and Ericka for sharing! And Bob, why would you let Erika hold your thief?
Our wine tasting for the day was thru and time to make our way to our castle on a hill,
Adler Fels Winery.
What a place to relax for the night, right?
In a few hours, the lovely Rachel Coleman and Linda Nelson will be here to join in all the greatness.
Day 5 - Big Red Barn vs. Black Cordon
Tuesday, May 15, 2012Today was our first morning waking up at the castle. We all wandered around at our own pace exploring the gorgeous grounds. Linda was the first up and exploring. We found her at the end of this long patio, overlooking the whole valley.
She is on top of the world. Malia told her here, "my mom thinks Erika is a way better daughter than me. For her mother's day, I called her from Wine country. For your mother's day, Erika brought you to wine country!"
After enjoying a delicious quiche by Kelly, we drove the windy roads back to Napa to visit
Nickel and Nickel.
This is their fancy big red barn from New Hampshire.
This is their fancy cork tree.
This is us in their fancy barrel room.
Then, thanks to Linda we had a delicious picnic at
V. Sattui Winery.
We had a whirlwind lunch and then got lost on our way to
Black Cordon Winery. It's hard to trust a Garmin that tells you to turn left into an embankment that "is your destination." Although, it would be cool if their vineyard was in the mountain.
But, next best thing is this view from on top of the mountain (once we finally found it).
David, the owner, sharing his 16x20 and Black Cordon Cabernets. Delicious! We enjoyed our visit with David. He was very laid back and made us feel at home in his backyard overlooking his vines. You could tell his was an artistic spirit.
Home again, home again. Poor us, we have to go back to the castle!
Time for much needed R&R on the patio. We polished off a veggie tray a little faster than we would like to admit. Disregard the 5 bottles on the table, we were just continuing our wine tasting. Rachel is very proud, as you can tell...
The many faces off the night:
Rachel shooting her Adler Fels commercial. "I drink Adler Fels because floating hands hold my wine glass for me."
Whoa whoa whoa, what happened? Now your crying? Oh somebody special called and told her something special. You know who you are...
Jamie, just calm, cool, and collected
Or is she...
Malia, just busy being awesome...
Not even sure what happened here... Can't describe that as awesome...
But Kelly, is fierce about it...
Erika just rubbing it in that she is a better daughter than the rest of us...
And here is a giant cock... It's a rooster people, come on!
Yes, a rooster...
Thanks Linda for the delicious and beautiful salad. Oh yea... And you to Rachel;)
Yummo!
Day 6 - An Old Love, a New Love, and Our Last Night in the Mansion
Wednesday, May 16, 2012Now to the home of Meiomi, Kelly's favorite Pinot Noir,
Caymus Vineyards.
Cheers to great wine, great friends, and a GREAT big bottle of wine. Wish we could have taken this bottle home.
Had we tried, this ferocious golden would have chased us down.
He settled for some pets from some lovely ladies...
And we settled for some much smaller, or maybe we should say normal sized, bottles of wine. Linda was the fanciest and got a reserve, oh baby. Meiomi Pinot Noir came home as Malia's way to suck up to her Mom for missing Mother's Day. And, the Mer Soleil Chardonnay came home to be partaken of at a post Friendscation dinner night. Buy all that, and you go home with this fancy bag. No big deal...
Where else can you go to lunch but
V. Sattui Winery? Again! It was so great the day before, we couldn't resist another picnic. Jamie found a new friend, George. She rescued him from a bunch of bully birds about to peck him to death. It was nice of her, but the rest of us didn't really know how to handle it.
Erika, she about lost her lunch...
Rachel maybe just wet herself and Kelly wanted to "rip her skeleton out of her body!" (Zink 2012)
Linda, well, it made her hungry for some meat!
Bevan Cellars, what a treat! They invited us up to their gorgeous house above some of their vineyards. Here is a little taste of the view:
Bevan Cellars is one of few wineries that still smash their grapes by foot. Pretty cool huh? Jamie made a fuss about it and Russell, one of the owner's, told her what was what!
Victoria, Russell's partner in crime in wine and in life, agreed that Jamie should never question it again.
After Russell and Jamie's throw down, Malia was asked to tell some of her stories...
There is no better way to tell a shocking story, than to hold a camera and snap a shot at all the best parts. The next few pictures speak for themselves...
Starting to get uncomfortable...
Help me Kimberly!
They had even heard the story before...
You're kidding?
Nooooooo!
Can you believe it?
Geez! Is it over yet?
And the story is done and Russell was so happy he threw Erika over his shoulder. Guess it was a rough story... Whoops!
Thank you so much Russell, Victoria and Kimberly for being such gracious hosts. We loved your wine, we loved your food, but most of all we loved your company.
And Tada! The amazing wine adventures have come to an end. Erika you really know how to make a group of ladies feel special. Thanks for letting us partake in this business trip!
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Location:Napa, Sonoma, and Santa Rosa
