If you are thinking about getting away to the Napa Valley with that someone special on Valentine’s Day, you’d better think quickly. Although tourism is down in the Napa Valley, Valentine’s Day is always one of the most popular weekends in the entire year and waiting until the last minute can get you in the doghouse. So, you have two things to do immediately after reading this posting. Make a lodging reservation and dinner/lunch reservations.
Maybe a balloon ride?
Looking For Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in all the right places, Part One
Why take the tourist route? Here is a backroad gem of a tour where you can see some fantastic views of Carneros and the Napa Valley and avoid busloads of tourists. This trip starts by heading across the Golden Gate Bridge but one can certainly come from other directions, just use the Google map below or your car’s GPS. We are going to begin this trip in Carneros on the Sonoma County side, where Ramal Road on the north meets Highway 121. Coming west on Highway 121, drive about 3.5 miles from the main intersection of Arnold and Highway 121. If you do come from the other direction take good care when you make a left turn onto Ramal Road; Highway 121 is busy and many drive way too fast on this road. Read the rest of this entry »
At 6:45 on this Wednesday, I arrive at one of Truchard’s beautiful Carneros vineyards where 30 harvesters are hard at work amid the rows of Chardonnay grapes. There is no fog this morning in Carneros and the sun is not over the hillside as yet. It is an ideal temperature for the grapes to be picked and also for the harvesters. The plan is to finish this vineyard by 9:30 a.m. and move on to another nearby vineyard.
About half the harvesters are year-round and long-time employees at Truchard. The others are contracted just for the harvest. For working hard and furiously during the harvest, some of these contracted workers can make up to as much as $200 per day.
The team of harvesters works about four rows at a time, with about 7 to 8 men in each row. When they fill their container they toss it, turning it over and into the half-ton bin. The foreman tosses back the empty container and off the harvester goes to pick another load.
As the bins are filled the tractor driver delivers the bins down below where I later catch owner Tony Truchard joyously loading the bins with his pallet tractor on to the truck to be transported back to the winery. From the expression on Tony Truchard’s face, I get the impression this is going to be a very good harvest. The previous day, I’d tasted the 2007 Chardonnay at the winery. It’s a beautiful Chardonnay, with some acidity and light oak. It is just the way I like Chardonnay. It is a delight to have the opportunity to take photographs of this wonderful event that nature has given us and to know that these grapes will become a wonderful Chardonnay wine.
Last Saturday, after some 40 years of visiting Napa Valley wineries, for the very first time we attended the musical concert at the Robert Mondavi winery featuring the group Ozomatli. What a fantastic venue for a concert.
This series has been going on for 40 years and Margrit Biever Mondavi, who started the series, is still on hand to make the introductions. This year’s summer series of concerts will run through August 1. The proceeds from the concert series go to support various musical programs throughout the Napa Valley. Read the rest of this entry »
On Saturday I had the good fortune of being invited to an amazing wine tasting of boutique wines made by a group of elite winemakers. Acme Fine Wines, one of the premier wine shops in the Napa Valley, arranged the tasting. Owners Karen Williams and David Stevens brought together 12 winemakers who make wines for some 60 small wineries. The tasting was divided into two sessions. The first session was for media only and the second session began at 1 pm for consumers. Acme Fine Wines is a small wine shop located on a side street in St. Helena and it was jammed to the gills for both sessions as wine afficionados leaped at this opportunity to taste wines made by these artisan winemakers. Read the rest of this entry »
There is trouble ahead for Napa Valley wineries in 2009 and maybe beyond. You might think that all California wineries will suffer equally, but Napa wineries may be more vulnerable. A trip to the Napa Valley costs more than going to Paso Robles, Mendocino, or the Russian River wine region. Lodging and restaurants are more expensive, tasting room fees are higher, and on average, the cost of a bottle of wine is more expensive in the Napa Valley.
Since January we have been to the Napa Valley on three separate occasions. Granted we always visit during the week but almost every tasting room we have been into has been empty, void of visitors. Where are the tourists? In each tasting room we have heard the same lament about winter months being slow, but never this slow. The outlook for visitors the rest of the year does not look good. The San Francisco Convention & Visitor’s Bureau is predicting a drop in European and Asian travelers and in corporate travel by U.S. companies. No company wants to look bad for taking unnecessary travel junkets. More tourists are traveling on a beer budget.
The 16th annual Mustard Festival began in earnest on January 31 and will run through March 28th with various events. The idea behind the Mustard Festival is to promote tourism in the Napa Valley during the “quiet” time of the year. The weather is always iffy and the vines are all dormant, so tourists tend to stay away during these winter months. In April bud break occurs and spring flowers awake, and once again all is right in the world of the Napa Valley.
Mustard Field Near Whitehall Lane
We often get emails from first-time travelers to the Napa Valley asking advice for where to go or what “must activities” to include in their trip. Here is our list of what we think first-time visitors to the Napa Valley should consider doing. These activities don’t just apply to the first timer, anytime you visit the Napa Valley, these ideas should be considered. Read the rest of this entry »
January is the slowest month in the Napa Valley. Any tasting room worker will tell you that they get the fewest visitors in January and their workdays just seem to drag. People tend to stay away from the Napa Valley during January for various reasons. The weather is unpredictable and there are no major events taking place in the Napa Valley until the Mustard Festival that begins officially on January 31st. People are recovering from the Holidays and are still keeping their New Year’s resolution about eating and drinking less, exercising more, and saving money. Nonetheless, this may be one of the most enjoyable times to visit the Napa Valley. You will almost get the feel of what the Valley was like 40 years ago. The Napa Valley is quiet and peaceful during January.
If you want even more of an escape to the olden days, spend time in Calistoga. Calistoga is a folksy town, more country-like and less posh than Yountville or St. Helena. Much of Calistoga looks and feels the same as it did 40 years or more ago. Just venture into the Calistoga Inn and you will see what I mean. Read the rest of this entry »
I’m not sure how the organizers of the Wine Blogging Conference found sponsors or determined what events were to be staged, but clearly Sonoma wineries were at the forefront of this inaugural event. Except for the Culinary Institute of America, which conducted the blind wine tasting event, Napa Valley and its wineries were nowhere to be seen at this conference.
Sonoma wineries went all out for this event. From the opening event, a lunch and tasting of 12 Sonoma wines at Kick Ranch Vineyards, to the final luncheon on Sunday, just about every event featured Sonoma wines. The major sponsors, the Winegrowers of Dry Creek Valley, the Sonoma County Tourism Bureau, and Sebastiani Vineyards, provided lunches, dinners, bus transportation, and more wines than we could possibly taste. What a coup for Sonoma wineries. Read the rest of this entry »
March in the Napa Valley
