BackStory Driving on Hwy 29, just as you’re heading north and leaving St. Helena, is the Avenue of the Elms, and the entrance to Beringer Vineyards. It’s a tiny portion of Bavaria we locals know and love. And…Beringer is the longest continuously-operating winery in California. The wines are full-bodied, flavorful and with many 90+ point […]
Backstory My husband and I had an afternoon available to us, so we just spontaneously drove up Silverado Trail starting in the City of Napa. As we passed wineries, we counted off those we’d been to. Then there appeared Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars. Back when I was growing up here in Napa, in the 1970s […]
Apple Hill Hidden Gems: Part 5 High Hill Ranch feels fun and festive…and well…very crowded. It’s a cross between a County Fair and the Renaissance Faire, sans the rides and 4-H exhibits. They do have Pony Rides for the kids and a small lake for Trout fishing, so this is fun. And yes…the Farm-to-Table movement […]
Apple Hill Hidden Gems: Part 3 So, we’d had a great first day in the Camino / Placerville area with two prior stops at wineries, both absolute finds! Could this day get any better? Well, turns out it it could. We ended up at Jack Russell Farm Brewery because my friend Rich really wanted to […]
Apple Hill Hidden Gems: Part 2 Our next stop is Lava Cap Winery and it was both a surprise and delight. The tasting room was more of what we’re used to seeing with personal and local nuances reflecting the earthy and artististic feel of the Jones Family. The volcanic-rich soil is perfect for grapes and […]
Apple Hill Hidden Gems: Part 1 “Let’s go to Apple Hill.” Rich and I have known each other since our Napa High days back in the late 70s and early 80s. Our birthdays are five days apart, my own falling on September 1st and his on September 6th. We’re both Napa Valley natives, who are […]
Apple Hill Hidden Gems: Part 4 Back in the late 1980s I was wooed and won by hard apple cider, in England, Minnesota, and Washington state. What started for me as a Tolkien-inspired libation, which I deeply enjoyed while playing Tolkien-inspired Old-School Dungeon & Dragons (don’t judge, it was hella fun!). this novel inspiration morphed […]
Captured Fragrance: G.E. Massenez Poire-Williams Prisonnière, An Unexpected Elegance from European Alchemical Traditions I first encountered French Pear Brandy back in 1994. It was served to me slipped into chamomile tea as someone’s grandmother’s secret vice. As I held this gently steaming cup of tea, the fragrance wisping up was a pure headiness of floral fruity […]
Farmstead Restaurant – Does it Live up From Farm to Table? So, we’d been to Farmstead at Long Meadow Ranch (LMR) once before and we really enjoyed the rich, ripe flavor of the food and meats, the actual farming of our food right on the premise, or there abouts, and the outside patio bar area that […]
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