No time for a Napa in California's wine country!
You know a dedicated shopper, when even after 17 hours of combined travel time, and an hour into the road trip - you find a premium outlet shopping centre and find the energy to pull in and spend the afternoon finding bargains to fill up your suitcase before you even unpack them! This may have also been due to the fast that we were in need of a well-earned break after having to brave the rules of international driving. Granted - it was mum doing the driving part. But as a passenger, I think I suffered more grey hairs (and sadly there was no bar at the factory outlets to cure this!).
Using some preprinted google maps, we found our way fairly easily to downtown Napa. The drive their from San Fran airport is actually fairly easy (and about an hour and half long if you get good traffic). Making your way 7 minutes down the road to Yountville - turned out to be the more difficult part of the day! Following what we thought was the ’29’, pretty rapidly turned into a dusty road surrounded by nothing but vineyards. Not a bad way to get lost…but unless someone else is turning those grapes into liquid for us, then it isn’t ideal either!
After a wise group decision to do a U-turn, we found a sign that said 'Wine Tastings', and thought it would be a good opportunity for us to refuel (ourselves) and ask for directions. Keep in mind - it isn’t cheap to get lost in Napa. Wine tastings here are around the $20 mark, just to have a few sips. And the chances are they taste so good that you also can’t leave without a bottle…which will also pull on the purse strings. Our stop off was at the very beautiful Montecillo Vineyards - just off of Big Ranch Road. The gardens here are the perfect setting to take in your first few moments realising you’re lucky enough to be in Napa. And the wines are just as complimentary! $55 later and I was slightly buzzed and holding the right directions to be on the road again (shout out to the designated driver at this point).
Within a few minutes we pulled into Yountville. Described by one local as ‘it’s like Disneyland in wine country’… and he wasn’t wrong! One long road (Washington Street), kept pristinely clean and with perfect gardens the entryée way along, is the main hub of Yountville. A quick stop past the window of the real estate agent will soon prove what an affluent area this is - with 3 bedroom houses sitting around the 2.8 million mark (and that’s USD!). We might have to hold off a few years yet till we think about a holiday home in the vineyards...
We chose to spend 2 nights at The North Block hotel, and we’re warmly greeted with two glasses of complimentary Chandon as we checked in. These guys sure know how to win me over. Now keep in mind if you want to save on pennies you may be better off staying just outside of Yountville. There are plenty of other areas close by that will do your holiday budget more favours, but if you only have a couple of nights - and you can spring for it… this is the place to really get taste of Napa (and be in walking distance or a short bike ride from plenty of wineries). The North Block is located right on Washington Street, and each room is set around a main courtyard - feeling very much like you’re staying in a French chateau. The staff are wonderful, the beds are heaven, and the bathrooms are huge (with what I call ‘Carwash Showers’ - the sort that have too many options and water coming at you from all angles. In a good way.)
Now that we’ve tasted the wines, and tested the bed, it’s time to see what this place offer out taste buds can… stay tuned.