Friday 5ive- Napa Valley Visit

Welcome to the Friday 5ive, a weekly-ish post featuring five things that caught my attention this week. There was no post last week because I was in Napa Valley for our biennial trip to wine country. We always have a great time there, with excellent food and wine. It was very hot there (like everywhere else in the country), so we spent a lot of time poolside.

1) The scenery in Napa is just beautiful, filled with mountains and vineyards and gorgeous flowers. 

Outside Clos du Val Winery

The pagoda at Chateau Montelena

The view of Opus One Winery's vineyards

2)  We had some amazing meals in Napa, including the pizza at Ciccio, which was a big hit with everyone. We always put that restaurant on our list when we are in Napa. 

At Stag's Leap Wine Cellars we partook in their Summer 2023 Cellarius Kitchen Experience, where Executive Chef Travis Westrope created a four course luncheon for us. I liked the West Coast Corn Dog, which was filled with shredded tiger prawn with a delicious plum sauce on top, and served with a plum and cucumber sunomono (a Japanese salad) on the side. 

3) The highlight of our trip is always the Del Dotto Barrels and Beasts Dinner. Their winery is so incredible, and this year we were once again able to go into their caves and taste wines directly from the barrel. The dinner was so elegant, with passed hors d'oerves (caviar on top of an everything seasoned sable with smoked sturgeon mousse, pork belly spiedinis, and lamb chops), hamachi tartare with fresh diced peaches and marcona almonds and the highlight of the meal, a Cape Cod Bay Scallop on top of the tastiest corn pudding. They had entertainment from three members of the San Francisco Opera and a DJ wrapped up the evening with a $20 song- "Sweet Caroline". It's always unforgettable (unless you drank too much of the wine-LOL).

4) On our last evening in Napa we visited Mustard's Grill, recommended to us by more than one person. Perusing the most extensive wine list we've ever seen at a restaurant, we found a Pinot Noir from a winery named LaRue. Of course we had to try it and it was wonderful. We even brought the empty bottle home.

5) When we returned home, we took a helicopter ride back to NYC from JFK airport from Blade. It was pretty cool, flying over the Statue of Liberty and it only took 10 minutes to get back to the city (when it would usually take nearly an hour in traffic). I wish they landed on the East side because it took me almost an hour to get from the West side to the East side in an Uber. But it was still pretty cool.

I hope you can stay cool in this heat. Until next time.

Friday 5ive - September 24, 2021

Welcome to the Friday 5ive, a weekly(ish) post about five things that caught my attention this week. We visited Napa last week, so this week's Friday 5ive is an all-Napa edition.

1) We had planned on taking a hot air balloon ride there, but the weather didn't cooperate for us. However, on our way to the airport to go back home, we saw this beautiful sight- balloons being blown up and some already in the air.

2)  If any of you are familiar with Thomas Keller's famous restaurant, The French Laundry, in Yountville, our hotel was nearby and we wandered through his huge garden where he grows produce for his three restaurants in town. It's beautfully laid out, we saw all kinds of lettuce, peppers, zucchini, pumpkins, and they even have chickens on site for the eggs.

3) We had a special lunch at Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, where the chef paired a wonderful four course meal with lovely wines. The most beautifully presented dish was dessert- a Bakewell tart with figs and a homemade basil gelato. It was all delicious.

4) We visited Chateau Montelena, and if anyone has seen the movie Bottleshock with Alan Rickman, you'll recognize the stunning exterior of the chateau. Our taste guide Michael gave us an interesting history of the winery, and of course we bought wine to send home. 

5) The reason we made the trip was to attend a VIP dinner at Del Dotto Vineyards, and that was so spectacular. The building is beautiful, and the last time we were there, we were able to tour the caves and taste wine right from the barrel. The food was amazing,  and they had singers from the San Francisco Opera perform during dessert. It was a magical evening.

Looking into the wine caves

It was a fabulous trip and next week, I may share more with you. In the meantime, stay safe.

This post was shared on Weekend Cooking hosted by Marg at The Intrepid Reader. You can find more Weekend Cooking posts here.