a cottage & a segway.

I have you intrigued, yes? After a few wonderful nights at Beltane, & one strange night in the gay capital of the Russian River Valley (seeking tasty California sparkling wine at Korbel but alas, they were closed on new years. what champagne maker is closed on new years? honestly?) we ventured to the motherland of cabs: The Napa Valley.

Not only was I jazzed about the jam packed valley of yummy wine & food, but I couldn't wait for our accommodations at Cottages of Napa Valley. The cottages did not dissappoint. A perfectly appointed cottage for two complete with a pretty amazing selection of relaxing CDs, a yummy bottle of Domanie Chandon, a heated bathroom floor (wish list for one day honey!), a big comfy bed, & the piece de resistance....a basket of Bouchon Bakery goodies delivered every morning outside your door with a copy of The New York Times (none of that west coast nonsense.) If you're thinking of planning a trip to wine-country I would highly suggest checking into the cottages. {Cottage #5...until we meet again!}

_________________________

Whilst in the Napa Valley we decided to brave a semi-misty day for a special treat. (You're thinking couples massage aren't you?) You're wrong. SEGWAYS!

The hubs and I did Segway Napa's tour of Yountville. We wore hideous vests & helmets. We cruised some vineyards. We saw some happy California cows longhorns. My 6'8" husband crashed. We drank some wine & were extremely cheesy ate some cheese. It was awesome.

{happy California longhorns. they should use these guys in their commercials}

My only wish was that the Calistoga tour had been available when we were there. Why? We could have segwayed to see this:

California's Old Faithful Gyser. Lamesauce by foot. (could have been) Awesome by segway.

Vino, Vino, Vino!

{the view from atop Jericho Canyon's vineyard}

The real reason you travel to Northern California? The wine! Having 7 nights in Sonoma & Napa allowed us to pace ourselves & taste some really excellent wine. Please dis-regard the order of my photos, the loader was not cooperating with me this morning! Here's where we visited:

Sonoma Proper, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast, & Russian River Valley:

+ Mayo Family Vineyards+

+Sonoma Coutrer+

Fabulous Chardonnay (from a girl who doesn't really like Chardonnay) & Pinot Noir. All around fabulous experience. Call ahead and schedule a tour, it really is worth it!

+Selby+

+Ferrari Carino+

+David Coffaro+

A small little off the beaten path laid back winery in the dry creek region north of Healdsburg with fabulous wine. Don't let the "ambiance" throw you off, the tasting room is a garage filled with barrels! Excellent Zins.

+Hawke+

Enjoyed this tasting room right in Sonoma proper. Great Cabs!

+Rossler+

Another good one right in Sonoma. Very nice Pinot Noir.

+Schug+

Napa Valley:

+Chateau Montelena+

I hadn't heard of the movie "Bottle Shock" before visiting here, but if you like wine you should definitely check it out! Beautiful winery & surrounding gardens, even in the winter!

+Jessup Vineyards+

Tasting room & art gallery right in Yountville was a favorite of mine. I loved every wine they poured which is rare! (another plus, we went here via segway!)

+Hall+

+Del Dotto+

Over the top (decor wise) winery with caves, but they had great wine & were super friendly and allowed us a barrel tasting, which was very interesting!

+Cakebread+

I'm going to be honest, I was really excited to go here as I thought they were one of my favorites. Neither one of us was very impressed and thought we had much better wine elsewhere.

+Sinskey+

Enjoyed their organic wines with a very nice "pairing" tasting plate of cheese & other goodies!

+Judd's Hill+

Off the beaten path and one of our favorites. Very small operation but very nice wine!

+Saint Supery+

I bought a tour & tasting package off of Gilt City and was pleasantly surprised by their wine & the tour. Very informative with a wonderful tour guide!

+Frog's Leap+

By far one of our favorites. Loved the who operation from their Leed Certified tasting room/office to their re-purposed barn turned winery. You need an appointment but the tour & tasting are totally worth it! Plus, their grapes are organically grown!

+Jericho Canyon+

Way off the beaten path near Calistoga. Call & make an appointment, the view is worth it & the wine's were one of Thomas's favorites!

{frog's leap winery}

{i wish my office view was like this!}


{2010 sauvignon blanc chilling in the stainless tanks}

{even during the winter, it's beautiful!}

{del dotto}

{Jessup Cellars tasting ... action shot!}

{chateau montelena}

{"crazy good cabs" that we thought here so-so. beautiful winery though!}

{must break for beer every once in a while! new years day we headed to the Russian River Brewing Company in Santa Rosa for a little craft brew & football on a rainy day. Interesting beers, some of which had been fermented in old wine barrels!}

{sonoma cutrer. good wine = happy people}

{where the magic happens}

{award winning croquet courts at Sonoma Cutrer. So beautiful!}

We were pleasantly surprised by visiting wine country off season while the grapes are dormant. There were still plenty of people around but we got some VIP treatment that probably wouldn't have happened in the summer or during crush when people visit in droves. We had lots of private behind the scenes trips into the cellars and lots of hands on explanation of the process & what we were tasting. We learned alot & found off season to be the perfect time for us! (Plus, there were plenty of fireplaces that we got to cozy up next to!)

Up next:

the food & other fun!

the ranch + my ultimate city slicker moment {sonoma}

Wednesday after Christmas the Mr. & I jetted across the country to California for a 7 night honeymoon in the wine country! After a plane change in Houston, we arrived just in time for a late lunch in San Francisco!

Our rental pimpin' chariot (the lovely folks at Enterprise decided that since it was our honeymoon they would switch our assigned grandma ride Mercury Grand Marquis, for a rapper inspired Chrystler 300) awaited and took us into San Fran for a yummy & quick lunch at the Fog City Diner.

Over the Golden Gate Bridge and to Sonoma County we went!

Upon the suggestion of T&L magazine's "Best Kept Secret" we checked into The Beltane Ranch for 3 nights as our home while we scouted out all that Sonoma has to offer. As we checked in the proprietor had warm ginger cookies just coming our of the oven. I think I ate the whole jar a dozen myself!

The Beltane was exactly what we wanted. A cozy & quite beautiful spot to rest after a day of exploring with a fabulously amazing farm fresh breakfast (have you ever heard of brushing bacon with brown sugar? pure decadence) cooked for you each morning. If you're looking for modern spa like amenities, this is not the spot for you. If you're looking to get away from it all & see one amazing night sky, & don't mind old house quirks, it's your place!

{the beltane truck. alot cooler than our ride.}

{aforementioned perfect ginger cookies. i've got to find that recipe!}


{yep, Julia & Paul Child stayed there. good enough for me!}

{the fresh board: we had eggs, spinach, persimmons, & onions while we were there. i'd love to be there in the summer!}

{after years of selling their grapes to some of the big guys in Napa, 2009 ushered in the first vintage of Beltane vino! can't wait for our shipment to arrive.}

{so green & beautiful! a plus of hitting up winecounty not during growing season}

{might not have been season for grapes but it was olive season! olives, olives, everywhere!}

{the beautiful ranch house as seen from the pasture, just prior to my ultimate city slicker moment}


After breakfast on a chilly morning we decided to follow the path down to visit with the youngster Clydesdale's that live on the ranch. Now you see I am a horse lover and have been since I was about 6 years old. I like to think I know my way a barn & a pasture. I eagerly frolicked out towards the pasture off the paved path to greet the on-their-way-to-being-humongous-creatures with a morning pat and

squish.

You see, January is rainy season in wine country. The tall vibrantly green grass is deceiving and doesn't shout "hey there's sinking mud under here!" I quickly sank up to my ankles in cold squishy mud in my black patent Revas.

Dressed for a day of wine tasting? yes. For a day at the ranch? no.

Rescued with a piggy back ride back to our room from my lovely husband where my feet were heated up in the claw foot bath-tub & my flats rinsed of the sludge. Oh what a city slicker I felt like!

{post mud-sink. i'm barefoot in the pasture. sidenote: winter white jackets & adolescent giant horses are about as compatible as tb flats for ranch life, just so you know.}

After my poor showing I decided to try again the next morning. Wellies are much more suitable.

{think pete would like a big brother?}

And just because I can, a few more photos for your viewing pleasure.

Still to come, vino, vino, more adventures, & napa!

In a month ...

In about a month you will find us here:

Visitng lots of these:

We'll be generally enjoying life and our 3-month-delayed honeymoon.

Now here's your part:

Been to Northern California? Have a favorite restaurnt/dive/hotspot you recommend? Is there a favorite winery tour that should be on our "must taste" list?

Got any other great tips?

We are open to any and all suggestions, will be there a week, and will be splitting our time between Napa Valley, Sonoma Valley, & the Russian River Valley.