Got a big breakfast down since we're going to be having some wine in the early hours of the day. Some carbs is needed and this pancake definitely left me full enough and ready to taste some Cali wine.
We went for GreyLines' Deluxe Sonoma and Napa Valley Wine Country Tour, three tickets, onto the bus and off we went to drink ourselves out. Today's Forecast: 99% Chance of Wine.
From the cold breeze of San Francisco, to the hot and sunny land of Napa Valley. Interesting how the weather seemed to have changed in just a bus ride.
I have never heard of any of the three wineries we went to, and it was my first wine tour too so wasn't sure what to expect. First thing our bus driver told us was, just remember to come back to the bus on time, or he will leave any drunkies behind. There were many laughs and a newly wedded couple from England sat in front of me had that nervous laugh instead. Needless to say, they were a lovely couple.
Nicholson Ranch was the first destination for our first taste of Chardonnay, personally, I was not a fan of this Chardonnay, or at least I know I'm picky with white wine. When it contains high in sulphite, all I get from it is a massive headache, which was what I got from this.
After seeing a few tourists on the same bus purchasing their share of wine in cases, we headed to the next stop, Madonna Estates. A slightly different take to the tour, instead of just looking at the vineyard, we go to have a glimpse of barrels of wine row after another. Didn't get to see much apart from that... slightly disappointed we weren't able to see the true process of the wine making in California.
The three bottles above from left to right are :
Barbera | California 2012
Barbera | California 2012
Dolcetto | Carneros 2012
Merlot | Carneros 2009
They are not bad as a table wine however, personally, I'm not a fan of the taste of high alcohol content. Spirits and hard liqueur are different.
After tasting the wine from Madonna Estate, we stopped by in Yountville for a spot of lunch. Our bus driver recommended this place, Pacific Blues Cafe which most of us ended up going to. With a glorious day out, there's no questioning when it came to sitting outdoors under the shade too.
Spicy Chicken Wings | Tri-Coloured Black Bean Nachos | Baby Spinach Salad | Chef's Cobb Salad
Some ice teas to cool down from the heat too. When I checked back on the menus, there weren't any prices on it... weird. The food was great though! The portion sizes were slightly bigger than the ones we've seen in San Francisco too.
After lunch, and a little bit of time left before hoping back onto the bus, we went around the shops to see what there were to offer. Apart from wine related products, I managed to get myself an ice cream to cool down and hit that sweet tooth of mine.
One of my favorites which I saw at the shop. It's the wine eye test after you've had the few glasses. After finishing the ice-cream and back on the bus again, the last vineyard we went to was Sutter Home.
At our arrival, we were greeted by the one of the Trinchero family members who still owns and runs the winery.
White Zinfandel, it's called white but this wine is a rose.
Hate to say that I was pretty annoyed with the glass that wasn't polished properly...
I'm honestly haunted by by old job... but my friends say this can be a good and bad thing.
I'm honestly haunted by by old job... but my friends say this can be a good and bad thing.
I'll just have to take their word for it.
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| The Family House still lived by the Trinchero Family |
Heading back to San Francisco was a long journey back.
Time to pack and leave soon.
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