California, Here We Were!

Nothing like stretching out a vacation for an extra month, right?   But it's not like I did it on purpose.   You see, I had a bit of a distraction with a snake in my yard.  And then I had to go eat some pie.   Now that all those fun distractions are out of the way.... I can finish talking about my vacation.

As I have mentioned previously, our California trip was essentially split into two halves: Wine Country and San Francisco.  The pro: we got to see two awesome places.  The con: we did not see near enough of each place!  I have already summarized, in great detail, the three days spent wine tasting.

Since we were California -and therefore San Francisco- newbies, Michael wisely decided to book us a bus tour upon arrival in the City By the Bay.   But, Michael being Michael, he found a deal on Groupon for a new tour company that uses a small (think airport shuttle van) bus that gets to the standard tour stops, but also takes guests to many more fun, out of the way places.   It was a blast.   The photo below was taken in a little turn around between Twin Peaks and Mount Sutro, near a ginormous cell tower.   Despite the low clouds (aka fog) it was a great view.

In four hours we saw pretty much all the main San Francisco tourist spots, from Alamo Square (Full House picnic spot)

 to the Golden Gate Bridge (across the bay, too!) 

from Haight-Ashbury (notice the clock is set to 4:20!)

to Union Square

If you are planning a trip to San Francisco, I highly recommend the tour company, City by the Bay Tours.  Our driver, Jason, was a riot, and was very knowledgable about the city.  And!   He had a soundtrack.   Cheesy?   Perhaps.  But I liked hearing "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay" in the morning, and then driving back over the bridge to "I Left My Heart in San Francisco"

We actually did quite a bit of exploring on our own aside from the guided tour... more on that next time.   I should be able to conclude the trip by the end of May!

California Dreamin' (Drinkin) Part Four

I'm taking awhile to do this, and for that I apologize.   I figure at the very least the next time we go I will have a fantastic record of what we did!   Anyway, you're surprised we have not suffered cirrhosis of the liver aren't you?   Truly, we did not drink that much each day.  We shared tastings and dumped out the wine we didn't like or just got sick of drinking.  Don't judge until you are on winery #5 and you have already tasted 30 wines.

In addition to offering some tasty wines, nearly all of the wineries we visited offered spectacular views and settings.   A few favorite photos are below.   Yes, folks, it was WINDY on Monday.

After an epic downpour that morning, the sun came out at Plumpjack.  So naturally I made Michael stand in among the grapes and take a photo

In addition to having a cute name, Plumpjack also featured this cute bench outside their front door.  And!  Can I please point out my gold flats?  I am obsessed.  How have I lived without them so long?

While waiting for our drunk tour guide (for real) at Beringer I did manage to take some artsy shots like this one.

After our sit-down wine tasting at Saintsbury.  Such a cute place- a bit of a shabby chic winery

Side note: Am I the only person whose nose gets sunburned not in Florida, but in Northern California during what appeared to be monsoon season?  What gives?

Standing on top of the hill- more like a mountain- at Artesa

And when we change direction, my hair blows into my face.  I have a sinking suspicion Justin Bieber circa 2010 had a similar issue whilst performing in London

Domaine Carneros was unique in that the wine was served at tables for two, and offered cheese plates!  Delicious and a fantastic way to eat lunch..... before you eat lunch.  

Matanzas Creek was one of my favorite stops.   First of all, it looked like a tree house.  Secondly, the setting was so gorgeous I am pretty sure I would be happy living in an actual tree house on property.

If the tree house situation weren't enough, they grow lavender!   Acres of it- and it smells amazing.  This is a teeny tiny portion of it

It poured all day during our last traipse through wine country.   No seriously.   We're talking inches of rain in Sonoma.  I still managed to get my J picture, though.  Umbrella and all!  I think I should have gotten a discount since, I, too, am a J.

California Dreamin' (Drinkin) Part Three

If you don't care about wine you might as well just stop reading now.   But I figure the next time we go to Napa we might want to know what we did!   Hence the detailed blog entry.

A memorable experience came at Saintsbury which had, not a bar, but what essentially looked like a farmhouse table.

See?  Table and chairs.  You could be getting ready for a pancake breakfast.  Except for, you know, the wine bottles.

The winery is by appointment only which at first I thought was really snobby.   Seriously?  We can't just show up whenever we want?  We have to get there at the stroke of 10?   Michael wisely scheduled this winery for 10 am so we could be punctual to start our day, but then visit the remaining stops at whatever pace suited us.   Ten points Gryffindor.

Our experience here again shows that I should not snap to judgement.  We walked in and it was just us, and the wine expert.  I am kicking myself that I do not remember her name.  She sat down with us, told us the history of the winery (its owners have remained the same since the 70s!) and explained, in detail, the wines we tasted.  It was quite charming, and a bit rustic feeling, but I liked the authenticity.

The wines were mostly Pinot Noirs, which were a welcome change from the IN YOUR FACE CABERNETS we tasted in Napa.  Trust me the use of all caps is warranted.  She mentioned the vineyards the grapes came from, and how their proximity to the valley or mountains, or whether they faced east or west affected the variety of grape, but also the wine.  Who knew?  It's quite comfortable to sit at a table alone with the wine expert and ask anything you'd like.  Your feet get a rest, there are no groups of women in pink feather boas (truth be told I didn't see much of that in California.   Must be a summer upstate thing), and since you are sitting and talking and being all casual, you don't really think about what you are doing.   This leads to breaking out the AmEx and buying a boatload of delicious wine, as you might imagine.  Who wouldn't want to relive the fun sit-down wine tasting by drinking favorites a year (or more!  Reds have aging potential!) from now?

In addition to thoroughly enjoying our personalized, private, seated wine tasting, I enjoyed Sainsbury for the restroom.   It was not a fancy bathroom, or anything special or memorable about the room itself.   What I loved was this sign.   The funniest part of all is the photo was obviously taken in that exact bathroom based on the floor, wall color, etc.   If ever there was a reason to close the lid!  

California Dreamin' Part Two (aka California Drinking)

In case you couldn't tell from the previous post, the first portion of our trip was, really, all about wine.

Before moving to Ithaca in 2010 I hadn't had much wine.  Sure I'd have a glass if someone had opened a bottle, but I didn't know much about it apart from reds are darker (duh) and served at a warmer temperature and in bigger glasses than white.  Nothing revelatory.

In addition to providing me with a job and Michael with a fancy pants Ivy League degree, Ithaca provided us with wine knowledge.  Due to its less that hospitable frigid climate, the varietals are limited.  California has no such restrictions.   And let me tell you we tried a lot of them!

When you visit 5 wineries a day here's what happens:  You taste a lot of wine.   Your taste buds start to go numb.  (Can taste buds go numb?  They stop working is what I mean)  You dump out a lot of wine.  You find wines you like and want to take them home with you.   All the while, you are standing at a long bar with many other people in various states of drunkenness.  

Our first day was spent in Napa.  We only made it to 4 wineries (epic fail!  We missed Frog's Leap) but we did get a fun tour of Beringer.  It's the oldest continually operated winery in the country.  Turns out when you make wine for medicinal and religious purposes during Prohibition, you can stay open.  What can I say?   The owners were German.  We are a resourceful lot who does enjoy a drink.   Good job Frederick.

We took a fun little tour of the winery and saw what would have been in place in the late 1800s.  Very cool.  The photos didn't turn out great, but you can sort of get a feel for the cavernous area.  They hand carved this tunnel over a period of several years.  It's huge!

The 'free wine tasting' on the tour was abysmal.  I actually dumped out my Riesling.  Let me say that again.  I dumped out my Riesling.  I am not sure that I have ever done that before in my life.  It was awful.  

The tour was fun, but the wine they gave was so not fun.  And, to make things more interesting, our tour guide was drunk.   I swear.  Not like falling down and slurring your speech drunk, but she was happy and a wee bit tipsy.  It's a good thing it was a walking tour and not a bus tour.

The grounds of Beringer were gorgeous.  I shall now post a slew of photos from the winery, and use another post to describe other wine highlights.