Wine Country - Napa and Sonoma

I couldn't leave the Bay Area without a visit to the wine country. Charles, Kevin and I chose the most beautiful of sunny days last week to take the short drive north from Marin to Napa and Sonoma. Our first stop was the French Chateau winery of Domaine Carneros/Tattinger, in the heart of the Carneros region

of Napa county (Yountville). They are famous for their sparkling

wines, so it was a perfect way to start the day. We ate on a tasty

selection of perfectly matched cheeses, fruit and toasts while sipping our selection of outstanding sparkling wines. We then traveled west to Sonoma county to check out a few much smaller boutique wineries. Our next stop was Loxton Cellars near the Kenwood region. When we arrived, we were the only ones there (a much different experience than at Domaine Carneros).

This provided for a very intimate learning experience with the owner/winemaker Chris Loxton,

an Australian brought up on a Shiraz vineyard in South Australia. Chris' focus is mainly ultra-premium Syrah and Zinfandel wines in a very limited production. What a treat to taste (and buy) some of the best wine I have ever had and to be able to spend an hour talking and learning about how Chris makes his wine. The tasting room was right in the small garage where the wine barrels sit, so we were able to walk around among his future offerings.

Our next stop was next door to Wellington Vineyards where we tasted more Zinfandel and other reds. We couldn't get out of there without purchasing more wine too :o). Our last two stops were also in the Kenwood region - Muscardini Cellars, a double gold award winning winery and Ty Caton Vineyards. We thank our dear friend Charles for being the designated driver for our wine country adventure. Next time, the driving is on me!