Saturday September 21, Napa

Woke to a grey day and rain this morning, evidently not good for the “crush” (the grape harvest) which is in full swing in the valley at the moment, but by early afternoon it had cleared and the sun came out again.

We had a great day with Pam showing us around parts of Napa, still can’t get over how big this grape growing area is, and what a hugely popular destination it is for tourists, especially during September and October when the crush is on. Guess it was extra busy today being a weekend, but the traffic was really heavy and most of the wineries were full to over flowing with visitors. Luckily we had a local “guide” who knew exactly where to go and which roads to take which were a bit quieter.

Our first stop this morning was the Hess Winery on Mt Veeder to see the Hess Art Collection which is housed in over 3 floors of the winery. Donald Hess began collecting art in 1966 and evidently focuses on collecting art from 20 living artists, a very contemporary collection which I really enjoyed seeing, some brilliant pieces. A great start to the day. Pam took us up Mt Veeder on tree lined roads that reminded us of New England, the leaves are just starting to colour up.

Then it was back down to the valley…and the traffic. Pam had wanted to take us to lunch at a winery but they were all so busy, in the end we stopped at a little Mexican restaurant and the food was great.

The next stop was the Goose Cross Winery for a tasting where Pam knows the staff, we walked through the vats into the tasting area, it was great. Then onto Mason Cellars, a tasting room in downtown Napa, great wine and a lot of fun with another one of Pam’s friends doing the tasting for us. We kept thinking how would we have managed getting around here with Ruakiwi….guess after a short while in the thick traffic with no parking we would have left town without experiencing the real Napa.

It was late afternoon before we got home and Pam’s family had arrived for dinner, it was so good to be part of the gathering and to meet everyone….it has been a great day, except once again all racing was cancelled for the America’s Cup….the waiting continues.

Dinner with Pam and family

…and Sunday September 22

Another wonderful day in Napa being tourists with Pam. Sorry running late with the blog, too busy socialising and just a few photos!!! And feeling a bit frustrated with the racing again today and still we are trying to get a win. Another day tomorrow.