Wetstone Winery

As you can imagine there are tons of winery we have never heard of, or knew they existed… Wetstone Winery is one of them. Located in an old French style mansion, the winery has walls covered with ivy, amazing architectural features, like arches that provide a gateway to the breathtaking view and a gorgeous solarium where we were lucky enough to have lunch with the owner Jamie.

She and her husband have devoted their lives to promote culture in the valley, members of the film festival and harvest festivities, they provided a formidable experience that will be hard to forget!

The food was exception, home made paninis, goat cheese salad with arugula and apricots, and of course their silk wine! My personal favorite, pinot noir, needless to say we instantly became members of their wine club and now enjoy their amazing wine.

Caldwell Winery

Since our first trip to Napa a few years back, my husband and I have fallen in love with the region and it’s amazing hotels/wineries/resorts/spas… you name it!

Our most memorable visit so far has been at the Caldwell Cottage; it was my husband’s birthday weekend and through a Houston Ballet charity auction we acquire a 4 night stay at this amazing vineyard. We were not very familiar with the place or the wine they produce, but we quickly became mesmerized by it all.

Amazing breakfast, fresh eggs and french baguette

Vintage nutcracker, scale and spice jars.

For starters the cottage is located in the top of a small hill, overlooking the valley. Inside two cute bedrooms, with access to the wrapping terrace. The house is tastefully decorated, very Napa chic, tons of wood, very minimal decoration, the kitchen small, but with a gas 1940’s stove and oven, matching refrigerator and an amazing collection of vintage cast iron pots, pans and appliances! Dream come true!

John Cladwell 

The next morning to start our day of wine tastings, we visited Caldwell’s cava, met John Caldwell himself, had an amazing time talking and learning not only about his wine but how he got his grapes into the country… (you will have to ask him yourself to hear the story!) but it was unbelievable.

I imagine he talks about wine all day long, that he was more interested on asking us about oil and gas, drilling, fracking and Texas! He mentioned that 40% of his production is sold in Texas, and his most famous and common wine named Rocket Science is the “only” wine served in Nasa events! Truly an amazing guy, of course we over extended our visit for 2 hours, tasted 13 wines instead of the regular 7… and just like that my husbands’ birthday could have not started in a better way!

We would definitely go back to the winery for a tour, taste and stay! You can visit their website to become members of their wine club, and enjoy some of the most amazing ports I have ever sipped! 

http://www.caldwellvineyard.com

"G" is for Great!

While in Napa this last week Daniel and I had an opportunity to enjoy a gourmet dinner cooked in our cottage by Chef Gary and a wine pairing hosted by Garret owner and wine maker G Wines, limited quantities of an amazing quality wine! We started our culinary adventure with the Sauvignon Blanc chilled to perfection that matched our potato croquette with pickled shrimp in a light creamy sauce... Cooked to perfection, an amazing balance between silky mashed potatoes and a shrimp lightly marinated with home made mayonnaise and green onions sauce. Of course we had to enjoy our bite in the terrace overlooking the valley, it was just too spectacular to pass! 

 

Before we got too comfy dinner started in the main dinning area, we were surprised by two main courses:

Deep fried chicken breast inside out! I know it sound very very ordinary, but I happen to able to see how it was prepared and Chef Gary had the meats in a pot filled with warm water and a pump that kept the water's temperature rising to keep the meat from spoiling and maintain the juices in a way that when cooked the temperature change will not be as shocking, I know what you are thinking: "yea, right"... but trust me it has been the juiciest chicken I have ever tried! It was served with mashed fennel and sprinkled with it's own juices, just superb!

The second entre, was a petite filet cooked to perfection! It was seared in butter over the stove and finished in the burning hot oven for a couple of minutes! Again this meat went through the same process of maintaining the temperature through the cooking progress. We had mustard puree and pickled cucumbers that were to die for! Of course nothing but the best for their gold label wine! We finished our evening with a delicate coconut demiglace topped with dried mangos, just perfect!!

If you are in Napa and you are thinking to plan a special night please give them a call, they can set something cute for you, also they are relocating their tasting room and gourmet kitchen services into the Stagg's Leap region... Their website is still under construction, but you can send them an email for information and availability, we are new members of their wine club, we can not pass the opportunity to get our hands into non-commercial wines!