Napa Valley news Archives - Wine Country Getaways

Napa Valley Travel News

June 23, 2014 by Joe Becerra

All the Napa Valley travel news that’s fit to make your Napa Valley wine country getaway a good stay.

St.Helena Shuttle

Did you know that the town of St. Helena has a shuttle service? This shuttle service works slightly different than the Calistoga shuttle that we mentioned in a previous article on our blog. During the week, the St. Helena shuttle offers a fixed route, but the service is also available “on demand.” Travelers must call during business hours to secure their pickup. The shuttle runs until 11 pm on Friday and Saturdays. Weekdays, the shuttle service ends at 6 pm. If you are staying within the city limits of St.Helena, you can call the shuttle and arrange a pickup and drop off. It is $1 per person each way. What a deal. Shuttle Information

New St. Helena Restaurant

The Farmer and the Fox is open for dinner. The restaurant is north of St. Helena, maybe a mile or so beyond the Culinary Center. It is tucked away on the left as you drive towards Calistoga. The area used to be an outlet center. Now it is the Cairdean Estate. We have not eaten at the restaurant, but peeked inside, and the place looks very inviting. Reservations are recommended and can be made by calling 707-302-5701 or at Farmer & Fox Website. The restaurant is open daily from 5 to 10 pm. The bar features 8 wines on tap, 8 beers on tap, and imaginatively-crafted artisanal cocktails. The executive Chef is Joseph Humphrey, well known for his days at Auberge du Soleil and The Restaurant at Meadowood

Farmer and the Fox in St. Helena

Cooking Series at HALL Wines

Hall Wines in Rutherford will conduct a cooking series led by culinary expert David Katz. Each series will provide a unique look at pairing newly-released HALL Wines with the best of Napa’s artisan products and fresh, seasonal produce. Here are the sessions at Hall Rutherford. Information David Katz.

Summer 2014: July 17th, 5-7pm, $115 per person, $100/HALL Members

“Pizza on the Patio”

Pizza is an obsession in Napa Valley for good reason. With the flavor, texture and aroma of freshly cooked pizza dough as a starting point, we can find beautiful partners for a broad pallet of wines. Learn how to make perfect pizza dough by hand, and taste simple combinations that sing with HALL Wines. These recipes will showcase local summer produce, artisan cheeses, fresh fish, and meats.

Fall 2014: Sept. 25th, 5-7pm, $115 per person, $100/HALL Members

“Harvest Season Hors d’Oeuvre”

Harvest season brings some of our favorite local foods to the table. We’ll turn this bounty into hors d’oeuvre and antipasti that pair beautifully with selected HALL Wines, and discuss the complement and contrast that give wine and food pairing texture and interest.

Winter 2014: December 4th, 5-7pm, $115 per person, $100/HALL Members

“Holiday Entertaining”

Sit down to four small-plates that showcase holiday-season entertaining ideas with HALL Wines. We’ll taste a vegetarian soup, fish, fowl and meat courses, as we explore the critical roles of body and acidity in wine and food pairing.

New Restaurant to Open in Napa

CADET will open in downtown Napa on July 2^nd at the location between First street and Franklin Alleys. Colleen Fleming of Kelly Fleming wines in Calistoga and sommelier Aubrey Bailey will collaborate on this restaurant. CADET means “trainee.” The name reflects the idea to try something new each day that reflects something exceptional from California cuisine and beyond.

In addition, CADET will be offering educational classes and other special events such as Industry Nights, Winemaker Events, Ladies’Nights and Community Lunches, where public service professionals such as firemen, school teachers and city workers are celebrated for their contributions to the community.

Bailey states, “Our wine and beer list highlights wines from every region in California, not just the Napa Valley. This is a chance for people–locals and visitors alike–to explore and to discover what else is out there, what the winemakers are drinking, what historic vineyards or grape varieties are being revived, experimental beer making, etc. Basically a reminder of what California has always stood for: diversity.”

Napa Valley Bits & Pieces of Wine News — Folio Leaves Oxbow

April 20, 2010 by Joe Becerra

Michael Mondavi’s venture at the Oxbow Public Market has ended. The Folio Enoteca and Winery quietly pulled out of the Oxbow Market at the end of March. This has to be a major blow to the Oxbow Market and their merchants. No doubt the recession has made it tough on the Oxbow Market but perhaps a greater concern might be its location. The Ferry Building Marketplace in San Francisco owned by the same company is teeming with tourists and visitors on a daily basis.

Buehler Vineyards — Strange Encounters and Other Napa Valley News

March 29, 2010 by Joe Becerra

Spring is here in the Napa Valley, the sun is warm, and many of the vines are alive with recent bud break. It is a very enjoyable time to travel to the Napa Valley. Not only does spring bring tourists to the Valley but other creatures as well. We had just finished tasting some delicious Buehler wines and were on our way to the terrace to enjoy a picnic lunch. There it was basking in the beautiful sunshine, a rather long and ominous looking rattlesnake. John Page Buehler was the first to alert us and then quickly raced into the tasting room and returned with a shovel. Page with his handy long shovel was able to corral the snake and move it away from the picnic area. What a man!

Napa Valley Bits & Pieces of Wine News – Napa Valley Under Attack

March 14, 2010 by Joe Becerra

Last week bad news came on two fronts for Napa. The first came from a Silicon Valley Bank report about a potential swath of Napa wineries on the verge of bankruptcy and land values dropping 15% from their peak in 2007. Then came more bad news with the European grapevine moth on the attack and quarantine orders in place for big portions of the Napa Valley. If that is not bad enough, other wine regions are trying to kick poor Napa Valley when it is down. We keep hearing the same old song when we visit other wine regions about Napa Valley’s overpriced wines finally getting their comeuppance. The truth of the matter is any wine that is currently priced over $20 is going to be a tough sell in 2010. In every wine region we travel, even lonely Lodi, there are many wines priced above the $20 and well beyond, from $40 to $60. All wineries, no matter where, are facing a very tough consumer frugality and need to take a new tack if they want to survive. Now for some pleasant news!

Napa Valley Bits & Pieces of Wine News

December 13, 2009 by Joe Becerra

The biggest news this month is the approval of the Calistoga AVA. This is a huge win for the wineries that garner their grapes from the Calistoga area. Wineries like Chateau Montelena who have vineyards in Calistoga will benefit and be able to use Calistoga on their wine label, provided that 75% of grapes come from the that AVA. Biggest loser is Calistoga Cellars. This winery has been in existence for ten years and has a tasting room in Calistoga but their wines are made from Central Valley vines. The Feds will give them three years to change their name or start making wine from the Calistoga AVA. This ends an approval process that started in 2004.

The Oxbow Public Market will be getting a new tenant. It will be C Casa, a new style Mexican restaurant run by Catherine Bergen, Napa culinary entrepreneur and founder of “Made In Napa Valley.” Out is Rotisario at the end of the year and C Casa will open in its spot in March of 2010. With the economy such as it is and the demise of next-door neighbor Copia, the Oxbow Market so far has not lived up to expectations. We’ve visited on four occasions during the week and on each visit the place has been a bit somber. It was patterned after the San Francisco Ferry Building Marketplace but has yet to replicate its popularity.

Oxbow Public Market

Napa Valley Bits & Pieces of News – October

October 18, 2009 by Joe Becerra

Harvest Ups and Downs
At the annual Napa Valley Vintners Association Harvest Report, jubilant vintners gave glowing reports, touting the 2009 vintage to be perhaps one of the best in recent years. But that report came the day before the big rains of Tuesday, October 13. The Valley had 3 inches of rain in areas and many growers were worried that the heavy rains would cause mold and perhaps ruin this so-called perfect vintage. But then, Mother Nature did an about face and heated things up on Friday. Winemaker Cathy Corison on twitter: “Sun out and 80 degrees. Lots of Cabernet still out in the valley- this should bring it home safe and sound.” But Cathy also reported the challenge was getting tractors into the muddy vineyards to pick grapes.

Napa Valley Bits & Pieces of Wine News – June 15th

June 14, 2009 by Joe Becerra

Amazon Closer to Selling Wine
When New Vine Logistics closed its doors a couple of weeks back many were predicting that Amazon would either drop or have a long delay in launching their plan to sell wine online. Amazon had contracted New Vine Logistics to handle the sales. New Vine Logistics is back and word has it that several key wine industry people (not me, however) have been invited to a sneak preview of the Amazon wine website. For Napa Valley wineries this just might be the help they need to clear building inventory. This is good for the consumer as well, more chances to find the ultimate wine bargain. Wine.woot is cool but Amazon will be fierce competition. My source for this information is from “Tech Flash“.

Events for the Wine Traveler
It is heating up in the Napa Valley with events and happenings scheduled for the summer wine traveler. One of the main attractions is next Saturday evening, June 20th, 6 pm to 10 pm. called the Solarbartion. This event is taking place at the new, chic, and very “green” hotel, the Bardessono in Yountville. Ten solar-powered Napa Valley wineries will be represented. This event features wine tasting, food, and live entertainment.

Napa Valley Vintners Auction
This is old news but articles are still popping up about the auction raising a measly 5.7 million. My reaction: that is a lot of money and not too shabby considering the shellacking most everyone has taken in the stock market and housing market, not to mention how many have been laid off or worked furloughed. Way to go Napa Vintners!

Wine Blogger Conference — Napa Valley Wineries Will Have a Presence.
This is the second annual event for wine bloggers taking place at the Flamingo Hotel in Santa Rosa on July 24 to 26th. At last year’s event, the Napa Valley was a no-show, while wineries from Sonoma County wined and dined the attendees. This year it is a different matter with the Napa Vintners taking the entire group of wine bloggers on a day-long Saturday outing to the Napa Valley that includes a Grand Tasting of Napa wines at Quintessa and dinner served at participating wineries. When the conference is over, the Hall Winery has invited bloggers for a tour and tasting and lunch and has negotiated $99 a night stay at the La Rsidence Inn for July 26, 27.

Wine Traveler Lodging Specials
There are many deals to be had at least through the end of June and maybe longer. I went to six lodging websites and found specials at each one. This includes the Yountville Inn, Villagio Inn, Harvest Inn, and Marriott. However, I have found Internet specials are not always the best deal. Contact the lodging establishment by phone and ask them for the best special they can offer you for your dates of travel.

Napa Valley Bits and Pieces of Wine News

June 1, 2009 by Joe Becerra

Can you Negotiate Wine Prices These Days?
A friend of mine returned from a recent trip to the wine country and told me that he had bargained for a case of wine. He started out by saying He’d take six bottles of a wine when he knew he really wanted a case. Then he added quickly “will you give me a case for whateverâ€¦?” The person agreed and all were happy. Next time you hit a Napa Valley Winery or any winery for that matter, think about giving bargaining a try. It just might work. These are hard times out there for the wine industry and inventories are stacking up. Did you see the story on the Read More »

Napa Valley – Wine News for May

May 14, 2009 by Joe Becerra

On the Economy
I’m hearing on the business news that some economists feel we may have hit the bottom of the recession and will now experience a slow road back to recovery. We are also hearing about more people taking “day vacations.” On a recent trip to the Napa Valley, it was hard to tell if business was getting better. On a Tuesday night, at the Bottega Restaurant we found no signs of a recession. The restaurant has been booked solid nightly since its opening in December. But the next day at Redd it was a different story. The restaurant was much less busy from what we had experienced in the past. By the time we had finished dinner at 9 pm, there were plenty of empty tables and the bar was deserted.

At the Oxbow Public Market on a Wednesday afternoon, the place was absolute dead. Honestly, there were more workers in the market than customers. I wonder whether this place is going to make it. Maybe the weekends are different, but these merchants need a hefty dose of daily customers to make a go of it. We purchased some meats at the Fatted Calf and the merchant told us that things are very slow during the week.

Just outside the entrance to Domain Chandon in Yountville is where one balloon company launches its early morning rides. We were on a morning walk when we spied six balloon rides getting ready to take off. That surely looks like a positive.

Napa Valley – Bits and Pieces of Wine News

November 7, 2008 by Joe Becerra

Chateau Montelena
Here is a bottle shocker. In July Jim Barrett announced that he had sold Chateau Montelena for better than 100 million dollars to a French wine company. Apparently, something went terribly awry and the deal is over, finished. Jim Barrett announced that he plans to keep the winery and make all the revamps needed to restore the winery to its former glory. This struck us as an amazing turn. Just a couple of days ago our latest Wine Spectator arrived and, in it, an article detailing how the new owners planned to revitalize Chateau Montelena. This apparently caught everybody off guard. Could this be a “Bottle Shock II” movie in the making?

Fewer Visitors to Napa Valley?
We are in the Napa Valley for a few days and the local Yountville Sun has an article about the recently released report on the economic impact of the Napa Valley Wine industry. The wine industry contributed a whopping 10.9 billion dollars to the Valley. This is based on 2006 data. You would never know it judging by the tasting rooms we have visited in the Napa Valley the last couple of days. We were the only visitors at Goosecross, William Hill, Havens, and Hopper Creek wineries. There was one other couple in Rutherford Hill, brought there by a van service that picks up tourists at the Napa hotels. The driver told us that business is down and the tour company is looking for new ways to drum up business. We asked at each tasting room how the economy was affecting visitor traffic. The answers were all the same. There are fewer visitors and they are buying less wine.