Tuesday, December 26th
Up early for some delicious breakfast at Sunflower Caffe. This time I ate The California Sandwich (folded eggs, arugula, avocado crush, bacon, chevre goat cheese sauce, organic brioche bun, dressed organic greens). I can't explain what they do to their bacon, but it has essence of rosemary and is just divine! and coffee of course. Matt got the Breakfast Pot Pie (rosemary sausage "red eye gravy", roasted mushrooms, flaky pie crust, soft poached egg) and a cappuccino. Matt says this was one of the best breakfast meals he has ever had. I took my Green Dream smoothie to go.
The grounds are definitely interesting. The Chateau looks like a castle, but the Jade Lake to the front right of the castle is more of a Chinese Garden vibe. We asked about the history, and so the story goes:
"Chateau Montelena's rich history began on a chilly fall morning when Alfred L. Tubbs spaded over and inspected the soil where he thought of planting estate vineyards. He had heard the Napa Valley was the best place to grow grapes in California. A deal was struck, and in January of 1882 the San Francisco entrepreneur owned 254 acres of rugged land just two miles north of Calistoga at the base of Mount Saint Helena. The soils are well drained, stony and loose - perfect for the vines he would plant.
It took less than a decade to turn his dream into reality. First Tubbs planted his vineyards, then he built his Chateau, and in 1886 he imported a French-born winemaker. By 1896 his winery, then called A.L. Tubbs Winery, was the seventh largest in the Napa Valley. Like many other wineries in the area, winemaking at the Chateau came to an end with Prohibition. After Prohibition was repealed in 1933, Tubbs' grandson, Chapin Tubbs, continued the family's venture harvesting the vineyard, making some wines and selling grapes to other wineries and home winemakers. In 1940, Chapin rechristened the winery as Chateau Montelena Winery, a contraction of Mount St. Helena.
Two years after Chapin Tubbs' death in 1947, winemaking was discontinued, and Chateau Montelena would not function as a winery for nearly two decades. The Tubbs family sold the Chateau in 1958, at which time the stone building and its overgrown grounds passed into the hands of Yort and Jeanie Frank who were looking for a peaceful spot to retire. The Franks emigrated from Hong Kong prior to World War II and had been living in Southern California where Frank was an electrical engineer. The Chateau inspired Frank to excavate a lake and landscape the grounds to reflect the Chinese gardens of his homeland. Today, Jade Lake is considered one of Napa Valley's most beautiful sanctuaries, home to a variety of fish and wildlife, and surrounded by weeping willows and native fauna."
Did a modest tasting in one of the most beautiful settings at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars (not to be confused w the other Stags’ Leap - read about that here.). The Stag's Leap Wine Cellars 1973 Cabernet won for red wines in the 1976 Judgement of Paris. I would LOVE to taste it someday but, ha, that’s a pipe dream I’m sure. Anyhoo, the winery and property are just gorgeous. They sat us outside on the patio, in the sunshine. We had an unobstructed view of the vineyards and mountains. Simply a FANTASTIC view! Of all the tasting experiences we had thus far, I would say this was one of my favorites for the ambiance alone! Their Cabernets were a bit out of our price range, but we will definitely keep our eyes open for any deals if they go on sale, they were very good.
We ate lunch at C Casa in the Oxbow Market. I had a skirt steak salad, and he had the tacos. All the food was absolutely delicious, It was rather a busy mad house getting in and out of the place though. Sort of like Atlanta's Krog Street Market on crack! Difficult to find parking, and once inside there were lines for every vendor or restaurant. It has a lovely variety of choices for dining.
A must see on my list was Darioush - a Persian owned winery - something a little different for Napa. We had tasted their wines with a friend years ago, but I had not yet been to their property. They have absolutely fantastic wines, that remind me a lot of the Lebanese wines I have tasted. I was most impressed with their Merlot. Completely different expression of the terroir than one would expect. Lots of spice on the finish. Yum! We purchased 3 bottles of the Merlot. They provided pistachios in the tasting room, which I felt was a nice touch.
Next, we jetted off to Concord to visit a friend for his Boxing Day party, before heading back to our Sonoma BnB to sleep.
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