The next morning, we all woke up feeling surprisingly spry and ready to tackle the day! (In case you missed part I of this trip, click here.
Crystal and Janet are early risers, and I thought I did pretty darn good getting up and getting going in the morning with them. Example: We walked to the local grocery the next morning and had breakfast in hand by about 730am. While there were no participation ribbons awarded that morning, I’m certain I’d have earned one if they were available. 🙂
The little grocery we went to was wonderful – – Big John’s Market. We picked up some breakfast items, and I may have also snatched some beets from their early morning salad bar (because I could!) And, of course, I was drooling over this cheese cooler. My goodness!
After breakfast, we got dressed and ready, and headed off to Santa Rosa and closer to Napa. As girls do, we shopped around in Santa Rosa’s adorable little stores before meeting up with Diane to head to Napa.
Our First Stop on Friday was the Castello di Amorosa. This place was INCREDIBLE and as the name conveys – – it was a CASTLE! Full of ambience, and such an experience, I’d say this was my favorite stop on the tour.
After capturing a million pictures of the beautiful castle grounds, we were quickly whisked to the basement of the castle to their quaint tasting room. We were instantly greeted by the staff who called out “Ciao, Bellas” and fawned over us. Of course, we loved this… and wow, we also loved their wines.
We went through a huge number of tastings here – the sangiovese and dessert wines paired with sea salt chocolate were my faves. And, the “babymaker” – – La Fantasia – – for the name and the nickname alone, I purchased a bottle to bring home for my wine racks. We had a blast here!
We’d also committed to eating more on day two so as not to let the wine go to our heads. So, you can imagine our delight when we ran across a fresh cherry stand along the way. You best believe we stopped to pick up some of these tasty fruits! Yum!!
Next stop, we stopped into Sterling Vineyards. Another elaborate vineyard in Napa Valley, we actually rode a tram to get to the tasting area. Such a gorgeous ride to find more wine…
I really liked how Sterling set up this tasting. It was destination based. Rather than parking with one server at a bar, you instead travelled the property between pours.
And, at the end of the tour, we ended up in a beautiful outdoor patio where we ordered a much-needed charcuterie plate. Snacks are key on wine-tasting… must-have! As is toasting…
On the way out of the winery, Janet and I took a moment to write on the “Before I Die” wall. Janet quickly penned her bucket list item: Travel the World, by adding a “Me too” to someone else’s entry.
I added my own entry to the wall with “Write a Book.” Yep, that’s on my bucket list. I don’t know if it will be fiction, a memoir, or a cookbook… but one day before I die I plan to figure out all the details!
Time flew on day two, so we headed back to Santa Rosa for the night. Crystal picked out an amazing restaurant for the girls to have our final dinner. After a quick costume change, we headed out. I actually wore everything I packed! Unheard of!
Dinner was at Jackson’s in Santa Rosa and phenomenal! If you’re ever in town, I highly recommend it! Because we had grazed most the day, we noshed on small plates… and I really should eat dinner like that more often!
We wrapped up the next day and I headed home… rested, happy, and so grateful to have such a wonderful group of women in my life. I can’t wait until our next big adventure, ladies!!! xoxo