Month: June 2019

Napa Valley Sunrise to Sunset (II)

I asked our hotel Concierge at Napa Valley Marriott Hotel & Spa for locations to see sunrise in Napa Valley, they recommended the Alston Park nearby.

The park was small, the trail about 1 mile or so. People were already there walking their dogs before sunrise. What a perfect location, thank you Marriott. The sunrise that morning was spectacular! 🙂

Unlike the first day, We didn’t take any tours. Instead we picked wineries of our like and tasted on our own.

Domaine Chandon in Yountville.

It was very early in the growing season in February. Only bright yellow wild mustard blooms were abundant in the valley.

Among all the wineries we tasted, Opus One was the most expensive tasting we have ever experienced. And there was only ONE glass of red wine to taste!

2013 Opus One ***** (This one they sell for $399/bottle! No kidding!!)

  • Cabernet Sauvignon 79%
  • Cabernet Franc 7%
  • Merlot 6%
  • Petit Verdot ^%
  • Malbec 2%

I had to say it was DELICIOUS! And the tasting area upstairs had a great view, it was like a giant panoramic painting!

In comparison, other tastings all of sudden seemed “reasonably” priced! 🙂 However for a more reasonable price tag, go to Sonoma county, which we did the next day. The wineries there were much cheaper and very lay back.

Domaine Carneros in Napa Valley was very romantic tasting room, and they had the best sparkling wines.

These were the wines in Domaine Carneros we tasted:

  • Blanc de Blancs ****
  • Brut Rose (Cuvee de la Pompadour) *****
  • Brut Rose Late Disgorged *****
  • Avant-Garde Pinot Noir ****
  • Estate Pinot Noir *****

Just outside of Domaine Carneros, we had beautiful sunsets to end the day!

†

Napa Valley Valentine’s Weekend (I)

Napa Valley should be on the list of any wine lovers. Summer and fall are the best seasons to visit for an obvious reason: there are grapes hanging on the vines and wine harvest should be fun to witness! With that said, I think any season is a good season for Napa. 🙂

Since we only had three days, we started from the northern tip of the valley: Calistoga–Sterling Vineyards and Castello di Amorosa on our first day.

Wine tasting was only part of the reason to visit Sterling Vineyards; the white building complex sit on top of the hill, the view of the valley from the winery is extraordinary! And the ride up to the tasting rooms itself was a great experience, too.

The following were the wines in our tasting:

  • 2016 Winemaker’s White Blend ***
  • 2015 Oak Knoll Chardonnay ***
  • 2015 Sangiovese ***
  • 2014 Napa Cabernet Sauvignon ****
  • 2015 Petite Sirah ****
  • and California Malvasia Bianca *****

The entire Sterling Vineyards is best viewed from the Castello di Amorosa, and vice versa.

The Castello di Amorosa, the Castle of Love, is my #1 priority among Napa Valley wineries. The first time I heard about this castle was on Culture Trip, it was listed as one of the 12 most beautiful castles in America.

This Castle of Love has the best tour and tasting experience during our weekend in Napa. A fourth generation winemaker, Dario Sattui, spent more than 14 years to build this 13th century Tuscan-style castle to honor his Italian heritage and to share his deep love for medieval architecture.

Don’t let the look fool you, the castle was newly opened in 2007. There are 107 rooms, and no two rooms alike, wine caves, even a medieval armory and torture chamber, Castello has it all.

All the building materials were 700-800 year-old and hand-made, shipped from Italy! Talking about authenticity! Walking inside the castle we felt like traveling through time to Tuscany, Italy…

These were the wines we tasted at the castle:

  • 2017 Ferrington Vineyard Gewurztraminer ***
  • 2017 Simpatica Riesling/Moscato Blend ****
  • 2016 Bien Nacido Vineyard chardonnay ***
  • 2016 Pinot Noir Terra de Promissio *****
  • 2014 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ****
  • 2013 Napa Valley Il Brigante Red Blend ***
  • 2017 Anderson Valley Late Harvest Gewurztraminer *****

Assateague Island Wild Horse Quest

As horse fans we have to go and see the horses when we find out that wild horses are freely roaming in Assateague Island National Seashore.

The Assateague Island is located off the eastern coast, 15 minutes south of Ocean City. According to TripAdvisor, wild horses can easily be spotted driving inside the Assateague Island National Seashore. So we decided to pay a visit during our recent trip to Ocean City.

It was a beautiful morning, and we were there about 6:30. The gate was open, however no one there to collect fee yet. Since the Visitor Center opens at 9 am, we decided to rely on the Google map.

We spotted no horses driving through the entire length of Bayberry Dr. However, here and there, we detected horse drops, and they were fresh, which was quite encouraging.

South Ocean Beach

This beach is wide open, and very quiet. Too early for a Friday morning. The sand along the beach is incredible in height, almost like dunes to me.

Next we drove around near the Old Ferry Landing.

No horses there either. No ones except the two love birds to the right of the house.

Back to the road, this time we turned left onto Bayside Dr. The mosquitoes and black flies were quite abundant, ready to feast on us to break the fast.

Marsh Nature trail looked inviting, it was raised boardwalk overlooking the bay. Since we couldn’t find horses, might as well enjoy the trail. And we did. This trail itself had made the trip worthwhile.

While we were at the trail, we asked bypassers whether they caught sight of any horses, and one of the campers saw a few at his camp site.

Off to the campground we went. There were three of them! On the first impression they were just like domestic horses, shining fur coat, well-groomed mane. There was nothing “wild” about them.

They seemed quite used to people, nibbling around the tent and the rest area; some even tried to get food from the campers.

It was neat to watch them interact with people. A campground should be the first location to seek for wild horses! Happy and content, we headed back to Ocean City, not knowing the best was yet to come.

As we were pulling out to exit the park, we encountered two more horses. One was wandering at the PARKING LOT; the other literally came to us– crossing the road, we stopped our car to let her pass.

Obviously she owned the road!

It was a really fun day!

So you don’t need to get up super early to see horses, they have the same schedule as we humans. They stroll out during breakfast time, to parking lots and campgrounds.

A word of caution: keep distance, don’t get too close to them. They are wild horses after all.