our first stop of the day was somewhere we could all appreciate - thomas keller's bouchon bakery. we managed to arrive early enough to beat the crowds. the line wasn't bad at all:
inside was a wonderland of delicious-smelling baked goods.
i'm sure you won't be surprised to hear that we went a little nuts in there. we picked out all sorts of goodies - some to eat right away, some to have on hand for nibbling later on. the bean and i decided to share a ham & cheese croissant:
plus we split an order of monkey bread, a treat neither of us had had in a very long time. the chocolate croissant on the left was the old lady's treat of choice.
we also picked out a bunch of macarons, a package of chocolate bouchons and everyone enjoyed a morning beverage.
the bakery is right next to bouchon restaurant, which would have been a great spot for later except that we already had plans for the rest of our stay in napa.
across the street was this gorgeous building and grounds which contained a handful of art galleries, shops and restaurants. we explored a little and teased the old lady about hosting her wedding there one day. it was just so pretty.
and of course, a selfie with a couple of photobombers in the background.
not too far down the road, another restaurant that's on my bucket list:
and the french laundry garden is right across the street.
yountville is so fancy-schmancy, even their gas station is pretty.
the hub had booked us a tour of the caves at the beringer winery, which was about as close to interesting for the bean as we could get. the two of us had been there once before, about a decade or so ago. it's just as beautiful as we remembered.
it was a 30-minute tour that took us through the old winery and tunnels where they used to store and age their wines. we got the lowdown on the history of beringer wines and saw photos and paraphernalia from years past.
of course, those of us who were of age were able to taste up to 3 different pre-selected wines.
one of us, however, was less than enthused during that torturous half hour.
the tour ended, of course, in a gift shop where all three wines we'd tasted were available for sale. how convenient!
we headed over to the main mansion to check it out.
inside was another gift shop, and we were given an impromptu tour of the second floor where the private tasting parties are held.
as we headed back through the parking lot to hop back into the car, we saw the hudson house. this was the original house on the property when the beringer brothers bought it back in the 1800s.
our next stop was inglenook winery, owned by francis ford coppola. we'd been told that there was a restaurant there where we could have a nice lunch, which always sounds good.
except that when we got there, we found out that the offerings were pretty slim. the guy at the bar explained that there was some ordinance that restricted them from opening a full dining establishment and were only allowed to sell pre-packaged foods.
we each found something to drink, and then ordered one of each edible item on the list.
it was a gorgeous day, and we all enjoyed relaxing in the shade munching on our salami, cheese and baguette.
and then we dropped off the hub at the opus one winery. this is the wine that we drank when he proposed to me, at our wedding, and he's got bottles for each of the girls for their own weddings one day. i suppose you could call it our "special wine."
not a bad way to spend a day, right?
This is a gorgeous venue for events. I went to malibu wedding venues some time back and was impressed the second I stepped through the door. I'm hoping that I'll get to go back for other events to enjoy great company and beautiful surroundings.
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