“From Napa to Bend and back”
Monday was spent cleaning up after the party and relaxing before the Napa “Spectacular” adventure – one of Diana’s gifts to Alicia.
We loaded up the car and made the relatively short drive to Napa on Tuesday afternoon. The Italian style villa that Diana had rented turned out to be perfect for us – lovely pool, great location, and a perfect situation for Clorinda (who we coaxed into joining us the night before.) Here are the beautiful pool, and Diana and Alicia opening gifts in the covered patio beside it.
That particular gift was personalized sippy cups for exploring Napa. We asked Clorinda what hers said – “Nappy Valley Me.” Classic.
Dinner was pizza by the pool, followed by a girls dance party in the hot tub.
Wednesday started with a picnic at V. Sattui winery. We got there early and had our choice of tables on which to enjoy all the yummy offerings from their excellent deli.
We spent a happy couple of hours enjoying the setting, wine, and food.
I forgot to mention the great view that I got of a hot air balloon on Wednesday morning. I was sitting outside with Clorinda and she told me she thought that would be a “great adventure.” Not my idea of fun at all.
Then it was back to the house to relax before dinner. Angele, by the river in downtown Napa, was our dinner destination. Excellent French food in a very relaxed and comfortable setting. We had the best escargot we have tasted – not chewy or tough in the slightest. I loved my branzino, and everyone else enjoyed their meals also – Clorinda finishing all of her veal sweetbreads. And we finished up with the sea salt caramel pot du crème – just as good as Diana remembered it when she and Janice enjoyed it several years ago.
Thursday (Alicia’s official birthday) started early with wine tasting at Domaine Chandon winery – famous for their sparkling wines. All the tastings are by reservation only, and have very limited outdoor capacity. This meant the only spot we could get was at 10:15am. Clorinda was aghast that we would go so early – she was left home to rest and get over it. I really liked the outdoor, smaller group tastings much more than the pre-COVID scene. Here are some pictures from the gorgeous winery setting:
Alicia was a good sport, wearing the “Finally 21” sash and crown when her Mom asked. I was very impressed with the wines and overall experience at Domaine Chandon.
We went back to the house for lunch and a check in with Clorinda – she was outside enjoying the gorgeous weather and her latest book. The afternoon tasting destination was Whitehall Lane – a favourite of ours from years ago, when we enjoyed a private dinner with Randy and Janice, and Diana joined their wine club. Their Sauvignon Blanc is a delicious summer wine. This was a much more casual and informal experience than Domaine Chandon, and the wines were all excellent.
Back to the house again to collect Clorinda and change for a very fancy dinner. I chauffeured back up the valley to the Auberge du Soleil resort and restaurant. You have to make reservations for this place months in advance and the menu is a treat. Adamo and Marco decided to join us at the last minute and we were very fortunate to retain a space on the terrace, where we could enjoy the wonderful view down the Napa valley.
If you zoom in on this you can see the wonderful selections on the menu. I started with the scallop, then an amazing risotto, and finally a beautifully sous vide cooked duck.
Here Alicia is quite pleased with the earrings from Diana.
And finally a picture with Uncle Marco, who made a 3 hour drive in very heavy traffic to join us:
After the late night on Thursday, it was a bit of a production to get all packed up and out of the villa by 10am – but we made it.
Donna had arranged one final tasting for us – at the very fancy Domaine Carneros where she is a member. I enjoyed catching up with Donna and Steve, the wines were excellent, but the overall pretentious and fancy vibe off the place weren’t my thing.
This was an excellent trip. Alicia enjoyed it all and it was lovely that Clorinda was able to join us.
I had a brief rest on Saturday morning and then it was time to catch my flight to Redmond, Oregon to go and visit Finn in Bend. I laughed at my rental car – the only other choice was a Toyota Corolla (bit too small).
I picked Finn up at his house and we enjoyed a wonderful dinner at Joolz Lebanese restaurant. I was expecting him to be tired after three straight days of work, but he was in good spirits and loved his food.
Those are “camel wings” – Moroccan spice rubbed chicken wings, and sweet potatoes that he’s holding up. I loved the elk chili and we both were amazed with the date cake. This place is so good. Highly recommended if you’re ever in this part of the country.
Finn wanted to sleep in on Sunday – the only day of the week when he has that opportunity, and so I had coffee and breakfast from the Scoutpost food truck (world’s best food truck in my opinion) and Spoken Moto. The green egg bowl with chorizo is one of my favourite breakfast dishes ever.
I wandered around Bend after breakfast and came across these guys surfing on the Deschutes river – I think that’s a manmade wave that their riding.
When Finn arose, we drove out to Tumalo Falls and enjoyed a hike up to the top – not too strenuous and with excellent views.
You can tell the weather is perfect, and I love the complete lack of humidity. After the hike, Finn took me to Don Gambino’s, a hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant on 3rd street. I wouldn’t have even noticed the place, but it had excellent tacos with very fresh ingredients.
Before dropping Finn back at his house and heading to the airport, we ascended Pilot Butte, right behind the area where his house is located. The views of the snow-capped mountains from up there are awesome.
I loved spending some one on one time with Finn and look forward to getting back to Bend soon. The views from my flight home were pretty spectacular – I always enjoy seeing San Francisco and the bridges from the air.
Diana and I were up early this morning, and decided to have a coffee at Soul Grind and then a nice walk from Linda Mar beach up and over to Rockaway beach and back. There were a good number of surfers out enjoying their Memorial Day break. I was frustrated that my heart rate apparently didn’t get high enough to register any more than fifteen minutes of our hour long walk. Going to have to pick up the pace.
My read this week was “The Death of Vivek Oji” by Akwaeke Emezi. Here’s a review of the plot:
“One afternoon, in a town in southeastern Nigeria, a mother opens her front door to discover her son’s body, wrapped in colorful fabric, at her feet. What follows is the tumultuous, heart-wrenching story of one family’s struggle to understand a child whose spirit is both gentle and mysterious. Raised by a distant father and an understanding but overprotective mother, Vivek suffers disorienting blackouts, moments of disconnection between self and surroundings. As adolescence gives way to adulthood, Vivek finds solace in friendships with the warm, boisterous daughters of the Nigerwives, foreign-born women married to Nigerian men. But Vivek’s closest bond is with Osita, the worldly, high-spirited cousin whose teasing confidence masks a guarded private life. As their relationship deepens—and Osita struggles to understand Vivek’s escalating crisis—the mystery gives way to a heart-stopping act of violence in a moment of exhilarating freedom.”
The story was quite interesting and fast paced, but I didn’t particularly enjoy this book – maybe too many Nigerian names and phrases for me to keep track of. Just didn’t really grab my attention – you can tell because I don’t have a single dog-eared page with a quote to share.
I’m skipping the music section this week due to some time challenges – I’ll pick up the album of the week section again next week.
Stay safe and kind to everyone!