When I imagined visiting Napa, I pictured rolling hills, vineyards lining both sides of the road, and leaves changing colors as they fall to the ground.... my imagination was pretty accurate!
It's only been a few hours into our Napa Girl's Trip and all my expectations have been met and far exceeded. The food, the wine, the people --- the food -- the sites! It blows you away.
We started off our trip with a coffee date at 8:30!
I TRIED JAMAICAN BLUE MOUNTAIN COFFEE and my life will never be the same.
We just met Lee at the coffee shop, since he lives two blocks away.
After about 15 minutes of enjoying the best cup of joe I've ever had (and probably ever will have) we were off on our "road trip" to Napa!
Can you say non-stop Christmas music?
Once we got into the area, I had to stop for a potty break.
My mom and I were laughing and taking pictures in the parking lot, because even the parking lots of Napa are filled with gorgeous color-changing trees and a few grapevines!
I couldn't stop looking out the window and snapping pictures (when I could).
Which explains the blurry quality.
Photos just don't do it justice. You need to see it to believe it.
We passed a million vineyards - some small and family owned, some famous and world renowned! - but my mom knew where our first stop had to be: Robert Mondavi Vineyards
She's always been a fan of his wine, she's read his book, and she stalks him on the reg. (kidding, although I really wouldn't put it past her)
After walking around and enjoying the sites, we drove to the nearby town of St. Helena.
It was filled with cute shops and bakeries.
One of which was The Model Bakery.
I had to sample a chocolate chip cookie and a carrot cake cupcake!
But I only took a bite of each before stashing them away in my purse -- we had big plans for lunch and I wanted to save my appetite!
When we found out we were heading to Napa for the weekend, my foodie senses took over. I yelped, I googled, and I compiled a list of restaurants we just had to try! My mom agreed.
First up? Bistro Jeanty in Yountsville. Known for its classic French cuisine, this place is the place to go for the ultimate comfort-food-meets-ultimate-decadence.... and I'm not kidding.
We had reservations and we were seated right by the fire -- how cute :)
For our appetizers, we decided to split their famous tomato bisque in a puff pastry shell and their soft-boiled egg salad coated in a warm bacon vinaigrette and topped with homemade croutons.
I was debating on whether or not we should order and entree (skip straight to dessert, right?!) but we fell in love with the Slow cooked pork shoulder with butternut squash gratin, brussel sprouts, and bacon. Oh my Lord. The pork literally fell apart and melted in your mouth. And the butternut squash was sweetened with hints of maple and cinnamon which was a perfect compliment to the salty pork!
I had done my research and I knew exactly what we needed to order for dessert.
Rum raisin and vanilla bean bread pudding.
and Chocolate mousse creme brulee!
Um, our original plan was to order two desserts and just enjoy a few bites of each (so we wouldn't be totally stuffed after lunch...) but the second we tasted the thick creamy custard of the creme brulee and the warm vanilla bread pudding - topped with ice cream - there was no stopping us.
Mom and I, who have tasted desserts all over the world, both agreed these were hands-down the best desserts we've ever had in our entire lives.
We kept looking at this mountainous dessert-looking thing at the table next to us and finally my mom just asked what the heck it was -- a lemon meringue tart!
The couple was kind enough to share their dessert with us! And we actually moved over to their table and chatted (and told jokes) for about half an hour. Jay and Katie were total sweethearts and I already have plans to visit them for lunch in the future!
We ended up coming to Yountsville at the perfect time of the year: The Festival of Lights.
Wine tasting, food samples, and shopping awaited us.
Coolest thing I tried? A s'more on a stick. Essentially it was a vanilla marshmallow dipped in dark chocolate and graham cracker crumbles and then lit with a blow torch!
COOOOOL HUH?!?
More goofing around:
And then, it was time to head to Napa and check in to our B&B.
It is an old restored mansion -- and it's gorgeous.
I'll give you more details but this is basically what happened the second after we checked in:
Napping & blogging by the fire!
Wow!!!
WOW!
I'm still in awe of how amazing this girl's weekend is turning out... and it's only day one!
Want to know what I'm even more excited for?
Dinner.
I'll fill you in shortly!
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