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Wednesday, October 20, 2010

A Whirlwind Weekend in Napa

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I spent last Thursday through Sunday in the beautiful Napa Valley with some girlfriends. We had such a great time and I am looking forward to doing it again! We had the wonderful fortune of staying at this gorgeous home designed by renowned architect, Howard Backen. The home an location were so idyllic and I must say that the house was so thoughtfully designed and the place is completely charming. It was featured in Architectural Digest last year. We were only in Napa for a few days, but were able to do so much! We spent time shopping on St. Helena’s main street, visited with the locals, did a little wine tasting, and ate delicious food.California Fall 2010 007 {The Front Courtyard Looking Toward the Guest Cottage}

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{Front Courtyard}

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{Pool Area}

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{Bocce Ball, Anyone?}

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{View from the Master Bedroom…Does it get any more idyllic?}

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{Part of the Kitchen / Family Room, Complete with a Rotisserie}

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{Lovely Kitchen}

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{The Dining Room Adjacent to the Kitchen}

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{Erin Martin’s Showroom in St. Helena}

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{If you know me, then you know I went bananas for this Greek Key table!}

California Fall 2010 052   {I cannot say enough good things about Swanson Vineyards! I have an entire feature devoted to Swanson planned, but until then, I just have to say that this is a definite must if you are planning a trip to Napa. The tasting room is at once grand, elegant, and eclectic, the wines are marvelous, but more than anything, he Swanson Vineyards family (especially the doyenne, Elizabeth) is composed of the warmest, most welcoming people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting in a very long time.}

{Our fun group included Kyle of Knight Moves, Shannon Wollack, me, Ashley Steen of Orchard 11, and Jeni who was taking the picture.}

We also had a wine tasting at Mai(s)onry, which is such an interesting space. They’ve combined a tasting room with an art gallery and a well-curated interior design boutique. They carry the exclusive Blackbird Vineyards label which produces excellent wines. This visit was also an incredible experience that I am planning to feature more about soon.

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{From Left: Ashley, Maura, Shannon, Me, Kyle, and Jeni.}

As usual, everything I ate in Napa was out of this world! From a simple sandwich at Giugni’s on Main Street in St. Helena to dinner at Redd (pictured), I am always so impressed by the delicious seasonal cooking in this part of the country. On our first night in Napa, we had dinner at Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen, owned by Cindy Pawlcyn of the famed Napa restaurant, Mustard’s. Everyone loved their food and the service was outstanding. On the second day, between tastings at Mai(s)onry and Swanson, we had lunch at Michael Chiarello’s Bottega, which is a new favorite of mine. Again, everyone loved their food and Chef Chiarello visited with us for a while. That night, we went to Redd, which is a personal favorite of almost everyone in the group. Their Heirloom Tomato Salad and Lobster Risotto are out of this world!

20 comments:

Lauren said...

What a gorgeous place to stay! I bet you didn't want to leave!

The Purse-a-holic said...

I am in love with this location. Just a beautiful house.


http://jannsboutique.blogspot.com/

High-Heeled Foot in the door said...

Looks lovely! Next time I want an invite on the girls trip! Totally jealous! That house is amazing. Glad all of your gals had fun!

Reichel Broussard said...

Sounds like you had a fabulous time up here! What a gorgeous house to stay at too!

mrsplainjane said...

I have to say- the heirloom tomato salad I had @ Farmstead last night was amazing as well- it's a toss up. I think Kyle had both as well... and she's right, the cheese at Farmstead is to die for- and the biscuits- oh my word! Start planning your next trip

Courtney said...

What a beautiful house. There isn't a thing about it I didn't like. LOVE the eating area.

Unknown said...

DREAMY! Where do I begin. Love everything about that house. My brother gave all the out of town guests a bottle of Swanson wine at their wedding. Brings back such great memories. What a wonderful girl getaway.

ABCAshley said...

I was just in Napa as well and LOVED the Farmstead. Question: Do you know the title of those white book series in the Erin Martin showroom? They are about $100 each but wanted to look them up online.

Thanks!

Casa Très Chic said...

This house is fantastic,like every project created by Howard Backen.
Tereza

Dhalia Edwards said...

The look of everything is so beautiful.

Dhalia

Megan // Honey We're Home said...

How fun to getaway with the girls!

Julia said...

I'm excited about visiting Swanson Vineyards next year. One fashion question. What bag are you carrying in the photo with the red shirt?

Unknown said...

Thanks for the sweet comments, everyone.

Julia, the bag is from my favorite shop in Houston, a bientot. It's pretty big, which makes it great for travel. I was able to fit magazines and books in there for my trip, but it isn't too heavy. The leather is really buttery and my favorite feature is the hot pink lining inside. I don't think it's on their website, but if you are really interested and decide to call about it, just tell them it's the one I'm carrying in Napa. :)

Valerie said...

This place is gorgeous and looks so relaxing. What could beat a weekend in Napa with wine and lobster risotto? Yum!

Karen Davis said...

Sounds and looks like so much fun!

Julia said...

Paloma, thank you. I'm from Houston and will be heading home in December. Hopefully they will have it. I definitely miss A Bientot, Kuhl-Lindscomb and Central Market. Thank you so much.

Luciane at HomeBunch.com said...

Wow, what a beautiful place and it seems that you guys had so much fun! :-)

Luciane, from HomeBunch.com

Peggy and Fritz said...

Love Napa and was just there. Love Farmstead and Maisonary - I did the wine tasting there last year and loved it and we almost used it for a private event. I wanted to visit Swanson because I read the daughters blog and I do enjoy some of their reds. Isn't it great for food and shopping. Your post made me hungry. The heirloom tomotoes are amazing right now - I had them with Burrata at Cooks downtown St. Helena and they were amazing.

Sketch42 said...

You guys are all so pretty!

Anonymous said...

Love you black bag!!!! Who is it by?