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California Dreamin- Wind Your Way around Wine Country |
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Written by Chad Cook
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Monday, 04 September 2006 |
California is a state that simply must be visited at least once in a lifetime. Whether you choose to travel alone or as a family, California is full of different things to see and do. If you're a newly wed, planning a honeymoon, or just romantic at heart, California is the place to go. If you're looking for film stars, go to Hollywood or Beverly Hills. If you're just looking for a relaxing vacation, beautiful scenery and some honey-like spirits, then wind your way over to Wine Country. Recreational places like the wineries in Napa Valley and Sonoma are waiting for you.
Napa Valley and Sonoma County in Northern California is only an hours drive from San Francisco. Otherwise known as Wine Country, Napa Valley and Sonoma County are popular among newlyweds, honeymooners, wine enthusiasts, gourmets and other hopeless romantics who choose to enjoy all the good things in life. There are all sorts of exquisite places to stay and see in California's Wine Country, the choices are overwhelming, but well worth your time.
Napa Valley, which actually consists of six towns, including: St. Helena, Oakville, Calistoga, Rutherford, Yountville and Napa. Each of these towns feature their own first class wineries, spas, resorts, hotels and restaurants, not to point out the breath taking sites of the Wine Country itself. The experience of the California Wine Country will rejuvenate your being and will create wonderful memories to last a lifetime.
Sonoma County is the birthplace of the California wine industry. Sonoma Valley is 17 miles long and sits between two glorious mountain ranges, where numerous wineries host tasting events and tours on a daily basis. The Plaza is encircled with boutiques, adobe structures and restaurants in Sonoma's town square. For over a century, the hot springs draw in thousands of health conscious guests to the area and just at the moment, is host to a few of world class spas and resorts.
Some of the lesser, family owned wineries will likely give tours by appointment only. It would be best to call and set up the appointment well in advance of your stay to Wine Country, so you are sure to get in. This can be a completely rewarding experience, because this will likely give you time to have a one on one conversation with the wine makers themselves without being caught up in a group of tourists. A number of the large and little family owned wineries make themselves available for outdoor weddings and other special occasions for other costs. Most of them offer wine tasting, tours of their wineries, and host different special events.
If you are planning to visit California's Wine Country, try to make your visit in the middle of the week, because the weekends are often over blocked and that can make traveling and sightseeing fairly difficult and thus less enjoyable. During the week, there is less traffic to fight with and a number of the hotels can maintain lower rates. It's always best to call ahead of time to the hotels to make sure there is space available for you when you come. If you decide to use Silverado Trail as your driving way, you will stumble upon less traffic and have a more spectacular route to enjoy. The scenery is one of the excellent parts of visiting Wine Country, so stop and smell the roses as often as possible.
If you are looking for a picnic area by a tremendous view, try visiting Rutherford Hill Winery's picnic area. If you choose to use a picnic space belonging to a specific winery, you may select to buy a bottle of wine from them as a courtesy, for you to utilize with your picnic meal. A delicious addition to your picnic basket would be a selection of fruits, cheeses and baked things from the Sunshine Market in St. Helena. You can also pick up your plates, napkins and utensils for your picnic while you're there.
Gordon's on Yountville is famous for their tasty coffee, which is a tasty addition to breakfast. For a delicious lunch or dinner, try eating at the French Laundry. There is a wide variety of fine restaurants in Wine Country from which to pick and choose, even if you don't have a reservation, you have a good chance at getting in. |