I came to Napa Valley early on in my wine passion journey. I planned the trip with my cousins, and we came here in the fall of 2014, right after a big earthquake hit the region and devastated so many buildings and wineries. You could see the damage pretty much everywhere, but folks in this gorgeous region of California are resilient, and have a positive attitude. The earthquake didn’t end up impacting our trip much, apart from the fact that it was the topic of the moment.

We stayed at the adorable bed and breakfast McClelland Priest, which is in this gorgeous Victorian home just a few blocks walk from downtown Napa towards the more southern end of the Valley. They had a carriage house which slept all three of us which was spatious and comfortable. From the looks of their website, rooms have been renovated even since I was there last, and it all looks amazing. Their breakfasts are multi-course extravaganzas, and really gave you a great base for a day of wine tasting and touring. I wouldn’t hesitate to stay here again, and would highly recommend this B&B for your stay in Napa.

We started the long weekend with a tour at Domaine Carneros, at the southern end of Napa Valley. This winery and estate are owned by the French Winery folks at Tattinger, and are primarily known for their sparkling wines, although they make still wines like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay as well. The tour around the winery was super comprehensive and informative, and if you have no idea how they make bubbly wine in the Champagne Method, I would recommend coming here for a tour and tasting. Yum!

We spent the next two days touring around multiple wineries from totally unknown to giant, popular ones. We enjoyed stunning views from Porter Family Vineyards and a really cool tour and tasting there too. In fact, we had a great day of touring with a private driver. We hired Tac Fair to drive us around in a fancy Mercedes all day. He was amazing, and coordinated the entire day for us including wine tastings, tours, and lunch reservations. He personalized our tour based on the wines that we prefer, and took us to some wineries that have become favorites. I highly recommend hiring Napatac for your private tour around the valley!

When we were on our own, we loved the reserve tasting in the barrel room at Mondavi Winery. This place is a real gem, and a true classic!

We had fun tasting at Chateau Montelena – made famous for beating out all of the French wines at the Judgment of Paris in 1973.

Finally, we just had to take a hot air balloon ride! There was a package through Domaine Chandon, which included the hot air balloon ride, as well as a buffet breakfast afterward with plenty of bubbles to be drunk as well. The views from the balloon were absolutely stunning, and, despite my debilitating fear of heights, I was actually totally ok doing this!

We had an amazing little cousins trip in Napa Valley, and I’m hoping I can update the website with fresh recommendations when I go back (finally!) in 2024!