most relaxed I've ever been. I'm basically just loafing around from one fantastic place to another...stopping at whatever places look interesting.
On the way into town I drove by a small airport and inquired about a biplane tour of Napa valley. It's in an open air cockpit and the pilot will do a few barrel rolls if I slip him an extra $50. I was like...um...yes, please! I'm going up tomorrow afternoon.
I didn't waste any time. I pulled into town around 12:30 and I immediately got down to business by booking a tasting and tour at the Nickel and Nickel Vineyards for 1pm.
The grounds were immaculate and our guide, Walt, really made the tour come alive. I picked up a bottle of their Pinot and went on my very merry way.
Next stop was to link up with an old family friend who has been living out here for the last 2 years. In addition to giving me a place to crash, Matt and I have been working as a great team getting into all the "behind closed door" sections of the wine tours. He works for one of the top restaurants in the city and I lead them down the path that I'm some sort of hedgefund wonderboy looking to buy some wine by the pallet. One guy brought us into their production room yesterday and poured us a glass right out of the barrel.
Napa is really an amazing place. It is entirely built around great food and great wine. You can pick up candied orange peels, a bottle of Cabernet and some aged Stilton at the local gas station.
We did a late dinner at Morimoto's where I had probably the best fatty tuna sashimi I've ever had.
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