Julia’s Blogfest

(If you missed the first Part of my blog, click here if you want to see more pix and commentary)

I failed to mention a minor detour we took when we were in Napa – I was so excited to talk about food and wine! On Friday (day 3) we had the priviledge of going to George Lucas’s Skywalker Sound in Marin County, outside of San Fran. Many of you guys harassed me (understandably, but I’m good!) for my April Fools joke and ironically, Jack was able to arrange this private tour via his XM colleague who knows Leslie Ann Jones, Director of Music and Scoring at Skywalker. Our tour was set up the same afternoon that my joke was posted (that’s what spurred it) and obviously I wasn’t going to tell anyone b/c why would you believe me! Even I was surprised! So to prove it, I will post a photo. And that’s another thing. They are VERY private there and do not allow video or photography inside the building. Naturally. They had just released Indiana Jones and were working on Wall*E (the next PIxar film which looks amazing — to be released June 27) when we were there. George Lucas lives on this property which is hundreds of acres and is about 8 miles, on a twisty road in the hills, off of the main highway. Very secluded and undeveloped. The entrance is unmarked and you have to drive back about a mile to the technical building. Another mile down the road from there is the animation group and in Presidio is the other part of LucasFilm, Industrial Light and Magic. Skywalker sound has about 20 regular employees but up to 100 at a time depending on projects so it’s quite small. It was very quiet and beautiful inside. We were treated to a short trailer in a huge theater which included clips of all their ‘famous’ sounds, many of which you would know (i.e. Darth Vader breathing) played very loudly — after all the sound is theirs! They do original music, mixing and sound design here.

Just before leaving Napa, we visit the infamous Copia, the American Musuem of Wine, Food and the Arts around lunchtime on Saturday. We didn’t have a lot of time to spend there since we were headed to San Fran but the goal was to eat (again, it’s all about food) at Julia’s Kitchen – as in Julia Child, my namesake. Okay, well, not really, but I like to think that since I’m such a fabulous cook *wink*. I was actually named after 2 generations of Julia’s. I’m sure they were great cooks too (giggle). Anyway, it’s run by executive chef Jeff Mosher and he uses a few of her recipes as inspiration for his menu and the kitchen utilizes their organic edible farm outside for 50-90% of their dishes! We walked around the gardens to see our lunch ingredients growing. So very cool. The restaurant has an open kitchen so you can watch your dish being prepared. Of course I took advantage of that — my kind of lunch!

Finally, instead of heading the shortest route to San Fran (which would have taken a bit more than an hour and all highway), we decided to head back north thru Napa Valley and on to Calistoga, and then west so that we could drive down the Pacific Coast. What a happenin’ idea that was. We really wanted to see the Redwoods (Sequoias) as I have always wanted to see this since I was a little girl and that was on the way. So we were told (by our FAB balloon pilot who grew up in the Napa Valley) to check out Armstrong Park near Guerneville. A small town on the Russian River (see map). It was spectacular. I say that this was a trip of the senses and this was one of those moments that I couldn’t believe. When under these magnificent trees, the acoustics are amazing. It’s dead silent — everything is absorbed yet you are outside but feel you are in a room with padded walls. The trees were beautifully tall and so unlike any I’ve ever seen. The light pours through the tops in silky streams to the ground — almost tangible. They grow to be up to 400 feet tall and the largest, in Redwood National Park, is apparently 26 feet in diameter. Imagine! I was so happy to finally see these!

OUR TREK ON SATURDAY FROM NAPA TO SAN FRAN…..

After this short detour, we then drove a few more miles to where the Russian River meets the Pacific so that we could begin our drive south on Rt. 1 to San Fran. If you know the coast, you’ll know how changeable the weather is. Well, as we drove here, a HUGE wall of fog was rolling in and the temperature dropped about 15-20 degrees instantaneously (another sensorary attack!). No more sun, strong winds and major moisture and loss of visibility — at once. We pulled over and changed out of our tees and shorts and into jeans, long sleeves and jackets! It was crazy. It was the best drive despite the elements. So amazing and ethereal — well, and long! We drove thru Jenner, thru Bodega Bay, Point Reyes and thru the crazy, twisted cliffside roads onto downtown San Fran. In the earlier part of the drive up by Jenner I couldn’t believe the cattle farms and the hills — it felt like what Ireland would look like (never been) and to think it was CA! The marked contrast to Napa yet not being that far geographically was something I couldn’t get my head around. Anyway, we had to share the drive b/c it’s exhausting! All I remember is getting giddy towards the end (after being in the car all day – we left Napa at 2pm and got to San Fran at 8!) b/c I was tired and couldn’t believe the ridiculous turns and cliffs! I wanted to look down and Jack didn’t like that and it cracked me up for some reason. I am a good driver Jack!

Next and final stop: San Fran, Carmel and Half Moon Bay. Thanks for reading!

CHEF JEFF MOSHER IN THE KICTHEN AT JULIA’S KITCHEN….

I’VE NEVER SEEN ARTICHOKE GROW!

ON TO ARMSTRONG PARK AND THE REDWOODS…..

WHERE THE RUSSIAN RIVER MEETS THE PACIFIC…

And if you missed our YOUTUBE video on the ballooning, here is it again. CLICK HERE!

No, not my husband, not my son and not my 21 year old cousin-in-law who will be living here this summer (yes, with all the J’s, I am going to be pulling my hair out!). This is toddler Jack! He is a busy 18 month old all about the bugs and exploring. He was SO on the go and interested in looking at bugs, I could barely get him to look at me to snap shots of his winning blue eyes. But by the end, he sat down for a wee snack and gave me some good opportunities to hone in the lens on the blues! As a mother of two boys, I recall this phase so well and really appreciate the curiosity and interest in the outdoors and the ants crawling up the trees!

Sorry about the previous posting — I had ‘technical difficulties’ embedding the video into my blog so I deleted it but the email went out accidentally!

Click on the link below and it’ll take you directly to the video on YouTube where it’s living!

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I had to post this to give you guys a true perspective of how cool, and slightly crazy, a balloon landing is. Now in this it’s really hard to tell how fast it seemed to descend but you’ll get an idea. We had a ground crew of 2 who follow us the entire journey and are there to help grab the ropes when landing. We were aiming straight for a Eucalyptus tree and I honestly thought we were going to knock it over but we skimmed it! Our pilot was truly amazing. Thanks to my hubby for putting this together for me along with the great music selection!

CLICK HERE!

Geez. This is so hard. I am trying to come up with a way to make this blog entry interesting for my readers and compelling enough where they would say “oh, I so want to go there”, but in the process, am second guessing myself in terms of trying to find the right images to post so that “allure” factor is there for you!

As one who has traveled more internationally than domestically, I am so glad we did this trip. I have been to 5 continents and seen amazing places — among those Spain/Italy/England/The Netherlands, Portugal, The Philippines, Australia, Morocco, Mexico, Bermuda, US Virgin Islands, and British Virgin Islands. So a huge variation in lifestyle, terrain, culture and hemispheres! And this trip to Napa/San Fran is right up there. With the culinary richness it offers plus the scenery, it was a vacation of all the senses! In fact, we opted to spend a bit less time in San Fran proper to drive the coastline and see more countryside. That unexpected and unplanned part of the trip was what really took this trip to a whole new level.

So day 1-4 Jack and I were in Napa Valley. We arrived at 930am Pacific (read: a crazy-early 7am non-stop flight got us there) which allowed for nearly a full day (if you have the energy after waking at 4am!)! We flew into San Fran and rented a car, immediately driving straight to Sonoma for lunch. First things first. Wine. We started off with an outstanding meal at “The Girl and a Fig” restaurant….sampling cheese, breads and champagne (never too early to start with the grapes). We used a Frommer’s guide for most of the trip and it was excellent as a resource. We also culled information sent to us from friends or friends of friends who had been out there. The weather was hot (around 100 each day we were there) but it felt like a true vacation. We then headed over the mountain to the Napa Valley and started our time there.

It was outstanding to say the least. We hit about 3-4 vineyards each day and the Napa Valley, particularly Rutherford where we stayed, is known for Cabernet Sauvignon but of course, the valley has many kinds of varietals white and red. The sampling was great and a couple wineries were especially generous. Normally, a winery tasting consists of 4 pre-selected wines for a fee — anywhere from $10 – $25/person. The one we ended up joining as a wine club member was, eh hem, one of the more generous tastings and I think (read: think b/c I can’t be sure) we had about 7 tastings there. Naturally, we are going to join but they really were quite good! Rubicon was that winery and it was gorgeous (the grounds and the building). This is Coppola’s boutique vineyard as he has a larger operation under the “Francis Ford Coppola” label in Sonoma Country. Rubicon is hard to find in most stores, at least the less expensive bottles. But this estate was impressive in that it’s history (location) was under the Inglenook name (no longer around) which was one of the few ‘grandfathers’ of the Napa Valley if you were to mention names that have longevity and history.

We also hit:

• Castle Winery
• BV (Beaulieu Vineyard)
• Caymus
• Cakebread Cellars
• Peju
• Silverado
• Clos du Val
• Elizabeth Spencer, and
• Flora Springs

Unfortunately, we did not have time to go to Robert Mondavi’s winery and ironically, he passed away the Friday we were there. He was 95, I think.

The restaurants are a whole other world out there. The best food, freshest ingredients, most creative combinations of flavors, and the best servers. When you get up to go to the restroom, for example, they immediately come over and refold your napkin. I was also amazed by after drinking a couple glasses of iced tea or water, they replace the entire glass with a new one! Just top notch. We ate at the amazing L’Auberge de Soleil, Boucheon pastry shop and restaurant (owned and run by the infamous Thomas Keller of French Laundry (which we did NOT go to — only about 72 guests/evening as it’s around $500/couple for dinner and lasts several hours), and Redd. These were our favorites the entire week. But we had equally great lunches.

On our last morning, we woke up at 545am to head over to Yountville (we stayed in Rutherford – Napa Valley consists of Napa proper, Yountville, Oakville, Rutherford, St. Helena and Calistoga) for a morning hot air balloon ride over the valley with Napa Valley Aloft — one word for you: breathtaking. It had been canceled on Thursday due to winds and this was our last chance before heading out of Napa. Thankfully it was a GO! I am not afriad of heights but for someone who is, this IS NOT the thing to do. There are no seatbelts and there is NO room in the basket to move (5 of us fit, very snuggly!) and you do get up pretty high. And the top of the basket comes up to your hips or waist, but that’s it! But OMG, amazing, incredible, beyond description. I was loving it and virtually speechless. There were about 8-10 other balloons up that morning so the skyline was magnificent to see them flying but also just to see the valley. It was about an hour ride and the landing was surreal. Our pilot has been doing this over 30 years and there is no knowing where they land each day due to winds but we trusted him 110%. He just told us NOT to talk to him when he’s landing. GULP. So we tried landing once (that poor ground crew chase team that has to follow us in their car everywhere and then run to catch us coming down!) and then aborted before finally landing, at an angle, going what seemed 10mph, between trees, power lines, just feet from vines — finally, in a parking lot of a restaurant with no room to spare! Incredible. Believe me, this valley is all vineyards so there are not many options as you’ll see from the photos. So if you go, and have some pocket change (or more), and feel brave to be high in the sky, this is truly an unforgettable experience. And they follow it up by taking you out for a champagne brunch afterwards. Hummm, more bubbly grapes. Fine by me.

Next part will include our trip to see Redwoods (Sequoias), the Pacific Coastline, and some of San Fran. Thanks for reading!

The view from Silverado’s tasting room.

Rubicon Estate

Cakebread Cellars tasting menu

Believe it or not, these are the TINY grapes that will be harvested when they are luscious and purple in the fall!

This was my favorite appetizer — roasted beets and oranges on arugula!

(taken with my iphone)

So many shops have free tastings be it olives, breads and this had honey tastings which is one of my favorite foods! This store has the most awesome view.

This is just a typical photo of a vineyard up against the hills of Napa Valley.

Inside Rubicon estate — a party and tasting room

Caymus’s tasting room. This one was by appointment only and we had to do it almost 2 months in advance.

A view of Napa Valley from the mountain coming over from Sonoma County.

I just returned from a fabulous 7 days in Cali which I will blog (probably in parts b/c there is so much beauty to show) about shortly. But first, I wanted to post this fun photo which I received while I was away from my new friend and colleague Shaun Anthony, who lives and works in the Baltimore area. Thanks for this photo Shaun! And of course he shot this with my (drooling) fav camera, the Nikon D3.

I attended a photography workshop the week before my trip that was co-hosted by two of the most amazing and top 5 photographers in the world — Yervant and Joe Bussink. For a photographer, it’s like having your photo taken with your favorite NFL quarterback if your a football fan or with Picasso if your an artist and/or Julia Child if you’re a cook (and if she were alive). You get the idea!

Anyway, each of them presented their philosophy for shooting weddings and how they run their business. They both are at the top of their game but have done it for very different lengths of time (Joe for 13 years after being a PhD candidate in Nueuroscience) and Yervant who has been in the business for over 30 years. Their basic point was that you can be successful regardless of how you shoot or what style you prefer as long as you treat it like a business and love what you’re doing. Joe is a US based, Beverly Hills, photographer who has shot Christina Aguilera, Catherine Zeta Jones, and other famed celebrities in a primarily photojournalistic way. Yervant is french born, but an Aussie based photographer with an equally amazing list of clients and shoots with a tad more posing and artistry and does more on the back end to embellish his images — and quite successfully I may add.