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First reaction) Thrilled. Second Reaction) Wait, what?! Third Reaction) Small detail...What about our son?
My husband has done this multiple times before. Let it be known, he does NOT spend money on frivolous items, basically ever, but when he comes across a cheap flight or vacation, he does not hesitate. In years past, we've gone to New York for the day around Christmastime (doing every touristy thing imagine in under 12 hours!) and he also booked our trip to Ireland without much discussion, deciding the price was too good to pass up and it was a don't miss opportunity. We both share a passion for traveling so when he decides to book a trip on a whim, there are no complaints.
Luckily, in this case, my amazing parents were willing to take Ro from Sat-Sun so we could enjoy a quick weekend getaway in wine country and by the bay. In addition to his last minute booking skills, Mike is also an expert trip planner with the great ability to narrow down the most important things to see, no matter how short a visit and in doing so, the teacher in him definitely comes out. He made a google doc of all the things we could do both days, down to the minute and plan b's in case something didn't work out.
Wine Tasting in Napa Valley
Quick background story: We were planning to catch the bus for our Napa Valley tour almost immediately after arriving in San Fran but our flight from Chicago was delayed about an hour and a half Saturday morning so we missed the shuttle that takes you to the wineries. We debated just skipping it and falling back on our plan b for the day but decided it was worth it to get there since we would make it for most of the tour, so we raced to jump in an Uber. A 4 hour plane ride, hour and a half car ride (and 100 something dollars later), we were finally at the Robert Mondavi Winery - Guess new-ish parents will do anything for a kid-free day filled with wine. P.S., we hadn't eaten anything (or had any water) since 8am and it was now 2:00 when we arrived, with wine being handed to us left and right, so I was sure we were going to be down for the count, but surprisingly, we handled it like champs and it felt so good to finally be there.
Robert Mondavi was a great experience and the perfect introduction to Napa because it felt very classic. The winery was established in 1966 with a vision to create Napa Valley wines that would stand in the company in the company of the world's finest. The vineyard (actually located in Oakville, CA) is known for production of some of the finest Cabernet Sauvignon wines in the world which we can vouch for being completely accurate. I'm more of a Pinot Noir gal but we both loved their cab and enjoyed learning about their vineyards, the (very long and intense!) fermentation process and feeling like wine snobs for a day instead of just sticking to our usual Trader Joes/Aldi purchases ;) There are so many details you don't think about, like how long the wine ages in wood barrels (years!) and how a REALLY good wine has a REALLY good cork (not the synthetic kind that breaks when you use a corkscrew - too often that's the kind we end up with at home, lol).
One of my favorite things that we learned that day? Once all of the juice has been squeezed from the grapes in their vats, the skins are still left over and it is literally someones job to get in a wet suit, dive into the tank and flush out all of the skins. Why didn't someone tell me it was ACTUALLY possible to swim in a vat of wine?! 🍷 Mental note: Switch careers.
After our Mondavi tour, we finally got to jump on the shuttle with the rest of our tour to head to what was actually my favorite stop of the day, the Oakville Grocery. The store was founded in 1881 and is the oldest continually operating grocery store in California and not only was it the absolute CUTEST shop but I ordered one of the best sandwiches of my life, true story. That's saying a lot because I've eaten more sandwiches in my life than anyone you probably know but it was a turkey pesto combo on rosemary focaccia and not to mention, I hadn't eaten in 8-ish hours so it tasted particularly amazing. We loved walking around the store, looking at all of their delicious goodies and products from local artisans and foodies including everything from cookies to jams and specialty cheeses. I could have sat there all day, ordering coffee and munching on their tasty snacks. I love tiny places like this with history and I will definitely have to bring my Mom back one day!
Once we had something to eat, we got our second wind and we felt ready to take on the second winery, Liana Estates. This place was the complete opposite of Mondavi, as it was established in 2016 so it was fairly new, off the beaten path and much trendier with a rustic wood finishes, a bocce pit out front and cupcake pairings on the menu. They specialize in different white varieties and even though I much prefer reds, I enjoyed quite a few of the white tastings because they were unique. we did the "Bay Breeze" tasting and I fell in love with their sparkling brut - I would've gladly taken that pour on repeat and also enjoyed the Orange Muscat. Our tasting host was so engaging and knowledgeable, giving us the rundown on how the winery started and what made each wine so different. She was a pleasure to talk to and really rounded out the experience for us.
The tour overall was so much fun and we owe part of that to the tour company themselves, as our driver and guide for the day was exceptional. She's actually from the suburbs of Chicago and spent many Summers in Lake Geneva so we had a lot to talk about which made the long drive back to San Francisco fly by. She also went out of her way to drive us up to a lookout point so we could get out and take pictures of the sun setting over the Golden Gate Bridge. She kept commenting on how it was extraordinarily beautiful that afternoon and how lucky we were to be seeing everything lit up in this way. It really was the perfect storm of everything coming together at just the right time. There's really nowhere to park up there since it's so packed with tourists so we literally ran along the coast while she was circling, snapped our photos and ran alongside the tour bus to meet up with her and hop back on. Wine + photo taking, this was my ideal day, guys!
Muir Woods Tour
Sunday, we got up early, enjoyed multiple rounds of our hotel's continental breakfast (literally the reason we CHOSE the place...who doesn't love a free meal?) and headed out for Muir Woods. I was very excited about this part of our weekend because I had visited the redwoods with the Family during our California trip when I was 9-ish years old so it was great to be able to come back and appreciate it in a mature way this time around. Before we started our main journey, the tour drove through downtown San Fran and then dropped us off at another perfect photo taking spot near the Golden Gate Bridge. The sun was shining and the waves were crashing and it was all just right.
After a few snapshots near the Full House bridge (you're all thinking it, right?) we were on our way to the woods. The main attraction of Muir Woods are the coastal redwood (Sequoia) trees which are known for their height, and are related to the giant sequoia of the Sierra Nevada. While redwoods can grow to nearly 380 feet, the tallest tree in the Muir Woods is 258 feet and they are SO SO beautiful, especially when you are standing directly underneath the towering trunks, looking up at their seemingly never ending branches.
Our tour guide dropped us off at the entrance to the monument and from there, we had 2 hours to explore on our own. We ended up choosing the longest path because we wanted to see everything we could and every step was more gorgeous and better smelling than the last. That's the thing about the outdoors - You couldn't bottle up the smell if you tried and there's nothing like it. We were in awe of the sequoia's, especially knowing how long most of them had been planted there and unchanged, despite mother nature's storms.
We learned a lot of background about the monument which was really interesting. In the early 20th century, William Kent, a rising California politician his wife purchased 611 acres of land from the Tamalpais Land and Water Company for $45,000 with the goal of protecting the redwoods and the mountain above them. In 1908, Theodore Roosevelt declared this land a National Monument, the first to be created from land donated by a private individual. The original suggested name of the monument was the Kent Monument but Kent insisted the monument be named after naturalist John Muir, whose environmental campaigns helped to establish the National Park system. In 1937, the Golden Gate Bridge was completed and park attendance tripled, reaching over 180,000. Today, the park sees up to 6,000 visitors PER! DAY!
After Muir Woods, our tour guide dropped us off in Sausalito for lunch and exploring. Unfortunately, we had an early evening flight to catch so we couldn't spend as much time here as we wanted but we made the most of it by grabbing lunch at an adorable deli and eating by the water before taking the ferry back to San Francisco. I loved looking at all the houseboats - Can you imagine? Such a different way of living from those of us in the Midwest. We also passed by SO MANY places to eat, shop and grab coffee in Sausalito which gave me a bit of FOMO but we will have to come back and just dedicate an entire day or weekend to sight seeing in this area. The ferry back to town was just as beautiful as every other minute of the day. We rode right by Alcatraz and had a great view of the skyline the whole way. It was the perfect ending to a spontaneous, San Fran weekend.
Quick Link Guide of a few things we loved on our visit!
Napa Valley Tour: Great Pacific Tour Company
Redwood Tour: Extranomical Tours
Saturday Dinner: 54 Mint - This place was so cute and located right behind our hotel! We were EXHAUSTED by dinner time on Saturday so this was the perfect place because it was a quiet little Italian joint and we just sat at the bar and enjoyed some delicious pasta and sparkling water.
Hotel:
Sunday Lunch: Venice Gourmet Delicatessen & Pizzeria: Family-owned and operated Mediterranean-style marketplace established in 1969. Great for a quick bite and again, one of the most delicious sandwiches I've ever had (I went with the Sausalito Turkey).
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How do you feel about quick weekend trips? As parents of a toddler, I think it's the easiest way to fit in some time by yourselves because it's long enough that we feel refreshed but short enough that we don't miss him too much (and he doesn't drive the Grandparents completely insane!) I look forward to our next one, whatever it may be...
Have any recommendations? Let me know!
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