Pics from Day Trip to Napa

These pictures don't need much explanation. Jeff and I woke up and went on a hilly run to City Hall while Ben slept in. Then we got in the car at 10am and drove to Calistoga (the Northernmost town in the major Napa wine region), had lunch, and then weaved our way down throughout the assorted vineyards and wineries. It was a good time. Tonight, we're going to Chinatown for what will probably be a very large meal, and we'll be joined by Matt Nerlinger, Mitch Steinberg, and Greg Mazlin, three of my fraternity brothers from the year below me, all of whom are in town.

Anyway, the pics explain themselves:

(Entering Napa.)

(This place makes great champagne. Not that I actually bought any.)

(At the Silver Rose Winery, where they happen to have a Museum of Football Helmets in their tasting room. Because that's intuitive, right?)

(At the Rutherford Ranch winery. Free, delicious dessert pairings with the tasting - i.e. dark chocolate bark with sour cherries to go along with a nice Cabernet Sauvignon. However, you'll notice that my empty glass is just a prop, as I was driving, and I had heard that over the course of an afternoon, the 2 ounce pours really add up.)

(Rutherford Ranch tasting room.)

(The Rutherford Ranch sitting room.)

(Duckhorn Vineyards' lineup. Complete with lots of wines named after cute duck puns...if you believe those exist.)

(The rear fields at Duckhorn Vineyards.)

(The front of the Duckhorn Vineyards tasting house.)

(Meet Ralph. 50 years in Napa. Can you tell?)

(A random yet pristine road in Napa.)

(This book was awesome. That is, if you love dogs and wine, which I do.)

(A solid lineup at a August Briggs winery. Apparently, because they don't grow their own grapes, they can not be called a vineyard.)

(The August Briggs storage room. Enough wine to inebriate the entire state of Delaware.)

(Another random yet charming street.)

(Grapes. And other grapes.)

(A complimentary wine tasting. Those are the best kind, I suppose.)

(A Mecca of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I enjoyed the lime-infused chili oil the best.)

(The queen of the olive oils.)

(Showing off our haul, which will probably be consumed tonight at a BYO restaurant in Chinatown.)

(My purchase: A 2004 Rancho de las Flores Cabernet Sauvignon. Our gift to our host Aaron.)

(The aforementioned host with the aforementioned bottle, rocking a sick LA Dodgers jacket.)

(A swiveling decanter. I was very fascinated by this, as evidenced by this video. Too bad it was $85 and would have had to survive 5,000 miles in my trunk...)

(Matt, the grumpy old man, wasn't happy until he had a drink in his hand. Good thing we spent 5 hours in Napa...)

Ok, time for some Kung Pow...