Napa, can you be any cuter?! This little town stole my heart the minute I set foot in it. Click more to read the top 5 reasons why I loved this charming town!
As everyone knows, I love wine, meat, and cheese. (Akshay’s note: she mostly loves wine.) So how was Napa not a destination after I turned 21? I really don’t know!
We stayed in Napa’s downtown area for two and a half days, which I think is ample time if you’re not planning on exploring the different regions. We were able to get a flavor of wine country, and it definitely gave us another excuse to plan a future trip! Here are 5 reasons why I would definitely go back to Napa:
1. Wine and more wine: I’m not a wine connoisseur at all. To be honest, I probably can’t tell the difference between mediocre and really good wine. However, it’s hard not to feel a natural excitement when you’re surrounded by so many experts who are very passionate about wine. There are SO many wineries to choose from, and we soon realized that wine tasting can get pretty expensive ($40 for 5-6 tastings at some)! I think our favorite one was Gustavo Winery. It was a smaller, more intimate winery and they gave us some fairly heavy pours. We also went to the popular touristy ones, including Chateau Montelena, Beringer, and Castello di Amorosa. The castle was honestly a huge waste of time. Other than the pretty photo ops, it was overcrowded and not a memorable experience. We recommend sticking to the smaller wineries since they have way more personality. (Akshay’s note: Totally agree. It was terrible, and the guy helping us kept making weird comments.)
2. Charming Downtown: It’s a pretty small downtown filled with wineries, small shops, cottage style homes, and little restaurants all within a reasonable walking distance of each other. The famous Oxbow Market is also a place you should definitely stop by at. It has various food stalls, fresh fruit and vegetable stands, spice/ candle/ perfume shops, and other various little stores to explore around in. For the most part, I would say food is hard to go wrong with. Yelp is very helpful, and there are many restaurants with 4+ stars to select from. We ate at Goose and Gander, Zuzu, and Grace’s Table during our trip, and all of us were pretty satisfied!
3. Cutest Bed & Breakfasts: If you’re looking for a cute, cozy place with delicious breakfast, then you should stay at the Hennessey House! It’s reasonably priced (compared to other places), the rooms are spacious and clean, and the concierge is so warm and welcoming. They added so many extra touches that really made you feel at home. For example, we had Hennessey whiskey accompanied with two Ferrero Rocher chocolates waiting for us when we entered our room. Similarly, in the mornings, we would be served a full course homemade breakfast presented in the most adorable way. My favorite was their blueberry French toast with pork sausage. My mouth is literally watering as I type this. I will definitely be staying here again when we visit Napa in the future!
4. Best meat and cheese boards: This is a given, right?! Who goes to Napa and doesn’t pair their wine with cheese or meat!? We actually found a delicious charcuterie shop right next to Oxbow Market called Fatted Calf. They have an incredible cheese and meat selection and they also sell bottles of wine! We loved it so much we had to go back one more time! While we gobbled everything up right outside, they also wrap everything up, so you could potentially plan a cute picnic.
5. Friendly People: I think more than anything else, I really enjoyed interacting with the people. It’s a small town and everyone knows and supports each other. While we were at Gustavo Winery, we randomly remembered we had forgotten to pack toothpaste in our suitcases. The friendly lady who was teaching us about the wines overheard us and immediately called Hennessey House to assist us with our toothpaste dilemma! Also, Lynn, the concierge at Hennessey House, made a huge effort to get to know us and even helped us find some fun wineries to try. In general, everyone we interacted with were so excited to share their knowledge and give us options on what to try and do in Napa.
These are my top 5 reasons in a nutshell. I swear this quaint little town is a place you will not regret visiting! Next time, we’ll definitely visit other regions in the Napa area like Sonoma County.
