SF to Seattle Trip Report (installment plan)

[Clarkmeister]

Another early riser, we had to leave by 9:45 to comfortably allow us to make our scheduled 2-hour barrel tasting at Del Dotto . Breakfast in bed hit the spot, though not as good as the Penninsula wheat French toast with berries. Shower and checkout and we were on our way, minus a minor Hertz neverlost navigation screwup.

The view of the back bay heading north is way different than what you see in San Francisco. Shipyards and ports abound. Very industrial, but not at all dirty. Kind of odd actually. Our first view of Napa was a Home Depot, McDonalds and a Wal-Mart. Not what I had expected. Of course, all the wineries were up the road and it was very scenic, but I expected a quaint little downtown, not a sprawling strip mall.

We made it to the Del Dotto tasting room a little ahead of time and quickly found out why this particular tour is nicknamed "Del Blotto". They give us a full glass of cab as soon as we check in. While the tour is obviously trying to get you wasted so you buy a bunch of stuff at the end, I didn’t mind. It was refreshing to have the winery encouraging you to drink more instead of having to ask for it, or in some cases getting refused. Plus, you don’t have to feel guilty about spitting or dumping since you can just do so right on the cave floor in between the barrels, something I did a decent amount of since I was driving.

The tour itself was neat. In a 150 year old hand-carved cave full with muck on the walls and spiders.






The tour guide echoed what I had read elsewhere that they were excited about how the 05 Cabs were shaping up. In all we sampled 8 barrels, including a bonus barrel when I asked to sample some Cab Franc before they ended the tour. Good times and highly recommended, even at the $40 admission price.

From Del Dotto we made a quick pit stop at Darioush , but a $15 tasting fee for two whites and one cab caused us to pass. Instead we decided to hit our scheduled appointment at Joseph Phelps a little early.

The Phelps winery is gorgeous. Totally set up for corporate functions and private events, the view is simply breathtaking. The ladies up front were also very nice and helpful, giving us recommendations that we would eventually follow for both lunch and dinner.




We split the tasting, which was $10. Decent enough stuff. The good news was that they had Insignia available for tasting, of which we went back for thirds. A well known wine that retails for like $135 a bottle and won Wine Spectator’s Wine of the Year in 2002, it was very good. Not really $135 good, but I liked it. Clarkmistress didn’t particularly care for it however. Ultimately, it was one of the top 3 wines I would drink on the trip. We also saw this really cool lizard thingy hanging out on the patio overlooking the vineyard.




By now we were really hungry for lunch, and took the recommendation of hitting the Wappo Bar Bistro , very close to our hotel in downtown (ha!) Calistoga, about 20 minutes from Phelps. More of a Mediterranean than a French menu, the Cuban sandwich special was delicious. The outdoor dining area was also really a great way to enjoy the beautiful 75 and sunny weather.






It was the first restaurant I’ve been to in a long time that had no soda products other than bottled root beer and bottled cream soda. We’d eat there again.

We arrived at Indian Springs Hotel and Spa with enough time for a quick nap prior to our mudbath and massage treatments. We really, really liked this place. Private bungalows just off a main central lawn area that had bocce ball and croquet, with a barbeque pit and ping pong tables in the backyard. The place also had a giant pool that was fed with cooled mineral spring water and was a tasty 94 degrees.








I know everyone is dying to know about the mud bath. It went like this. I go to the back locker room where the (male) attendant gives me a quick overview. The whole process is also spelled out on a chart on the wall, along with a newspaper article about the experience. I strip, throw on the walking around towel, and in a few minutes Jose comes back and walks me to the mud bath area.

I shower while he literally rakes the mud in this giant 9 foot by 5 foot tub, of which there are 4. Apparently in between, they boil the mud (oops, I mean volcanic ash. Whatever.) to sterilize it. Anyways, I get into the tub with a board behind my head for support and slowly sink into the mud while Jose starts burying me like we are old buddies out on the beach.

The mud is about 100 degrees. Warm but not uncomfortably so. Jose leaves and I’m like floating in this mud sandwich. Incredibly soothing, the weight and temperature of the mud kind of press the stress out of your extremities. 5 minutes in, I’m starting to get hotter, it’s kind of like being in an oven. Jose arrives around this time with a cool towel on my forehead. I love Jose. 5 minutes after that he asks if I’m done or if I want a minute or two more. I take two, and eventually he returns to help me out. I shower again, while he rakes and boils behind me.

From there I soak for 15 in a tub at about 90 degrees. Nice and floaty. Good contrast to the mud. Jose with another towel across my brow as my head reclines on my tub pillow. Nice. From there it’s another quick shower and 5 minutes in the steam room. The contrast from each of these treatments works very well. One final shower and it’s off to the final stage. I walk down to a private room with a nice cushy bed to lay in. Jose wraps me in dry towels from neck to toe and throws a moist towel and cucumbers over my eyes and face. I borderline pass out I’m so relaxed. 15 minutes of that and I conclude it’s maybe the best $65 I’ve ever spent.

Total time of the above is about one hour. From there my masseuse picks me up and we head back for a quality, albeit pretty standard 50 minute massage. Priced at a pretty normal $110, it’s a borderline ripoff compared to the $65 mudbath deal. Still, I end up feeling like a million bucks after it’s over. I head back to the bungalow and Clarkmistress is already there and she says hers was pretty excellent as well. Feeling pretty mellow and relaxed, we chill for a bit and then start walking towards town for dinner at Bar Vino.



Bar Vino is a tappas place that has an extensive wine tasting menu. They not only have wine by the glass, they also have 2oz tasting sizes, half bottles and full bottles, as well as a retail price for any full bottles you want to purchase on your way out.

The décor was really out of place in Calistoga, sort of a neo Asian with deer heads on the wall. Very dysfunctional while trying to be hip and trendy. The food was good, especially their cheese, meat and fruit sampler. We tried the following wines:

05 Tom Eddy Pinot Noir Napa
02 Cornerstone Cellars Cab Napa
04 Terrior Cab Franc Napa
04 Tofanelli Zinfandel Calistoga Napa
02 Atalon Merlot Oakville
03 Jacquelynn Cuvee Cab Napa


Of them them the only real strong memory I have is that the a few were pretty good but none were really noteworthy. I was disappointed with the lack of local wines available (we sampled Napa when they had one), but nothing we had was bad. Just nothing was really outstanding.

Finally we finish dinner, walk back to Indian springs and I lose a quick game of bocce. It’s now like 10:00pm and it feels like 2am. Time for bed and some rest before the first of two back-to-back days with heavy driving. The catch for tomorrow is we have to leave early enough to arrive in Ashland, OR for our 5:30pm dinner reservations prior to the show at the Shakespeare Festival. This time constraint forced us to forego heading west to see the redwoods, but it gives us an excuse to come back.