Our whirlwind day in Wine Country

Yesterday we decided to head up to Napa and St. Helena. Then just for fun Don decided we should trek over to Healdsburg too. Not exactly in the same area. But what the heck!

We started out at the store, Pollin's, to check on a few things. Elli went nuts when we pulled in the parking lot because there was the perfect pile of leaves right in front. She couldn't resist.

Then we headed to St. Helena to have lunch at Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen. I had the mushroom tamales filled with grits, almonds and chard with Yukatan salsa. The chard was a bit tough. Don had a salad - grilled rare ahi tuna, udon noodles, nori strips, sesame seeds and a miso glaze. Elli had chicken fingers that weren't very good - my little foodie said they were burned. And she was right they were a bit like chicken jerky. But her fries were awesome. So I was disappointed. The food was ok, but not great. And the service was ok. Bummer.

Next we stopped at Olivier in St. Helena to fill up our Olive oil bottle with yummy Manzanillo olive oil.

From there we headed to Healdsburg to find Michel Schlumberger Winery. I've read a lot about their wines and was looking forward to a taste. Lucky for us they let us in. It's by appointment only. Oops. The wine was great. The cabernet was definitely our favorite. The nice guys here recommended we head to downtown Healdsburg and check out Williamson Wines. That sounded good to us. The town is so cute. Plus, we could grab dinner.

We made a quick stop at Twomey so Don could taste the Merlot that I think is so good. It was quick. We got there at 4:55. They close at 5:00. Then we headed to town.

The Williamson wines were great! They pair each wine with food so you can really imagine what it would be like to drink the wine with a meal or appetizer, or dessert. It was an amazing tasting. One of my all time favorites. We liked it so much we joined their wine and cheese club. So now once a quarter we'll be heading to Healdsburg to pick up our wine and cheese. Fun!

We ended the evening at Manzanita 336 for pizza and salad. The pizza's totally hit the spot. Don had "The daily special" which was a mexican pizza with chicken and avocado and I ordered a chorizo and shrimp pizza. Of course Elli had pasta. We have lots of leftovers for lunch today.

The Napa Wine Train.

Tra Vigne and Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen.

Don looks like a secret service agent. He and his dog Sam were very serious.

Tasting wine at Michel Schlumberger in Healdsburg.

That's it. Have a great day!