My Visual Travel Experience: Napa, California

My wife and I spent a month in the western part of the USA in 2011 after our marriage. We spent time in Hawaii, San Francisco, Carmel, Napa, Fresno, Yosemite National Park, Las Vegas and Grand Canyon. We rented a car and drove to Napa, which lies about 80 km north of San Francisco. We enjoyed our tours of some of Napa's plush wineries. We got to taste many varieties of wine. Though we are not wine aficionados, we still had a great time tasting the delicious wines. The wineries were also beautiful and well worth seeing.

The town of Napa is situated in the American state of California. The town has a population of a little over 75,000 and is the second largest town in California’s wine growing region after Santa Rosa. Napa was incorporated as a city in 1872.

The first exploration of the area dates back to 1823. It was led by Padre Jose Altimira, the founder of Mission San Francisco Solano. The region was inhabited by Native American Indians back then. Many were converted to Christianity. Most others were driven out. In 1850, tensions between white settlers and Native American Indians resulted in many of the latter being killed. By 1870, the population consisted largely of white settlers.

Napa grew significantly in the California Gold Rush of the late 1850s. Agriculture and wine making became popular towards the turn of the century. Industries, commercial activities and the retail sector also expanded. Napa also developed one of the largest red light districts for a town of its size. Premium wine growing became popular in the 1960s, and today the region around Napa, known as Napa Valley, produces some of the world’s most premium varieties of wine.

Signage at the entrance to Napa Valley

Castle Winery, formally known as Castello di Amorosa, is a castle and winery. It opened in 2007. It was the brainchild of Dario Sattui, a 4th generation winemaker. The winery is on 171 acres of land. The castle has 107 rooms over 8 floors. The castle has a moat, a drawbridge, a courtyard, a torture chamber, a chapel, a knights’ chamber and a great hall.  Castle Winery produces 16,000 cases per year. Tours are allowed, as is wine tasting. 

Castle, Castle Winery

Chapel Interior, Castle Winery

Knights' Hall, Castle Winery

Vineyards, Castle Winery

The Entrance Gate, Castle Winery

Sterling Vineyards are spread over 1,200 acres of land. They produce 400,000 cases per annum. Visitors have to take cable cars from the entrance to the main villa and distillery. The white plastered villa looks like buildings in Mykonos, Greece. Production began in 1969.

Villa, Sterling Vineyards

View from the Terrace, Sterling Vineyards

Barrel, Sterling Vineyards

Hagafen Cellars is a winery that opened in 1979. It is California’s first kosher winery.  The winery makes 8,000 cases per annum. Hagafen specializes in Cabernet Sauvignon. Hagafen wines  cater to the top end of the market, and they have been served at the White House on many occasions.  

Overview, Hagafen Cellars

Barrel, Hagafen Cellars

Wine Tasting Room, Hagafen Cellars

Vineyards, Hagafen Cellars

First Presbytarian Church was built in 1874 in Neo Gothic style. It has an imposing steeple. The church was damaged in a 2014 earthquake, but was subsequently restored.

First Presbytarian Church

Interior, First Presbytarian Church

Napa was a charming place. The beautiful vineyards, the wine tasting experience, and the magnificent Medieval Europe inspired castle of Castle Winery were the highlights for me. My wife and I are both fans of dessert wine, and we got to taste some delicious dessert wine there. We have now managed to go to several wine growing areas in the world - Napa Valley in California, Duoro Valley in Portugal, and Yarra Valley in Melbourne. The area around Bordeux in France is still pending, as is the area around Nashik in India. All in all, it was a great outing from San Francisco!