Saturday our trip began with a stop at Mumm. They just had a new deck built and CK made reservations for us to sit and sip some bubbles. Unfortunately Napa was so much warmer than SF, so the long pants I wore were too much for the sun and we moved to a shady spot right away.
We had a little cheese plate to go with our tastes, and I couldn't help but tell them it was our special day and ask for a photo to be taken! Good thing I did, because it lead to more bubbles! Apparently certain sparkling wines are to be served on the deck, but they shared these with us incase we needed some sparkling wine for the wedding. We got a bottle for ourselves for the "cellar" to remember our day.
Next we went to Cliff Lede. Meh. I will say meh. It was alright, but not as romantic as Mumm. We didn't take a picture of our tasting, but here's me in their trellis!
Onward! After a hilarious stop at Stag's Leap wine cellars where an older asian couple was, I think, giving us marital advice, but clearly had been drinking tons of wine. I will say I may have also had rosey cheeks by then. CK had make reservations at Ad hoc for dinner and we were running a bit early so we stopped by The French Laundry to walk the garden across the street. Chris also walked over for a closer look at the restuarant we hope to dine in this October.
Then we went to Bouchon! Another Thomas Keller restaurant that has a little bakery attached. Besides an espresso to wake me up, I got a macaroon the size of my fist. YUM. Unfortunately my good friend ate there recently and told me the brunch was not up to what you'd expect from such a renowned Chef. She did confirm however that the bakery is YUM. We drove around to enjoy the scenery, and then it was time for Ad Hoc! So I guess we visited all of the Thomas Keller's restaurants in a single day!
At Ad hoc they serve one four-course meal each night. Everyone gets the same thing. So I guess you are taking a risk if, say, you don't eat duck or something. Lucky for us we have no such restrictions! We were served a salad with duck ham, delicious, some sort of yummy steak, a small cheese course, and the BEST panna cotta I've ever had (and I've been to Italy 3 times). We had such a fabulous celebration day!
Sunday I surprised CK by taking him to brunch at Serpentine, which unknown to me he knew nothing about! Followed by a second surprise - a trip to the Jeweler to get his wedding band! On the same day he got me my engagement ring one year later. Get it? I was going to surprise him with the band, but the jeweler insisted he try it on and get the perfect size because the texture meant no resizing. All in all a wonderful engagement memorial weekend. Here is a glimpse of us one year ago, on our enagement day in Napa.
We can't wait to spend our special day with friends and family three short months from now.
No comments:
Post a Comment