Making Things Worse
Not too long ago I was lamenting where to stuff all the excess bottles of wine, and then I had to go and make the problem worse. But I had to. My trip to the Mendocino coast and Anderson Valley was long awaited and more than worth it. The wines were ones that I had to take, due to their limited availabililty and the fact that they’ll serve as reminders of an amazing mini-vacation. I enjoyed the visit in its entirety, from having buffalo burgers in Hopland, to visiting some fantastic wineries, to a nice hike in MacKerricher State Park, then a great dinner, having a fireplace in the room to fend off the cold coming from the ocean, a morning walk along the cliffs and through the town of Mendocino, a picnic next to a creek, and more yummy wine.
I want to thank everyone for their great suggestions. Dr.Debs, unfortunately, Cafe Beaujolais didn’t fit into the schedule (due to my tardiness in making a reservation) because that menu had me drooling. (And we wanted to get some macaroni and cheese for lunch today but needed to get on the wine road therefore got some free-range chicken salad sandwiches to go instead.) For dinner, Winehiker’s suggestion of Mendo Bistro was a great choice, especially for the local wine selections and inventive dishes. As for the hiking advice, since we heeded Amy’s instructions to hit Pacific Star, the amount of daylight limited our potential distance. Gail and Kristen, co-workers at Rosenblum, also gave worthwhile tips on Lazy Creek and Yorkville. Thanks, everyone. It was a very satisfying get-away that I’d love to repeat, although next time the lodging will be a tent and the time spent there longer.
Too bad about Cafe B, but you’ll have to put it on your “next time” list for sure. Looks like you have a good haul of Navarro wines–I’ve never regretted a single bottle I’ve purchased from them, but have regretted the bottles I didn’t purchase, so even if you have to move your shoes out of the closet, I think you did the right thing! Glad you had such a good time.
Thanks again for the tips. I will go back as soon as I can manage and will make my reservation for Cafe Beaujolais in advance. Walking past it the next day, I could see why the only opening was at 9:45–it’s tiny!
I too, made my wine gluttony worse by visiting Anderson Valley just after Christmas. I think I had 6 boxes in my trunk (but not all of them were full case boxes!!) on the way home from that trip. That adventure necessitated my purchase of your same Cost Plus wine rack! Did you make it up the hill to Esterlina?
Megan,
It was on my radar but since it was only a 2-day trip and they required appointments, I had to put on the “next time, I promise” list!
And I was confused for a minute because I though you were another blogger named Megan who lives on the East Coast. Thanks for coming by and entering the contest.
Oops, I realized I forgot part of my blog addy, just in case you anyone wants to take peek… **wink, wink**