Hey guys,
Last weekend I met up with a couple local Vette and Viper buddies for coffee and a quick morning run. We all said that we should try to get a Napa Valley cruise put together. Well, Dave looks to have put his creative juices to good use and has come up with what sounds like a GREAT run!!! ALSO, keep in mind that you certainly don't have to make the entire run/lunch/tour/etc. Actually my wife and I will likely have to head for home right after lunch as we have a 9 week-old baby at home, so if there's others that need to do the same, we can have a smaller group of cars cruise back with us.
This will be a great opportunity to get the Viper out and to meet some other great can nuts.
Christian
NAPA VALLEY V-V-V-R-O-O-M!!! CRUISE
V-V-V-R-O-O-M ! ! ! . . .”Vettes, Vipers, Vines, Roaming Outdoor Outing & Meandering” -- I met a few other Detroit horsepower addicts the other day. . . . Fellow Vette or Viper owners. Four of us met for coffee and thought it would be fun to gather up a few other similarly afflicted car nuts and their significant others (or not) and find an excuse to take a cruise somewhere.
So come join us for a cruise to scenic Napa Valley for lunch and a little wine tasting on Sunday, May 22nd. This event is open to all Corvette and Viper owners. We’ll meet up at my office in Walnut Creek (right next to the freeway) at 9:00am. I’ll provide bagels/pastry and Starbucks coffee. We’ll hit the road at 9:30 and caravan up to the Napa Valley.
Our first stop will be at Andretti Winery (partially owned by Mario Andretti). Hey! . . . Vettes! . . . Vipers! . . . We gotta’ stop at Andretti’s! Great gardens in a Tuscan setting, and some fairly decent wines.
Then we’ll head up the Silverado Trail towards Calistoga, taking the long way around to The Wine Spectator Greystone Restaurant located at The Culinary Institute of American at Greystone in St. Helena. We’ll stop there for leisurely lunch – Great food, sensational wines, creative seasonal cocktails, and Northern California microbrews, all in a grand and rustic historical stone structure.
Then we’ll head back up the valley a short ways to Sterling Vineyards for a winery tour beginning with a tram ride up to the winery situated atop a hill. You’ll be offered a taste of wine to take with you as you wander through the sprawling winery at your own pace, following paths leading to various parts of the winery and out to a large outdoor terrace. There you’ll be offered another wine for tasting as you enjoy the fantastic views down the valley. You’ll wander back through the winery and up to the very top of the facility to yet another terrace with fabulous views up the other direction of the valley. There you’ll enjoy a seated tasting of a few additional wine selections served by Sterling’s Wine Ambassadors. Some may want to wander into the Cellar Club Room where wine club members (and those considering club membership) are offered tastings of some of the winery’s more special and limited bottlings. The cost of the tram ride, tour and tasting is $15. I have four complimentary guest passes – One will go to each of the first four cars to RSVP.
Next we can either all go off in our own directions, or some of us may decide to take an extended drive. There is a drive custom-made for low-slung, curve-loving machines that takes you back through Calistoga and North to Middletown, then out through Pope Valley and back to the Silverado Trail at about mid-valley. It’s probably about an hour’s drive through some sparsely populated and beautiful valleys, by way of winding country roads.
Feel free to join us from our starting point in Walnut Creek or anywhere along the route. If you’ll be joining us for lunch, please RSVP to me ASAP as I will need a head count well in advance for reservations at the Culinary Institute.
Please RSVP to David Epperson @
david_epperson@countrywide.com or 1-877-605-2016. First four cars to RSVP will get one free admission/tram ride/winery tour/wine tasting at Sterling Vineyards.
Meet at 9:00am for coffee and a little mutual car envy, at 101 Ygnacio Valley Road, Walnut Creek – On the corner of Ygnacio Valley Road and Oakland Blvd – Between the BART tracks and Hwy 680.
If coming from the South or West, exit 680/24 at Ygnacio Valley Road – Make left hand u-turn at end of ramp – First building/lot on your right.
If you’re coming from the North, from 680 Southbound exit North Main Street (Head South-Downtown – Just keep to your right) – 1/4 mile, veer right onto California – Another 1/4 mile, turn right onto Ygnacio Valley – At first light, turn left onto Oakland Blvd – First building/lot on your right. Get lost? – Call me @ 1-877-605-2016.
Here are some links for additional info on destinations:
http://www.andrettiwinery.com/
http://www2.ciachef.edu/lm/greystone...tor/index.html
http://www.sterlingvineyards.com/
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