Lynn and I started the day with a workout but as we left the room we found the hot air balloons preparing for launch. They were beautiful. It was only after these three left that we saw the other twelve floating down the valley.
Today, we started touring the wineries. First up was Nickel & Nickel. They are a division of Far Niente. The facilities are excellent. It is crush season and they were going full speed. It was very interesting to see how they harvest the grapes. Our “wine educator” was Chris Mitchell and he did an excellent job.
We took a break and went to the pool for a couple hours. Even though the temps were in the low 70’s, the sun was very warm.
Later, we took a drive up the road to Mumm Napa. They specialize in sparkling wines. They had already finished their harvest but the tour was still very impressive. We really enjoyed the tastings on the “Oak Patio” with a great cheese and fruit platter.
They money people invest in these facilities is staggering. While there is a lot of automation, much of the work is still manual. These are the newest, cleanest, most polished factories you could imagine.
