An Introduction to Napa Valley

The wineries of Napa Valley California are among the most known among wine lovers all over the world. For some, a visit to this region is a lifelong dream vacation due to it’s pleasant climate and beautiful scenery.

Located in Northern California, Napa Valley contains both the soil and the climate that is considered one of the best in the world for growing wine grapes. As one of the premier wine producing regions in the United States, Napa Valley is home to a number of different wines through it’s wineries; among them include the Chandon, Caymus and Frank Family.

Napa Valley receives millions of visitors each year that tour it’s productive wineries. Napa Valley has also become one of the premier attractions in the state of California. During a trip to the Napa Valley, visitors will have the experience of enjoying breathtaking vistas, numerous culinary pleasures and a source of inspiration for those who make wine as a hobby.

Even though this region has been historically strong, the fertile and beautiful Napa Valley has had it’s share of times where it almost ceased to exist in terms of wine production. Beginning in 1920 and ending in 1933, Prohibition became the law of the land. Around the same time, phylloxera, a root louse, destroyed numerous vines that produced the wine which resulted in the closing of several wineries. However, Napa Valley wineries reopened again after World War II and the region became popular again.

The popularity of the Napa Valley region grew even more when the region’s Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay were deemed to be better than the fine French labels in the Paris Wine Tasting in 1976. The region is continuing to grow and expand to this day and is now home to hundreds of wineries. The Napa Valley is now home to some of the world’s best wineries.

Wine tours of the Napa Valley run from morning until evening. Visitors will not only have the opportunity to enjoy a wide variety of fine wines, they will also have the chance to view the entire wine making process; from beginning to end. Many of the wineries also provide high quality wines at a discount in addition to their tours.

Despite the fact that there are hundreds of wineries in the Napa Valley, the valley itself is a condensed 35 miles long. However, this gives it an added convenience to the visitor because they can easily travel from one end of it to another in a relatively short amount of time. The drive of the entire distance of the valley only takes a half hour long with traffic permitting. The main route for these wineries is formed by Highway 29. On this route, you can also find not only the larger wineries, but shops, hotels and restaurants as well. Highway 29 begins quite close to the end of San Francisco Bay at the mouth of the Napa River. Every winery can be reached along Napa Valley when traveling along this highway.

Do you have an interest in wine and thinking about your next getaway? You might want to try the beautiful and fertile Napa Valley for your next vacation.


Wines, Spas, Golf and Lots More on a Napa Valley Tour

Considered as one of the top wine regions in the USA, Napa Valley is a delight for tourists from all over the world and particularly the wine enthusiasts. The natural beauty, great climate, wines and plenty of other attractions make Napa Valley an ideal place for a wonderful wine tour that offers a delightful mix of other delights as well.

Wine tasting adventures
Wines and Napa Valley are inseparable. Napa Valley boasts of numerous wineries and vineyards and it not possible to visit all of them in one go. The region is home to almost 400 wineries. However, there are some of the most popular vineyards which you must visit while you are on a Napa Valley wine tour. These include:

Pine Ridge Winery
Swanson Vineyards

Chimney Rock Winery
Kelham Vineyards

William Hill Winery
Frank Family Vineyards

Honig Vineyard & Winery
Titus Vineyards and many more

Drive to Napa Valley from San Francisco for a wine tour on a limo. At the wineries you can enjoy wine tasting sessions. Some wineries also serve chocolate and caviar along with fine wine. You can taste some of the finest wines here such as Cabernet, Zinfandel, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay but you need to fix appointments with the wineries in advance before visiting them

What other things you can do in Napa Valley

Ride on a hot air balloon
How about taking a breathtaking aerial view of the beauty of the Napa Valley from high above? Get up early in the morning and take the hot air balloon ride over the valley. Watching the greenery and lush vineyards from the sky is something which can’t be described in words

Visit COPIA – The American Center for Wine, Food & the Art

When you are in the wine region of Napa Valley, do find some time to visit the institution which educates people about wines. Located in Downtown Napa; COPIA – the American Center for Wine Food and Art, is an ideal place to gather some knowledge about the wines. Wine tasting sessions, classes, exhibits, seminars, and events take place here every month

Visit museums
Napa Valley has a number of museums. Some are dedicated to wine and food while others are devoted to art and natural history. You can check out the di Rosa Preserve, Silverado Museum, Ca’toga Galleria d’Arte and Napa Valley Museum.

Play golf
Apart from the wineries and vineyards, Napa Valley is also a great destination for golf enthusiasts. There are various golf courses such as Chardonnay Golf Club, Eagle Vines Golf Club, Silverado Resort, etc.

Indulge yourself
How about getting an aromatic massage at a spa surrounded by rolling hills and vineyards? While you are on a Napa Valley tour, take a break from the pressures of daily life and pamper yourself by getting spa treatments done at some of the luxurious spas located here. Relax and rejuvenate yourself by indulging in mud baths, massages, herbal facials, manicures, pedicures and body treatments.

The journey to Napa Valley from San Francisco is breathtaking. In fact to best enjoy the Napa Valley wine tour, hire a limo from San Francisco limo rental companies and travel around the Napa Valley in complete comfort and luxury. The limo drivers know Napa Valley wine region like the back of their hands and they can take you to wineries and vineyards without any hassles and guide you throughout your journey.


Silicon Valley Luxury Homes | Silicon Valley Luxury Real Estate

Situated in Santa Clara County, 50 miles south of San Francisco, Silicon Valley luxury homes can be found in San Jose, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Fremont, Milpitas, Menlo Park, Cupertino, Los Altos, Los Gatos, Campbell and Santa Clara.  Silicon Valley luxury real estate houses more high-tech jobs per capita than anywhere else in the nation, so it’s reasonable to assume the residents living in Silicon Valley homes are quite affluent.

Computer technology was born in Silicon Valley luxury real estate. Some of the high-paying companies that have their headquarters or at least a major presence here include: IBM, Sun, Intel, Sony, Yahoo, Cisco, Apple, Hitachi, Netscape, Microsoft, Google, Symantec, eBay, Facebook, Netflix, TiVo and more. A number of high-level government and military employees work at Moffett Federal Airfield, NASA Ames Research Center and Onizuka Air Force Station. Students congregate at Stanford University, San Jose University and Santa Clara University.

Typically, there has been so many jobs in Silicon Valley that local recruitment efforts spawned a whole industry of its own. The California Employment Development Department says that jobs still abound in biomedicine, software programming, secondary-school teachers, environmental consultants, biofuel research, infrastructure and commercial loan officers. The shaky economy brought bad news for mid-wage earners living in Silicon Valley luxury homes, as the region shed construction, hospitality, retail and financial service jobs. However, the Valley saw gains in higher-paying education, social assistance, healthcare and business service jobs. Also, more than 1.5 million “green” jobs have been created in California over the last thirty-five years, generating $45 billion in payroll, with many of those jobs right here in Silicon Valley luxury real estate.

Of course, career opportunities are just one component of this gorgeous region. Mountainous, fertile valleys bordering the Pacific Ocean and pleasant weather all-year-round are some of the obvious perks. Residents never need heat or air conditioning, since the temperature is so mild. San Jose is ranked “one of the best places to live” by Money Magazine. The cost of living here is considered expensive, but it keeps the riffraff out. San Jose has the least expensive Silicon Valley luxury homes, while Palo Alto and Menlo Park are two of the ritzier areas. That being said, Silicon Valley paychecks compensate for the higher cost of living, with the average salaried working bringing in around $93,876.

For entertainment, residents of Silicon Valley luxury real estate can drive just five hours to Lake Tahoe, home to skiing, and snowboarding in the winter, or boating, gambling and nature walks in the warmer months. Moreover, Reno nightlife is just another hour away, making it a perfect weekender. San Francisco, with all its historic charm and culture, is only one hour North of Silicon Valley as well. Napa Valley wineries are a big draw for the Silicon Valley aristocracy. The Santa Cruz beach boardwalk is a great place to take the kids for an afternoon. Yosemite National Park is nearby with mountains, rock formations, valleys, geysers, wildlife and waterfalls. The Monterey Peninsula also has one of the nation’s best aquariums and a number of historical sites. Amusement parks are located in Los Gatos, Gilroy, Willow Glen, Santa Clara and East San Jose. For the nature enthusiasts, there are more than twenty-two national and state parks in the area, with hiking trails and amazing views of the Valley. Silicon Valley luxury homes offer the most convenient location in California, right in the heart of it all.