You might be lucky enough to have a group of female friends you love getting together with and if you’re as lucky as me, you also have a sister that you actually enjoy spending time with. This past Memorial Day weekend, we left our husbands and kids at home and escaped to Napa, California for three days of wine, music, food and friendship. And I’m here to tell you that it’s a vacation every mom will enjoy if she gets the chance to take it.
The catalyst for our travels was BottleRock Napa Valley, a three-day music, wine and food festival that takes place in one of the most gorgeous areas on planet Earth. I was there to see “my boys,” Duran Duran, while my sister was looking forward to one of the other headliners: Red Hot Chili Peppers. We both love music and going to concerts together is our favorite activity. Good food, great wine and the best music—this was everything we loved all in one place.
After flying into San Fransisco, we rented a car and crossed the Golden Gate Bridge, heading toward Sonoma. With wine and charcuterie on our brains, we checked into our hotel and headed out to a local spot, La Dolce Vita, recommended by the concierge. Clinking our glasses of rose together, our trip had officially begun.
Part of the fun of travel is in the planning, and over the past month, my sister and I had kept up a steady stream of text messages, plotting our outfits which of course had to include giant sunhats, which came in handy as the next morning we visited our first winery, Clos du Val.
Sitting in fancy chairs on a gorgeous patio overlooking the vineyard, we sampled a glass of their Sauvignon Blanc and took in the view. Soon it was time to head over to BottleRock. With all of our items in the requisite clear purses, we got to the Napa Valley Expo just in time to hear Nile Rodgers and Chic, whose set was one big dance party. Following that, in one of the most unique parts of the weekend we got to see John Taylor and Roger Taylor of Duran Duran make salad dressing on the Williams Sonoma Culinary Stage!
Being in our 40’s, we didn’t think of ourselves as “festival people” but BottleRock, which is referred to as Coachella for grownups, was right up our alley. In addition to multiple stages featuring an eclectic array of music, there were countless booths featuring delicious food, cocktails, and of course, wine. Our strategy was to sample as many different foods as possible, sharing the portions. We tried plenty of delicacies, our favorites being the tacos and empanadas.
While we were there for the wine, we were pleasantly surprised to see that craft cocktails were at the forefront of the festival. Many major liquor brands had their own elaborate installations, the best of which were Hendrick’s gin and Monkey Shoulder whisky. At Hendrick’s, we tried the Butterfly Effect, which had an enchanting purple hue and was made with Jardesca Aperitiva and the Honeysuckle, which featured their limited-release Flora Adora gin.
Over at Monkey Shoulder, we had a difficult time finding the booth and that was because the entrance was behind a port-a-potty door that led into a pulsing nightclub! There we sampled the Peach Please and the Chi Chi, two fun and festive drinks.
BottleRock let us rock out to Duran Duran, the Chili Peppers and we even got a look at Keanu Reeves playing with his band, Dogstar in their first live performance in more than 20 years!
To top off our trip, we visited Domaine Carneros, a winery specializing in amazing sparkling wines. As we sat on the patio of the French-inspired chateau, we had the Sparkling Sampler, which allowed us to try four different glasses of bubbly including the Estate Brut Cuvee, a blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, the very drinkable Blanc de Noir, our favorite the Brut Rose and on the slightly sweeter side, the Vermeil Demi-Sec. Looking out at the Napa Valley, the scenery seemed unreal and the company was perfect.
We left California vowing to make our girls’ getaway a yearly tradition, so long as grandma and the husbands are willing to be on duty!
Where to fly: San Francisco International Airport, from there it’s just over an hour’s drive to Napa
Where to stay: Cambria Sonoma Wine Country or Cambria Hotel Napa Valley. For a splurge, Carneros Resort.
Where to eat: La Dolce Vita Wine Lounge, Petaluma for incredible wines and delicious food
Where to take in wineries: Domaine Carneros, Napa (for the best bubbles, founded by the family behind Champagne Taittinger); Clos du Val, Napa; Beaulieu Vineyard, Napa; Robert Mondavi Winery, Napa; Stags’ Leap, Napa
BottleRock 2024: Click here to get next year’s 3-day general admission tickets at this year’s prices and rock on!