How to improve on the standard Napa sojourn? Upgrade your ride, upgrade your stay, and drink for a good cause. When to improve the standard Napa sojourn? This weekend, when Napa’s best mixologists get together for the annual Top Drink Cocktail Festival to support the Napa Valley Museum. Here’s your plan.
The Ride
Don’t let the name fool you: Beverly Hills Rent-a-Car supplies Bay Area drivers with classic, convertible and other specialty cars from its office on Mason Street. Our choice for the weekend (available now, but surely not for long): a 1971 Corvette Stingray with a three-spoke sports steering wheel, egg-crate front grill, and four-speed manual transmission. Seats two. Book a sitter.
The Stay
You’ll want to check in early at Napa’s Carneros Inn. Don’t believe us? Just ask your Fireside Butler, on hand to stoke the coals of your private fire pit. Or take a spin on a complimentary bicycle. And book a rosemary mint and Cabernet wrap at the spa for tomorrow morning. You’ll need it.
Dinner
If you’re in love with a vegetarian, book a table at La Toque for the tasting menu of her dreams. Think Yukon Gold potato emulsion with green apple and pine nuts followed by agnolotti with spring peas, mint, black trumpet mushrooms and pecorino. Carnivores, take heart: the standard tasting menu kicks off with foie gras.
The Main Event
Make a list of your favorite places to drink in Napa — maybe Oenotri, Auberge du Soleil and Morimoto? — and chances are mixologists from at least one of them will be participating at tonight’s headlining event: the 4th Annual Top Drink Cocktail Festival. Drink up: ticket sales ($25 in advance, $35 at the door) support the night’s venue — the very family-friendly Napa Valley Museum.
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