Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Wow! What a Mothers Day!

DSCF1235 The title says it all!  Max played at the Lake County Orchestra’s concert in the Junior Orchestra on his double-bass beginning at 11:00 a.m. (for the dress rehearsal) and getting finished by 3:30 that afternoon. DSCF0965 They played the theme from Amadeus (from Symphony #25 by Mozart) and an interesting piece called, “M to the Third Power” which entails unusual meter changes.

71558_451261913863_742573863_5217099_7195219_n Then, we sped off over the hill to Calistoga to the “Castle” winery, Castello di Amorosa for a tour DSCF1234 [with our tour guide, Mark] and wine tasting, thanks to Sean!  I’ve always been fascinated by castles, so this was a real treat. DSCF1233 This castle is listed as a 12th century Tuscan castle-winery owned by Dario Satturi.  According to their brochure:  “The 121,000 square foot Castello includes 107 unique rooms, 8,000 tons of hand-squared stones, 8 levels (4 below ground), 900 feet of caves, a completely hand-painted Great HallDSCF1236   DSCF1237 , a drawbridge, moat, dungeon and torture chamber, a consecrated chapelDSCF1245 ,  and one of the most impressive wine barrel rooms in the U.S. constructed with ancient brick Roman cross-vaulted ceilings.

Yet, the Castle is merely a backdrop to showcase some of Napa Valley’s best wines.  The castle produces a tiny 15,000 cases which are sold only at the winery; directly to the consumer.”

They told us of the many celebrities who have partied at this castle, not to mention a few movies being filmed there as well.  They also take reservations for a spooky Halloween Party and festive New Years Eve masquerade ball they have yearly.  [Love to check out that Halloween event…]  We had fun on the tour and at the tasting---plus the gift shop at the end was a blast! DSCF1246 As we strolled back to the car, past the vineyard, I commented on how “Christmasy” it looked to have the red poppies among the green grape vines---a perfect photo moment!DSCF1238   DSCF1244

Then we grabbed some steaks for the grill, fresh asparagus and raced home to feast.  With Steve’s lemon butter atop the veggie, it was quite tasty!  The homemade brownies I’d made the day before topped it all off.  We all slept well that night! DSCF1247

3 comments:

CAROLDEE said...

Wow looks like you had a wonderful day!!Great shots!!

Unknown said...

Any time I see an impressive structure like this the first thought that runs through what's left of my mind is what an incredible amount of craftsmanship it accomplish.

Ramblingon said...

I would have loved being there too. I like that type of thing and all thru my life whenever the opportunity presented..whatever Country, including ours, I was always up for it.