Napa Time!
Very excited! We are on the road headed through Sonoma towards Napa and I am so proud I've kept the B&B a secret still! I am flipping through the papers I had in my lap and I realized the one page said "The Bealzey House" and of course, Mr. Nosy is checking the papers out from the passenger seat. UUUGHHH! He quickly looks away and says he saw nothing but is not making eye contact with me. LOL. Dang it! Figures! Oh well, so I came clean that we were staying in a Bed and Breakfast Inn BUT he still didn't know about the jacuzzi and fireplace. Hee Hee.
Since we were pretty early still, I decided to take him to one of the wineries I am a member at - Andretti Winery. Yes, as in Mario Andretti, the famous race car driver.
We hung out at Andretti for a bit, Brett bought his usual magnet, and even a hat and shirt. Whoo Hoo. We headed off to check in our B&B which was INCREDIBLE.
We got out stuff out of the car and headed back to the main house for the mini wine reception and the homemade chocolate chip cookies I'd been hearing about. Cookies and sherry are provided in the afternoon and there are always sodas, water, and such in a mini fridge available at no cost. Since there were only 4 of us staying in the house total, there was no winery coming in so Colin was just going to open a few bottles and we could sit around and chat. The other couple ironically was from Sacramento as well so we chatted with them a bit while enjoying a Chardonnay from Trefethen and a Cabernet from Castello di Amorosa (where I would be taking Brett on Saturday - YEAH).
Colin gave us a few recommendations and we decided on a Cajun place that was like 2 blocks up. He got us a reservation and off we headed. It was a very small place but very cozy. The food was phenominal and I really enjoyed what I ordered. They had an Oysters Rockefeller special that was to die for. I wish I remember everything that was in it but I remember it had marscapone cheese and the oysters weren't cheap ($3.50 each) but we decided to try 4 of them. I ordred the Gumbo and Brett had the Jambalaya with Duck Confit. Both were excellent but definitely a bit on the spicy side. I couldn't finish all the gumbo and gave some to Brett to eat. Poor thing, he was falling asleep at the dinner table so we quickly got our check and headed back to the room.
We decided to relax and take advantage of the great jacuzzi tub and the wine I brought and it was just a perfect evening! We had to head to bed early though as we had to be up in St Helena by 10:30am for our tour and tasting with V. Sattui! :-)
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I ran across the Beazley House and instantly fell in love with their rooms. There are two houses - the main (Mansion) and the Carriage House. Each room is different and offers unique decor, all with private baths. I found the East Loft the most desirable for our weekend - wooded, neutral tones. It had a 6 foot jacuzzi tub and fireplace. Flat screen TV mounted on the wall, 50,000+ thread count sheets, cedar wood vaulted ceilings, and the best part - they had discounted winter rates. Not sure how long they are running the special but that room was $169 a night. Regular hotel rooms in Napa will run you that much, if not more. Not sure what their regular room rates are but definitely watch for any specials they may be running at your desired time of stay.
With your booking, there are added services you can purchase - in room massages, the Napa Valley Wine Train dinner, edibles delivered to your room, etc. I chose to have strawberries and a chocolate merlot sauce waiting for us ($17) as well as purchasing two of their logo wine glasses ($7.95 each) to commemorate our special weekend.
Check in is between 3:30pm and 6:30pm, need to call if you plan to arrive later. On Fridays, they offer a complimentary wine tasting with a local vintner, provided there are enough guests registered. (Our first night was just us and one other couple, so they opened several bottles of wine from their cellar and we sat around the fireplace, chatting away).
The staff is incredible. Colin was our night innkeeper when we checked in and very knowledgeable about the area and great with restaurant recommendations. (And if you happen to be a beer fan - he's got you covered there too!) Veronica was on during the day and incredibly helpful. She managed to get us in for a tour and tasting at Nickel and Nickel.
The breakfast was heavenly! Sadly, I left my camera in the room (bad foodie!) so I did not get breakfast pics but you need to stay there to experience it for yourself! The first morning we had beautifully prepared mixed fruit bowls, fresh raspberry scones, and some type of frittata. A variety of meats and cheeses were available, along with other items like cereals and breads. The second day we had this incredible orange bread pudding, bacon, hard boiled eggs, fresh fruit, and the other staples like the meat/cheeses, cereals, were still present.
The grounds were incredible. Absolutely perfect manicured gardens, and various tables outside if you wanted to sit and enjoy them. Inside the mansion, the regal living room area was stocked with a decanter of sherry and the most heavenly fresh baked chocolate chip cookies in the afternoon (I read about these cookies online so I was dying to try them!) There is a small fridge in the hallway filled with sodas and such which are complimentary.
Words do not adequately describe the beautiful room. It was very quiet and serene (and you might get to hear the squirrels running around on the roof if you stay in the Carriage House..haha). There is a coffee pot in the room, high end toiletries, wine glasses and bottle opener. Beautiful robes and lush towels are provided in the bathroom. They also have "mood music" on CD's available for the player, satellite channels, and free Internet (although it's the first time neither of us even turned our computers on for 3 days...it was NICE!).
The location is convenient to the restaurants in Downtown Napa and about 2 blocks to Highway 29, which is the main wine country route. They have a number of discounts and special offers for wineries and other things to do in the area.
I've already highly recommended Beazley Inn to some fellow wine lovers, and definitely hope Brett and I can stay there again.
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Bleaux Magnolia specializes in contemporary Creole. Their website notes that many people except to be brought back to New Orleans but as they remind everyone, this is California! :-)
Chef Mermod, co-owner, is actually a self taught chef. He's spent a lot of time working in restaurants in California and also in Louisiana, learning the cuisine there.
General Manager Schuster, is a Louisiana native who has a long history in the restaurant business, including managing some premier restaurants in San Francisco.
The restaurant is small and reservations are definitely recommended. There is a cute outdoor patio area which would be nice during the summer. They offer various specials and 3 & 5 course dinners. Tuesday nights are $1 BBQ Oysters and Wednesday night is movie night - they show a free movie on their patio area.
They have received a number of accolades being a relatively new restaurant. They were voted Best New Restaurant in 08 and one of the whole Napa Valley's top 10. One of the best things about them is they don't charge a corkage fee which is rare. We didn't know that beforehand, otherwise we would've brought one of our own bottles with us!
The night we were there they had their version of Oysters Rockfeller which were $3.50 each. We decided to try a couple each and OMG, they were incredible. I wish I could remember everything in them but I know one of the ingredients was marscapone cheese.
I ordered the Gumbo and Brett had the Jambalaya with the Duck Confit. Both were excellent but I agree with Brett, if we went back and they were serving the oysters, we'd each probably order 10 each and just eat those! LOL. They were incredible and I have been craving them for a week now!
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