Vintage Jewelry

Just a quick note to tell you that Saturday, February 9, Rosanne from Studio on Main in downtown St. Helena (which is two miles south of us here at The Wine Country Inn) will be at the Inn during our complimentary afternoon wine service showcasing many of the pieces in her vintage jewelry collection. The pieces are beautiful (trust me, I know, as my wife [!] is beginning her own personal vintage jewelry collection!) and make great gifts (guys, hint, hint---Valetine's Day). We hope to have Rosanne back at the Inn at various times throughout the year. If you'd like more information on her collection, free free to contact her. And as always, we look forward to seeing you at the Inn and have our online booking system ready should you want to book directly. Below are some pics from Rosanne's collection. Cheers!

Laguna Aurora Borealis hex-cut hand-knotted necklace:

Vendome art glass Easter egg necklace and earring set:

Vintage Amythest ring:

New in 2008

We're always trying to make our Napa Valley bed and breakfast inn even better than the year before. With 2008 now here, we thought we'd share some of what we plan on doing new this year, so please visit our web site.

(Want a partial hint? One word: waffles!)

Napa Valley Mustard Festival

All, just a quick note as you think about planning your next trip to the Napa Valley: the 15th annual Napa Valley Mustard Festival runs Feb 2 through March 29. This is a nearly two-month celebration of food, wine and art exhibitions up and down the Valley. The events are fun and, of course, the Valley has that special beautiful appearance, as the wild yellow mustard jumps out at you amid the still-stark black grapevines. Also, as I mentioned in my previous post, February, March, and April are great times to visit the Napa Valley for the simple fact that there aren't as many people here as during the "high season" of July-October.

For more information about the Napa Valley Mustard Festival, check out their web site.

Also, Studio on Main in downtown St. Helena (a few minutes from the Inn) has available for sale the poster for this year's Mustard Festival (see below), and even signed by the artist, Jesse Miller. It makes a great gift and/or decoration in your home or office. Contact Studio on Main if you're interested.

I hope to see you again soon at the Inn.

Winter Secrets

Today I'd like to share a Napa Valley insider's secret with you: Yes, it's our "winter time" right now, and that means the occasional dose of rain (which can be, sometimes, quite large). But winter is also a GREAT time to visit the Napa Valley. It's true--I kid you not!

Why is this time of year a great time to visit the Napa Valley? Well, for example:

* There are far fewer people, making it much easier to dine and taste wine.

* The wineries and restaurants are much more relaxed, meaning that it's much easier for you to make a personal connection with them.

* And at the Wine Country Inn, you can stay AND save money with our off-season rates.

And if in fact it does rain, you can always curl up with your loved one by a fire in your room with a great bottle of wine and one of our cheese and fruit plates and, well...you'll figure it out.

Happy Holidays!

Our best to you and yours this holiday season, from all of us at The Wine Country Inn.

Things I didn’t squeeze into the newsletter.

First off I want to say that our hearts go out to those in Southern California who have lost their homes or been displaced by the fires. It is hard for me to wrap my brain around the fact that Northern California is having such a sparkling Fall, while Southern California is experiencing one of the greatest disasters in its history. If it would be of any help for the next month or so, and you need a place to stay or just want to get out of the smoke, come stay with us. I will give you any room I’ve got for our cost of servicing the room, say $75 for a standard room and $125 for a suite or cottage.

Secondly I can’t stress enough how important your comments are. At the end of every month I sit down and read through the comment sheets left behind in the rooms. Not only do I get a great insight as to what you want or how we could have done something better, I also get very warm encouragement that I truly cherish, as well as pass onto my staff to encourage and motivate them. Plus we have a staff bonus program where, on a good month of comments, they can earn a bonus just as big as their normal two-week check. It is huge for them. I have struggled, however, in responding to comments that I thought deserved my response. If you were expecting a response and did not get one, I apologize. Occasionally I am lazy and don’t get around to it, but mostly I can’t tell who the comment came from. Many comments are not signed in a way I can read them and many put a date that could either be your check-out date or check-in date so I don’t know who to send the response to. In the future (I just thought of this as I was writing) I will put a little box on the Comment Sheet to check if you want a response, along with a line to print your name. In the mean time, if you still have something that you feel needs a response, please e-mail me at jim@winecountryinn.com .

Along the lines of comments, if you would really like to help The Wine Country Inn thrive (and help put my kids through college) you could go to Trip Advisor, Yahoo Travel or any of a bunch of other sites and post your comment there. That would be really cool.

The not-so-cool thing about blogs is that the older entries get buried down below. If you want to see what else I have had to say, please scroll down.

See ya soon Jim

Nooks and Crannies

It's Tim, the Inn's Marketing Manager, subbing for Jim who's on vacation. (Only a Napa Valley resident LEAVES the Napa Valley for a week in October, right!) Anyway, I just wanted to share some photos that I find of interest regarding the Inn's grounds. We try to make every part of your stay as quiet and relaxing---and romantic---as possible, and that includes strategically placing "out of the way" tables and chairs around the Inn's grounds for quiet reflection or, even better often (!) sipping a glass of Napa Valley wine while nibbling on some cheese and crackers. Here's one example of what I call on the Inn's grounds the "nooks and crannies" that allow you to enjoy the wonderful Napa Valley weather, yet still feel secluded and private with your special partner:

And while the Northeast and Midwest get most of the press for their amazing fall colors, ours aren't too bad either (in places):

We hope to see you at The Wine Country Inn and Gardens soon.