Wine Country: Domaine Chandon, Yountville, CA

Bow Shoulder Tank// Lace Skirt (also available in navy)

I just got back from spending a few days in Napa and San Francisco. Some friends and I headed to Napa to celebrate Krista's birthday! It was such a fun-filled girls weekend! This was my first time to Napa, and I'm already itching to go back. Absolutely everything was so beautiful and picturesque.

We went to many wineries, however, we started off at Chandon! I will use Napa as a blanketed term for where we were, but Chandon is specifically located in Yountville which is the most charming town! We actually stayed in Vacaville and toured all over the area from St. Helena to Rutherford, etc. If you have been reading Summer Wind for a while, then you'll know that Chandon makes my favorite affordable sparkling wine. I'm a huge fan of the brand and was so excited to visit. Our tour guide was amazing. She walked us throughout the grounds and taught us all about the sparkling wine making process. I've always thought that wine making was an art (and it is!) but I also didn't realize how extremely scientific and precise the process is, too. It's amazing how much time and effort goes into just one bottle of sparkling wine!

In the photos above you can see the large containers where the wine is stored-- I don't remember the exact figure that they said during the tour, but to drink one of those containers, it would take 150+ years! The girls from New York joked that the containers were larger than their apartments! We got to taste all of the sparkling wines as well as their wines (I didn't know they made wines!). My favorites are the brut, blanc de noirs, and the rose. Luckily, these are always available at my local state store, so I always have them stocked up! However, my top favorite is the Etoile, which is not as readily available. It was dry with lots of fine bubbles-- just how I like it!

Funnily enough, our first tasting could have been our last, too. By the time we were done at this tasting, we had already drank our fair share of sparkling wine and giggled all the way out and onto our next winery! It was so lovely to be able to sit out on the patio area and enjoy the warm sun and beautiful atmosphere. We also snacked on meats, cheeses, olives, etc. This was my favorite wine tour experience of the entire trip. They really treated us well and took the time to teach and explain the entire process in detail. They went above and beyond by sitting with us at the tasting (which lasted longer than any of the other tastings we did) and going through each wine and how it is made.

The weather was just about perfect, so I wore this striped bow shoulder top (under $80). I had seen it online and ordered it right away. I am pretty sure it is my favorite top in my closet now! The grosrgain bow on the shoulder is the cutest. I wore it tucked into this gorgeous lace skirt, but it also looks great with white jeans (as seen here), too! I received so many compliments on the white skirt. Lace is really having its moment right now and this lace skirt is a showstopper (check out this Boomerang of it in twirling action!)! Can't wait to continue to share more of my Napa experience in upcoming posts!