Yountville News

ST. HELENA, Calif. -- Many of America's high-end wineries are reeling from the economic downturn, as even wealthy drinkers slash spending on fine wines.

In 2006, I invited three friends to join me at The French Laundry, in Yountville, Calif., for what would turn out to be the dinner of a lifetime.

YOUNTVILLE, Calif., July 8 /PRNewswire/ -- David Fink, managing partner of the new Hotel Luca anticipates opening the 20-room hotel, restaurant and spa in Fall 2009.

Looking to celebrate French libertA© on Bastille Day? You don't have to go to Paris on July 14 to get in on the action.

SIP Charles & Charles Rose What: Toast our homeland's birthday with this newly released syrah rose in bottles ceremoniously branded with a star-spangled label.

More than 100 wine lovers gathered in the Napa Valley town of Yountville on June 20 to mark the summer solstice with the 2nd annual Solarbration, a party dedicated to wineries employing solar energy.

Frenchmen , unite! Bastille Day is coming up on July 14, and in the spirit of French independence, restaurants across the Bay Area are catering to your inner Francophile.

I always tell my friends I only spend my money on food. This weekend definitely confirmed that statement, thanks to San Francisco and Napa Valley.

Bed-and-breakfasts are the way to go in Napa Valley. Many are historic homes that have been converted into hostelries with the services and amenities of first-class resorts.

Courtney Kingston grew up hearing intriguing stories about her great-grandfather, an American seeking riches in gold and copper in South America, and about the land he settled on in the Casablanca Valley in Chile in the early 1920s.

Napa Valley is widely considered one of the top wine-producing areas in California and all of the United States.

I visited Sonoma and Napa in early June to attend our " Bring Your Own Magnum " parties, and ended my trip with a visit to my brother Bob and his family in Berkeley, Calif.

Lead guitarist Kirk Hammett of Metallica had dinner at Ozumo San Francisco. He preferred mainly sushi and was reportedly very interested in the origin of each cut.

Makes enough for 6 to 8 servings. Here's a warm version of the classic shortcake.

Barbers Q's vinegar sauce is now being bottled and sold by William-Sonoma. As I leafed through the June catalog from Williams-Sonoma, I realized that the glories of Napa Valley restaurants are being brought to the retail world.

Yountville Inn Say this for the recession: It's making Napa Valley a lot more accessible to people who don't travel by private jet or make their stay in gated resorts.

When it comes to touring, Brandi Carlile "loves waking up in different places." She must have thought she woke up in heaven when she heard the producers from "Grey's Anatomy" were going to use her tune, "What Could I Say?" Why, it's not just a favorite TV show for the upstart singer with the smooth southern pipes.

As tomato season approaches, operators share a bumper crop of bright ideas for fresh, summery soups.

This Yountville restaurant, one of the first main stops you hit on the drive up Highway 29, has been through its fair share of change.

Philippe Jeanty abruptly closed his Downtown San Francisco bistro Jeanty at Jacka TMs last Friday, citing the high cost of doing business in the city.