This article was written by Barbara Wayman and originally appeared in AAA's Home & Away magazine.

In Napa Valley, visitors can wallow in Calistoga’s restorative mud baths or soar above the fields in a rainbow-colored hot-air balloon. More than 4.5 million visitors a year come here for experiences like these, as well as for spectacular Cabernet Sauvignons, farm-to-fork organic cuisine, leisurely train rides, million-dollar tasting rooms and vineyard views that rival Tuscany. I was here for a conversation with one of America’s top chefs, Napa resident Michael Chiarello. 

Twenty-four years ago, the beauty and bounty of the area attracted Chiarello, owner of Bottega restaurant in Yountville, author of five cookbooks, and Emmy Award-winning host of Easy Entertaining, NapaStyle and Michael Chiarello’s Napa. Shortly after he was named Chef of the Year by Food & Wine magazine in 1985, Chiarello was searching for a place to put down roots when Napa stole his heart.

“I came into the Napa Valley on a late February day, and the mustard was up around my waist,” he said. “It was just a blanket of yellow, and the farmers all around— beyond the grapes— were really growing some fantastic produce, which is the mainstay for Italian cooking, so I had this immediate crush on the Napa Valley. The love started deep and has only gotten deeper over time.”

How much time should travelers plan to spend in this plain an hour north of San Francisco? Chiarello said “a day-and-a-half longer than the longest time you can afford.” While the summer months attract the biggest crowds, the shoulder seasons feature a grape harvest from mid-August to November, weather depending, and a mustard festival in late winter/early spring.

“I love the beginning of March,” Chiarello said. “All the vintners are back and you’re more likely to find the owners in the tasting room. It’s a little more affordable, too. Right before Thanksgiving also is spectacular, when the leaves are changing and the entire valley looks like you’re in Maine.”
Whatever season visitors choose, they should factor in a leisurely pace, as the delights of the plate and goblet are best savored slowly.

“People come here for the sole purpose of enjoying food and wine and I love that,” Chiarello said. “Americans tend to power tour, but you want to factor in time to take a nap.”

Malbecs and More
Foodies and wine lovers alike have built the once-sleepy Napa region into a spot with more acclaimed wineries than any other region in North America. Yountville boasts more award-winning restaurants per capita than any other city in the world. Residents are called Napkins because of their strong appreciation of quality cuisine.

“It’s one of the few places in the world where you can live like you’re in the country and cook like you’re in the city,” Chiarello said. “‘Farm to table’ might be a term that was coined recently, but in Napa Valley, that’s been going on forever. We sit inside the 42nd latitude, so all of the things you’d find in Tuscany you find here: eggplant, tomatoes, figs, grapes, nuts, persimmons. It’s Mediterranean, low-carbon footprint, super-high quality with produce as the mainstay of cuisine.”

While 80 percent of U.S. wine comes from California, only 4 percent of California wine comes from Napa Valley— yet it still takes a leading role.

“Over the years, the farming has transitioned from conventional to sustainable to organic to biodynamic. It’s always on the leading edge of the best barrel techniques, the best farming techniques, the best wine-making techniques, all brought together to help Napa Valley lead the way for wine countries throughout North America,” said Chiarello, who runs the Chiarello Family Vineyards.

With more than 400 wineries, Napa has a lot of oppor­tunities for swirling, sipping and swishing. Visitors should have a game plan, both for which wineries they want to visit and which wines they’re going to drink at each.

“We eat when we’re hungry, but we tend to taste all day, from 10 in the morning to 6 at night. I like to break it up,” Chiarello said. “If you want to enjoy four or five wines over the day, start with sparkling wine. Go to Domain Chandon or Mumm and work your way through the light whites, just like you would through the progression of the meal. By the time you get to the end of the day, you could be into Cabernet or Petite Sirah.”

Another option Chiarello recommended is staying with one or two varietals. “People try to learn too much in a narrow amount of time,” he said. “If you sprinkle in all these bits and pieces, you go away having enjoyed yourself but never really digesting enough information to build on for your next visit.”
What should tasters concentrate on? The wines they most enjoy drinking or those they’ve bought most often in the past year or two?

“A lot of wineries specialize in one or two varietals,” Chiarello said. “You can go through WineSpectator.com if you’re a ratings person— pick 88 and above and go prepared to taste a specific thing.”

Farm to Fork
When it’s time to dine, Chiarello recommends Bouchon, Ad Hoc and E´toile at Domain Chandon.

“Everyone’s talking about the taste of the soil, or terrior, but I have this thing I call ‘manier’— the taste of the person,” he said. “I find when I have a flavor for a particular person, I really enjoy their food, so Richard Reddington’s Redd and Cindy Pawlcyn’s Mustards Grill, Go Fish and Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen are some places I really enjoy.”

Starting the evening with champagne and oysters at Bouchon and finishing the night surrounded by a group of friends around a fireplace is the perfect way to spend a night in Napa Valley. The next day, tourists can head north to Calistoga to experience the small town’s hot springs and mud and mineral baths Old Hollywood style.

“All the actors and actresses would come and hang out, and I like to close my eyes and imagine Greta Garbo walking by in a one piece and Clark Gable, who used to have a ranch up in St. Helena, smoking a cigar in the corner,” Chiarello said. After a swim, a massage and glass of sparkling wine make unwinding luxurious.

In Italian, “Chiarello” means “famous” and “light,” and it translates into Chiarello’s life in Napa.

“Yes, it means ‘light’ as in ‘clear,’” he said, “and I try to keep clarity of thought about what the founders of Napa Valley brought, which is it’s really not about us. It’s about continuing to carry the torch forward so this experience can continue. No matter where I go, this is a place I’m thrilled to come home to.”
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Photo Credit: Allen Lott Photography