Photo Courtesy Napa Truffle Festival

January 13 – 16th: The second annual Napa Truffle Festival begins Friday at the Westin Verasa, Napa, taking in seminars, winery tours & tastings, and memorable meals. (The sold out event already has dates in place for the 2013 event.) On Monday, however, tickets can be purchased that day for a food and wine event celebrating the fabulous fungi at the Oxbow Public Market.

The event’s keynote speaker – a savvy insider in the world of food and travel -Barbara Fairchild is the former editor of Bon Appétit.

Napa Valley Photo © Alice Joyce

The Festival is an exciting concept, bringing in scientific experts to lead seminars dealing with the cultivation and economics of European truffles. Food lovers will bask in the presence of stars of the culinary realm, and the preparation of elegant cuisine calling attention to the earthy, flavorful allure of European truffles.

Boasting an impressive gathering of Michelin Star Chefs from the U.S. and Italy, Ken Frank of La Toque will presiding over cooking demonstrations, and the weekend’s culmination: a virtuoso Saturday evening dinner.

]]> http://www.alicesgardentravelbuzz.com/2012/01/12/napa-truffle-festival/feed/ 0 http://www.alicesgardentravelbuzz.com/2011/12/28/napa-sonoma-travel/ http://www.alicesgardentravelbuzz.com/2011/12/28/napa-sonoma-travel/#comments Wed, 28 Dec 2011 16:55:25 +0000 Alice Joyce http://www.alicesgardentravelbuzz.com/?p=4863 Continue reading Napa .. Sonoma Holiday

Lovely weather in December stirred a desire to spend the Christmas holiday in Wine Country.

Napa Valley Winter Vignette Photo © Alice Joyce

I never cease to wonder at the beauty of the landscape, where eye-catching vignettes emerge along roadways.

Beignets de Brandade de Morue (Cod) tomato confit Photo © Alice Joyce

Certainly the notion of enjoying fabulous food and wine made the brief getaway a very special holiday, indeed. Christmas Eve lunch at Bouchon .. quite simply a feast! To start: Endives au Roquefort salad with fuji apples, toasted walnuts & walnut vinagrette. T. and I shared satisfying Hors d’Oeuvres: a heaping serving of Rillettes aux Deux Saumons – prepared with fresh and smoked salmon, along with delectable cod beignets!

Bouchon Interior / Photo © Alice Joyce

Coquilles St. Jacques au Cidre entree – exquisitely prepared, succulent scallops on a bed of pumpkin confit, carmelized salsify, apples & cider emulsion. Melt-in-your-mouth nirvana for this foodie!

Thomas Keller Cookbooks … on Amazon

Bouchon Photo © Alice Joyce

Bouchon’s brilliantly exuberant facade…

French Laundry Streetside Gardens / Photo © Alice Joyce

Nearby, Chef Thomas Keller’s French Laundry restaurant impresses with its meticulously maintained culinary gardens and streetside plantings.

French Laundry Culinary Gardens / Photo © Alice Joyce

A few weeks earlier, I had stopped at Bardessono, where I love having lunch in their stylish bar.  The courtyard is glorious in winter when the magnolias are blooming!

Luxe settees and a fireplace add to the bar’s atmosphere: a perfect spot to sip a glass of champagne.

Bardessono Creamy Celery Root Soup/Carmelized Onion & Cheese Panini Photo © Alice Joyce

Bardessono Bar Photo © Alice Joyce

Napa Valley Lodge

The heart of Yountville, with its array of restaurants  is convenient to the Napa Valley Lodge, where our spacious room had a beautiful vineyard view.

Sonoma Valley Inn

Our holiday getaway kicked off in Sonoma, a block or so off the town square with a room at the Sonoma Valley Inn. This hotel is where the Australian Studying Abroad tour group will stay during the first few nights of their Northern California landscape & garden tour. I’m looking forward to escorting the group as we visit private gardens in Marin County.

I’m thinking it may be time to upgrade my Canon Camera, perhaps a belated Christmas present to myself before I embark on my 2012 travel adventures, yearning for a return to the serene landscape of the Sonoran desert… while dreaming of Venice.

]]> http://www.alicesgardentravelbuzz.com/2011/12/28/napa-sonoma-travel/feed/ 4 http://www.alicesgardentravelbuzz.com/2011/08/14/paso-robles-prospects/ http://www.alicesgardentravelbuzz.com/2011/08/14/paso-robles-prospects/#comments Mon, 15 Aug 2011 06:15:16 +0000 Alice Joyce http://www.alicesgardentravelbuzz.com/?p=3956 Continue reading Paso Robles Prospects….

]]> During an all-too-brief trip to bask in the low key ambiance of summertime in Paso Robles, I enjoyed the pleasures of palate-tingling wine tastings and foodie havens deserving of lavish accolades.

Thomas Hill Organics Photo: Alice Joyce

Highlights to look for in the days ahead include more than one dazzlingly delicious meal at Thomas Hill Organics, a farm-to-table bistro & wine bar establishment located in the heart of Paso Robles.

For two full days I explored the region with Coy Barnes of The Wine Wrangler. A knowledgeable, resourceful tour guide, Coy put together a terrific itinerary encompassing wine and food pairings at Cass Winery, a visit to Le Vigne Winery – where winemaker Jac Jacobs treated us to enticing barrel tastings, and an unforgettable tour of the historic Ancient Peaks Winery Santa Margarita Ranch in the company of co-owner Doug Filippoini.

Traveling round with Coy, you enjoy the benefits of expertise that’s finely tuned to the wines being produced in the large Paso Robles AVA – some 26,000 vineyard acres and growing: Here’s a region where you’ll find savvy winemakers crafting mouth-watering wines from 40 varietals. I found it exciting to taste wines from uncommon grape varieties on my journey of discovery on the Central Coast.

There’s much more to reveal, so stay tuned as I retrace our various stopovers along back roads and highways where Paso Robles prospects will unfold.

Home Base for my Paso Robles sojourn:

A comfortable stay at the Best Western Black Oak

…where the friendly staff is efficient and helpful.

More Paso! … Wine & Food Pairing Cass Winery

And a meal to die for! at… Thomas Hill Organics

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While in London this Spring I revisited the Vertical Garden created by Patrick Blanc for the Athenaeum Hotel, Piccadilly.

Last year when I photographed here, the garden had been installed about one year.

The growth was noticeably more lush since 12 months had passed.

Athenaeum Hotel Photo © Alice Joyce

Below: Detail of Lamium in bloom, alongside hosta foliage.

During Patrick’s visit to San Francisco earlier this year, to herald the planting of his Vertical Garden for the new Drew School Samuel Cuddeback Assembly Wing building .. the artist/botanist’s sketch for the project was on display.

The botanical names are drawn across the garden’s expanse, with each swath of plants revealing the pattern that will emerge at the garden grows.

In April, 2 months had passed since the San Francisco installation.

A variety of native plant species had begun to bloom, including strawberries.

Patrick talked to me about the importance of creating biodiversity in urban settings. I believe he was excited to have an opportunity to plant exclusively with natives in the temperate climate of San Francisco, while fostering a habitat for hummingbirds and other beneficial wildlife.

Photos © Alice Joyce

Lewisia species appeared to be thriving: Broadleaf lewisia

Photo © Alice Joyce

L. cotyledon – a perennial plant with fleshy leaves that form rosettes.

Blanc’s design mimics the growth habit of these plants, which are found in nature on cliffs and vertical outcrops.

Read more: Green Roofs / Vertical Gardens on Alice’s Garden Travel Buzz

Gravetye Manor - Flower Border Photo © Alice Joyce

Having left his post at Great Dixter, Gravetye’s head gardener Tom Coward is managing the restoration of the property’s established gardenscape, while promising to add contemporary panache to planting beds, borders, and bucolic landscape.

Stone Bench Photo © Alice Joyce

During my late-spring visit, the gardens looked fetching. Following along pathways of York stone with its aged patina, I meandered through the formal flower garden where the soft colors of foxtail lily played off bright lupins, and vividly marked foxglove blooms towered over masses of geraniums, columbines and brilliant red poppies.

A well-known element in William Robinson’s design of Gravetye, the garden’s long pergola has been reborn; befitting a lush Wisteria display.

To tour the gardens, you’ll need to make a reservation to have a meal in the intimate, oak-panelled Gravetye Manor Restaurant presided over by Chef  Rupert Gleadow, or book a stay at the hotel.

A glimpse of the elegant lunch entrées:

T’s selection: Assiette of seasonal & garden vegetables, truffle cream & baby rocket.

My choice: Fillet of Southcoast Grey Mullet, Fricassee of asparagus and morels, fondant potatoes and Madeira jus.

Gravetye would surely be a wonderful place to stop for

…. Afternoon Tea.

Experiencing the gardens’ distinctive spaces, I moved from the sublime symmetry of the Flower Garden to stroll amid the Azalea Bank on the way to The Long Lawn. Going forward to the renowned Wild Garden Robinson created a century ago, I came upon a landscape that to this day remains a lyrical vision of winding paths through wildflower meadow to pond, as the eyes coming to rest on a perimeter of trees.

William Robinson - a Vintage Photograph

Robinson continued to live at Gravetye into his nineties. Even after he began using a wheelchair, Robinson could look out from the shelter of his garden room, surrounded by beauty.

Gravetye Manor Garden Room Photo © Alice Joyce

Gravetye Manor Photo © Alice Joyce

Decorative wrought ironwork door opening onto the Gravetye garden.

(Photo: Alice Joyce)

The town of Borrego Springs is situated in the heart of the northern part of the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. Among your accommodation choices: RV campgrounds and motels, small hotels and resorts for the golf aficionado.

There’s an intriguing history attached to The Palms at Indian Head – with its classic mid-century architecture and basic rooms. (I needed to switch rooms after the first night, and enjoyed ‘day 2′ when I stayed in one of the hotel’s view rooms.)

Formerly the Hoberg Resort, the property is renowned as a one-time getaway for movie stars from Marilyn Monroe to Clark Gable, and a safe haven at the time for actors seeking privacy, like Montgomery Clift and Raymond Burr.  The current owners stepped in to save the main building and two poolside casitas from being demolished after a fire destroyed many bungalows on the land.

Two restaurants provide plenty of choices at any time on a Spring day: the Red Ocotillo,

and Krazy Coyote for evening dining. The inviting bar served appetizers from 4:30 to 6p.m., satisfying my foodie cravings with a selection that included guacamole and cheese quesadillas, accompanied by a glass of Kendall-Jackson Chardonnay.

A direct path leads from ‘The Palms‘ to Anza-Borrego’s Palm Canyon Hiking Trail which covers about 3-miles. The sights and sensory experience of the trail offer a memorable immersion in an awe-inspiring boulder-strewn, wildflower bedecked landscape of Anza-Borrego State Park.

Washingtonia filifera - Native fan palm with wildflower, Justicia californica blooming in foreground.

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