Gift giving, twinkling lights, and plenty of booze often make for a festive holiday season, but going overboard with the latter wouldn't garner a stamp of approval from Kris Kringle. Leave it to Napa's wine producers and humble Bed and Breakfast proprietors to class up those awkward, alcohol-tinged family gatherings and raise some money for charity in the process.

Plenty of Napa Valley wineries are having holiday Open House events on weekends, but to experience a smorgasbord of varietals, vintner offerings, and enjoy the quaint charm of Downtown Napa, buy a ticket to the annual B&B Tour & Taste Event. The four-hour affair will take place on December 5th from 2:00-6:00 PM, when ticket-holders will go from one B&B to the next to "ooh" and "aah" over wreaths, ornaments, and tinsel decor. ]]> Heidi Atwal 2009-11-17T14:24:29-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/6/153743/599

There is a certain romantic allure to train travel—just ask fictional sweethearts Jesse and Céline of Before Sunrise. But Stateside, unfortunately, the mode of transport isn't as common as it is in other parts of the world. While you continue to dream about hopping aboard a Darjeeling Railway car, we're happy to report that a smaller-scale train trek can be had in California, even if it is less grand than journeying across exotic international ground.

The Napa Valley Wine Train is a refined alternative to unofficial "drunk buses" tourists often book to stay safe while sipping wine flights throughout the day. Equally drinker-friendly, and much more respectable, the train is holding a special Thanksgiving dinner aboard its Gourmet and Vista Dome cars for $104 and $139, respectively. Sadly, lunch tickets have already sold out. ]]> Heidi Atwal 2009-11-06T15:40:49-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/3/5235/67191

Did you know there's only one master wine sommelier in the whole of South America? LAN Airlines does, and they've convinced this sommelier, Hector Vergara, to help design them a crackin' in-flight wine list. The idea is to "excite passengers" as they learn about some of the local New World wines that South America has to offer.

Designed to complement the various South American-style dishes that the in-flight caterers serve up, the new LAN wine list features a Sauvignon Blanc, a Pinot Noir and a Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile, and a Malbec and a Chardonnay from Argentina. So yeah, not exactly covering the continent that well, but we can only presume that Vergara has picked the best of the best, and we'll be ready to knock back at least a few samples next time we're flying south of the equator. Also, this partnership between sommelier and LAN is just another notch on the wine discovery post for the airlines, after most other major airlines did the same with their own noted connoisseurs years ago.

Related Stories:
· Getting the LAN Bump To Biz Class [Jaunted]
· Wine Lists Turn To Social Media at L'Anima Restaurant in London [Jaunted]

[Photo: slasher-fun] ]]> amandak 2009-11-05T13:34:22-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/10/12/14137/481

Barrel room at a Madera winery

The Central Valley region of California is lesser known than its stately Napa counterpart, but its products aren't any less stellar, and the wine flows like, uh, wine. That is to say, there's wine, wine everywhere, and more than a drop to drink along the Madera Wine Trail. Lined with Cabernet-Franc and Merlot grapes galore, the area will play home to a Holiday Spirit Weekend, a pre-Thanksgiving and Chrismahanukwanzakah rev up celebrating local wineries, including newcomers like the San Joaquin Wine Company and Idle Hour.

Taking place from 10:00-5:00 on November 14th and 15th, attendees can get their cup to runneth over with vintage offerings, sample special food pairings, and enjoy local art and live music. As you can probably guess, this is hardly a "drink to get drunk" beerfest, but its organizers aren't naive, either. With all of those quick sips and wine flights, they're keeping guests grounded by letting them know about special travel packages courtesy of Touch of Class Limousine Service, and a shuttle for those traveling form the Fresno/Clovis area. Stumble responsibly if you're planning on taking advantage of all the wine-related revelry that weekend. ]]> Heidi Atwal 2009-10-12T16:03:37-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/10/9/21756/9432

For oenophiles in search of a good grape escape, you have options other than Napa. Top Chef Master Rick Bayless suggests heading to Baja California, specifically Adobe Guadalupe, a winery in the Guadalupe Valley near Ensenada. Bayless tweeted that it was one of the best of the 50 wineries in the region.

Adobe Guadalupe's 60-yard vineyard produces varietals like Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Tempranillo, Nebbiolo, Syrah, Cinsault, Mourvedre, Merlot and Viognier. The winery, which makes 5,000 cases of vino each year, names its blends after archangels, such as Gabriel, Serafiel and Uriel. ]]> Jennifer Kester 2009-10-09T08:57:15-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/9/25/1154/14283

In The Boys Are Back, opening today, Clive Owen plays a macho sportswriter living in Australia and raising two sons on his own after his wife dies. Though the content of the movie sounds like a downer, the South Australian setting is sure to be uplifting. It even sounds like The Boys Are Back could be the next Sideways. Take a look at the fabulous wine country that serves as the movie's background and judge for yourself.

Where to Stay, Eat and Drink, after the jump.]]> cmb 2009-09-25T12:28:48-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/9/22/73832/4636

The L'Anima Italian restaurant in London has gone one step further than just letting you choose your wine from a touch screen; last month they ran an online contest so that blog readers (some of whom, we presume, were also restaurant goers) could choose three new wines for L'Anima to add to their impressive wine list.

And it wasn't just a case of voting for your favorite wine off a list. L'Anima went to the trouble of getting three pairs of wine experts to explain their favorites off the shortlist of nine, made these explanations into YouTube vids, and got voters to decide which video was the best.]]> amandak 2009-09-22T10:32:20-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/