42 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM of bowing trees ushers you to the tasting area. Your table, idyllically situated beside a pond and a pergola, seems straight from a Thomas Kinkade painting. “We let the weather be the expression,” our steward Scott Cook says as he pours a ruby red cabernet and pinpoints 2016, 2018 and 2021 as exceptional years for the varietal. At its sister property, Nickel & Nickel, let the cabernet have its say with a tasting exploring five variations of one varietal. You’ll learn what gives each its distinct character on a porch overlooking the mountains or in the historic Gleason Barn. The barn dates back to 1770 and was transported from New Hampshire before being rebuilt piece-by-piece. It’s one of the oldest (if not the oldest) buildings in California, and you can feel the weight of history in its hand-hewn beams. MUSEUM MEANDERINGS Just outside of town, you’ll also find the Napa Valley Museum of Art & Culture. Opened earlier this year, The MAC is currently still showing its interactive inaugural exhibition Julia Child: A Recipe for Life through March 8, 2026. Dedicated to the chef, author and TV personality who adapted hundreds of complex French recipes for American home cooks, the exhibit embraces all the senses. You’ll walk among huge pictures from Julia’s life, open pots to catch a whiff of her most popular recipes and peek into kitchen cabinets to watch clips from Julia’s cooking shows, her voice’s distinctive warble greeting you like an old friend. Windows in the gallery’s wall allow you to watch a class at the teaching kitchen of Under-Study café next door. If Julia’s journey inspires you, tie on an apron and join them. But if that sounds like too much fuss, don’t worry. In laid-back Yountville, slowing down and savoring your stay is always on the menu. PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF: JOHANNA HARLOW / FAR NIENTE / NICKEL & NICKEL {due west} with this white wine since his country of origin, New Zealand, is drowning in the stuff—but Sonoma County’s approach to the varietal won him over. “I’m trying to express the California sunshine so you get those more tropical notes on it,” he says. “But I very much picked this wine early to also try and express those beautiful herbaceous notes that you get in New Zealand sauvignon blanc.” Prefer to be in view of the vines? A 10-minute drive to nearby Oakville will take you to historic Far Niente. As you turn off the main road, a corridor small-town stay yountville.com
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