Journeys›Photograph

A Hazy August Afternoon in Napa Valley

·Napa County, California·#california#summer#napa-valley#vineyards#wine tasting
A "Tasting Room" sign points left, with many wine barrels stacked on red racks and a large white silo behind them.

It was one of those early August weekends that feels like the peak of summer. The air had that familiar warm haze, so we drove north for the afternoon for a change of scenery. The landscape is always such a study in contrasts this time of year.

The vineyards themselves are an incredibly lush, ordered green, with rows stretching out in perfect lines across the valley floor. But just beyond them, the surrounding hills are all golden and dry under the bright, unfiltered sun. It creates a very specific kind of quiet out there, punctuated only by the occasional car on the highway.

We ended up at Cliff Lede Vineyards and found a spot on their stone patio, under the shade of a pergola. It was nice to just sit for a while with a glass of red wine, looking out at the hills through the patterned shadows. A simple afternoon, and then the drive back home.

A "Tasting Room" sign points left, surrounded by many wine barrels, a large white tank, and green trees.A vast vineyard with rows of grapevines extending towards a distant mountain range under a light blue sky.A wide view of a vineyard with green vines, backed by trees and dry hills under a light blue sky.A wide shot of a green vineyard under a blue sky, framed by trees, with dry, rolling hills in the background.A vineyard with green rows, dry golden hills, and distant buildings, framed by trees.A vineyard in the foreground with rows of green grapevines, backed by golden hills with scattered trees under a blue sky.A wine glass etched "Cliff Lede Vineyards Napa Valley" with red wine on a sunny patio with a pergola and mountains.A wine glass with red wine, branded "Cliff Lede Vineyards Napa Valley," sits on an outdoor patio.

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