Napa Valley

The weekend before last, I went on a trip to Napa wine country with one of my Biodesign teammates, John, and his visiting friend, Ken. Napa Valley is an area north of San Fran, considered as one of the top wine-producing regions in the US.

After grabbing a delicious and hearty American brunch at Stacks in Menlo Park, we proceeded North. We drove through West San Fran, reached a vista point overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge, and continued heading up towards the main event.

We realized that Napa Valley was quite decentralized, with many different famous vineyards that utilized unique microclimates contained in the area. The first winery we found was a disappointment. Upon reaching our GPS-guided destination, we found ourselves in a parking lot next to a small office building. Even if we could, there was no way we were going to taste wine here.

We then reached the Hess Collection vineyard (http://www.hesscollection.com/), which was a lot more like what we had come to see. We saw the neatly arranged grape vines on the sloping meadows next to the factory.

Inside the winery, we were greeted by wine experts who educated us (the naive me, for the most part) about the conditions -- soil acidity, nutrient balance, climate, etc -- that made their grapes different and what specific characteristics we should identify when tasting wine.

We tried eight varieties of wine. John and Ken swirled the wine, took in the aromas, and sipped the wine like they knew what they were doing. I, on the other hand, sloshed the wine the first few times, and took many tries to even remotely get used to appreciating the different flavors, aromas and textures.

Thinking back, I think we tasted two Chardonnays (white wine), one that was creamier and heavier than the other. The Rose wine we tried was translucent pink -- a cross between red and white wine. We compared two Cabernet Sauvignons (red wine), one which was fruitier and a lot smoother than the other, which was dry and a lot rougher on the tongue. You can probably tell that I am still a noob when it comes to describing wines.

The winery also had a collection of wine-derived chocolates and vinaigrettes. Its private modern art collection and outdoor garden were both pretty outstanding.

We took some more shots around wine country, grabbed dinner at Buckhorn Grill in the city of Napa, and then headed back home.

(photos courtesy of Ken)

Why I write

[I just got back from a trip to Napa Valley. I'll write a post about this -- my first proper wine-tasting experience -- as soon as I get photos.]

I recently saw two films based on true stories about ordinary individuals making a sizable impact through the simple act of writing about their lives on blogs. "No Impact Man" is about how a family in New York did almost all that was possible to have zero impact on the environment for a year (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Impact_Man). "Julie and Julia" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julie_&_Julia) is about an individual who attempts to cook all 524 recipes of a famous cookbook in a year.

Both set out on personal projects that liberated them somewhat from their 9-to-5s. Both were not accomplished writers at the time of blogging, but ended up becoming published authors.

Many readers gave them praise for encouraging good lifestyle habits (living sustainably and cooking fresh food). Other critics viewed their blogging endeavors as acts of self-promotion. I believe these people wrote what they did because they simply wanted to share a bit of their lives with the larger community, in the hope of raising some awareness and providing some entertainment.

Many millions of blogs exist today. What is it about writing on blogs that draws so many people? What compels me to write stuff nobody might care about?

I like to write, because writing helps put things into perspective. Thoughts by themselves are limited and fleeting. A series of thoughts could make sense one moment, then the next, it may not. The interesting thing about writing something down is that the mind frees up more room for related thoughts to be thought up. This builds up a thought framework, which could lead to a new realization.

Writing helps me take a step back and see whether I am making the right choices most of the time. It reminds me about what is important in my life, and what is not.

Writing is a creative outlet. After spending much of the week dealing with engineering designs, mathematical formulas, medical terms, and computational simulations, the right side of my brain demands more attention.

By writing on this blog, I feel more connected with the larger world. Offering my reflections to an audience, however small, creates a little bit of meaning. Throwing something out there for others to see makes me a little self-conscious. Was it PC? What will they think? Did that make sense? This sense of accountability pushes me to provide some value in one form or another.

Writing in the public domain can sometimes seem like a narcissistic exercise -- 'I' this, 'me' that. But quite frankly, it's about sharing something unique with others. Why don't you give it a try?

OK, two deep-ish, almost philosophical, posts in a row. I promise the next post will be light. ;)