We left our lovely ladies off singing "Don't Worry, Be Happy" and heading off to Blackstone Winery. After a little "recalculating" by ABBA's personal Carmen (a.k.a. the Queen, Miz Treo, and MapQuest), the ladies managed to locate Blackstone, with only a few moments to spare before they closed their doors. The barristas at Blackstone were not as friendly as those found at the early stops, so the ladies opted to snub them and leave. Admittedly, the only reason that this winery made it onto the list was because ABBA liked their website and their wine label and since she was the one creating the travel plans, she snuck it in. Overall, this location did not make a very big impression since this writer is unable to remember ANY highlights at this time.
Therefore, the ladies piled back into the ABBA-mobile and headed off to Imagery. The adventurers were actually pushing the limit here due to the fact that many of the wineries will close their doors for tasting and selling around 4:30 - 5:00 and it was starting to get a little dark out. While driving and navigating pretty much on her own, since the Queen really couldn't play Carmen any more, ABBA managed to arrive at Imagery with 15 minutes to spare. For those of you wondering what the Queen and Sam were doing during this trip, they were taking pictures of one another in the car. ABBA almost heard "Dueling Banjos" in the background during the dueling cameras!!
Now, the ladies have made it to Imagery and the Queen and Sam belly up to the bar. They actually offered an extensive tasting at this locale and the two decided that they should "split" the tasting. Luckily, the barrista proved to be very adept at pouring a decent amount into the glasses so that both Sam and the Queen were able to fully appreciate each selection. While these two were enjoying the bountiful wines, ABBA decided to explore the tasting room.
Dear Readers, Imagery is one of those really spectacular wineries that I would recommend to anybody touring the Sonoma region. I couldn't tell you much about their wines, but their tasting room is beautiful. They have a series of artists who provide the artwork for their labels and a gallery which displays all of the paintings, drawings, and collages. Since ABBA was raised by an artist (or two), she has a great appreciation for galleries and enjoyed looking at all of the different paintings, which all had a wine theme. There was a separate gallery off to the side which held floor to ceiling works as well and ABBA saw many a quilt possibilities on these walls. At one point, ABBA went over to the club member counter and started speaking with the barrista there since she wasn't busy with any club members. Upon hearing that ABBA was the designated driver she stated "You are so nice to be the driver for your friends. You do realize that it is customary for the driver to be given a bottel of wine from each of the wineries that the group goes to as payment and thank you for being the driver." ABBA is still waiting for these presents.
Eventually, ABBA made it back to the Queen and Sam, who were finishing up with their tasting and it was decided that it was time to hit the road. The trio had plans to get to Sausolito for dinner at a quaint Italian restaurant and ABBA wanted to get out of the winding roads before it got too dark.
As the ladies headed to the car, ABBA finally spotted the elusive Banana Slug, and pointed it out to the Queen. She was so happy that a tear almost fell to the ground. The trio stopped and looked on in adoration at the elusive Banana Slug that was finally located in the Valley of Moon.
All in all, it was a wonderful day that was greatly enjoyed. The drive was beautiful and the company was fabulous, so what more could three divas ask for.
Long Live the BS Club and continue searching for the elusive Banana Slug!!!
3 comments:
The only thing that I remember from Blackstone was using their restroom. It was not as nice as Hop Kiln's outhouse ;)
Favorite part about Imagery: the next morning, I mention to Andrea, "oh, yeah, didn't our boss say they had some art there or something?" ABBA replies, "yep, they had a whole gallery, but you guys were busy at the bar, drinking out of your glasses incorrectly."
Funniest moment of the following day: me, looking through all the pictures I had taken and saying to ABBA, "why did I take so many pictures of this cat?" ABBA replies, "because I told you it was the banana slug, and you got all excited."
LOL, I seriously did apparently!
I think the "cat" is a bit like "ryan" for me... it took me awhile to remember:-)-- great day!
I completely forgot about you all drinking the dessert wine out of the port sippers incorrectly!!!
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