Monday, January 15, 2007

Going to Napa for something other than wine?!

After a crazy busy holiday season, we're finally excursioning around the Bay Area again! Sitting on the couch was nice for a while, but it finally came time to spread our wings and hop in the car. This past Saturday we trekked to COPIA - The American Center for Wine, Food and the Arts. How California can you GET?

Admission in the month of January is totally free - and I can see why. There was almost nobody there. It was like walking into the conference room floor of a hotel: nice art on the walls, a beautiful view, and a few really interesting exhibits...but that was about it. You could pay for a wine tasting or try freshly-squeezed OJ from a very well-advertised juicer. The cafe was closed for renovations. The exhibit hall was actually very interesting - lots of cool historical information about food, food products, and American cuisine, but I can't say that it really warranted the hour drive.

In retrospect, COPIA would have been a lot more fun if we would have planned to attend one of the many classes they offer - cooking, wine tasting, gardening. We showed up expecting to be entertained, only to realize that we probably should have planned out our entertainment before coming.

The building and gardens were beautiful, and the color-organized kitchen utensils in the gift shop was quite amusing. Next time we go to COPIA, I think we'll TRY to go when it is crowded and busy...then it might not seem quite so slow. Visiting a winery may have been a lot more exciting on a sparse winter weekend.