Napa Valley, north of California's San Francisco Bay Area, is the main wine-producing region of the U.S. and one of the top wine regions in the world. It is also known for its gourmet restaurants, cafes and spa-treatment centers.

Napa Valley is one of the most popular tourist attractions in California. More than five million visitors come each year, often overcrowding the roadways on summer weekends. Peak times are the summer months and the harvest "crush" during September and October. Napa Valley is home to more than two hundred wineries.

Most wineries offer tastings and tours. The largest, most well-known wineries (such as Mondavi and Beringer) are open daily and boast large hosting facilities, guided tours of the operation and reserve rooms for tasting select wines. Some of the numerous smaller wineries offer tastings only by appointment, but you may get a tour or tasting conducted by the owner.

With so much fine wine in the area, great dining naturally emerged to compliment it. The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena supplies a steady stream of well-trained chefs, supplementing the already prestigious pool of chefs drawn by Napa Valley's reputation and locale.