Some may think if you are traveling that far why not travel to another country? In my opinion you have the best of both worlds, you have all of the conveniences of being in the US but it feels you have traveled somewhere exotic. It can be a long flight, especially from my neck of the woods. Having been to Florida and Arizona many times over the years there is truly something special about Hawaii. Maui has the perfect balance of natural beauty, convenience, serenity and many activities. In both instances we were lucky to have beautiful weather. The first trip we took to Maui at the beginning of November and the second trip at the end of January/ beginning of February. Our favorite island we have visited is Maui and for first time visitors I would recommend Maui as I believe it captures the essence of the islands with the convenience of the main land. We have stayed on Maui twice, once on Kauai, and once on the Big Island. As everything continues to become more expensive you can stay in hotels on Maui for the same price or less than some hotels in Florida. Hawaii typically has beautiful weather at this time of year. There are not many places that have consistent or predictable weather in the high 70’s and 80’s in the US from December to February. this is the perfect time to be planning your winter getaway! I know I am thinking about it. Your body tenses up, you brace yourself…… You open the door and…. We all know that cold gust of wind you fear as you open your front door to go outside. As that refreshing fall air hits your face you know the cold winds of winter are soon to be upon us. Angels, Thieves, and Winemakers ~ Joseph Mills.A Companion to California Wine ~ Charles Sullivan.It had a intensely complex nose, with a deep, inky garnet color, and proved to be a powerfully rich, dark fruity wine, still having very tight tannins, as you’d expect ~ as this is still a very young wine. We tasted the 2008 Petite Sirah, Napa Valley, from the barrel.As I raised my glass of this Chardonnay, I hit my earring, and the sound of that ding echoed and lingered in my ear long enough to add another sense to the tasting of this wine. While it wasn’t as bright as a newly released wine, it held a maturity that was delicious to enjoy. It’s was a beautiful wine that was rich and well rounded, with bright tropical fruit (pineapple and kiwi) and showed a perfect balance. Stephanie treated us to the 2005 Vincent Arroyo Chardonnay, Napa Valley, from their library.My daughter Lyla and her dog Spike were also with us for the day. Our tasting guide for the day was Stephanie Gernert, a perfect compliment to the family story and their wines. Given advance warning, dogs are allowed to follow their pet owners. Vince spotted Spike, and said, “We’re dog friendly, just the dogs aren’t friendly.” (It wasn’t that bad at all, because we had escaped JJ, with Spike in tow. That’s just good business, but completely unexpected, because I was having a quiet day of touring and enjoying the way any wine consumer does. While we were tasting, Vince and Matt came around the corner… Everyone was checking in and making sure that our day was perfect. We tasted new releases, and were also taken into their barrel room to enjoy barrel samples. L to R: Stephanie Gernert, Andrew and Sara Helman. It puts the wine business into perfect perspective.

It was an important aspect of the wine industry that Sara caught on this day trip, and a very important nugget of truth to be learning by anyone. And in this case, it’s a wine grape and olive oil growing farm. When my niece and nephew from Maine (Sara and Andrew Helman) arrived at Vincent Arroyo, as we were touring Napa Valley, Sara commented, “This is like visiting a farm.” Well, there you go… It is visiting a farm, something very few people ever come to realize, if they don’t get off the beaten path. There are no pillars of pretension, just old school, farm ethics. When you visit Vincent Arroyo Winery, you’re made to feel completely welcome.

That kind of loyalty continues to support all of his business, guaranteeing Vincent Arroyo’s future. Current fans also support other Vincent Arroyo wines, because quality is quality, after all. New members are needed, as older members of it go through their own life changes. A data base is only as good as it’s daily updating. Well, not really… Every single member is needed, because that’s how public awareness continues to grow, and will continue to add to his own fan base.

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