Napa Insider
The swinging days of summer By Christina Julian
H ot summer nights and the movies spawned about them punctuate why this is one of my favorite times of year in Napa Valley. The mosquitoes are gone, swinging the night away at music in the park is the norm, and rosé and pizza dominate the dinner table. The latter is also attributed to my return home from the pizza capital of the country—New York City. The slice cred that Manhattan has garnered over the years is, to quote my tweens, “for-reals,” and from my perspective, well earned. I’ve yet to find many things that top the perfectly cheesy, foldable, part crispy/part chewy crust that NYC pizza is known for. Thankfully, my gluttonous ways did not have to end—thanks to the return of the Summer of Pies World Pizza Tour at The Grove Restaurant at Copia, which grant me a parade of otherworldly
Similar to BottleRock the food scene also took center stage, with an emphasis on Latin cuisine and dishes from an array of diverse vendors including El Sabor Serrano, Uruapan Style, empanadas from Cocina Milonga, Gary’s Paella and Cha-Cha Sweets. As I enjoyed the sounds and sips from The Grove, I was reminded of one of my first columns, when I wrote (or was it ranted) about the lack of live outdoor music in Napa Valley. Be it excellent foreshadowing on my part, or simply a natural progression, the times and tunes have changed over the past 13 years as, one song and festival at a time, Napa Valley grew into a mecca for live music. Changemakers Music is not the only major movement afoot. This summer the U.S. Conference of Mayors passed
Think: Pizza Palooza!
pies without ever having to take flight. The concept is easy to digest— think pizza palooza—where guest pizzaiolos from around the country join chef Deborah Mullin to flip specialty pies, which rotate every two weeks. Napoletana, Roman al Taglio, Tonda Romana, Pinsa Romana, Padellino, Siciliana and Okonomiyaki style are all on order from an A-list roster of guest chefs: Glenn Cybulski, an award-winning executive chef and certified pizzaiolo with over 100 national and international culinary awards in rustic Italian cuisine and American comfort food; Thomas McNaughton, chef and owner of Flour & Water; Craig Stoll, co-founder of Delfina & Pizzeria Delfina; and World Pizza Champion Spencer Glenn. Asking a girl to pick her favorite pizza is a lot like asking a winemaker to name their favorite wine, but when pressed, I’d give Che Fico’s Ananas pie top props. An expert balance between the tang of the grilled pineapple and smoky crust, cut by the Calabrian Chili Bomba, mozzarella and red onion. The only thing that bested this savory delight, was learning that the pizza tour will continue through fall with nods to American-style pizzas including my beloved New York, as well as Chicago deep dish, Detroit Tavern, New Haven and California Neapolitan. Another summer crowd pleaser was the first-ever La Onda Latin music festival that descended on Napa just one week after BottleRock blasted downtown. While I did not officially attend the fest, my husband and I became inadvertent secondhand listeners during our first World Pizza Tour pitstop in June. Right as I sunk my teeth in, Latin beats reverberated in between bites. The music was lively and, given the roar from the crowd of legit festival goers we heard while seated at Copia, it was embraced. The event, which represented Latino culture in the area, drew more than 65,000 fans from Northern California and beyond. The 2025 festival is already in the works from BottleRock producers Latitude 38 and now La Buena Onda Presents.
a resolution in support of amending the Constitution on guns. The initiative was sponsored by mayors from Oregon, Ohio, Georgia, New York, Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi and California, which became the first state to call for a Constitutional convention on the issue. Locally, more than 700 Napans showed up to Rock the Ride USA Napa 2024, which is focused on ending gun violence and creating a safer future. The first ride began in 2018 in response to the Pathway Home shooting in Yountville that took the lives of Christine Loeber, Dr. Jennifer Golick, Dr. Jennifer Gonzales Shushereba and her unborn child. This year’s Rock the Ride drew title sponsor Sutter Health, guest speaker former South Bay Congresswoman Jackie Speier, and Rep. Mike Thompson (D- St. Helena) who chairs the House Democratic Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, to ensure commonsense gun-violence legislation is enacted. More than $600,000 was raised for charities including Alaina’s Voice Foundation, Giffords and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. Participants biked, walked through vineyards, sipped wines and came together to end gun violence. As an advocate, in my case focused on spreading fentanyl awareness, I hear from many who express how we are sheltered from the omnipresent dangers that plague the broader San Francisco Bay Area, and at times we very well may be. But the stark realities are, we are not impervious to the risks that are striking our state and country. In my view, awareness and action are some of the truest paths forward. g After years in the technology and advertising trenches, Christina Julian traded city life for country and unearthed a new philosophy— life is complicated, wine and food shouldn’t be. Her debut novel, a romantic comedy called The Dating Bender , is now available. Learn more at christinajulian.com . You can reach her at cjulian@ northbaybiz.com.
August 2024
NorthBaybiz 29
Made with FlippingBook Digital Publishing Software