Napa Valley, CA: Eco-Friendly Wines

A Green Wine? Well, not exactly 'green', but you catch our drift. Otherwise, you wouldn't be here. The greening in wine country continues! HALL Wines in Napa is doing something most vintners should have been doing a long time ago. The premier 21st century vineyard and winery has just received the prestigious Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Gold Certification for its Napa Valley St. Helena winery, becoming the first winery in California to be distinguished as a Gold certified facility by the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED® Green Building Rating System™. The HALL St. Helena LEED® certified winery is one of most advanced wineries in California, with state-of-the-art facilities designed for ultra-premium wine production using a system that carefully measures their building's performance across all environmental metrics including energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts.

So we say... let's drink to that!

Skol!

www.hallwines.com

Win a Trip to Africa!

We're KEEN-ly aware you're in need of a heart healthy vacay. As such, KEEN Inc., a leader in hybrid outdoor performance products, including footwear, socks and bags — is running an exciting contest with the chance to win a week-long volunteer vacation at an animal rescue society near Cape Town, South Africa.

The trip is being organized by i-to-i, a U.K.-based volunteer travel company who has sent more than 20,000 people to volunteer in Africa, Asia, Australasia and Latin America since 1996. The winner will volunteer at TEARS, an animal shelter that provides pet food parcels, veterinary treatment and animal care education for community members with animals that could not otherwise afford these goods and services. The society also works with children who have had extremely hard lives and teaches them to care and be responsible for animals. Learning these nurturing skills helps to break the cycle of abuse in these children’s lives.

“KEEN values the work that TEARS is doing - teaching a child how to care for an animal can make a life-altering impact on both the animal and the child," says Bobbie Parisi, Vice President of Marketing of KEEN. “In a struggling economy, the first charities to feel the pinch are those working with animals, so volunteers’ efforts are much needed.”

After returning from South Africa, KEEN invites the winner to share stories from the trip on its HybridLife Community page at www.keenfootwear.com/community. The community connects people who are creating possibilities, engaging with the outdoors, and caring for the world around them.

Valued at about $4000, the trip include: roundtrip coach class air transportation, provided by South African Airways, for one between a major U.S. gateway city and Cape Town South Africa to volunteer with animals in Cape Town, South Africa; and a shared dormitory room in volunteer house for a minimum of one week and up to two weeks. The travel must be completed by September 30, 2010. Beyond the volunteer opportunities, the winner can explore an amazing range of other activities - from surfing to hiking to shopping in and around Cape Town.

In addition to KEEN, additional contest sponsors include National Geographic Society, and i-to-i Volunteer Vacations.

Entries are being accepted until August 21, 2009, at www.keenfootwear.com/southafrica.

Vietnam: Topas Eco-Lodge

Located near the Chinese border in Northern Vietnam's Sapa Valley is an eco-retreat so discrete... it's 250 miles northwest of Hanoi in the 10,000 foot tall Hoang Lien Mountains, also known as the Tonkinese Alps by the Colonial French. Topas Eco-Lodge is like this:
Exotic, quaint, lush, and peaceful. It might even change your life (Vietnamese mountain regions have a way of doing that). The 25-room bungalow retreat tickled our fancy because it's also in a particularly diverse area, home to five ethnic tribes, each with their own language and culture. A joint venture between the Danes and the Vietnamese, therefore sticking closely to Denmark's strict environmental regulations, the property provides the perfect opportunity to experience nature and culture in ways that lead to a greater appreciation and understanding of our environment. Actively implementing practices that optimize energy and encouraging suppliers to take part in environmental protection initiatives, Topas is a living breathing example of how to do luxury, style, and ecology. By treating its own wastewater, running off solar power, and being made from limestone from a local quarry and palm-thatched roofs straight from the Vietnamese jungle, they try to think of impact with every decision they make.
Not too shabby. So how do you spend days in this peaceful lust mountainous retreat? By meditating, trekking, or biking through the friendly villages with a guide, lunching at a local's, or taking a dip in a river. It's really all up to you. There's no pressure. After all, this is Vietnam. Definitely a spot to put on the Bucket List of 'Places to See Before I Die.'
The restaurant serves everything from pork ribs with sweet brown sauce to curried chicken. But, as Concierge.com notes, "The biggest luxury is that magnificent view of the green peaks from your private balcony."

HOW TO GET THERE

Numerous carriers fly from NY and LA to Hanoi through other gateway cities. You can get to Hanoi over-land from elsewhere in the country via train or car, but most people chose to come by plane. Hanoi's small international airport (code: HAN) is not as served by international airlines as Ho Chi Minh City so visitors coming from Europe may fly into Bangkok and then on to Hanoi via Thai or Vietnam Airlines.

From the Americas, there are flights via Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Here are some airlines to look for deals:

*Singapore Airlines
The Singaporean national airline flies daily between Singapore and Hanoi.
*Thai Airways
The Thai national carrier flies daily to Hanoi from Bangkok.
*Vietnam Airlines
The Viet national carrier flies to Hanoi from major cities around the world.
*Pacific Airlines
The only other domestic airline in Vietnam. It is a little cheaper than Vietnam Airlines, but isn't really a budget carrier. Also serves Taiwan.

From Hanoi, trains run day and night to the mountainous town of Lao Cai. From there, it takes an hour to drive to Sapa, the town nearest to Topas Ecolodge. These trains run day and night and night trains provide good standards of soft sleeper berths. By train, you can depart from Hanoi around 9:00pm and arrive in Lao Cai the next morning at 5am. There are many other departures and arrival options and, the best part... all transport can be arranged by Topas Ecolodge! They'll provide daily transportation from Sapa to the Ecolodge (45 min drive). Said to be a dirt road and an interesting journey, along the way, you'll see daily life in the rice fields and the picturesque Muong Hoa valley where beautiful locals make their way to Sapa to sell handcrafts and vegetables.


Topas Ecolodge
Tel: 84 20 872 404
Doubles from $125, including meals and transfers from Sapa

www.topasecolodge.com

Napa Valley, CA: Eco-Travel, Organic Farming, & Wine Tasting

This just in from my cronies in Northern Cali! An itinerary from Napa and Yountville to the Carmel Valley for a new LEED-certified hotel and several eco-travel ideas, complete with haute cuisine, antiques, wine tasting, and a visit to an all-organic farm.
The Bardessono (debuted February, 2009). Every element of this LEED-Platinum aspiring hotel, restaurant and spa is wrapped in an earth-friendly blanket of luxury. Secluded on five acres of gardens and vineyards, the 62-room hotel boasts a “green spa,” heated and cooled by an underground geothermal system, smart guestrooms in buildings crafted from hand-milled, reclaimed wood and steel and 93-seat restaurant headed by Executive Chef Sean O’Toole, former group operations chef for Michael Mina. If approved, Bardessono would be the second U.S. hospitality entity to receive platinum certification and the first in California.

www.bardessono.com

Bottega – December, 2008 marked the return of Food Network’s Michael Chiarello to the kitchen with the debut of Bottega. Chef de Cuisine Nick Ritchie will drive the culinary team in what Chiarello calls the “craftsman’s workshop” – or “bottega” set against a palette of rustic yet refined warm textures in olive greens, chocolate and deep red. The 184-seat Italian restaurant is located in the historic Groezinger Winery (1870), a two-story brick structure that crowns V Marketplace.

www.botteganapavalley.com

Ma(i)sonry - Set in the former Burgundy House, a 1904 stone masonry stunner listed on the National Register of Historic Places, this new venture was opened by visionary, Michael Polenske, in October, 2008. The setting is reminiscent of a home or a private club, framing a highly edited collection of furnishings and artwork. The furnishings, ranging from 16th century to mid-twentieth century, are paired with contemporary works crafted by today's top designers. This "living gallery" atmosphere serves as a stylized backdrop for the appreciation of limited production boutique wines including Blackbird Vineyards’ portfolio of Pomerol-inspired blends crafted by Sarah Gott.

www.ma(i)sonry.com

Vita – Laura Cunningham steps up with a new Italian eatery in the heart of Yountville called Vita, after her grandmother, Vita Morrell. The concept is a Sicilian southern Italian restaurant with the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group managing its day to day operations. The 130-seat restaurant set in the former PJ Steak restaurant is due to debut in Fall, 2009.

Hotel Luca – The minds behind L’Auberge Carmel have broken ground on a 20-room luxury hotel fronting Washington Street on the north end of Yountville. The modern-style property perched on over an acre of prime real estate will include a 90-seat restaurant modeled after the successful Cantinetta Luca in Carmel, California. Expect rustic, informal Italian dining with authentic European-style hospitality – the perfect meritage of Italy and Napa Valley. Fall/2009 opening.

www.hotellucanapa.com

Girard Winery - The 1800 sq. ft. tasting room opened May/2008 featuring super Cabs backed with an elegant décor of antique reclaimed barn wood ceilings, cedar floors and grand mosaic glass tile wall and floor treatments. Hand-crafted polished concrete tasting bar, custom lighting, state-of-the-art walk-in glass-enclosed wine cellar and top-flight private food and wine pairing in the Club Room ($40) round out the experience. Crafted by Marco DiGiulio, (“one of Napa’s top wine consultants,” Wine Spectator 2007) these wines have placed Girard firmly in the “Top 100 Wineries of the World” (Wine and Spirits magazine, 2006).
www.Girardwinery.com

Villagio Inn & Spa - Debuted a new 13,000 sq. ft. spa in April, 2008. Set in true Mediterranean style on the resort’s 23 acres, the spa is one of Napa Valley’s largest featuring 16 treatment rooms including five sumptuous spa suites, outdoor terraces, fireplaces and a tight mix of high tech+indigenous wellness treatments.

www.villagio.com

Earthbound Farms - Get downright dirty with all things squirmy via a Bug Walk or mix it up with a local chef or florist at Earthbound Farm, the nation’s largest producer of organic greens. When Drew and Myra Goodman came to California’s Carmel Valley in 1984, they were determined young transplants from Manhattan, drawn to the natural beauty and richness of the land. Even before they turned over their first shovels full of soil, they believed strongly in doing the right thing.


They settled on a 2.5-acre raspberry farm and decided that doing the right thing meant committing to farming this land organically, producing food they would want to eat themselves and would feel good about serving their families, friends, and neighbors. Undaunted by those who said it couldn’t be done, in 1986 they became the first company to successfully launch prewashed, packaged salad for retail sale. When they introduced their mixed baby greens or “spring mix” to restaurants and supermarket produce aisles, they started a salad revolution. Today, gourmet salad greens and packaged salads have become staples of grocery baskets everywhere. Flowers, herbs and vegetables steal the show on 30 sun-drenched acres in Carmel Valley. Saturdays are a true beehive of activity; morning tours start at 11:00 a.m. (May – September). $5.00/child.

www.ebfarm.com