Paul’s Picks for the weekend of July 14-16
Paul’s Picks for the weekend of July 14-16
By Paul Franson
NAPA VALLEY, Calif. – Though Music in the Vineyards was the pioneer music festival in Napa Valley and BottleRock firmly established us as a great location for pop festivals, Festival Napa Valley has certainly put us on the map for serious music celebrations.
Festival Napa Valley begins its 17th season on Friday with the Festival Orchestra at Charles Krug Winery in St. Helena. The festival has some special events this weekend, but daytime concerts are free and those in the evening are $35 for adults and $20 for students. There are concerts every day next week leading up to the finale on Sunday. See the schedule for details.
Two special Festival Napa Valley events will occur this weekend:
Festival Napa Valley’s Taste of Napa Celebration is at the Meritage on Saturday. The $295 Reserve Tasting Salon tickets are sold out, but $150 general-admission tickets are still available.
Festival Napa Valley Arts for All Gala patron fundraiser will be at Nickel & Nickel Winery in Oakville Sunday if you can afford $2,500 for a good cause.
Beyond these two, there is plenty more going on, too:
The free Festival Live! concert is on Friday at Copia.
Napa’s Nights in the Park Friday features Tin Man and I*Ko YaYa.
Yountville’s Music in the Park is every other Sunday starting this week with Road Eleven.
St. Helena Summer Concerts are on Wednesday, Calistoga Concerts in the Park on Thursday and American Canyon’s Meet Me in the Street is monthly.
Calistoga Concerts in the Park - Tim Carl Photo Bastille Day, which the French call fête nationale française, is Friday, July 14. Americans should celebrate with them as the Marquis de Lafayette was a key figure in our fight to keep from ending up with King George III, and critically, the French fleet blocked British reinforcements from reaching Cornwallis, leading to Washington’s victory at Yorktown. You can celebrate at Outer Space Wines in Napa Friday, at the Bouchon party during the day Saturday and at Angèle, Bistro Jeanty and Auberge du Soleil. Pianist Larry Vuckovich streams French jazz from Calistoga on Saturday afternoon, too.
Henry Kapono is at the Blue Note celebrating 50 years of singing Hawaiian music Friday.
R&B singers Charlie Wilson and Chaka Khan open the Oxbow RiverStage season on Friday.
The Golden States Festival with Tycho and a number of other musicians will be at the Oxbow RiverStage Saturday.
Tiki After Hours at Napa Valley Museum on Saturday in Yountville features tropical drinks, pupus and a chance to view three exhibits.
The Blue Note Summer Sessions present comedian Marlon Wayans at the Meritage Saturday.
And if you’d like to learn what amateur winemakers can do – and maybe join them – the Home Winemakers Classic will be at the Marriott on Sunday.
If you’d like to find out more about these events and many, many more, subscribe to “NapaLife,” a weekly newsletter that focuses on news and events about food, wine and the arts – visual, literary and performing. It’s $50 a year for individuals at www.napalife.com, where you can find a recent sample.