Paul’s Picks for this weekend
By Paul Franson
A very successful BottleRock is over, and now Napa Valley is gearing up for the Napa Valley Vintners’ successor to Auction Napa Valley this weekend.
June is also Pride Month for the LGBTQ community, with more than two dozen events that include some this week.
And next week the first community concerts of the season return, initiating a summer of music outside for each city and town.
Here are my picks for this weekend:
Collective Napa Valley Together Again Weekend brings in high rollers from around the country – and globe – as well as local bidders, winery owners, and staff and volunteers. The barrel auction Friday will be at Martini Vineyards and the fancy dinner and live auction at Silver Oak Saturday. It’s pricey but supports local youth, and you can also bid virtually.
Pride Month celebrates and supports Napa County’s LGBTQ community. The biggest event this week is the Napa Valley Pride Car Parade Saturday evening down Jefferson and around downtown. After the Pride Car Parade, Napa Valley Distillery’s Hollywood Room hosts a party.
With all the nastiness we hear from Florida these days, the return of the lighthearted “The Great American Trailer Park Musical” at Lucky Penny lets us reinforce all of our negative stereotypes about residents there.
You don’t usually think of cowboys and Napa, but the Napa Valley Horsemen’s Association is hosting its first Napa Cowboy Gathering this weekend.
Merryvale Vineyards in St. Helena welcomes singer Asher Stern on the Terrace Friday. Food from Sticky Business Barbecue will be for sale.
“It’s a Grand Night for Singing” is the long-running monthly concert series showcasing talented singers from around the Bay Area singing classical and lighter numbers at Jarvis Conservatory.
Soul singer Eric Benét appears at the Blue Note on Saturday and Sunday.
The preview of the Savor After Hours Napa Valley cabaret series will be in the upstairs JaM Cellars Ballroom of the Napa Valley Opera House on Saturday and Sunday.
Blue Note Summer Sessions at the Meritage Resort present trumpeter Chris Botti on Saturday and singer Rufus Wainwright on Sunday.
Calistoga has plenty of music for a city its size, but one of the best bets is the Jazz and Blues at Buster’s Southern Barbecue with a rotating cast of musicians Sunday afternoon.
And for something completely different, American Canyon is having a citywide yard sale Friday through Sunday.
If you’d like to find out more about these events and many, many more, subscribe to “NapaLife,” a twice-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 example.