Ready for summer?
It starts early with Downtown Napa’s Shop, Sip and Stroll. This is the second year the event is being held, and if last year is any indication, Napans will love it.
As word of mouth spread, more and more people attended each week, many showing up multiple weeks.
“It’s really unique,” said local Paul Kelaita, who missed the first one last June, but after hearing about it from friends, made sure he and his wife attended all the others.
“It’s a chance to visit stores we’d never been in and taste wines we might have never tried.” He laughed and added, “I think downtown should do this every week.”
The concept is simple – for $10, attendees get a glass and a wristband. From 5-7 p.m. on each of the four Thursdays in June, people can visit stores (usually a dozen or so each week) that have balloons displayed in front of them, and get a taste from whichever tasting room has partnered with that store.
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Visit every place if you wish and drink wine at all of them – it’s all covered by the initial $10. There’s also outdoor music each week; a great opportunity to visit friends while enjoying mild Napa summer nights. Shop a bit while you enjoy a splash. Listen to music as you walk to the next store where you can do it all over again.
“You never know how a new event will be received,” said Bill LaLiberte, executive director of the Downtown Napa Association, the group that organizes and operates the event, about last year’s Shop, Sip and Stroll.
“By the third week, it was obvious that some people were coming every week. I knew then that it was a winner.”
It’s a great event for families as well.
“My husband and I took my mom and our daughter to the second one. Teal was just an infant, and we saw several other families with their newborns,” said Kelli Lampkin, another local. “We ran into friends every week and got to walk around with them. It was super unique and was a really inexpensive night out.”
Downtown is divided into four districts for this one, and each week, a different district is featured. Wristbands and glasses are sold at a central location each week, and maps of participating businesses are available.
Guests can follow the map or just look for the balloons in front of businesses. Use donapa.com, and you’ll have all the details on your phone. Then, start to enjoy.
Come before or after dinner, or plan to eat at a downtown restaurant. This is about as fun and relaxing as a summer night can be.
Here’s how each week looks:
June 6: Main Street, north and south of First, including Clinton Street. Get your wristband and glassware in Dwight Murray Plaza.
June 13: Second and Third streets, plus the side streets: Franklin, Randolph and Coombs. Wristband and glassware on the patio of Outer Space Wines.
June 20: Oxbow District, east of Soscol Avenue. Wristbands and glassware at the patio at Filippi’s.
June 27: First Street and First Street Napa Shops. Wristbands and glassware at Dwight Murray Plaza.
Craig Smith retired from the Downtown Napa Association at the end of 2023 but will continue this column. He is author of “Lies That Bind – How Do You Arrest Someone Who Doesn’t Exist?”