Luxe Beat Magazine March 2014 | Page 39

If you haven’t done this kind of Luxury Sip before, here are some final parting tips for you. 1. Hire a professional wine tour guide. If you have to put him/her on the plane with you to have the perfect experience, so be it. My recommendation? Tom Plant is the owner of Wineormous Wine Tours that specializes in easy breezy Temecula Tours, but his knowledge of and connections to Napa Valley are what legends are made of. Ask for him to plan your trip, arrange the transportation and driver and accompany you. He lives in Southern California. http://wineormous.com/tours/ Worth every penny. 2. When you have a personal guide, the tip to each wine host should be Included in the price you pay for the tour. Ask up front. If not, leave a generous tip at each stop. 3. If you tasted something you liked, buy it. Your tour guide will include a place to safely store your wine purchases in the tour vehicle until s/he takes you home, or s/he will arrange for them to be sent to your home or office. A real wine tour operator will know whether your purchases can be shipped to your home state. 4. Drink an equal or more amount of water to whatever wine you consume. Until we meet again in the most luxe places to sip, I wish you the best in your travels far and near. Napa Valley Vineyard (above) Photography by Linda Kissam. Barrels image courtesy of sxc.hu. 24 MARCH 2014 •LUXE BEAT MAGAZINE