She shakes! She bakes!

Mary Jo gets ready to bake bread

One of the "little" people who keep Napa Valley on the forefront of greatness is Mary Jo Geitner. She represents Trinchero Family Estates, probably most famous for marketing White Zinfandel to the world in the 1980s. But don't hold that against them. The company also has an impressive stable of high-end labels, some in Napa Valley and some elsewhere.

Sutter Home Victorian Inn south of St. Helena

Mary Jo bakes lots of goodies and greets visitors at the company's Sutter Home Victorian Inn, south of St. Helena on Highway 29 in Napa Valley. No, sorry, you can't rent the property for your wedding, and you can't check in like a regular visitor just passing through. The inn is exclusively for invited guests, most working in the wine industry. But you can still stop and smell the roses in the garden (or the other flora flourishing there). And if you follow the link below, you can prepare one of the many luscious recipes Mary Jo whips up for breakfast for the inn's guests.

Read about Mary Jo and the Sutter Home Victorian Inn in my article that appeared on Christmas Eve in the Napa Valley Register: http://napavalleyregister.com/lifestyles/food-and-cooking/wine/article_2750140c-0eff-11e0-ae52-001cc4c002e0.html