By Nate Gartrell

What happens when you take world-renowned musicians and put them in the backdrop of the beautiful Napa Valley, along with the fine wine and cuisine this area is known for? You get what’s become known as a luxury event, a unique getaway designed for intimate, up-close, views of artists and chefs who typically showcase their work on television, or in multi-thousand seat arenas. It all started in 2008, with a Jason Mraz performance in the Napa Valley around the time he released the multi-platinum, Grammy-nominated hit “I’m Yours.” Nowadays, Napa Valley has three such events each year, all put on by FF Entertainment, and starting this year with Yountville Live. The four-day event is a celebration of food, wine, and music, and surrounds the popular annual Taste of Yountville Festival.

“Yountville Live was, hands-down, the most incredible festival experience of my life,” popular singer/songwriter Marc Broussard said in a testimonial on Yountville Live’s website. “The food, the wine, the hospitality, and the music were of a caliber unmatched by any other event I’ve ever been associated with. If I’m not invited back as an artist, you can bet I’ll be buying a ticket as a fan.”

For this year, Yountville Live will stretch from March 19 through March 22. The 2020 lineup hadn’t been finalized at the time of publication, but in the past the festival has pulled in some of the musical artists in the country—David Hodges, the Goo Goo Dolls, Colbie Caillat, O.A.R., X Ambassadors, Foy Vance, Blue October, and the Plain White T’s, to name a few.

“We try and find the next artist who’s about to break and also the artists who are very talented and have big personalities who can perform acoustic guitar with no amplification at a wine dinner,” said FF Entertainment President Bobbii Hach Jacobs. “They’re just very much in that creative tip.”

One of the secrets to pulling this talent, Bobbii said, is simply to extend the Napa Valley’s hospitality to the performers as well as the audience. “I think what’s really awesome is when artists are on the road or on tour—it’s their job—but what we try to do is we not only have them perform and entertain but to enjoy themselves while they’re here and take it all in,” Bobbii said. We encourage them to bring their spouse or significant other. They just don’t have a great experience; they say, ‘Wow I’m all in. Everyone here is so welcoming and engaging—it’s amazing.”

Bobbii said the Live In The Vineyard concept stems from the desire to bring “current pop music” into the area; however, in a way, that’s designed to make the audience members feel connected with the performer, as opposed to being one in a sea of people or watching a singer from two football field-lengths from the stage.

“When you’re at Yountville Live or Live In The Vineyard you don’t need a set of binoculars,” Bobbii said. “You’re right up close and personal with the best chefs, winemakers, and artists right there at your fingertips—to talk to, to see, to be right up there with.”

Yountville Live is still going strong after five years, and the fall Live In The Vineyard event will turn 12 this year. Bobbii says her group will follow Yountville Live with a “Live In The Vineyard Goes Country” event that she said will “come back for a third year with a vengeance” just six weeks after Yountville Live, in partnership with CMT.

“Everything we do is curated,” Bobbii said. “I work off the current releases of artists releasing new music. It’s never about big, big, big, it’s about the sexiest and most authentic experience that my team and I can create.”

“It’s very special; it’s one of the most beautiful little towns in the United States. And you put in the chef component and the picturesque backdrop—it’s really amazing. We took our special sauce, which is music, and put it all together and stirred the pot.”

The musical performances are acoustic or acapella, which Bobbii said adds to the intimate feeling of the show. “Personally, I think [acoustic performances] show the artist’s true raw talent,” Bobbii said. “Anyone can go see a live band plugged in, but very few can see that grit of the artist, where they’re singing their heart out with acapella or an acoustic guitar. It just makes it that much more special.”

Bringing rock stars to the Napa Valley seemed like a “natural fit,” Bobbii said.

“I think music, food, and wine are the perfect combination, and Napa Valley is such a beautiful backdrop. If you take great music and put it in the Napa Valley, it will be even better,” she said. “You throw that in with an acoustic performance and something really authentic and all of a sudden you have this amazing once in a lifetime performance.”

The mood at Live In The Vineyard shows varies greatly from what one might picture when they see lineups containing world-famous musicians. The crowds might be excited, passionate, and engaged; however, when the music is playing, the audiences usually remain silent, Bobbii said.

“You can hear a pin drop when the artists are performing,; it’s very respectful,” she said. “Our return rate is so high for people coming back year after year, that we constantly have to deliver that highest level and never take anything for granted.”

Yountville Live will start Thursday, March 19 and run through Sunday, March 22. The bulk of the four-day festival will be held at The Estate Yountville. Tickets for four days are currently going for $2,750.00 and can be purchased by visiting: eventbrite.com/e/yountville-live-2020-vip-weekend-tickets. For additional information about the festival, including past lineups and a list of wineries and restaurants, visit yountvillelive.com.

For information about Live In The Vineyard Goes Country—running from April 29 through May 1 in Napa (Brad Paisley headlined last year)—visit liveinthevineyardgoescountry.com.

Nate Gartrell grew up in Benicia, studied journalism in college, and has written for a handful of media outlets since age 15. He aspires to visit all 30 Major League Baseball stadiums and to hit the trifecta at the horse track.