The introduction of Prager Cabernet Sauvignon and Prager Port Vinegars is simply too good an idea for us not to pay close attention. Just the names sound enticing. Long famous for their vintage ports, and now for a Cabernet as well, the most recent venture for the always resourceful Prager clan are these two distinctively bottled vinegars. Finely crafted and full of depth and flavor, they make for rewarding culinary experiments. You are limited only by your imagination in terms of how you use these distinctly Napa products. They retail for $12 for the Cabernet and $16 for the Port Vinegar.

If you want to visit the source (and a unique one it is, trust us), the family-owned and operated Prager Port Works is open every day at 1281 Lewelling Lane, St. Helena. Call (707) 963-7678 or (800) 969-7678 for more information.

This is hardly a secret, but it seems that people keep discovering the Seafood Buffet at Silverado Resort. Every few months someone will express the joy of discovery about this venerable institution that has, in fact, been going on for many years. And for people who have gone before, the rediscovery (dim sum! sushi!) is almost as much fun.

Truth be told, if you like seafood in all its various preparations, from sashimi to baked, on the half shell to broiled and everything in between, then this may be one of the true bargains to be found. At $39.50 per person you really do get more than you pay for, and in addition to six fish entrees, the oysters, prawns, half a lobster for every diner, more desserts than you will be able to recall the next day, soups, breads, a table full of salads and (for those who do not choose to live by fish alone) roast beef and another special entrée, the service is old world excellent as well. You also have a chance to check out the resort's award winning wine list (and very commendable wines by the glass) as well.

The Seafood Buffet is held in the Vintners Court restaurant every Friday from 6PM until 10 PM. Reservations are essential, so call (707) 257-0200. One caveat: allow a couple of hours for the experience. Anything else is rushing it.

Chefs love it and it's healthy. Sound too good to be true? Not according to the people that produce Salute Sante! Grapeseed Oils. But what got our attention was the flavor. The Lemon Infused, the Chili and the Roasted Garlic Oils are all outstanding. The new Extra Virgin Cold Pressed Grapeseed Oil, both unfiltered and Chardonnay, shares with the others a high smoke point (485 degrees) that makes sautéing and frying a breeze.

All of these choices come attractively packaged in a variety of sizes (up to 5 litres) and are available through retail outlets around the Valley and nationwide. For lots of information visit www.grapeseedoil.com.

Opened less than a year ago by Napa local (and one-time chef) Thea Witsil, Wild Cat is packed with vintage clothing and accessories. Although the emphasis is on the Fifties, styles range from the 1930's to the Seventies. Look here for a wall full of hats, lunchboxes you haven't seen in years (or, more likely, decades), Hawaiian and real bowling shirts, sharkskin suits, accessories that include cowboy boots, cuff links, vintage sunglasses, Bakelite jewelry and Vera scarves. For people interested in newer styles the store features a range of alternative clothing. It's a trip down memory lane while you wear shades from your mother's closet.

Wild Cat is located at 1210 First Street in Downtown Napa. Open Tuesday through Saturday from noon until 6PM, you can call them for more information at (707) 257-8702.

Without a doubt this is one substantial tool. Just heft the brand new corkscrew from the folks at Richartz; it feels like it has been precision-machined out of a solid bar of satin finish metal from Solingen. Come to think of it, perhaps it has been. The feeling you get holding it is that the only way you're going to outlive this tool is to live a very, very long time. And even then we're not so sure. How cool is this corkscrew? Five minutes after it was in the office every single person who walked by tried to buy it. No unnecessary bells or whistles, it just opens wine with subtle Teutonic style. If you can't find it in a local store, call Richartz U.S.A. at (800) 859-2029. It retails for $55.

A perfect meal, a bottle or two of wine and then the drive home, or back to the hotel. How about this as an alternative: a limousine picks you up at your door, delivers you and your friends to a Napa Valley restaurant then, a few hours later it picks you up and whisks you home. If you think this may push a nice night out into the stratosphere, price-wise, then Bordeaux Limousine thinks they may have the answer.

Called the "Dinner Run Service" this Napa-based company will pick you up in one of their limousines anytime between 6 and 8PM, take you to dinner, then pick you up anytime within a three hour period and return you to your door step. And they'll do it for a reasonable $70 (for up to six people, or $90 for ten) plus gratuity. For reservations call (707) 257-4501.

How about sodas with names like Chimney Rock Cherry, Oakville Orange, Rutherford Rootbeer and Yountvanilla Cream? The brainchild of Calistoga resident Markley LaPointe, an engineer with experience in the wine and food industry, they've made their way into some of the Valley's finest stores and restaurants.

Made from an exotic recipe of up to 80 different extracts each one is as unique as one good Napa Valley Cabernet is from another. No detail has been overlooked, to the extent that to give the Napa Valley Grape a very red wine look a special grape skin extract is used to make sure the color is suitably "grapey." The sweetener is natural beet sugar and other ingredients might include extracts from the Guarana berry, hibiscus or annatto. The label design, with the whimsical hot air balloon and view of the Valley, combines with the retro-look bottles to produce a soda that lives up to the name. Napa Valley Sodas are available at stores throughout the area, including Vallergas Markets. They retail for around $1.75 a bottle.