NAPA: A holiday concert that sold out its first year is coming back bigger. Music in the Vineyards and the choir Aeternum announced on Oct. 14 that Christmas in the Vineyards returns on Friday, Dec. 11, and Saturday, Dec. 12, 2026, expanding to three concerts with a new free Saturday morning performance made for children.

The series debuted in 2025 with two sold-out concerts and more than 400 attendees. The evening concerts pair choir and strings in a program that includes Vivaldi's Winter, highlights from Handel's Messiah, and traditional and contemporary seasonal repertoire, according to the announcement.

Inside the Pacific Union College Church in Angwin, a Napa County church room built for music. The December series pairs choir and strings in church rooms across the valley.
Inside the Pacific Union College Church in Angwin, a Napa County church room built for music. The December series pairs choir and strings in church rooms across the valley. Arynito / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Music in the Vineyards artistic directors Daria and Michael Adams said, in the announcement's words, that "sharing the joy of music is at the core of what we do," and that they were delighted to offer a concert this year for the children and families of the Napa Valley alongside the two evening performances. Aeternum artistic director Bailey Cooke said the choir was thrilled to bring the series back and, this year, to bring that joy to Napa's young listeners as well.

Two sold-out concerts last year become three this year, and the new one belongs to the children.

The children's concert

The new performance is the Candy Cane Sing-Along, a 45-minute concert for children and their families built around traditional holiday favorites and audience participation. It is aimed at children ages 12 and under, admission is free, and advance registration is required. It takes place on Saturday, Dec. 12, at 11:30 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church of Napa, where the Saturday evening concert follows at 7 p.m.

The Friday evening concert, on Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. at Brannan Center in Calistoga, opens the weekend. Tickets for the evening concerts went on sale Oct. 14 through the Music in the Vineyards website: $35 general admission, $65 for reserved seating in the first three rows, and $5 youth admission. The organization's own calendar lists the same prices and describes youth admission as under the age of 18 with ID.

A Napa Valley vineyard. The holiday series takes its name from the valley around it, even as the music moves indoors for December.
A Napa Valley vineyard. The holiday series takes its name from the valley around it, even as the music moves indoors for December. Public domain, via free-images.com

Music in the Vineyards, founded in 1995, is best known for its August chamber music festival in winery settings across the valley. Aeternum, co-founded by artistic director Bailey Cooke, is a professional choir. Together, the two organizations have turned a December experiment into a small tradition, and this year the tradition makes room at the front for its youngest audience.