9.1.13 Napa Trip Day 3

Today started early with breakfast at Black Bear Diner. Chosen because it was open at 6 am, it delivered on a hearty diner breakfast.  The 7 grain granola pancakes were the best I have ever had. We headed back to the house for one more walk through the vineyard. Then headed to our first appointment: Cosentino. Ryan led us upstairs to the new private tasting room. It is gorgeous! Ryan quickly picked up on our sarcastic laid back style so we had a lot of fun tasting the wines. We were so impressed with all their wines:

2011 The Novelist - A well balanced Sauvignon Blanc.  Good fruit but not too acidic.

2011 The Zin - We called this a Zin for Florida. It had the great characteristics of the Zinfandel grape without the heaviness.

2009 Bacigalupi Chardonnay - This reserve Chardonnay is fantastic. It is creamy with just slight notes of oak. It almost unseats the BV Reserve Chardonny as our favorite...almost. The interesting note about this wine is rhat it is from the vineyards that created the wines that put California on the map in 1979 as told in the movie Bottle Shock. 

2009 Poet Meritage - We love how every winery has a claim to be being the first for something. Here they claim the first "meritage". A contest was held to come up with a new name for American Bordeaux blends. Meritage - a mix of heritage and we think merit. It is a fantastic wine. Smooth, fruity. Again, the balance really impressed us.

2010 Reserve Merlot - Another great wine. They smoothed the edges without losing the Merlot characteristics.

2009 Reserve Cabernet Franc - Best wine of the trip hands down. It is single vineyars. Unique, well balanced.

Cosentino also has a gorgeous barrel room for private events or barrel tastings. We are definitely going to try one of those in the future.

We had about an hour before our lunch reservation so we headed up to another favorite: Provenance. We had loved their blend last time, but this time the 2010 Merlot took the cake. We wound our way back towards Mustards' Grill with a brief stop at Silver Oak to try their 2009 Cabs - one from Napa Valley and one from Alexander Valley. The wines were very good. We liked the Napa Valley ones slightly better.

Lunch at Mustards Grill was fantastic. The service was superb. We had the corn tamales and ahi tuna chips for appetizers.  The tamales were excellent - soft, well seasoned and full of corn flavor. The ahi chips were good, but the wasabi alioli was very strong and overwhelmed the tuna flavor. For entrees, we had the pork chop and rib eye special.   Both were good. The star of the meal was the chocolate dessert: a bittersweet chocolate tart, espresso ice cream, caramel sauce and hazelnut brittle. Itnis the best dessert I have ever had. The lemon-lime tart with a huge meringue was also delicious. The service was fantastic. A great meal.

After lunch, we headed to Charles Krug.  I never knew Krug was part of the Mondavi family.  It was the original winery. Robert and his brother Peter had a falling out over the future of the business and Robert left to start his own winery. In his nineties, Peter still runs the Krug winery. We enjoyed the white wines here - especially the 2010 Chardonnay. They are in the midst of a major renovation of their tasting room. They are adding a deli and a lot more space.

After Krug, we headed back to San Fran. Thankfully traffic was a little better. We met up with Devon (nephew) and Nick at Hillside Supper Club. The food was very good. However, it was sadly comical that everything Nick tried to order had just run out. The best dish was the King Salmon. It had a fantastic crispy skin, but perfectly cooked with a great pesto sauce. One of the best salmon dishes I have ever had. It was an awesome dinner filled with lots of story telling and laughing.

We headed to the Marriott near the airport. Monday we had the long trek home.

Overall, the trip was amazing. We knew we would have great wine.  We weren't expecting all the great food.  We have a great life.

8.31.13 Napa Day Two

Our day started with a walk through the vineyard behind the house we are staying. We walked up the ridge and watched the sun rise. It was pretty incredible.  One of those "I can't believe this is my life moments." We headed to Boon Fly Cafe for breakfast. It is right next to the Careneros Inn. Glenn ordered the Green Eggs and Ham. I ordered the Chilaquiles.  Glenn's dish was one of the top breakfast dishes we ever had. It was hash browns topped with poached eggs with a leek cream sauce topped by grilled honey ham.  It is awesome.

After breakfast, we came back to the house and enjoyed the view from the deck. We got ready for our reservation at Cuvaison - the vineyard where we have been staying. The setting is gorgeous.  We got a lovely outside table for our tasting. Here are some of the wine highlights:
Cuvaison
2012 Vin Gris of Pinot Noir - a lovely rose with the characteristics of pinot noir but refreshing

2011 Kite Tail Chardonnay - Unlike any Chardonnay we have tasted. It has a creamy finish but some acidic/tropical notes. We agree it would be a great pairing wine.

2011 Estate Pinot Noir  - Lovely smooth Pinot Noir. Very jammy on the nose. Well balanced with some plum  and nice smooth finish

2011 Spire Pinot Noir - A fantastic delicate, satin finish. Lovely subtle cherry notes with the mineral characteristic of a Carneros Pinot Noir.

2011 Estate Syrah - A nice Syrah with a smooth finish slight spice and a little jam.

2011 Brandlin Zinfandel Bald Mountain Vineyard - Classic Zin nose, but lighter body than Martenelli or Turley. A solid Zin for Florida 

For lunch, we headed to Etoile - a fine dining restaurant at Domaine Chandon. We sat at an outdoor table overlooking the courtyard. We enjoyed some oysters. I tried the  2003 Etoile de Cuvee - a golden sparkling wine with good fruit flavor and a dry finish. Glenn tried a rose that he really liked. The wine list is on an ipad. For appetizers, I had the eggs and caviar. I found it underseasoned. Glenn had manila clams with chorizo around the a rim of a bowl filled with mushrooms. The waiter then poured over a smoky soup to finish the dish. The star of it either was a Spanish octopus dish with pressed melon. The flavors for complex and amazing. It was a great combination of Smokey and sweet and salty. One of the best dishes we have had. I have the day boat sea scallops which were well prepared. Glenn had the King Atlantic salmon which was awesome. It came with a ragu on the bottom and then they poured it on the top as well. It was delicious.

After lunch, we headed to our reservation at Opus one. The building is impressive. It really stands out along the roadside. We were in the tour of about 12 people. They took us through the production facility and fermentation tanks. Also down in the barrel room, we got to see how they store the wine. We did not realize that Opus One was a partnership with Robert Mondavi. We also did not realize they only make two wines. Opus one of the premier wine -  a Cabernet Sauvignon for $225 a bottle.  Overture is the wine they make with the leftovers and sell for 80 dollars a bottle at the winery. We were able to try both wines. We thought they were very good, but we have had Cabernet Sauvignon that we like more. It was a great way to experience the winery and get to try the wine.

We had a couple hours to kill between our two hour and dinner so we headed to our favorite winery BV. You were able to enjoy tasting down in the BV club room. It was nice to be able to sit down and enjoy some great wines. We also need to stop at Whitehall. Their wines were okay, but nothing we had to have.

For dinner, we went to bistro Giovanni. Are experiencing a little clouded by slow an inconsistent service. However, the highlight was the octopus appetizer that Glenn ordered.  It was cured octopus with arugula and peaches. It was fantastic. Glenn also had a beat and green bean salad that was very good. My appetizer was the fritto misto.  Everything is well fried, but it lacked seasoning. My Caesar salad was adequate. Glenn ordered the mushroom risotto with scallops. It was a very good. I ordered the Carbonera and it was terrible. Glenn had an apple crisp for dessert that was very good. And finally, 2 hours after we sat down we were done. We came back to the house and enjoyed sitting on the deck and the vineyards one more time.

Overall, it was incredible day.

8.30.13 Napa trip Day One

Today was a tough day. Flight delays, rental car chaos, and terrible traffic meant we got to our 2 pm wine tour at 450 pm - after they had stopped tastings for the day. It took us 3 and 1/2 hours to go the 40 miles from San Fran to Napa. It was brutal. The good news is that the Gloria Ferrer tasting room supervisor took pity on us and gave us some tastings and walked us through the operation. It is a gorgeous property (picture 1) and worth a stop. We tried their sparkling wine and really enjoyed it. It is fruity without being sweet and has a great creamy mouthfeel. We especially enjoyed the Royal Cuvee.

After the tour we headed to our accomodations. They were a little hard to find. The house has a definite summer rental feel but we are steps from a working vineyard (pic 2).

Dinner was at Celadon at the Napa Mill next to the Napa River Inn. We were very impressed. We shared the mussels (pic 3) which had a great smoky broth. The soup was inventive and complex - a white bean with carrots, spicy sausage and a chimicurri pesto on top. Our entrees were less exciting than the appetizers. I had a dish fish that lost points on the sauce. (Pic 4). Glenn had the fettuccine which had good flavor but the pasta was under seasoned and the pork was not shredded (pic 5). After dinner, we headed back to the house and called it an early night. Looking forward to tomorrow!

January 2012: Yountville: Bottega and Bouchon

On January 7th, we left for a 14 day adventure in Beijing, Shanghai, San Franciscio and Napa Valley. This post details our trips to Bottega and Bouchon.


As part of our trip to Napa - we were very excited to check out Bottega and Bouchon in Yountville. Our first dinner out was at Bottega.


BOTTEGA

The restaurant is very nice. I liked the place settings and the warm feel to the room. WE ordered a bottle of Elaine wine and it was excellent.

Glenn had the special appetizer - a deep fried egg. It was just okay

I  had the Polenta under glass  - creamy, delicious, well seasoned.

The special risotto - the rice was undercooked and the dish was slightly under seasoned.

Glenn had the ricotta gnocchi. The gnocchi was fluffy and melted in your mouth. The sauce was way too salty making it difficult to eat.

I had the short ribs. I definitely have had better.

Glenn had the duck three ways. The duck breast had too much unrendered fat.

BOUCHON

Salmon Rillettes - Fantastic. A delicious belnd of smoked and raw salmon.

The Rabbit Rillette. Very flavorful - until Glenn found a bone.

Trout with  brussel sprouts - The dish was fantastic. Only thing that could have made it better was a little more sauce.

Crispy Pork Belly - Excellent

 

Dessert was a simple good chocolate cake

The service at both places was very good. We will likely return to Bouchon. We loved the atmosphere and the food was excellent. We will likely not return to Bottega. The menu was interesting but the execution was a real problem.

January 2012 Napa, Sonoma, and Santa Rosa: The Wineries

On January 7th, we left for a 14 day adventure in Beijing, Shanghai, San Franciscio and Napa Valley. This post details our winery visits in Napa, Sonoma, and Santa Rosa.

We had a day and a half in the Napa Valley area and we visited 19 wineries. Yes, I said 19. This is not for the faint of heart. Here’s some tips:

1. If you choose to visit 10 wineries in 4 and ½ hours and not eat lunch, you will be very drunk. It is imperative to have a husband who is much smarter and takes smaller sips.

2. Split the tastings. They cost between $5 - $25 in many of the Napa wineries so it’s economical. Plus – if you are visiting a volume of wineries, you are only going to want a sip or two per wine per place.

3. Water and pretzels in the car. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.

4. It’s okay to pour out the wine after just a sip. It seems wasteful, but again you only tasting the wine. Once you make it clear you just tasting, the host will usually pour smaller portions.

Okay, that said. Here’s my rundown of the wineries we visited:

 NAPA

Turnbull -

The Reserve tasting room was very nice. They were hosting a photography exhibit from a local artist and had several rows of used barrels on display. Favorite was 2007 Leopoldina Cabernet at the Reserve tasting. It’s a high vineyard only 2 tons of grape yield per acre. The vineyard is so steep, the growers have to slide down on cardboard to harvest.  The wine was supple yet had a nice body and smooth finish.

Peju -  This was the only room that made us wait. We walked in and had to wait for a “host” even thought three people were standing around. They led us through a general area to a bar for tasting. The pretense seemed very unnecessary since it is the off season and the place was pretty much empty. We did not like the Red and White blend Provence. It seemed like watered down Red, but we had to agree it was unique. We did like the 2007 Merlot – very good with a big, fruity taste.

BV – Our favorite Reserve tasting room and some of our favorite wines. The Reserve Tasting is must do here. The Reserve Cabs are phenomenal. Glenn’s Favorite was the Clone 6 Cabernet while mine was the 2008 Georges de Latour Reserve Cab. We also liked the Port.

Elizabeth Spencer – Across the street from BV.

Worth a stop. The Chardonnay was pretty good. The best was the 2008 GPS Red Wine Blend.

Provence – We were referred here by BV – it’s one of their “sister” wineries. Good tasting room. Very friendly staff.  The 2010 Rutherford Sauvignon Blanc was great. Great Cabs. The 2008 Winemaker Reserve Blend was fantastic.

Alpha Omega – Great 2009 Napa Valley Chardonnay. The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon was pretty rough – needs at least 5-7 more years in the bottle.  The tasting was $20 which is very high. I would consider skipping.

Milat – Very small bar for tasting. Family owned winery. Best wine there was the Chenin Blanc. Good average Reds.

Heitz – One of my favorite tasting rooms. It’s set up like a living room with a large fireplace and sitting area on one side of the room and tasting along the other. Good overall wines.

Port was a great compromise between a tawny and ruby port.

Prager – Good stop if you like ports. Wish there had been a couple more to taste.

Charles Krug – Very expensive tasting fee. At this point, I was referring to everything as “needs more time in the barrel”. Glenn was not a big  fan of the wines there either.

SONOMA/SANTA ROSA

Schug – Great location near Sonoma – up a dirt road with great views of the vineyards.

Very nice staff. We loved the Reserve tasting. They had two single vineyard Pinot Noirs so we could really taste how different soil impacts the flavors in the wine.

BR Cohn – Big white house on the top of a hill. Very nice tasting area with a separate gourmet shop to taste the olive oils and vinegars.

The 2009 Russian River Pinot Noir was very good. It was a frustrating tasting because the staff was name dropping left and right with another couple – showing pictures of her private jet flights. We just wanted some info on the winery and the wine. Maybe we will try again in the future because I think we would have probably bought some wine if we had been treated differently.

Martinelli – One of our favorites!

Great, friendly staff. Fantastic Zinfandels. Single vineyard Chardonnays, Pinot Noirs, Syrahs and Zins make for an interesting and instructive tasting. The standouts were 2006 Lolita Ranch Syrah, 2008 Zio Tony Ranch Pinot Noir and 2007 Martinelli Road Chardonnay.

Hook and Ladder – Another one of our favorites. We have been in the wine club since 2008. The tasting room is in the warehouse. We love their reds – very drinkable Cab Francs and Red Blends.

DeLoach – Very nice tasting room and property. The owner of Hook and Ladder created this winery. It was one of the premier high end wineries and the wine of many airlines prior to 9/11. After 9/11, the airline business decreased and Cecil DeLoach sold the winery to a French investor and vintor and created Hook and Ladder. The DeLoach wines were more structured. The 2008 Swicegood Vineyard Pinot Noir was excellent.

Paradise Ridge – We went to the satellite tasting room since the weather was bad so the views from the actual property would have been lost. This winery has lower production than a lot of the other wineries we visited – about 300-500 cases per wine. The 2008 Estate Chardonnay was very good.  The reds were decent. The star was the 2008 Ode to Joy Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc – just fantastic!  We were lucky to get the executive chef for the winery to lead us through the tasting. She was super friendly and we had a great time. She even clued us in the Visa Signature Program that waives the tasting fees and gives 15% discounts at Sonoma wineries. Wished we had known about that sooner!! That is going to be a huge savings next time we come.

Ty Caton/Muscardini – Across the parking lot from Paradise Ridge is the Ty Caton/Muscardini tasting room.

 Muscardini focuses on Italian style wines and grapes. Ty Caton makes some great red wines. The stunner was the 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon. It was so drinkable, well balanced, just terrific. We bought six bottles because we can’t wait to see how it ages.

Kunde – We turned in here  because it had the sign “Voted Best Tasting Room”.

While I don’t think it was the best room – Kunde did have a lot of great options for experiencing their wine:  a sit down Reserve tasting with small snacks, a ride up to 1,400 feet to see the view and taste the wine, cave tours and a food/wine seminar starting this spring. I don’t think the Reserve tasting was worth it here. I wasn’t wowed with any of their wines except for the 2010 Magnolia Lane Sauvignon Blanc. We loved the Sauvignon Blanc.

Deerfield Farms – Across the road from Kunde. This has a fantastic tasting room in a cave! You walk down a long barrel-lined hallway.

The host was so friendly and knowledgeable. All the wines were excellent. We loved how balance and restrained they were. The host told us the vintner is a chef so he really values balance. We joined the wine club.

Next trip to California Wine Country – we are definitely going farther north and headquartering our stay in Healdsburg.  Though we may try to get up to Oregon before we come back to California.