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Weekend in Napa

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We do not venture into the heart of California wine tasting, Napa Valley, very often. We find it very industrial and commercial. It usually feels like you are on a conveyer belt and very impersonal. The caveat to this is if you go with someone who knows where to go and has the inside scoop. Like being with a high roller in Vegas, it’s a different experience. Here is where our good friends Tony and Al come in. They are members to several of the better wineries in the Napa area and we always get the red carpet treatment when we go tasting with them. When we found a deal on a Napa area limo we knew immediately who we needed to invite.
We rendezvoused at Patz and Hall for a late morning wine and cheese pairing. This

Wine Pairing at Patz and Hall

was the site of our first encounter with the other world of Napa and it did not disappoint in our second go-round. This was also one of my first experiences with how much a wine could change when paired with the right food. The first time here every wine was specifically paired with either a cheese or some nuts. This experience was a little different, with one cheese paired with the two whites and two other cheeses and some truffle nuts to go with the three pinot’s. It was fun to go back and forth with the cheese and different wines to see how one cheese could change each wine in a different way.

Artesa Winery

After a quick stop at our hotel, we all piled into the limo and were off to Artesa. This was a very beautiful winery but felt a little industrial on the inside. They offer several different tasting options and we choose the limited release and reserve tasting. First was the 2011 Sauvignon Blanc. I am not much of a Sauvignon Blanc guy. This one was ok. It had the typical clean flavors, light citrus and floral flavors, and a little buttery at the end which is different then most Sauvignon Blanc’s. Next the 2010 Reserve Chardonnay. Of all the wines here, I thought this was the most interesting. I also thought Troya was going to like this one, but she said she did not care much for it. It was very buttery, smooth, with a hint of oak at the end. It also seemed to have a little truffle flavor which made it quite unique. Next were the 2009 Estate Reserve Pino Noir and the 2010 Artisan Series Tempranillo. The pinot was pretty typical, nothing that really stood out. The Tempranillo was disappointing, tasting more like a Merlot. They were out of the Cab they had on the list so we got to taste the 2009 Rive-Gauche Cab blend. Also a typical cab, smooth, medium body for a cab, good but not worth the price.
Then it was off to Turnbull. I think this was the find of the weekend. Their wines varied from good to very good, but the people here were great and a lot of fun, especially Samantha, Abby and Monica. Our Reserve Showcase tasting did not include any whites, but as big fans of Viognier, they let us taste this to start. Happy we did. It had a lot of fruit flavor with a very clean finish. Not too big or sweet, very smooth. The first red on the list was the 09 Leopoldina Cab Franc. Not many places do a Cab Franc anymore so it is fun when you find a place that does. This was not as big as a lot of the Cab Franc’s I have had, but very smooth and drinkable. Next we tasted the 09 Fortuna Cabernet. This wine had a lot of classic cab flavor, but no finish. I am not saying this as a bad thing, it just was there and then gone, no lingering flavors, no real back end. Tasting the 09 Amoenus Cab we got in to a little disagreement. I thought the bouquet was inky, and the flavor was also on the inky side. Again, not a bad thing, I actually like this characteristic in some wines. Those that I was with did not think that “inky” could be used to describe a wine other than the color. The girls in the shop actually did a google search on the subject but I do not think we came to a final decision. I thought my favorite was the 09 Leopoldina Cab. This wine had a very fruity bouquet and the flavor was very well balanced dark fruit and tannins, not heavy on either end, and a very clean finish. Of course it could not be this simple because then they let us taste the 09 Black Label Cab blend that was not on the list. This was also a great wine. Very smooth, again well balanced with dark fruit, cherry, light on the tannins, with a dark chocolate finish. I could not decide which I liked better, so we got a bottle of each.

We had so much fun at Turnbull, we ended up being late for our wine pairing

Caymus Winery

appointment at Caymus. We called from the limo to let them know we would be late, but they made it clear they were not happy with us when we did get there. They almost did not let us back into the area where our tasting was happening, but when they did Jim had no problem making us feel right at home. Overall, no much to say about the whites we had there, but the reds were very good. First was the 09 Zinfandel. California zins can tend to be on the sweet, jamy side, but this had all the flavor without the sweet. It was also very clean on the back end, also not typical of many zins. The 11 Belle Glos Pinot Noir from the Santa Lucia Highlands came next. This area is making some of the best Pinot’s in California. This one did not disappoint with all the classic rich, dark, smoky flavors you would expect in a pinot from the Highlands. Painful as it was, I could not get out of there without purchasing the 2010 Special Selection Cabernet. A very smooth, well balanced cab, big enough to hold up to anything you might pair with it, but also smooth and complex enough to be enjoyed all by itself.
A day of wine tasting in a limo would not be complete without a stop at Opus One. Definitely not on the list of every day drinking wines, but a place you have to go at least once for the experience. Here you do not taste, they only have a couple wines they serve, but you purchase a glass and enjoy it walking around the amazing grounds or upstairs taking in the views. All of their wines are Cab blends. Troya and I shared a pouring from the 06 and 09 vintage. What can you say about Opus One that has not been said already. The wines here are some of the smoothest you will ever have. The blending is a science and it is hard to pick out one specific flavor. Typical for high end wines, the older of the two, the 06, was a bit smoother and more complex. These are not wines that I would want to pair with food because they are so enjoyable to drink on their own that I would not want to mask anything or take away any of the flavor. They are also expensive enough that you would want to relish every drop.
For dinner that night we went to Morimoto in downtown Napa. This is a very cool, modern sushi place. After a day full of wine tasting, I cannot be too descriptive, but everything we had was excellent. They have several interesting cocktails, many with flavor combinations that I am not familiar with. Several smelled like a spa, but they all tasted good. Things that stood out was the crab appetizer, it came with a light red sauce on top that had just a hint of spice. Very, very good. We also got the chiefs choice sushi platter. This was also very good. The fish was very fresh and all the rolls had unique flavors and were all well done. The deserts we had did not impress me, but this is a place I will definitely return to.
One last mention. On the ride home that evening we asked our driver where we should go for breakfast. It just happened that we were passing the Model Bakery at that point and he said we had to go there, “they have the best English muffins in the world”. We did return for breakfast, and while I am not a connoisseur of English muffins, these were the best I have ever had. Everything we tasted here was amazing, and the breakfast sandwiches will be a regular for us whenever we return to Napa.

Napa Valley

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Fantastic 4 embarked on our first tour of the New Year. For this tour we brought along two good friends, who are also wine enthusiast. Our first stop was Patz and Hall where Tony and Al are members.  Amanda, at Patz and Hall, had set up a wine and cheese pairing for us. She poured their 2010 Hyde Vineyard- Carneros Chardonnay, 2010 Zio Tony Ranch- Russian River Valley Chardonnay, 2010 Hyde Vineyard-Carneros Pinot Noir, 2010 Chenoweth Ranch- Russian River Valley Pinot Noir, 2010 Burnside Vineyard- Russian River Valley Pinot Noir.

The wines were paired with cheeses from Oxbow Cheese and Wine Merchants. Miller Farms provided Truffle Salt Nut (insane), and Napa Cookie Company made the White Wine Snaps.

My favorite Chardonnay was the 2010 Hyde Vineyard. I thought it was well balanced, floral, a little buttery, a little oaky. My over all favorite was the 2010 Chenoweth Ranch. That seemed to be the consensus. When you put your nose in that glass, your mouth starts to water. That was just a glimpse of what was to come. It was a mouth full of Pinot goodness. Once we paired it with cheese, a whole new level of flavors and complexity was revealed. The Chenoweth retails for $58, $46 for club members. Same as the Hyde Chardonnay. If you see any Patz and Hall Pinots on a wine list, you can’t go wrong selecting one. We said good-bye to our host and headed to our next tasting. Artesa.

 

The wines we tasted were the 2011 Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley, 2010 Estate Reserve Chardonnnay, Carneros, 2009 Estate Reserve Pinot Noir, Carneros, 2010 Artisan Series Tempranillo, Alexander Valley and the Rive Gauch. All the wines were as

Fountain at Artesa

advertised by the tasting notes. I thought the 2010 Tempranillo was the most interesting of the tasting. It is a complicated wine that you can spend hours talking about the different notes that cross at different points on the palate. Most of Artesa’s wines are reasonablely priced but, I thought the Tempranillo priced at $40 was a little expensive. Next stop Caymus.

 

Tasting at Caymus

We were treated to another wine and cheese pairing. Jim, our host, was knowledgeable and engaging. This was my first visit to Caymus but it won’t be my last. Caymus had the best value wine of our trip. Their 2009 Napa Valley Zinfandel is priced at $32. This was one of the best Zins that I have ever tasted and I would have easily spent twice that much for a bottle. Their 2010 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is great out of the bottle on its own. The best deal of the trip was also a Caymus wine. Their 2011 Meiomi Pinot Noir sells for $22.00. Buy a case and thank me later. Next Stop, Turnbull.

Turnbull was fun. Samantha, Abby and Monica were great. They were friendly and knowledgeable and they poured some nice wines. My favorite was the viognier. Final stop. Opus One.

 

Opus One

Opus One produces one vintage per year. They sell for $225 a bottle. Opus One offers a tasting of that vintage at $40 per glass. Tastings are done by appointments. Hey, I’m just a simple country boy. I don’t want to spend $40 on a bottle let alone just for one glass. The wine was good but I wasn’t motivated to drop 225 bucks. It was a Napa Valley experience that I got to share with good friends.

Let us know what your favorite wineries are and tell us what you think of the wineries we have visited. Until next time.

Napa Valley Day out…..

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We are in the road heading home after a great day and evening out in Napa…..
Started out with a cheese and wine pairing at Patz and Hall. Imagine a beautifully decorated salon with 5 glasses filled with delicious wine and a plate of tasty cheeses in front of you. Doc and I have done this a few times with our good friends who are members. Always a great start to a wine filled day. They have excellent pinots that are unique and can be drunk alone but even better paired. My favorite of this trip was the 2010 Chenoweth Pinot. Beautiful rich red color with tons of flavor.
Next up Artesa winery. I was not impressed especially for the prices. They had a sparkling that was good but worth half the price of what they were charging.
Caymus winery where we had an appointment was good but started out bad. First we were a few minutes late to our appointment, which we called to inform them we would be 5 or so minutes late. When we got there we were told to walk over to this one area where they would take us into the sit down tasting. While we were waiting we were greeted with a snobbish attitude of one of the women who worked there. She was pretty rude telling us that it had already started and we should just go to the regular pouring area. Then someone else came over and let us in to a freezing dark barrel room with a table that was set up. Three people were there getting started on their first glass of wine. Their saving grace was the host Jim. He was great with lots of personality and funny. He was knowledgeable and had a some good stories. My favorite was their pinot 2011 Belle Glos and 09 zin. We also bought their blend which was not open to taste but at 22 bucks a bottle and the way Jim described it we couldn’t pass it up. When we got back to the hotel later that day we tried it…..my regret is not buying more!
If it wasn’t for Jim I would have left without a purchase of anything no matter how great it was based on the way we were treated when we arrived. Jim saved the experience and now has brought in new fans of their wine.
Turnbull was next on the agenda…..a specific request of myself because the last time I had gone to Napa I loved it. Their private tasting room was not open due to the heater not working so we headed over to the regular tasting room. We were greeted by warm friendly girls who were great! Samantha, Abby and Monica. From what I remember at my last visit were some amazing reds. However, my favorite out of the tasting was their 2011 Oakville Viognier. Light, crisp with the apricot flavor that I enjoy so much when tasting a Viognier.
We had a few extra minutes left before having our car return us to our hotel so we made our way to Opus. I know I know Opus……freaking expensive right? Well it was. It’s such a beautiful place to visit and such an experience that is definitely worth trying once. To be honest it was a little late in our wine filled day to really discuss what we tasted. They were both red wines that were ok but not knock your socks off…..and if you are paying 45 dollars per tasting I expect some knock my socks off kinda action. No doubt they make some pretty amazing wines but it’s definitely not in our wine budget to become fans of their wine. Like I said a must stop for the experience.
Later we went to Morimoto for dinner. A great unique experience with some very tasty dishes. I don’t suggest the drinks…..mine tasted like a floral soap with jalapeño. Stick with saki or wine there.
After we were going to walk back but it became clear very fast it was way to cold to do that so we ducked into a bar to call for a ride. Fish Story was the name. The bartender was rude but she made some pretty good drinks.
We stayed at the Westin a good safe bet. It’s nice, clean with comfy beds. They have a very nice bar/lounge area.
The next morning we all met up for breakfast at Model Bakery a recommendation from the guy who drove us back to the hotel. All I can say is “wow”. If you are a bread person like I am this is heaven! Fresh made bread, pastries, cake. Their English muffins are amazing.
A few key points. Patz and Hall a must…great wine amazing presentation, Artesa a must skip, Caymus great wine poor customer service unless you get to deal with Jim, Opus if you want to spurge check it out. Morimoto if you enjoy sushi and delicate interesting food. Fish Story if you don’t mind rude zero personality bartenders but excellent drinks. Finally for amazing bread pastries and breakfast sandwiches Model Bakery is an absolute must!