{"id":1972,"date":"2017-01-17T06:39:06","date_gmt":"2017-01-17T14:39:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/?p=1972"},"modified":"2017-01-17T06:39:06","modified_gmt":"2017-01-17T14:39:06","slug":"silverado-trail-challenge-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/2017\/01\/silverado-trail-challenge-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"Silverado Trail Challenge 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last year I had high hopes of visiting half of the wineries \u00a0on the Silverado Trail in Napa Valley. \u00a0Unfortunately, that lofty \u00a0goal was not realized….not even close. But, 2017 is a new year and an early start. The rest of the our group had prior plans and could not start the wine adventure just yet. \u00a0I am sure they will join me on the next excursion. So, I grabbed a couple of friends that never say no, we all need friends like that. And we headed up to Napa Valley. \u00a0Our first stop was Judd’s Hill<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Judd"s<\/a>

Judd”s Hill<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Judd's<\/a>

Judd’s Hill<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Judd’s Hill is by appointment only so, call ahead. \u00a0We didn’t know that when we arrived. \u00a0We were met by a staff member who politely told us they were by appointment and they did not have an opening until 3 pm. \u00a0A current release tasting is $25 and a Reserve tasting is $45. \u00a0 It was 1 pm when we arrived. \u00a0He then offered to pour for us on the patio. \u00a0Fortunately for us, there was a break in the weather and it was a beautiful day. \u00a0A little chilly but beautiful non the less. \u00a0We accepted his kind offer and sat down by an outdoor heater. \u00a0His polite kindness and the quality of their wine would earn them a new wine club member. \u00a0The first wine he poured was their 2013 \u00a0Reserve Chardonnay<\/strong>. \u00a0I have to admit that I am not a big Chardonnay fan but this one was exceptional. \u00a0It was fruit forward and not buttery. \u00a0It had aromas of citrus and pear, and was lightly oaken. \u00a0At $50 it is an expensive Chardonnay. \u00a0The price point reflexes how unique this Chardonnay is. \u00a0The next one was their 2009 Meritage<\/strong>. \u00a0The Meritage is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cab Franc, Petite Verdot. \u00a0Black cherry jam notes on the front, light oak, and a hint of vanilla on the finish. \u00a0Also $50. \u00a0 2012 Syrah<\/strong>. \u00a0Well balanced acids and tannin’s with notes of Blackberry, jam and tobacco. $42.<\/p>\n

We were treated to an additional tasting of their 2013 ZSM. <\/strong>\u00a0If you like a well balanced, complex and layered wine, with dark berry fruit, \u00a0and balanced tannins, You will love this one. \u00a0It had to come home with me. \u00a0$40. \u00a0 2011 Founder’s Art Reserve Cabernet. \u00a0<\/strong>I found it to be a complex and full bodied wines. \u00a0Well balanced with notes of dark berry fruit. \u00a0$85. \u00a0I have to admit, I enjoyed every wine we tasted. \u00a0Which is very unusual and a credit to the quality of wine being made at Judd’s Hill. \u00a0The price points are in the range of \u00a0wines in Napa Valley. \u00a0These wines are exceptional and I look forward to another tasting flight.<\/p>\n

\"Regusci<\/a>

Regusci Winery<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Next up, Regusci Winery<\/strong>. \u00a0Well, you would have thought we would have learned from our experience at Judd’s Hill, to call ahead. \u00a0Regusci Winery is also by appointment. \u00a0Lucky for us, they were also gracious enough to accommodate us. \u00a0The tasting room has a great vib and it was an enjoyable experience tasting there. \u00a0The first wine on the list was the 2013 Merlot. \u00a0<\/strong>Black berrry and black cherry on the tongue with notes of tobacco and chocolate. \u00a0Full bodied and well balanced. $55. \u00a02013 Syrah<\/strong>. \u00a0Full bodied, well-balanced with black berry fruit and smooth finish. \u00a0$60. \u00a0The Elder’s 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon. <\/strong>\u00a0Full body,\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Black berry fruit with notes of vanilla, typical tannin structure and spice on the finish. $65. \u00a02013 Patriarch<\/strong>. The Patriarch is a Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. \u00a0I experienced aromas of red fruit, charred oak, smoke and coffee. \u00a0On the palate you may experience red fruit, leather and vanilla. $90. \u00a0Angelo’s \u00a02012 Cabernet Sauvignon<\/strong>. \u00a0This is a big full-bodied Cab with bold dark fruit and tannin’s. \u00a0$140. \u00a0The wines were enjoyable but, the price points were a little more than what I would feel comfortable paying.<\/p>\n

\"Regusci<\/a>

Regusci Winery<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

All in all, not a bad start for 2017. \u00a0Stay tuned for the next stop on the trail.<\/p>\n

Salute<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last year I had high hopes of visiting half of the wineries \u00a0on the Silverado Trail in Napa Valley. \u00a0Unfortunately, that lofty \u00a0goal was not realized….not even close. But, 2017 is a new year and an early start. The rest … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,13,112,21,20,6],"tags":[460,456,461,411,462],"class_list":["post-1972","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blogs","category-braxs-blogs","category-food-and-wine","category-napa-valley","category-wine-regions","category-wineries-toursvisits","tag-judds-hill","tag-napa-valley","tag-regusci-winery","tag-silverado-trail","tag-zsm"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1972","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1972"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1972\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1977,"href":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1972\/revisions\/1977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1972"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1972"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/fantastetic4.com\/Wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1972"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}