The California Trip, Part 3

Slowly but surely, I'm making my way through the trip recap. Wednesday was our departure from Sonoma and across to Napa Valley. Coming across into Calistoga, we began the day in the north end of the valley at Chateau Montelena. This was a different stop than most of those on the trip, but we all had seen the movie "Bottle Shock" and wanted to at least see the famous winery.

We began with a pair of whites, the 2009 Riesling and the 2008 Estate Chardonnay. We then followed with the 2008 Estate Zinfandel before a pair of Cabs, the 2006 Cabernet and the 2007 Estate Cabernet. Not surprisingly, the 2007 Estate Cab was the best among the reds. We then finished with a bit of a treat, thanks to the popularity of "Bottle Shock" - one day a week they open an older vintage Chardonnay in the tasting room, and we were there on the appointed day to taste the 1986 Alexander Valley Chardonnay, which was still quite nice.

From Montelena we then went just back up the road toward the Sonoma County line to visit Storybook Mountain Vineyards. Loudoun and Ashley had visited before and promised an interesting visit, and they were right. A smaller family-run operation, Storybook is known for its Zinfandels, but they are now producing a limited amount of other wines. The vineyards are quite picturesque along steep hillsides, and their caves are over a century old, dug straight into the mountainside. We had a great tour, and the tasted four wines in the caves. First up was the 2008 Mayacamas Range Zinfandel, followed by the 2007 Antaeus blend. We then had two Seps Estate label wines, which are the non-Zinfandel wines. First was the 2007 Seps Estate Cabernet, and it was followed by the 2009 Viognier. The wines were solid, but the overall visit was definitely one of my favorites of the week.

After a great lunch stop at the famed Gott's Roadside (formerly Taylor's Refresher), our afternoon appointment was at Failla, the home winery of Turley winemaker Ehren Jordan. My friend Larry had set up this visit for us, and promised that their wines would impress. I was not disappointed, as these were definitely some great wines, very different from the Turleys, but great in their own way. Though located in Napa, Failla's wines are all from Sonoma, so it was back cooler climate wines like many from the previous days. After starting with the 2010 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay, we moved on to the Pinots, Failla's specialty. We had the 2009 Whistler Pinot Noir, the 2009 Hirsch Pinot Noir, the 2008 Occidental Ridge Pinot Noir, and the 2009 Occidental Ridge Pinot Noir. All were excellent in their own way, but to me the 2008 Occidental Ridge stood out. Finally, we finished with the 2009 Syrah before taking a quick tour of the facilities, including their cave. It was another enjoyable visit, and great exposure to a winery I was not familiar with prior to this trip.

As we headed south toward the city of Napa and our hotel, we decided to make one final stop for the day at the sparkling wine house of Mumm. Here we each got to choose a 3 wine flight, and I had the 2006 Blanc des blancs, the 2006 Brut Reserve, and the NV Santana Brut. We sat in the tasting lounge overlooking the vineyards, and enjoyed some cheeses as we concluded our third day of tasting.

From there it was off to the hotel to regroup and prepare for dinner at Mustard's Grill in Yountville. Mustard's lived up to all the recommendations I had received, as my dinner of roast duck was amazing (and huge). Also great was the wine, a 2009 Outpost Grenache. Of course, Outpost was to be our first destination Thursday, so it was a great preview of what was to come next.

The California Trip, Part 2

Our second day in Wine Country brought us trips to three wineries south of Healdsburg, and one final trip up into the Dry Creek Valley.

We began the day at Hartford, which had been highly recommended by a friend here in Atlanta. We were not disappointed at all, as we had a fantastic tasting. We did not have an appointment, but by going early in the morning were able to get plenty of attention in the tasting room, which made the visit even better. Our tasting began with a pair of whites, the 2009 Four Hearts Chardonnay and the 2009 Fog Dance Chardonnay. Both were good, with the Fog Dance being one of the more impressive California Chardonnays I have tasted. We then moved on to the reds, with a trio of Pinot. First up was the 2009 Lands Edge Pinot Noir, followed by the 2009 Velvet Sisters Pinot Noir Mendocino, and finally the 2008 Arendell Pinot Noir. Moving up in intensity, we tasted the 2009 Russian River Zinfandel and the 2009 Highwire Zinfandel, followed by the 2007 Outer Limits Syrah, before completing the tasting with the 2009 Port. Overall, it was tough to find a disappointing wine in the entire lineup. Every wine was impressive in some way, and I don't think any other visit surpassed this one in quality throughout the entire lineup. It's definitely a visit I will recommend to others, and I will also be a buyer of their wines.

Our next visit was at Copain, where we were supposed to have a picnic lunch tasting. However, there had been a mixup and we were not able to have the picnic lunch, though still a very good tasting. Once again, we started with a white, the 2009 James Berry Roussanne. We followed with three Pinots again, the 2009 Les Voisins Anderson Valley, the 2009 Wentzel Pinot Noir, and the 2009 Monument Pinot Noir. We followed with a pair of Syrahs, the 2009 Les Voisins Yorkville Syrah and the 2007 Eaglepoint Ranch Syrah, before then having a Rhone blend, the 2007 Les Copains James Berry. We then finished off the tasting with another white, the 2009 Tous Ensemble Viogner. Overall, it was a pretty good tasting, but not quite as impressive as I had hoped from Copain. Certainly the mixup played a part, but the wines, while solid, didn't wow me quite like many others we had on the trip.

After a nice casual lunch at Willow Wood Cafe in Graton (recommended by the folks at Copain) we continued on to Martinelli. We were lucky enough again to have a fairly empty tasting room (we hadn't made an appointment here either) and a diverse lineup of wines. Once again, we led off with some whites, the 2007 Charles Ranch Chardonnay and the 2008 Zio Tony Ranch Chardonnay. Once again, a trio of Pinots followed, with the 2009 Bella Vigna Pinot Noir, the 2008 Moonshine Ranch Pinot Noir, and the 2008 Lolita Ranch Pinot Noir. We then moved on to the 2007 Red Barn Red, a Rhone-style blend, and the 2006 Zio Tony Ranch Syrah before going on to the Zins. We tasted a pair, the 2008 Vigneto di Evo Zinfandel and the 2009 Vellutini Ranch Zinfandel, before finishing with a dessert wine, the 2009 Jackass Hill Muscat. Overall, the Martinelli wines were much as expected, bigger in style than most others we'd have, but still showing that they are well made with good fruit. I think my palate is moving in a different direction, but I still enjoyed the visit and the wines.

We had finished our planned stops for the day at this point, but it was just mid-afternoon so we decided to find another stop. Heading back north, we decided to venture out Dry Creek Rd again, all the way to the end of the valley by the Lake Sonoma Dam, where Sbragia Winery is located. Sbragia offers some of the best views in Sonoma, and also some really good wine. We were able to pick and choose our selections for tasting, so I was able to have two Zinfandels and two Cabs. First I tried the 2008 Gino's Vineyard Zinfandel and the 2008 La Promessa Zinfandel. Both were good, but we preferred the Gino's and actually bought a bottle to enjoy out on the terrace after finishing the tasting. For the Cabs, I decided to try Sbragia's two 2007 efforts from Howell Mountain, the 2007 Rancho del Oso Cabernet and the 2007 Cimarossa Cabernet. Both were excellent examples of the good work being done on Howell Mountain (which we would visit Thursday), but I had a slight preference for the Rancho del Oso when tasting side by side. Overall, this was another impressive tasting from a producer I had read about but not tried before. I will definitely be on the lookout for the Sbragia wines in the future.

Tuesday night in Healdsburg we went for a much more casual dinner at Willy's Seafood and Raw Bar, with a great lineup of tapas. After dinner, we ventured to Spoonbar at the H2 Hotel for cocktails. The bartender there Scott Beattie is well-known for his mixes, and though he wasn't behind the bar the evening, I still enjoyed a very interesting take on a Negroni, using a Gran Classico bitter and Orange Zest instead of Campari. It was a nice conclusion to our two days in Healdsburg before heading to Napa on Wednesday.

The last summer Friday at Bin 75

The weekend before I went to California was my last Friday night tasting at Bin 75 for the summer (when I have a chance to get home for a while before heading out to taste). It was another solid night, with a highlight for me coming late in the tasting. Our first wine of the night was a solid start, the 2004 Gouges Nuits St Georges Clos des Porrets. The table was actually divided as to whether it was a Burgundy or a Chateauneuf du Pape, and I sided with the CdP group. Overall, it was a very good wine form a producer I've come to admire, though not quite the level of the best I've had from him.

Our next wine was very much the opposite of the spectrum, the 2004 Altamura Cabernet. Most of us were actually stumped, thinking this California Can was actually and Australian Shiraz. It was still oaky with jammy fruit that was almost too much, especially coming after an elegant Burgundy.

The next spot was actually not a bad time for my wine to come up, as it was the 2001 Brigaldara Amarone. The wine was quite nice, very much what I expected, and typical of a good aged Amarone. Not surprisingly, most everyone was able to figure out what it was. That was followed by the 2006 Il Poggione Brunello, which is very young but already showing typical Brunello character and some real elegance for its youthful age. Most everyone was able to identify it as Brunello, as did I, though I thought it was a 2004.

Next up was the 2004 Sabon Prestige Chateauneuf du Pape, which seemed to just be emerging from the dormancy most CdP's go through after a few years. I actually guessed it to be a 2006. Our next wine was a CdP as well, but fooled everyone into thinking it was a Burgundy (especially after the Gouges earlier). Instead, it was the 1996 Beaucastel, which was drinking incredibly well. I've had several bottles of the 1996 Pignan, which has also been very Burgundian in character, and this wine reminded me a lot of that one.

Our CdP run continued with the 2005 Raymond Usseglio Chateauneuf du Pape. I eventually identified it as a CdP, and in fact this was the bottling I thought the Sabon was. It is still a young wine, with a lot of acidity that makes me believe in another few years it will really be better.

After several French wines, it was only natural that we went back to Italy, starting with the 1998 Antinori Guado al Tasso. I actually thought this might be a Barolo as I got some sandalwood, though most everyone else thought it was a Supertuscan (though no one was close on the age). The next wine was a Barolo, the 2003 Schiavenza Perno. I actually thought it was a 98 Barolo, so for a 2003, it wasn't bad.

Our next wine was quite controversial, the 2006 Ricasoli Casalferro, a Supertuscan Sangiovese-Merlot blend. I thought there was something wrong with the wine, but others disagreed. I stood by my opinion and feel it's unfair to give a real report on it. Thankfully, we followed that with another Nebbiolo, this time the 2006 Batasiolo Barolo. Most everyone was able to figure out it was a young Barolo, though in truth it was really too young to be drinking.

With the regular lineup complete, a couple of the group went next door to grab a few more wines to finish. We stayed in Italy, and the next one was a wine I knew soon after tasting. It was the 2000 Quintarelli Valpolicella, and I made that exact call. Having had the wine several times during this year's Vinitaly trip, I easily identified the style and elegance of the wine. We followed that with the 2004 San Felice Poggio Rosso Chianti Classico. I actually thought this was another 06 Brunello, as this wine was pretty big and young, though obviously Sangiovese.

Overall it was a good night, and would hold me over for several weeks before I could make my return to the Friday night group.