Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Judd's Hill Winery

Judd's Hill Winery is a small, very friendly, informal, down home, family winery that has a very good wine educator who exudes enthusiasm.  They also have some good, affordable wines and an interesting microcrush program. It was fun to visit, and I'm glad we did.

Judd's Hill is on Silverado Trail, just outside Napa.  For those of you who would like to make your own wine under your own label, they have a microcrush program.  There were numerous microcrush winery bottles along the wall in the tasting room.  Judd's Hill only makes 3,000 cases a year of their own wine.  An appointment is needed to taste, but you can probably obtain an appointment fairly quickly if you just call them from your cell phone as we did.  Of course, during weekends or the summer months, this will be more difficult so an advance reservation will probably be advisable. 

Mike M. was our tasting room host and was very helpful, enthusiastic and informative. He really made us feel welcome.  Judd's Hill is fortunate to have a wine educator of his caliber.  Tastings are only $10 and are waived with a $45 per person purchase.  We tasted the Judd's Hill 2010 Sauvignon Blanc ($24), the Judd's Hill 2008 Estate Pinot Noir ($34), the Judd's Hill 2010 Burke's BBQ Zinfandel ($30) and the Judd's Hill 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon ($45).  The Sauvignon Blanc had a light nose, with more melon than the usual grapefruit on the palate.  It seemed rounder and less dry than some Napa Valley Sauvignon Blancs. The Pinot Noir is made from the Dijon clone that gives more forward fruit and the Pommard clone that gives some earthiness, more in the classic French Burgundy style.  It is available only at the winery.  The Zinfandel was developed to compliment BBQs.  It saw ten months on French oak and has 8% Merlot and 2% Cab Franc blended in with it. It had some cherry on the nose and was, indeed, the perfect wine for a bbq.

I didn't ask how to be invited to one of Burke's BBQs, but we heard they are fantastic.  We drank a bottle of the Zinfandel later and it was good.  I only wish we had pared it with some BBQ.  My favorite of the flight was the Judd's Hill 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon.  If you are a club member you can get a bottle for only $33.75 which is a bargain.  You can also be invited to various special events such as the upcoming Hanukkah Hootenanny which sound like a lot of fun. ("Come sip current vintages and library wines, enjoy our extravagant and enhanced latke bar, satisfy your sweet tooth with traditional jelly donuts and thrill to the sounds of Meshugga Beach Party, the greatest Jewish instrumental surf-rock band in the land!")  If you want to try a fun, unpretentious winery, with very reasonably priced wines visit Judd's.

Judd's Hill Winery
2332 Silverado Trail
Napa, CA 94558
(707) 255-2332
Date of visit: 11/30/2011

Black Stallion Winery

Black Stallion Winery is one of the newer wineries in Napa Valley, opening in 2007. It is just north of the town of  Napa on Silverado Trail. At the time of our visit they were open to the public, without an appointment, from 10 AM to 5 PM and offered five different tasting options from $10 to $20.  The tasting fee was waived if you purchase three bottles of wine. There was a 10% discount for a six bottle purchase and a 15% discount for a  twelve bottle purchase. They have a wine club that offers discounts.  Individual wines retailed from $22 to $150, with most of them in the $20 to $30 range, making them very reasonable by Napa Valley standards.

The first release of Black Stallion wines was in 2002 prior to their owning a physical winery.  Their first tasting room opened in 2007 at a 32 acre estate in the Oak Knoll District at what was up until 1990 an equestrian center known as the Silverado Horsemen's Center.  Their reserve wine is named Bucephalus in honor of the black horse Alexander the Great rode.  In 2010 Black Stallion was purchased by the Indelicato family, a family that had been in the wine industry for over 85 years.  Current production is around 4,000 cases per year and comes from grapes sourced from other vineyards, mostly from Napa Valley.  All of their wines are sold at the winery or online.  

Tasting options ranged from the Sampler Tasting at only $10 to the reserve Bucephalus Tasting at $20. They also offered a Just Red Tasting for $15, an All White Tasting for $12 and a Mixed Tasting for $12.  We opted to taste the "Just Red Tasting" .  It included the Black Stallion 2008 Merlot ($38), Black Stallion 2009 Syrah ($38), Black Stallion 2009 BSEW Cabernet Sauvignon ($25) and Black Stallion 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon (regularly $65, on sale for $50).  Our favorite was the 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon.  It was 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc and 4% Merlot. It began with a nice blackberry aroma.  On the palate I got blackberry and chocolate with  with soft tannins, good balance and a medium plus length finish.  Although we didn't try them, we were curious about their premium Bucephalus wines which sell for $150.  For $20, you may taste the 2005, 2006 and 2007 Bucephalus flight. 

The tasting room is quite pleasant, with the winery itself being in a lovely setting.  Service was good. This is a winery that will be interesting to watch as they grow and develop, although it is certainly worth visiting now, especially given their very reasonable prices.

Black Stallion Winery
4089 Silverado Trl
Napa, CA 94558
(888) 279-6272
Date of visit: November 30, 2011

Cuvaison Estate Wines

Please see our updated 2013 review here: Cuvaison Estate Wines Revisited

Cuvaison Estate Wines provided us with a wonderful experience, thanks to their very good, well balanced wines, a beautiful setting and to our extremely friendly, courteous and knowledgeable wine educator, Patty.

Although I've heard of Cuvaison since the early 1970s when I first began doing comparative wine tastings, this was the first time I visited the winery; it certainly won't be the last.  With wines this good, hospitality this stellar and a lovely setting and view, Cuvaison is a place I now plan to take relatives and friends when they visit us here in Napa.

Cuvaison provides two different flights, one at $15 and another at $20, both for four wines.  It appears from other reviews that they often provide one or a few additional complimentary tastings.  This probably depends on how busy they are and how enthusiastic the tasters are.  Cuvaison also has a winery with many of the same wines up in Calistoga.  At the Carneros one, though, they have a lovely view of vineyards through huge glass windows or from their patio and they serve the wine to you at tables.  You don't have to edge your way in to a bar and stand.  It might have helped that we went on a Wednesday morning during off-season and were the only ones there. Any winery can get really busy and swamped with customers.  But this is the same time we visit wineries every week and the service from Patty was really exceptional. She even went out into the vineyard and brought in a bunch of Pinot Noir grapes on a large leaf for us to examine or taste while we were drinking the Pinot Noir.  It just doesn't get better than that.

All of the wines at Cuvaison were exceptionally well-balanced and multi-layered, even by the best of Napa Valley standards.  Here is a sampling of my notes:  Cuvaison 2010 Carneros Chardonnay ($23): 9.5 months in French oak with 60% malolactic conversion.  Nice nose with apple and lime on the palate.  Dry with some minerality, extremely well balanced with a long finish.  I usually prefer Chards without MLF, but this one was not overdone.  In comparison, the Cuvaison 2009 S Block Chardonnay ($38) was 100% MLF, with 12.5 months on French oak.  The aroma to me was a little lighter and the oak and butter were more pronounced.  It had some nectarine and vanilla on the palate.  I prefer little or no MLF or oak and a drier, flinty, mineral presentation such as that found in good white Burgundies.  But if you like more of a round and buttery taste, you might really like this Chard.  Again, it is very well-balanced.  Their Cuvaison 2009 Carneros Pinot Noir ($35) is in the lighter style, a style I usually do not like all that much.  But this one is so well balanced that I liked it.  I got some cherry aroma with a soft but balanced light raspberry palate and a long finish.  For this style of PN, it is very well done.  The Cuvaison 2009 Carneros Syrah ($35) had some blueberry on the nose with nice but soft tannins and some jammy fruit.  Although it has ample fruit, it is not one of those Syrah "fruit bombs."  The Cuvaison 2008 Mount Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon, at $45, was very good, and another "must buy."  It is 76% Cab, 11% Malbec and 13% of Merlot, Cab Franc and Petite Verdot.  It is quite good for the price.

We were also fortunate enough to be able to taste three wines that are usually not available for tasting and are sold only to wine club members.  After tasting them, we both wanted to join the wine club. The Cuvaison 2008 Two Estate ($54) comes with a gorgeous custom wine label of stained glass.  I got a raspberry aroma, with a palate that was very smooth and balanced with good acid and tannin.  This one has more Merlot than Cab (64% & 39%) with 6% Malbec.  Even better, though, was the Cuvaison 2008 Brandlin Cabernet Sauvignon ($90 but on sale for $78 to club members).  This was a very lovely Cab (88%) that had a little Malbec (6%), Cab Franc (4%) and Petite Verdot (2%).  This was brighter on the palate and perfectly drinkable now, although it should get even better with some age.  One of the best of their wines, and a tremendous value, is the Cuvaison 2009 Diablo Syrah. This is dry farmed and available only to club members.  It lists at $35 but sells to members at $28 and is one of the best California Syrahs I've tasted.  With some cherry on the nose and very good tannin, fruit and acid balance, this is not overly jammy like some Syrahs.  Both of us really liked it a lot.

Cuvaison is a winery you must visit!  The service was fantastic and the setting really lovely. Every wine we tasted was a winner, although some stood out more than others did.   This makes it a winery that is very high on the list for club membership by which you may have access to exclusive wines, discounts on all wine, invitations to special events and complimentary tastings for you and your guests.  We both plan to return soon.

Cuvaison Estate Wines
1221 Duhig Rd
Napa, CA 94581
(707) 942-2455
Visited 12/1/2011

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Bennett Lane Winery

Bennett Lane Winery is well known for their Maximus wine, a Cabernet Sauvignon blend, and after tasting it, it is easy to see why. It is an excellent wine at an amazingly reasonable price.  Bennett Lane Winery is about 2.5 miles north of Calistoga and is one of the northernmost wineries in Napa Valley, but well worth the trip.  Their entrance is right on Highway 29 so they are easy to find, but traffic, crowds and parking are usually not an issue.



Bennett Lane Winery was founded by Randy and Lisa Lynch who in 2006 purchased Vigil Vineyards Winery which is not Bennett Lane Winery.  They own 14 acres across from Chateau Montelena in addition to the estate vineyard at the winery.  The Lynch's are NASCAR racing fans and own several racing cars. 




The tasting fee at the time of our visit was $15.  Our tasting started off with the Bennett Lane 2008 Reserve Chardonnay which is sold for $45.  It had 35% malolactic conversion with seven months on French Oak.  6000 cases were produced. I got mostly apple on the nose with mostly apple and pear on the palate.  It was pleasant if not memorable. Next was the very nice Bennett Lane 2006 Maximus. It won double gold at the SF Chronicle Wine Competition and is 64% Cab, 19% Merlot, 9% Syrah, 5% Malbec and 3% Petite Verdot. Purple in color with cherry and chocolate on the nose this was a full bodied, fruit forward Cabernet blend that was easy to drink but still interesting with a very long finish.  I got mostly ripe cherry and mocha on the palate, very round, soft. At $35 a bottle it is a bargain. They had a special sale on it for wine club members at only $24.50, which is in incredible deal.  Next was the Bennett Lane 2005 Merlot, at $47, which we both liked.  This was well balanced, with cherry, soft tannins and a nice, medium plus length finish. Even better was the Bennett Lane 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon that was given 94 points by Robert Whitley.  This had a good aroma with a palate of cherry with soft, well integrated tannins and some vanilla.  It was full bodied but very smooth with a good finish.  This is well worth the $55.  We also tasted the well-balanced Bennett Lane 2006 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon at $95 which both of us liked.  Although we enjoyed each pour, the Maximus stood out as a fantastic deal. 



If you like red wines, especially Cabs and Cab blends, you really should visit Bennett Lane Winery.  They have a number of good wineries up that way and some good places for lunch in Calistoga. Wine prices at Calistoga wineries seem less than most other areas of Napa Valley for comparable wines, and there seem to be fewer tourists.  Much thanks to Dave, our host, who was very pleasant and informative.



Bennett Lane Winery
3340 State Highway 128
Calistoga, CA 94515
(707) 942-6684
Visited 11/23/2011





Summers Estate Wines

Please see our updated 2014 review here: Summers Estate Wines Revisited

Summers Estate Wines in Calistoga is a delightful, friendly winery to visit and we highly recommend it! Be sure to try the Charbono and the 2007 Diamond Mountain Cab. Summers Estate Wines has one of the friendliest, most helpful and informative wine educators in the Valley, named Graham.  They also have some very good wines, quite reasonably priced for Napa Valley and you may taste six of them for only $10 or have the fee waived with each bottle of wine you purchase.  (They are also in the Napa Neighbor Program.) Since any red wine drinker would want to leave with at least one bottle of the Charbono, that means a free tasting for at least one person.  

We started our tasting off with the very nice Summers 2008 Reserve Chardonnay at $22.  This was aged in French Oak for ten months.  It has no malolactic conversion and was a dry chardonnay with some apple on the palate and a distinct touch of oak.  Summers is famous for their Charbono and we tasted the Summers 2008 Charbono which sells for $28. This is an Italian varietal that is not very common in California. It was plum colored, full bodied, with soft tannins, mostly blackberry with a nice finish. Very nice and an interesting varietal.  We also really liked the Summers 2008 Estate Zinfandel, at $34, with its cherry nose and soft tannins.  This had a nice mouth feel and was not as jammy as some Zinfandels. Although we are both Petite Sirah fans, we tend to like more substance, tannin and pepper than we found in the pleasant, fruity Summers 2007 Petite Sirah.  It was decent, but not in the style I like.  The Summers 2007 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon at $45 was decent enough, well balanced with mostly cherry on the palate.  Much more to my liking, however, was the excellent Summers 2007 Diamond Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon at $70. Dry with very good tannins, it was an interesting, complex mountain wine with blackberry and some minerality.  It should pair well with steak, although I enjoyed it on its own.  Although neither of us are very fond of most sweet wines, we both liked the Summers 2008 Knights Valley Petite Sirah Port Style Wine at $36.  Other visitors to the winery were raving about it. My favorite of all, though, was the 2007 Diamond Mountain Cab.
1171 Tubbs Ln
Calistoga, CA 94515
(707) 942-5508(707) 942-5508
Visited 11/23/2011

Clos Pegase Winery

Clos Pegase Winery near Calistoga makes one of the most appealing Napa Valley Pinot Noirs we have tasted.  It also has an interesting modern art display.

Jan and Mitsuko Shrem purchased Clos Pegase in the Calistoga AVA in 1983.  In 1984 they hosted architectural competition through the San Francisco Museum of Modern art and 96 architects competed to design a "temple to wine."  Michael Graves won the contest and designed the beautiful winery building that was completed in 1987, the same year as their first release. What started out as 50 acres eventually became 450 (286 planted in vineyards) and includes a gorgeously landscaped grounds with a lovely fountain and a Henry Moore sculpture plus 20,000 square feet of wine caves.  Mitsuko passed away in 2010 but Jan Shrem, the founder, continues to be the proprietor.  Richard Sowalsky is their winemaker.




The Clos Pegase 2008 Mitsuko's Vineyard Pinot Noir is from Carneros (of course) and was rated very highly at 90 by Wine Enthusiast, although I'd rate it even higher. With cherry on the nose and some raspberry on the palate, it was perfectly balanced with nice acids, a great mouth feel and good (but not excessive) substance.  This is not one of your overly thin, fruity little Pinot Noirs, one that taste more like Beaujolais nouveau that PN.  This Pinot Noir sells for a mere $35 retail or $28 club price. Compare that price to the best Oregon or Russian River PN or a good red Burgundy.  It is a fabulous wine at that price.



We also recommend the Clos Pegase 2007 Napa Valley Syrah at $29.75 and the Clos Pegase 2008 Dunaweal Vineyard Pegaso Red with 60% Zin and 40% Petite Sirah, a most interesting and unusual blend, at $28.50 plus the very luscious Clos Pegase 2006 Hommage Cabernet Sauvignon that sells for $90 and was rated 92 by the Wine Enthusiast.  All four of the wines we tried were winners, with the Pinot Noir being our favorite. I later opened a bottle of the Pinot and gave my wife (who usually prefers white wine) a glass without telling her how much I liked it and her reaction was, "What is this?  It is really good!"



Clos Pegase Winery has an Estate Tasting for $20 and a Reserve Tasting for $35.  (Check for current prices.) Club Members receive a 20% discount on wine and everyone can get a 10% discount on six bottles or 15% on a case. Our server, Steve, was very professional and informative.  Clos Pegase also has some modern artwork that makes it worthwhile to visit the winery even if you don't do a tasting.  We were pleasantly surprised at how good their wines were for the money, especially the Pinot Noir and highly recommend a visit to Clos Pegase.




If you can't make it there for a visit, you might want to try some of their wines, especially the Pinot Noir.  Be sure to get only the 2008, though, because this appears to be a special year for their PN and it is the only PN of theirs we tasted.  The Wine Enthusiast says of the 2008, "Quite a nice Pinot Noir and in fact the winery's best in a number of years."




Obviously we bought a number of bottles of the Pinot Noir and absolutely loved drinking it.  We also bought some of the Pegaso Red and it tasted even better at home than it did at the winery.  Clos Pegase Winery seems to be underrated by some.  If you can't visit their winery, try the Pinot Noir and consider the Pegaso Red.




Clos Pegase Winery
1060 Dunaweal Ln
Calistoga, CA 94515
(707) 942-4981
Visited: November 23, 2011

Chateau Montelena Winery

Please see our 2014 updated review at Chateau Montelena Winery Revisited

Chateau Montelena Winery is one of the more famous Napa Valley wines, making headlines back in 1976 when nine French judges voted the Chateau Montelena 1973 Chardonnay the best Chardonnay over some very famous white Burgundy and other Chardonnay wines. I bought a case of that 1973 Chardonnay back then, and it really was a wonderful wine.  The tasting at Montelena is $20 and includes five different wines. (They are also in the Napa Neighbor Program.) They make some great wines and the grounds are really beautiful. It is one of the Napa Valley wineries that everyone should visit at least once.


Chateau Montelena building


Our taste was the Chateau Montelena 2010 Riesling ($25) that had a light nose with apricot and apple on the palate. It seemed more in the California style than the German or Alsatian. The Chateau Montelena 2009 Chardonnay ($50) was pleasant with only a little oak and no malolactic conversion. It had some peach on the nose and was somewhat soft and citrus-like on the palate.  The Chateau Montelena 2007 Zinfandel was a decent, rather light Zinfandel with some distinct vanilla notes.  Better yet was the Chateau Montelena 2008 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon at $49.  It had definite cherry and chocolate on the palate that you can't miss and was full bodied but not over powering.  Even better was the Chateau Montelena 2007 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon ($135) that was rated 94 by Robert Parker.  This was a truly wonderful Cabernet and well worth the price. I think many people would really enjoy the 2008 regular cab but might want the 2007 Estate cab for that special occasion. Service was helpful and friendly.


Chateau Montelena pond
 
Chateau Montelena Winery
1429 Tubbs Ln
Calistoga, CA 94515
(707) 942-5105
Date of visit: November 23, 2011 

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Hill Family Estate Winery

Please see our update 2013 review here:  Hill Family Estate Winery Revisited

Hill Family Estate in downtown Yountville is a wonderful, very friendly winery and we highly recommend that you visit them and check out their wine club. The quality of the wines, the comfortable setting, the friendliness and the highly affordable premium wines (that are even more affordable through the wine club) earn a very strong recommendation for visiting Hill Family Estate. 


Their very comfortable tasting room is in downtown Yountville, where they been since 2006.  They have been growing extremely high quality grapes for more than 25 years, still sell grapes to some of the finest Napa Valley wineries, and there is a fair chance that if you have been drinking $100 plus cabs from other Napa Valley wineries, that you have been drinking grapes grown by Hill Family. Since 2002, they have been making some of their own wines.







Our tasting began with the Hill Family 2010 Tiara Sauvignon Blanc ($35) which is made with a special clone that gives it more peach on the palate than the usual grapefruit.  It is somewhat rounder, softer and less citrus like than most SB, but we found it very appealing.  The Hill Family 2009 Carly's Cuvee Chardonnay ($27) was smooth, balanced with a touch of malolactic conversion that complimented the varietal taste instead of overwhelming it.  The 2009 Pinot Noir ($42) from Stewart Ranch was good as was the Hill Family 2009 Syrah ($35) and the Hill Family 2008 Atlas Peak Cab ($68).  There is not space enough for all of my tasting notes, but we liked the Hill Family wines enough at our first visit that we joined the Wine Club and will be returning in a two days to taste more wines and pick up our first order.  The cabs are especially good for the money, but be sure to try the Tiara Sauvignon Blanc, too, which is quite different that your usual SB.  Much thanks to Robin for being so pleasant and helpful.






Addendum 11/18/11: Two days later, we picked up our first three wines as club members and were able to taste additional wines while having some tasty complimentary hors d'oeuvres.  In addition to an incredibly friendly reception, the winemaker, Alison Doran, came to our table and had a long, very animated and interesting discussion with us.  As much as we liked the wines we had at the tasting two days previously, some of the wines we tasted the second visit were even better.  This winery is producing some really good Napa Valley premium cabs at prices that are incredibly affordable!  If you love Sauvignon Blancs or Cabs and if you enjoy premium wines at very reasonable prices, you should try this winery and seriously consider their wine club. Here are some excerpts from my notes during the second visit:  Hill Family 2010 Sauvignon Blanc:  At $17.60 for wine club members, this is a wonderful buy.  It is fermented in stainless steel and much more of a traditional Sauvignon Blanc than the "Tiara".  This is drier than the Tiara, with more grapefruit.  My wife loved it.  The Hill Family 2008 Origin ($42) is a full luscious cab blend with lots of ripe fruit. More in the style I prefer, though, is the Hill Family 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon ($48).  This cab reminds me of cabs in the $100 plus range. Good fruit with full body but nice balanced tannins.  This is the type of Cab that made Napa Valley famous but at a fraction of the price that one usually has to pay these days. It is complex, interesting and with substance without being overpowering. At this price it is a great buy.  It is drinkable now but will improve with age. Hill Family2007 "Double Barrel" Cabernet Sauvignon ($150 and very limited production). With a nice nose and cherry plus chocolate on the palate, this wine has a long finish.  Extremely well balanced with ripe fruit, it will age well but is definitely very drinkable now.  If you are a club member you might be able to taste this if they have a bottle open. Much thanks, again, to Robin and the staff for being so helpful and making us feel so welcome.

Addendum 2/16/12:  We bought several bottles of the Hill Family 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon ($55) and it is outstanding, even better than the 2008.  We did not like the Hill Family 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon as well as the 2007 or 2008 but then it is still young.  We also tried the Hill Family 2009 Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc at $35 which was fairly good and the Hill Family 2009 Barrel Blend at $25 which is light, fruity, rather sweet tasting and did not appeal to either of us.  I'd really like to taste the Double Barrel Cabernet Sauvignon again. 
  
Hill Family Estate Winery 
6512 Washington St
Yountville, CA 94599
(707) 944-9580
Date of visit: November 16, 2011


Somerston Wine Co.

Note: In April of 2014 the Somerston Wine Company tasting room in Yountville was renamed Priest Ranch Wines and only wines from that winery are available for tasting there.  Please see our review of Priest Ranch Wines here:  PRIEST RANCH WINES

Somerston Wine Company has a tasting room in downtown Yountville, and we think you would enjoy visiting it. Our server was very friendly and down to earth.  Somerston has three different labels, all produced by them: Somerston Estate, Priest Ranch and Highflyer.  They offer two different tastings, one at $25 for three Somerston Estate Collection wines and another for $20 that includes five wines from Highflyer and Priest Ranch.




We started with the Somerston 2010 Grenache Blanc which is a varietal of its own, not to be confused with the red Grenache grape.  This was the first time we ever tasted this varietal. It was a nice, pleasant, summer sipping wine, rather soft and fruity but balanced at $19.  The Somerston 2008 Pinot Noir was quite decent at $38 and comes from the Santa Lucia Highlands.  The Somerston 2007 Centerline Red Blend is one of those very well balanced, highly drinkeable wines you can take to any party and most people will like it.  (We certainly did.) A blend of Syrah, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Tempranillo and Grenache, it sells for $28 a bottle. The Somerston 2008 Petite Sirah at $40 was okay but was lighter and more fruit forward than many Petite Sirahs, with less tannin and structure than I prefer.  Nicely balanced, with soft tannins, the Priest Ranch 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon was a keeper at $40.  Best of all (but it will get even better with age) was the Somerston 2007 Somerston Estate Cabernet Sauvignon which sells for $120.  We bought some of the 2007 Centerline Red Blend and the 2009 Priest Ranch Cab.  Somerston also offers cheese plates for $15 and chocolate plates for $12.  They are open until 9 PM most nights, 8 PM on Sunday and Monday so you may visit them after having dinner at one of Yountville's great restaurants.

Somerston Wine Co.
6488 Washington St
Yountville, CA 94599
(707) 967-8414
Date of visit: November 16, 2011

Jessup Cellars

Jessup Cellars has a tasting room in downtown Yountville and is well worth a visit. It was founded in 1996 by Mark Jessup.  Their wines are sold only out of the winery or online.  They are open to the public without reservations although they also have a VIP room and Premier room that may be reserved.  They source most of their Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Merlot from the Carneros district.  Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Zinfandel and Petit Verdot are sourced from districts farther north in Napa Valley.

At the time of our visit the tasting was $20 and included a nice Jessup Cellars 2010 Sauvignon Blanc ($28) with soft grapefruit on the palate, a very good, well balanced Jessup Cellars 2009 Russian River Pinot Noir ($48), a decent Jessup Cellars 2008 Merlot ($34) with some soft tannins, a good Jessup Cellars 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon that was aged in French oak for 24 months ($55) and, my favorite, along with the Pinot Noir, the Jessup Cellars 2008 "Table for Four" ($79) that is a blend of 65% Cab, 15% Cab Franc, 15% Merlot and 5% Petite Sirah.  The Table for Four is intended to pair well with almost any dish so that four people at a table could share it regardless of that they ordered.  Also, included in the tasting was a 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Port, but we opted to pass on this. Jessup Cellars is also in the Napa Neighbor Program and has a wine club that offers 15% discounts.

Jessup Cellars
6740 Washington St
Yountville, CA 94599
(707) 944-8523
Visited November 16, 2011

Hope & Grace Wines

Hope and Grace Wines was founded in 2001 by Charles Hendricks, a winemaker and consultant, who named his wine after his daughters, Hope and Grace Hendricks.  Their small, attractive tasting room opened in 2007 and is located in downtown Yountville on the main street (Washington Street) near Bouchon restaurant.  Only 2500 cases per year are produced of their single vineyard, 100% varietal, hand crafted wines.  Grapes are sourced mostly from Napa Valley and range from $28 to $75.  Current production includes Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Pinot Noir, Malbec, and Cabernet Sauvignon, with their Pinot Noir grapes coming from the Santa Lucia Highlands, one of the finest Pinot Noir regions in the U.S.


At the time of our visit, had three different tasting flights at $10, $15 and $25. We opted for the $10 flight that included four wines.  The Hope and Grace 2009 Chardonnay ($32) is made without any malolactic conversion and with minimal oak, in a style that I prefer because the varietal characteristics are not lost from overbearing butteriness.  The Hope and Grace 2009 Pinot Noir ($46) from Santa Lucia was good with cherry on the nose and palate along with a touch of cinnamon. My favorite, though, was the Hope and Grace 2008 Malbec from Oak Knoll ($64), with 24 months on French Oak.  It won't make you forget a really great Argentine Malbec, but it was quite decent for a California Malbec. We also enjoyed the Hope and Grace 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon ($58). Service was very pleasant and helpful, and they have various interesting artwork on display. Hope and Grace is certainly worth a visit.  Some great restaurants and the famous Bouchon Bakery are very nearby.

Hope & Grace Wines
6540 Washington St
Yountville, CA 94599
(707) 944-2500
Visited November 16, 2011

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Wooden Valley Winery

Wooden Valley Winery is an extremely friendly, informal, family winery near Fairfield that exudes relaxation and good cheer.  Tastings are complimentary.  We tasted the 2010 Riesling, the 2008 Zinfandel, the 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon and, our favorite, the 2009 Petite Sirah.  Prices were $12 to $17.  There were quite a few sweeter wines that one could taste. They also had a fruitier red wine for those who do not usually like red wine, but we did not care for it after trying it. This would seem to be a winery that would be a very good introduction for those who are not interested in more complex, challenging and expensive wines.  Even some who do not ordinarily like wine, might find some wine they like at Wooden Valley Winery.  In addition to the very reasonable prices, this is such a friendly winery that it is difficult not to like it. They offer a 20% discount for wine club member, 30% by the case. 

Wooden Valley Winery
4756 Suisun Valley Rd
Suisun Valley, CA 94534
(707) 864-0730
Visited 11/12/2011

Ledgewood Creek Vineyards

Ledgewood Creek Winery is in Suisun Valley near Fairfield but produces wines that are comparable to many Napa Valley wines.  I'm not sure if this is due to the very close proximity of their vineyards to Napa Valley or to the excellence of the winemaker, but this is a serious winery that you really should visit.  Tasting at the time of our visit was complementary and the service was very friendly and down to earth.

Among the wines that were quite good for the money were the Ledgewood Creek 2009 Estate Grown Three Clone Chardonnay, the Ledgewood Creek 2008 Syrah, the Ledgewood Creek 2007 Merlot and the Ledgewood Creek 2008 GSM. There were two real standouts (must buys) for me, though.  One was the Ledgewood Creek 2009 Signature Chardonnay at only $18 ($14.40 for club members).  This is a Chard that was not ruined by over oaking and excessive malolactic conversion.  It was very well balanced with a nice nose, good balanced acid, some pear on the palate and a lovely finish.  It sells at about half the price of a comparable Chard in Napa.  The other is the Ledgewood Creek 2007 GSM (which stands for the three varietals in the blend) a knockout red wine in the Rhone style, a wine that is an incredible bargain at only $18 ($14.40 for club members.)  It is made from Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre (49%) and is evidence that the "Rhone Rangers" are up this way!  This is surely one of the best red wine buys and one that I could drink regularly.  If you are not familiar with full bodied, complex, interesting Rhone style reds, this would be a great place to start. 
 
Ledgewood Creek Winery
4589 Abernathy Rd
Fairfield, CA 94534
(707) 426-4424
Visited 11/12/2011 

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Franciscan Estates

Franciscan Estates is a well-known Napa Valley winery that offers some especially affordable premium wines. It was established in 1973 and is owned by Constellation Brands, the same company that now owns Robert Mondavi.  Constellation Brands is the largest wine producer in the world, owning 40 production buildings and 100 brands of wine, beer and spirits.  They are located on St. Helena Highway north of Rutherford Cross Rd. and the setting is picturesque and quaint. At the time of our visit the classic tasting was $15 with one fee being waved with each $100 purchase. They are in the Napa Neighbor Program and also have a wine club that offers 30% discounts



Our first taste was the Franciscan 2009 Chardonnay ($18) that had a nice nose with some apple and minerality on the palate.  It was well balanced and not too buttery with mostly apple and pear.  Very likeable. The Franciscan 2007 Merlot ($21) was rather light and fruity with some pepper and tobacco notes.  It was my least favorite of the four tastings we were offered. The Franciscan 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon ($27) is 80% Cab, 12% Merlot, 4% Cab Franc and 4% Petit Verdot.  It had some cherry notes with nice soft tannins.  This is a nice cab for that price. Our favorite, though, was the Franciscan 2007 Magnificat ($50) which is a blend of 71% Cab, 26% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot and 1% Malbec.  It had a nice aroma of black cherry.  On the palate I got black cherry, plum, vanilla and mocha.  It is a more interesting and complex Cab than the 2008 with smooth tannins and some age potential. We bought a bottle of the Chardonnay and the Magnificat.  Service was good.




Franciscan Estate Winery
1178 Galleron Lane
St. Helena, CA 94574
(707) 967-3993
Date of visit: November 2, 2011 

Freemark Abbey Winery

Freemark Abbey offers some premium Napa Valley wines at very affordable prices and the grounds and setting are very lovely.  Freemark Abbey has been a Napa Valley landmark for over 125 years and has a long, interesting history as well as a great wine library.  At the time of our visit they offer a classic tasting of four wines for $15 and are in the Napa Neighbor Program. You will also want to stroll around the lovely grounds and take photos.




Our tasting began with the Freemark Abbey 2009 Sauvignon Blanc at $24.  This was a very nice, well-balanced wine with more melon than grapefruit on the palate and a hint of pleasant herbaceousness.  The Freemark Abbey 2010 Chardonnay ($25) was also good.  It had some peach notes and was not overly buttery as are some Chards.  Both of these white wines represent very good values.





I love Petite Sirahs but the Freemark Abbey 2007 Petite Sirah ($30) was too light bodied for my taste.  It had a bit of spice and some fruit but not enough substance for me.  The well-balanced Freemark Abbey 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon ($40), though, was very nice, with interesting integrated tannins, some black currant on the palate and a decent finish.  Definitely try this one.  It is very drinkable now.  We also tried a Freemark Abbey 2008 Merlot that was smooth, light and fruity.  Best of all, though, was the Freemark Abbey 2006 Sycamore Cabernet Sauvignon ($70). This is a powerful cab that I'd like to try again in a few years. Overall we were very pleased with the wines at Freemark Abbey and definitely  recommend a visit.  Service was exceptional. 

Freemark Abbey Winery
3022 St. Helena Highway North
Saint Helena, CA 94574
(707) 302-3721
Date of visit: November 2, 2011 



Twomey Cellars

Twomey Cellars is well known for their Pinot Noirs and Merlots.  Twomey (pronounced to-me) was founded by the Duncan Family in 1999.  This is the same family that has owned Silver Oak Cellars since 1972.   They have two wineries, one in Calistoga and another in Healdsburg in the Russian River area.  The winery is named after Ray Duncan's mother, Velma Marie Twomey Duncan.  The current location in Calistoga is where the Stonegate Winery use to be and was purchased by the Duncan family in 2003.  It is just off Highway 29 on Dunaweal Lane.




Our tasting began with the Twomey Cellars 2010 Sauvignon Blanc at only $20 a bottle.  No malolactic conversion was used.  4,060 cases were produced. It was very smooth on the palate with mostly grapefruit but some melon and a medium length finish. The Twomey Cellars 2009 Santa Maria Valley Pinot Noir was $50.  It was aged for 15 months in French oak with 35% new oak.  1,100 cases were produced.  It was in the lighter, fruitier style with mostly strawberry and a good finish. I preferred the Twomey Cellars 2009 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir at $50 which was aged for 14 months in French oak with 40% new oak being used.  2,645 cases were produced. This had good fruit, mostly blackberry, with floral notes and was very smooth, balanced and light with a great finish. We both liked the Twomey Cellars 2007 Merlot which was $50. It was 94% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon and saw 15 months in French oak with a third of this new oak.   I got mostly blackberry and black cherry with some chocolate and a good finish.  Along with the Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir, it was our favorite of the four wines we sampled. Although their Russian River Pinot Noir was not available for tasting we bought some anyhow, largely based on how good the Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir was. Service was friendly, down to earth and very good.

Twomey Cellars
1183 Dunaweal Lane
Calistoga, CA 94515
(888) 505-4850
Date of visit: November 2, 2011