Ah glorious country, thank you for the wonderful 3 day weekend! Hahaha! It gave me the opportunity to roll out to Napa Valley and am happy to report that the grapes are starting to come around. It was hot today in the valley, no breeze to chill us out. At all 3 places it appeared that fruit was being harvested!
Spot 1 a constant for me Domaine Carneros. Owned and opened by the Taittinger Champagne house, it produces some of the best sparkling wines in all of California. I will stay todays experience was a bit hmmm, well twilight zone and I will elave it at that. I do enjoy the wines here and recommend it as a stop on the tasting trail. Located in Carneros in the Southern end of Napa, it took only 75 minutes from downtown Sacramento.
Spot 2 is Artesa, another Carneros estate. A really fun tasting room for its art and its view, the wines are good here too for the price. A very concentrated Merlot and a good value pinot noir.
Spot 3 Taylors Refresher, now known as Gott's Roadside Tray Gourmet. Different name, same game. Delicious, enough said.
Spot 4 one of my favorites Grgich Hills. Rutherford estate, completely organically/biodynamically grown. One of the best California Sauvignon Blancs (Fume Blanc) and the Cabs are awesome too. Oh yeah, by the way, Mike Grgich was the winemaker at Chateau Montelena for the 1973 Chardonnay, the 'Bottleshock' wine.
There are so many good places to taste in Napa I recommend justing getting there, going somehwere, and get lost. Take recommendations and don't be afraid to spot at a random unheardof spot. Salute!
No comments:
Post a Comment