Spring is here in the Napa Valley, the sun is warm, and many of the vines are alive with recent bud break. It is a very enjoyable time to travel to the Napa Valley. Not only does spring bring tourists to the Valley but other creatures as well. We had just finished tasting some delicious Buehler wines and were on our way to the terrace to enjoy a picnic lunch. There it was basking in the beautiful sunshine, a rather long and ominous looking rattlesnake. John Page Buehler was the first to alert us and then quickly raced into the tasting room and returned with a shovel. Page with his handy long shovel was able to corral the snake and move it away from the picnic area. What a man! Read the rest of this entry »

Looking For Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in all the right places, Part One

Why take the tourist route? Here is a backroad gem of a tour where you can see some fantastic views of Carneros and the Napa Valley and avoid busloads of tourists. This trip starts by heading across the Golden Gate Bridge but one can certainly come from other directions, just use the Google map below or your car’s GPS. We are going to begin this trip in Carneros on the Sonoma County side, where Ramal Road on the north meets Highway 121. Coming west on Highway 121, drive about 3.5 miles from the main intersection of Arnold and Highway 121. If you do come from the other direction take good care when you make a left turn onto Ramal Road; Highway 121 is busy and many drive way too fast on this road. Read the rest of this entry »

A small group of wine bloggers were invited by the Wine Hiker, Russ Beebe, to a tour and tasting at two well-known and famous Napa wineries. We met at Smith-Madrone on Spring Mountain and then went back down to the Valley floor for an exquisite lunch and tasting at Spottswoode in St. Helena. Visiting Smith-Madrone is always a kick because the Smith Brothers are so laid back and unpretentious. They both make you feel like you are an old friend. I have blogged previously about Smith-Madrone so if you want to know more about them read this post.

This was my first time to visit Spottswoode and to taste their wine. Spottswoode is all about Cabernet Sauvignon, not your ordinary Cab but one to be shared with family and friends for special meals and celebrations. The wine is some of the best Cabernet I have tasted in recent memory. The story began when Mary Novak and her late husband Dr. Jack Novak purchased the property in 1972. The vineyards behind their 1882 Victorian house consisted of a field blend of French Colombard, Gamay, and Syrah, all purchased in those days by Gallo. The Novaks ripped out the vineyards and replanted them with Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc. When phylloxera hit, all the vines were gradually replanted beginning in 1988. Originally, the Novaks sold all their Cab grapes and the word was out in the Napa Valley that these grapes were truly special. Read the rest of this entry »

Cathy Corison is one of Napa Valley’s first women winemakers and is well recognized by her colleagues as one of the more influential winemakers in the entire Valley. Her Corison Cabernet wines have long been noted for their quality and character. We visited with Cathy at her wonderful winery and vineyards in St. Helena.

We have long been admirers of the barn that houses the Corison Winery. The best view is during Mustard season. The vibrant colors set against the grey siding and the green roof make for an awesome view and a photographer’s delight. The barn is set back from Highway 29 and easy to miss. As one drives along Highway 29, by the time you catch a glimpse and are intrigued by the building it is too late; you have driven past the entrance. By all means turn back at the next chance and pay a visit to Corison Winery. It is traditional Napa Valley. Read the rest of this entry »

Boeschen Vineyards is a very small winery located on the Silverado Trail in St. Helena. Case production is just a mere 375 cases of wine of just two types, a Bordeaux blend and a Cabernet Sauvignon, priced at $60 and $75. This year the winery will try its hand at a third wine, a Sauvignon Blanc but case production will just hover around 400. Like many small boutique wineries that make high-end wines, one has to wonder if it is possible to make a go of it in this economy. We have already seen a few wineries of this type up for sale or on the brink of financial disaster. Read the rest of this entry »

Last week I visited three family-owned wineries that produce quality wines at the upper end of the price spectrum. I would recommend a visit to any three of these wineries and I am quite positive your experience will be memorable. This is the first of three blog posts on these wineries. I’ll start with Swanson Vineyards and follow this up with posts on Boeschen Vineyards and Corison Winery.

Swanson Vineyards is the most formal and elegant of the three wineries. The winery is hidden from tourists on Manley Lane, a small road that is off Highway 29 just north of Oakville. Almost all the clientele at Swanson is by word of mouth, and that provides enough visitors and wine buyers to make the winery about as busy as it wants to be. The tasting room, or salon as they call it, is open by appointment only on Wednesday through Sunday. There is a small adjacent tasting room for drop-ins, but the winery’s preferred way to taste their wines is for visitors to select one of the two sets of wine and food pairings. As you can see from the photo, the salon is wonderfully decorated and an exquisite place to experience the Swanson wines. We don’t do many of these formal food and wine pairings, but once in awhile, it is nice to give yourself a treat. We did the Harvey Tasting that features a tasting of six wines. We were greeted in the garden outside the salon with a glass of the 08 Swanson Rosato, a very dry Rosé wine, and we sipped that while we waited for the other guests to arrive for the 11am seating.

Read the rest of this entry »

When we visited Argentina in March of this year, we were amazed at the number of new wineries and more amazed at their magnificence. It seemed no expenses were spared in creating architectural wonders, luxurious gardens, and winemaking rooms with the latest high-tech winemaking equipment. These wineries were created to dazzle and to make the finest wine possible. Two examples of these Argentine wineries are Bodega Salentein and Bodega Andeluna. Both of these wineries are spectacular in every aspect and owned by very rich men.

A couple of week ago, at a wine blogger conference, the bus that I was assigned took us to a winery that I had never heard have before, Palmaz Vineyards. It’s located east of Napa at the southern end of the Vaca Mountains at the foot of Mount St. George. Once I saw the winery from the outside, I almost felt like I was back in Argentina. It was similar in character to the new wineries I’d visited there. This is a winery where no expense has been spared. It is truly a marvelous wonder.

Palmaz Vineyards

If you are heading up to the popular Hess Collection Winery on Mt. Veeder, I have a recommendation. Before you visit Hess, take a small detour and stop in at the vineyard home of Rubissow Winery. Although Rubissow wines have been around for several years hardly anyone but a few have ever tasted Rubissow wines, and even fewer have visited their home base on Mt. Veeder. If you like adventure and something very different in the Napa Valley, schedule an appointment to view some of the most beautiful vineyards in all of Napa and taste some very exquisite wines. Read the rest of this entry »

If you are headed to the Napa Valley during this time of the year, it is important to strategize how to avoid the crowds, otherwise your trip might end up be more stressful than relaxing. One easy way is to avoid the crowds is to visit some of the lesser-known wineries and ones that are off the beaten path. Two such wineries that fit the bill are Havens and Elyse wineries, both located near each other on Hoffman Lane in Yountville.

Take the Yountville exit from Highway 29 and head towards Domain Chandon. Domain Chandon is one of our favorite wineries but the weekend crowds here are just too much to bear. Take a left and head down Solano Ave., the road that parallels Highway 29, until you reach Hoffman Lane. Turn down Hoffman Lane. Havens is on the left and just beyond to the right is Elyse Winery. Both wineries are small and make absolutely fantastic wines. Read the rest of this entry »

Piña is a little tiny winery on the Silverado Trail located about a mile north of Oakville Cross Road. We would never have discovered this winery were it not for a free tasting coupon we found at the Visitor Center in Napa. The owners of the winery are the four Piña Brothers. The winery is not their main business, as they are better known in the Valley for their vineyard management skills. Their vineyard management company has an impressive list of clients that includes Pahlmeyer, Cafaro, and Showket to name a few.

The most delightful characteristic of this family-owned winery is the very casual atmosphere that permeates the winery. Our host on that day was Clair Palmer, a retired agricultural chemist and wine lover. Clair is waiting by the doorway “Welcome to Piña, this is how Napa Valley used to be,” he exclaims. Everything is all in one room, barrels, equipment, and a makeshift bar for tasting.

Read the rest of this entry »