Things are Happening at Havens!

The wines at Havens Wine Cellar are down right heavenly. Starting with a crispy little ditty of an Albarino. It was like being in the middle of a citrus smack down. I was converted, if only for the day into a white wine lover. The Bourriquot had smatterings of Cabernet Franc accented with blueberry bliss goodness. It’s a wine with a mind of its own, delighting you down to the last droplet. I would be remiss if I didn’t touch on the Hudson Vineyard Syrah. This baby smelled and tasted like savory raw beef: bold, brazen and beautiful, loved it! Their wine pad is tucked away from the hubbub of the main drag and nestled beneath a posse of leafy trees, so between the wine and the setting you'll realize just how close you to a slurp of Napa Valley heaven. Wacky WineSense Rating: 4.5 grapes!

Wine with the family

Arger-Martucci is a family run gem of a vineyard offering up gaggles of fun and fabulous wine. If recent wine tasting and tours have left you feeling more like a fly on the pavement at the Tour de France, as opposed to special wine tasting being you might want to make a pit stop at A-M. This boutique family winery brings you into a land where friends can go into business together with sparkling results: a bounty of fruitful vino offspring. The Arger and Martucci clans joined forces over ten years ago and in that short span of time they’ve produced a bounty of slurp-worthy wines. Their goods run the gamut from a spicy bone-dry Viognier (succulent on hot summer night), to an award wining Atlas Peak Syrah (rich in texture, long in finish, bursting with cherry goodness), and the red god-like goodness just keeps on building. A red blend dubbed Odyssey was their flagship Bourdoux blend and with one sip I felt like I was in transported to another country and another time. They sealed my wine tasting deal with a mountain of hefty reds (too many to count) ending with a Cab Franc and Petite Syrah. By this point in the tasting I was so far under the spell of their vino I can’t tell you which was my favorite because they were all so damn good down to the last strong supple and oh so sweet swig. And if good wine wasn’t enough, they pull you into their own backyard, amidst swaying oak trees, a pristine pool peppered with picnic tables, proving that fine wine, friends and family do mix. And if you still don’t believe me, you will once you stop off and meet the friendly folks at Arger-Martuccci, you’ll feel like one of the family, if only for the day. Wacky WinSense Rating: 4.75 grapes

Fab food and wine....together at last!

So, I’ll admit it. The prospect of pairing fine food with my wine was nothing short of stifling for a wine country neophyte like myself. But I let the heat and my newness to town sway me from my natural born tendencies. I allowed myself to be wooed into making a turbo Beatle climb up the precarious sloping mountain streets of Sage Canyon Road as I made my way to Kuleto’s St. Helena Estate. My purpose: sidling up next to a multi-goblet & platter extravaganza of wine and food delights, otherwise called "wine and food pairing" in these parts. I have no idea what in the hell is and isn’t apropos to start with, so screw the formalities. It’s worth mentioning, before I get too far ahead of myself, that their 2004 estate Cab can be slurped on a “no food required” basis, in the best possible sense. But that said, I don’t want to diminish the savory goodness that resident Chef Janelle Weaver whipped up in the kitchen, nor do I want to do a disservice to all of the other wines (equally sippin and slurp worthy). This old kitty, despite her set-in-her-ways wine tasting spots, was sucked under the spell of a sweet little 2006 berry-licious Zin, and while I love zin, it typically never rules my wine roost, until today. And that’s the great thing about a wineward way of life in The Valley, you’re never too old, or young to realize that the person that you thought you knew, can turn out to be nothing short of a “stranger” when it comes to discovering your new food and wineself. There is way too much to call out in one posting, so I will touch on a few of my personal favs, the stuff that most wouldn’t bother to comment on, but hell, someone should, so why not me? I start with my hates, typically one of my all time favorite personal pet food peeves is none other than the deviled egg. Maybe it has something to do with those not-faint-enough memories of awkward thanksgiving days filled with nail biting college football and too-long-of-a-holiday weekend with my family, but I digress. On this fine day, I was shocked to find that in the land of deviled eggs, fresh hatched, does make a difference, as does a sumptuous blend of cream fraiche and a healthy sliver of smoked king salmon, which all but squashed my no-egg yolk tendencies. Then, trying to keep with my light and loose wine/food pairing order, I matched it with their chardonnay, again not my first choice always one to hail to the red wine gods, but I was bit by this wine bug. Food brought this butter baby to a state of fruity pineapple smash, and coming from a self-proclaimed no-chard zone, it continued to cement my sentiments that you’re never too old to learn something new about yourself. I can’t be certain, but a gal or two may have clucked on demand in an effort to get her some more of that stuff. And while we are discussing feathered farm friends, I can’t fail to mention that a duck confit taco with home grown apricot-chard preserves caused me to temporarily lift my no-duck moratorium (sorry childhood duck friends Charlie and Charlotte!). Light, sprightly, but packing a savory punch. And I don't want to forget the chutney, a fruity bouncing delight, I'm not sure what she puts in that stuff, but it sings and could easily be slathered over just about anything. As far as the rest of the food, veg-heads beware, you might want to pitch your vegan selves back to Los Angeles, or wherever you happen to hail from, because if not, you will miss some of the wizardry that Chef Weaver has to offer. On to more meat! Hanger steak hooking up with “baba ganoush”? Yes, you heard me right. And while I pride myself on being a virgin steak hound (no accoutrements required – aside from wine) this little ditty was a pleaser. Who would’ve thunk to pair eggplant, onion and a bit of baba with your beef? Random bit of info, when rosemary is in the house, rub it down! Why? Because, we said so. It smells good and reminds you why food is meant to be savored and sniffed. Especially when Ms. Rose Mary is dropped atop your lamb & plum sausage w/Anson Mills polenta cake and then complemented with a fruity, smooth,spicy, flavorful Zin (sorry, it was my surprise find of the session), you too would think about grabbing a hanky to wipe away some fine food and wine tears, from your sockets. But hold the hankie because there were a few more finds. I don’t know about you, but I like my steak (hanger) and syrah (2006) racy, young, and succulent. If you’re bobbin your noggin to this beat, check this shite out, cause it'll fit your fancy. And sad to say, the day did have to come to an end. But lucky for me that equated to sitting perched in a wood rocking chair, amidst a bounty of grapes, with a wine world beneath me, smooth truffle chocolate in one hand and the 2004 estate cab stuffed in the other. Since my move to these parts, I’ve yet to feel closer to heaven than now. Slurpin never looked, tasted, or felt so fine. Learn more about upcoming wine & food pairings. Wacky WineSense rating: 5 Grapes (all the way around).

Summer never sounded so sweet!

Wine doesn’t have to be the only game in town this summer because for us lucky suckers lurking around the Napa and Sonoma wine country, there is free music to be had. And while I know it is hard to peel your eyes off the plethora of cable TV’s finest (HBO’s Entourage, Showtime’s Weeds, the tail end of FX’s raucous Rescue Me, and the pending arrival of TNT’s hot little ditty Mad Men) there is a time in life where the outside world must prevail, because as much as I hate to admit it, the days of summer will be getting shorter soon enough. Thankfully, the technology gods invented DVRs, TIVOs and if you must, VCRs which leaves you no excuses for get your cool indoor summer habitat and out in to a free summer musice scene. I challenge you, not to have a good time, slurpin up the strumming guitars, nature’s natural acoustics, and some sultry singers with this summer's finest mix of music. So over-stuff your picnic basket (no one said you had to forgo wine with your entertainment), pack up your comfy chairs and beach blankets and slide over to the outdoor melody of choice. There is something happening on just about every night of the week, so go on, give your pie-hole a rest and let someone else do the talking, or singing so that you can get back to basics: tunes, food, friends, and friends.
Here’s some of the rundown:
Tuesday nights (weekly) Healdsburg Plaza 6-8PM (go early and hit the fab Farmer’s Market)
Thursday nights (weekly) Calistoga's Pioneer Park 6-9PM (BBQ, brews and vino available for purchase or BYO)
Thursday nights (bi-weekly) St. Helena's Lyman Park 6-8PM
Friday nights (weekly) Napa’s Veteran’s National Park 6:30-10, 3 bands
Sunday nights (weekly) Santa Rosa’s Juillard Park 5-7PM

So, open up your ears, shut your trap and close eyes and enjoy the gabobs of free strumming summer sounds while it lasts.Wacky WineSense Rating: 5 grapes!

July Jams at Chase Family Cellars

I’m not sure where you were Saturday night, but if you weren’t at the Chase Family Cellar’s July Fest extravaganza, frankly you missed the taco boat, pardner. And while white men supposedly can’t dance, and women only eat chocolate after dark, and wine can’t be slurped only savored, and 80’s music is as dead as Elvis, this summer showdown stomped out all of those crazy notions, because for the good and bad of it, white men did dance, WRISTROCKET proved that 80's rock will surge regardless of the decade, and slurpin a bounty of fine wines is A-OK in the presence of good company and a downright majestic wine farm setting. Sombreros off to Mitchell's Taco Truck (they perkily served up mind blowing tacos and burritos for a crowd of 500+) and to the grand old folks at Chase, thanks for welcoming us into your family if only for the night. If you yearn to keep the lovin feeling alive all summer long scoop up as much of their zippy Zin that your hot little hands can handle! Wacky Winesense Rating: 5 grapes!

Get in on the ACT!

Whether you’ve always wanted to get in on the act, be the insider at the hottest game in town, or perhaps you’ve just been laid off and you’re bored, now is your chance to do something about it. If you're a life long theater junkie, a newbie hoping to score a part in an off bway-by-way-of-the-wine-country production, now is your chance to ACT! And if that ain’t your game but you happen to know certain somebodies that are the life of every party, popping corks at all the best wine tastings, or entertaining small tables and large during boys and girls night out, it’s time to tell them to put on their shirts and dance (or sing, or act, or write). The Theater Arts Revival (TAR) is auditioning right in your backyard for its upcoming production of PASTICHE! an interactive musical variety show. Auditions will be held at the Tucker Farm Center (1201 Tucker Road in Calistoga): Sunday July 26th at 2PM, Wednesday July 29th 7PM or Thursday July 30th at 7PM. So grab your funniest act, stupendous dance shoes, silly song or just some plain bizarre behavior and show the good folks at TAR what you’ve got. Email Bonnie Zimmerman (707-965-2538) for more information, or make your life and theirs a lot easier by just showing up and any one of the times listed above.Learn more here.

A new wine district in Healdsburg is born

If you’re the chronic procrastinator (ok I’m projecting), or just afraid to “go there”. Get over yourself. There’s a sweet little movement that is about to bust a grape in Sonoma County. Never one to miss a wine movement, I slipped over to the "Old Roma Historic District" in Healdsburg last Tuesday. Never heard of that wine burb? You really gotta get out more. It’s a new wine district waiting to sweep you into its fruitful arms. And frankly, I’m sick of tourists and locals alike copping out with “too many grapes, not enough time” as their excuse for not exploring the fruits that Healdsburg has to offer (which are many sweet little suckers). So hold onto to your spit buckets because the folks at Hudson Street Wineries are threatening to squelch that grape myth for good. How you ask? By planting six vineyards (aka 6 tasting rooms worth of wine) under one super-hip tasting room roof. It’s called a “collective” my geographically challenged wine cohorts. It just makes sense, cause who isn’t pressed for time and gas these days? This burgeoning nook of a neighborhood boasts over 15 wineries in a one block radius, and did I fail to mention the wines are food, fruit and fiscally friendly? Teira Vineyard served up a zesty 2005 Zin and mouthwatering merlot. I also heard that Teira's grandmother was gal pals with Julia Childs back in the day so one has to believe there was some grape squishing and wine paring secrets to be shared. There’s too many vineyards and fine wines to name them all so hit their website to get the full low down. Then hop just a block down the street and you’ll run into another sweet cluster of wine haunts (Longboard Vineyards, Davis Family Winery, Holdredge Wines, Camellia Cellars, Christie Vineyards and others). So give your GPS system a break (even I didn’t get lost finding all these plucky little grapes) since there all a simple ½ mile jaunt off the main drag of Healdsburg. Wacky WineSense neighborhood rating: 4.25 grapes

Best in Show at July’s CHEERS! St. Helena

This month’s 1st Friday event in St. Helena proved to be a bigger hoot than the last, an unlikely and welcome surprise. Like good wine, it is possible for things to get better over time and to receive more of a good thing than bargained for. July brought more crowds,music, food, a closed off Main Street strip, tastings galore, and let’s not forget the frolic! Three months into a brilliant experiment the event is gaining traction and continuing to offer up a rollicking good time (all “economic strife” conversations tabled for the night thank god). The event was peppered with locals and tourists alike reminding us that cross pollination need not always to be a bad thing. Most store fronts were open, taco and food trucks roamed the sidelines as did small bites and street meat, and did we mention more wine? The diamond in a haystack this month was HayFork vineyard. Their first vintage (2008 Cab) was poured and proved to be a sip worth tasting. As a pint sized family vineyard (90 bottles) where husband Erik grows the grapes and wife Haley is the wine maker, it’s a pairing made in wine heaven offering up a smooth and succulent wine poured by a dynamic duo. Make a pit stop at their St. Helena wine pad (707-227-4438). Small families were in the house once again as Chase Family Cellars poured an assortment of wines, my favorite being their Hayne Vineyard Zinfindel. I was dangerously close to crying over its smooth sensation, but I sucked it up because the night was still young. Be sure to hit them up for their full troth of wines (not a bad one in the lot) and a jolly good time at their annual JulyFest party on the 18th of this month. I fell in love with Orin Swift cellars during my last swing around the June CHEERS! maypole, so I had to hit them up once again to see if their Prisoner Red wine was as good as I remembered (it was), but their stand out this month was the Papillon Red which blends cab, cab franc, petite verdot and malbec. As I tasted it, the best description that came to mind was a feeling of lying in bed smashed between a mixed berry pie (rhubarb, strawberry, et all!) comforter and a toasted campfire canopy, in a word: divine-wine- bliss. And last but not least of my plucky picks is the Behrens Family winery. Their 2007 Sainte Fumée was as tasty inside as the packaging on the outside, the wine was deep, fruity and fun, as was the cheeky/arty label which was what first drew me in. Next CHEERS! is August 7th, so if you know what’s good for your social calendar tack this pup to your date book. Wacky WineSense event rating: 5 grapes (again!)

Salvestrin - A sweet little grape at the tip of St. Helena’s wine superhighway

In Wine Country USA the grape vines run deep while tasting rooms can run shallow. Luckily, Salvestrin begs to be different. Stemming from a legacy of fine wine, old world roots and a dash of new school charm they’re all about voluptuous vino, serene scenery, and a memorable experience. As a new resident to the area I’ve made it my mission to crack a dent into the tasting stratosphere. Unfortunately, more times than not I’ve felt less like a wine customer and more like a rotten egg in the middle of a choppy assembly line as tasting room staff herd people through the wine swilling experience like it’s last call at a bad disco dive bar. Thankfully, Salvestrin cuts through that dank line by forking over an adventure that serves up equal parts style, substance, and dare I say service with a smile. You might miss them as you dash down the 29 so be on the look out (397 Main Street, St. Helena) for a white picket archway that promotes the property’s equally charming B&B. This plucky little grape of a property delivers royal treatment tastings that are by appointment seven days a week (707.963.5105). The friendly tasting room manager, David, welcomes you into the Salvestrin family with the ease of a long lost relative (the good kind!) and the panache of a smooth jazz singer on a hot summer’s night. He’s ever-eager to pour you some very fine wine (the Sangiovese and Retaggio were my favorites) and with each sip you’ll feel like you’ve slipped underneath the skin of a bunch of magical grapes. You’ll enjoy your wine in either the indoor or outdoor (my favorite) tasting room (quaint vibe, killer view of the mountains and vines). The vineyard acts as an oasis as it erases the faint memories of the bursting main drag of town. As far as the wine goes, I highly recommend joining their Sangovese wine club, cause that’s the only way your gonna get to sip the smooth and gentle tendencies of this highly-sought after, limited run wine. It’s down right jammy and spanks of the ripe stewed cherries of my granny's famous pie. And if you’re not quite ready to commit (it’s a wine club not a relationship, so just do it!), Retaggio is available to wine clubbers and layman alike. It tastes like a smash-up of dark fruit layered with some subtle spices. For those true wino aficionados, you will get the structured finish you desire. They have a whole entourage of other wines so hightail it over to Salvestrin to get some tastes of your own, and prepare to sit back, sip your wine, enjoy your company and theirs, and revel in a bout of deja vu from the Napa of yesteryear. Wacky WineSense Rating: Sangovese – 5 grapes, Retaggio - 4.75 grape

First Friday St. Helena - Food, wine, art, frolic, and something to CHEER! about

St. Helena is leading the socially outward bound pack by serving up a fantabulous Friday night adventure on the first Friday of each month (next event: July 3). It’s a sprightly event that gives you a reason to CHEER! , whether you’re meeting an old friend, mixing and mingling to rustle up a few more, or simply trolling the town in search of swanky art, edible delights, a perch or ten to swig fine wine, and horn in for some music (hopefully the music side of the house will grow as the events progress through the summer and fall). The event is free to the public, but if you want to sample and slurp wine tickets are available with prices ranging from $5/person for a single taste, $35/person for the night (unlimited tasting) or the season’s pass ($100/person includes all events through October) which grants you access to all future events (through Oct 2009). Once you try CHEERS! on for size, you’ll never go back to your standard fare mundane Fridays, so if you’ve got the upfront cash go for the package deal discount. Whether you’re blazing through town on your way back to the city, visiting the Valley vineyards, or a permanent townie fixture, the night won’t disappoint. In these times it’s not often that something actually over-delivers. So grab your unbreakable goblet from one of the two ticket stands on either end of town, you’re guaranteed to leave CHEERS! perma-grin pasted to your puss for the rest of the weekend and summer for that matter. What a better way to declare your independence! Wacky WineSense Rating: 5 grapes!