You Need Not Know the Pope to Slurp This Vino!

Sure it’s called Pope Valley Winery, but this hometown wine haunt is not restricted to those visiting the Vatican. In fact these wines and this property are down right accessible and friendly too, with a mere haul up the hill. Pooches and people are welcome here and if you’ve always wanted to hone your Bocce skills this is your chance to sip some tasty wine as you scoot balls on the court. I suggest you pack up your pup and a picnic and make a day of it. Lots of enjoyable wines here and no tasting fees apply. I can’t remember the last time I said that. Maybe a decade ago when our valley was a simpler varietal. I was jazzed up about the 2006 Chenin Blanc, of all things, not my normal pick, but pleasantly surprised. Smooth, slick, and fruity with scant traces of nutmeg and pineapple. Delightful! The 2006 Eakle Ranch Sangiovese was a dandy doozey. Smokey-toasty, light and flavorful. This has BBQ written all over it, just in time for spring. They always seem to be serving up some type of festival or outdoor bonanza to make your wine all the more sweet. So skip church (sorry Mom!) and settle in with this Pope instead, and prepare to enjoy some guiltless pleasures. Wacky WineSense Rating: 4.5 Grapes!

Skipping for Skewis

I will digress again to a county other than our own, because as I mentioned in last week’s post, there are many scrumptious wines over the hill that are worthy of your attention, not to mention the killer views that are bursting all over the place, equally rivaling our own. If you’ve been following me all these months since my arrival to Napa last summer, you know that I have never hopped aboard the Pinot-by-way-of-Sideways-the-movie bandwagon, even though I thoroughly enjoyed the movie (don’t kill me townie locals!). In my droves of postings I have only written about a pinot one other time, than today. Reason being, pinots never seem to make my palate percolate, but like a diligent pupil I keep on trying. I have a very simple pinot litmus test. Upon slurping, does the pinot remind my of the cough syrups of my youth. If so, I drink no further. This is another example of my low brow approach to wine, but it works for me. Usually, every swig of pinot garners my “icky” face and I move happily onto Cabernet or Petite Syrah. But the friendly folks at Skewis, who were pouring at Acme Fine Wines caused my lips not to curl, and instead dance with delight. Striking news! Not one of their pinots caused the “icky” face (yay!). Instead, I cornered a new look, my tickled pinot face. My favorite was the Peters Vineyard. It was light and zingy on my tongue with a rich and fruity finish. Despite all the plum and blueberry tendencies bashing around in my mouth (super yum) this baby was nothing but smooth sliding down my wine tube. Get your fix quick because this is small lot production stuff. Wacky WineSense Rating: 4.4 Grapes!

White Oak Winery – a reason to get off your hump and cross the county line

I have to say, after almost a year of living in the Napa Valley, I don’t get the unspoken and sometimes over-spoken rivalry between Napa and Sonoma. All wines from either of these regions are bounce-off-the-walls delightful, so can’t we just all get along? If Berlin can drop their walls, I think we, as wine country inhabitants, can drop our attitudes about the “other” valley. If you still want to hold on to your grudge out of principal then fine, blame your sojourn to the “other side” on the blossoming trees and mustard that are going on all over Alexander and Knights Valley. Their sights are quite different than what we’ve got going on our side of the hump. Just like the wines, both are dandy in their own right and worthwhile of seeing and experiencing on many levels. Wine aside the 5+ mile long tree tunnel that you will coast through as you approach those valleys is almost as remarkable as Washington DC’s cherry blossoms. So grab your bike or buggy, and a buddy and see what all the fuss is about. I’m done ranting, on to the wine! One of the nice things about White Oak’s neck of the woods is the expansive feel of the land there. Farm country abounding. So when you belly up to the tasting bar, you could just as easily be in a tasting room in Tuscany, in your own little wine world. They have an amazing outdoor setting for casual picnicking, racks for your bikes, and a total "room with a view" inside of the tasting room. As you sip your slurp-worthy delights you can gaze out the gi-normous picture window behind the wine-barista. Cari-Anne my faithful wine dog companion was right at home nuzzling up to winery patrons outside as I imbibed indoors. It’s no secret that I love my hound, but I fell in love with a species of a different varietal on this tasting day. The 2008 Russian River Chardonnay was a scent like no other with a taste to match. Some of the sweet-tart tendencies of apples blended with a smooth wallop of pear - yum, yum. Zingy and smooth, all in one swig. The 2007 Alexander Valley Zinfandel rocked my wine world. If I had to sum it up in one low-brow word I would say “toasty!” If I had more words I would say: toasty, toasty, brown sugar roasty. Light on the tongue yet beyond robust in taste. I wanted to slip-slide-away with a bottle of my very own. When I thought it couldn’t get any better I was poured a taste of the 2005 Alexander Valley Reserve. A dandy desert type of wine, without all the obnoxiously overly sugared hype. It was sweet like candy and caramel corn (that’s what it conjured for me) but smooth and highly drinkable like only a good wine can be. So if you want a light desert style wine this one is a beaut. Well, that’s all, wine folks. For me, I ended the day biking back to where I came from, with a great appreciation for the “other” side of the wine tracks. We are all lucky to be living here in our collective wine country. Whether you’re from the Napa side or the Sonoma side, nobody can argue that we make some of the best wines in the world and we get to enjoy them in one of the most beautiful spots around, so get out there and enjoy all the vino that is just a hop, skip and a scoot away. Wacky WineSense Rating: 4.7 grapes!

Reeling Over Relic

Yes I love red wine. So, I’ve said it, again. And again. When I grow tired of speaking it, I just smile. More times than not the evidence is written all over my grape-stained teeth. I may not be a proud woman but I’m an honest one. I’ll use this next moment to share some more of my honesty around red wine. While the word Relic can conjure images of craggy old cobwebs and dirt, and stinky old people, the name now conjures something so much sexier ever since I got the chance to slurp some of Relic’s wine. My personal favorite is the Artefact. You can start to see trend with naming conventions but don’t let that sway your wine swilling ways. This hot little Cab, Petite Verdot, Syrah blend is a dandy one. It is stacked in flavor, berry and licorice among them, and it’s downright chewy. I was tempted to slam it down in one, not-so-smooth swig, but I was surrounded by other, more polite wine swillers, so I resisted the urge and sipped and then savored it. So dust off those dated memories around relics and revel in some of these wines. You’ll be glad you did. Wacky WineSense Rating: 4.6 Grapes!

Brussels Sprouts Aren’t Just for Babies!

I’ve always been a broccoli and green beans kind of gal, but as time passes the more whimsical I find myself. As such I started dabbling with sprouts. Alfalfa, Brussels, more Brussels. Damn those things are tasty boiled up in the comforts of my own home, where nobody would mock me for eating such an unglamorous veggie. Then as I frolicked about town, trying to be the taste of my town I noticed an odd movement in the restaurant world. One that involved (gasp!) Brussels sprouts. These went well beyond your average bake and boil varieties that I had been toying with. These were sexy and saucy sprouts. Buttery and basking in bacon in some instances. I am no longer a closeted sprout fan. I figure if they’re a semi-regular menu offering at such St. Helena culinary hot spots like Cook and Press I am safe to admit my addiction and I suggest you do the same. While you can find these delightful mini-heads of lettuce looking vegetables all over, these two varieties are my favorites. Cook is in the number one position with Press coming in as a close second. I don’t know what the heck they are actually doing in the kitchen with this stuff, I just pray it’s legal. Here’s what I taste. Cook’s variety: sliced and sautéed in butter and lots of garlic, then grilled in some type of contraption so that they are lightly crisp and toasty on the outside while not being mushy or overdone on the inside. Surely there are other spices and secrets rolling around in there, but I get so lost in the explosion in my mouth I loose my train of thought while eating. Press’s variety: almost as equally buttery, toasty brown, though not crisp like Cook’s. There are big chunks of bacon (sans all the fat, heavy on the pork) laced within, likely scored fresh off the bacon bar. I will tangent for a moment. I never thought I would live somewhere that ups the standard oyster and cheese bar ante for something like a bar full of piggy delights, who knew! Anyhow, either place you sample this oft overlooked veggie you’re in for a treat. I suggest you shovel some gushy spouts in the toddlers' mouths and get out there and score some of your own. Wacky WineSense Ratings: Cook: 4.9, Press: 4.7

Sparkling red need not be relegated to Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers

Sure, all that glitters is gold (at least that’s what us gals hope to be true), and sparkling is for diamonds, 4th of July sparklers and the American’s version of champagne. I love all of the above and especially when they happen all in one sitting on a very good night. Keeping this in mind you can see how ecstatic one might get when confronted with the prospect of being tickled red (we’re talking about wine here) instead of white or rose. Luckily that's exactly what happened when I slid into Mumm Napa to celebrate a birthday that will remain numberless. I was enchanted by the view which was a given, as I sat perched on café style tables ensconced in sun and mustard. If only they served appetizers and chocolates with my bubbly I might have camped out all weekend long at this spot. But there were many notches on my tasting trail to be checked off so I kept my visit brief and got right down to business. I loved, loved, loved all things Cuvee M – especially the Cuvee M Red. It was sparkling and red and not soda which in and of itself was remarkable. But that’s nothing compared to the taste. A jammy explosion of decadent cherry-cranberry fruit flavors with an ever so sweet tendency. This is the kind of wake up call I love to answer. My snoozing taste buds were awoken with this baby. The regular shaded variety of Cuvee M was also a delight. Creamy and dreamy. Sweet without being too sweet if that makes any sense at all. If it doesn’t it just trust me or truck your way to Mumm and taste for yourself. I’m pretty certain you won’t be disappointed regardless of which bubbly you decide to slurp down. I left feeling utterly giddy with my last taste of the DVX 2000. Creamy finish, browned toast scent and a delicious toasted marshmallow figgy essence lingered on my mouth at the end of my very pleasing and all too short taste of this bubbly. Mumms need not be the word when it comes to the sparkling wines at this joint. Blab all you like, that’s what I plan to do. Wacky WineSense Rating: 4.7 Grapes