Good food and fine wine ... what a great pairing. And then add wonderful friends and it's a combination that CANNOT be beat!
We dumped the dogs in a kennel on Thursday morning and took off to Sonoma, about a 4-5 hour drive from Carson City. On our way to Sonoma we decided to take Highway 59 to 89 to 80 going through Sacramento. It was a beautiful drive, but not one for an RV! You travel through the Sierras mostly on a two-lane rather narrow road with cliff on one side and drop off on the other. In the Jeep, however, it was a nice drive.
We arrived in Sonoma just in time for our first pairing event at Sebastiani Vineyards with only one of the couples we were meeting, Kurt & Paula Takamine. We had a wine and cheese pairing that was very tasty, but it was the Sebastiani wines that I really enjoyed (which means I bought a couple of bottles, of course!). The cheeses and wines were paired as follows: Chardonnay with a high-moisture Jack cheese; a Pinot Noir with a Toma cheese (soft partially-ripened cow's milk cheese with creamy texture); a Barbera with Asiago (spiciest cheese); a Zinfindel with an Italian-style table cheese (similar to a Fontina); a Cabernet Sauvignon with a Mezzo Secco cheese that had a delicious pepper rind.
Background on Sebastiani Winery: Sebastiani’s first century in Sonoma winemaking began when Samuele emigrated from the Tuscany region of Italy in 1895 and started Sebastiani nine years later. The winery was the only one in Sonoma County to continue operations through Prohibition, making a small amount of sacramental and medicinal wines. It has been joked, and perhaps with some grain of truth, that during this time there was a resurgence of people becoming very religious.
Bill Foley purchased Sebastiani in 2008 and immediately took
a number of steps to enhance wine quality and raise the winery’s image. Working
closely with winemaker Mark Lyon and the viticultural team, Bill lowered
production, restricted yields, acquired more new barrels and winemaking
equipment, revamped farming protocols and acquired additional vineyards to
guarantee consistent and superior fruit sourcing. Here's a photo of the winery that I copied from the Internet.
The next morning (Friday) we were joined by couple #3, Mike & Bea Dieringer. Couple #4, Steve & Dina Jones, were flying into Oakland and would catch up with us at 1:00 p.m. at the Best Western in Sonoma. Did I mention the great Groupon deal we got? $80/night which included a free breakfast! They also had a great Jacuzzi spa that we took advantage of every day!
Our first stop while waiting for Steve & Dina was at Walt Winery's tasting room in downtown Sonoma. We also did a little shopping too. I bought a Corksicle that you put in the freezer then insert into a wine bottle to keep your whites cold and to slightly chill your reds. Very cool thingy.
Background on WALT Winery: WALT Wines, owned by Vintners, Kathryn Walt Hall and Craig Hall (from Hall Winery with locations in both St. Helena and Rutherford in the Napa Valley), is dedicated to the production of premier Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from the Pacific Coast's most distinctive vineyard sites, spanning nearly 1,000 miles and including Sta. Rita Hills, Sonoma County, Anderson Valley and the Willamette Valley (which we visited during our travels through Oregon). Their philosophy is that of precision, non-interventionist winemaking, thereby allowing the wines to naturally and honestly express the character of the site where the wines are grown.
After our tasting we headed back to the hotel to meet up with Steve and Dina so we could REALLY begin the wine and food tastings. Here we are on the hotel patio/courtyard enjoying a nice, casual cheese, salami, cracker and grape lunch supplied by our amazing planner, Paula.
(Left to right: Mike, Steve, Dina, Gary, Paula, Bea, me, and sitting in front, Kurt)
First stop? B.R. Cohn Winery. Not one of us liked their wine very much, so we took a detour into their Olive Oil Tasting Room. Now, that was EXCELLENT! Everyone of us bought at least two items from this tasting room. They had amazing olive oils, vinegars, and (most importantly) chocolate wine sauces JAnd, let me tell you, that Chocolate Cabernet Wine Sauce was killer so it was a hot seller with all of us! Gary tasted one vinegar, a Chardonnay Wine Vinegar and he like went "ballistic" and said we couldn't leave unless we bought it. He never gets that carried away, but this was a very, very vinegary vinegar and he loves that kind of vinegar. It was love at first bite for him.
Here we are at B.R. Cohn standing in front of one of their model cars on the property. We thought it would be a good back drop for the photo, but all we did was cover most of it up ... go figure! By the way, the Gorilla played a major role in our trip this weekend as you can see below and above.
(Back row, left to right: Bea, Mike, Dina, Steve, Gary, me. Front row: Paula, Kurt)
Background on B.R. Cohn Winery: Founded by Bruce Cohn in 1984, B.R. Cohn Winery offers a full line of ultra-premium wines, extra-virgin olive oils, hand-crafted vinegars and gourmet food products. This small family operated winery is surrounded by the 90-acre Olive Hill Estate Vineyards, where soils warmed by underground natural hot springs and gentle ocean breezes create a unique microclimate resulting in ideal growing conditions for Cabernet Sauvignon. B.R. Cohn also produces Chardonnay from the Carneros Region and Merlot from Sonoma Valley.
In 1990, Bruce began producing gourmet olive oil and hand-crafted vinegars, the first made in Sonoma Valley in almost a century. Now their high quality B.R. Cohn Olive Oil has become one of the top producers of ultra-premium extra-virgin olive oil in California.
After B.R. Cohn, we took off to Imagery Winery for more tasting. We had a great tasting here, but by now I was starting to realize that there is a definite difference between Sonoma and Napa wines. For me, Sonoma wines were too dry and higher tannins--more "Old World" tasting. I know I prefer "New World" wines that are smoother and not as high in the tannin department. So, Sonoma wines just weren't as high on my "like list" as Napa wines.
Here are some photos of the gang at Imagery Winery.
Background on Image Winery: In the early 1980s the Benziger family migrated west from New York and started a winery on Sonoma Mountain. After a few years of helping his family make large production wines for their Glen Ellen brand, Joe decided that there were some vineyard lots that were just too good to get lost in a big blend. He set out to showcase these special vineyard sites in a series of small artisan wines.
As the idea for Imagery was developing, Joe had a chance meeting with renowned local artist Bob Nugent. More than 20 years later, Nugent still serves as curator of the Imagery art collection, commissioning hundreds of international artists to design one-of-a-kind artwork for Imagery labels.
As Imagery evolved under Joe's direction the emphasis on limited-production wines evolved to focus on lesser-known varietals. As he discovered rare wines, Joe became passionate about unusual grapes and the Barbera within was unleashed.
Off we go again. This time it's to the Mayo Reserve Room for a 5:00 p.m. food and wine pairing. We were the only party seated for the pairing which made for a wonderful, intimate, private setting. Here we are toasting to best friends, good food, and fine wine.
This is how they set up our wines for the tastings.
You can tell we had an amazing time by the wine splotch on the menu.
That "postage stamp" photo in the upper right corner is a feature that my camera has that I pressed by mistake ... but I kept it there anyway since I liked it.
Our menu included:
- A "Bubblybaisse" with a Chardonnay (the bubblybiasse included a mussel and clam both which I NEVER eat, but I did actually eat these and they weren't all that bad!)
- A Viognier paired with a cauliflower dish (loved the Viognier)
- A Merlot paired with a dish called Okonomiyaki (wish I could remember what that was ... ha!ha!)
- Then a 2008 Barbera paired with Braised Pork and Israeli cous cous -- this was so fantastic we all wished we had a lot more of that pork on our plates
- On to a 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon paired with New York Strip Steak with Wild Mushroom Beggars Purse
- Then a 2010 Reserve Zinfandel that was paired with a very delicious Tongue and Cheek (kinda bacon-ey, but excellent)
- Then the final coup de grace was the dessert that paired a 2010 Zinfandel Port with chocolate cherries and nuts (see photo below).
Background on the Mayo Reserve Room: The Reserve Room is a revolutionary concept in a number of ways. In the first place, it's probably the first wine tasting room you've ever been in with chairs, tables and napkins. But more importantly, the Reserve Room takes you on the ultimate wine country tasting journey unlike anything you've experienced in a wine tasting room before.
Each guest takes a seat in their comfortable and intimate room where you enjoy wine-inspired art, a little music and views of the hillside vineyards of Kenwood located just out the window. You are then treated to a seven-course pairing menu that includes seven Mayo Family Reserve wines crafted by Winemaker Michel Berthoud and seven tasting dishes created and prepared by Chef J. Clayton Lewis to compliment the seven wines. The Reserve Room is their opportunity to take you further into the wine and food experience that defines Wine Country.
We ended this wonderful, blessed day with the most amazing sunset. These photos were taken outside the Mayo Reserve Room.
To good friends:
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 // Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up. Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone? And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.
No comments:
Post a Comment