Category: Living Napa Cabulous

Winery Spotlight: A Virtual Look at Hall Wines New Tasting Center

On our honeymoon in 2011

During my first visit to Napa Valley in early 2009, Hall was one of the most memorable wineries of the trip. My husband suggested it after reading several great reviews of the wine in Wine Spectator and I couldn’t really argue with that! Situated on Highway 29 just south of downtown St. Helena, Hall Wines – owned by Craig and Kathryn Hall – has built a small “campus,” comprised of new and historic facilities. Signature red signage and accents direct guests to the tasting center, where they will be awed by an extensive collection of uniquely Hall-commissioned art installations.

On that initial stop, the wine did in fact blow me away. At that time, I remember enjoying tastes of nearly everything on the list – Sauvignon Blanc, “Darwin” Proprietary Red, “T Bar T Ranch” Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley Merlot, “Jack’s Masterpiece” Cabernet and “Kathryn Hall” Cabernet. Each sip tasted better than the last. True to their style, several of the Artisan bottles also featured label art – some of which changes with each new vintage or comes with an interesting story. (For example, the Darwin tells of their experience nearly going down in a small plane crash in Australia.) The staff was also very friendly, enthusiastic and knowledgeable – I loved the Hall “vibe.”

Stunning crystal chandelier
Stunning crystal chandelier

On subsequent visits, we also tasted at their Rutherford location, an experience that begins with an estate tour, stories of Kathryn’s role as Ambassador to Austria, and look at some of the more notable art installations. It culminates with a relaxed tasting in their breathtaking cave. The most impressive element in the room is the rustic crystal chandelier, which looks like an upside-down grape vine, or the roots of a tree growing above. What’s really intriguing about the Hall’s properties is that they are impeccably appointed, “smartly” designed and built with a purpose. Trees outside the St. Helena tasting room look exactly like oversized grape vines. A large picture-window inside the Rutherford tasting room perfectly frames the Valley view below. Even the barrels that line the interior of the cave are painted to exactly the same shade of Hall red in stunning uniformity.

I’ve been fortunate to be able to find some Hall wine in Chicago but appreciate the opportunity to try more of their Artisan reds while in Napa. Continue reading Winery Spotlight: A Virtual Look at Hall Wines New Tasting Center

Holiday Wine Sale with Winestyr

I love wine and I love “flash” sales, so I am really excited to partner with the new, online craft wine distributor, Winestyr (www.Winestyr.com) to give my readers an exclusive discount. Winestyr launched to help those who need a little more help selecting which wines to buy and they focus on smaller-production wineries. You can read more about them on Chicagoist and TechCrunch.

If you’re looking to bring wine to an upcoming holiday get-together, or wish to “gift” a wine-winestyrlover something special, hop on over to www.Winestyr.com.  Now through Dec. 20, 3013, you can enter code BECKY at checkout to get $25 off your order of $50 or more.

If you’re not exactly sure what to get, give their Gift Finder tool a try. You can plug in options for who you plan to buy for, their taste preferences and the amount you wish to spend and get recommendations from their experts.

Some of my suggestions include:

Feel free to share this deal with your friends and networks. Cheers and happy holidays!

Celebrating One Year of Living Napa Cabulous

Happy Birthday to me! Well, to my blog, Living Napa Cabulous. While I had been tweeting about wine for years prior, I decided to launch the blog a year ago to expand my wine reviews and travel tips beyond 140 characters. I’ve learned and experienced a lot over the past year, many of these memories thanks, in part, to this venture.

If there’s one big lesson I’ve learned, it’s that blogging takes more time than I initially thought! Juggling two blogs, a (new) full time job that requires travel, charity work, a fairly balanced sleep schedule, gym time and any form of social life is challenging. Though I lost some steam in the frequency of my posting, I still keep up frequently on Twitter and post here when I have something really remarkable to share.  

Another lesson I learned is that the blogging community is both warm and competitive at the same time. Through blogging, I have met some Living Napa Cabuloustruly amazing people, including the wine-loving, Green Bay Packer Backers I live-tweet through each game with on Sundays. I also met fellow wine lovers here in Chicago who have since become some of our best friends – including the great minds and palates behind www.BarlinWine.com and the new Tasting Scout app, as well as others who I’ve met through local events.  Just this past weekend, we got together with our Barlin Wine friends, which often means we get to introduce each other to wines the other may not have tried or would otherwise be thrilled to taste. Our regular night out line-up included the difficult-to-get Larkmead 2009 Cabernet Franc, Wren Hop Vineyards Siren’s Lure 2009 Pinot Noir and Merryvale 2008 Profile, in addition to some tasty port from Prager Port Works. (For the record, the Wren Hop was my favorite of the night, which says a lot since I’m not ordinarily a Pinot lover.) Continue reading Celebrating One Year of Living Napa Cabulous

10 Questions with Seasons 52 Master Sommelier George Miliotes

This past week, I had the pleasure of sitting down with George Miliotes, Master Sommelier and Director of Beverage for Seasons 52 – Darden’s Seasons 52 fresh grill restaurant concept – at the new downtown Chicago location. As a frequent business traveler, I was first introduced to Seasons 52 in Orlando, Fla. and was immediately intrigued by the length of their by-the-glass list. A scan of the rest revealed many of my personal favorites. I was thrilled to learn that a Seasons 52 would be opening just a short walk from my office, right off of the Magnificent Mile, and was recently invited to preview the space before it opened to the public on Oct. 17.

Over a glass or two of wine, we talked about Seasons 52’s extensive list, his list-building “strategy” and his personal wine preferences. Read on for a summary of our conversation.

Q: We’re starting our night with a glass of Mer Soleil Reserve Chardonnay – what was behind your decision to pick this wine tonight?

A: I have great respect for the variety of high-quality wines the Wagner family (behind Caymus, Belle Glos, Mer Soleil and Conundrum) creates. They’re confident about doing their own thing…while many Napa winemakers opt for Carneros grapes, they knew they could get a better product with grapes from the Santa Lucia Highlands. Continue reading 10 Questions with Seasons 52 Master Sommelier George Miliotes

The Evolution of Wine Recommendations

I’ve mentioned that by day, I work in word-of-mouth and social media marketing at Zocalo Group in Chicago. We specialize in making our clients the most talked about,  recommended and chosen brands in their categories. The idea behind this ties closely to my interests with wine, knowing that scores tend to be the ultimate form of a recommendation. I recently wrote a blog post about how wine recommendations are evolving, as well as the role wine bloggers play for the emerging Millennial market.

Here’s an excerpt from my post:

“Through [blogging], I’ve observed a fascinating, ongoing (and sometimes polarizing) discussion over the way wine is talked about, recommended and chosen. For the past 40 years, wine critic and founder of The Wine Advocate, Robert Parker, has helped to shape and define what success looks like for Napa Valley wineries. But, let’s face it, every individual has their own taste preferences and an entire industry has revolved around appealing to one person’s palate.

Today, there is a proliferation of bloggers sharing about wine, each in their own way… However, do wineries even care when we give a positive recommendation, since they can’t create more of their small-production wines to sell? A fellow blogger, who did not disclose he was such, recently told me he was talking about Yelp with a winery host during a tasting in Napa. Her closing comment was that, “there’s only one thing worse than a Yelper – and that’s a wine blogger.” What?! Could this be why IntoWine.com’s list of the 100 Most Influential People in the U.S. Wine Industry has featured only one blogger/online personality in the top 20? We have to consider that the Baby Boomers who brought much of the buying power (and were swayed by scores like Parker’s) have begun to be replaced by younger, socially-driven drinkers and Millennials, who are seeking high-quality wines at a much, much lower price point.

My advice to bloggers, critics of bloggers and to wineries would be to embrace the evolving landscape. Socially-minded drinkers are only going to grow and our sites are likely the places they’ll go for recommendations. Why should any one person, score or method limit the way we think about wine?”

Click to view the rest.

Image courtesy of DrinkNectar.com.

A Special Look at Buccella Wines’ 2010 Releases

Over the past year, Buccella has grown to become one of my favorite wine producers in Napa Valley. As a premium, small-production boutique winery, Buccella is largely known for its bold reds. Back in November, I wrote about my amazing experience drinking Buccella’s 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon and noted that I’d love to be able to try the Merlot after several of my Twitter followers suggested it was equally impressive. I was thrilled to learn that I’d be able to do just that on my recent trip to Napa Valley.

Buccella WinesBuccella

Winemaker Rebekah Wineburg, along with owners Bill and Alicia Deem, welcomed us for an intimate tasting of their 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cuvée Katrina Eileen. (Click each to read tasting notes.) As expected, we were blown away by all three wines, but I was particularly taken by the Cuvée, which is named after the couple’s first daughter. This shouldn’t have been very surprising to me because I am on a 100% Cabernet kick and this wine is made from perfectly-ripened fruit from Yountville and Coombsville vineyards. I actually hadn’t known it existed until we visited. Then, I would say, we all bonded over the Merlot. It’s not often we meet or drink with people who appreciate this varietal as much as we do. They say that even though some people have questioned their decision to make a Merlot, they do it because they like drinking it so much. And, we’re oh, so glad.

I couldn’t help but ask whether or not their youngest daughter, Tessa, would also have a wine named after her one day. I learned that Tessa actually means “harvest,” which was fitting for her fall 2009 harvest birth. To commemorate this, they created a special barrel of a blend of wines made from grapes harvested on her birthday. They offered 5 cases of this wine at the Napa Valley Vintners Premiere Napa Valley Auction in 2010 and it sold for $46,000! Buccella has continued to make this special barrel every year from grapes harvested on her birthday. Other than the Premiere Auction, the Tessa Blend has never been bottled to sell. Continue reading A Special Look at Buccella Wines’ 2010 Releases

Napa Valley Wine Tasting Round-Up

February 2013 “Best of the Best” Wines

In my last post, I profiled our favorites among the 22 wineries we visited earlier this month. This wine tasting round-up was equally as challenging to create because there were 125 to consider! I was not able to take extensive notes on each glass, but I did a daily retrospective to pick out those that were drinking best and whittled my list to 27.

One of the benefits of visiting Napa Valley in February is that many wineries typically release new vintages in the winter. Several were pouring 2005 and 2009+ Cabernets and it was lovely to be able to compare the two after a bit of time in the bottle. If there’s one thing I took away from this trip, it’s that I’m a sucker for 100% Cabernet Sauvignon.

On this visit, we really tried for at least a 50/50 split of new and old favorite wineries to allow for more exploration and discovery. I’ve noted that when I do find something I like, I tend to drink a lot of it – so, I’m looking forward to adding several new finds to my repertoire. Cheers!

February 2013 “Best of the Best” Wines

Whites

Napa Valley Tasting Round-Up

February 2013 “Best of the Best” Wineries

With our first Napa Valley visit of the year now in the books, I wanted to share a quick recap on just some of the incredible wine, food and Living Napa Cabulousexperiences. We were thrilled to benefit from sunny, 70-degree temperatures, which are pretty unusual for wine country during this time of year. The stunning, mustard yellow vineyards were even more beautiful than I remember.

We stayed at the lovely Solage Calistoga resort, which allowed for much-needed relaxation. I was even able to keep up with my Spinning classes at their indoor/outdoor fitness facility and will likely never get enough of their one-of-a-kind pool area or Solbar restaurant.

During the daytime, we filled our itinerary with a great mix of new and favorite wineries.

By the Numbers

Days in Napa Valley: 6

Miles driven in the Valley: 309

Wineries visited: 22

Wines tried during tastings: 125 (not including wine ordered at dinner)

Oysters ordered: 48

Orders of bread pudding for dessert: 3

Pounds gained: TBD

Best of the Best: Wineries

We had so many great tastings, but five wineries jumped out as the “Best of the Best” this visit for their overall experience and top-to-bottom offering of solid, high-quality wine. For those considering a trip to Napa Valley, I would certainly recommend these stops:

Continue reading Napa Valley Tasting Round-Up

Is Napa Valley Changing?

Observations from a Longtime Visitor (and Wine Club Member)

Another Napa Valley trip has come and gone entirely too quickly. As we think about the inevitable return to the hustle and bustle of chilly Chicago, we are happily recalling all of the wonderful things we experienced this visit. Fortunately, we arrived during one of the unseasonable warm spells and were able to soak up 70+ degree temperatures and sunshine, when we usually brace for February rain. We also enjoyed some best-ever meals and had the pleasure of trying many new-to-us wines and wineries. Mixed in with all of this emotion is a tinge of a new feeling as longtime visitors: disappointment. Not in the wine, not in the serene surroundings, but in the way some wineries seem to be evolving.

My husband and I began taking quarterly trips to Napa Valley in early 2009, which was in the depth of America’s economic crisis. As newish visitors, we were floored by the terrific service and wine we had at each turn – especially since we made our first serious visit in February – a typically slow point in the year, characterized by empty tasting rooms, “bad” weather, and, at that point in our country’s history, a “we will do anything to gain new wine club members” mentality. This escape from the doldrums of our hectic, big city routine is what drew us back season after season. We got to know wine educators who would remember to ask about our jobs and families and highlight wines added to the list since our last vacation. During slower winter months, some hosts would sneak us into a cave or barrel room to give us a taste of something special. And, generally speaking, we were presented with a tasting menu that allowed for a representative sampling of all available wines. (Depending on the winery, maybe two menus.) As a result of this impeccable attention and quality wine, we joined a handful of clubs that have ranged from three to 10 in quantity at any given time. While some have maintained a consistent approach with their club members over the span of our tenure, others have taken an unfortunate nosedive. From what we can deduce over these four years, the economy must be on an upswing. We also know that the 2011 vintage was one of the most challenging, leaving wineries and tasting rooms with a limited supply to sell and taste. Both of these factors, coupled with the freakishly warm, Valentine’s Day weekend crowd, contributed to what seemed like a very different experience this time around. Continue reading Is Napa Valley Changing?

10 Tips for a Healthy Napa Valley Vacation

A Dietitian Dishes on Ways to Avoid Wine Weight Gain

Napa Valley vacations are typically characterized by a myriad of tastings by day and multiple-course dinners at Michelin Star-rated restaurants by night. Healthy Napa Valley vacation(And, that’s absolutely how it should be!) However, by the time I enter day three of my trips, I start to feel that indulgence hangover and dread the outcome of stepping on the scale for the first time again at home.  Based on a few of my past posts, you know that I do strive to lead a fairly healthy lifestyle, even though my biggest hobby – wine –doesn’t exactly help. In preparation for my next trip and the busy Napa Valley tourist season, I decided to approach the most relevant expert on this topic to help me and future travelers come and go without adding extra “baggage.”

Sanna Delmonico, MS, RD is a wine-making dietitian based in Napa Valley and was willing to chat with me about ways people can enjoy their vacations sensibly. She works as an Adjunct Instructor at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone, teaching nutrition to culinary students. In her spare time, she and her husband produce approximately 90 gallons of wine annually out of their home garage in partnership with three other families. Based on principles she follows in her own life, Sanna offers tips to adopt before, during and after a wine-centric vacation to maintain balance.

10 Tips for a Healthy Napa Valley Vacation

 

Before the Trip

  • Attempting to drop pounds to compensate in advance for vacation consumption is a bad move. You’re only increasing the chances of overdoing it on the trip or later.
  • Stick to your normal habits beforehand, which should include eating a daily breakfast and a mix of fruit, vegetables, legumes and whole grains.

Managing Vacation Meals

  • Being mindful of your food intake while visiting this world-class wine region doesn’t mean sacrificing satisfaction. While on vacation in Napa Valley, structure meals in a way that will help you feel your best:Healthy Napa Valley vacation
    • Don’t starve yourself in anticipation of a big dinner. In addition to overdoing your meal, it’s never a good idea to taste wine on an empty stomach.
    • Plan to consume smaller portions during the day. Reach for fruit, oatmeal or eggs at the hotel breakfast buffet. Rather than eating a big lunch, visit one of the area’s beautiful farmer’s markets and buy some fruit, bread and cheese for a picnic. Continue reading 10 Tips for a Healthy Napa Valley Vacation