Wine Tourism

     Following my tasting at Chateau Montelena, which was eye-opening to say the least, we drove up and down Hwy 29 without any plans, popping in to the vineyards which I recognised, which looked good, and one or two others randomly. That is the beauty of Napa - it is geared for tourism: everything is within reach, which is perfect for those (like me) who begin to feel the effects of multiple tastings quickly despite asking for a spittoon at every winery. On that day we visited Grgich Hills Estate, Alpha and Omega, Pride Mountain Vineyards and Heitz Cellars, trying anything and everything we could: with grapes ranging from the usual (Napa Cab) to the unusual ('Port', dessert Gewuertztraminer, Viognier). 

     I was extremely impressed with Grgich Hills, which I had served a few years ago as a waiter in Lake Tahoe, and had seen once or twice in the UK. Their Chardonnay was mildly oaked and seemed to focus its attention on a complex blend of passion fruit, lemon zest and touches of tropicality. Lower in alcohol than many Napa Chardonnays, it was certainly one to remember. The stand-out from this vineyard, however, was something I was not expecting to come across - a late harvest blend of Gewuertztraminer, Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc which they had named 'Violetta'. It had an amazingly intense nose which reminded me of a Mosel Spaetlese, with plenty of apricot and cherry blossom. It carried a touch of acidity to the back of the palate which balanced out the deep sweetness quite well. Despite its price ($85) it was a very interesting dessert wine. 

  Heitz Cellars was one that caught my eye on the drive in, and is a vineyard that I have bought from in the UK before. We pulled in and were welcomed by a very knowledgable man who knew exactly who I had bought it from just months before. He showed us their extensive range of boutique Cabernet Sauvignons ranging from $60 to upwards of $150 per bottle. All were very heavily oaked (3 and a half years), powerful and bright, with notes of cherry and eucalyptus running through. The star here was a 2000 'Martha's Vineyard' which was opened specially for us, and did not disappoint! 

Less exciting was a trip to the relatively new Alpha and Omega, which for some reason has a great reputation in the US. This was lost on me though as the Cabernets we tried were incredibly young, nowhere near ready and rather acidic. They said they were making them in the Pomerol style, but what was produced was not plush and exuberant, but rather sharp. From there, however, we were given a tip to drive out to Pride Mountain Vineyards north of Calistoga about 30 minutes, and this was definitely worth the trip! 

     Pride straddles the border between Napa and Sonoma counties, so all their grapes are weighed and categorised as soon as they are picked so each bottle can describe the percentage from each county each wine contains. They are renowned for their Viognier which was described to me by a rival winemaker as "the best outside of Condrieu", and has been served at the White House Christmas Dinner 9 years running. It lived up to expectations: even the 2011 was fantastically developed, showing an amazingly floral nose and a palate that wasn't too oily, with dancing fresh acidity all the way through. The finish was lengthy and luscious, while maintaining an impressive composure of jasmine, peach and lychee. Another feature of Californian wines that Pride have managed to integrate extremely well is the high alcohol content: this particular wine was listed officially at 14.2%, but that was not at all noticeable. 

     All in all, it was a day packed full of a vast array of styles and grapes, but one that I will never forget. The variety in Napa is astounding, and I'm sure I will be trying to map it out for many, many years to come.  

Chateau Montelena

For the first of 3 posts about tasting in Napa Valley I will focus on just one winery. Chateau Montelena was the first place I had a reserved tasting and is situated in the north of Napa Valley in the small town of Calistoga. It is a beautiful place with a stone chateau nestled in the side of the hills covered in trees. The left side has been renovated to accommodate the tourists which now bring so much revenue in the area. I was brought to a private room where 6 glasses were lined up ready to go. 

I was led through the tasting by a girl who was extremely passionate about the place. First was their Potter Valley Riesling which is made in a traditional German style - an ode to the founder of the Chateau who was himself German and a great fan of the grape. It was off-dry, yet wonderfully balanced without the flabbiness and sticky nature of many Napa Rieslings. Being a big fan of Riesling made in this style, I really enjoyed this wine - perfect for fresh seafood, or asian dishes. From there I was given the 2009 Chardonnay. The Chardonnay here has been very well-known since the Judgement of Paris in the 70s, and especially since the recognition in the movie Bottleshock. The tasting did not disappoint - it was a spectacular wine that was subtle yet powerful from nose to the back of the palate. Beautiful sugary nuttiness on the finish, with a silky blossom, citrus and tropicality on the palate. It was lengthy and very impressive - definitely one to savour, if given the chance. 

What was apparent though, was that they wished to show off their Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. I was then given four vintages of this in a row, from 04, and 06 through 08. The 2004 was sublime - well-rounded, gripping tannins were the feature, with a punchy blackcurrant palate, touches of cedar-wood and an almost minty coolness providing an exciting mouthful. 

The next three vintages were varying in their excellence. They all seemed very young and not sure of their feet quite yet. The 2007 was mediocre despite the perfect growing weather in the season, while the 2008 showed fantastic promise, with very well-integrated alcohol and structure. The star was however the 2006 which had a very impressive fruity palate that took over and lasted for ever, with a silky tannic hold assisting. 

Overall, the Chateau, while catering for tourists, seemed to hold a sense of being solely about the wine. They were very well-made and all incredibly powerful. However, due to relatively small production and costs, it is near impossible to find it over in the UK, a great shame. This does mean though that I am not going to be able to shell out £100 or so per bottle very often. My favourite of the tasting had to be the Chardonnay. It certainly lived up to expectation and at around £40 per bottle it is a steal for those special occasions. If any of you are in the States, it would be worth buying one or two.

Napa Valley

Over this busy summer I have been working at the Seafood Restaurant with their wine list, but towards the end I was allowed to escape for a couple weeks and managed to get over to the USA where my family is from. I snuck away for a couple days and visited Napa Valley - somewhere that has always appealed to my love of American wine and culture. It did not disappoint. This first post about Napa is more a general impression of the area, while later ones will detail tastings and recommendations. 

I was travelling with my flatmate in St Andrews, and although he isn't quite as in to wine as me, he was open to try it, and did not feel left out. This seemed to be the theme of the Valley: openness to any level of appreciation. He was always made to feel welcome at all the vineyards, whether they were talking to me about the length of oak ageing, or pouring us tastes of new vintages. 

We drove in from the South and immediately drove North along Hwy 29 all the way up to Calistoga, to be ready to taste at 10am at Chateau Montelena, of Bottleshock fame. The climate in the summer is hot - around 28 degrees - and cool in the evening, with little to no chance of rain. It was an idyllic setting to drive towards. The Valley itself is relatively contained, and Hwy 29 is only paralleled by one other road, meaning that everything is right there and easily reached. We were bombarded by signs advertising tastings from 10am until 5pm every day, offers such as 'Crazy Good Cabernets' and 'The Wine is Bottled Poetry' and much more. We had booked just the one tasting in advance, with the intention of popping in wherever took our fancy afterwards, and in retrospect this was the best way to do it. Driving along the Highway I saw a few vineyards from whom I had recently bought, and it was great to be able to decide to pull up unannounced and be welcomed for a selection to try without pre-booking, as one would surely have to do in Europe. 

The impression I was given about wine-making in Napa was that it was unrestricted and all about passion. One wine-maker I was talking to said that he had given up a career in France to work in California because of the lack of restrictions on grape variety, length of ageing, materials you can use - the list goes on. For him, the Californian wine industry was all about what you wanted to do, if you made good wine, well done, otherwise you wouldn't sell it! The soil and climate is so suited to viticulture, that with that passion, it is possible to produce fantastic wine. The vast majority of what we tried was fantastic, and if not, it was at least interesting, off the wall or something I had never before thought of trying. 

Napa was, for want of a better word, alive and a place I would without doubt live and work. If one doesn't want to live and work there, one leaves. It seems to be as simple as that. As a result, everyone, down to those working part time in the tasting rooms pouring wine for tourists, loved what they were doing and that was a very impressive and likeable trait. 

Keep your eyes peeled for a series of write-ups of a selection of the vineyards I visited - they are without doubt worth watching out for.