Red wines for the winter...Argentinian Enlightenment!

It's the weekend before Christmas, and I find myself craving big red wines to help lessen the chill of the oncoming winter. I've been on the hunt for a truly excellent < $25 bottle of Napa Valley Cab. I'm sorry to say that the search has not been an easy one. I've had fun trying out a bunch of candidates, but either my taste buds are getting more and more refined, or anytime a Napa Cab shows any real potential, it is priced above a reasonable threshold. Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem spending money on wine, but it's such a very sad commentary on the U.S. wine industry when a “normal” wine guy can’t afford to drink a good Napa Cab regularly.

I didn’t dwell on this unfortunate fact too long as my interests were diverted elsewhere. Every wine lover needs to have a couple of local wine shops that will provide recommendations that might suit an individual’s taste. One such place that came to me completely unexpectedly was my local Cost Plus store. The individuals working the wine section have consistently been very knowledgeable, and I often times have them put together a mixed case for me with their suggestions. I did just that a couple of weeks ago, focusing on wines from Argentina. I’m by no means an expert on Argentinian wines, and admittedly, I’ve only had a few Malbecs to start my education. However, on the backend of a huge disappointment of trying to find a decent Napa Valley wine at the $25 price point, I thought I’d get a bunch of Argentina wines for less than $20, with a few in the <$10 range. Thankfully, my Napa disappointment was followed by Argentinian enlightenment.

One wine in particular blew me away. It was the 2005 COLONIA LAS LIEBRES Bonarda from Mendoza and I think I paid ~7 bucks for it. I chose the wine for 2 reasons: 1. The playful label with running rabbits (my wife is an animal lover), and 2. I had never even heard of the Bonarda grape before. After tasting it for the first time, I forgot all about Napa Valley’s pricing problems. The Bonarda was dark (very dark), and suggested deep fruit up front and although you can feel the tannins on the finish, my mouth continued to water long after…and I simply wanted more. Doing a bit of research, I found that I wasn’t alone in my exuberance for the wine. Wine Spectator reviewed it as a “Best Value” and rated it an 87. For the price, though, and its warming effect on a chilly wintery evening, I give this wine a lot of credit.

The Bonarda, as good as it was, quickly was overshadowed by the bottle that I got as my “splurge” of the mixed case. It was the 2005 BODEGA CATENA ZAPATA Malbec Mendoza, and a great representation of what Malbec is all about…wonderful fruit on the start, and a velvety finish. This wine is in the category of an excellent wine for me, and at ~$20 is one that should be a lesson for the Napa Valley winemakers, who would surely have priced this wine in the $50+ range. I’ll get off my soap box now, but the price/value ratio coming out of Argentina these days really is worth some more exploration...I’ll certainly continue mine.

A Quiet Haven in Napa Valley (really!)

Our favorite place in the world is wine country. Sadly, the Napa Valley has become unbelievably commercialized in the past 10 years. We can even see a HUGE difference in the number of visitors in the last 8 years since we moved to the Bay Area, resulting in traffic jams, crowded tasting rooms, sold out Inns and hotels, and an overall frustrating experience. After “discovering” the relatively unknown joys of Sonoma Valley (especially the Dry Creek and Russian River areas), we rarely returned to its more famous, congested, and often-times maddening neighbor, Napa.

We are happy to report that we have found a small, somewhat concealed haven where you can enjoy the very best of Napa Valley without the aggravation. The area is called Spring Mountain and is located approximately 15 minutes from downtown St. Helena. Getting to and through St. Helena during high season can be challenging, but once you turn off of the main street and make your way up the mountain, you will be exposed to one of the most breathtaking areas in all of Northern California. The “typical” commercialization of Napa is nonexistent, and the enormous, perfectly manicured wineries that you would expect to find turn out to be small, sometimes disheveled, family-run operations. And then you start meeting some of the locals…they don’t seem to have a care in the world, and are perfectly content in their “close isolation” to one of the most popular and busiest towns in all of Napa Valley. And therein lies the beauty of Spring Mountain.

Here are a few suggestions on where to visit in and around Spring Mountain:

1. Wineries to check out: Pride, Barnett, Schweiger, and the now famous Paloma (boasting the #1 rated wine in Wine Spectator's annual Top 100 of 2003)
2. Favorite B&B: Mill Vigne
3. St. Helena Restaurants: Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen, Terra Restaurant

My first real posting...Bella.

Bella is by far my favorite winery (at the moment, anyway). It's in a region of Sonoma County called Dry Creek Valley, and it lies about 15 minutes away from the adorable (and ridiculously expensive) town of Healdsburg. The winery is fairly young but it has quickly become known for killer Zinfandels, of which they make a few versions. The best of the lot are their Big River Ranch Zinfandel and the Lily Hill Estate Zinfandel, the grapes of which lie on the hill adjacent to their tasting room and above their wine cave.

Let me start out by saying that I hate the owners. Actually, they are incredibly nice...my feeling towards them is more of a deep, gnawing, envious one. They are young, outgoing, attractive, and gosh darn it, I'd like to be in their shoes! Oh well...that ain't going to happen anytime soon. What they've achieved in a very short time is amazing. They've created a strikingly beautiful property (supposedly previously owned by the famous Meeker Family since the 1970's) with an incredible wine cave in which they pour wine for tastings and hold events. Most importantly, they've kept it casual and contained. When you visit them, you feel like you're visiting your friends at their home (your very, very wealthy friends)...certainly not the typical experience in many of the corporate-driven wineries these days.

We've been wine club members at Bella for several years now, and they consistently produce some of the best Zinfandels available on the market. Try their 2005 Lily Hill Estate Zinfandel. It has HUGE fruit with very high alcohol (15.5%). The substance and density of the wine is incredible, and you can't not feel satisfied after drinking it down with a good meal among friends. It's not for the faint of heart, though, and you won't want to be driving after a couple of glasses of the stuff. The bottles are also not cheap, (the 2005 Lily Hill Estate Zin is priced at $36/bottle for example), but it is truly one of those bottles that is worth the price. I have never been disappointed. And once you visit with Scott and Lynn Adams and remember the feeling that you had when you were on their property...you'll know why I continue to go back.

Why?

I love wine. Thankfully, my wife and many of our good friends also drink a lot of it. It's a strange thing, too, since I grew up in a household that usually only had a bottle or two of Manischewitz Concord Grape in supply (now Dad has an abundance of "2-buck Chuck" flowing). Regardless, as soon as I drove cross-country from Boston to San Francisco and my eyes laid upon the hills of Napa and Sonoma counties, I knew I'd be hooked. Twelve and half years later, I'm more hooked than I'd like to admit.

Friends often times ask me to send recommendations of favorite wines, and I've thought about putting together a recurring newsletter to share my passion with an extended network of peers and like-minded aspiring wine junkies. The idea never picked up steam, but the world of blogging added so much possibility with interactivity and exchanging of ideas that I thought I would finally give it a go. My wife often jokes that my memory isn't very good, so as a selfish side benefit, it will be a good record for myself of wines tasted, places visited, and good times had. I hope I have the enthusiasm to stick with it.

Why should you read this blog? You probably shouldn't. There are tons of more qualified individuals and resources out there, and it's not like I'm a Master Sommelier or anything...my profession doesn't even have anything to do with the wine industry. I'm really a pretty typical guy who happens to drink a lot of wine, spends a lot of time in Northern California wine country, vacations in places that have amazing wine, and maintains a passion to share my thoughts. Take my opinions for what they are...have some fun...and drink a nice glass of Vino Tinto.