Thanks all.
We headed north to Calistoga to check into our hotel, the
Mount View Hotel and Spa.
The lobby and location were great, but the rooms were pretty small and not soundproof at all. Oh well, we were only staying there one night and thats what you get for booking last minute in Napa for 199 a night. Anyway, we made it to 7:30 dinner reservations at All Seasons Bistro just in time. We chose this place because it was featured in the
New York Times a little while back. We also read (from a different site) that there was an adjoining wine store next door that you could buy from directly and only pay a 15 dollar corkage fee. While it was true that they were next to a wine store, all of its lights were out, and the waiters played dumb when I asked about it. I went from slightly disappointed to really disappointed when our waiter (who looked to be the most experienced of the bunch) could not recommend a good local Pinot. I think she just picked one at random (Tandem "Pelaton" - not bad). For food, we split 2 appetizers and 2 entrees:
App: Lobster Bisque with Truffle Oil
App: Pumpkin Risotto Special
Entree: Sonoma duck "duo" with juices and provencal vegetables
Entree: Roasted Rack of Lamb with Rocolla Pesto
We liked the bisque but were really confused by the risotto. It looked and tasted more like regular rice than risotto. I'm pretty sure they didn't cook the risotto long enough or didn't use enough broth, leaving it pretty flavorless and too crunchy.
The lamb was ok but the duck was pretty bland and overcooked. Both seemed like things we could make better. Regardless, I wasn't really discouraged because this was the dinner I was looking forward to least. I chose it because of the attached wine store and the proximity to our hotel. If we were to trust Zagat, the next three dinners would be far superior, and luckily this ended up being true.
It rained all night, but when we got up the next morning, the weather started clearing up nicely.
We went to breakfast at Cafe Sarafornia. The food was actually really good... just what we needed to get ready for a full day of tasting. (I had andouille sausage with scrambled eggs and Molly had Mexican omlette) We also got a bit of a history lesson. Apparently the town's founder wanted to market the place as the "Saratoga of California". After a few drinks, he accidentally called it the "Calistoga of Sarafornia". Hence the town and restaurant name.
Following up on a recommendation from the day before, I called Vincent Arroyo to see if they had any reservations open. Luckily, they did, and we arrived 10 minutes later.
Vincent Arroyo
Wine: 5/5
Experience: 5/5
This place was great - one of our favorite on the entire trip. We walked into their barrel room and and up to the small tasting table. The main guy was busy with another couple, so another guy (who I think was Vincent Arroyo himself) poured us some chardonnay and asked if we would like a quick unofficial tour. Of course we said yes, so he led us through the back and to the main processing area.
I told him that we didn't know a ton about wine making so he spent the next 20 minutes or so showing us the machines and describing every step along the way. You could tell that he was confident in his company and enjoyed making wine. Turns out Vincent Arroyo sells almost all their wine through "futures". 80% of their wine is sold before it is bottled each year. Luckily for us, the 3 types that they had left were ones that we typically enjoy. (Tastings were free)
Chardonnay '06 ($22) - Excellent. Ridiculous value.
Merlot '05 ($28) - Excellent.
Petite Syrah '05 ($32) - Excellent - our favorite.
JJ's Blend '05 ($20) - Excellent - Light Cabernet blend.
I'm probably going to join their "club" so I can get a shot at the futures for next year. A full list of their wines can be found
here . I really want that Petite Syrah Reserve for $45.
The wine shop was totally separate from the tasting room (which is nice - no pressure), so we headed over to buy some wines. We ended up getting 1 bottle of chardonnay and 2 petite syrah's. Looking back, I wish we had bought more, but I felt silly buying so much at our third winery of the trip. Fueled by the success of the recommendation that bought us here, we asked the cashier about her favorite wineries in the area. She suggested that we go down the road to August Briggs, so that is what we did.
August Briggs
Like Vincent Arroyo,
August Briggs is a small winery with a quaint tasting area. They do have some distribution outside the winery, but not much. When I asked if they have any in NYC, she mentioned that they are only in a couple of restaurants, including Per Se. Not bad. Like Vincent Arroyo, tastings were free. (It seemed like wineries that rely on direct sales tend to charge a lot less for tastings than the wineries with large distribution)
Chardonnay ($32) - Excellent. Tropical fruits with vanilla and a soft oak. Not too heavy and not too light... very nice.
Pinot Noir ($38) - Excellent and our favorite of the bunch. Really nice fruit with a long finish. There was something really unique about this one but I had a hard time putting my finger on it.
Zinfandel ($38) Excellent. Typical zin - blackberry, plum, chocholate. Very nicely done though... we never buy zin and almost bought this one.
Cabernet Sauvignon '04 ($55) Excellent again. One of the cab values we tasted on the trip.
We ended up buying the Chardonnay and the Pinot. Looking back, I regret not buying the Zinfandel. If I had a larger wine refrigerator, I would have bought another Pinot and let it age for another year or so. I highly recommend that anyone traveling to Napa in the Spring stop here and at Vincent Arroyo. Though make sure you call Arroyo before hand and make sure they have wines to taste - I think they are typically sold out for much of the year.
Since we got off to such an early start, we decided to visit one more winery before lunch. After stopping at two small wineries in a row, we figured it was time to do one of the big ones. Sterling seemed to fit the bill perfectly - I've heard good things about the tram tour and the scenery. Plus the clouds had finally left Napa.
Sterling
Wine: 2/5
Experience: 5/5
Sterling was the perfect "big winery" visit in my opinion. Everything was a spectacle - from the huge, industrial facilities to the tram ride to the views from the top of the mountain. The wines were not very good (we chose not to do the reserve tasting... I hear these are pretty impressive), but wine tasting isn't what this place is about. We were too caught up in the scenery to make any meaningful tasting notes, so here are some pictures from our visit:
Taylor's Automatic Refresher
We were starving so we decided to make the 5 minute drive to Taylor's Refresher on Route 29. I heard great things about this place and its burgers but I was still extremely impressed. They cook everything medium-well, but it was still one of the most flavorful burgers I have ever had. Thinking back, I actually think it might be the second best - just behind Resto in NYC. I got the Wisconsin Sourdough, which comes with grilled muschrooms, bacon, cheddar, mayo, and bbq sauce. I also tasted the Western Bacon Blue Ring (onion ring, blue cheese, bacon, pickles, red onion, and bbq sauce) but didn't like it quite as much. The sweet potato fries were the best I have ever had - the chili flavoring really worked for me.
