A real Rebellious Red (I'm not talking about myself, haha)

Despite the hundreds of times that I've passed Sequoia Grove Winery, it never occured to me to go tasting there. The barn-like exterior of the winery is very similar to their next-door neighbor Sawyer Cellars, and I'd never read any reviews of the Sequoia Grove wines. But earlier this week, while wine tasting on Hwy 29 with two fellow employees, we took our chances--and I'm so glad we did!

The tasting room at Sequoia Grove was rustic, but seasonally decorated with pine branches, red bows, and Christmas lights. They had many coffee table books, beautiful Schott-Weisel glasses, and a very welcoming staff. Vicki, who has worked at Sequoia Grove for ten years, enthusiastically poured all of the open wines for us, including a Sauv Blanc, Chardonnay, Cab Franc, 2005 Syrah and 2006 Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, the Reserve Cab, and my favorite, the 2007 Rebellious Red.

For $28 a bottle, the Rebellious Red is a steal! It's a blend of Cab, Merlot and Syrah, which is becoming not-so-unsual, but a fascinating blend nonetheless. With plummy fruit flavors and bold tannins, this wine is rich and ripe. Although enjoyable now, it's a little young, and could probably benefit from at least a few months in the bottle. But as a redhead, how could I not love a bottle of wine called "Rebellious Red"?

Volker Eisele "Terzetto" sings with flavor

If you haven't been to Press Restaurant in St. Helena on a Wednesday night recently, you're missing out on the best deal in town. Every Sunday, Wednesday and Thursday, the restaurant offers a "Blue Plate" special, one ever-changing dish that is always only $10. But the best part about going on Wednesdays is the 50% discount off the entire wine list and/or free corkage.

The special last week was bacon-wrapped meatloaf with whipped potatoes and green beans, so I showed up at the bar with a friend and a bottle of the 2005 Volker Eisele "Terzetto" (the word terzetto is an opera reference for three voices singing in harmony). The dish was delicious, and the wine was a beautiful representation of my three favorite varietals; the Terzetto is always 1/3 Cab, 1/3 Cab Franc, and 1/3 Merlot and the 2005 vintage really shines with bright, cherry fruit balanced by earthiness and smooth tannins.

Volker Eisele Family Estate is located in Chiles Valley, and if you don't want to make the half-hour-plus trek out Sage Canyon Road, their wines are often available to taste at Cult Wine Central, the Tasting Room at the Napa Wine Company in Oakville.

Volker and his wife Leisel are originally from Germany; they brought with them an Old-World style of wine making as well as a passion for organic farming. The vineyards were planted by Volker back in 1975. Their portfolio of wines, including the 2007 Gemini (a white blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon), 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon, and the 2005 Terzetto, are all grown organically on their estate. While the white is crisp and refreshing, the reds are earthy and robust, and with vibrant fruit flavors and sturdy tannins, these wines have tremendous ageing potential.

Big tasty Zins on Big Ranch Road

It's definitely off the beaten path, and definitely worth the detour from Silverado Trail. Until visiting the winery, I had never tasted any of the Robert Biale wines, but I've seen them on wine lists at high-end resturants.

Robert Biale Vineyards has a facility off of Big Ranch Road; drive slowly or you'll miss the sign like we did. Once you locate it, the tasting room is a cozy wood-paneled room with friendly and attentive staff. We arrived a little after 11 am and had the place to ourselves. Maggie, whose family owns the winery in conjunction with the Biales, poured us 4 different Zinfandels, 2 Petite Sirahs, and a little of their new Port.

I loved the first Zinfandel we tasted--the 2006 "Black Chicken". It was a big and jammy wine, with surprisingly smooth tannins. With layers of blackberry and plumy fruit on the palate, the fruit-driven finish is long and juicy. It lacked the typical spicy quality, but it had the balance and complexity of a Cabernet.

The fourth Zinfandel that Maggie poured for us was even more complex, with a brightness that is uncommon for a Napa Valley Zin. It was a small lot production from their Monte Rosso vineyard. With good acidity and vibrant cherry fruit profile, this wine would make a great accompaniment to any dish--from a burger or steak to a spit-roasted chicken or spaghetti bolognese. If you're a Zinfandel fan (or even if you're not), I highly recommend Robert Biale wines.

Mmmmm Mumm

It's not your typical tasting room, but it has it's perks. A tasting at Mumm Napa Valley on the Silverado Trail is a relaxing experience best enjoyed on a bright sunny and warm day. They have a plethora of outdoor tables (with umbrellas for those of us who bake in the sun) and cushy lounge chairs facing the endless rows of vines. In other words, a tasting at Mumm is not a quick one, but an experience to be enjoyed over the course of at least an hour.

The set-up at Mumm is more like a restaurant in which you are seated and a server takes your order. It's a bit more formal and structured than most tasting rooms, but it's not stuffy. You can order a glass of wine or a flight; I highly recommend the flight that includes 2 oz of the following: 2005 Blanc de Blancs, Brut Prestige NV, and the Brut Rose NV.

I would be happy to drink the Brut any night, but for my taste buds, the Blanc de Blancs and the Rose were the most interesting. The Blanc de Blancs is light and creamy with apple and hazelnut notes; the Rose is bright and refreshing, with juicy strawberry notes. The latter makes a terrific and very festive aperatif for the holidays.

Mumm also has a revolving art gallery, which is always worth a peek.

The Rutherford Trifecta

I've always been surprised by the number of wineries with "Rutherford" in the title. There are three of them and I had never heard anything about the wines. So we set out one day recently to check out these three "Rutherford" wineries. This is the order in which I would rate them:

If you take the entrance to Auberge du Soleil and keep driving past the front gate to the resort, you'll find yourself at a breathtaking plateau where Rutherford Hill Winery is located. Unfortunately, the views and the architecture of this Terlato-owned winery are the main highlights. But the Zinfandel Port paired with chocolate-covered blueberries was worth going inside the tasting room.

The wines at Rutherford Grove Winery were good, but what made it unique was the opportunity to buy a bottle and it enjoy it on the premise (this particular permit is not easy for a winery to obtain, as is the "picnic permit"). On the next perfect picnicking day, I would go to Rutherford Grove and purchase a bottle of the Quackenbush Zinfandel to enjoy on the lawn just outside the Tasting Room.

My favorite of the three was Rutherford Ranch Winery on the Silverado Trail. The wines were affordable and surprisingly smooth. The Rutherford appellation tends to produce lighter-bodied wines and the wines from here were no exception, but they were tasty and seemed very versatile in terms of food pairings. Especially for the price, the $18 Cabernet Sauvignon was great!

The first and last dinners

We all know this is a blog about wine tasting in Napa Valley, but hopefully one more little tangent about my trip to New York won't kill you. It was a short-but-sweet excursion filled with incredible food and drink (some of which was from Napa), so I'm not going too far off course here.

My favorite and most memorable meals were the first and the last, both were dinners. But our first meal on our first full day was also worth mentioning; we enjoyed creative selections of panini with an elegant and robust Barolo at the Bottega del Vino.

At 9:15 pm on a Tuesday night (shortly after we arrived), we checked in at db moderne, Daniel Boulud's restaurant in the Theater District and home to the $50 foie gras burger. Without reservations, we were asked to wait a few minutes, and then we were seated in the more casual section (the more formal part of the restaurant was fully committed, even at that hour!).

After perusing the mostly French and Italian wine list, we asked for the advice of the sommelier. He guided us toward an "unusual" blend of Syrah and Cabernet from the Rhone that he found "interesting". Although my fellow wine enthusiast was content with this selection, I thought it a little masculine and probably would have ordered a Chateauneuf-de-pape. That being said, the terrine of foie gras and the Berkshire pork ternderloin we ordered were so artfully presented and exquisitely flavored, the food seemed to improve the tannic nature of our chosen wine. Though for future reference, I will steer clear of any wine that a sommelier describes as "interesting" or "unusual".

On our last night, we arrived early for our 8:30 reservations at Bobby Flay's upscale steakhouse, Bar Americain. We relaxed at the bar with a split of Veuve Clicquot and the best oysters I've ever had. Whoever told me that bigger oysters are usually lackluster in flavor was very wrong. The phrase, "the smaller, the sweeter" in regards to oysters may be true, but the big ones deserve some praise, too. Especially if they are from Fanny Bay, British Columbia--I could have eaten 2 dozen!

When we decided on which wines to take with us, I didn't know where we would be eating, but the bottle of 2006 Provenance Three Palms Vineyard Merlot was a good pick. Unlike most Merlot, this particular bottling is complex and very full-bodied. It complimented our ribeye surprisingly well. Although Cabernet Sauvignon would have been my first instinct had I known we would be dining at a steakhouse, this Merlot, with it's rich, plumy fruit and earthy undertones, was just the ticket--even if we didn't get tickets to a Broadway show. Nonetheless, we went back to the hotel very satisfied and quite content.

Provenance Vineyards, located in Rutherford off of Highway 29, makes more than a few tasty Merlots. I also love their crisp Sauvignon Blanc!