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Pairing Your Childhood With A Wine? Heck ‘ya!

Pairing Your Childhood With a Wine? Heck ‘ya!

The other night I decided to pair one of my favorite wineries in Napa with a childhood favorite recipe.

I remember learning how to make a mini pizza with an english muffin in my junior high school home economics class. I took the recipe home, and my mom and I used to make them together.

I haven’t made them since. Fast forward 40 plus years. I was looking for some easy recipes to make on busy nights and could pair with a simple salad to make a meal. I remembered the English muffin “pizzas” I had made so long ago, and that they were pretty darned tasty and super easy to throw together. So, for a quick Sunday night supper I decided to give it another try.

I used whole grain english muffins for a healthy twist. I added some of my favorite marinara sauce, some onion, mozzarella and parmesan, and topped it off with some Italian seasonings and popped them in the oven. P.S. If you’ve never made these fun little tasty treats, be sure to toast the muffins first to keep them from getting soggy. Then add the sauce and whatever toppings you like, and put them in a 400-degree oven for about 15 minutes! As they say, easy as pie. Not that I think making a pie is necessarily easy!

Before beginning the “pizza” process, I had a bottle of 2015 Napanook decanting. Dominus is definitely one of my favorite Napa Valley wines. I’m a big fan of Bordeaux wines (who’s not???), so the Napa (New World) winery of Chateaux Petrus is definitely my style!

Napanook is Dominus’ second label. What is a second label wine? Well, top wineries and chateaux blend together their best grapes’ juice to produce their best possible wine for the Grand Cru or “first wines”.  What do they do with the remaining juice???  Many of them make a second wine. Usually made by the same winemaker in pretty much the same way as the winery’s famous wine, the big difference is that the juice for the second wine is often from younger vines or the second press. Although these wines may not be AS complex, balanced and sublime, they ARE a lot less expensive!  It’s a great way to try big name Bordeaux or other famous wines without the big-time price tag.

The 2015 is a blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. On the nose are plum, violet and notes of licorice. The medium plus body is silky and lovely to savor in the mouth. The plum is also on the palate, along with dark cherry, chocolate and a touch of spice. The tannins are super smooth and the wine is beautifully balanced. I could drink this wine every night!!!

Perhaps it wasn’t the perfect pairing with my childhood mini pizzas, but it worked. Plus, my husband and I had the rest of the bottle to enjoy as dessert.

There was only one thing better about the meal than this stunning wine; the memories I enjoyed of my mom and me making this cute little meal together. I only wish that she was still here so that she could have joined us!

To discover more about Dominus, Napanook and their wines, check out their website here:

http://www.dominusestate.com

 

A Great Day At Chappellet!

A Great Day at Chappellet!

Schewww! We just made it. In mid-February of 2020 we were fortunate enough to attend a fabulous long weekend of tasting in Napa with some friends. We tasted some of the best of the best that California has to offer. A few days after arriving home, the shit hit the fan. COVID 19. The world has changed. So many businesses have changed. The wine world has also changed greatly.

So, we feel blessed. We had one last great wine experience before the devastating pandemic that has killed so many people and changed so many lives!

One of the wonderful wineries we were fortunate enough to visit was the classic Chappellet! The gathering was delightful and memorable.

We’ve been opening a lot of gems during the pandemic, partly because we’re sad and also because we’re not going out and about to buy more wine. Tonight, we opened a 2010 Chappellet that we had in our cellar. What a lovely treat.

We decanted it for about 90 minutes. The blend is 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, 7% Malbec and 4% Petit Verdot.

This wine is drinking beautifully now. On the nose is earth, tobacco, and some stewed dark fruit. If I was tasting this wine blind, I might think it was an old world. There is dark chocolate, plum and licorice on the palate. The fruit is holding up nicely as well. If you have any bottles of this 2010, go ahead and enjoy them. It’s in a really nice place right now.

Napa is slowly opening up again, so don’t be afraid to head their way. Now that the vaccination is out, I’m hoping to travel again soon, and can’t wait for my next wine destination. Until then … I’m enjoying some gems from my cellar!

To learn more about Chappellet, here’s their website: https://www.chappellet.com

 

 

 

Ribbons & Bows And Plum On The Nose!

Ribbons & Bows and Plum on the Nose!

I’m a little crazy about Christmas. My husband and I absolutely love the holidays and we decorate our house from top to bottom. We love to relish in the festivities of December and the holiday season.

After bringing up all of the boxes of decorations, we pick out some fun bottles of wine to enjoy while beginning the long (but fun!) process of turning our Florida home into a winter wonderland.

This year we started with a bottle of bubbly from one of my favorite wineries in Sonoma, Iron Horse Vineyards! I personally think that EVERY day is a great day for bubbles, so how could I possibly begin decorating without a great glass of bubbles?

We chose a bottle of 2014 Iron Horse Harvest Moon from the Green Valley of Russian River Valley appellation. 72% Pinot Noir and 28% Chardonnay, this wine has very fine bubbles with toasty brioche on the nose and apple and pear on the palate. This beautifully balanced sparkling wine was a great way to start the evening!

Not only does Iron Horse make some wonderful wines, they are located in an absolutely gorgeous spot!  Their rustic outdoor tasting room has a magnificent view and is a must visit spot if you’re in Northern California Wine Country!

After our bubbles we poured ourselves some 2013 Sixteen Appellations. Now a part of the Italics portfolio, Sixteen Appellations began in 2002 when several Napa vintners got together with the idea of using grapes from all of the Napa appellations (then 13) and blending the grapes into a single wine. They wanted a wine to represent the entire Napa Valley. Cool, right??? As appellations were added, the name changed. In 2012 the 16thAVA (Coombsville) was added, thus the 2013 name of Sixteen Appellations!

This Bordeaux blend consists of 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot.  The color is deep ruby. After an hour or so decant, on the nose are red cherry, currant and some coffee. On the palate the fruits are riper, with plum and cherry leading the way, complimented by baking spices and good acidity. This is a really fun wine and I’ll be buying more!

I absolutely love the month of December. The holiday season truly is my favorite time of the year and I love to drink some of my favorite wines and discover some new favorites along the way!

So cheers to you all! I wish you happy decorating and happy drinking!

 

 

Head To T-Vine For Some FUN Wine!

Head to T-Vine for Some FUN Wine!

When I first got into wine, I loved Zinfandel! I mean I loved loved loved Zinfandel.  Now, I’m not talking about the sweet pink stuff. I’m talking about the lovely red Zinfandel wines, the way the varietal was intended to be … in my opinion. I certainly don’t judge people who like it pink! (As long as you’re enjoying wine, you’re cool in my book!)

That being said, as time went by, my palate changed and most Zins (not just the pink ones) became too much for me. So many are too big, too jammy and too oaky for me.

On my last visit to Napa, I discovered a Zin that I like a lot! Now don’t get me wrong, this Zin is NOT small! It’s full of fruity wonderfulness, but it’s not TOO much! I really enjoyed it! Perhaps my palate has come full circle?

T-Vine Winery is located in Calistoga and has a very cool tasting room.  It’s super modern, has gorgeous vineyard views, and is a perfect size. My husband and I bellied up to the tasting bar and enjoyed all of their wines. Heck, we ended up buying a case!

My favorites included their Petite Sirah, Grenache and this Zin from the Black Sears Vineyard.

In the glass, the Zin is bright garnet in color, with aromas of blackberry, plum, and licorice. On the palate, there is lots of blackberry pie, raisin, and some spicy pepper.

The ’14 T-Vine Black Sears Vineyard Zinfandel is velvety smooth and not overbearing! The high elevation of Howell Mountain is a great spot to grow Zinfandel, and this wine is a testament to that!

The next time you’re in Napa, be sure to check out T-Vine Winery. If your travel plans aren’t heading that way anytime soon, check out their website. You can order all of their wines online, and they have some killer shipping deals!

Check it all out here: https://www.tvinewinery.com

 

Looking For A Great Napa Cab? Check Out Piña!

Looking for a Great Napa Cab? Check out Piña!

I have a new favorite winery in Napa. It’s not a fancy place, but that’s okay with me! The wine’s not cheap, but it’s definitely worth the price! They don’t make a gazillion different wines with a bunch of different varietals, but in my mind that makes sense!

Piña is located right on Silverado Trail, but if you’re not looking for it you’ll drive right by. The tasting room is the barrel room, which I love! To me there’s nothing more special than tasting wines amongst the barrels holding future vintages of the wine I’m drinking. Sure, the lavish tasting rooms are lovely too! There’s just something I adore, though, about the rustic authenticity of hanging out in the gut of the winery!

I’ve visited Piña a couple of times now and have had great tastings each time. Claire has helped us out both times, and although his initial impression is somewhat reserved, he opens up quickly and loves to tell us all about their wines. He even seems to enjoy our company and laughs at our jokes!

Tonight I’m drinking their 2012 Wolff Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon. On the nose I smell roses: a dozen roses!!! This medium-bodied 100% Cabernet Sauvignon has smooth, silky tannins, with black cherry, black currant, some lovely earthiness and is not over the top with new world hugeness. The alcohol is 14.7% but you’d never know it. It’s not hot at all and is very well balanced. I look forward to trying more of this vintage after a few more years in the bottle!

This isn’t their only Cab Sauv! They have five different vineyard bottlings (all fabulous!), as well as a Reserve (which unfortunately I have yet to try) and a Second Wine called CAHOOTS. They also have a Chardonnay that my husband loves!

So the next time you’re in Napa and looking for a new (for you) winery to visit, be sure to stop at Piña. The experience is a fun one, and if you’re into Cabernet Sauvignon, their wines won’t disappoint!

To find them, check out their website here:

http://www.pinanapavalley.com

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