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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

 

 

 

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

 

I Love Rock ‘n Roll … and Cliff Lede!

This is why you wait.

There are wines to be drunk young, and there are wines that need time. Too many people drink a beautiful bottle way too early. Okay, they bought it, they like it young, fine! But I do question if they KNOW what the wine will become if they just hold it for a few years.

My husband and I just got back from Napa.  We did our usual tour of some new (to us) wineries as well as hitting some of our favorites.

One of the favorites is Cliff Lede, who has great wine and a great tasting experience! Their tasting room is fun and cozy at the same time! The crackling fireplace is perfect on a chilly spring day. Add the fun wine pros, the great tunes filling the airwaves, the beautiful grounds full of rock and roll artwork and blocks named after Cliff Lede’s favorite rock n roll songs, and you’re in store for a very special time!

We tasted some of their wonderful current releases and bought a few. We also bought one of their library wines, and cracked it open tonight!

The 2006 Cliff Lede Stags Leap Cabernet Sauvignon is SINGING! I am in love with this wine! It still has lots of dark fruit and a velvety texture with smooth tannins. Prune, tobacco and a little spice lead to a nice long finish of dark chocolate. Oh, if only I’d bought a case.

Definitely check them out the next time you’re in Napa. The tasting experience is special, and the wines rock!

http://cliffledevineyards.com

Here’s the “Tell” on Patel!

I’m a Right Bank kind of girl. Don’t get me wrong. I love the power and elegance of a great Cabernet Sauvignon and the wines of the Left Bank. There’s some reason, however, that I’ve always had a soft spot for the Right Bank. Is it because I can enjoy them earlier? Perhaps! I love the soft tannins and big fruit of Merlot. Plus, I seem to love to root for the underdog! And the Right Bank and their New World versions do indeed seem to be, for the most part, the underdog!

This Right Bank Bordeaux blend from Patel Winery in Napa Valley is right up my alley.  The blend is 80% Merlot, 11% Malbec, 7% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot.  The nose screams cherry, cherry cherry! Okay, it’s not just cherry! There’s some subtle oak, a touch of leather and some big time floral aromas as well. The velvety palate has black cherry and some other dark fruit, along with some spice and good acidity. This is a great food wine (I want to try this with some Swiss fondue!), but I also enjoyed a glass (or three!) sitting on my deck with a nice breeze, some great tunes, and my hubby and dogs!

Check out Patel Winery here:  http://www.patelwinery.com

 

 

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