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February 2008
The City of Napa Gets a Bit More Hip
Posted: 02:13 PM ET, February 29, 2008
Just like that and Napa’s a little hipper and a little cooler.
Oh, sure, you say. Napa Valley’s been hip and cool for a long time. But I’m not talking about the valley and its vineyards and wineries and wine-tourist magnets such as Calistoga or St. Read more
Stag’s Leap Cabernets Due for a Quality Tuneup
Posted: 01:41 PM ET, February 28, 2008
Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars owns two driver vineyards, Fay and S.L.V., that are among the best in Napa Valley. But the celebrated winery hasn’t been getting great mileage out of either one as of late, and its flagship wine, Cask 23, has been underperforming as well. Read more
A Defensive Letter Reveals Buddy’s "46"
Posted: 12:48 PM ET, February 27, 2008
Each week I receive hundreds of communiqués. Most are e-mails. But a few are prepared and delivered the old- fashioned way, where someone takes the time to pen a hand-written note or typed letter (and stick it in an envelope with a 41-cent stamp on it . Read more
$37,301 Per Ton for Napa Cabernet
Posted: 01:26 PM ET, February 26, 2008
By far the hottest grape in California is Napa Valley Cabernet, which is the reason so many of the wines offered at Premiere Napa Valley (which I wrote a blog about yesterday) are of this variety. It commands big bucks.
Last week one thoughtful source of mine sent along some wine grape prices from the California grape crop report, which are a barometer for wine prices, supply and demand, and general trends about which grapes are hot and which are not. Read more
Premiere Napa Valley Rolls to Another Auction Record
Posted: 01:36 PM ET, February 25, 2008
The wines were tight, but not the bidding.
Everyone seemed to agree that the 2006 reds on display at Premiere Napa Valley on Saturday were tightly wound, as if buttoned down for the night’s storm. But bidders spent freely once again. Read more
Eureka For Wine Lovers And A Perfect Pancake
Posted: 05:28 PM ET, February 22, 2008
Ambiance and company are part of most dining experiences -- and sometimes they are crucial elements. So is one’s hunger level. When you’re famished or thirsty, most things – even simple fare and ordinary wines -- taste pretty good. Read more
Two Great Estates with Room to Grow
Posted: 03:40 PM ET, February 21, 2008
When a winery loses a “driver” vineyard, or changes grape sources, it’s bound to change the quality of the wine.
Yesterday’s blog touched on wineries that used to buy a small portion of the Scarecrow Cabernet grapes, which is but one small and recent example. Read more
Tasting the 2005 Scarecrow (But Beware the Ghost)
Posted: 05:22 PM ET, February 20, 2008
Yesterday Celia Welch Masyczek poured me the new Scarecrow Cabernets, including the bottled 2005, a barrel sample of 2006 and several vineyard blocks of the 2007, which has just finished malolactic.
Masyczek (who also makes wines under the Corra label) makes Scarecrow for owners Bret Lopez and Mimi DeBlasio from their property in Rutherford. Read more
Farewell To Our Oldest Reader
Posted: 10:49 AM ET, February 19, 2008
The last time I wrote about Tom Malloy was after I’d sat down to dinner with him and friends to drink the 2006 Wine of the Year, the 2001 Casanova di Neri Brunello di Montalcino Tenuta Nuova.
A kind reader, Tim Johnson, of Portland, Ore. Read more
Help Wanted: What's Fair with Restaurant Wine Pricing
Posted: 03:00 PM ET, February 15, 2008
I’m packing my fly rod for a weekend of steelhead fishing in the rivers north of Eureka, but not before offering to help an old friend with his new restaurant wine list.
And since he’s wrestling with a concept that I’m sure would delight most of you, I thought I’d seek your input, which in turn we can share with him. Read more
Two Pioneers with Different Styles
Posted: 02:51 PM ET, February 14, 2008
We lost two pioneers of the California wine industry this past week. They were about as opposite as they could be, but they shared a dream.
Peter Newton built one of Napa’s architectural icons in Sterling Vineyards, then sold it and started another winery, Newton. Read more
Sneak Preview of the 2005 Rubicon
Posted: 04:17 PM ET, February 12, 2008
I had a sneak preview of the 2005 Rubicon last week and this should be one of the greatest wines from this storied Napa Valley estate.
Owner Francis Ford Coppola is obsessed with making Rubicon one of Napa's first-growths, and he has the vineyard and winemaking talent to do so. Read more
Bear and Rattlesnake with Jackass Zin
Posted: 05:03 PM ET, February 11, 2008
School fund-raisers ain’t what they used to be. Forget bake and garage sales. How about grilled rattlesnake with a double magnum of 2002 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir to wash it down?
On Friday I was invited to a wild game feast hosted by vintners Pam and Lee Martinelli. Read more
Layer Cake Aims for Quality and Value
Posted: 06:18 PM ET, February 07, 2008
Layer Cake is another of Jayson Woodbridge’s passion plays. But unlike his $250-a-bottle Hundred Acre Cabernet, or his new designer vineyard acquisition, Pickett Road, LC is aimed at value wines and hopefully will subsidize Woodbridge’s more ambitious vinous pursuits. Read more
Steep Price Might Be a Record for Napa Cabernet Land
Posted: 03:42 PM ET, February 06, 2008
This might be one for the record books.
There have been bigger land deals in Napa Valley, both in terms of acreage and total value.
But depending on how you massage the figures, Jayson Woodbridge’s purchase of the Pickett Road Vineyard in California's Napa Valley this week goes down as one of the most expensive per-acre vineyard acquisitions in Napa history. Read more
A New Sonoma Label wIth Zesty Wines
Posted: 01:36 PM ET, February 05, 2008
It came down to this. When Charlie Dollbaum wanted to start his own commercial winery, after making homemade wines for years, he turned to a friend, Dick Keenan, who had what he thought was an excellent vineyard. According to Dollbaum, an oncologist, he "begged" Keenan, an attorney, to sell him his grapes. Read more
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