Thursday, June 3, 2010

San Francisco to Napa to Mendocino

Just walked into my hotel in Mendocino and definitely feel like I walked into an episode of Murder She Wrote. From the rocky coastal scenery outside that I grew up seeing on that show every week to the clusters of elderly locals, all bundled up in wooly sweaters, having cocktails at the bar while they gossip in hushed voices...it's pretty surreal. I have to say though, that I still don't understand how it never seemed to bother people through all those seasons of Murder She Wrote that the ocean was on the wrong side of the coastal scenes. The sun doesn't set over the ocean in Maine, kids (in no small part because the ocean is off the east coast of Maine). Never has, never will. You heard it here first.

Now that I got that off my chest, let's back up. I ended up spending an extra night in San Francisco and after hitting Cafe Tartine in the mission Tuesday morning, where I had the greatest ham and cheese croissant I have ever had (there are no words...), I headed for Napa.

By the time I checked into a B&B in town and headed out to do a couple tastings, I was starving. So, I hit V. Sattui first because I heard it had a great deli, which it does, though the wines I tasted were unremarkable. Then I made a pilgrimage to Charles Krug (where Robert and Peter Mondavi both started out before their big feud sent Robert packing). I was glad to hear that they made up in '06, two years before Robert passed away. As for the wine, I tasted about 7 Family Reserve and Limited Release wines (all reds) and they were all interesting and high quality, but none of them really measured up to my favorite Italian wines (example--'99 Barbi Brunello Di Montalcino--I like my reds fairly dry and acidic with just as much emphasis on earthiness as fruitiness and I only like a really full bodied wine if the body factor is all about packing in as many nuances as possible rather than simplistic heaviness in the mouth). That said, my favorite wine at Krug was the 2006 Limited Release X Clones (100% cabernet, only 450 cases produced) because it had such a smooth and refined, but very firm, structure and a nice acidity that genuinely made me wish I had a steak to go with it. The only California wines that I like as much as my favorite Italian wines (and a couple French--not many French faves though because so many good French wines are overpriced, particularly compared to their Italian counterparts) are from Shafer, but their tastings are booked at least a month in advance, so doing a tasting at Shafer was not an option because I am not remotely that organized.

Today, after pounding a couple iced coffees and a scone at Napa Valley Coffee Roasters (great coffee), I headed to Mumm to do a sparkling wine tasting. I was going to hit Beringer for a tasting too, but it never happened because I was having too much fun at Mumm sipping 5 different sparkling wines on a beautiful sunny patio looking over the vineyards while munching on dried fruit and nuts and crackers and returning a big chunk of calls that needed returning. I also strolled through this great photography exhibit they have up until the end of September--Paris Icons by James Scholz, which made me miss Paris so much that I renewed my little vow to myself that I would get there twice a year no matter what.  I was there for a week in March (seems so long ago), so I just have to get there once more this year to be in good standing with myself.

After I left Napa, I made my way to Mendocino via 116 through the Russian River Valley and up the coast on Rt. 1. The stretch of Rt.1 from Jenner to Mendocino is my third favorite stretch of road so far-basically one big roller coaster ride with its never-ending switchbacks combined with stomach-dropping dips and climbs all the way. Added bonus--everyone had very good etiquette and pulled over to get out of my way as fast as they could when they saw me fly up behind them. Just one gorgeous stretch of road with nothing but team players on it. Fabulous. The downside was that I didn't stop to take any pics because I didn't want to make everyone I had already passed pull over for me again because I was feeling all this peer pressure to be a team player. I will try to focus more on picture taking and less on being a team player tomorrow. That is my promise to you.

San Francisco through the Golden Gate Bridge

A freight ship passing the Point Bonita Lighthouse as it leaves San Francisco Bay

Rodeo Beach

Two comparison tastings at Mumm (the Santana came later): (1) The slightly sweet tasting--Cuvee M v. Demi Sec and (2) The sparkling red tasting--Sparkling Pinot Noir v. Cuvee M Red (96% pinot noir and 4% syrah).  I was a big fan of the Cuvee M Red and now I can't wait to get home and order some so my mimosas can be prettier than everybody else's. That's right, you heard me, I said it.

No comments:

Post a Comment