And we couldnt’ be more excited. If you’re planning on being in the Los Angeles area anytime between Thursday January 14th and Sunday January 17th, then you my friends, are in for a treat. The good folks at Pinot Days have a slew of events lined up, and each will be centered around tastes of wonderful Pinot Noir. A 10% discount on all of the festival’s spectacular events has been extended to WineExpedition fans and friends. We will be emailing this offer to everyone on our mailing list over the weekend, so if you’re not on the list, go to our Newsletter page and sign up.

The schedule of events is below. NOTE: Neil will be at the Grand Festival on Sunday January 17th in Santa Monica; come say hello (if you’re one of the first to do so, they’ll be a WineExpedition T-Shirt in it for you)!

Grand Festival, January 17th

The Grand Festival is the most comprehensive gathering of pinot producers ever, featuring over 75 producers of domestic pinot and pinot from around the globe. We’re excited to say that WineExpedition friends Sojurn Cellars and Archery Summit will be there; a complete list of participants can be found here. Come meet the winemakers, hear their stories and immerse yourself in the noble grape- located at Barker Hangar in Santa Monica.

Winemakers Dinner at the Peninsula, January 14th

Enjoy an incredible, pinot-paired dinner and eighteen different pinots, as well as the colorful, gifted winemakers who create them. Executive Chef James Overbaugh’s culinary style emphasizes fresh local seasonal ingredients, creativity and flavors from around the world. His career is long and illustrious, and his accolades include a near-perfect score of “28” in Zagat’s America’s Top Restaurants guide. This four-course dinner will knock your socks off, and is not one you want to miss!

Winemakers Dinner at Sage on the Coast, January 16th

Chef Rich Mead is a mastermind of pairings, and Sage is his realization of his dream. The key, he says, is sourcing local farmers to supply the highest quality ingredients, and then combining them in a way that allows their true flavors to come through. Chef Mead’s fresh ingredients and light touch make him the perfect chef to create courses that complement pinot noir. Enjoy an incredible, four course, pinot-paired dinner and eighteen different pinots, as well as the colorful, gifted winemakers who create them. The winemakers will move seats with every course so that they are able to share their stories with attendees.

Retail Store Tastings, January 14th-15th

In order to let wine lovers know about pinot and Pinot Days, three in-store tastings have been arranged at wine retailers in the days preceding the Pinot Days Grand Festival. On average, four producers will pour their spectacular pinots to customers who come to taste, as well as those who have the good fortune of wandering in at the right time. The pinots you taste will impress you, lead you back to the retailer for more, and tempt you to join 75 such producers at the Pinot Days Grand Festival. The scheduled tastings:

K&L Wine Merchants Hollywood - 1400 Vine Street, Hollywood, Thursday, January 14th, 5:00pm-7:00pm Cost: $25

Wine Exchange - 1500 E. Village Way, Orange, Thursday, January 14th, 4:00pm-7:00pm Cost: $20

Wine House - 2311 Cotner Avenue, Los Angeles, Friday, January 15th, 7:00pm-9:00pm, Cost: $25

Click here for prices and more info. Again, this weekend we’ll be emailing a 10% discount offer on all event tickets, so if you’re not already signed up, go to our Newsletter page and register. We hope to see you there!

…Craig from Sojourn repeated the question: “…what are your guys’ plans for the rest of the day?” (he didn’t really repeat it, but since I’m continuing from yesterday’s blog post, I thought it would be good to repeat the question for storytelling purposes. I’m taking creative license).

“Why do you ask, Craig?” I inquired. He quickly replied: “You guys have got to go up to Audelssa and meet Erich… But you’ll never make it in that thing. Grab your cameras and jump into my SUV…” And we were off. The WineExpedition team of 3 (myself included) jumped into the truck with Craig and Ziggy and started up the steep, mountain road above Glen Ellen. (By the way, he was right. The RV would have never made it…).

1800 feet above sea level later, we arrived at the Audelssa Winery. We were basically sitting on the Sonoma slope of the Mayacamas Mountains, on the backside of Mount Veeder. We walked 20 paces from the truck and looked down upon the terraced vineyards, on past oodles of rolling hills into the cloudy skies above the San Francisco bay. We met Erich Bradley, the winemaker for both Audelssa and Sojourn who quickly turned our attention to a Golden Eagle flying overhead (if I had a nickel for every time I’ve seen a Golden Eagle… I’d have a nickel).

Erich gave us a tour of the vines (we had to avoid the rocks on the edge of the vineyards as that’s where the rattlesnakes live). He pointed out the different soil types that comprised each corner of the vineyard, and how that affected the flavors in the wine. As I studied the STEEP terraces, I imagined that harvest time must be a real treat. I was also working up quite a thirst, and I expressed to Erich my desire to taste the soils’ influence on the wine. He pointed to a house up above us and said… “We can go taste on the deck up there”. Thankfully, we took his truck.

I thought the view couldn’t get any better… but it did. We sat up on that deck and looked down on the world below. Incredible. I was curious to taste the wine… I love Erich’s pinots at Sojourn, but the wines here at Audelssa were much more about Bordeaux… A classic blend as well as an estate Cab were on the menu.

My reactions are well-doccumented in the forthcoming webisodes, but both of these wines were INSANE. The 2006 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon was bursting with beautiful fruit and tannins o’ plenty. The 2006 Summit Bordeaux blend was, in a word: elegant. Again, it all started with beautiful fruit, but there was lot’s going on in my mouth as I sipped the wine and looked down from my perch 1800 feet above sea level.

We shook Erich’s hand and prepared to head back down the hill… and ultimately back down the 5 freeway. Back home, and back to reality… for now

If you’ve been following the blog, you know that we’re big fans of the Sojourn. So when we figured out we would be in Sonoma on Sunday, one of the first calls I made was to Craig Haserot, partner at Sojourn, to make an appointment. I couldn’t wait…

We were greeted at 10Am sharp by Craig and his sidekick Ziggy, a Fox-Red Labrador who can smell a corked wine a mile away. No, really. This dog is trained to sniff TCA, the chemical that causes corked wines. You can read all about Ziggy here at Food&Wine.com.

Aside from being a merchant of primo Pinot, Craig is a Dodger fan, so we talked a bit of baseball as he gave us a tour. The tasting salon is a well-kept cottage right off of the Sonoma town square. Compete with leather couches, a large table and chairs and Riedel stemware, anyone can make an appointment for a personal tasting, FREE OF CHARGE!

Craig sat us down and poured the current lineup of Sojourn Pinots.. The 2007 Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast, the 2007 Pinot Noir, Sangiacomo Vineyards (you may recall that I enjoyed this one a few weeks ago while get-away-ing with my wife), the 2007 Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast and the 2007 Pinot Noir, Windsor Oaks Vineyard. All of these wines are lush, complex, amazing and sexy… straight up. When we post the webisode you’ll hear my specific thoughts, but they really are all amazing, and all different. Winemaker Erich Bradley is all about making wines that have substantial mouthfeel, and it shows.

We also had a taste of their 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon, Home Ranch Vineyard. A solid cab effort and a nice follow to the four pinots.

As we prepared to leave, Craig asked “…what are your guys’ plans for the rest of the day?” Our answer led us into stop #6, so I’ll blog about that tomorrow. By the way, the Cabernet we tasted is called ‘Home Ranch’ because the grapes are grown behind Craig’s house in Sonoma County. Note to self: Craig’s life doesn’t suck.

The Executive in front of the Sojourn tasting salon.

We had some time to kill in Napa, and one of our favorite Napa wineries has always been St. Supéry. So we decided to stop and taste…

It’s a beautiful property, with the old Victorian home on your right as you walk to the tasting room. My very first Napa tasting trip started with a visit at St. Supéry. I’ll never forget it; in addition to it being the beginning of my career in wine-drinking, it was the first time I had a good Sauvignon Blanc, and I just remember how I walked away with the intense flavors of grapefruit in my mouth. I was a permanent Sauvignon Blanc fan after that and also a permanent St. Supéry fan.

Like that first tasting trip, this last Saturday was a warm day in the Napa valley and after the drive back up to Rutherford, we were ready for a cool tasting room. We weren’t there to shoot a webisode… just to have some of their fantastic wine.

Jeff, myself and WE team member Adrian descended on the tasting bar in our WineExpedition T-shirts, looking rather snazzy if I do say so myself. We were thirsty and feeling a bit rowdy, but we were no match for Laurie at the tasting room bar, and she quickly filled our glasses and kept us in check.

There are so many good wines at St. Supéry;  their Cabernet is great as is their red blend  Élu and their white blend Virtú.  Jeff is a big fan of their Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

I was warm, so I kinda hung with the white wines.  One of my favorite Sauvignon Blanc’s on the planet is St. Supéry’s exclusive Dollarhide Ranch Sauvignon Blanc.   As always, it did not disappoint:  aromas of grapefruit and apricots were followed by a mouthful of grapefruit with a nice mineral undertone.  A zesty yet refined Sauv Blanc.

I also had a taste of the Semillon.  This is a trippy wine… It’s thick on your tongue.. creamy and textured; the nose is peachy and the palate is chewy/creamy/citrusy.  A lot going on and I enjoyed it…

They say their Moscato ‘…is like summer in a glass…’ and I have to agree with that statement.  The nose has notes of peaches and apricots, and as soon as it hit my mouth I was hit with flavors of apricots and a tad of orange peel. It’s sweet, but at the same time it’s light and refreshing.  I brought a bottle home- I think my wife might like this one.  A great wine for a hot day.

After all the light/white/foofy wines, I had to have one red before we left.  The obvious choice was the Dollarhide Cabernet Sauvignon.    This is a big, bad cab.  Hearty aromas of dark berries and plums with hints of oak lead into a mouthful of blackberries and currants with layers of oak, chocolate and coffee.  It’s a mouthful and it finishes with some good tannins.  This one’s a keeper for sure, and it was a good way to finish up the tasting.

We waved goodbye to Laurie and hit the road; more adventures lay ahead…

After my brief nap (Cabernet at 9:30 AM will do that to you), I came to, and we grabbed some much needed breakfast and coffee. We then proceeded down to the Southern end of the Silverado Trail, taking in the scenery along the way. I was looking forward to meeting up with our friend Kevin Murphy.

Kevin is the son in the father son team at Murphy Vineyards. His father, Peter, is a seasoned vineyard man, with 30 years of farming and vineyard management experience. His passion for wine is apparently in his blood, as Kevin has followed in his dad’s footsteps, and certainly knows his way between the vines.

In addition to putting out a small line of hand-crafted wines, this father/son team pictured above continues to run a successful vineyard management business. Driving through the Napa valley, one quickly realizes that there are A LOT of individual vineyards and properties- and of course someone has to take care of them. The Murphy’s apparently take care of quite a few of them, and when I called up Kevin to tell him that I was in town, he suggested we meet in one such vineyard, where he was tending to the vines.  We turned off of Silverado Trail and carefully navigated the Wine Expedition RV onto the property.

Kevin greeted us amongst the Merlot, and he and I took a walk (I probably shouldn’t have been wearing sandals), and he showed us some of the vineyard work that he and his crew were doing. Training the vines to grow upward and ridding them of unwanted leaves and stems seemed to be the task of the day. Then we got to the end of the row where a bottle of wine was waiting for us…

Murphy Vineyards is known for their Napa Valley Cabernet, but they also have been putting together some nice wines from the Sierra Foothills, including a Cab Franc, a Syrah and a Bordeaux-Rhone blend. And their latest offering, which I sampled right there in the vines, is a Meritage that contains Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa and Cabernet Franc from the Sierra Foothills. It had a nice robust nose, and intense, bright cherry fruit flavors on the palate. The blend favors the Cab Franc, and I think that’s where the intense fruit comes from. And I have to say, there’s something very cool about sipping a glass of wine as you stroll through the vines- it’s kinda like eating a shrimp cocktail on the edge of a pier overlooking the ocean.

In this case, there were no waves crashing below us- just fertile, brown soil between my toes and my sandals and the warm sun shining down on us. I shook Kevin’s hand and let him get back to work. We guided the WE-mobile back on the highway and drove back up into Napa, looking for our next stop…

Waking up early in Napa has its benefits. The fog is slowly burning off in the vineyards, songbirds are everywhere and everything is green and back-lit by the sun. It’s pretty rad.

What’s even ‘radder’ is having a 9AM appointment to meet the winemaker at Quintessa. There wasn’t even time for coffee or breakfast as we pointed the Wine Expedition RV south from Calistoga.

Wine maker Charles Thomas met us at the winery and politely suggested we park the RV and get into his SUV. That’s because the road to the highest point on the property is not RV friendly. After a 10 minute drive we arrived and walked out onto a deck underneath an old, stoic oak tree. I thanked Charles for his suggestion (the RV would have NEVER made it) and then I shifted my gaze beyond him and looked upon the Quintessa property below us. What I saw took my breath away. The view is SPECTACULAR, and I had some thought about being the closest I’d ever been to heaven or to my creator, but I couldn’t even get words out to summarize my feelings. The 280 acres (170 are planted) are spread out over the hills and valleys of this incredible piece of land off Napa’s famed Silverado Trail. According to Quintessa’s website: “The estate includes a valley, a lake, a river; five hills, four microclimates, and many soil types, as well as rich flora and fauna,” and I can vouch for the accuracy of that statement… I saw it all with my own two eyes.

As the WEBISODES are coming soon, I won’t go into too much more detail. As far as the wines, I mean… what can I say; it’s Quintessa for crying out loud. We had a chance to taste two vintages side by side and note the nuances that change from year to year. These classic Bordeaux style blends are elegant beyond belief, from nose to finish. Above all, the wines showcase the superb fruit grown on this property. I shook the hand of the man who made the wines and thanked him for the best breakfast I’ve had my entire life.

Charles then took us back down the hill to the tasting room. He wanted us to taste another wine made on the property: Faust. Faust is less expensive than Quintessa, but it’s not meant to be a ’second’ label. Rather, it’s a wine that uses some of the fruit on the property that doesn’t fit the flavor profile of Quintessa. While Quintessa is reminiscent of Bordeaux, Faust is much more a classic Napa wine; as their website says: “Bold and powerful, yet elegant and concentrated.” I can confirm the accuracy of that statement too… I tasted the wines with my own mouth. Again, we compared two vintages side by side, and again I was drinking some amazing wine. But the adventure wasn’t over yet…

Charles had one more bottle he wanted to open for us (and I wasn’t going to say no). It was truly a surprise- I had no idea that Quintessa made a white wine, yet there it was in front of me… a bottle of Illumination.  If the Quintessa and the Faust were the main courses of my meal, the Illumination was dessert.  A crisp, refreshing Sauvignon Blanc with some Semillon added for texture and a unique clone of Sauvignon Blanc called Sauvignon Musque added for an added floral quality and a flavor of orange zest.  This was a tasty treat indeed.

On that note, Charles sent us on our way.  Jeff drove the RV and I took a nap.  It wasn’t even 10:30 AM yet…

Once our meetings were over, we grabbed a bite and Jeff deftly guided the WineExpedition RV thru Friday evening traffic in the bay area. It may have made more sense to stay in the city until traffic died down, but we had an appointment in the Napa Valley…

…and we weren’t gonna be late. Our friend Keith at Bennett Lane Winery had cleared his Friday night for us, and we were looking forward to seeing him.

So as the sun set on the Napa Valley (and let me tell you, the sunset is a thing to behold when you’re amongst the grapevines), the WineExpedition RV glided through Oakville, St. Helena and beyond with Calistoga as our final destination.

The last bit of gray in the sky was fading as we pulled into the winery. Keith greeted us with a handshake and gave us a tour of the facility.

Although the vineyard was dark, the barrel room was well-lit, cold and filled with barrells o’ wine. The tasting room was also well-lit, but much warmer and filled with bottles o’ wine! We were parched from our journey and ready for a taste.

I won’t give you all the details of the tasting (the WEBISODES will be up soon), I will say that the wines were fantastic, and I’ll give you a couple of highlights.

The flagship wine at Bennett Lane is their MAXIMUS red blend (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah). It’ always gotten accolades: the 2002 Maximus was named the Top Value Napa Valley Cabernet for the 2002 vintage by Wine Spectator’s James Laube and the 2003 Maximus scored a 90 Point rating from the Wine Spectator. The 2005 (which we tasted), was also awarded 90 Points by Wine Spectator and was named an “Outstanding Value”.

The wine is a beauty; a nose of dark cherries and plums with hints of chocolate. On the palate, blueberries join the fray and the tannins make it hang around your mouth for a beat before it’s time for a another taste. A good wine to drink with steak… or a good wine to drink after an RV ride from San Fransisco to Calistoga.

Keith also poured us a taste of their 2007 White Feasting Wine which is best described as Sauvignon Blanc with a KICK (it has some Chardonnay, but gets the kick from the 2% muscat that they slip in). It’s got orange on the nose (that’s the kick) and once it hit my mouth that orange was whirling around in the background while I got lots of creamy citrus and pears with a nice little mineral thing happening for good measure. A tangy treat for sure. This one scored a 90 in the Spectator too.

After our tasting, Keith had to hit the road, and it was time for the WE crew to hit the hay in preparation for our Saturday in Napa. Check in tomorrow for details on Stop #3 and keep your eye out for the Bennett Lane webisode coming soon…

We’re back from our weekend wine expedition… a little tired, but with smiles on our faces. This week I’ll be highlighting the stops on our trip in chronological order. So let’s start with Stop #1…Friday involved several meetings, and shockingly enough the venue for one of those meetings was… a wine bar. I know, it’s crazy…

We were in the SOMA area of San Francisco, not far from AT&T Park (where the San Francisco Giants play). Lo and behold, we parked the WineExpedition motor home and there was South.

South is a restaurant/wine bar that promises the best of food and wine from from Australia and New Zealand (the name South is referencing to the Southern Hemisphere…. get it?)

Food was not in our plans, but certainly an afternoon glass of wine can always be accommodated. The vibe inside was cool… smart, modern decor, plenty of room and plenty of light. A very friendly manager suggested we try a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc called Manu.

The official language of New Zealand is Maori, and the Maori word for bird is ‘Manu’ (I’m not sure what the Maori word for duck is). I say that because Manu is is a partnership between New Zealand wine folk Steve and Caroline Bird and California’s David and Michelle Duckhorn (of Duckhorn, Decoy, Paraduxx, Goldeneye and Migration fame). And while I could keep making bird references, it would probably be best if I just discuss the wine.

It was a sunny day in San Francisco, and the wine was nice and cold. The nose was full of fresh tropical aromas and the palate was too: pineapples and passion fruit with a tinge of herbal notes. A nice, light, fresh wine, it was a good reminder that New Zealanders know a thing or two about Sauvignon Blanc.

I promised the manager that we’d return to South to check out the food side of things. They also have periodic events that feature Aussie and New Zealand special tastings as well as visits from prominent wine makers. A must visit if you find yourself in the San Fran area.

It was a great way to start our weekend… Check in tomorrow for a report on Stop #2…

…well I made it home from the Family Winemakers of California tasting event in Del Mar safe and sound, thanks to the Amtrak Surfliner… And what a tasting it was!

We shot lots of video (webisodes will be coming soon!), and met lots of great folks. Oh, and we tasted lots of great wines too! Some of my favorite moments:

-Saying hello to Richard Alfaro of Alfaro family vineyards and drinking some of his wonderful Lindsay Paige Chardonnay.

-Talking to Mike Viheula of Vihuela Winery and tasting their Incendio red wine.

-Saying hello to Natalie from Hall and tasting their always lovely Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet.

-Talking to Craig from Sojourn and tasting some of their AMAZING pinot.

-Meeting the Vanni brothers from the Solis Winery and trying their wonderfully floral viognier-like Fiano wine.

-Talking to Mike from Mantra wines (their Syrah is RIDICULOUS).

-Tasting two great Cabernet vintages from Murphy Vineyards.

-Learning about the rich Napa history of Lail Vineyards from Erin Lail and having a taste of their infamous J. Daniel Cuveé.

-Tasting the great wines of Elizabeth Spencer Wines, deftly poured by Skip from the Napa winery.

-Visiting with Bill from Joseph Family vineyards, and tasting their delicious Cabernet.

-Discussing Cabernet with Keith from Bennet Lane Winery, and when I say discussing Cabernet I mean tasting their flagship Maximus…. WOW.

-Talking with Steve from Justin Winery and drinking some of their incredible Isosceles.

There must have been 1,500 people there and EVERYONE was having a blast. At the end of the day as we collected ourselves and went back to the station to wait for the train, we were joined by a group of happy wine tasters- apparently we weren’t the only ones who had the smart idea of taking the train.

I gave my ticket to the conductor and shut my eyes for a while; with a smile on my face and any wine splashes on my shirt hidden by the black fabric. I raise my glass to the Family Winemakers of California for putting on a five-star event.

Family Winemakers of CaliforniFamily Winemakers of CaliforniaFamily Winemakers of California tasting in Del Mar Family Winemakers of California tasting in Del Mar Family Winemakers of California tasting in Del MarFamily Winemakers of California tasting in Del Mar

That’s right kids; I’m going tasting tomorrow.  And it’s going to be a good one.  If you’re in San Diego on Sunday, you should too!

The Family Winemakers of California are putting on their annual Southern California tasting this Sunday March 15 in San Diego at the Del Mar fairgrounds from 3-6PM.  For $50, you’ll have a ticket to taste wines from 200 different producers.  Participating wineries include WineExpedition friends Clark Claudon Vineyards, Alfaro Family Vineyards and Grgich Hills.

I’ll be cruising down on the Amtrak Surfliner.  If you’re there, and you see a guy with purple teeth and a black WineExpedition T-shirt, come say hello…

Click here for more info…