Don's Gillette's Weekly Wine Blog
Weekly musings from our store's resident wine guru
Don has over thirty years experience in the wine industry. For the last eighteen years his attention has been focused on the growing local industry. Don has a large following of customers who search out his opinions (never in short supply!) on new releases and on what's currently most distinctive on our shelves. Others seek his insights on wineries and trends that are still under the radar. Check back here each week for Don's latest thoughts on various wine-related topics. Read Don's full bio...
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Manic Memories
A week ago, three old customers were in town on business, and I arranged a last-minute Napa trip for them. Harvest time is frantic for most wineries, so setting up a tour with any kind of intimacy is next to impossible, unless it has been long planned. We pulled it off pretty well though.
Mark, Carmen and Greg's visit included a first stop at Whitehall Lane's wonderful new gourmet tasting center, where five vintages of WL Reserve Cabernet are poured with matching food, for $35.00. The next stop was a trip through the past and present at Schramsberg, where caves dug by Chinese laborers 100 years ago are the cool backdrop for a flight of delicious California bubbly.
A late lunch (for the shorter lines and faster service) at Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen fortified them for a more manic last stop, at Ramian Estate. I got a cell phone call from there and heard from the three travelers and the winemaker, each one shouting over the noise of production, each one gleefully enjoying the chaos of the harvest and the excitement of the moment. They clearly had fun, and left with a story to recall someday, when they finally get to drink the 2007 Ramian Cab.
Multi-tasking and Ministrations
I once sent some customers to Long vineyards in the mountains above Napa. It was a party of four: Lonnie and his wife, vacationing with another couple I had not yet met. Winemaker Sandi Belcher (also the owner and winemaker of Arns Winery) was going to be crushing Riesling, but offered to let them visit if they didn't mind staying out of the way while she worked. Like Brian Graham, owner and winemaker at Ramian, Sandi has always been a multi-tasker.
For 26 years Long Vineyards made the best and most Germanic-style Riesling in California, and they did so with a traditional wooden press made of vertical slats. A peculiarity of this press is that grapes can sometimes get stuck at the side, to eventually project a fire hose-like jet of grape juice between the slats when the grapes are pressed. One of Lonnie's traveling companions, standing far back and thinking herself well out of harms way, was drenched head to foot in sticky Riesling juice when the unexpected happened.
Dripping, sticky, feeling absolutely gross and clearly furious, she was cleaned up and then escorted by Sandi down to a St Helena dress shop for a new set of clothes. During Sandi's ministrations, the guest remained silent and made it very clear that she felt that she had been victimized. Goodbyes were said and Sandi went back to work.
Apparently the soggy guest had a change of heart later, as Lonnie has assured me that this has been that lady's favorite dinner party tale ever since. She now regards it as an indispensable part of the winery experience and recommends it for all.