Author: Catherine Campbell

Bubbles on the Bench, i4C Hidden Bench

“A Celebration of Canadian Sparkling Wine from Coast-to-Coast”

And what a celebration!

Hidden Bench hosted a 4-course seafood-based luncheon on the Sunday of i4C (International Cool Climate Chardonnay Celebration) – July 22. The day dawned grey and wet – very wet. We sat in the car watching the prep team running to and fro in the downpour. Finally we braved the damp, registered and joined the reception in the winery. Here, as the skies cleared, we sipped on Hidden Bench 2013 Blanc de Blancs – zero dosage and enjoyed Niagara Gold Gougères and fresh oysters with chopped apple garnish.

Lunch was held on the crash pad of the winery – beautifully set up.

Harald Thiel, Hidden Bench’s owner, introduced the celebrity chefs – each responsible for two of the courses.

  • Chef Charles Antoine Crête of Montreal Plaza, awarded The Most Innovative Chef – soup and salad dishes
  • Chef Victor Barry of Café Can Can / Piano Piano, previously of the late Splendido – trout and cavatelli

Meg McGrath, Hidden Bench, demonstrated her passion for food and wine in the superb pairings of the sparkling wines with the four courses.

Tomato Soup and Scallop

This was like no tomato soup you have ever had before. The bowls were served with pristine pieces of scallop and a variety of colourful vegetables topped with dill. The wait staff then poured the soup liquid into the bowls – lightly flavoured of tomato and almost clear.

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Bubbles

Blue Mountain Vineyard and Cellars 2010 Blanc de Blancs R.D. (B.C.) – introduced by Christie Mavety – 4 gm dosage

Chateau des Charmes 2014 Blanc de Blancs Sparling Wine Méthode Traditionelle (ON) – introduced by Amélie Boury – 8 gm dosage

Lobster – Salad in a Lobster

This dish was served family style – well, to be shared between two guests. The lobster looked intact, no claws but the body looked uncracked. As soon as it was touched it was apparent that the shell was completely detached from the dish. Absolutely gorgeous. The lobster meat was in a light salad with fresh corn.

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Bubbles

Lightfood and Wolfville 2013 Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut R.D. (N.S.) – introduced by Josh Horton – 4 gm dosage

Rosehall Run ‘Ceremony’ Blanc de Blancs Brut (PEC) – introcued by Dan Sullivan – 2.5 gm dosage

Trout Sorrel – Smoked Trout, Hidden Bench’s Eggs

The trout graced a light green salad. The smoking was very light and the trout delicate and moist. Accompanying it in a separate dish were creamy scrambled eggs topped with roe. The texture – a seafood “polenta”.

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Bubbles

Hidden Bench 2013 Natur – Zero Dosage (ON) – introduced by Jay Johnston – 0 dosage – 70/30 chardonnay and pinot noir

Malivoire Bisous Brut VQA Beamsville Bench (ON) – introduced by Shiraz Mottiar – 4 gm dosage – 80/20 chardonnay and pinot noir

Mussel, Corn Cavatelli, ‘Nduja, Chive, Belly

A dish that looked like corn gnocchi, mussels mixed in and topped with a piece of pork belly.

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Cave Spring N.V. Blanc de Blancs VQA Niagara Escarpment (ON) – introduced by Angelo Pavan – 5 gm dosage

Benjamin Bridge Méthode Classique Brut 2012 (N.S.) – introduced by Alex Morozov – 10.5 gm dosage

Summary

As we departed the crash pad we were intercepted by Harald handing out fresh Niagara apricots as the “dessert”. The sun had come out. A sign of the success of the lunch. If this does become an annual event we would urge those who love good food, wine and camaraderie to put this one in the calendar.

And, to echo Angelo Pavan of Cave Spring, Canada’s sparkling wine can compete with any in the world.

 

 

 

Wining and Dining at RiverBend

 

Hosted by recent WSET (Wine and Spirit Education Trust) Level One graduate Nick Attard and Executive Chef Kirk Weiss the wine and dine events kicked off for 2018 on June 5. The focus was France – French wine and French cuisine. It was gratifying to see the wine and food appreciation events continue. Previous gatherings had profiled Asia, South America and “landlover cuisine”. Honouring France, the mother country of wine and culinary arts, seemed very appropriate.

Chef Kirk Weiss shared with the participants: “The ability to present this type of cuisine doesn’t happen very often so we are very grateful for that, the whole team, front and back…Without the enthusiasm, the passion, the creativity, the support, the twisted sense of humour sometimes, just the camaraderie we share in the kitchen these events wouldn’t come close…”

1st Course

Creamy Brie Noisette with a tart berry compote

Wine Pairing – Domane Lafond 2016 Tavel

2nd Course

Butter seared scallop with fresh picked morels

Wine Pairings – Domaine Gilbert Picq & Ses Fils 2015 Chablis (unoaked) and Domaine Thibert Pere et Fils 2015 Pouilly-Fuisse (oaked)

Introducing the second course Chef Kirk waxed poetic. “We get excited enough doing these dinners but when we get to work with product like the scallops that came in this morning” and fresh morels from a local “forager” who had come across the “motherload of morels” in Strathroy….

Nick provided an overview of oaked and unoaked chardonnay – both wines were Burgundian – unoaked from the region of Chablis and a lightly oaked wine, Pouilly Fuisse.

3rd Course

Glace de pamplemousse – palate cleanser (and no wine)

Chef commented “We have made a glace taking the liquid, putting it on a sheet pan added grapefruit, mint, a little bit of cranberry to make it even tarter.”

4th Course

Grenouille (frog leg) croquette with a dill crème fraiche

Wine Pairing – Champagne Delamotte, NV Blanc de Blanc (chardonnay grape)

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Chef shared an anecdote from early in his career working at the Empress Hotel – where he prepared this croquette as part of a 15-course meal for a very special guest from France. He promised that it was “not going to taste like the pond …. Wasn’t roadkill either.” He was right – it was delicious.

Nick offered a story about the origin of champagne – might or might not be true. A “lazy” monk decided to ferment the wine in the bottles. Eleven bottles in the case he was bringing as a gift to the king exploded due to the pressure of the “bubbles”. He delivered the surviving bottle to the king who asked where he was from. Champagne – and the king said that this is what this wine shall be known as.

Nick described the champagne process – the riddler who rotates the bottles in their caverns; the yeast being released by removing the cork; the dosage (sugar) being added and the bottles being recorked. He noted that cava in Spain is made the same way, a little sweeter and a great deal less expensive ($20 a bottle).

So we celebrated with a French champagne – a blanc de blanc using only chardonnay grapes. The group agreed that we should drink to Nick – super preparation, great information.

5th Course

Seared tenderloin with béarnaise sauce and pomme William

Wine Pairing – Chateau Saint-Dominique 2011 Puisseguin Saint-Emilion

Chef introduced this as truly classic French cuisine – demi-glace sauce on the bottom of the plate (beef stock reduced 10:1), tenderloin seared to medium rare, Bearnaise sauce (Hollandaise, tarragon, red onion, red wine vinegar finished with black pepper and parsley)

And Poire William (potato in the shape of a pear) perhaps created by a chef named Escoffier. In an apprenticeship position Chef made 640 for an event – never wanted to see them again – but tonight was a special occasion so why not.

Of course, with the beef, a red wine was poured. Nick explained the Bordeaux difference, that it was based on 1st growth Chateaus rather than terroir bringing owner/brand name recognition to the forefront. He also outlined the amount of regulation on labelling He said that if you know the regions, know the growers you will know what to expect in the wine.

6th Course

Classic chocolate soufflé with crème Anglais

Pairing – Courvoisier VSOP Cognac

Chef described this dessert as “Very delicate, time essential to make sure you receive it with the presentation that it needs.” Matthew – a student from Fanshawe – created the dessert.

 

 

The noise level, the laughter, the silliness (among the participants) rises by each course – or is it by each glass of wine?

Rumour has it that the next wine and dine event will be later in the summer and feature the Iberian Peninsula – very appropriate timing as a preview of the food and wine from Spain and Portugal for those RiverBenders planning to visit Portugal in the fall.

 

 

 

Congratulations to Nick

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On two fronts Nick Attard is deserving of our congratulations. He has a new title – Head Bartender. He also now holds the Level One award from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) and he didn’t just pass – he received a mark of 100%.

The first level is an introduction to the wines of the most well-known grape growing regions in the world. The noble grapes and the regions in which they grow were emphasized. In the white wine sphere – Chardonnay, Riesling, and Sauvignon Blanc and a small lecture on sparkling wines, as well as soave from Veneto Italy. Red wines covered were Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah/Shiraz. Sweet wines were touched on. The final lecture was Canadian wines.

Nick commented,

“I would highly recommend this course for any beginner or experienced wine enthusiast. The course was not overwhelming in information to the point where it was not enjoyable, and having an opportunity to blind taste 8 wines every lecture was a great treat for the palate. The course is available in a weekend format or once a week for four weeks which was the format I participated in.”

Nick commences his lectures for WSET level 2 award in wines and spirits this Sunday. He says that the textbook is, no suprise, more intense than the first level, chock full of detail on wine tasting notes and sub regions of the main wine countries. Spirits are also part of the program including distillation processes, brandy & cognac as well as liqueurs.

Want more info? About the WSET and WSET Level One

Wine and Dine – June 5

And, he will be sharing his new expertise with us at the Wine and Dine, featuring France, on June 5.

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Above photo was taken from the balcony of our “chateau” in the Champagne district – Howard Moyer’s 50th – great trip.

 

Hidden Bench Wine Pairings Spring 2018

The Hidden Bench customer-facing team rolled out their new wines in a pre-release Wine Club event – proprietor Harald Thiel, winemaker Jay Johnston, retail manager Meg McGrath, assistant retail manager Maura Casey.

They hit another one out of the park. The pairings were truly innovative. The only thing that would have made it perfection would have been a slice of baguette to sop up the amazing sauces with the mussels and the pork ragout.

Served while the participants were gathering:

2013 Natur, Zero Dosage – paired with Harald’s Upper Canada Cheese Niagara Gold Gougères – Tasting Note

At the tasting:

2016 Roman’s Block Riesling – paired with shaved Ontario pork ‘lard’ on a sourdough crostini with Riesling jelly

2016 Felseck Vineyard Riesling – paired with butternut squash ‘gravlax’ on a sourdough crostini with Riesling glaze

2016 Rosomel Vineyard Fumé Blanc (90 pts, Rick VanSickle) – paired with pistachio and Upper Canada Cheese Nosey Goat crusted schnitzel – Tasting Note

2016 Estate Chardonnay (92 pts, Michael Godel) – paired with grilled cheese with Upper Canada Cheese’s Comfort Cream

2017 Locust Lane Rosé – paired with Moules Provencal (marinated in the rosé) – Tasting Note

2017 Nocturn Rosé – paired with grilled octopus salad with lemon-caper dressing – Tasting Note

2015 Rosomel Vineyard Pinot Noir (93 pts, Rick VanSickle) – paired with chicken and fingerling potato confit with a Pinot Noir and pearl onion jus – Tasting Note

2015 Felseck Vineyard Pinot Noir (91 pts, Rick VanSickle) – paired with slow braised mushroom, tomato and pork ragout – Tasting Note

 

Moyer Special Dinner March 23

I (surprisingly) got a February 5 date for hip replacement surgery. So my birthday celebration, February 6, and Valentine’s Day were put on hold. We worked with Andrew Ross and Chef Kirk to arrange the makeup and to celebrate the successful surgery.

For that event we dug into the wine cellar and retrieved a 1990 Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia Vino da Tavola. It had been in our cellar for 25 years, surviving our move to London. We took a deep breath and handed it over to Andrew for decanting, tasting and serving. Actually Nick, Andrew, Chanel and others in the kitchen had a little taste. Consensus was that it was AMAZING.

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There had to be appropriate food to accompany such decadence. Chef proposed a pork shank braise that he had tried in Montreal a few weeks earlier. He also created a special appetizer plate – a concoction, including salmon and shrimp, wrapped in phyllo pastry and served with a sour cream, yoghurt herb sauce. For extra enjoyment a pot of his special chicken pate with garlic toasts.

Chanel and Edgar delivered a beautifully seared and braised pork shank, flavoured with maple syrup and including crackle.

To finish the meal Chanel’s cherries jubilee.

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Thank you to all who made this such a special evening including the delivery of a yellow and a red rose from Burke Flowers that appeared on the table.

Part Four – Napa Valley, Central Coast, Los Angeles and Home

June 20

I found an amazing route taking a side road over the mountain separating Sonoma from Napa. I made it to Napa just in time to visit the recommendation from my breakfast companion.

Orin Swift Tasting Room

The Orin Swift tasting room was in St. Helena Napa, just a small tasting bar on the main strip. I tried a handful of wines made by this producer. Every bottle had a funky piece of art work as the label that did not tell you about the wine nor its contents. Each wine was full of character like the art work on the bottle.

  • The first wine I tried was called the China Doll that had a photo of an eerie porcelain china doll on the label. A Rosé, blend of Grenache and Syrah grapes, it was very dry, crisp, and more of a pairing Rosé than a cocktail wine.
  • A Sauvignon Blanc that was called Blank Stare. This wine was blended with 5% Semillon and sauvignon blanc 40% barrel fermented in old French oak and the other 60% fermented in stainless steel tanks. Crisp and acidic just as the varietal should be with a nice balance of oak characteristics to give it some subtle and enjoyable palate flavours.
  • Three reds – all wonderful wines with Napa characteristics – big, boozy and ripe fruit.
    • Grenache, Trigger Finger
    • Petit Syrah, Machete
    • Cabernet Sauvignon, Mercury Head

A major difference that I noticed between Sonoma and Napa was the way the sun fell right onto everything in Napa. Sonoma had shaded regions from trees, or mountainous regions. From the two pictures you can see how bright Napa was and how the sun hit every part of the land allowing for full sun exposure on the grapes.

 

June 21st

After spending the night in San Francisco, I took the Pacific Coast Highway to Monterey Bay along the coast. The fog coming off the ocean made the drive cool and tolerable. The views were stunning.

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From Monterey Bay I took the inland highway to save some time geting back to Los Angeles. This allowed me to make a final wine visit – the Central Coast.

In Santa Maria I visited two wineries.

Costa de Oro Winery

All of the grapes were grown off site and transported to the winery to make their wine. The wines weren’t bad but there was no distinct characteristic or story to them.

Presqu’ile Vineyard

The winery is owned by a couple from South Africa. They had had a property in New Orleans but relocated to Santa Maria after Hurricane Katrina along with a South African winemaker. This winery was breathtaking in its views, size of the vineyard, and the tasting room itself. The wines reflected the terroir. Although an inland winery the sea breeze from the Pacific Ocean passed through the valley. This resulted in a wonderful climate, much cooler than that of Napa and Sonoma. The worker told me the average temperature here was mid 20 degrees Celsius, allowing for the varietals grown here to have a different expression.

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The wines I tried were a Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, a Pinot Noir Rose, Pinot Noir, and a Syrah. I ended up buying the Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir Rose, and the Syrah because I loved these wines so much. The wines were all more acidic than the Napa and Sonoma wines. At this point in my wine tasting and developing of my palate, I was not a fan of Sauvignon Blanc, but the expression of this one had me wanting more. Fermentation was in stainless steel, concrete eggs and old French oak giving the Sauvignon Blanc complexity and a smoothness that I had not experienced from that varietal. The Pinot Noir Rosé was crisp, acidic and just enough sweetness. Finally, the Syrah reminded me of a Washington state Syrah as it was crisp and acidic rather than full and boisterous. I only had 1.5 hours before closing (could have spent the whole day).

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After leaving this winery, my wine portion of my trip was sadly over. But within three days, I had seen, tasted and experienced wine regions and wines that I will never forget and that will cement ideas in my pending studies.

I just need to visit another wine region now!

June 22-24th

I returned to Los Angeles for three more nights and spent it with the friends I travelled with. We spent a day downtown L.A., saw a Dodgers game and went to Magic Mountain by Six Flags.

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Then home.

Part Three – Wineries – Sonoma County

June 20

I shared a wonderful breakfast at the Creekside Restaurant and Bar in the Inn with an elderly woman who had just moved to Sonoma from Arizona. She had owned three restaurants in her life time and suggested some wineries to stop at. Unfortunately all the wineries but one were by appointment only.

B.R Cohn Winery

Bruce Cohn was originally from Chicago and had moved to Sonoma Valley with his parents as a young adult. Bruce was the manager of the famous rock band The Doobie Brothers and the winery had a room full of rock memorabilia and collectibles. The winery was also an olive tree estate as well with over 450 Picholine olive trees dating back to the mid 1800’s.

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My tasting here consisted of 5 wines, starting with a Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel and concluded on a Cabernet Sauvignon. I also took part in an olive oil and vinegar tasting here which was also amazing and left leaving the winery with a bottle of the Cabernet Sauvignon I tried and as well as a bottle of basil and garlic infused olive oil and a raspberry champagne vinegar.

  • 2016 Sauvignon Blanc, AVA of Sonoma County as the grapes were sourced from other wineries in the region. The wine was aged in new American oak which produced toasted notes in the wine on top of the grapefruit skin smell, with notes of honey dew melon and slight green and Asian pear. Light bodied, slight minerality and crisp acidity gave it a quick finish with a salivating mouth feeling.
  • 2014 Cabernet Franc, AVA of Sonoma Valley as this wine was sourced from grapes grown on the winery’s Olive Hill Estate Vineyard. It was aged in old French oak that must have been charred, as it smelt of charred meat, tobacco and an herbaceous under tone to the fruit characteristics. The fruit was blueberry, and plums. All of these aromas related in the palate with a long finish from the smokiness and ripe plums. It was wonderfully balanced, very enjoyable. This was the only Cabernet Franc I had on the trip and there was no other wine that tasted anything like this one did with the smokiness and fruit coming together to make a wonderful wine.
  • 2015 Pinot Noir, AVA Russian River Valley. Light ruby in colour from the thin skins with aromas of strawberries, black cherries and slight cranberry for fruit. It was aged in old French oak which gave the wine notes of vanilla and slight hints of caramel. The vanilla and caramel came through in the flavours on the palate with slight notes of fruit behind them. It was an enjoyable light-bodied wine.
  • 2014 Zinfandel, sourced from grapes from other vineyards within Sonoma County. This wine was aged in carefully selected French and American oak for 18 months giving the wine some complexity behind its fruit characteristics. The fruit was of red fruit being red berries and cherries, but hints of clove and a spice to it including characteristics of vanilla from the oak gave the wine a long and smooth finish and making it a very dry zinfandel.
  • 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon, estate grown. Full bodied, heavy tannins and flavours of cassis and espresso were present in this bodacious wine. Warm caramel notes and a long finish made this a wonderful pairing wine for any to enjoy with a piece of barbequed beef.
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Kunde Family Winery

This winery is an 1850-acre estate operated by the 5th generation of the original family. This was the only winery in my stops that had old vine zinfandel – planted in 1882  The winery offered tastings of different levels and prices from standing at a bar, to an outdoor lounge, a private seated room all the way to the top of the mountain for a mountain top tasting. The mountain top was where I wanted to go, but due to high levels of production within the winery that day they were unavailable. So to the bar within the winery I went and started my tasting.

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Kunde winery was modern with a very large winery/tasting building. The décor including old vines. The lady who served me found out that I was Canadian and it turned out that she too was Canadian. She served me more wines than what should have been included in my tasting. I tasted a chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, zinfandel (both new and old vines), and a dessert Cuvee which was very similar to a late bottle vintage port.

  • Zinfandel, new vine, 2014. I learned that was the third year in a row of drought in the region. The wine was fragrant with aromas of blackberries and a barrel toasting. It didn’t taste sweet, but there was definitely ripe and cooked fruit used. After the tasting I was told that small amounts of Malbec were added to this wine to sustain the taste profile that they were after with their zinfandel.
  • Zinfandel, old vine, same vintage 2014. The wine makers treated the wine in a similar way to the new fine zin but did not blend it with Malbec. A blend of old French and new American oak were used to age the wine. All the flavours and aromas were very similar, but more concentrated, and a longer finish on the palate allowing the flavours to sink into your mind. These flavours were blackberries, slight pepper notes and a feeling like dark chocolate was just in your mouth. Absolutely wonderful and I recommend to any one in Sonoma Valley to stop here and compare for yourself.
  • Cuvee was wonderful! Sweetness balanced with fruit flavours and just enough acidity to allow some freshness and crispness. It reminded me of a ruby port, and they gave me some salted dark chocolate to enjoy with it. What a pairing.

Chateau St. Jean

The winery is a rather well known one with wines being more mass produced than the other wineries I visited that day. The original owners bought 300 acres of land already planted with grape varieties in 1916. Prohibition occurred during that time they owned the property. A family took over the property in 1970 and by 1973 Chateau St. Jean was founded with the inaugural vintage being 1974. The first vintage when the grapes and wine were all produced on the estate was 1975.

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There are two tasting rooms – the first a grand room with a very long and large bar for tastings – the second smaller and dedicated to reserve tasting. I tried a reserve Chardonnay, two Pinot Noirs, a Cabernet Sauvignon, and a blended wine they called Cinq Cepages. I was also lucky enough to persuade a tasting from a very special bottle, a 1992 reserve Merlot.

The pinot noirs varied from a bottling containing grapes from the hillside vines and another only the grapes harvested from the flat land. The ripeness of the fruit differed and the subtle nuances of mushroom and forest floor came from the hillside vines.

The Cinq Cepages was a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec, and Petit Syrah. It was a hot and boozy wine, with gripping tannins but yet wonderful red and dark berry characteristics.

The 1992 Merlot stole the show. This was special to me as, 1992 is my birth year, and this would be, officially, the oldest wine I have tried to date. Tasting a bottle this old isn’t always going to be a good experience as you never know if the wine was stored properly, but being served by the winery, I had confidence that care had been taken in the storage of the wine. It was the colour of an old red brick wall, orange or pale garnet. It was not overly aromatic, the notes were subdued and hidden. On the palate everything was so rounded, balanced. Layers of flavor that felt like one entity. The price discouraged purchase but I settled for the hillside Pinot Noir and thanked the gentleman profusely for the wonderful wine tasting.

Part Two – Wine and Dine

June 19

Jaxon Keys, Mendocino

A small boutique winery that makes roughly 200 cases of each wine and that is all. The owner, Ken Wilson, was born and raised in Ontario. He  bought the property as it reminded him of the farms of his grandfathers’ here in Canada. The winery is named after them, Jack Wilson and Cecil Keys.

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The lovely lady who was working gave me a free tasting of four wines.

  • A rosé made from a blend of Grenache and Syrah grapes – wonderfully balanced. Acidity levels were high enough to cleanse the palate, but yet a sweetness from the overripe grapes came through with notes of strawberries, and orange zest on the tongue.
  • Chardonnay aged in French oak, with all the characteristics of a Californian Chardonnay. Ripe sweet fruit, butter as well as butterscotch flavours from the oak – very enjoyable.
  • A Grenache – similar to a Grenache from Spain, dry with notes of strawberries and subtle raspberry. Yet it had flavours of clay and vanilla from aging in the oak barrels.
  • A Petit Syrah – bold and full of dark berry flavours including black berries and a jammy texture from the cooked berries.

I left this winery with a bottle of the rose and the Petit Syrah and wonderful memories of the beauty of this small lot vineyard.

Boyes Hot Springs

I drove to the inn I had booked in Boyes Hot Springs in the Sonoma Valley AVA of Sonoma. This was the heart of wine country – every intersection was the end of one winery’s property and the start of the next – with entrances every 3 miles or less. I planned my winery visits for the next day.

The inn, Sonoma Creek Inn, was a lovely little place. A five-minute walk up the road was the Fairmont hotel and a fine dining restaurant inside called Sante. I brought my notebook to the restaurant and when I asked for a table for one, notebook in hand, I believe they thought I was a food critic. I was treated very well!

I started the dining experience with a cocktail – the  salted punch, a tequila-based cocktail with agave nectar, papaya juice and guava nectar, garnished with a lime and cucumber wheel. It was salty but the fruit flavours balanced that with sweetness. The tequila added another layer of complexity.

I debated trying the tasting menu,  a 12-course meal with wine pairings for each but common sense prevailed. I decided on a filet mignon and asked for the sommelier to assist me in picking a glass of wine. He recommended a glass of Stone Edge Farm 2012 Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon. Every sip brought new flavours. The wine was balanced, velvety smooth with amazing cherry notes and slight vanilla hints from old French oak.

The server offered me a free dish as an appetizer – a simple but elegant small shot glass of a chilled cucumber soup, topped with fresh olive oil with a cucumber cup next to it stuffed with a crab and lobster filling.

Next, a selection of five different types of fresh bread and a butter platter (unsalted butter made in Sonoma, fleur de sel and a French imported salted butter). Another free surprise, a sweet pea risotto served on a mushroom foam and two thinly sliced black truffles on top. Every bite made me melt inside….

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Finally, the entrée. The meat was topped with a berry compote and served with fresh seasonal vegetables and pureed garlic mashed potato with onion crisps on top. The wine accented the berry flavours on the meat, and added flavour to the mouthfuls of potato and vegetables.

One cannot pass on dessert after a meal like this… so I ordered a dessert that had a variety on the plate, which was called strawberries three ways.

On the bottom of the plate was a strawberry dust. The three offerings were 1) a homemade strawberry cheesecake where the cake itself was pink and tasted of strawberry with a deconstructed strawberry on top, 2) a Neapolitan style wafer cookie with local Sonoma strawberries in the layers and 3) a homemade strawberry ice cream with a hard candy underneath it.

Thus concluded the third day of my trip.

Part One – Los Angeles and San Francisco

June 17 – Travel and Los Angeles

I flew out of Pearson airport Toronto 10a.m E.S.T and landed in Los Angeles 1p.m P.S.T. First thing on the checklist was to get to Enterprise car rentals and pick up my car rental. This was the first exciting part of the trip, as I was told my car rental was going to be a Dodge Challenger or something similar. After paying my deposit and stepping into the car lot, I was led to a choice between a 2017 Ford Mustang or a 2017 Chevrolet Camaro. I chose the Mustang and the real fun began.

Then I was off to my Airbnb in West Hollywood with my travelling companions. We were right in the heart of Hollywood just two streets away from Hollywood Blvd. Unpacked we head out for something to eat. We picked a restaurant and bar called 33 right on Hollywood Blvd so named because it had 33 beer choices on tap including beers that they had brewed in-house.

My choice, house-made wheat ale was light, crisp, with nice notes of citrus fruit (very similar to wheat ales like Stella Artois and Hoegaarden). I also ordered a Moscow mule, served in a copper mug with ginger beer and fresh lime juice, a great cocktail – very refreshing! A blackened chicken sandwich with a basil pesto, and fresh tomatoes hit the spot perfectly.

Ironically, the only pizza place close to us in Hollywood was called Greco’s New York Pizzeria. Thousands of miles away from home and work, Shawn Greco still intruded on my trip. I can’t comment on this restaurant as I avoided it. (Sorry, Shawn!)

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San Francisco

June 18th

The day began with a wonderful home cooked breakfast at the Airbnb and then off to San Francisco. The Mustang windows were not tinted and the temperatures were 105 degrees Fahrenheit – a reflection of the California heat and the drought. It was a 6-hour drive and, of course, I was sun burnt on my left arm and left side of my face. All the vegetation looked dead except for citrus trees on farms and the very few vineyards I saw on this portion of the trip. Trees were dried up and fallen over, and everything was a golden straw colour for as far as the eye could see.

Nearing San Franciso and the Pacific Ocean, the temperature dropped drastically. The temperature on average here was 85 degrees Fahrenheit with a beautiful breeze and mist coming off the Pacific. I was staying in San Francisco with a relative I had never met.  They took me to one of the oldest standing restaurants in San Francisco called The Old Clam house, built in 1861. It still retained the original exterior and one room in the restaurant was still original.

The waiter greeted the table with fresh clam broth in a three-ounce shot glass, served hot and with some green onion. It tasted of the sea water and the fresh clams that you knew they had boiled in this broth for the rest of their amazing dishes. The menu provided the history and a photo of the original restaurant.

As you can see the first question was “Have you had your clam juice today?” and I could have had three portions of their clam broth/juice. As well in the photo you can see that the restaurant is so old, that in the front they have a spot for patrons to tie their horses while they went inside to enjoy what I enjoyed.

After the broth came a platter of mussels and shrimp fresh from the bay. A Manhattan (called Clamhattan) complemented the garlic and butter from the platters as well as my main course. a clam linguini pasta. An oaked chardonnay would have complemented the meal a bit better

The linguini was fresh home-made noodles, and the sauce was a straight forward beurre blanc sauce made from white wine, butter, garlic and oil, with some fresh parsley and about 15 fresh clams in my bowl. Very simple, very fresh.

My family members then gave me a quick tour of the city and we ended at twin peaks, the highest point in San Francisco to see the sunset. The views from here were breath taking as you could see the downtown core, the golden gate bridge and the fog rolling in off the ocean over the city towards San Francisco Bay.

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Back at the house a quick tour confirmed that this was “family”. They had a fully stocked wet bar! I made us all a Tom Collins to sip on – a perfect end to a great day.

 

June 19th

I started the day on the subway with a family member. This got me to the ferry building and I walked the piers. The photos tell the story.

San Francisco Ferry Building and view of Bay Bridge

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Pier 39 – Carousel, Alcatraz and the sea lions

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I picked up the car back at the house and headed north out of San Francisco,  over the Golden Gate Bridge, through Sonoma wine country, and finally to a forested area with trees as tall as buildings, gas stations only every 60 miles, and no cell reception. Destination the Chandelier Tree in Drive-Thru Tree Park in Leggett, California. I drove so far north that I was closer to Canada than I was Mexico.

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California Wine Trip – June 17-24, 2017

To begin my recap of my vacation and wine study, I will inform you, the reader, that I took extensive notes on the wine part of the vacation and lost them all to a mishap with melting ice and non-waterproof ink. My apologies that the notes on my wine tastings are written based on memory – 7 wineries in two days.

So that I don’t tire my readers I have broken my travels into four parts:

  • Los Angeles and San Francisco
  • Wine and Dine
  • Sonoma
  • Napa Valley, Central Coast, Los Angeles and Home

I hope that my notes and photos capture the essence of the trip.

Unfortunately, I also lost my cell phone at the theme park on the last day of the trip. Thankfully I was able to recover the photos.

I hope these blogs are an entertaining and educating read and if you have any questions about the regions and sub regions I visited, the wineries, or wines or any other part of my trip, feel free to ask me at the clubhouse as I would love to re-live the experience!

Oh, and how could I forget? These were all the wines I purchased, only three made it home, and all of those have been drunk with friends over wonderful pairing meals.