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The attendees for our very first HOB Wine Tour were Newsom and Beverly Baker (Louisville, TN), Joe and Cathleen Blumberg (Atlanta), Chaz and Gael (Atlanta) and Fred and Fran Gunter (Charleston). The Bakers and Gunters were going to be in San Francisco for the AAO anyway; the Blumbergs and Cones flew out just for the HOB Wine Tour -- which is why we chose Sonoma County for the first HOB Wine Tour.
Here's the gang from 2005:
Left to right: Chaz, Gael, Fred, Beverly, Newsom, Cathleen, Fran and Joe
Over the years, Gael and I had visited the Napa/Sonoma area but our interest in wine accelerated when our daughter Kristyn and son-in-law Matt moved to the area shortly after marrying in 2000.
Their interest in wine helped drive ours. When we thought of doing the wine tour, we asked Kristyn to help. She and Matt have a friend in the wine biz, Hal Oates, who owns a national wine club (Porthos -- highly recommended). Hal thoughtfully suggested (and then arranged for) several visits for us.
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
Once we got the rental vans sorted out, we picked up the Gunters and Bakers at The Palace Hotel in San Francisco. The Blumbergs were already in Santa Rosa staying with friends so we collected everyone at the Hilton Sonoma Wine Country Hotel and visited our first winery of the 2005 HOB Wine Tour: Nalle Winery.
We got there a bit early and no one was home. Five minutes later, here comes a pickup truck and the owner, Doug Nalle, hopped out and we got started. One unusual thing about his operation is that his "cave" is above ground -- and covered in sod. It's truly a "family" operation with wife Lee and son Andrew actively working there. The property has been in Lee's family since 1927. We enjoyed wine sitting with Doug under a grape arbor. That's him in the red ball cap below.
After Nalle, we went to Kristyn and Matt's home for our kickoff dinner. Matt is a gourmet chef and the food was great!
Newsom was apparently quite comfortable in Kristyn & Matt's home:
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
We all joined up again at the Hilton Hotel (where the Bakers and Gunters were staying) and headed out bright and early for our first winery of the day, Martinelli Winery.
Then off to Tandem Winery in Sebastapol, a private tasting arranged by Hal. The owners of Tandem are two young men, both named Greg. The Tandem name comes from the tandem bicycle.
Next on the agenda was lunch at Underwood Bar & Bistro in Graton; Hal and Matt joined us for lunch.
Another Hal-arranged private tasting at Siduri Winery. Rather than a winery looking as you'd expect, Siduri is in a warehouse in an industrial section of Santa Rosa. They share space with the Novy Family Winery. Very unprepossessing but great wine. Their philosophy blends grapes from vineyard blocks as little as eight feet square. In preparing this page (in 2008), I noticed that one of the sources of Siduri's grapes is the Clos Pepe Vineyard in Santa Barbara which we visited on the 2008 HOB Wine Tour!
Our Siduri Host(ess)..and Hal
One more winery and we'll call it a day. But what a beautiful spot to finsh off Wednesday, Gary Farrell Wines. The property overlooks valleys full of grapes; pricey wine, but delicious.
Dinner tonight was at Cyrus, a relatively new upscale restaurant vying for reputation by competing with the famous French Laundry. The seven-course meal (of course with wine pairings) was fantastic, made all the better because Matt and Kristyn joined us for dinner.
And so, to bed, stuffed and sated. More wine tomorrow!
Thursday, May 26, 2005
Off again early for what I think of as our "daily double". First, Limerick Lane:
.. and then, just across the road and down a bit, Christopher Creek. Gael and I really love the wines from both of these small wineries.
Next was Pedroncelli (about which, curiously, I have no notes and only this photo of a painting of a lamb):
..to show for the visit).
Our next stop was for lunch at the Alexander Valley Grille at Chateau Souverain. In addition to a nice variety of wines, the have a lovely dining room in the Chateau main building.
Then off to Alderbrook Winery. A good friend of Matt and Kristyn (and, by extension, of ours), Neva Steele works there. It's a lovely tasting room and we really enjoyed their wines -- especially since we received "special" pricing on the bottles we purchased! Alderbrook wines were among the best values we experienced.
That's Neva behind the counter
The last winery of the day ought to be on the National Registry of Historic Sites. Hop Kiln Winery is housed in a buidling that was used since the 1800s to process hops. When that industry failed in the 1950s, the building was converted to a winery. Amoung other varietals, they have one of the best ports I've ever tasted. And they also make mustards, vinegars, pestos, oils, vinaigrettes and dessert sauces. Quite the experience!
Dinner tonight was at one of our favorite places to dine in the area, Willi's Wine Bar. Small plates (tapas) are a specialty and all are delicious. So much so that we returned to Willi's again in 2006 (and may again in 2009!)
Honey, just because your eyes are above Beverly's tiara doesn't mean we can see your lovely face. And, somebody please give Joey a comb!
Friday, May 27, 2005
The Blumbergs had to abandon the tour; something about a Bar Mitzvah in Los Angeles but we soldiered on, the six of us, anyhow.
We got a later start today (well, by an hour) and had a private tasting at Ladera Vineyards. We were shown around by the owner, Anne Stotesbery, and were impressed by how elaborate the facility was. The building was built in 1886 and (my estimate) millions have been spent in restoring it. It's hard to see how they'll ever recoup their investment in this magnificent place.
New, man-made caves of blown concrete
The tasting area, deep in the caves
Anne, our hostess (and the owner)
Then lunch at Martini House where we ate outdoors under an arbor; lovely!
Aren't they lovely?
And, alas, our last tasting (another private one that Hal arranged) was Barnett Vineyards. Their winery is at the top of a mountain and, as we were snaking up the road, Newsom saw a sign for Pride Winery. Brakes were slammed on and, as we recovered bodies from the floor of the vehicles, he told us all about this super-top-rated winery and their Cabernet. We agreed that, after Barnett, we'd stop by and see if we could talk them out of a drop or two.
Barnett's facility was not impressive (it's a working winery without a tasting room) but they have an outdoor deck at the top of the mountain with a fabulous 360° view. And their wines were wonderful, the best of the trip.
We hated to leave Barnett but time was a-wastin'.
As we were winding down the road to Pride, it was almost 5pm - and they close at 5pm. But we stopped anyway and Newsom collared the tasting room manager and impressed him with his knowledge of their brand, winemaker and history. Seeing this was some serious dude (with five thirsty followers), he agreed to let us taste even though it was after hours. What a great break! And Newsom was right; what delicious wines!
On the property were some ruins from the Summit Winery that used to be this property; we toured:
Dinner tonight (our closing dinner) was at another property owned by the folks who own Willi's Wine Bar. This restaurant is near Matt and Kristyn's home so they joined us at Monti's Rotisserie & Bar. In addition to an eclectic menu, Monti's has a great raw bar.
This was a great way to wind up the first ever HOB Wine Tour. The wines were great, the comraderie was terrific fun and the food was wonderful. Let's do this again!
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