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We had such a great time at the first HOB Wine Tour last year that we decided to do it again. And since we talked about the fun incessantly, other friends asked to be included.
We returned to Sonoma County again since you could tour 20 wineries a day and still not get them all in a year!
We decided to go in June this year, so as soon as we locked down agreeable dates we turned the planning over to daughter Kristyn (again). The dates were Thursday, June 15 through Saturday, June 17th so we arrived in California on Wednesday June 14th and all went home on Sunday June 18th. This is actually one day longer than the 2005 tour; I can't remember why we didn't stay through Saturday last year..
This year's group included Bob and Mary Allphin, Newsom and Beverly Baker, Joe & Cathleen Blumberg, Chaz and Gael Cone and Dale and Allie Hunter. TEN of us this time!
Left to right: Dale, Allie, Newsom, Beverly, Gael, Chaz, Joe, Cathleen, Bob and Mary
(Why, oh why, won't Mary wear her tiara?!?)
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Bob and Mary were staying with friends Stu and Barbara Stone who live in Santa Rosa; the rest of us flew out on the same airplane from Atlanta to SFO. We rented the two vans and ended up at the Hilton Sonoma Wine Country Hotel in Santa Rosa. Gael and I of course stayed with Matt and Kristyn (and Spencer) at their new home in Santa Rosa.
The tour kicked off with a lovely dinner at Kristyn and Matt's home:
Thursday, June 15, 2006
Our first winery was Murphy-Goode Winery in Geyserville, one of our favorites. Their best known wine is "Liar's Dice" Zinfandel. We enjoyed that one as well as other varietals including their new label "Snake Eyes" Zinfandel.
Next we drove to Healdsburg to visit Stuhlmuller Vineyards where they make Chardonnay, Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon.
We enjoyed lunch at the Jimtown Store in Healdsburg for sandwiches and other snack items.
Next up was Trentadue Winery where we've loved their Zinfandel Port for years.
Last year we enjoyed Christopher Creek Winery so much that we stopped by again and of course, since it's so close by, Limerick Lane.
Next was a surprise tasting organized by Bob and Mary's friend Stu Stone. It was a secret until we got there and then we saw we were at Mayacama Country Club:
This exclusive (very exclusive) golf club has, as one of its amenties, a wine cellar for its members that is spectacular. Each member has a 48 bottle locker in the winecellar which is maintained perfectly (as you'd expect):
Stu had arranged a blind tasting of four red varietals; our goal was to rank them in our opinion of retail price from the most expensive to the cheapest. The prize was a $250 bottle of wine! To help us along, the Club provided wonderful canapes that we enjoyed throughout the process.
One of our members got them all in order (Newsom, of course) and one got them in exact reverse order (Cathleen). It's all a crap-shoot anyway as we weren't ranking on our preference but on our guess as to price.
Oh, and one of the wines was Charles Shaw otherwise known as the infamous "Two Buck Chuck" sold by Trader Joes. Two Buck Chuck retails for, that's right, $2/bottle (maybe $3 or $4 in some far-away states).
What fun! And what a lovely facility; thanks, Stu!
Topping off our first day was dinner at one of last year's favorites, Willi's Wine Bar. Willi's is a tapas place and all the small dishes are terrific. We love Willi's!
Friday, June 16, 2006
Pride Wines was a surprise for us last year; we actually stumbled upon it and Newsom talked our way in for a brief tasting. This year, we arranged to be there for real. Lovely way to start the day! Pride has an unusual situation with the vineyard at the winery. The county line between Napa and Sonoma runs right through the middle of the vineyard. They have to label their wines properly as they have grapes from both counties. Here's the line:
That's Napa county on the left of the divide, Sonoma on the right.
Vineards as far as you can see in just about all directions:
Here's the entrance to the caves at Pride:
And Joe and Cathleen in the cave. They missed out on Pride last year so they were happy we returned.
Time for lunch! And, because we enjoyed lunch so much last year at Martini House, we gave them the privilege of feeding us again. Gael had a good time for sure!
After lunch we drove back up Spring Moutain past Pride to Barnett Vineyards. Barnett was a big hit last year and we wanted to see if their Rattlsnake Hill Cabernet was better this year. It was! Pricey, but excellent; you can buy the 2004 vintage for only $850/bottle! If you read last year's story you know how beautiful the view from their tasting deck was. Still is!
After Barnett we drove to Venge Vinyards for our last tasting of the day. This is a handsome building with the tasting area inside their caves.
Dinner was at zazu restaurant & farm (that's right; no capital letters) where the food was so-so and they had no cold beer. Bummer! But Newsom and Beverly seem pretty happy just to be in each other's company...
Saturday, June 17, 2006
We began the day with a huge hit when we visited Papapietro Perry Winery in Healdsburg. I'd never head of this Pinot Noir but it knocked me out (along with everyone else). We ALL signed up for their wine club!
Next we visited Rochioli Vineyards & Winery followed by lunch on the Windsor Town Green. Windsor is a town with a central district with shops around a town green with playgrounds. You can get just about any kind of food you want. We broke into groups - and we did!
With full tummies (and with some of us in need of a nap) we visited Russian Hill Estates right there in Windsor.
Next we finished our tasting day with a visit to Dutton-Goldfield in Sebastapol. This winery is in the "warehouse" style but we enjoyed everything they poured for us.
Our wrap-up dinner was at Madrona Manor in Healdsburg. This is a famous dining establishment where we had a multicourse meal (with wine pairings, of course) arranged by Kristyn and Matt.
The somelier found this 40 yr old bottle of port for us!
And so, it's over. It was fabulous and a great way to end the 2nd HOB Wine Tour. Shall we keep doing this?.....
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