Sunday was the type of day that can only happen in Northern California. Warm and sunny in Marin where I live, cold and sunny in San Francisco, and hot (I mean very hot) and sunny in Calistoga. What does that have to do with anything? Well on Sunday I attended Pinot Days in San Francisco and Celebrate Summer Calistoga Style in Calistoga. It was the equivalent of Burgundy to Bordeaux in the space of one afternoon!
Pinot Days itself is kind of an unusual celebration in that the sponsoring organization is a for profit entity. This practise is contrary to all the other varietal/appellation events that are held in San Francisco during the year. ZAP, Family Winemakers of California, Rhone Rangers, Passport to California Cabernet,Grape to Glass in Russian River, Napa Stomp are all sponsored by promotional/marketing organizations with any proceeds dedicated to promoting the wines of the members. As a result, several of the big hitters were not at Pinot Days. Among the missing were Williams Seylem, Kistler, Hartford Court, Marcassin and others.
That does not mean that the wines were lacking. There were plenty of wines to sink you pallets into! Some of the highlights were Peter Paul Wines, made by my friend Jeff Morgan and his partner Daniel Moore. Nice fruit and an outstanding structure with good acid makes this a fine wine for food. Another standout was Gundlach Bundschu, which I found surprising. Featuring a funky, smokey nose and sneaky fruit, this structured wine was downright delicious.
Two other standouts were established Pinot stars Kosta Browne and Landmark Vineyards. Kosta Browne, now part of the VinCraft Group, produces extremely fruit based wines that can bludgeon you in ripeness. These wines showed a lot of finesse, something that I did not expect. Landmark's Kanzler Vineyard Pinot Noir was the standout of the event. This wine had a perfect balance of fruit, smoke, acid with some unexpected tannins sneaking through the pallate. This was an immensely enjoyable wine.
It was into the car for a trip north to Calistoga. As the thermometer started to climb from the low 60s in SF, the mid 70s in Marin, high 70s in Carneros, mid 80s in St. Helena, all the way up to the mid 90s in Calistoga, I reflected on what the wines from this appellation would show. With this heat, all I wanted to drink was Savignon Blanc, and I was not disappointed. I found myself continuing returning to Kelly Flemming and Larkmead for the SBs. As the sun set, and the temperature took a 30 degree dive, I found myself exploring the cabernets.
All I can say is wow. These were big chewy wines, loaded with tannins, that had a surprising finesse. I especially enjoyed the cabs from Larkmead, Bennett Lane, Kelly Fleming, and just about everyone else.
And what can you say about a dining experience in the vineyards at Sterling. It was gorgeous, I expected to see a photographer from either Food & Wine or Bon Appetite pop out from the vines and start clicking away. In fact Napa Valley Grape growers were taking pictures and they are posted on their Facebook page.
All in all, a wonderful day spent with some of the best of California. I am starting to see a distinct California personality in wines, what it is I have not yet determined, but it is there. Thanks for reading.
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