Tag Archives: winemaker

Lifestyle, Sonoma County, Travel, Wineries

Buena Vista Winery, Sonoma Wine Country

buena10 Buena Vista is oldest winery in California, founded in 1857, Buena Vista is California’s first premium winery, and its history is as colorful as it is proud. Today, it’s belong to the vision of Jean-Charles Boisset. Just a few minutes drive from downtown Sonoma, the original winery is now a California Historic Landmark, and home to our Winery, Tasting Room, and Visitor’s Center.

It’s a beautiful and historical estate, open Daily from 10 am to 5 pm, buena3excluding major holidays. The drive here is quite easy. Plenty of parking spaces, stroll down the pathway, you will see the maze garden on your left and some of the historical figures on your right, before you arrive to the chateau-like main tasting room.

They offer so many tours and wines tasting options, check on their website is best: www.buenavistawinery.com/visit

buena7– Barrel tour and tasting  – $35 per person, the Barrel Tour and Tasting is available daily at 11am and 2pm, the tour and tasting lasts about 1 hour. Reservations are required.

– Private reserve tasting – Escape the crowds and explore a flight of our Private Reserve and limited-release wines at the Private Reserve Bar overlooking our main tasting salon. Available daily between 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. $30 per person, $24 for Wine Club Members. No Reservations Required.

buena9– Grand reserve tasting experience – Enjoy a seated, by-appointment-only tasting experience that features library wines carefully selected by our winemaker and poured in the quiet seclusion of The Count’s Cave. Reservations are required. Available daily at 11:00 am, 1:30 pm and 3:00 pm. $40 per person, $32 for Wine Club Members.

– Be the count blending experience – Who would like to be The Count or Countess?  90-minute,  you will play with Zinfandel, Merlot and buena5mixed reds. Find the perfect palate then bottle, cork, foil and label your bottle. You will design your own label and leave with a newly branded wine tailored to your masterful palate. The best part is you can order as many cases as you desire.
Available daily at 10:30am and 1:30pm. $100 per person, $80 for Wine Club Members. Reservations are required.

buena1– Picnic hampers – Picnicking at historic Buena Vista has long been a favorite for many guests, and we now offer a Picnic Hamper from a fine local food purveyor filled with delectable delights! Available daily between 11am – 3pm, we are offering two options:

The Count’s Hamper, named for our original founding proprietor in 1857, Count Agoston Haraszthy. For two: rustic sandwich, salad, assorted sweet delights.

buena2The JCB French Hamper, named for our current proprietor Jean-Charles Boisset. For two: assorted Artisan cheeses, Charcuterie, rustic potato salad, baguette half, assorted sweet delights.

Reservations are required  and the hamper is for day-of use only. Both Hampers are $75 and include a Buena Vista wine tasting and two glasses for your picnic. This is a good choice if you just want to lay out at chill and not worry about bringing your own food.

They offer variety of wines from rose to sparkling, from chardonnay to zinfandel, blend varietals and more. The wines range from $20 + to over hundred with their soon to be release red.

buena4  I enjoyed their Pinot Noir Carneros but it’s sold out currently. Their zinfandel is another one that you should try if you like spicy, full bodied red.

They are dogs friendly which is so awesome, so you don’t have to leave your 4-legs friend at home. Although they can’t come inside the tasting room unless they’re service  dogs.

I love the Champagne tasting room a lot, off-white leather couches, buena6chandeliers and by the cave, bring a jacket. It’s much more chill and peaceful than the main crowded tasting room.

If you come on the weekend, expect slower service and not much personal, but if you can come on week day, always excellent service here.

Follow them:
Instagram https://instagram.com/buenavistawinery
Twitter https://twitter.com/buenavistawines

by Manda Bear @1MandaBear

Lifestyle, Napa Valley, Travel, Wineries

Cairdean Vineyards, St. Helena, Napa Valley Wine Country

cairdean1  Cairdean Vineyards just opened their tasting room in St. Helena in the Spring 2014, just right down the street from the Culinary Institute of America, opens 7 days a week from 11-8 PM and no reservation required; which is a perfect last stop on your way back since all the wineries are closed at 4-5 PM.

A beautiful tasting room, spacious, modern, and quite charming with a square bar makes it easy to serve guests as they can stand around or sit down. The earthy palette, concrete flooring and dark stained cabinetry are brightened with brass accents.Love the table with black marble top and brass base, leather club chairs, chandelier constructed out of wine bottles which give me a great idea for my own and a beautiful stone fireplace.
cairdean5
We got to try a lot of wines but a few that stand out.

– Haley Margaret White Wine – $10 of this wine helps raise awareness and funding for others who battle Cystic Fibrosis. Nice nose, stone fruits, smooth, bright, just a good wine for Sunday brunch, a unique blend of Pinot Gris, Roussanne, and Viogner.

– 2010 Cairdean Vineyards Merlot Bordeaux blend – 81% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1.5% Malbec, and 0.5% Petite Verdot. On cairdean4the nose, red berry, dark cherry , and blueberry aromas,  oak spice, hazelnut and cocoa, lingering finish, medium bodied with balanced acidity. Maybe I’m bias because I love Bordeaux, this wine reminds me of a good bottle of the Right Bank, Pomerol 2010 vintage, to be exact. Only 492 Cases Produced.

– 2011 Cairdean Vineyards Syrah – 84% Syrah, 11% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, dark cherry, spice, herbs, beautiful and cairdean3voluptuous on the nose, even more curvy on the bodied, long finish, full bodied. Syrah is not my favorite varietal, but this bottle makes me think of Northern Rhone, well done, I enjoyed this very much and I got to tried this the last 2 years. If you love a BIG wine, you must TRY this! Winemaker Stacia Williams surely nailed this one! She’s also very sweet and humbled, I’m lucky to get to meet here and her husband Edwin Williams co-owner of Cairdean Vineyards during Flavor! Napa in 2014.

cairdean2  Service was wonderful here as always and the tasting fee is very reasonable and affordable for Napa Valley. Cairdean Vineyards is a perfect last top for you before you leave Napa Valley, don’t forget to check out their newly opened restaurant The Farmer and The Fox cairdeanestate.com

Follow them on Twitter and IG: twitter.com/CairdeanWine

by Manda Bear @1MandaBear

Lifestyle, Sonoma County, Travel, Wineries

Kistler Vineyards, Sonoma Wine Country

BY APPOINTMENT ONLY to visit this winery!

kistler1  Kistler Vineyards was never open their tasting room for decades until recently.  Can you imagine that their wine club members  and fans around the world can only drink the wines they purchase but couldn’t taste it before until now.

Once you RSVP, they will tell you the instruction how to get here with a gated property.

Trenton Roadhouse
7095 Trenton-Healdsburg Road
Forestville, CA 95436

Opens TUE-SAT, by appointment only at 10:30 AM and 2 PM only per day.

kistler2  A gorgeous cottage like next to their 2 vineyards on the property, a barn, a pond, and a gorgeous view from their second floor.

A newly remodeled and beautiful tasting room where you can be amazed, along with their award winning wines for decades.

Brooked was greeted us nicely as we pulled in. She has the brightest smile, model like figure, dressed stylishly, of course because she kistler4moved here from New York. I, on the other hand, totally over-dressed in my short and tank top gym clothes! I was embarrassed 🙂 Too much diking and eating the night before I just wanted to running around the vineyard to burn the calories, so my thought! Until Brooke poured us some of the best Burgundian style wines, I’d rather chilled and enjoyed it.

kistler7 She explained and walked us through the soils, “it’s all about the terroir” and that’s what Kistler Vineyards is all about. “If the Kistler Winery could be magically transported to the middle of Burgundy’s Côte d’Or, it would quickly gain a reputation as glorious as any producer of Burgundy grand crus.”  Robert Parker said.

Brooke is also a sommelier from New York with a Southern accent. kistler6She’s vibrant, fun, and passionate about the program that Kistler is doing now with this brand new tasting room at the Trenton Roadhouse. She involved us in the tour that makes it so much more fun, very informative and educational. She also allowed us to taste side-by-side of the 3 chardonnays, so we could compare notes. That’s the best way to learn about the terroir and what you like. My friends and I had an awesome time here.

Both their Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are crafted utilizing classic Burgundian techniques. Kistler wines are produced solely by native yeasts. Their barrels are crafted from French oak that is aged to specifications and specifically tailored to their program. All of their wines are bottled unfiltered and unfined. All of the sites are planted to the same clone, a California heritage selection that they have been kistler3using for 3 decades, imagine that.

Their wines are always sold out and source after, to get their wines, you got to be on the mailing list. They don’t even have library wines, because they sold out after every vintage release.

They offer 2 tasting options:

4 wines: 3 Chardonnay + 1 Pinot Noir  for $75 per person

7 wines: 5 Chardonnay + 2 Pinot Noir for $150 per person

kistler9  I know it seems pricey for wines tasting in Sonoma, but remember this is not they typical Chardonnay and Pinot Noir you normally drink, this wine is source after, some of the best ever.

Think of old world style wines. If you want a buttery style chardonnay, this is NOT for you.

Burgundy style Chardonnay displays less fruit and more earth and mineral notes. They are powerful and rich, with complex kistler5fruit flavors and notes of earth and minerals. The wines expess more of the terroir, where it comes from. If you like me, you wold enjoy Kistler Chardonnay tremendously.

Kistler Vineyards at Trenton Roadhouse should be on top of your list to visit if you are a white Burgundy lover/collector.

Website: www.kistlervineyards.com

by Manda Bear @1MandaBear

 

Lifestyle, Sonoma County, Travel, Wineries

The Donum Estate, Sonoma Wine Country

BY APPOINTMENT ONLY to visit this winery!

donum9  The Donum Estate is tuck in the quiet side of Sonoma, you wouldn’t know about it because even Yelp doesn’t have much information about it.  Beautiful vineyard, a barn with chickens running out, some beautiful art works, and a beautiful tasting room.

donum3  Anne Moller-Racke the President and Winegrower of Donum Estate came to California in the early eighties and became vineyard manager for the oldest winery for Buena Vista Carneros Winery in 1983. Then 2001 she took over The Donum Estate project.  She has truly become a wine grower, sheparding the grapes from vine to bottle. As president, Moller-Racke’s management style inspires a
donum2committed team to work with the utmost pride and care on the ultimate Pinot Noir project. Under her leading and the winemakers here, they produce award winning and outstanding Pinot Noir wines earning over 91-95 points by Wine Spectator and Robert Parker.

donum10  They produce only single-vineyard, estate wines from vineyards in Carneros, Russian River Valley and Anderson Valley. Vintage 2012, they got 7 wines from 91-95, now that’s an amazing record.

3 of their Pinots – Carneros, Russian River Valley and Anderson Valley – carry appellations names while the others come from their most prized sites or are a small barrel selection. An estate Carneros Chardonnay completes their donum8Burgundian portfolio.

The Donum Estate is right next to the Stemler Vineyard, doesn’t open to the public, appointment only. We came in and Maggie was the one who hosted us. She was very nice and walked us through the wines, explain anything we asked thoroughly.

If you are a Pinot Noir fan, a Burgundian style, come here, you would enjoy it very much.

donum1  They offer 2 wine clubs that you find more information here:  thedonumestate.com

1 of my favorite and the best Pinot Noir Burgundian style from Sonoma.

by Manda Bear @1MandaBear

Lifestyle, San Francisco Bay Area, Silicon Valley, Travel, Uncategorized, Wineries

Regale Winery & Vineyards, Santa Cruz Mountains, Silicon Valley, California

I can’t believe that living in the Bay Area for this long and I P1030332
haven’t been here to Regale Winery and Vineyards at all. Even the winery is in Los Gatos, but it’s actually deep inside the Santa Cruz Mountains, just a short drive of 10 minutes from downtown Los Gatos and 20 minutes from downtown San Jose, the heart of Silicon Valley.

The Tasting Room Open to the Public Saturday and Sunday from Noon-5 PM by appointment only, but Regale Winery and Vineyards are strictly for  members only and during the week, they often rent out for corporate events and weddings.

Regale Winery and Vineyards is so beautiful with gorgeous Italian IMG_2832inspired landscape, garden, water fountain, and a breathtaking view of the Santa Cruz Mountains and the vineyards. It’s peaceful, tranquil, and romantic. I can see why it’s such a great place for a wedding.  A spiral herb garden, outdoor fireplaces, a bocce ball court, and a traditional wood-fired oven. Three varieties of olive trees line the property from which they hand-pick and press the olives to produce their Estate Olive Oil. Wait till Summer, when they harvest their tomatoes, it’s so much fun to be here.

We were lucky enough to get to meet the winemaker Larry Schaadt and his brother, the men behind this operation. He makes wines with a passion, besides their vineyards, the winemaker sources the grapes from all over Sonoma to Napa Valley to make his wines and bottling it here at the winery.

The winemaker is such a charmer, with a warm personality, and IMG_2827beautiful blue eyes. (OK, so that got nothing to do with wines, but you know what I mean.) He and his brother were so gracious chatting up with us and sharing with us their story behind the winery.

Instead of tasting a selection of 5 wines limited productions, we got to try a few more rare wines, never before seen; from Pinot Noir from different appellation to Cabernet Sauvignon, to sparkling wine. Everything was delicious.

On our third visit, we got to try the new release 2013 Regale regale-cabRussian River Valley Pinot Noir which was quite nice and the Super Tuscan.  You can do tasting flights here or you can order a bottle of wine on the menu to share with your group. They focus on Pinot Noir and Cabernet, but they also feature limited-production Italian varietals such as Sangiovese and Barbera as well as their popular Chardonnay.  It’s a perfect way to spend a beautiful weekend afternoon with your friends and loved ones.

My friends and I enjoyed our visit and the hospitality of the staff there from beginning to finish.

They also offer the wine club members with a lot of benefits you can find more details on their website:

P1030367Wine Benefits
* Bi-Monthly shipments of 2 or 4 bottles
* Generous discounts on wine purchases
* Access to limited production member-only wines
* Free tasting for you and your guest(s)
* Membership privileges at their new Regale Wine Bar which is Rendezvous in Campbell, CA opened in late 2014.

Event Benefits
* Private member-only events for you and your guests
* Generous discounts on special events
* Special discounts on private events at Regale Winery and Wine Bar

IMG_2828Exclusive Estate Privileges
* Members-only wine tasting lounge
* Priority reserved seating
* Priority access to bocce, patios and terrace areas

Spa Privileges
* 15% Off spa services at The Spa ~ Los Gatos, Monday – Friday

I love the space and the gorgeous garden they offer, from the balcony of the second floor, you can enjoy the peaceful but breathtaking view of the mountains.  The wines are good and also very reasonable in price. Regale Winery and Vineyards is such a great place to throw a party, wedding, or corporate events.

Follow them on Twitter: http://twitter.com/regalewinery

Regale Winery and Vineyards
http://regalewine.com
24040 Summit Road
Los Gatos, CA 95033
events@regalewine.com
wineclub@regalewine.com
Phone: (408) 353-2500

by Manda Bear – @1MandaBear

 

Napa Valley, Wineries

Cornerstone Cellars and Stepping Stone Cellars, Napa Valley

 

Cornerstone Cellars located in the middle of downtown Yountville, just a step away from some of the best restaurants in Napa Valley, 13C6D1F3-7DA7-4D5D-8109-8164E0A56613The French Laundry, Bouchon, Bouchon Bakery, Ad Hoc, Bottega, Hurley’s, Redd and Redd Wood. Such a cute white painted cottage, think of a French country side, it’s much more spacious than it looks from the outside.

A long bar by the left side where you can chill and wines tasting, or reserve a table, where you can have a private tasting with your group. Plenty art works through out the tasting room and store, rack and rack of wines, as well as wine country souvenir for sale here. Another private tasting room for a larger group in the back where you can see a lot of their magnum bottles display through out the room.

9EF15376-AE9F-4884-9AA9-99234B14E75F    In 1991 Cornerstone Cellars was founded by Dr. Michael Dragutsky. Later managing partner Craig Camp from Napa Valley,  then current winemaker Jeff Keene from New Zealand came on board. They brought Cornerstone Cellars in Napa Valley and Oregon’s Willamette Valley to wine lovers.

We were lucky to chat with winemaker Jeff Keene and it was very informative and nothing better than having a winemaker poured
your wines, while walk you through the wines he makes.

Together with managing partner Craig Camp’s old world style background (he was importer of Burgundy & Bordeaux, and years of 31C3E691-F1E3-4C07-9420-1230BF1AFD46working at wineries in Italy); winemaker Jeff Keene, a New Zealand native and making wines here in Napa Valley. They now making elegant wines, terroir driven, balance in acidity and alcohol levels to pair with food better. I say they make old world style wines, the kind of wines that I personally love to drink. I don’t like wines with high alcohol, it just kills my taste bud.

With that said, we got to try some of their best selling wines, a few that memorable to me.

– 2011 Cornerstone, Cabernet Sauvignon, The Cornerstone, Napa Valley, Reserve; it’s a single vineyard, and only 100 cases made. A Bordeaux style blend of Cab, Merlot and Cab Franc. It was definitely a cooler vintage, in French Oak barrel for 22 months. This B4B52DB6-E2EC-47D8-906E-9427F149F067was a rare treat and a very gorgeous wine, round, elegant, silky, beautiful nose, and lingering finish. I enjoyed this every much.

– 2011 Cornerstone, Cabernet Sauvignon, Howell Mountain, Napa Valley $80, ripe fruit, powerful, spices, full bodied, and long finish, this is a voluptuous wine. We love it.

– 2012 Cornerstone, Napa Valley, Sauvignon Blanc, steel then 5 months in used French Oak, tropical fruits, pineapple, honeydew, melon, citrus, bright, and crisp, it’s a perfect wine for shellfish and Sunday Brunch.

– 2011 Cornerstone Napa Valley, Cab Franc, black label $45, ripe tannins, round, tobacco, herbal aromatic, lingering on the finish, elegance, structure, and rounder with an edge. I’m not a fruits bomb girl, so anything savory, you got me, this bottle did it for me. Reasonable, deliver, and food friendly cab franc is a hard to find in Napa Valley for less than $45.

FullSizeRender   We also got to try the Oregon’s Willamette Valley Pinot Noir. It was quite nice as well. We can’t wait to come back.

They also offer 4 different wine club members, and all vary to to your desire. Check them out here: www.cornerstonecellars.com/Wine-Club and follow them on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/CornerstoneNapa  and Instagram here: https://instagram.com/craigcamp

So if you visit Yountville, Cornerstone Cellars tasting room is a perfect spot for you to drop in for some good wines tasting before your dinner reservation.

Tasting Fee is only $20, members are FREE. You got to try out 5 different wines. If you have a group of more than 4 people on the weekend, reservation is highly recommended.

Cornerstone Cellars
www.cornerstonecellars.com
6505 Washington Steet
Yountville, CA 94599
Tasting room: 1-707-945-0388
Email: TastingRoom@cornerstonecellars.com

by Manda Bear @1MandaBear