For most folks, visiting the Napa Valley simply means cruising the main drag, Highway 29, between Yountville and St. Helena. It’s what tourists have been doing here for the last 30 years. But, given the high concentration of wineries along this particular stretch, you can’t really blame people for taking the road most traveled: for the uninitiated, staying within the boundaries of this eight-mile segment has the dual benefit of being (a) easy to navigate with (b) most of the wineries offering decent enough wines. For tourists in the know, this stretch also provides an address for [... read more ...]
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The Culinary Timeline is a side-project that I've been working on since October. I'm hoping to have most of it complete by the end of January, with any luck. Until then, updates around here will be weekly, rather than twice weekly. Do stay tuned. • • •
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Lang & Reed has been producing Cab Franc since 1996, and their wines have earned consistently high marks among the wine community. Back in 2007, I met with owner and winemaker John Skupny at his St. Helena office last month, where we tasted wine during a leisurely Saturday afternoon. Skupny is an affable gentleman with a wealth of winemaking knowledge, who has been making wine (either at home or professionally) since the early 1980s. The following Q&A features a few highlights from our conversation. So, what sets Cabernet Franc apart from [... read more ...] Dale Chihuly is having an exhibit at the de Young Museum in San Francisco from June 13 to September 28. I have been waiting for this exhibition since reading about it a few months ago. It should be amazing. I actually first heard about Chihuly when I visited Pine Ridge Winery a couple years ago — one of his famous glass sculptures adorns their dining room. Chihuly is probably the premiere glass artist in America today. He makes some incredible designs that almost don’t seem possible. Really stunning stuff, to say the least. The de [... read more ...] A longtime contributor to Wine Spectator magazine, Matt Kramer represents the contingent of wine drinkers who eschews overly-alcoholic wines in favor of those with subtlety and nuance. Among wine critics, Kramer seems to be in the minority in this aspect, but those of us who share his tastes can take umbrage in the fact that Kramer is an outstanding, knowledgeable wine journalist. His book “Matt Kramer’s New California Wine” underscores this notion, and is an indispensible guide to the dizzying California wine landscape. Kramer begins his book with a thoughtful introduction to California’s short history of serious wine production, [... read more ...] “Real Wine” by Patrick Matthews details how various winemakers have returned (or held steadfast) to traditional approaches in an era when many corporate interests have driven down the bottom line with pesticides, chemical additives and increased mechanization. Matthews analyzes the steps to natural winemaking in nine chronological chapters, beginning with site selection, touching upon subsequent topics such as growing the grapes and maturing the wine, and ending with a chapter on turning a profit. For the most part, “Real Wine” focuses heavily on California vintners, such as Ridge’s Paul Draper and Bonny Doon’s Randall Grahm, [... read more ...] A couple weeks ago, I attended a blind tasting of California Chardonnays. Because it was a work function, I’m not going to get into the real details of all six of the wines that we sampled. After all, this tasting wasn’t ever meant to be on the record, and I would hate for it to ever be construed that way. The event was intended for educational purposes only, but the results were still quite intriguing for anyone who likes Chardonnay. Therefore, I do wish to divulge just one key piece of information, and that’s the real point [... read more ...]
Janet Fish, Kraft Salad Dressing, 1973 As someone who remembers a time when glass packaging was the norm for lots of supermarket products, I have taken a recent interest in the paintings of Janet Fish. I first discovered her work while browsing the art section of a local bookstore, and I was struck by many elements of her paintings. Aside from my basic admiration of her technical prowess (especially when it comes to painting glass-related still lifes), I really enjoy the sense of nostalgia that many of her paintings elicit. My favorite Fish [... read more ...] Robert Mondavi died at age 94 today, and although he seemed to have his share of personal difficulties, his vision and his contributions to the Napa Valley are undeniable. Aside from simply being the Napa Valley’s greatest ambassador, Mondavi was instrumental in improving the quality of California wine. He was an early champion of using French oak, and he also popularized the use of tempertaure-controlled, stainless steel fermentation tanks (both are now standard practices). The Robert Mondavi Winery, which he founded at age 52, was a technological marvel when it was constructed in 1966. In [... read more ...] Originally published in 1988, Kermit Lynch’s “Adventures on the Wine Route” is required reading for anyone who wishes to gain a deeper understanding of wine. Although “Adventures” does not intend to offer a comprehensive view of any particular area of viniculture, it does succeed in conveying the essence of true wine appreciation. Lynch, perhaps America’s most well-known wine importer, is an icon in the American wine community, equally as important as the Mondavis and others who, beginning in the 1970s, helped place American wine alongside the elite wines of the world. Although Lynch does not [... read more ...] |
 
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© 2012 The Accidental Wino |
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