TWA884

Here's the wine pairing list.

work2fly

$10 grocery outlet find. This was a very nice Bordeaux blend from the Sierra foothills.

TWA884

Sonoma wine tastings.

Almost all of our stops were at places recommended by Esther Mobley, the San Francisco Chronicle's senior wine critic. We were looking for wineries that produced more than just Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon.Day one.

Unti

Unti specializes in Rhone and Italian grape varieties. These were probably our favorite wines of the day. I neglected to take pictures of the bottles, so you'll have to make do with pictures of the tasting room and the vineyards.




The wines listed in bold print are included in the tasting. After tasting, we bought bottles of four of their wines, Grenache Blanc, Rose, Zinfandel and Syrah (which were we served despite it not being included the standard tasting).





Reeve Wines








We opted for the Wayfare Flight













Porter Creek Vineyards


After tasting, we bought bottles of Rose and Pinot Noir

TWA884

Sonoma wine tastings.

Day two.

Preston Farm & Winery


















We really liked the Madam Preston, a blend of the four white Rhone grapes, Viognier, Marsanne, Roussannes and Grenache Blancs, and bought a couple of bottles







We bought a bottle of the Zin



Ryme Cellars




















Iron Horse Vineyards

Iron Horse is best known for their sparkling wines; their reputation is well deserved. The winey has the most spectacular setting of any which we visited.

Eastbay1K

Had a bottle of this last night. Fantastic!

2019 Fratelli Alessandria Priora Barbera d'Alba, Piedmont, Italy

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Napa wine tasting.

Day two (day wine was a huge disappointment at a winery that was recommended by a friend of my daughter's and shall remain nameless).

Hendry Ranch Wines

(Recommended by the San Francisco Chronicle as one of "Top Wineries in Napa Valley")

Overall, this was the best wine tasting experience of this trip factoring in the setting, the quality of the wine and the hospitality. Reservations are a must. Each party gets its own host to guide them through the tasting and the tour of the vineyards and the production facility. We were there during the Chardonnay harvest. The tasting fee is applied in full towards wine purchase.

George Hendry grew up on the ranch. He trained as a nuclear physicist and was a distinguished cyclotron designer. He started planting vineyards in the early 70's. Initially, he sold his grapes to Robert Mondavi and Opus One. He started making his own wines in 1992.























































We bought half a case of wine, two bottles each of the Albariño, Rose and Zinfandel.

Eastbay1K

Had a bottle of this on Saturday evening. Domaine Francis Orban | North Berkeley Imports

It was very good, and perhaps my first and only example of a 100% Pinot Meunier fizzy ever.

TWA884

Regular wine pairing, SingleThread Farms, Michelin

Healdsburg, CA

The evening started with a California sparkling wine and a French champagne on the rooftop garden before we were taken down to our table.






The "Regular" wine pairing; they also offer "Reserve" wine pairing for $500 and an "Unforgettable" wine pairing for $1,500.















We saw them pouring Chateau d'Yquem Sauternes from a six-liter bottle at a few tables near us. We asked the sommelier, that was the dessert wine for the "Reserve" pairing. I have no idea what they pour with the "Unforgettable" pairing.

corky

Rombauer Chardonnay .....
such yummy juice

Gaucho100K

Wow... the unforgettable is 3x the price of the Reserve, so if the Reserve gets an Imperiale of d'Yquem then for $1500 a pop I would expect that lineup to include something of the caliber of Screaming Eagle and Harlan from CA, and 1st Growth Bordeaux/Burgundy (of proper vintages of course). I wonder if the restaurant website has any information on what is offered in the wine programs...? I will try to look this up.

Regardless of which program, it sounds like am amazing experience.... Congrats !!!

Cheers,
Alex / Gaucho100K

BamaVol

The neighbor brought this over. And talked nonstop for 2 hours.

TWA884

I can't find anywhere what is included in the "Unforgettable" wine pairing; however, I found a blog post reviewing a November 2021 meal which includes the wines that were served with the "Reserve" pairing.

ohkun1

I was lucky enough to purchase this over the weekend.
Maybe I'll be drinking this in 15-20 years later.

FLYMSY

Was the wine worth it? 😉

work2fly

I'm not familiar with the Australian producer, but after a 2 hour decant, this was tremendous and went very well with flat iron steaks and a salad topped with Roquefort.