Ultimate California Wine Blog

Chimney Rock is one of the many wineries along the Silverado Trail which lies within the famed Stags Leap District. For Chimney Rock, not only does the winery sit within the appellation, but all 112 vineyard acres which make up their wine is Stags Leap as well. Initially, this would fill me with some trepidation, knowing my tepid reaction to Stags Leap appellation wines in general. Fortunately, Chimney Rock proved me wrong.

Here is where I learn about architecture. From the street, the Chimney Rock buildings seem reminiscent of some of the California Missions and I thought the architecture a tad Spanish in that respect. It is stately and elegant and up until a few months ago, was marked by a row of Cyprus trees which have since been removed. Apparently the architecture is not remotely influenced by the California Missions, but (according to their website) inspired by the Cape Dutch. Interesting, isn’t it?
 

The cost for the tasting is $10.00 for five wines but if you want to taste only reds (and a reserve), than the fee is $15.00. Both fees offer a complimentary glass with the tasting. The room has vaulted ceilings and adds an aura of elegance and class. The pouring staff are extremely pleasant, happily describing the wines, the neighborhood, and Napa in general, with no pretense or hard sale. Great wines and a great atmosphere.

2003 Fumé Blanc – 20% French oak and 80% Aluminum. The aluminum surprised me. I am accustomed to stainless steel, but rarely aluminum. I was also told that it was 100% fermented dry. It produced a wine that is a light straw color with clear tropical and apricot notes. $20.00

2003 Rosé of Cabernet Franc – The wine sees 36 hours on its skins and is almost a fluorescent salmon color with aromas of fresh strawberries which surprised me when I perceived green bell pepper on the entry. Crisp and fun with a touch of spice on the end. $16.00

2001 Cabernet Sauvignon – Warm, spicy berry with rich, port-like aromas with some hint of earth through the mostly dark fruit. Smooth entry with a mineral mid-palate and an even, silky finish. $56.00

2002 Cabernet Sauvignon – Dark berries behind the warm, almost hot, bouquet. Soft, velvety entry blossoms and expands but then dries a bit in the middle with a tinny finish. Just needs time, that’s all. $52.00

2001 Elevage – A blend of 49% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, with 18% Petite Verdot. Plummy and rich with tones of chocolate and blackberry that don’t deceive the mouth entry. Very bright in tannins with oak and cedar on the finish. $72.00

2000 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve – Dark, dark berry  Great opulent aromas that match the flavors, enhanced by a spicy plumminess. I would still give this wine another dozen-plus years. $100.00

I’m pretty enamored with history and art. Wineries that combine either history or art are an easy mark for my affection. Driving up and down the Silverado Trail every day, I glance often at Regusci Winery as their historic buildings have always intrigued me. Apparently part of the Ghost Winery trails, there is a building that lies back off the road, nestled behind some olive tress that was constructed in the 1878.

It was a gravity-method building that had been constructed and is thankfully one that is still standing to this day. It was in 1932 that Gaetano Regusci purchased the estate and along with grapes, also raised cattle and pigs to supplement the family’s income. The family continued to farm grapes, but it was Gaetano’s grandson, Jim, who re-established the estate as a winery.

Today, the historic building still greets visitors, as does several of the winery dogs including Scrappy, an accommodating Golden Lab who guards the parking lot. The tasting room is expansive and bright with natural light. The crew working the pouring counter are amiable, fun-loving, and informative. While there is a limited number of wines to taste, all are of exceptional quality.

2003 Chardonnay, Napa Valley – Classic citrus and tropical fruit bouquet with a crisp entry and balanced, even buttery mid-palate. Creamy vanilla finish. $28.00

2001 Regusci Estate Merlot – Some hints of green bell pepper but segues into dark, plummy, black raspberry. Vanilla, cherry and complex spices characteristics in the mouth feel with a bright, engaging finish. $40.00

2002 Regusci Estate Cabernet Sauvignon – Ultra ripe, port-like entry with subtle overtones of chocolate, boysenberry and other dark berries, and a touch of toasted vanilla. A complex, cherry finish that is rich and heady. $48.00

2002 Regusci Angelo’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon – This is a wine from the Stags Leap District which (thankfully for me), does not have those disdainful SLD characteristics I seem to continually experience; dirty, earthy, green bell pepper. The antithesis of this lies in this reserve offering. Fruit forward bouquet that includes dark berries as well as layered, complex tones of toffee and caramel. It enters the mouth with toasty, rugged qualities that include tobacco and leather, but heighten with dark cherry and more toffee on the finish. $95.00

Pine Ridge Winery is one of those about whom I knew nothing before this blog. I knew of their reputation, but I had never tasted their wines. I placed them in the Stag’s Leap District appellation because that is where there building is located. However, they utilize fruit from five different appellations for their extensive wine list. I was most intrigued with a Howell Mountain Cabernet that they make, but was told that it generally goes to wine club members exclusively and is never tasted in the retail outlet.

The building is expansive and the classic adobe style of California architecture that I grew up with. The tasting room is spare and elegant. A large floral display the only formal decoration. It is not cluttered with mundane tourist items found almost everywhere else. It was rather refreshing in its sparcity. The gentleman who poured for me was elderly and had been with the company for 17 years. No nonense and no hard sell. Just informative on their quality product.

2003 Dijon Clones Chardonnay – 100% ML and one-half of the wine sees new oak. Significant butter bouquet gives way to secondary tropical fruit tones in the nose. Brighter and more clean on the palate than I anticipated considering the heavier butter aromas. Flavors of peach and more tropical fruit dominate. $27.00

2001 Crimson Creek Merlot – 60% of the fruit for this wine comes from Carneros and the other 40% comes from Rutherford. It is actually 76% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Malbec. A slight engagement of green bell pepper hits the nose but gives way to brown sugar and nutmeg. Dark berries dominate the palate and the slightly acidic finish indicates the wine should be cellared for another five to eight years. $27.00

2001 Charmstone – A "proprietary" bland of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Malbec, and Cabernet Franc. Clear garnet color and substantial bell pepper aromas couple with a hint of brambleberry. Hot cinnamon mid-palate somewhat overwhelmed me. $30.00

2001 Cabernet Franc – Bright ruby color produced an earthy, barnyard bell pepper tone. Significant roasted flavors predominate with a surprisingly thin finish. $35.00

2001 Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon – 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Tannat. Again, classic bell pepper aromas up front, gives way to some black olive and black pepper. Tasting produced a brighter, smoother mouth feel than the nose predicted. Long finish of black fruit. $39.00

2000 Andrus Reserve – Another "proprietary" blend of the Bordeaux varietals all planted in the Rutherford appellation. Dark, rustic flavors of roasted coffee and oak fill the bouquet and anticipate flavors of mocha in the mouth. A slight vanilla finish which was long and predicted a wine which would age well. $95.00

Pine Ridge Winery ~ 5901 Silverado Trail ~ Napa ~ CA ~ 94558 ~ 707-252-9777

Baldacci Vineyards is another winery along the Silverado Trail that is small and easy to miss – but definetely worth looking for. Their sign is small and attached to their gate. Their tasting room unassuming, a mere shack compared to the palatial palaces and villas that speckle the landscape. They are a relatively new winery as Tom Baldacci (a home builder by trade) started off purchasing old, heritage vineyards to sell grapes to other wine producers. Later, he decided he wanted to make the wine himself.

Not being satisfied with the old vines, he set about replanting to increase productivity in the soil. He got local wunderkind Rolando Herrera as his winemaker (Rolando has his own Mi Sueno label which is pretty fabulous!). The wine? A single offering of a limited production estate-grown Cabernet. But what a wine…

2000 was their first vintage and I was fortunate to taste both the first and second vintage of their estate wine (they also produce a limited production Cabernet, named after Tom’s wine, Brenda, which was not available to taste).

2000 Baldacci Estate Cabernet Sauvignon – With one acre of Cabernet Franc vineyards, there is a 9% CabFranc blended into this wine. Tremendous brambleberry aromas come from a wine that is downright inky in color. Elegant cocoa and eucalyptus flavors come through and a long, velvety finish continues.

2001 Baldacci Estate Cabernet Sauvignon – This wine has 6 1/2% Cabernet Franc and for a change, instead of the classic Stag’s Leap manure smell that I tend to tire of from this appellation, this wine effuses dark, rustic fruit and oak with a hint of tobacco. Flavors of dark cherry and blackberry produce mid-palate and the finish is vanilla and wonderfully extensive.

Baldacci Family Vineyards ~ 6236 Silverado Trail ~ Napa ~ CA ~ 94558 ~ 707-944-9261

Before I moved to the Napa Valley, I would drive up on three- and four-day weekends from Los Angeles.  Robert Sinskey Vineyards was one of my favorite wineries during every visit. This is the bain of the neophyte visitor — you find a great place and it is hard to move on to discover other great places, but always happy and satisfied knowing an old friend is there for you. I was initially drawn to Sinskey because of a friend’s invitation, but have gone back many times because of their Pinots.

One of the many charms that Sinskey offers is more than good wine. I have always received exceptional, personal service from the pouring staff. Upon arrival, guests are greeted with architecture that is both modern and austere, yet constructed of wood that is warm and inviting.  For its categorization, I have placed it in both the Napa Carneros appellation, where the bulk of their vineyards are located (200+ acres) as well as the Stag’s Leap District appellation, where their winery physically stands but is also the home of their Cabernet vineyards (4 acres of Cabernet and 1/2 acre of Merlot).

The entry into the tasting room presents exaulted, open ceilings and a semi-round tasting bar which instead of offering sharp, angular, psychologically sharp corners, softens the room making it immediately comfortable and inviting. There are many of the standard retail items strewn about, but not blatantly so and more set back. Directly behind the tasting bar are large, glass windows behind which displays part of the wine making area with stainless steel vats. At the end of a normally retail-oriented space, is a small presentation kitchen with wood-fired stone oven. This is all related to Maria Helms-Sinskey’s belief that wine tastes better with food and has subsequently also written the well known The Vineyard Kitchen.

When tasting their wine, they continue with the philosophy that wine pairs better with food. Inasmuch, small ramekins of rosemary-scented Marconi almonds and Nicoise olives are set out with olive oil crackers to taste with the wine. And one last point before the wine notes; I was a tad surprised that much of the Pinot I tasted for this blog is the same vintage that I tasted three years ago; 2000. However, I have been assured that a number of new vintages will be released at the beginning of March; a 2002 Los Carneros Pinot and the 2001 Four Vineyards. More exciting, however, is the news that later in the year will be the presentation of some vineyard-specific Pinots which I will anxiously await: The Vandal Vineyard, The Three Amigos, and The Capa Vineyard Pinots.

2003 Pinot Blanc, Los Carneros – 100% stainless steel produces a surprisingly warm nose of aromatic jasmine and citrus blossom. Thick, engaging mid-palate which produces melon flavors. The tanginess that is normally perceived in Sauvignon Blanc appears in this wine as part of the finish. $18.00

2002 Chardonnay, Three Amigos Vineyard – Los Carneros of Napa Valley – Eight to ten months of French oak don’t overpower this Chard, probably because there was no malo fermentation used. Initial bouquet of apple and vanilla anticipates the deeper flavors of pear and toasted nut. Very long, silky finish. $30.00

2004 Vin Gris – Pinot Noir Rose – Beautiful peach color with wild strawberry aromas. Extremely bright and engaging. Warm nose with a soft entry that builds and effuses. Keeps going and going. Must try with BBQ! $16.00

2000 Four Vineyards Pinot Noir – Los Carneros of Napa Valley – Very bright red raspberry nose just barely hides a secondary aroma of vegetal pepper. First tastes produce strawberry and minerally tones which give way to a slightly acidic finish that diminishes quickly. Having tasted this vintage upon its release several years ago, I believe the wine is waning. $46.00

2001 Merlot – Los Carneros of Napa Valley – A blend of 76% Merlot with 24% Cabernet, but this Cabernet was not from Stag’s Leap, but Carneros. Green bell pepper bouquet which made me think it might have been from Stag’s Leap District, but I think the bell pepper aromas were the Cabernet. Harsh, astringent entry with a hint of mint in the mid-palate. Tannic finish. $26.00

1999 Vineyard Reserve, Napa Valley – 52% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc. Another earthy entry, quite probably from Stag’s Leap District Cabernet. Bouquet of mint and spice. Extracted pine in the mouth with a cocoa finish. $36.00

Robert Sinskey Vineyards ~ 6320 Silverado Trail ~ Napa ~ CA ~ 707-944-9090