Cliff Lede (4.38)



Open: 10:00am-4:00pm

Appt required? No, but additional tasting experiences available by appointment

Last barlinwine.com visit: 2012 (May 15, 2012 Itinerary)

Directions:


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Tasting:
Cliff Lede (pronounced “lee-dee”) has become more well-known and popular in recent years (and had the ensuing price hike for all of their wine), but I’ve been a fan since the early 2000s. I’d been planning to return to give it a thorough eval from a tasting standpoint for a while and I finally worked them into my schedule this past May.

One thing that kept me away was their advertised tasting menu. According to their website, they offer multiple tasting options, starting with their basic bar tasting of 3 basic wines (that are also widely distributed) for a $25 fee. An Estate Tasting in the vineyards (that also includes their well-regarded "Poetry" Cabernet)is available by appointment, which I've investigated in the past but ultimately declined to try given the cost-to-wine ratio. While I would love to sample this, I wasn't ready to drop something like $75 to do so. I decided to try my luck with the everyday visitors and put their 3 wine limit to the test.

I walked in to a mostly empty tasting room on a Tuesday afternoon and tasted with Dave, and affable gent who finally said “screw it” to Corporate America and came out to do a job that would make him happy. We talked about the tech industry and of course wine, and Dave made it quickly clear that the advertised tasting list was just a guide for the uninitiated or those more interested in getting drunk than actually trying the wines. I ended up trying 7 wines from Cliff Lede and their second label (from Anderson Valley), Breggo. My first three wines were whites: the Cliff Lede Sauvignon Blanc, Breggo Chardonnay and Breggo Riesling. I then moved into reds with a Breggo Pinot Noir and the 2009 Cliff Lede Cabernet.

Wine #6 was definitely interesting. Cliff Lede makes some reserve Cabernet-based blends from select blocks of their estate vineyard. Unlike most wineries who just number or letter the different blocks, Cliff Lede names all of their vineyard blocks after famous rock songs (click here to see the list). The blend they oured for me was the 2008 “Lonely Wizard” Cabernet, a blend of Cabernet from the Sgt, Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band block and Malbec from the Pinball Wizard block. When they sold out of that, Dave told me they were planning to pour Cinnamon Rhapsody (Cabernet from the Cinnamon Girl and Bohemian Rhapsody blocks).

I could have been done at this point, but Dave asked, “Do you like Zinfandel?”. There’s only one answer to that question when you’re out tasting, and so I sampled a single vineyard Breggo Zinfandel. Dave spread his hands and explained that was all the wine he had, and I thanked him for his hospitality and exceeding my expectations on the tasting.

Overall, I was more than pleasantly surprised with the experience at Cliff Lede. I went in dreading a potential snob-fest after hearing about the price of the Estate Tasting, but they were warm and welcoming and the wine flowed freely (and in most cases was quite good). I suspect I got about the best experience possible for the standard tasting, and on a busier day I might have tried far fewer wines, so caveat taster, but overall this was a positive stop.


Recommended wine:The Cliff Lede Cabernet is distributed and I think a decent value wine. The Lonely Wizard was quite good but didn't make it into my carry case at $100/bottle.

Ratings (out of 5):


WINE
4.25
TASTING ROOM
4.50

ATMOSPHERE
4.75
VALUE
4.00

OVERALL
4.38

Napa: April 18, 2012 (300 Level)

April 18, 2012 Itinerary


Number of wineries: 6
Average rating: 4.29
Wine Route Rating: Advanced (300)
Highlight of the day: Allora (4.88). A great experience with Terry Klein and great wines start to finish.

Notes: Enough off-the-beaten-path stops to make this a day more suited to the experienced wine country visitor. Allora is definitely a hidden gem and recommended for anyone with a healthy appreciation of wine.

LocationStart TimeStop TimeReservation?Notes
Corison (4.25)10:0010:45
A last-minute addition to the start of our day, we were able to taste a lot of different vintages of Corison Cabernet in a friendly setting.
Allora (4.88)11:0011:45
A definite star of the April 2012 visit to wine country, our tasting with owner Terry Klein was a blast and the wines were outstanding across the board.
Ehlers Estate (4.19)11:4512:05
 
Not Needed
My first trip to Ehlers in about eight years. Wines were much better than I remembered, but also much more expensive. All proceeds to a good cause, though (Heart Research)
Taylor's/Gotts (4.38)12:1512:40
 
Not Needed
We couldn't visit wine country without getting Stephanie her "ATB" (Ahi Tuna Burger) from Gott's
James Cole (3.88)1:001:30
Decent wine, friendly tasting, but overpriced
Reynolds Family (4.13)1:402:00
 
Not Needed
Small friendly tasting room with decent wines at a very reasonable price.
Falcor (4.38)2:303:15
 
Not Needed
Hidden in an industrial park well south of downtown Napa, Falcor had surprisingly good wines and was worth the visit

Route:

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Map:

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Piña (4.19)



Open: 10am-4pm

Appt required? No

Last barlinwine.com visit: 2012 (May 15, 2012 Itinerary)

Directions:

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Tasting:
Piña Napa Valley is in a prime spot, right in the heart of the Silverado Trail. So why had I never noticed it or stopped in before? On my last trip to wine country, it was time to remedy the situation.

I arrived at the tasting room somewhere around 12:30 on a slow Tuesday in May. Entering in through the human-size door next to the large service bay door, I found myself in a small barrel room. A circular table with a slew of bottles was calling me, and I made my way in that direction.

There was something missing, though…people! A caught a glimpse of movement out of the corner of my eye.

“Mmmmmph! Un sec!”

Apparently I’d stumbled in just as my host was finishing her lunch. She scarfed down a few more bites in the office, apologized profusely for keeping me waiting, and started pouring.

The standard tasting menu at Piña included three Cabs and one Late Harvest Chard. We started with the 2009 Napa Valley “CAHOOTS” Cabernet which I found to be good but unspectacular. Next up was the 2007 D’Adama Vineyard Cabernet. This turned out to be my favorite Piña wine, with lots of fruit, oak and vanilla. For my third wine, we went off-menu. A club member had been in earlier and they had their 2008 Wolff Vineyard Cabernet open. I preferred the D’Adamo to it, but the Wolff was close on its heels. My last Cab was the 2007 Howell Mountain Buckeye Vineyard Cabernet, a wine I was very excited to try given how much I love Howell Mountain fruit and how much I liked the D’Adamo and the Wolff. It turned out to be good, but it did not quite live up to my lofty expectations.

We finished the tasting with an obligatory splash of the 2009 Late Harvest Chardonnay and I carried away a bottle of the D’Adamo. I was definitely surprised with the quality of wine at Piña. Prices were a bit higher than I would have guessed prior to the tasting (other than the CAHOOTS which was $45, all of the Cabs were $75-$85), but the tasting experience had a rustic, laid back feel. Perhaps it was the animal skin lying over several bottles, but the atmosphere reminded me a bit of Dutch Henry. I left pleasantly surprised and hopeful that my next stop, Cliff Lede, would be as good as I remembered.

Recommended wine:The D'Adamo Vineyard Cabernet was my personal favorite, followed closely by the Wolff Vineyard Cabernet

Ratings (out of 5):


WINE
4.50
TASTING ROOM
4.00

ATMOSPHERE
4.25
VALUE
4.00

OVERALL
4.19

Falcor (4.38)





Open: 10am-5pm

Appt required? Not required, but preferred by the winery

Last barlinwine.com visit: 2012 (April 18, 2012 Itinerary)

Directions:

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Tasting:
We manged to find our way to Falcor’s tasting room on the advice of a friend, and without the recommendation never would have stumbled upon it. Falcor conducts tastings out of their production facility south of downtown Napa. I’ve been accustomed to going to craft breweries in industrial parks, but this was the first time I’d done so for a winery.

We walked in to an empty room with a TV showing a replay of a Barcelona-Real Madrid match from the previous weekend. This also happened to be the day that the first leg of the Champions League semifinal between Barcelona and Chelsea had been played, a game in which Chelsea stole a 1-0 victory from a much better team. After poking around a bit and calling out a few “hellos?”, we found our host for the day, Chay Woerz, while he was still wearing his Messi jersey and bemoaning the match outcome in the privacy of his office. He apologized, scowled at me when I told him I was a Chelsea supporter, buttoned up his shirt to hide his jersey, and came out to start us on our tasting.

Chay tasted us through a tasting of several of their wines, including their Sauvignon Blanc, Henry Ranch Chardonnay, Dry Creek Zinfandel, and Napa Valley Cabernet. We also tried their “Le Bijou” (or “The Jewel”) Bordeaux blend. I thought the wines were quite good and reasonably priced between $35 and $45, with the Zin, Cabernet, and Le Bijou standing out for me.

While we explored the Falcor portfolio, Chay regaled us with tales from his past (in addition to managing the tasting room he is the in-house chef and has an extensive culinary background) as well as information about the origin of the winery. Interestingly, I assumed the name Falcor had nothing to do with the big furry white flying dog from The Neverending Story (“he’s actually a Luck Dragon”, Beth Marlow would correct me), but it turns out that sure enough that is the origin of the name.

The founder’s daughter had named her bird after her favorite movie character, Falcor, and poor Falcor the bird died shortly before her father bought the winery. She begged him to name the winery Falcor in the bird’s honor, and so he figured he’d at least explore the option, all the while assuming the name would be protected by Disney. According to Chay, for some reason Falcor apparently is the ONLY character in the Disney family not trademarked. Without delay, the winery snatched the name and the rest, as they say, is history (or, perhaps, luck – cue the puppeteer to make the giant dog wink!). On a side note, watch this if you never want to be able to look at Falcor the same way: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoXvBOv9wYU

We closed out the tasting with a quick tour of the facility, including a trip back to their production area and barrel room. Chay was kind enough to snap a picture of me and Steph and also give us a mini tour of his kitchen where he prepares delectable snacks for a five course food and wine pairing that Falcor hosts by appointment.

Despite the severly off-the-beaten-path location, the tasting room (or “salon”, as they are fond of calling it) is certainly worth a stop on your way in or out of town. Not having a pricey address allows Falcor to make solid wine at a reasonable price, and I look forward to visiting again at some point in the future as they continue to grow and evolve as a winery.


Recommended wine:The Cabernet and the Le Bijou were my personal favorites

Ratings (out of 5):


WINE
4.25
TASTING ROOM
4.00

ATMOSPHERE
4.50
VALUE
4.75

OVERALL
4.38

PlumpJack (4.25)



Open: 10am-4pm

Appt required? No (only for 8 or more)

Last barlinwine.com visit: 2012 (May 15, 2012 Itinerary)

Directions:

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Tasting:
I returned to PlumpJack this May after a five year absence from the tasting room. I’d always appreciated their wines, and was reminded how delicious their Cabernet could be during 2011’s visit to CADE (their sister winery).

Just as CADE poured the PlumpJack Cabernet out of their tasting room, PlumpJack also offered the option to taste CADE wines from their location. Having recently tried CADE, I elected to just do the PlumpJack tasting. This flight featured the 2010 Chardonnay, 2009 Syrah, and 2009 Estate Cabernet. Before we started the tasting, my host asked what I typically drank at home. When I revealed I was strongly partial to reds and big Cabs and that I’d skip the Chardonnay, he had no problem with me mixing and matching from the two tasting lists.

I started with the Syrah, which is only sold out of the tasting room. This was a solid wine (as all of PlumpJack’s wines are). He then moved unbidden to the CADE side of the list and poured me the 2008 CADE Cuvee and 2008 CADE Napa Cabernet, both good but unexceptional wines (the CADE Howell Mountain Cabernet is much better). We then came back to polish off the tasting with the excellent 2009 PlumpJack Cabernet.

Assuming we were done, I started to contemplate whether I wanted to carry anything with me. While I was debating, I found one more wine in my glass: the 2009 CADE Estate Cabernet, their version of a “reserve”. This was quite good, as was the PlumpJack Cabernet. But given the ready availability of the PlumpJack Cab at Binny’s and the pricepoint of the CADE Estate ($150.bottle), I decided to just go with what I couldn’t get at home: a bottle of the PlumpJack Syrah.

I closed out and was a tad disappointed to see I was charged the $15 tasting fee. Not a big deal, and I basically got the wines of two tastings for the price of one, but no tasting fee would have definitely garnered extra atmosphere points for PlumpJack.

All things considered, this is a decent stop to try some very good wine. I would recommend a trip up to CADE over a trip to PlumpJack just because of the spectacular view and facility they have at CADE, but PlumpJack is a little less off the beaten path and certainly a nice alternative to get to try basically the same set of wines.



Recommended wine:The 2009 Plumpjack Estate Cabernet was still as good as I'd remembered from my trip to CADE. The rest of the wines were also good but this was once again the star.

Ratings (out of 5):


WINE
4.50
TASTING ROOM
4.25

ATMOSPHERE
4.25
VALUE
4.00

OVERALL
4.25