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Silver Oak Cellars Winter Release Party

This is my favorite wine event of the year. It is being held on Saturday, February 2, 2008 from 9:00 AM until 3:30 PM at both the Napa and Geyserville Estates (sadly I will be in Japan). The readers digest version of the event is all the $100 a bottle cabernet you want, food from various artisan suppliers, original works of art be created (and sold). So grab your sand chairs, a blanket, a picnic basket, your honey, and your friends and head up to Oakville Cross Road for a day of food, wine and fun.

See http://www.silveroak.com/news/release_day.html for details.

16th Annual Winter Wineland

This event takes place along the "Russian River Wine Road" in Sonoma. It is a great opportunity to taste limited production wines (hard to get), new releases and library wines (old ones). Some wineries will offer food pairings and others will have tours.

Ticket price will cover the tasting fee at all of the participating wineries for the weekend.Tickets: $50 Weekend, $40 Sunday Only, $20 for Designated Drivers. At the better (more expensive) wineries you can easily spend that much for a tasting of the better wines, so this is a great deal. This event does not take place at one location. Instead, you go from winery to winery, visiting the ones you are interested in exploring.

Designated Drivers will not be served any wine - however they may sample the food and will be offered other beverages to drink. At check-in they are given a different color wristband and a mug instead of a wineglass.

January 19 & 20, 2008 11:00-4:00 both days
111 Wineries
50 Lodgings

See, http://www.wineroad.com/winter_wineland/annualevents/1 for details.

New Years Eve In Paris

I love Paris! It never fails to surprise, entice, and truly amaze me. I have been to Paris a number of times over the last fifteen years. Every time I leave to come home, I begin looking forward to my next visit. I have tried for a long time to figure out what it is that makes me love Paris. I think I finally figured it out on the way home last Sunday; Paris is a city so deeply conflicted I can't help but love it. On one hand city loves tradition, culture, and sophistication, and on the other it loves the new, trashy, and crude. My favorite example of this is art; I don't think you can find better, more diverse art collections than those contained in the Louvre and Muse'e d'Orsay. They are truly amazing, and have something for everyone. These museums are a three minutes walk from one another, and on that walk you will find the most hideous collections of oil on velvet, plastic light up statues, and leather wear that shouldn't be worn (some truly tacky stuff). The people are conflicted as well, I have witnessed some of the most rude behavior known to man, and also the most kind and generous (on this trip a cab driver gave us a free ride).


This makes Paris a truely unique and remarkable place. Visit with an open mind, a fondness of adventure, and most importantly a sense of humor. You will be rewarded with great food and wine, kind and funny people, remarkable art and culture.

Well I really didn't write much about new years eve, but I will say that the throw one heck of party. Imagine 500,000 of your coolest friends drinking champagne, dancing in the streets and kissing everyone in sight. Not a bad way to end the year.

2005 Pahlmeyer Napa Valley Chardonnay

Pahlmeyer is one of our "go to" wines on a wine list. If you want something very good, and are okay spending a bit extra, this wine never disappoints. The color is pale gold, with a great scent of tropical fruit. Slightly bright acidity, but not overpowering. This wine always pairs well with rich seafood dishes. Be aware that you may get a little sediment in the bottle (they don't filter or fine). Only 3,000 cases made, so it won't last long. Rated in the low ninety's out of one hundred by all the critics (including me).

2005 Pahlmeyer Sonoma Coast Chardonnay

This wine comes mostly from the Ritchie Vineyard just outside of Forestville. Generally I like Sonoma chardonnays more than Napa Vally ones. But in this case I will have to say the Napa version of this wine is much better. I think the thing that puts me off on this one, is that the acidity is just a bit much. I tried all the tricks, let it warm to room temperature, let it breathe for an extended period, but no luck. This wine is rated by the critics a bit higher that the NV version, so I going against the grain here. Also at 15.2% alcohol, it is a bit much. Only 1,100 cases made so it most likely won't last long, but I would advise letting someone else buy it.