This July, Jeff and I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary – and we thought our family reunion would be a great time to open the large format 2000 Far Niente Cabernet Sauvignon that our family and friends signed at our wedding. While the wine was decanting, Jeff seasoned and grilled up some amazing lamb chops and our Lamb & Large Format night was on its way.
2000 Far Niente Cabernet Sauvignon
(6L bottle – can’t figure out whether this is called a Methuselah or an Imperial)
My dad opening the bottle…
Decanting was a must…
This lamb was beautiful and Jeff paired it with some rosemary fingerling potatoes
and a salad picked right from the garden.
Lamb & Large Format Night at Vineyard 511
This year our annual family reunion took place over Labor Day weekend. And as always, it was filled with amazing wine, delicious food, and fun activities. I’m still going through all the photos, but here’s a peak at what’s to follow.
~Thursday, September 1st~
Tour of the UC Davis Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science
Lamb & Large Format Cab Dinner
~Friday, September 2nd~
Family Tennis Clinic at Meadowood
Tour, Tasting, & Lunch at Lynmar Estate
~Saturday, September 3rd~
Release Party at Fisher Vineyards
Tour & Tasting at Chateau Boswell
Pork & Pinot Night
~Sunday, September 4th~
Family Croquet “Tournament” at Meadowood
Tour & Tasting at Jarvis Winery
Burgers & Shiraz Dinner
~Vineyard 511~
My parents’ house and vineyard in Calistoga
On Saturday of our July 4th weekend, Jeff was inspired to cook up some fantastic food for all of us – 10 people! We decided on grilled pork tenderloin along with Jeff’s roasted corn salad. Thanks to Jeff’s hard work in the outdoor kitchen and a wonderful selection of Pinots from my dad’s cellar, our Pork & Pinot night was a hit!
We started off with some cheese and Chardonnay and a beautiful view of Vineyard 511 -
pretty much how we started every evening!
Aged Gouda…
…and La Tur, one of our favorite cheeses. This creamy goat, sheep, and cow’s milk cheese from Piemonte becomes a runny piece of heaven as it warms up.
Jeff’s Roasted Corn Salad – always a crowd favorite!
Grilled Pork Tenderloin
marinated in mustard, honey, brown sugar, vinegar, and olive oil
Grilled to perfection…caramelized marinade on the outside and moist on the inside.
And the Pinots…
2004 Alfieri San Germano Pinot Noir
2007 Chasseur Freestone Station Pinot Noir
2008 Kesner Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
2007 Michel-Schlumberger Le Fou Pinot Noir
2006 Michel-Schlumberger Le Fou Pinot Noir
All of these Pinots were great, but the Chasseur was our favorite.
I think Pork & Pinot night should become a permanent addition to our July 4th family reunion.
Yesterday we did a barrel tasting of the 2009 Vineyard 511 cabernet. The wine is aging in 7 French oak barrels at Folio Winemakers Studio. Wine from the core of the vineyard is being aged in 4 new barrels and 1 used barrel – more refined than the wine from the edge of the vineyard, it can stand up to the oak flavor imparted by a new barrel.
So, how is the wine tasting? The core vineyard cabernet is quite good – it has rich blackberry notes and is soft with very subtle tannins. The cabernet from the edge is also nice, though not as soft as the core wine.
Vineyard 511 cabernet aging in French oak.
Our winemaker, Rob Lloyd, siphons out some of the cab for us to taste.
Tasting wine from the vineyard edge stored in barrels once used by Raumbauer.
Jeff and I love visiting Napa Valley – which is why we decided to get married here four years ago this July 22nd. This weekend we are back in Napa for our annual July 4th family reunion. It’s great to spend time with family in this beautiful place – our days consist of some combination of tennis, golf, wine tasting, picnics, barbecuing, and enjoying the lovely and peaceful surroundings of my dad’s house in Calistoga.
Remembering our Wedding Day – July 22nd, 2006
After a long day of travel from NY on Thursday, we enjoyed the scenic view of Vineyard 511 from the house…
We started dinner off with a few appetizers – a steamed artichoke and roasted figs with goat cheese and balsamic glaze.
Then we headed down to the outside kitchen to cook up some steaks and corn on the cob.
We also got to taste the wine from the 2008 harvest of Vineyard 511 in preparation for barrel tasting the 2009 the next day. The grapes from this harvest were sold to another wine-maker with the condition that she bottle a case or so of a single vineyard cabernet from Vineyard 511′s grapes. I thought the 2008 was quite good.
We ended the day by relaxing in front of the fire while enjoying some more time with family.
So, how is the 2009 Vineyard 511 cab tasting? Here are some tasting notes from late April:
The wine is now racked and aging nicely in French Oak barrels that have been medium toasted. Wine from the “core” of the vineyard is developing nicely. Although high in alcohol (15.6%) it does not explode in your mouth like the many fruit bombs on the market. It is surprisingly smooth – the tannins do not overwhelm as in many young wines. The wine produced from grapes on the edge of the vineyard has more tannins and is not as smooth but still a very nice tasting wine. We’ll see how these two wines develop over time.
