To download the podcast click here.

The third podcast from the 2010 Auction Napa Valley featuring interviews with Robin Fields, Bill Harlan, Amy Aiken, John Shafer, Suzanne Pride Bryan, Robin Quivers and many more.

To download the podcast click here.

Auction Napa Valley Podcast (#18) Part Two from the Barrel Auction at Rubicon Estate.

To download the podcast click here.

Part one of three podcasts recorded at Taste Napa Valley/Barrel Auction and Auction Napa Valley June 4th and 5th, 2010

Auction Napa Valley trip June 2, 2010

Day One-Wednesday June 2nd-
Which leads me to question, why the heck do I choose United when I fly? Oh that’s right, this was a freebie frequent flyer. Got it. Next time, I pay….it’s worth paying rather and putting up with….

Depart Milwaukee flying through Chicago and the weather after about five days of amazing sun and warmth gives way to rain. You have to love the feeling you get when exit a small jet outdoors to grab gate checked luggage in a downpour…..yes, no jetway. A class act folks. I would think just our baggage fees alone could pay for one.

United….’nuff said.

My first interview of the day was to be with Taylor Bartolucci of Madonna Estate in Carneros, but due to the delay at the airport I had to reschedule.

After checking in at my hotel, I headed out to meet with Cyril Chappellet of Chappellet Wines.

After the drive up Pritchard Hill, I was met by the lovely Candice Pannetier the Director of Hospitality. Shortly afterward I met Cyril and we headed outdoors up the hill to a grove of picnic tables to start the interview.

Cyril was fantastic. A candid and open man with a great sincerity that makes you feel as you have known him for years. With a very tight schedule the interview was everything I could have wanted….family, history, Napa Vintners involvement….a great interview and a very nice guy.

Following the interview I was fortunate enough to spend time talking with Candice about family, wine, passion and all the things that make our worlds go round.

I left Pritchard Hill feeling invigorated and very happy to have met such nice people.

Dinner was spent with my friend Charly de Pottere the Enologist at Alpha Omega Winery along with his girlfriend Natalie.

Laughing and drinking beer…..their is no better way to end a day with friends.

Day Two-Thursday June 3rd.
After picking up our photographer Jeanette from the ferry in Vallejo, we headed up for a midmorning interview with Mick Unti of Unti Vineyards to talk all about Rose. Mick’s passion for wine is one thing, but his strong feelings for Rose takes things to a new height.

Next we headed up the road to Sbragia Family Vineyards. Last November I visited Sbragia for the very first time…just a quick visit to check out a winery I knew nothing about. Over the next year I learned plenty.

Ed Sbragia spend 30 years making wine at Beringer and then found his place in Sonoma within sight of Lake Sonoma. I’ve read a bit about Ed but our friend Tor Kenward had plenty of complimentary things to say about this very kind gentleman.

I found Ed to be a pleasure to talk to. Smart, concise and again, passionate I was amazed that he was willing to give us his time after literally just getting off a jet from Tokyo.

I might add that I am a fan of his Cabernets.

We then headed back to downtown Healdsburg to catch up with Greg and Jennifer Hauck of Hauck Cellars. I met these folks last year on one of those last minute ‘curiosity’ stops.

And again, excellent Cabernet, excellent Zinfandel and a damn fine Sauvignon Blanc.

The interview went very well (one of the few times I’ve interviewed a husband and wife partnership together) and the hospitality was fantastic.

Tonight dinner at Zazu Farm and Restaurant. The salmon was terrific but the fresh pasta and peas made the dish something entirely new. My compliments!

The day was very warm but overcast skies hid the fact that this was wine country in May.

By the time we made it back to Napa, blue was the evening sky….time for resting up for a big day tomorrow.

Day Three-Thursday, June 4th
Taste Napa Valley/Barrel Auction day. This event was held for the first time at Francis Ford Coppola’s Rubicon Estate.

The lawn just outside of the Chateau hosted many winemakers but most importantly some of Napa Valley’s most impressive restaurants.

The food was nothing less than fantastic. White wine was the order of the day….which was intended to make warmer weather more comfortable but this overcast day was just lightly warm and the sun stayed hidden most of the day.

In the Rubicon caves the barrel tasting flowed into mini traffic jams while some of the best Napa Cabs (and some Pinots) were sampled.

Wineries including Madonna, Sawyer, Alpha Omega, Frazier, Paraduxx, Tom Scott, Shafer, Rubicon, Crocker & Starr, AND MANY MORE were pouring.

As the day went on auction prices went higher and higher. This auction gives the top 10 bidders on each barrel a case of wine from that barrel. Usually the wine is delivered within a year or so of the auction.

The final bell came at 4pm. Bidders and owners finished up and headed off to several private parties around the Valley celebrating the fun of the wine business.

Dinner this evening was in the city of Napa at Ristorante Allegria. The service was excellent and the food was Napa quality. Well worth another visit to this 9 year old Napa restaurant that sits in an old bank building.

Day Four-Saturday, June 5th
Auction Napa Valley, 2010.

A morning to sleep in late as the early opening to view lots was not until 11:30.

We were shuttled from The Ranch Winery on Zinfandel Lane with simple efficiency to Napa’s Meadowood Country Club, home to the auction.

This was the 30th anniversary of the auction that was started by the Napa Valley Vintners Association.

After getting the gear settled we headed to the lawn where several small tents were set up with small plate food samples from 10 Napa Valley male chefs. The Chefs were Octavio Becerra of Palate, Los Angeles; Walter Manzke of Church and State, Los Angeles; Michael Tusk of Quince, San Francisco; Michael Mina of Michael Mina, San Francisco; Jean Joho of Everest, Chicago; Frank Stitt, Highlands Bar and Grill, Birmingham, AL and from Napa Valley: Thomas Keller, The French Laundry; Christopher Kostow of The Restaurant at Meadowood; Paul LeMieux of Auberge du Soleil; Richard Reddington of Redd; and Lars Kronmark of CIA Greystone.

Wine and food from heaven. We were all treated with such great hospitality and fun that it was almost too good to be true.

Music was everywhere. Old friends catching up. The sun was blazing. Life is good.

Above all else, the hospitality and welcoming attitude prevailed. Everyone was happy and in a good mood. The weather was sunny and hot. Along with the wine, water could be found in many places to keep the warm crowd safely hydrated. The service staff at Meadowood was exceptional. The hard work in the sun never took the smiles from the workers faces. My highest compliments!

After much sampling of this fantastic food and wine the California Repercussions marching band (performing tunes such as Crazy Train, You Can Call Me Al and For Your Love) lead the partiers to the other side of the lawn and the big tent for the main event, Auction 2010. Cheers, smiles, wine and laughs marked the start of the 30th Anniversary auction.

The giant tent held tables for paddle possessing bidders with more wine bottles than I could even begin to mention. The large stage held the two auctioneers Fritz Hatton and Christopher Kostow (of The Restaurant at Meadowood) and the fantastic band who played compliment to each winning bid.

There were 41 lots in all and to explain them would take pages upon pages of text. Let it suffice to say these folks were bidding on everything from massive quantities of wine to trips that might have well been a visit to the moon.

All minimum bids started at $5000….then the sky was the limit.

Money was flying around the room at fever pitch while the auctioneers brought the kind of drama and excitement to each introduction as if it were the last lot on earth that you could bid on.

It’s important to note how important this auction is to the people living in Napa Valley.

Auction Napa Valley benefits health, youth services and housing non-profits of Napa County.

The lessons of this auction and the generosity of the Napa Valley Vintners can be learned by any community in the United States. They take the greatness of wine and the earth and give back to the very people that help make it happen.

I caught the red eye back to Milwaukee missing the Bangels performance after dinner. The dinner was created by six amazing female chefs Suzanne Goin of Lucques, Los Angeles; Suzanne Tracht of Jar, Los Angeles; Carrie Nahabedian of Naha, Chicago; Gina DePalma of Babbo, New York; Elizabeth Pruitt of Tartine, San Francisco; and Melissa Perello of Frances, San Francisco.

But the trip was worth every second. Simply fantastic.

Your can learn more about Auction Napa Valley by visiting www.napavintners.com.

rf 6/7/10

Napa Trip-May 17th 2010

Day One-Monday
Amazing! Cold and Rain….lots of rain….in Napa….yes rain.

Somehow I’ve managed to pick the worst week of weather this year to be in wine country (although even lousy weather in wine country is better then great weather at home!) Of course, the AirTran flight was 2 hours late due to the great weather in SF.

Checked in and had dinner at one my big favorites, Mustards Grill.

I enjoyed the pulled pork sandwich plus some onion straws making it a great roadside meal. Barnett Vineyards Cabernet complimented the dish.

Comfort food while it’s drizzling and wet everywhere.

All is well.

Day Two-Tuesday May18th
The rain went away but the fog managed to linger most of the day. Temps got up to 74 and all in all it was a nice day.

First interview of the day was with Napa Valley Legend Rafael Rodriguez of Rubicon Estate. Well over 90 minutes of in depth history of his journey out of Mexico and deep into Napa history. Rafael is almost 90 years old and you would never know it. Quick witted and humble, his memory was quick and in fact he had a very clear picture of his past and present. It was an honor to meet this amazing man.

Off to lunch at Farmstead restaurant in St. Helena. I originally had dinner here in February and after a poor visit, promised myself to give them a second chance. Oddly enough I had the very same server as in February…what are the odds?. The service was all smiles but without the attention to detail of other Napa eateries. The focus seemed to be on selling and growing the tab. As for the food, in my opinion…..I have no reason to visit there again. Nuff said.

The next interview was in St. Helena with Amy Aiken of Meander Wines. Amy is a fiercely independent winemaker with an exceptional history and a fantastic attitude toward life. She knows how to laugh and she knows how to make great wine. Small production has grown to a second ‘project’ called “Conspiracy”. Her Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the best I’ve tasted at the price point.

After chatting we went out for a ride in her 1958 Morris Minor pickup truck….and she let me drive!

After a quick stop at Paraduxx to purchase a couple of bottles of ‘Reflection’, we went to the final interview of the day with Kevin Morrisey, winemaker at Ehlers Estate in St Helena.

Kevin has a great sense of humor and you get the feeling that even though he is passionate about making wine, but somehow he keeps things from getting too serious. He also revealed his love for Rose (specifically, European Rose).

I’m seeing a Rose pattern in wine country….we’ll look deeper into this in future podcasts.

Dinner was as the CIA sitting comfortably at the bar.

This was not my first experience at the CIA but to be frank for the price (I had Salmon), we would have done better at the Rutherford Grill….or even Taylors Refresher.

Facebook gets caught up and off to bed.

Day Three-Wednesday, May 19th
…and the rains came down again. After a promising start (meaning for an hour-the sky was blue and the sun was shining) the day went to heck and the rain followed us up north of St Helena to Boeschen Vineyards to meet with Doug Boeschen for our next interview.

The Boeschen property was beautiful and included a rose garden with colors galore. The cave was equally as amazing featuring a horseshoe type design with a ‘grand’ room at the center housing the winemaking operation.

Doug was a great interview giving concise answers and again showing the deep passion that winemakers are known for.

And a very special tour of his dad’s Porsche collection (including one gull wing Benz).

After a quick visit to Castello Di Amorosa (Napa’s very own REAL castle) we stopped by Alpha Omega to catch up with our old friend Charly de’Pottiere, Enologist at AO, as well as Bruce the wine club manager.

To make it a perfect day we were invited to lunch with Tierra Roja’s Linda Neal at Napa’s Bounty Hunter Restaurant. As we munched the conversation made me feel as if Linda could be an old friend. She is an amazing woman in Napa Valley, making her dreams come true by putting 110% effort into her business with physical labor, marketing and management. And she’s a damn nice person.

From there we headed over to Sonoma (oddly enough finding the very same rain that had pounded Napa Valley, imagine!) to hang around the downtown square only to end up at Mary’s Pizza for dinner. Before leaving the square I managed to purchase vino from a winery called Highway 21 who I was not familiar with….good stuff with a reasonable price. Plus a blast from the past, picked up a bottle of Bradford Mountain which was part of the old Belvedere wine club of years ago……….sigh.

Back to the hotel to end the day.

The Life Between the Vines work for this trip is complete and the rest of the trip will be personal vacation time with my daughter. We will be headed to San Francisco tomorrow to be genuine tourists by visiting Alcatraz and then the following day to San Jose to visit the Winchester House.

rf 5/10