Posts Tagged ‘Destination Weddings’
December 10th, 2009 | 
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Oscar Renteria, winemaker for Renteria Wines and well-known successful vineyard manager and Steve Reynolds, winemaker for his own Reynolds Family label, both big names in Napa Valley combined their wine efforts and created one of my new favorite wine collections: Naughty Cellars.
The inception, Steve says was because “Oscar and I decided to make some home-brew, garage-style wines and give them away to friends. Naughty started as a joke label, but our friends started to ask if they could buy it.”
The wine collection now features Racy (a cabernet sauvignon blend), Sticky (dessert wine), Inky (syrah/petite sirah blend), Syrah, and Petite Sirah. They also have available a Naughty Bubbly Brut and a Naughty Bubbly Rose. The wines are bold, luscious and very affordable, which is surprising because of their limited productions, handcrafted style and high-end taste and appeal.
Being naughty has never been so good.
2003 Racy
Tasting Note: Get Naughty tonight with Racy, a sultry blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (69%), Cabernet Franc (16%) and Zinfandel (15%). Bing cherry and plum combine with crushed black pepper and boysenberry in this wickedly sinful wine.
All three varietals were grown on hillsides. The yields were very low as a result of multiple crop thinnings, providing concentrated fruit flavors. Vinified and aged separately for one year in 90% French oak, 10% American oak before blending.
2003 Inky
Tasting Note: Wanna Get Naughty? Inky is blend of Petite Sirah and Syrah. The 2003 vintage shows classic earthy flavors combined with blackberry and strawberry jam and a touch of licorice and spices. Fruit driven with beautiful tannins, Inky is long on finish and finesse.
About the Vineyard: Juliana Vineyard is located in Pope Valley, one of seven valleys that make up the Napa Valley. This block is composed of gravelly subsoil and a sandy loam surface horizon. Row direction is East to West off a South facing slope. Less than 2 tons per acre was the intentional yield.
Naughty Bubbly Brut
Naughty Cellars claim that “Naughty Girls are playful and alluring. They tease, beguile, and enrapture…can seduce and arouse with a single hypnotic glance. They are intriguing temptresses who live for pleasure every day…and every night”.
Winemaker’s Notes:
Lively, bright and balanced, this wine exhibits all the hallmarks of a classic Brut. A rich and yeasty nose is contrasted with a full, round palate saturated with citrus zest, candied ginger and minerals. Full through the middle palate, the finish is clean and refreshing.
For more on Autumn Millhouse and her book Romantic Napa Valley, An Insider’s Guide for Couples, click here.
All About Autumn
Autumn Millhouse is an award-winning travel writer who specializes in wine, food and romantic getaways. She is also an international trekker who has wined and dined across the globe from Barcelona to Beijingbu. A self-proclaimed “hopeless-romantic” and author of Romantic Napa Valley: An Insider’s Guide for Couples, Autumn also has a bi-monthly column called Love Vines published in Napa Valley Life Magazine. She resides in Napa Valley where she cultivates her wine and food relationships with top chefs, winemakers and a slew of other foodies. Besides, sniffing, swirling and sipping wine daily, Autumn is currently working on her next travel book Romantic Sonoma Valley: An Insider’s Guide for Couples.
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Tiny pink bubbles for your holiday desto wedding.
The holidays are upon us – decorating, shopping and celebrating is in full swing. Celebrating being the key word; Christmas parties, family dinners and old friend reunions, in actuality, is what makes the holidays festive. Hence, the best way to celebrate is by commemorating the moment with a bottle of bubbles.
Below are my favorite bubbles for holiday celebrations (or any celebration, especially a destination wedding). And these beautiful delicious bottles make perfect hostess gifts too. Cheers!
The regal Domaine Carneros chateau looms high above the rolling hills in the center of the Carneros Appellation. Reminiscent of the18th Century Louis XV style and designed after the Chateau de la Marquetterie in Epernay, France, the winery exemplifies majestic wine making from the inside out, fulfilling the founder’s vision to achieve the crème de la crème of sparkling wine. Opened in 1987 by Champagne Tattinger, a well-known champagne producer, Domaine Carneros adheres strictly to the age-old signature wine making methods from France, striving for “elegant, yet intense style” sparkling wines and pinot noirs.
Best-Loved Bubbles: Le Rêve Blanc de Blancs, Domaine Carneros Brut Rosé and Domaine Carneros Brut Cuvée
Created in 1965 by Jack and Jamie Davies, Schramsberg houses their world-class sparkling wine in the first hand dug wine caves in Napa Valley estimated to be built in the 1870s and runs two miles long. They handcraft nine different sparkling wines using the time honored method champenoise process. Tucked away on Highway 29, Schramsberg is a historical property that Robert Louis Stevenson visited and devoted a chapter of his well-known Silverado Squatters book. History continues to be made by Shcramsberg when in 1972 when President Richard Nixon and Premier Chou Enlai enjoyed a “Toast to Peace” in Beijing with the 1969 Blanc de Blancs.
Best-Loved Bubbles: Schramsberg Crémant Demi-sec, Schramsberg 2006 Blanc de Blancs (white from white) and Schramsberg 2004 Brut Anderson Valley.
One of the most popular sparkling tasting rooms in the valley, Domaine Chandon boasts a proud history of being the first French-owned sparkling wine venture in the United States. They were also the first to bring four-star dining to Napa Valley in 1977. Etoile, the four-star restaurant on-site, is the only recognized fine-dining establishment at any winery in the Valley. Named Winery of the Year in 2005 by the California Travel Industry Association, Domaine Chandon offers stylish wine tasting that goes way beyond routine sipping and spitting. In a modern design, complete with a sophisticated tasting room and comfortable adjoining patio seating, the winery offers a variety of tastings and a menu of delectable eats. Best-Loved Bubbles: Domaine Chandon Sparkling Red, Domaine Chandon Rose and Domaine Chandon Chardonnay Brut
For more on Autumn Millhouse and her book Romantic Napa Valley, An Insider’s Guide for Couples, click here.
All About Autumn
Autumn Millhouse is an award-winning travel writer who specializes in wine, food and romantic getaways. She is also an international trekker who has wined and dined across the globe from Barcelona to Beijingbu. A self-proclaimed “hopeless-romantic” and author of Romantic Napa Valley: An Insider’s Guide for Couples, Autumn also has a bi-monthly column called Love Vines published in Napa Valley Life Magazine. She resides in Napa Valley where she cultivates her wine and food relationships with top chefs, winemakers and a slew of other foodies. Besides, sniffing, swirling and sipping wine daily, Autumn is currently working on her next travel book Romantic Sonoma Valley: An Insider’s Guide for Couples.
