Vino Volo and Caymus Vineyards 2005 Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon

Going to Las Vegas last weekend our flight out of Sacramento was delayed for 4 hours, which gave us plenty of time to kill in the airport's wine bar, Vino Volo. Vino Volo is a chain of airport wine bars with five current locations; Seattle, Sacramento, Washington DC, Baltimore and New York, and with plans to expand and open many more locations in the upcoming year.
Having the option to visit Vino Volo made me very excited as airport food and drinks, in general, gives me the shivers... Vino Volo adds a touch of sophistication with good quality wine by flight, glass or bottle. Small plates are also served. We tried the cheese plate, chicken panini and the New York skewers with mashed potatoes and peas. All a step above all other airport food I have ever had.

I started of with the Pinot Noir wine flight featuring a California pinot from the Molnar Family 2005 Poseidon's Vineyard, from France the Louis Latour 2002 VOLNAY, and from New Zealand the Nevis Bluff 2003 Pinot Noir. A nice flight showcasing the many faces of Pinot Noir.

Not having killed enough time it was time for a second flight, this time the California Syrah. From Mendocino County came Saracina 2003 Estate, from Dry Creek Valley the Olson Ogden 2005 Unti Vineyard, and from Russian River Valley the Mesics-Tomerlin 2000 Timbervine Ranch, a small production wine according to the staff, and a favorite at our table.

Having an additional hour before boarding we decided to hit it big and ordered in a bottle of the Caymus Vineyards 2005 Special Selection Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. We were on our way to Vegas after all. Why not start celebrating early? Cost was $165 plus a $12 corkage fee. Not to bad for retail price. Best price online I can find after brief research is $139.99 at Wine-Searcher.com.

On to the wine. Deep dark red/purple in the glass, and tons of big fruit on the nose with black cherry, dark raspberry and blackberry. On the palate the fruit and berries are equally big and intense with cherry, plum, blackberry, black currant and a hint of dark chocolate. Surprisingly smooth with soft tannins showing a green edge that hits at the end of the palate, with the long lush fruit notes.

I thought this would be to young to drink but it actually was very approachable thanks to the softer tannins. The fruit is definitely overpowering the tannins at this point, but with age I expect that the two will become more balanced. This is certainly a wine to enjoy now and in the future.

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Benessere Vineyards 2000 Napa Valley Sangiovese

When up in Napa Valley earlier this spring my friend picked up a bottle of this wine at the Benessere Vineyard, and tonight she shared it with me.

This wine has a slightly cloudy, ruby red, appearance in the glass. On the nose I pick up smells of the ocean, dark cherry, tea and a musty earthiness. Once in the mouth muted plum, black cherries and black currant shines through. The berries come with a hint of spice, the tannins are relatively smooth on the mid palate but leaves you with an astringency at the end of the finish. This is a medium bodied wine that shows good quality both in the fruit driven aspect but also shows a lot of terroir. We both enjoyed it along with a good conversation and would have it again if this was not the last bottle.

Searching online I can not find it for sale. I think the original price at the winery was about $25-30/750 ml bottle at the winery, but I can not confirm that at this point. FYI: we tasted a 375 ml bottle that's why the glass is bigger then the bottle...


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Venge 2000 Family Reserve Scout's Honor Napa Valley

We got this bottle quite a few years ago when having a private tasting at the Venge Family's winery, Saddleback Cellars. The Venge 2000 Family Reserve Scout's Honor Napa Valley is made from 81% zinfandel, 14% charbono and 5% petite sirah. It is named after the very first winery dog at their property, the yellow lab, Scout. Scout passed away months before the first release of this wine and was named in his honor.
This wine has been put away for quite a few years and pulling it from the stack today I was afraid that it would have past it's prime. I fooled myself...
This wine has a beautiful dense, ruby red, color in the glass with medium clarity. It displays great black cherries, black berries, tobacco, and some oaky vanilla on the nose. Moving to the palate, again black cherry and black berries, with black currant and earthy spice. This really held up a lot better than I expected it to and we, me and my husband, really enjoyed this wine.
I can not find it online for sale after moderate research. We bought it in 2002/2003 (my memory fails me...) for $30. Well worth it considering both the story behind it and the quality. Long live our precious best friends (our dogs)!

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Three great bottles...

I had the opportunity to enjoy three bottles of very good wine this weekend, and want to share my thoughts on them with you.

First out was the Dunn Vineyards 2003 Howell Mountain Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Dark, dense red/purple color in the glass. Thick, rich, dark fruit on the nose with black berries. The black berries carries through to the palate with black currant, good acidity and big, but relatively smooth, tannins for being so young. Long, beautiful finish. This wine is a fruit power house. Very good!
After the 2003 we pulled a bottle of the Dunn Vineyards 2000 Howell Mountain Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, thinking it would be fun to compare the two wines. What a difference! The 2000 has a dark ruby/purple color in the glass as well. On the nose not so much berries but dark cherries and plum with a hint of burnt match stick. Still rich fruit and berries on the palate but not nearly as bright, ripe, and dense as the 2003. The tannins are very firm, and this wine will do well in the bottle for quite a few more years to come.
Robert Parker gave the 2003 92-94 points and the 2000 only 88 points. I do agree with the 2003 (if you can put a number on it...) but I think the 2000 is definitely worth some extra credit. So different but still a really good wine worth 90 or maybe even+.
Later with dinner we had the Joseph Phelps 2001 Insignia Proprietary Red Wine. This wine is a different beast compared to the wines from Dunn Vineyards. Not as densely colored in the glass with a great dark ruby red color. Dark fruit, cherries, and a hint of vanilla on the nose. On the palate, cherries, plum and black currant with a slight spiciness. Great acidity and round tannins. This wine is not so much powerful, although full-bodied, but made in a more elegant style with great balance throughout, and a long finish.

Can't complain about this trio of wines. My taste buds were very happy this day...


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Two Great Restaurants: Ca'Dario and Elements

When we were in Santa Barbara last weekend, with friends from the Bay Area, we tried a restaurant we had not been to before, Ca'Dario . It is a small Italian, intimate restaurant that has been around for a long time and has gotten the rating "Excellent" from Zagat Survey for the last three consecutive years.
Starting of with a glass of wine in the small, cozy bar, we were soon seated. We started our meal with sharing the outrageously good Risotto del Giorno, which happened to be Wild Mushroom this particular night. True Italian risotto, creamy, silky and oh so tasty! We continued with splitting the Insalata Ca'Dario, a salad with radicchio, arugula and shaved Parmesan. Fresh, crisp, and light. For main course I ordered Penne al Salmone e Panna. A hand made pasta with smoked Salmon and a white sour cream, dill sauce. Pasta perfectly cooked al dente, tossed with generous amount of smoked salmon and perfect amount of sauce. The pasta was not at all "floating" in the sauce as you so many times see... Delicious!!!
With this meal we had a bottle of Antinori Pian Delle Vigne 2000 Brunello Di Montalcino, that our friends had brought. A great full bodied Brunello, 100% Sangiovese, with big dark fruit and mellow tannins. Great meal, great wine, great company, great night!

The prior night we enjoyed dinner at Elements which I have reviewed previously . However, I tried new dishes and wine so I just have to tell you all about it again...
Sea Scallop with Creole Sauce, Asparagus and Crab meat made for an excellent start. Scallops tender and perfectly seared and the sauce very flavorful with some spice to it.
For main course the Lemongrass-Panko Crusted Sea Bass with a Thai Green Curry Sauce, Gingered Basmati Rice and Stir Fried Medley of Vegetables. Nicely balanced dish with right amount of spiciness of the coconut curry sauce, not overpowering the sea bass.
As a final, the grownup version of Ice Cream Cookie, with home made chocolate cookies hugging vanilla ice cream, topped with dark chocolate sauce.
The wines we had with this meal were all great. We started with the La Vie Vineyards Rasta Rita, Santa Rita Hills 2003 Pinot Noir. A big and powerful Pinot with dark fruit, nice spice and great tannins to balance it all out into a long finish. A truly great Pinot! One of the best one I've had in quite a while. We continued with the Sea Smoke Cellars Southing Santa Rita Hills 2003 Pinot Noir. Again beautiful dark berries and fruit with great tannins as backbone but this one a little bit more elegant in style than the Rasta Rita. Also an amazing Pinot, right up there with the Rasta Rita.
Last we had the Stag's Leap Cellars SLV 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon. A great match to the chocolate dessert. Black currant, and dark, not to ripe, fruit, with good tannin structure. We opened this bottle at the beginning of the meal to let it air and that was a good call.

Looks like it's hard to go wrong in Santa Barbara with a ton of great restaurants to choose from, and most of them featuring a respectable wine list.

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