Continuing in the vein of my first regional wine and food review of the Napa Valley, I will now travel south down the Central Valley to another loved wine region, Carmel Valley [WL]. Carmel Valley sits due Southeast from the beautiful and famous hamlet, Carmel-by-the-Sea, and is overlapped by the Monterey County and Central Coast appellations.

Beth and I adore the little seaside town and its accompanying wine region and have made numerous trips over the years with our little Pug Sebastian, always finishing each day with applause at sunset on the its white sand beach. This whole region is well-known as one of the most dog-friendly vacation spots in the US, as well as for its incredible beauty, both natural and man-made.
My list of recommendations span both Carmel-by-the-Sea and the Carmel Valley. I have included links to each individual website, as well as the accompanying information we have on WineLog [WL]. Enjoy!

Beth and I had a free Wednesday evening the other week so we decided to head over to one of the newer local wine destinations in the East Bay, Artisan Wine Lounge and Cafe. The lounge sits just off the much busier Locust St in downtown Walnut Creek. The map says Stave Wine Lounge and Cafe, because the business partners that own Artisan, Lena Chu and Kevin Ng, also own Stave, situated in Napa.

Lena chooses wines from small and cult California wine producers, as well as those that remind her of her years living in Spain. This is also shown in the great small plates menu that they offer. Beth and I weren’t that hungry the night we were there, so we just chose a couple “Small Bites” to nibble on, the Marinated Olives and the Artisan Cheese Plate. We really liked the Manchego cheese, which went quite well with just about every wine we tried that night. The stronger blue cheese that was offered was also outstanding, but we had to leave it towards the end when we had some tastes of the dessert wine.

In honor of my beautiful mom’s birthday, Beth and I traveled up to Napa to join my sister Shauna and my parents Donna and Ed, for a day spent on the Napa Valley Wine Train (NVWT).

The Wine Train has had a long and sometimes contentious history in the Valley. The movement to start the NVWT was headed by Vincent DeDomenico of Rice-A-Roni fame, among many other food brands. The long legal battle was bitterly fought throughout the valley with many residents against the idea, including my own grandfather Bud Schroeder. Local protesters argued that the Valley was already fraught with enough tourists, a rather reasonable view, actually. Eventually the legal battle ended up in the California Supreme Court, where DeDomenico et al prevailed. The original dissension has dried up over the last 18 years of operation and, for the most part, the Wine Train is now an accepted part of Valley life.

I got quite the (early) 30th birthday weekend over Thanksgiving weekend, whew! My family and Beth, especially, truly went out of their way to make my 3rd decade start off with a wonderful wine-soaked bang.

We had a very special start to the weekend with Thanksgiving night at my sister’s condo in Napa, where she provided a cozy and well-appreciated dinner aided by my mom and Beth.

The next day my family and I went tasting around the Napa Valley, starting at Cartlidge & Browne, one of the best value producers in the world of wine. My family first learned about C&B when they owned Ehlers Estate in St. Helena. I grew up going to many a tasty picnic at that winery. They’ve since sold off that label and winery and are now are based in their large warehouse in American Canyon. We tasted a few wines there, where I liked their Sauv Blanc and Stratford label Cab’s. Please use the links below to read my reviews log notes for the wines I mention in this post!

Originally published at my personal MySpace Blog

My wife, Beth, and I have made many different wine trips around NorCal and we’ve built up a string of places that we really enjoy. As various friends and co-workers learned this over the past few years, I’ve started writing some rather extensive emails of recommendations for places we like in different regions.

So far, I’ve made a Napa Valley, Carmel-by-the-Sea/Carmel Valley (my favorite AVA), Sonoma Valley, Russian River/Alexander/Dry Creek Valleys and a small one for Amador County (where I actually haven’t spent much time). I thought that these would be great to post here and keep kinda updated.

In honor of the home team, I’m going to post about Napa first. I have included links to each individual website, as well as the accompanying information we have on WineLog [WL]. Enjoy!

If you’ve been following my articles lately, you may already know that Jason and I had an opera date in our future. Well, the date was last night, and we had quite a wonderful evening.

With our bottle of Pio Cesare Barolo 2001 in hand, Jason and I arrived for our pre-opera dinner at Mercato, an adorable Italian BYOB at the corner of Spruce and Carmac streets in Philadelphia (details below). The restaurant had a great “locals-only” feel and the decor was very minimal, allowing the building’s architecture to shine.

We opted to start our dinner with a plate of cured meats, olives, a selection of speciality olive oils and a fig vinegar. Jason chose pumpkin fettuccinni for a main course and I had diver Scallops and a wild mushroom and pea risotto. Needless to say, the food was delicious. Our meal wasn’t complete without a shared tiramisu and two cappuccinos!

Jason and I were recently in Lewes, Delaware with some of his Haverford buddies when we came across a cute wine bar/gourmet pizza shop.

Half Full’s wine list includes many familiar and a few unique reds and whites. The bottle prices range from the mid-twenties to the low-forties and their by-the-glass prices are $11 and under.

If you’re looking for something tasty to pair with your pour, the restaurant has a long list of specialty/gourmet pizzas. Try the “not your average pepperoni” pie with a glass of Palagetto Chianti 2004 or the “artichoke goat cheese” with a glass of Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc 2006 or another high-acid white.

Jason and I regularly dine out at our favorite local BYOB, Fellini’s Cafe. On one recent trip, we took a poll of what wines people were drinking. Not wanting to be a wine snob, I’ll let the data speak for itself. Here’s what we saw…

If you’re a party of 2 dining out at a BYOB restaurant, how do you select a bottle of wine to accompany your meal? Do you choose red wine or white wine?

I’ve asked myself these questions numerous times and haven’t been able to come to a solid decision on either. Jason and I often dine out at a local BYOB, and while we always order the same two dishes (which go well with both white wine and red wine), I wonder how other people make their decision when they have no idea what they will be eating for dinner.

The question of pairing food with wine is a very important one. While there are a handful of varieties that are enjoyable with most meals, wines that have been hand selected to accompany a meal greatly enhance the flavors of the food you are eating. However, since the nature of a BYOB requires you to select your wine before selecting your meal, here are some ideas to assist you in selecting a wine that you and your dining partner will enjoy.

Original photo by chiquita.

Last night, Kim and I ate at the Primavera Pizza Kitchen in Ardmore, PA. By the way, the photo to the right has nothing to do with PPK. It’s just a photo of Kim and I at the bar.