recomendations for Napa Valley and SF

Originally Posted by Manton

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Not quite. $240, but that includes service. No drinks, of course.

On the other hand, unlike Cyrus, TFL has a lot of upcharges on the menu for certain items (e.g., foie).

Originally Posted by kwilkinson

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TFL also doesn't offer pairings. They say that they don't want to presume the wine you'd like to drink, but IMO it's just b/c you make more money selling bottles than glasses. It's also surprising that TFL doesn't offer any kind of bar service.
That said, it would still be stupid to not at least mention it in a thread about food in the wine country.

Ah. Now I feel like I got the Early Bird Special by going to Cyrus!

TFL's tasting menu is nine courses, I believe, not eleven.

yeah, 260 a head for a meal with wine is about right, I'm not going, even for a once in a lifetime thing, for twice that. but thanks.

I think Cyrus is the high end meal on this trip.

And we got the nine courses at Cyrus.

Black truffle pot pie.

Originally Posted by Piobaire

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And we got the nine courses at Cyrus.

Black truffle pot pie.

actually, the black truffle pot pie is what got me thinking about Napa, anyway.

in napa, you could do bouchon, or you might like ad hoc better. served family style. after a big deal at cyrus, that might be more the ticket. you mgiht try grabbing lunch in the town of napa at oxbow market ... it's kind of a mini ferry plaza and there is a hog island oyster bar with patio overlooking the napa river (which is being restored amazingly well). in the town of sonoma, there's a really great little old timey town square. there's a good portuguese place there i'm blanking on and the last time i was there i ate at a pizza place, like red tomato or something, that was amazingly good (Paula wolfert recommendation, if that means anything to you). there's also a terrific cheese shop named the cheesemaker's daughter, which is run by the daughter of the guy who invented sonoma dry jack (ig vella).
or (and this is a big switcheroo), if you haven't been in that part of the world before, before heading to cyrus, you might want to visit the coast ... tomales bay ... there's a really terrific place there called Marshall General Store that's on that stretch of oyster farms ... they grow oysters and serve them along with kermit lynch wines and cowgirl creamery cheeses. you eat right on the water.
it's been years since i've done the tasting room bit ... after a while it becomes like visiting a factory. but my friends Rob and Maria Sinskey have a really terrific winery that's up on Silverado. beautiful building and serious great wines ... maria's a terrific chef (she opened plumpjack), and they emphasize wine and food pairings, so there's always something interesting going on.
Do NOT be distracted by the outlet mall in napa. there's a barney's and a tse, but never anything to buy.

Oh yeah, Oakville market for picnic stuff, then have a picnic lunch at one of several wineries that offer an area for that.

picnic sounds like a great idea! keep the ideas coming, thanks.

my only other suggestion would be to space out your delux/huge meals, unless you are used to eating similar food.

eating Gary Danko the night after Cyrus just left me dissapointed and feeling like a giant fat stuffed ball...I would have appreciated it a whole lot more had I waited another night and had tacos or something in between

Globe, check out the Merry Edwards tasting room. Appointment only, but it is truly a great tasting room. Set in the middle of a vineyard, the setting is beautiful. You learn a lot, not just about grape growing and the different regions in Sonoma County, but you learn a lot about what makes pinot pinot and what it can be, from classical to very different, yet good. The people are nice, the tasting is free, the area is beautiful. NorCal wine-tasting at its finest.

Originally Posted by globetrotter

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I am not locked into Cabs, if I can get a better "experience" doing something that would be new for me.

my feeling with american wines has always been that they are a little pricey for what they deliver - not to be a heritic, but I can get a pretty good 10 dollar bottle of argentinian malbec as a basic table wine, and a 100 bottle of argentinian or chilian, or even french wine is usually fantastic.

so I am not saying "well, I usually drink cab heavy reds so that's what I'd like to see" I guess I am thinking "introduce me to an experience that I haven't had before and that is very unique to northern california, that I can't get in Germany or France or Italy or Argentina.

so, if that means a valley that is mostly reisling (or chardanay, or pinot or who knows) style wines, but they have good value and it will be a fun experience, great.

does that make sense?

thanks for the efforts
Wineries that are simply fun to visit, because they are so nice as buildings and experiences, would include Clos Pegase, Mondavi, and Beringer. I also like BV. Opus One is neat facility but requires an appointment.

In Napa, at most places, a basic tasting takes you through most of the wines they offer, even if some of them are not grown or made in the valley. It's usually a ladder from white to red and from cheap to expensive. Some charge extra to taste their reserve (or top of the line) offerings. Some don't offer those at all.

You will typically be offered a sauv blanc, a chard, some other red (could be merlot, syrah, or a blend) and finally a cab. A few places will offer, for a significant fee, tastings of old vintages, several in a row. Mondavi and BV do this. It is my favorite thing to do.

Montelena does it too, but only by appointment.

Globe, are you going to stay in Napa or Sonoma though? Remember, Cyrus is in Sonoma. IMO, lodgings at the Hotel Healdsburg. It's a three minute walk to Cyrus.

Ad Hoc, btw, is dinner only and is closed at least two days a week and maybe three. Bouchon is lunch + dinner, seven days.

Originally Posted by Piobaire

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Globe, are you going to stay in Napa or Sonoma though? Remember, Cyrus is in Sonoma. IMO, lodgings at the Hotel Healdsburg. It's a three minute walk to Cyrus.

sorry, I sort of lump california together. I guess I am thinking of Somona. I have to do some research. what triggered this was the bit about Cyrus. we were going to be the whole time in SF, and thought that getting out would be cool, but I was thinking that it was Napa.

Originally Posted by Manton

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Wineries that are simply fun to visit, because they are so nice as buildings and experiences, would include Clos Pegase, Mondavi, and Beringer. I also like BV. Opus One is neat facility but requires an appointment.

In Napa, at most places, a basic tasting takes you through most of the wines they offer, even if some of them are not grown or made in the valley. It's usually a ladder from white to red and from cheap to expensive. Some charge extra to taste their reserve (or top of the line) offerings. Some don't offer those at all.

You will typically be offered a sauv blanc, a chard, some other red (could be merlot, syrah, or a blend) and finally a cab. A few places will offer, for a significant fee, tastings of old vintages, several in a row. Mondavi and BV do this. It is my favorite thing to do.

Montelena does it too, but only by appointment.



cool, that sounds cool.