2019 San Franciso & Sonoma Trip

• Thursday
• In-N-Out
• Painted Ladies
• Lombard Street
• Ghirardelli
• Friday
• Eight Am
• Golden Gate Fortune Cookies
• Dragons Gate
• Great Eastern
• Pier 39, sea lions, christmas stop
• McCormick and Kuleto
• San Fran Brewing Company
• Saturday
• Cafe de Casa
• Lyon Street Gate
• Lover's Lane
• Marin Headlands
• Sonoma Port Works
• Korbel Winery
• Armstrong Redwoods
• Agave
• Sunday
• Trentadue
• Ferrari-Carano
• Gustafson Vineyard
• Alexander Valley Vineyard and Cave Tour
• Francis Ford Coppola
• Baci
• Monday
• Williamson Winery
• Foppiano
• Kendall-Jackson
• Red Grape
• Tuesday
• Cline
• Jacuzzi
• Gloria Ferrer
• Homewood
• Girl and the Fig
• Wed
• Overlook Trail
• Roche Winery
• B&V Whiskey Bar and Grill
• Ice cream shop
• Thurs
• Bezinger
• Kunde
• Imagery
• St Francis
• Sonoma Grill
• Fri
• Lands end
• Dutch Windmill
• Shakespeare Garden
• Panera

St. Francis

As we walked through the door, we were each greeted with a glass of 2018 Sonoma Sauvignon Blanc. Honeydew nose, melon and green apple with crisp minerality to it. Get this at home. A very good white, especially for the price. 

The first wine we had at the tasting bar was the 2016 Wild Oak Chardonnay. Nose of apple and pear, a rich creaminess on the finish. Aged 7mo in French Oak. Very nice, although not my favorite chardonnay, even of the day. That would go to:

2016 Extended Age Chardonnay from Knights Valley. Toffee and vanilla nose, it was obvious this was aged for much longer. I'm usually not a huge fan of the heavily oaked white wines, but this one had a nice creaminess to it. and a very smooth finish.

Then was the 2018 Sonoma Rose. Citrus and strawberry on the nose, followed by a hint of vanilla, and not too sweet. Blend of Mouvedre, Zin, Sangiovese, and Chardonnay.

Next we moved on to the reds, starting with the 2015 Moon Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged 17 months in oak. Blackberry and kitchen spices on the nose, and a long cherry finish. Big and Bold. Very nice, although a tough sell at that price.

Then we tried two different Zins, a 2015 old Vine Zin from Bacchi Vineyard on the russian river. A light toasty nose, mostly smelled of of black berry (of course). Licorice and a bit peppery on the finish. The second zin was the 2015 Monticello Vineyard. More smoky and licorice on the nose, with still quite a bit of berry, and a more fruity and spicy finish than the previous. I prefered the second one. Both were good, but we had better zins earlier on our trip for cheaper.

This was the last winery for us. We sat and enjoyed the mountains for a while, but eventually had to go. We took home the rose and the Knight valley Chardonnay. By this point in our trip, we'd had so many dark red zins and syrahs that we had to take a break and go for something lighter.

Imagery

Imagery, the sister winery to benziger, originally started as a brewery. It specialized in Italian varietals and experimental blends to differentiate itself from the parent.

2018 wow oiu was the first, a white blend of sauvignon blanc and Muscat. Floral nose and grapefruit taste, I enjoyed the flavors and nose, but it was a touch too sweet for me.

2017 white burgundy was next. A blend of chardonnay and pinot blanc, this one was definitely interesting. Mango and papaya to start, a smooth acidity, and a creamy finish, I really enjoyed this one. Definitely the top white blend of the trip.

2016 sangiovese was next, sweet spice and licoeice nose and taste, with a lingering bit of vanilla on the end.

2016 Barbera had a jammy aroma, strong black cherry notes and a jammy blackberry finish.

2015 petite syrah was next, which had wild berries and cocoa nose turn into a rich dark fruit flavor.

Then we tried the cab, which had a fig and raspberry nose, a little earthyness, and rich red fruit finish.

Lagrein was an interesting wine, an Italian varietal that was bold, dry, had lively tannins and a dark fruit and currant taste.

Next: malbec. An absolute cherry bomb. No green pepper, but otherwise too 1 dimensional to compare to the others we've had. Still excellent.

Last was the port, a mouthful that tasted like having a big bite of a chocolate covered strawberry. Had a bit of an alcoholic bite to it though.

Kunde

Kunde Family Winery was beautiful. One of the largest land plots of grapes in all of California, they have a single sprawling Vineyard that covers both mountain ranges and dips into Napa. We enjoyed our picnic here after the tasting, seated by the garden fountains.

The first wine we tasted was the rose summer blush. It was a blend of Zin and grenache, which are two wines I love, but this one didn't do it for me. Slight cherry notes, but otherwise just ok.

Then was the 2016 chardonnay, which had a floral nose and lemon and pear taste.

Then we tasted 2 zins, the 2016 and the 2016 reserve. The estate wine had traditionally fruit bomb charm, and the reserve was somewhat earthy with a bit of mushroom and black currant notes.

Then was the 2 cabs, again a 2015 and a 2015 reserve. The estate was mossy and earthy, which was expected, but the reserve was very smooth with rich berry notes and a really mellow tannic structure.

Then we had the malbec, which was the first for us on the whole trip. Many wineries in CA only grow it to add to bourduex blends. It had hints of plum and blackberry. Mirroring it was the syrah, which was smoky, had a white pepper finish with currant on the front.

The next pairing was the red dirt red and the Dun. Cuvee. The red dirt red was a mix of 6 different varietals, and was very smooth, with no 1 grape standing out. The server said it took to whatever food you ate it with. The Cuvee was just as nice, a mix of cab and syrah. A little smokyness and white pepper from the syrah, and the fruity earthy notes from the cab. I preferred it, but MC liked the RDR, so we went with it.

Last, we finished with the 1904 desert port. It was nothing extraordinary, but stl very good. Chocolate and vanilla with a deep cherry nose.

Benziger

The first wine we tasted was the 2018 frank Johnson sauvignon blanc. It had a floral and lychee nose with a nice grapefruit taste.

Next was the 2015 LA Reyna Pinot Noir.  Nose of rose and cherry, and tasted of dark fruit.

Then was the 2016 oonapis, which had berry and cocao nose, berry taste and dark finish. Medium tannins. Alternatively, we tried the 2014 tribute, which was very similar but with mellow tannins and a smoother aftertaste. Personally, while it was better, I don't think it was worth the extra price. Better to buy the 2016 and age it for a few extra years.

2014 three block was next, which had fruity aromas with some spice to it, and a taste of white pepper on the finish.

Last were the 2016 Cab and 2016 dragon syrah. The cab was earthy and vanilla tasting, with nice tannins, and the syrah had a plum and spice side to it.

We finished our wine tasting with a walk through the gardens.

Roche winery.

Roche winery's tasting room was set downtown, just off the main plaza in sonoma. There was an outdoor tasting bar that we were able to make use off. The service was excellent and extremely friendly.

The first wine we tried was the 2018 Sparkling Brut Rose, with soft berry nose and a sweet strawberry taste. It had a bit of a pop to it, which the server said was like drinking a Sprite. We ordered a bottle of this, since it was MC's favorite.

Next was the 2018 unoaked chardonnay, which was very well made. Not too sweet, but with a bright melon and citrus nose, and a honeydew and canteloupe taste. This was my favorite of the whites.

Then came the three full bodied reds. The 2014 pinot was characteristic, with plum and cedar on the nose, dark cherry taste, and a bit of a cola aftertaste, but in a good way. Next was the fruit bomb of a merlot, from 2014 as well. No pepper, and hardly any tannins, this was one of the top merlots I've ever had, and was one of the reasons we ended up with so many bottles from this winery. Deep red currant on the nose, and a velvety raspberry taste. Last was the 2014 Syrah, which was a deep red color with a nice kick of tannins. A nose of smoked meat and black pepper, and deep plum and black pepper taste.

The last wines on the list were sweet wines. We tried both the 2018 Tamarix, which was a sweeter rose of pinot noir and syrah. The perfect porch sipping rose, this wasn't over the top, as all the sweetness seemed to come from a natural fruit taste of strawberry and light cherry, with some peach and honeysuckle on the nose. We ordered a bottle of this, and I got an extra glass of it to end my visit. The last wine was the 2018 Late Harvest Chardonnay. Our server recommended against this one, as she said it was too sweet (it was), but MC insisted. She recommended that if we did drink it, to make a spritzer using it to dull some of the sugars. The tasting notes for it said Keylime Pie and sugar cane, and so that's what I'll have to go with. Definitely a no for me.


The wines were very good, and surprising in how affordable they were. We ended up becoming wine members, and each enjoyed a glass on the patio as the sun went down.

Homewood Winery

Homewood winery was a quaint little winery out further into the farmlands east of sonoma with a small little tasting room, but it's wines were as good as any of the others. It reminded me of the smaller wineries back home.

Veranda white was the first we tried, named for being a easy wine to sit on the porch with. Light tropical aromas. They had a deal of buy 1 get 1, and if we didn't have to ship everything home we might have done so.

MC and I had different flights, with hers being all whites. Her first was the Chardonnay, aged in stainless steel. Nothing mind blowing, but a very solid wine.

Sauvignon Blanc was next, and had very nice pineapple and citrus notes. Would pair excellently with seafood. We took one of these home.

Rousanne was next, on MC's custom white flight. It had a bubble gum type sweetness to it, and was very interesting, and not unpleasant. It had a dry lemon finish.

Tempranillo was the first of my reds, and was my favorite. Soft tannins and vanilla notes made this a very enjoyable wine to try. We bought a bottle of this. A note on pronunciation: Its Knee-o, not nill-oh.

MC had a wine club exclusive wine named after the wine dog, but unfortunately I didn't take any notes on this one, just wanted to mention it because she liked it.

Merlot was the next red I tried. Fruitier, and no green pepper to it as is found in VA wine. It had a rhubarb nose to it.

Next came the zin. After having so many amazing Zinfandels in Healdsburg, this one did not stand out as much, but it was still good. Black pepper and a nose of vanilla bean and berry.

Semillon was the last white wine we tried. Nose of orange and apricot, it had a floral and honeysuckle taste.

The last red was the interestingly names Flying Whizzbanger. Herbal and cocoa nose, a good porch sipping red blend, but nothing I haven't had before.