California Wine Spot

PLACES TO STAY

Mount View Hotel & Spa
1457 Lincoln Ave.
Calistoga, CA 95415
(707)942-5789
1-800-816-6877
www.mountviewhotel.com

If you’re traveling to Napa, what better place to stay than in the mecca of spas, Calistoga, at the top end of the valley?  This charming little town nestled up against the Palisades Mountains has a colorful history as a destination for those seeking relaxation and rejuvenation. 

Founded in 1859, Calistoga was long revered by the Indians as the place of healing hot springs and natural mineral pools.  Today, more than a dozen spas carry on that healing tradition.  At Mount View Hotel & Spa, the peaceful relaxation of aromatherapy, massage or a “Grape Seed Mud Wrap” is just steps away from your door!   

Mount View was built in 1917, and its 29 guestrooms and three cottages are all individually decorated with marvelous late Victorian antiques including clawfoot armchairs, carved headboards and ornate chandeliers.  Every room has its own private bath.   

After you’ve relaxed at the spa, enjoy the garden court, outdoor heated pool or just sit in the beautiful art deco lobby and soak up the atmosphere of one of Calistoga’s most historic hotels, before you explore the charms of one of California’s friendliest wine country towns.  Then head out for wineries like Clos Pegase or Von Strasser, or to nearby St. Helena where you’ll find Beringer, Merryvale and so many others. 

A FAMILY TRADITION FROM HANNA WINERY

Cumin and Coriander Crusted Leg of Lamb with Garden Ratatouille

“Our family hails from the Eastern Mediterranean, so lamb and ratatouille is practically in my blood!" says Chris Hanna, President of Hanna Winery.  "Lamb is such a natural with Merlot, and the aromatic spices in the crust pair beautifully with the high toned aromatics of the Hanna 2003 Merlot. The flavorful mélange of vegetables are a marvelous companion to the bright and fruity Jasmine Chardonnay. Best of all, you can make the ratatouille the day before, making this an easy dinner party menu. Enjoy!”

Serves 10-12

For the ratatouille:

Two large red onions, roughly chopped
Two red bell peppers, roughly chopped
One yellow bell pepper, roughly chopped
Four Japanese eggplant, chopped into half inch disks
Four small zucchini, chopped into half inch disks
Two pounds of tomatoes, blanched, seeded and chopped
Two Tablespoons olive oil for each sauté pan
Salt and pepper to taste
Two Tablespoons fresh thyme

Sauté onions in olive oil until translucent. Add red and yellow peppers and sauté until soft. Season to taste with salt and pepper. In another pan, sauté eggplant and zucchini until soft. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add to onion and pepper mixture. Sauté tomatoes for ten minutes with fresh thyme, salt and pepper. Combine with vegetable mixture. Set mixture in a colander over a saucepan. Reduce saucepan liquid by half until syrupy. Combine vegetables and sauce. Refrigerate.

For the lamb:

One five to six pound boneless leg of lamb, butterflied
Six cloves of garlic, minced
Three Tablespoons ground cumin
Three Tablespoons ground coriander
Three Tablespoons olive oil
One Tablespoon dry mustard
One Tablespoon pepper
Two Tablespoons salt

Several hours before you plan to grill the lamb, combine the garlic, spices, olive oil, dry mustard and salt and pepper. Rub this mixture on both sides of the lamb and refrigerate for the rest of the day.
Prepare the grill. Remove the lamb from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature. Grill lamb seven or eight minutes on each side. Let rest for 10 minutes, then thinly slice.

www.hannawinery.com

FUN FACT

What is a "sticky"?

"Sticky" is the affectionate name Australians give to their sweet wines.  Though sticklers (so to speak) reserve the term specifically for late-harvest wines and wines affected by botrytis, some Aussies include their country's phenomenal fortified wines under the sticky umbrella.  The most wickely delicious of these are sweet fortified muscats and tokays from the Victoria region.  Reminiscent of toffee, brown sugar, roasted nuts, vanilla, honey, and chocolate syrup, these are wines not to be missed.

source:  www.pageaday.com

TO YOUR HEALTH: A Toast to Women's Strong Bones

The denser the bone, the stronger it is and the less likely it is to break.  As women age, bone density becomes an issue, and keeping bones strong can avoid debilitating osteoporosis. Women are advised to take calcium supplements as they age to enhance bone density.  Now, they may also be urged to drink a moderate amount of wine.

Such are the findings of a recent study at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London published in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.  Forty-six pairs of identical twin sisters participated in the study.  In each pair, one twin drank moderately (4 to 5 oz. of wine, up to eight times per week on average; a half-pint of beer; or a shot of spirits) and the other twin drank rarely (less than one drink per week).  Blood tests, urine samples and x-rays revealed the moderate drinker had “significantly denser bones, both at the spine and the hip,” according to researcher Tim Spector.  The study’s authors went on to say moderate consumption “may even be beneficial” to bone health.

Raise a glass to dem bones!

Tasting on the Wheel

The wines of the world offer thousands of scents in their almost infinite variety.

As an aid to novice wine tasters - and experts too - Dr. Ann Noble at the University of California at Davis, one of the leading wine-making and grape-growing schools in the U.S., came up years ago with something called the "aroma wheel."

Noble and the oenologists at Davis consulted with scores of wine lovers and wine tasters to list all the descriptive terms they could imagine for the smells of wine. Then they organized them, categorized them, eliminated all that seemed ambiguous or less than clear, and ended up with a list of 12 major categories of wine smells, subdivided into 29 subcategories and in 94 specific terms.

It's called a wheel because it is a circular table, with relatively similar smells placed close together around its circumference.

Want an aroma wheel to call your own? This link will take you to Dr. Noble's own Website, where you'll find information about buying it in laminated form - or even on a T-shirt.

Robin Garr, publisher of WineLoversPage.com and its 30 Second Wine Advisor E-letter, will publish brief tasting tips every Friday.

PLACES TO STAY

The Harvest Inn
One Main Street
St. Helena, CA 94574
1-800-950-8466
www.harvestinn.com

Visiting the Harvest Inn is like coming home to the charming country estate of a dear aunt.  That’s how it felt the afternoon we floated in one of the Inn’s very private pools, sheltered by verdant shrubs and colorful flowers.  Easy banter passed back and forth among the Inn’s guests that afternoon, a real testimony to the relaxation we all felt in such a beautiful and welcoming place. Your aunt won’t mind if you meander through her eight acres of lush gardens, or while away the time in one of her two pools or several spas.  With its cobblestoned drives, stone fireplaces, arched doorways and peaked roofs, the Harvest Inn offers a bit of Old England amid Napa’s vineyards.  Watch the vineyards turn gold in the sunset from the verandah off your room, and hear the sweet song of birds in the morning when they awaken to the harvest.  When night falls, stroll through the grounds and see the warm lights blink on, one by one, in 54 suites, rooms and English Tudor cottages. Wake up to a regal breakfast in the Vineyard Room, one of the best we’ve had—every bit as good as our dear aunt might have made, if she knew we were coming!   

THE PRESENTATION MAKES IT EVEN MORE DELICIOUS

A RECIPE FROM PARAISO VINEYARDS

Seared Jumbo Tiger Shrimp With Spicy Lemongrass Broth

Ingredients:

10 garlic cloves, chopped fine (divided use)
4 shallots, peeled and chopped fine (divided use)
8 ounces ginger (divided use)
2 chiles de arbol, chopped fine
1 bunch cilantro, chopped (divided use)
Juice of 1 lime
1 cup olive oil
12 large tiger shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 Tablespoon kosher salt
2 ounces vegetable oil
3 stalks lemongrass, chopped
1 cup mirin
1 cup sushi vinegar
1-½ cups Paraiso Chardonnay
1 ounce sambal chile paste
1 ounce sesame oil
½ yellow onion, peeled and julienned
10 shiitake mushrooms, julienned
1 red bell pepper, julienned
1 yellow bell pepper, julienned
1 poblano pepper, julienned
1 bunch broccolini, blanched and chopped (young broccoli before it flowers)
1 ounce soy sauce
1 ounce water
Strips of green onion and daikon (an Asian root) for garnish

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Combine 5 cloves chopped garlic, 2 chopped shallots, 4 ounces ginger, chile de arbol, half a bunch of cilantro and lime juice in a small mixing bowl; add olive oil and whisk to combine.
Place shrimp in a shallow pan and pour the marinade over them. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to marinate for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.

Heat a large sauté pan. Remove shrimp from marinade (discard marinade) and season shrimp with kosher salt. Add 2 ounces of vegetable oil to the pan and cook shrimp, 6 at a time, for 2 minutes on each side. Place in hot oven for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove shrimp from oven and place on a sheet pan lined with paper towels.

For broth, combine lemongrass, 2 ounces chopped ginger; 2 peeled and chopped shallots; 3 chopped garlic cloves; half a bunch of cilantro, chopped; mirin; vinegar; chardonnay; and chile paste.
Simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes; do not allow to boil. Strain through fine mesh strainer and reserve hot until ready to serve.

For vegetables, heat a large sauté pan over high heat. Add sesame oil, then add onion, 2 chopped garlic cloves and 2 ounces ginger, julienned. Sauté for a few seconds, then add mushrooms and sauté for 1 minute. Add the red, yellow and poblano peppers and continue to cook for 1 minute. Finish with broccolini, then deglaze with soy sauce and water. Remove from heat and serve.

To assemble, place a small amount of the vegetables in the center of a shallow serving bowl. Add 3 ounces of lemongrass broth and arrange 2 shrimp on top of the vegetables. Garnish with green onions and daikon. Makes 6 servings.

Recipe courtesy Chef Jermaine Brown, Abacus Restaurant

FUN FACT

Though it is true that by planting vines more densely, you will harvest more grapes, each vine in a denser planting will produce fewer grapes since it has to struggle against the competing vines.  This struggle usually leads to deeper, more concentrated flavors in the grapes, and that is why denser planting has been embraced by California winemakers.

Wine Word: Bridge

A bridge is a food added to a dish in order to make that dish work with a particular kind of wine.  For example, adding toasted nuts to, say, a rice pilaf will help the pilaf partner better with chardonnay.  Drizzling a cherry sauce on duck will make the duck work better with merlot.  One of the easiest bridges is a handful of fresh herbs, which will always steer a dish closer to sauvignon blanc.  Coming up with bridge ingredients is pretty easy.  Just think about a dominant flavor in the wine, then add that flavor to the dish.

source: www.pageaday.com

Postgraduate blind tasting

So you think it's easy to tell red wine from white? Try doing it blindfolded sometime.

Some white-wine drinkers who rarely touch red are convinced that the differences between the types are deep and fundamental. Consider the stereotypes: White wine is light, fruity and refreshing, an anonymous tipple for casual sipping. Red wine is strong, complicated and (although fine for connoisseurs, perhaps) hard to get to know.

Are the stereotypes valid? If you're in an adventurous mood sometime, find out for yourself: Have a pal wrap a bandanna around your head and pour you a glass of Merlot, say, and a glass of Chardonnay. 

Can you tell which is which? You've got a fifty-fifty chance of getting it right, but you may just find the differences are more subtle than you think.

Robin Garr, publisher of WineLoversPage.com and its 30 Second Wine Advisor E-letter, will publish brief tasting tips every Friday.