Napa Trip

Keenan
Guillams
Schweiger
Provenance
Hansel South Slope Pinot

Shane’s Notes

We decided to visit a few Spring Mountain wineries on this trip. We made appointments at Keenan and Schweiger. Since we were having dinner at Cole’s Chophouse, we decided to keep the wine tasting to a minimum and were almost successful.

We didn’t take any notes on this trip, but we did buy at least one bottle of wine from each of the wineries we visited so we will be posting notes later. The Spring Mountain reds seem pretty massive and tight – I think we will really enjoy them but we will have to decant. Some of the whites we bought are much more approachable and quite unique.

Our first stop was Keenan. The Keenans were out, but we were met by Laura who was very welcoming and helpful. Actually, we were initially met by one of the Keenan’s dogs who stood in front of our car and blocked our entry. When we got out, she was so friendly that I thought she was going to jump into our car.
While sampling Keenan’s wines, Laura asked us where we were headed next and we told her that we had an appointment at Schweiger in about an hour. She immediately urged us to visit Guillams and before we knew it, she was on the phone with the Guilliams telling them we were on our way.

The Guillams winery was just a little further up the mountain. When we arrived, Mr. Guillams was in the yard working on a board. I almost felt like we were imposing, but the loquacious Mr. Guillams was very friendly and made us feel welcome. It was a gorgeous day so we stayed outdoors for the tasting. We sat in lawn chairs at the top of the vineyard and were greeted with a stunning view. We looked out over Mr. Guillams vineyards and to the valley floor far beneath us. The view was worth the very slight sunburn that we suffered from sitting in the sun.

Mr. Guillams reminisced about attending Berkeley and discussed some of his vineyard management techniques. He stressed that he practices sustainable agriculture rather than organic agriculture. When I mentioned that I first heard of his winery from a book by Matt Kramer, he talked about meeting Kramer and how he disagreed with Kramer’s review of his winery. For the record, Kramer liked his wines but found them inconsistent. I told Mr. Guillams that coming from Kramer, that is actually a pretty good review. After all, this is the guy who disses Screaming Eagle along with many other Napa cult cabs.We tasted the 2002 Merlot and Cabernet – both were excellent but I think they need to open up to be fully appreciated. At this point, I snuck a look at my watch and Mr. Guillams realized we were pressed for time. We met his wife and bought a bottle of Merlot. (It’s such a small operation that they don’t accept credit cards). We waved goodbye and headed for Schweiger. I wish we had spent more time with the Guillams. We really enjoyed meeting them.

Schweiger was a larger operation than Keenan or Guillams. We were greeted by Kimberly, and she mentioned that Mrs. Guillams was her way over with the correct bottle of wine. Sure enough, Mrs. Guillams arrived seconds later and brought us a bottle of Merlot (she had mistakenly given us the Cab).

Kimberly started us off with a Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay outside, and then gave us a brief tour on our way to the barrel room for the rest of the line up. Kimberly was very nice and knowledgeable. The Schweiger winery was also “guarded” by a big dog who lumbered after us into the tasting room. She immediately went to sleep and snored quite loudly. All the wines were good, especially the Sauvignon Blanc.We had intended to head back to the hotel after this tasting but we noticed that Provenance was open for tasting. We have long been a fan of their cab so we couldn’t resist visiting. They poured a variety of cabs and merlots and all were very good. They weren’t necessarily complex but had wonderful concentration and were not over oaked. The Provenance style is definitely fruit forward (I enjoyed them more than Jen did).

We checked in at the hotel and then headed out for dinner. We had some time to kill so we had a drink at the Bounty Hunter before heading to Cole’s Chophouse. We had looked at Cole’s rather extensive wine least on the internet and were thinking of order the Cafaro Cabernet for $45. Unfortunately, I didn’t see it on the wine list and when I asked our waitress, she sent over the Sommelier. This was a huge moment for me – I have never talked to a Sommelier before. The very name conjures up an image of a snotty, intimidating French man who thinks good wine doesn’t exist outside of his country.

Anyway, the Sommelier was very down to earth and explained to me that they had sold out of the Cafaro. I asked him if he thought the 2004 Hansel South Slope Pinot would stand up to a New York (I wouldn’t pair a light pinot with a steak but I would pair a heavier, syrah-like pinot with a steak). He assured me that it would go quite well with the steak so that was our wine for the evening. He was right. It wasn’t as heavy as a Sea Smoke but it was quite concentrated and went well with our steaks. Jen ordered her steak rare and I ordered mine medium. Jen’s was blue rare and mine was closer to rare than medium, but otherwise, they were quite good. Cole’s is a little steep (as are all Napa restaurants. Call it the “Napa Premium”) but it is one of the best places I’ve eaten in Napa.

After Cole’s, we headed back to the hotel. We had a bottle of the Antinori Muffato back in the hotel room but decided to save it for another day. This was obviously an excellent decision as I awoke with a mild hangover. It was a very enjoyable trip. It was fun to taste at some of the smaller wineries and actually meet the people who make the wine. Their enthusiasm for winemaking really shines through, and it is a welcome change from the large scale corporate wineries on the valley floor.