Sole Meunière with Central Coast Santa Lucia Highlands Chardonnay Several weeks ago we featured Sole Meunière with a hearty Chardonnay in these pages where I detailed our experiences with and preferences for this delicate white fish seafood in this blogpost -  Sole Meunière Amandine with RRV Chardonnay. Tonight, we did a replay of that dinner with delicate filets of Sole Amondine, with a robust full bodied Chardonnay.  Linda grilled the Sole filets and served them with a Meunière sauce with balsamic rice and fresh sliced cucumbers with dill.  I pulled from the cellar ..read more

 Biale ‘Royal Punishers’ Petit Syrah with Baby Back Ribs Linda brought home from Costco a rack of baby back ribs, normally one of my favorite eats when paired with appropriate BBQ complementary wine. Tonight’s ribs were disappointing, being very grisly and fatty, barely acceptable for the first meal, and not so for any follow on leftovers.  Never-the-less, I had pulled from the cellar a BBQ friendly wine for the occasion, in anticipation of and hoping for a better outcome. Biale Royal Punishers 2016 Petit Syrah This is 100% Petit Sirah from Biale Vineyards, a family owned producer th ..read more

Whitehall Lane Petit Verdot with pasta, red sauce and meatballs  Midweek dinner at home, Linda prepared spaghetti with tangy red sauce and meatballs. I pulled from the cellar as a wine accompaniment a big single varietal Petit Verdot. Rather than a red blend, I was seeking a single varietal akin a traditional Italian such as Nebbiolo or Sangiovese and chose this Petit Verdot, typically a Bordeaux varietal, for its characteristic structure, full body and round fruit, to complement the pasta red sauce and meatballs. It proved to be an ideal pairing. I write often in these pages about the im ..read more

 H3 - Hill Family and Hawk & Horse Cabernets for Final Four Watch Pizza Dinner We were invited to son Alec and Vivianna's to watch our Big-Ten candidate Purdue, and Vivianna's UConn play in the Final Four semi-finals. They ordered in pizza and Alec pulled from his cellar two Big Red Cabernets.  Hawk & Horse Lake County Red Hills Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 Hawk and Horse Vineyards was establish by David Boies after searching across California’s North Coast wine growing regions for a ideal property he believed would support a world-class vineyard. In 1982, after exhaustive sear ..read more

 Marco DiGuilio Napa Valley Progeny Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 Quiet dinner at home, we grilled out filets of beef, served with wedge salad, baked potatoes and grilled vegetables. To accompany dinner I pulled from the cellar an aged vintage Napa Valley Cabernet. Following the Napa Valley Mt Veeder Cabernet recently, I pulled this artisan boutique vineyard designated label from the same (Mt Veeder) appellation.  Marco DiGuilio was/is a consulting winemaker to many leading producers and growers around Napa Valley and in some cases obtained grapes from his clients for pay or ..read more

Sole Meunière Amandine with RRV Unoaked Chardonnay Once of my favorite dishes is Sole Meunière, or similar delicate white fish with a buttery white wine sauce. I have fond memories of the succulent Petrale Sole at Scott’s Seafood in Palo Alto (CA), a regular feature on their menu. I dined there weekly for many years, across the street from my Silicon Valley office on Embarcadero and Bayshore Road. Even more delectable was the seasonal special of Sand Dabs when they were available - a delicate white fish, also known as Rex Sole, found on the Northern California Pacific Coast during springtime ..read more

Robert Craig Affinity Napa Valley Bordeaux Blend with comfort food dinner A cold damp rainy spring night prompted desire for comfort food for a quiet cozy dinner, so Linda prepared one of my favorites, meatloaf, served with asparagus and scalloped potatoes.   To accompany dinner I pulled from the cellar a favorite producer Napa Valley Bordeaux Blend from Robert Craig cellars. I’ve written often in these pages about our broad and deep collection of Robert Craig Napa Valley Cabernets, one of the most extensive in our cellar.  We visited Robert Craig numerous times as posted often in ..read more

Paradigm Napa Valley Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 with Tomahawk Ribeye steak dinner Linda prepared one of our favorite indulgent dinners, a Tomahawk Ribeye beefsteak with baked potatoes and grilled asparagus. I pulled from the cellar a memorable classic Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon from a producer we visited two decades (twenty five years) ago.  On further review, this is a replay of an earlier dinner featured in these pages two years ago and tonight’s experience was totally consistent with that latest review, so I will replay it here. Sunday, June 26, 2022 Tomahawk Beefsteak ..read more

Long Shadows Chester Kidder with Filet of Beef Intimate Saturday night dinner at home, we grilled filets of beef and served with wedge salad, fresh toasted bread, baked potatoes and mixed vegetables. Seeking a Goldilocks wine - not too old, not too young, and a perfect accompaniment to grilled beefsteak, I pulled from the cellar a Bordeaux varietal blend from Long Shadows Vintners Collection. As is so often the case, this is a replay of an earlier similarly situated tasting, hence I’ll replay it here.  Long Shadows Chester Kidder with Beef Tenderloin Long Shadows Chester Kidder with Be ..read more

Iconic legendary Monte Bello and birthyear vintage Diamond Creek for birthday celebration ... We joined son Ryan and his family for a celebration of D-in-law Michelle's and g-daughter Mackenzie's birthdays. For the occasion Ryan opened a birthyear vintage ultra-premium namesake Diamond Creek label that I obtained long ago at auction and gifted to them a while back for such an occasion. He also opened an ultra-premium Ridge Monte Bello to compare. What better way to celebrate a special occasion than to serve a 100 point wine. This 2017 Ridge Monte Bello is a classic monumental release that go ..read more