We tasted our way through Chardonnay, Sangiovese, his Scout's Honor blend, a couple of Cabernets, including the magnificent Family Reserve. We said goodbye with a taste of late harvest Zinfandel.
It's a treat to sit down with her, enjoy her wonderful wines with some bread and cheese and just visit. Sandi doesn't just grow grapes. She has fruit and vegetables galore and more often than not she'll send me off with some freshly picked produce.
When your guests are paying $275 a head, he's aware you'd better deliver. The kitchen employs 30 chefs, all of whom have undergone extensive training. He hopes his guests leave excited and with fond memories, something they can relate to and even laugh about. Before we left, he prepared a salad for me to photograph. Alas, before I could dig my fork in, the plate was whisked away.
"What we're trying to do here is something at the highest level in the Napa Valley. I can guarantee that." It's his hope that people leave with a sense of what it takes to make his wines.
We awoke yesterday morning to torrential rains. We decided to head to Sonoma and some of my old stomping grounds. The drive was an adventure, with winds whipping and rain coming down so hard we could barely see the road.
As we walked around memories began flooding back of visits when the Eiseles lived there. We used to come for dinner, Milt usually barbecued steaks and we enjoyed them with his exceptional wines. Burges told us how the Araujos came to purchase the property in 1990.