When I initially reached out to Gary at Wine Tasting Driver, we discussed trying smaller, family owned wineries on this trip. He provided a list of suggestions that we chose from, unfortunately, we couldn’t get into all of them because of the limited capacity due to COVID, but he did get us in to some gems. Regan was our driver for the weekend, unfortunately Gary had to drive a different group because they needed a photographer. Regan made the day really fun.
The first highlight of our morning were the hot air ballons flying over the vineyards while we had coffee and breakfast. And the weather all weekend was absolutely beautiful, sunny, not a cloud in the sky and upper 70s/low 80s. Could not have ordered a more beautiful weekend if I tried. The one thing that actually went according to plan in 2020.
I’ll say having a driver for the two days was really nice. We didn’t have to worry about where we were going or over indulging throughout the day. It was also nice to have someone take care of ordering us lunch to make sure we stayed on schedule. Regan picked us up and used our rental car to chauffer us around.
First Stop: Smith Devereux hosted by Ian Devereux White
The very short drive from where we were staying to the spot Ian uses for tasting was a quick drive. The adorable gazebo was ready for us to taste. We started with the SB Blend, this has quickly become a favorite of mine. As I posted earlier, I joined this wine club without ever tasting the wine because of Gary’s recommendation from his Friday Happy Hours on Instagram and Ian’s accessibility. Ian wants to help people tell their stories and he’s a former travel writer who supports bloggers and the wine community.
We moved on to the Vacationer California Rose, this is a food friendly rose. Ian shared stories and practiced his French accent. He definitely is entertaining. The third pour, also a blend that I’ve really been enjoying the No. 3 California Red Blend. This blend of syrah, zinfandel and cabernet franc can stand alone or pairs really well with food. I’ve had this with pulled pork, ribs and with cheese.
Ian’s Cabernet Sauvignon is also solid and at a great price that you don’t feel guilty about having it on Monday or Tuesday. We walked over to the vineyards, all the grapes had been harvested but Ian continued to entertain us with his stories. He’s been told he needs to raise his prices to be taken seriously, he prefers to sell wine that people can afford and also do good for society. With the two different wild fires in Napa County, Ian raised funds for the California Fire Foundation. I purchased both the Red Blend and the SB Blend to support his charity efforts.
The next wine we tried was Verse & Chorus Cabernet Sauvignon that Ian made with Mat Kearney, also a charity project, benefiting a music and art therapy program. I’m so glad we were able to try this and purchase a bottle before it was sold out.
The final wine the IBEX Napa Valley Single Vineyard Merlot, the Beautiful Beast. I really enjoy a good merlot, and this is a beautiful merlot, great on it’s own but also really good with food.
This is a wine club that I highly recommend, the price points are unbelievable and you get a 20% discount as a club member. The club ships three times per year and you get to pick what you want in your shipment.
Stop #2: White Rock Vineyards
This was one of the suggestions from Gary, and fit the small family owned category. We took a brief cave tour, learned about the history of the winery and the family owners, we then walked out into the vineyard for our tasting. We tried two Chardonnays and two Cabernets.
Regan went to pick up sandwiches for us from the Soda Canyon Deli and we were able to enjoy them while tasting wine in the vineyard. I really enjoyed the chicken salad sandwich with the Breccia Chardonnay. The potato chips were really good with the Cave Hill Cabernet.
Stop #3 Taylor Family Vineyards
This stop on our itinerary was another recommendation from Gary. Gary had Taylor Family on one of his Friday Happy Hours in May. I was excited to try the wine. The views from the family home were beautiful and the wine and cheese waiting for us to taste was a beautiful display.
Our seated tasting was hosted by Sandy Taylor Carlson, second generation of the three generation family that owns the winery. Just walking up to the table and seeing the wine and cheese spread, I was even more excited to taste the wine.
We started with the 2019 Sauvignon Blanc, fruity, light and refreshing. The perfect summary porch pounder and was paired with the Cowgirl Creamery Mt Tam cheese. The pairing was outstanding.
The second wine was the Hillside Chardonnay that was paired with a Manchego. I really enjoyed this Chardonnay with the cheese.
We moved on to the reds starting with the Five, Six, Seven Blend which is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Verdot and Merlot. This wine was paired with an aged gouda and was awesome by itself and really nice with the aged cheese. The next red was the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon, for a young Cabernet this was a beautiful dark fruit on the nose with good structure. It drank like a much older Cabernet than one this young. This wine was paired with the Piave Vecchio cheese. I have to say I love the cheese program the Taylor’s serve with the wine, the pairings are delicious.
The final red was the Stags Leap Reserve Cabernet which was paired with Brillat Savarin with Black Truffle. I’ve always like truffle, but I have to say I have a new found appreciation for the pairing with red wine after this trip.
I was so impressed with all the wines, I joined the club. I chose the custom case club so I can choose the wines I want shipped every November. This was a lovely experience sitting outside tasting some delicious wine.
Final Stop Goosecross
I’ll admit when Gary scheduled us for Goosecross I was just meh on the idea. Let me tell you I was wrong, this ended up being a really fun experience for our last tasting of the day. We sat on the back patio overlooking the vineyards and Spencer our host was so much fun! The temperature was perfect for wine tasting outdoors and beautiful sunshine.
We started out with the Rose for Lucy, a light, crisp rose that was the perfect patio pounder. The crisp acidity was not overpowering and the color was very pretty. Our second pour was the 2016 Syrah, it was light and definitely not a favorite for us. Randi challenged Spencer to find us breadsticks, which he graciously did and he took it as a challenge to find us wines that we would enjoy. He took us off on an adventure.
We moved on to the Petite Sirah, it was a lovely complex Sirah and one we all really enjoyed. Next up the State Lane Cabernet Sauvignon that we also enjoyed. Moved on to the Summit Selection Game Farm Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, one of my favorites of this tasting.
We also tried the Summit Selection Howell Mountain vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon from 2015. Final taste of the visit was the 2016 State Lane Eros, a flagship wine and a beautiful blend.
I enjoyed the experience and the wine and joined the Goosecross wine club. It was also a lesson learned, don’t judge a book by it’s cover, or a winery by the website. The wines here were a very nice surprise and I will always trust Gary’s judgement because his tastes were spot on for this trip.
For Dinner, Randi challenged me to try some new restaurants out of my comfort zone. We decided on Brix, unfortunately the service wasn’t very good. The food was just ok, nothing to brag about. The worst was the dessert, the apple crisp had no flavor and was very bland. But you don’t know until you try.