Random thoughts about the Napa Valley wine scene

I visited Napa Valley twice this year, in early February and again in late May. I spent a total of 5 days there on both trips, visited 15 wineries or tasting rooms, and sampled a little over 80 wines. Here are some random impressions:

1. The wines, on the whole, were better than I expected. The last time I visited Napa Valley was in 2005, and I came away disappointed back then. So generally speaking, while I wasn’t blown away by Napa Valley this year, the wines were better than I remembered them from 2005.

2. I don’t like the current trend in Napa regarding Chardonnay. The trend, according to the wineries, is toward a more Burgundian style of Chardonnay, meaning picking the grapes earlier, less secondary fermentation, less time in oak. The problem with that is that Napa Valley is not Burgundy. The soil is different, the climate is different, and the fruit is different. I think what the vintners are doing is an over-reaction to the over-oaked, overly-manipulated wines of earlier times in Napa, but they've gone too far IMO. I tasted a lot of bad chardonnay on these trips. Why not just make the wines the vineyard gives you?

3. My favorite winery, of the ones I visited, was Frank Family in Calistoga. From start to finish the wines were outstanding. And their tasting room experience is second to none. Second place goes to Cliff Lede in Yountville. This is a relatively new winery in Napa Valley, but they are making some exceptional wines. I particularly liked their Claret and their Sauvignon Blanc. The Cliff Lede 2009 Cinnamon Rhapsody was one of my favorite wines from the trip, but is a bit pricey at right around $100. Other wineries that received high marks were Plump Jack, Spring Mountain, and Chateau Montelena (although I thought the wines at Montelena were overpriced).

4. Biggest disappointment goes to Stags Leap Wine Cellars. I tasted 6 wines there, 5 cabs and one chardonnay. There was not a single wine in the lineup that I enjoyed, and that includes their $250 a bottle Cask 23 Cabernet Sauvignon.

5. While I’m not as down on Napa as I was before, I still think Sonoma is California’s best wine district right now, with the Central Coast area of California (Paso Robles, Santa Ynez, Santa Rita Hills, Happy Canyon, etc.) a close second.