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Wine Reviews

French Laundry…the wine

We loved the wine pairing choices that The French Laundry created for us. If you missed it, here’s the link to the dinner menu. If the photo is too difficult to read for you, I posted the wines below.

Gaston Chiquet, Blanc de Blancs d’Ay, Grand Cru, Champagne MV

Rudi Pichler, Grumer-Veltliner Federspiel, Wachau 2009

Francois Raveneau, chablis 1st Cru, “Montee de Tonnerre,” Burgundy 2008

Araujo, Cabernet Sauvignon, “Eisele Vineyard,” Napa Valley 2006

Failla Estate, Syrah, Sonoma Coast 2009

Oremus, Tokaji-Aszu, “5 Puttonyos,” Tokaji 2002…

Family, Wine Reviews,

Napa Journey

D’Aun and I arrived in Napa yesterday and settled into our rental home for a week. I’m calling this our “anniversary week” as we spend time together in this beautiful part of the world. Our kids and a couple of friends will be joining us this weekend, but most our time is by ourselves (as it should be).

The house we rented has a beautiful setting. Like most rentals it has a few flaws, but take a look at this view! See those vineyards in the distance? They are owned by one of our favorite family wineries, Tofanelli Family Vineyard…

Wine Reviews,

Why do you love wine so much?

Why do I love wine so much? There are a lot of reasons.

– It tastes great! And with the right food it’s incredible. Finding the right food and wine pairing can be sensory nirvana. Okay, so that’s a bit over the top. But it’s a great moment.

– Every wine is different. Opening a bottle is opening a mystery. That doesn’t mean the mystery always has a happy ending, but it sure is fun.

– Wine comes from some of the most beautiful places in the world, and it’s fun to visit those places. Napa Valley, Italy, France, Australia, …

Wine Reviews,

When is your wine ready to drink?

Let’s be clear about aging wine: you don’t have to. Any wine can be enjoyed when you buy it. The reason the winemaker bottled it is because he thought it was ready.

But wine can last a long time in the right conditions, and it can definitely improve with age. It can turn into a completely different taste as the years go by, and there’s nothing like opening an old bottle for a special occasion. So let me share a few thoughts about aging wine. A lot of this is remarkably obvious, but I don’t want to assume anything.

You …

Wine Reviews,

Where do you buy your wine?

I’m often asked, “Where do you buy your wine?”

My local wine shop is the first place that I go. The people at The Wine Steward in Pleasanton have learned what D’Aun and I like, which makes the shopping that much easier. Great selection, reasonable prices, and very knowledgable staff.

I like BevMo for the bargains, especially during the Nickel Sale. This chain store has staff who are not as savvy as the folks at The Wine Steward, but they do have a broad selection of affordable wines. Just don’t trust the ratings they post on the prices; I’ve dumped …

Wine Reviews,

What Are The Best Wine Bargains?

It’s the most common question I get about wine. Everybody loves a bargain. And the challenge with wine is that you often don’t know what it tastes like until you buy it, bring it home, and uncork it. So wine lovers are always swapping notes on bargains they have found.

But bargains are hard to quantify. Sometimes a $2 wine is a waste of money. Sometimes a $50 bottle of wine is worth every penny.

With that in mind, I’ve classified bargains by price range. There are bargains in all categories and each of these wines are enjoyable in the …

Wine Reviews,

Who Makes Great Wine?

This week I’m going to share five posts on wine, following a simple “who, what, where, when and why” format. I’m certainly not an expert on wine, but I do know enough to post an opinion or two. So hopefully you’ll enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it!

The first question is, “Who makes great wine?”

For me, the joy of wine is often based on the people behind the wine. Or as Jim Denham of The Wine Steward recently said, “Wine is better with a story.” And people are the story.

One could easily buy a bottle …

Family, Goble Properties, Junkyard Management, PathLight, The SOLD Project, Wine Reviews,

Goble Properties Staff Retreat

During the 30-years that I have been at Goble Properties we have never had a staff retreat. Ridiculous, right?

Well that has been corrected. Last week D’Aun and I spent three days in Napa at the Silverado Resort with some of the nicest people on the planet. Our staff are scattered from Cathedral City to San Jose to Pleasanton, so it was good to pull everybody together.

We built our meetings around the book ReWork by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson. What I love about this book is that it understands the mindset of a small business owner. …