In an effort to dine at all 3000 San
Francisco restaurants( 800 and counting), and to visit all 600 Napa Wineries(
350 and counting) our travels recently took us to Von Strasser Winery in
Calistoga on Diamond Mountain.
Diamond Mountain is Napa
Valley's northernmost appellation and is
located immediately southwest of Calistoga. Vineyards are above the fog line at
elevations of 400 to 2200 feet and experience warmer nights and cooler days
than the valley floor. Whereas young northern "valley floor" wines
tend to be rich and supple with low to medium acidity and soft tannins, young
Diamond Mountain wines tend to be tannic with good acidity, making them
particularly well-suited for aging.
Our host was John DeGregory. His
eloquent explanation of Rudy and Rita Von Strasser's story was very
interesting. Rudy was the first American intern for Eric de Rothschild at the
famous Chateau Lafite-Rothschild winery in France. John explained that the
French experience inspired Rudy to "want to be the Eric Rothschild of Napa
Valley." He also said that our
tasting today could be described as a "euphoric flatline of wine
excellence."
Rudy von Strasser’s entrance into winemaking is
interesting. He had just graduated with an agricultural degree from the
University of New Hampshire (1980), with a goal of sparking a modern hard-cider
industry in New England, after completing his senior thesis on hard-cider
production. Rudy thought that he could learn the necessary skills by working
for a year in the California wine industry. After a year spent at Robert
Mondavi Winery, the wine bug had been firmly planted and Rudy took the obvious
next step: he enrolled at the famed Enology program at U.C. Davis, and
graduated in 1985 as a trained winemaker
The wine label is also very unique. It is in the shape of a Diamond and a topographic picture of the winery hillside.
We began our "euphoric" tasting with 2012 DMD(Diamond Mountain District) Cabernet Sauvignon. It was a blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Malbec, 1% Merlot and 6% Petite Verdot. It is a blend of all the vineyards on Diamond Mountain and described as a "family expression of the hill." It is a great value at 50 dollars per bottle.
Next we tasted 2012 Agira Cabernet Sauvignon that was 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Petite Verdot and was my favorite.The aromas of this wine are intense with scents of vanilla and cherry. On the palate there are hints of raspberry. Agira means little blue bird and is also a little town in Italy This sexy and elegant wine retails for 80 dollars and has been rated 94 by Wine Enthusiast.
2012 Post Cabernet Sauvignon was our next taste and is rated 92 by Wine and Spirits. This wine was a real pleasure with aromas of musk, silky carmel and dark black cherry. Bold deep flavors of clove and smoke made this one of our favorites. It has a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Malbec, and 5% Merlot. It has a smooth finish and great value at 80 dollars per bottle.
The 2012 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon was a
blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon 10% Malbec and 10% Petite Verdot. It is a full
bodied red wine and received 90 points by Wine Enthusiast. It also retails for
80 dollars.
We completed our tasting with the 2012 Sori Bricco Red Wine that is a unique blend of 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Malbec, 31% Petite Verdot and 9% Merlot. This was an interesting well balanced blend that reflects Rudy's genius wine making skills. It also retails for 80 dollars.
The serene setting of this winery is very peaceful and adds to the enjoyment of the great wine that is produced. The detail orientation of the winemaker that have learned from the best and made the most of his chances with Von Strasser's scores and awards, attest to the fact that they really knows the fine art of winemaking.
We completed our tasting with the 2012 Sori Bricco Red Wine that is a unique blend of 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Malbec, 31% Petite Verdot and 9% Merlot. This was an interesting well balanced blend that reflects Rudy's genius wine making skills. It also retails for 80 dollars.
The serene setting of this winery is very peaceful and adds to the enjoyment of the great wine that is produced. The detail orientation of the winemaker that have learned from the best and made the most of his chances with Von Strasser's scores and awards, attest to the fact that they really knows the fine art of winemaking.
After a soulful reconnection of the Agira and
Post Cabernet Sauvignon, we decided to take a bottle of each back to Danville
with us.
