I also like going to Jordan because it is just such a beautiful place and grounds. Just my opinion.

I'm a relative wine noob, as in I know what I like and tend to buy around the same price points etc etc.

Is there a comprehensive rating guide that will show the best or highest rated wines at each price point, say less than $10, less than $20, less than $30, less than $40, less than $50 etc? Or are the wines broken down by varietals. Are there some rating guides that you trust less than others?

Matsui,

I really don't have one but what your asking is an objective answer to what is a subjective question. I think the key is to try variations on what you like and compare. Ratings are helpful to find an option, but they should be a component in the decision on what to drink and not the driver. I say this as someone who still looks at ratings in magazines, but maybe less than what I use to do.

Agree. And within ratings, find one you agree with a couple of times and then use it.

I would suggest splurging on an acknowledged excellent bottle (plenty of recommendations in this thread) at a price point that's above your norm, just to establish in your mind what is generally considered to be excellent wine.

We have landed in Oakland, and missing the only bag we checked. It had all our shoes and my wife's makeup and hair things. Hopefully it makes it to yountville by 7

How terribly under dressed would I be in nice cowboy boots and nice jeans for Bouchon

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We have landed in Oakland, and missing the only bag we checked. It had all our shoes and my wife's makeup and hair things. Hopefully it makes it to yountville by 7

How terribly under dressed would I be in nice cowboy boots and nice jeans for Bouchon

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Do you have a sport coat? If so, only slightly.

This happened to me in Chicago 2 months ago. Since you are in OAK, I assume you flew SWA. Talk to the baggage agent (or call the 800 number) and they will give you some cash to buy new clothes. Explain to them that you have a very nice dinner in a few hours and you cant go dressed like that. They dont offer much money but don't take no for an answer and demand a full refund for the clothes you bought because of their mistake. They were pretty nice about it with me. I actually told them to pay me back in SWA vouchers and got double what I spent! So go get a drink, buy some new stuff in Napa on your way up, save the receipts, and enjoy the rest of the trip.


DO NOT STOP IN OAKLAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(unless you want to get shot)

P.S. I wear nice jeans and collared shirt to Bouchon all the time.

Matsui,

If I were you and you are really interested in wine, maybe befriend a local wine merchant.

you can learn a lot by chatting with a knowledgable person. have them recommend 3 wines around your go to price point of similar but different varietals, maybe 3 reds of similar style or 3 whites, whatever you drink the most. Then drink those wines over the next week, take notes on what you did and didnt' like (nothing too elaborate, just simple comments). go back and discuss and try something similar to your favorite of the 3. you'll be fairly knowledgeable about that one type in no-time. you can also google those wines and see there scores or look up articles about the winemaker/owner.

wine is subjective and there is a lot of art to it, which means opinions can vary wildly.

Cheers!

Thanks for the replies. I have a friend in Fort Worth who is a wine distributor so I'll ask him and start the process.

Not terribly. You're fine for Bouchon. It's a bistro, so it is supposed to be more casual.

I wore jeans, boots, and a button up shirt when I was there. You'll be fine.

We devotion sto at oxbow on our way through Napa. Great lunch spot, I'm with Farmerjohn that is was underwhelming. It is worth a stop.
I glass down an a quality pizza.
Still missing our bag.

How do I post pics?

I use imgur to post pics

If you are looking for somewhere else to have dinner this week instead of oxbow and you want to stay in Napa, my buddy who is a winemaker suggests The Thomas. He says it's his new go to restaurant in town.

Here is our lunch from Oxbow



The hotel is awesome!! Right in the heart of Yountville



Heading to Bouchon

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Matsui,

If I were you and you are really interested in wine, maybe befriend a local wine merchant.

you can learn a lot by chatting with a knowledgable person. have them recommend 3 wines around your go to price point of similar but different varietals, maybe 3 reds of similar style or 3 whites, whatever you drink the most. Then drink those wines over the next week, take notes on what you did and didnt' like (nothing too elaborate, just simple comments). go back and discuss and try something similar to your favorite of the 3. you'll be fairly knowledgeable about that one type in no-time. you can also google those wines and see there scores or look up articles about the winemaker/owner.

wine is subjective and there is a lot of art to it, which means opinions can vary wildly.

Cheers!

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I drink a fair amount of wine and have spent far too much time and money on this hobby, but I've got to say, This is some of the best advice I've ever read. Wine is subjective and opinions vary. That's the beauty of wine drinking and collecting. Drink what you like and don't worry so much about other people's opinions.

To follow up on places to buy wine, here in Fort Worth we have:

Grocery stores
Wal-Mart
Kroger
Tom Thumb
Albertsons
Target
Sprouts
Central Market

Liquor/Wine Stores
Goody Goody Liquor
Specs
Total Wine & Spirits
then a few small locals like Kings Liquor / Pop a Cork / other randoms

I've always noticed the bigger wineries labels more expensive at the grocery stores than at the liquor stores. So is it safe to assume that the majority of the wine will be more expensive at the grocery rather than at the liquor stores?

Unless you have an HEB (or Central Market) probably.

Of those Total Wine & Spirits in very, very good.

Has anyone been to Napa/yountville this time of year. Last night we walked about 2-3 blocks to dinner and passed one other couple. Bouchon was packed, but Bistro Jeanty, Redd are closed all week
When reading up on visiting this time of year we heard you get a ton of one on one with the winemakers and tasting staff. Last night we stopped in the tasting room on the way to dinner to kill time. we were planning on having 1 glass, but they kept pouring to finish off their open bottles. This nearly ruined our dinner we were pretty lit

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This nearly ruined our dinner we were pretty lit

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You complainin' or braggin'

Cecil77 well my wife wants to go back to enjoy the food. She was bummed we (she) were too tipsy to savor the food. Will probably go back for lunch. The positive was we are at Bouchon for $100

Just finished our winery tour with platypus, will give s briefing of everywhere we went in the morning. We did the Sonoma tour our guide was awesome. He was an older guy named Sam Honey who a local And retired. He ran the Sonoma local soccer club and knows everyone in the area.
He calls his buddies and make sure they are there hen books the place to stop. We visited Bueno Vista, Nicholson Ranch, Robledo and petroni estate.
What is awesome is everywhere we went we were the only guest. We only went to where the owners or head guy was working that day.

Went to a really great winery yesterday called Storybook Vineyards. They are a Zin maker that is ran by a small family 85% of their vines are dedicated to Zin grapes. They produce about 4,000 cases a year I highly reccomend stopping here. $25 tasting fee that will go towards the wine purchase. They also make a really nice Viognet.
Are at Bottega last night. Really good!!

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Last weekend on a whim, my wife wanted us to try the two buck chuck merlot. She found something online on someone tasting these. Maybe ten years ago I could convince myself that it was "not bad", but now the best description is that it starts weak and just about the time you think there is enough of a fruit flavor to figure out what it might be, it stabs you in the neck.

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Tasting notes from bad wines are hilarious

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I got a rothschild lefite 2010 medoc "reserve" (reserved for the cheap-o's) for $18 at Specs the other day.

Its terrible. Totally flat taste, notes of church service wine on the finish.

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Well done sir

Has anyone had these two wines before?

2006- Lewis Napa Cab
2006- Hourglass Blueline Cab

My wife's girlfriend bought a large stash of aged high end wines from a family friend that's a collector. He sold everything for $60, and the girlfriend is turning around and reselling a decent amount of it. The two bottles above were the ones I was most interested in.

Any thoughts? Seemed like too good of a deal to pass up, u less you guys think they are overrated

I'd buy the Hourglass. don't know anything about Lewis.

'06 isn't thought of well as a Napa vintage, but I have had a few from that year the past few months and thought they were drinking great.

I like Hourglass. I'm not familiar with Lewis. As far as Napa 2006, I love the vintage. It has aged well.

The 2010 Hourglass Blueline is $123 @ specs. Sounds like someone got a good deal, if they have more to sell let me know!

If you had a full day to spend on Spring Mountain, what 3-5,6,7,8,9 wineries would you visit? My wife and I will be staying in St Helena and packing a lunch from Dean and Deluca (sp) to bring with us that day. Some of the ones I've heard recommended are Barnett, Pride, Sherwin, schweiger, 7&8, Keenan, and Terra Valentine. Also any advice on the order to visit the wineries up Spring Mountain?

Those are all good wineries. Behrens Family Winery (or Behrens and Hitchcock as it used to be called) is a lot of fun. Also at the same facility is Relic so you can have two tastings at once. They also pour Drinkward Peschon, another solid QPR. Another good stop is Fantesca.

As far as where to start...start at the top and work your way down. That way you don't have to wind all the way down with a buzz.

Bularry and BSD, thanks for the input! I'm going to cancel the Lewis and buy her two bottles of Hourglass. It got a 97 from Spectator, so I'm excited about it.

I typically drink wines in the $15-$30 range, and it's been a good while since I've tasted a world class bottle. I miss that heady feeling....hope the Hourglass delivers!

Hourglass Blueline is good stuff. Cellartracker puts the value of the '06 at $112.
Don't know much about Lewis either.