And I think you guys have pretty much talked me out of the 2020 001. I shared your concerns about the vintage but was still on the fence. My wallet appreciates the direction you pushed me.

The 001 guys did get Macdonald fruit as a one off for the 2020 vintage. I don't love their price point, although it's good wine there is a lot of proven stuff out there for that price or less.

Staying over an extra night on the back end of a San Fran trip and looking for Healdsburg recs - ideally vineyards along the 101 corridor or just south of Healdsburg, not looking to drive too far off the beaten path since my time is limited - prefer visiting the actual vineyard vs. just a tasting room in town.

Bonus rec 1 of the vineyards near Sonoma County airport I might be able to hit before my flight the next day.

Also looking for a dinner rec in downtown Healdsburg that isn't Single Thread, as much as I'd love to do that.

TIA!

Ridge is a must visit in that area.

I'm a big fan of Valette for dinner in Healdsburg

Forgot to add Barndiva as a dinner rec.

phxAg said:

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I'm a big fan of Valette for dinner in Healdsburg

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Second this recommendation. Only have been once and can't wait to go back.

If you like Tapas style, then Bravas nearby is a fun place to go. Sit outside in their backyard or on the patio.

For wineries out on vineyard land south at Healdsburg and south:

• Copain
• MacRostie
• Hartford

For a winery near the airport:

• La Crema - The tasting room is nice and their wines deliver great value IMO

Ridge is a little farther north but have many more recs too in the Dry Creek area if you venture that far up north.

jh0400 said:

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Forgot to add Barndiva as a dinner rec.

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I need to give it another try sometime. Had extremely rude service there the 1 time I have been and there are too many great restaurants around for me to "need" to go back.

East Dallas Ag said:

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Staying over an extra night on the back end of a San Fran trip and looking for Healdsburg recs - ideally vineyards along the 101 corridor or just south of Healdsburg, not looking to drive too far off the beaten path since my time is limited - prefer visiting the actual vineyard vs. just a tasting room in town.

Bonus rec 1 of the vineyards near Sonoma County airport I might be able to hit before my flight the next day.

Also looking for a dinner rec in downtown Healdsburg that isn't Single Thread, as much as I'd love to do that.

TIA!

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Limerick Lane just south of Healdsburg, good visit right in the middle of historic vineyards.

My niece (sophomore) is down from College Station this weekend and wanted to try some wine. She's tried some red wines before but was never a fan. So last night we opened a 2018 Chteau Climens Asphodle semillon and she really enjoyed it. Tonight she wants to try a chard…or beer. Reminds me of me when I was that age.

Meomi and Miller

Messina Hof white zin. I always had a bottle on hand. The ladies loved it. But mostly, beer and vodka. Didn't matter the brand. Just whatever was there.

My first trip to Napa was when I was in college, senior year. It was filled with white wines. My roommate was from East Bay and his parent were big wine people. I picked up an order for his mom at Silver Oak (back when it was pretty good or my taste buds didn't know any better), and politely declined a free tasting. Reds weren't my thing yet. Interestingly, my buddy's mom opened it at dinner that night and I loved it. We went through all six bottles so I went back the next day and got more…and took advantage of the free tasting. And we've seen what happened since then.

How long did you decant? I've got some '12-'14s that I plan to open in the next year or so.

BSD said:

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How long did you decant? I've got some '12-'14s that I plan to open in the next year or so.

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Started enjoying at 2hrs, was better at 4hrs. Would recommend 4hrs mins

Those 001 Magnums sold out quickly.

I know I said I wasn't going to, but I bought a 3-pack. I have willpower up until the point that the email comes in.

I'm staying strong. I really liked the 2019 but still saying nope on 2020.

BSD said:

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I'm staying strong. I really liked the 2019 but still saying nope on 2020.

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Stay strong!

I've stayed away so far as well.

Don't think the 001 is worth the price. Especially 2020. None of should be buying 2020

WestUAg said:

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Don't think the 001 is worth the price. Especially 2020. None of should be buying 2020

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yeah, so many back vintages available out there from Napa or Bordeaux, why by 2020's that could be questionable.

I'm dialing back my purchases this year. I find myself drinking more old world wines now so happy buying back vintages of those as referenced above and saving room for 2023 which is not only an epic vintage but also my wedding year.

No purchases: Darioush, Vine Cliff, Spottswoode, Brasswood, Antica Terra, and 001

Reduced Purchase: Covert

Normal Purchase: Melka and AXR

How do y'all raise humidity in your storage?

I've had my wines in a temp-controlled fridge that I moved them into once I outgrew my 16bottle fridge (the 16 bottle fridge died too). It is too dry in there, unfortunately. I should have raised the humidity on the fridge a few months back now, but that's water under the bridge. I checked it once and assumed it would be relatively steady but checked it again yesterday and it was way low. Humidity notwithstanding they've been at 57 or so for the whole time.

So I don't know much about Champagne, but I do enjoy it if it's good. My girlfriend loves it but also isn't knowledgeable in it at all. Our anniversary is coming up and I wanted to get a nice bottle. I got a really good deal on a bottle Nicolas Feuillatte Palmes D'or Brut, 2008.

It seems to have good reviews online but who knows. I think the store might still have another bottle. We won't be opening the one that I got for a little over a week, so I won't know how it is until then and I'm afraid that if there is another bottle then it won't still be there by the time I get to try it.

Has anyone had it? And if so, is it worth getting another one if I am able?

Thanks.

Chipotlemonger said:

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How do y'all raise humidity in your storage?

I've had my wines in a temp-controlled fridge that I moved them into once I outgrew my 16bottle fridge (the 16 bottle fridge died too). It is too dry in there, unfortunately. I should have raised the humidity on the fridge a few months back now, but that's water under the bridge. I checked it once and assumed it would be relatively steady but checked it again yesterday and it was way low. Humidity notwithstanding they've been at 57 or so for the whole time.

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I've been wondering the same thing. I thought some humidity was required to keep the corks from drying out, but refrigerators tend to remove moisture from the air.

I set a few open cups of water in there at different spots but maybe I really need a sponge.

Something about the water being in a sponge and that sponge surface probably helps it evaporate better/faster than just an open container of water.

About to look for a sponge on hand.

Chipotlemonger said:

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I set a few open cups of water in there at different spots but maybe I really need a sponge.

Something about the water being in a sponge and that sponge surface probably helps it evaporate better/faster than just an open container of water.

About to look for a sponge on hand.

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I have a couple standard sponges and feel they evaporate too fast. Been meaning to get a thicker sponge like a grout one while at Home Depot.

I used a sponge in my old under the counter 30 bottle fridge and had to re-wet it every day. That said, unless you are storing for years I wouldn't worry too much about it.

My current setup gets dry (45-50%) when the a/c compressor is on but has a feature to run the fan without the compressor for a couple minutes before turning off and that pushes the moisture back in to get back to 60-65%.

FTAco07 said:

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I used a sponge in my old under the counter 30 bottle fridge and had to re-wet it every day. That said, unless you are storing for years I wouldn't worry too much about it.

My current setup gets dry (45-50%) when the a/c compressor is on but has a feature to run the fan without the compressor for a couple minutes before turning off and that pushes the moisture back in to get back to 60-65%.

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Where's it getting that moisture? Is your house at 65% humidity?

The sponge trick should help, but that would get pretty old adding water all the time. Hope that's not the only solution.

I've had some relatively old bottles, maybe 15 years old or so, where the corks get consistently crumbly when I pull them. That's why I'm interested in finding out what others are doing to prevent that. Unless everybody has that problem...

The wine room cooling unit fan is just returning the moisture that the unit's cooler takes out of the air by blowing it back in the room. I honestly have no idea what the RH is in the house.

Thank you for posting this, I was about to grab a small sponge but then remembered I had some spare grout sponges in the garage, not 10' from where my wine fridge is.

I soaked one up pretty well and threw it in the fridge!

It would get old having to re-wet the sponge frequently, but I don't think I will mind it too much. We'll just see how effective it is and if it holds moisture up for more than a day at a time.

FTAco07 said:

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The wine room cooling unit fan is just returning the moisture that the unit's cooler takes out of the air by blowing it back in the room. I honestly have no idea what the RH is in the house.

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I had a spare temp/humidity sensor that I had been meaning to put in my rigged up wine fridge. Finally did so and that's when I realized my humidity was lower than I thought. They're not too pricey.