It’s a familiar problem to all of us: your cellar is full of thousands of bottles, all properly stored and cared for. But at some point, it gets hard to remember if that was a ‘82 or ‘86 Lafite that you had a case of tucked away, or just how many cases of ‘01 Screaming Eagle you got as part of the latest auction. But perhaps the greatest problem we all face is: just how long do you lay down your Charles Shaw?
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Hello, my name is Olivia, and I am battling an addiction. It is a new addiction, one I’m still feeling out. It will hopefully settle down to simply one of my “things,” a hobby, a pleasure, even a passion, but for now it remains dangerous, a little racy.
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I am woefully behind on posting, as today marks a week since the “Small is Beautiful” wine dinner with Alder of Vinography.com at Manresa, one of the world’s Top 50 Restaurants and a newly appointed San Francisco 4 star. By waiting this long to write, much of the work has actually been done for me: Alder has already written a wonderful description of the evening that is very much in line with my own thoughts. Rather than retreading the details here, I will add a few notes and some more general reflections on my interaction with the meal.
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I’m not usually a huge fan of Robert Mondavi for the same reasons that I don’t hold any special affection for many mass market companies, but at least with volume come the benefits of a sizeable marketing budget. I haven’t typically been all that impressed with Mondavi’s output in that department either–though obviously it works–but when a site comes along that offers enough genuinely interesting and useful content to make the marketing message palatable and cast the product in a better light, you have to tip your hat.
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In On Food and Cooking, Harold McGee describes the quince as offering “a taste of what apples and pears might have been like in their primitive form.” (357) 
In raw form, it is gritty and astringent, with no obvious bearing on the cuisine at the lauded San Francisco of the same name. However, cooking domesticates the quince: stone cell walls break down with heat and the taste softens. When cooked slowly with sugar, the off-white flesh even transforms into a gem-like translucent ruby. With this in mind, the name begins to make sense: Chef Michael Tusk’s Quince is all about the revealing the innate wonder in each pristine ingredient.
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I love champagne. After my first non-winery champagne tasting though, I think the drink may stand up better to sipping in a social setting than to the comparison and analysis of a formal tasting.
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We weren’t sure how to approach our dinner at the French Laundry after all these years. I feared that my preference for la cucina povera and food that grabs my taste buds more than my mind would make even this untarnished institution — consistently ranked one of the best, if not the best restaurant in the world — a disappointment. I had been warned prior to this trip that my entire world view, at least with respect to food, was about to change. I hoped and feared that might be so.
We went in knowing it would be an amazing experience, even if the food didn’t move us. We needn’t have worried: I would trade every prestigious restaurant meal I have ever had for another meal at the French Laundry. It really is that good. Start saving your dollars, or twenties, do whatever it takes to get a reservation, and get yourself to Yountville before anything changes.
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Saturday was cool but pleasantly sunny. We started the day with a walk around Yountville and environs, then had a leisurely brunch at the Vintage Inn before driving up to St. Helena to stroll around downtown and visit some of my favorite clothing and shoes stores.
We met up with our friends Joe and Kelley at Gordon’s and stopped at Pine Ridge for a tasting before heading to Spring Mountain Vineyard for our scheduled tour and tasting. We aren’t closet Falcon Crest fanatics, but I can see why they would have chosen this spot for filming – it really was a spectacular setting. We especially liked the 2001 Elivette Reserve, though the small production Pinot was quite nice and the Wine Spectator’s raves about the 2003 Sauvignon Blanc (May ‘05 issue) are well-deserved.
And finally, on to our 5:30 dinner at French Laundry…
Friday night’s dinner in Yountville was at an old favorite - Bistro Jeanty. It was only a few blocks from our hotel and I had been deliberating for days over the difficult choice between Crème de Tomate en Croute (a rich tomato soup with a puff pastry top) or Quenelles de Brochet in lobster sauce to start. In the end I was swayed by the more seasonal asparagus soup special, which was quite hot when it reached the table, with a little pool of melted butter and a drizzling of crème fraiche. Though pretty and tasty, it was not exceptional. A nod goes to Peder for his delicious asparagus soup last New Year’s. Oren had a beet and mâche salad with feta that was good, but also missing something. However, in an interesting twist, the beets tasted lightly pickled.
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