Best of Napa Valley Tour 2008
In February I took a trip out to Napa and I was blessed with a long list of new winery introductions. I tasted
dozens of wines on the trip but have narrowed down a short list that should be added to your cellar. If you
want to get the jump while some of these wines are on the market, take time to read these reviews.
In recent months I have provided the inside scoop on
Scarecrow, Buccella,
Maybach,
Keever,
Bridesmaid,
Stewart, Ghostblock,
Pharaoh Moans,
Meander, Corra and
MX Wines. Many wineries have since been "discovered" by the press and their mailing lists are closed.
On this trip my Top 10 Wines To Buy are a combination of newcomers and some well known Napa estates.
I suggest that you follow the links below to read the story and then signup using our special VIP mailing list
introduction forms. Snooze you lose. This trip uncovered some amazing gems and here are
some of the standouts:
 Hall Winery - Two Wines in the Top 10 List
Many readers may have tasted Hall wines in the past but I bet that most have never tasted their Artisanal Series
wines. I never had the chance to taste through their very best, small production wines. I am so glad that the
Hall's opened up your winery for a special dinner and tour. Readers should take note that the Hall Artisanal wines are
some of the very best I have tasted in recent years. Click to read the
Hall Winery review.
Modus Operandi - Scores 99 Points with 2006 Antithesis
 Jason Moore, one of the most energetic young winemakers I have ever met experimented with some 2006 juice and scored a
homerun. Only a handful of wines have been rated 99 points in my newsletter in the past 6 years. The
2006 Antithesis was a blockbuster surprise and only available in very small allocations. Jason's 2004 Modus
Operandi Cabernet and the 2006 Antithesis made the Top 10 List. Click to read the
Modus Operandi review
Anomaly Winery Focused On Quality Not Quantity
 Meeting Steve Goldfarb at his St. Helena winery was a treat and yielded a great new wine for my cellar. The 2004 Anomaly
Cabernet was a perfectly balanced Cabernet that made a strong case to enjoy immediately as well as convince me that it
had years of great development to come. With under 1,000 cases produced each year and a very active mailing list,
readers should read the article and see how you can get on the list before it closes. Click to read the
Anomaly Wine Review.
Want to know all of the wines in the Top Ten report?
 You can request the
Top Ten Wines to Buy report from my Napa Valley trip by signing up for our mailing list below:
If you are already on my list, enter your email address below and click "Go" to update your subscription preferences.
You'll get a link to update your profile via email. Place a check next to the Top Ten Report box and we'll email you a
copy.
2004 Stewart Cabernet
 The
newly released 2004 Stewart Cabernet from Napa Valley is the third great vintage in a row that I have tasted from this
up and coming winery. At a recent party the 2003 Stewart was the hit of the night, followed closely by the 2004.
If you are looking for a wine to enjoy today and that will also age gracefully, this is a candidate to add to your
collection.
The wine retails for $62 per bottle and I rate the wine ng 95/100 points and I expect that score to rise as the
wine matures and fully evolves. The winemaker is Paul Hobbs so you can understand why the Stewart project has had such
great success. (Read entire review)
Angus & Arlye Beckstoffer Cabernet
 I
kicked off the new year with a great new wine from MX Wines in California. Readers will remember this name from last
year when I featured an article and Margaux Singleton and her project called
MX Wines.
In her second year of releases came this amazing bottle of 2005 Beckstoffer To-Kalon Cabernet that I enjoy with longtime friend Don Asay.
The wine is packaged in heavy glass with a silk screened label making it very attractive to the eye. However, the magic is all in the glass.
I don't remember a young Cabernet tasting this balanced and elegant. It is not made in the over extracted
California style rather it would seem almost Burgundian. The lighter Cabernet coloring masks the power in the
mouth. This is truly a great wine and in very limited supply. I only get a 3 bottle allocation and I
recommend that you go the the MX Wines website and get on their mailing lists.
I rate this wine 97/100 points and I can't wait to see how this wine evolves over the next 7-10 years.
Serve Up Some Justice
 I
am continually on the lookup for new wines to experience and when I saw an offering of Justice made
from the Beckstoffer vineyards in the Napa Valley, I took a closer look. This handsome three bottle set includes:
- 2004 Blind Justice
- 2004 Frontier Justice
- 2004 Poetic Justice
The wine is distributed through Bounty Hunter Wine & Provisions Co. located in Napa California. The entire
packaging and labeled are very well done and the wines would be a great gift for an attorney. Since Justice, at
times, seems rarely served, pickup a three pack and make sure that Justice is served in your home this holiday season.
If you are the type that likes Justice without media attention, then maybe Poetic Justice is just the right measure.
Read more on the 2004 Justice Cabernet.
Undici Restaurant Rumson NJ
 I
finally had the opportunity to eat at Undici Restaurant in Rumson on November 18, 2007 and I can confirm most of the
feedback that I have been hearing on the street about this new Two Rivers Area eatery.
The restaurant interior is very cool; Italian chic with a warm and welcoming atmosphere. The investment in the
renovations to the former "Hook Line & Sinker Restaurant" property must be in the millions of dollars.
The most common thread of conversation that my circle of contacts has been discussing is not the
quality of food or the atmosphere, but how expensive their dinner totaled up at the end of their meal.
Read my updated Review of Undici Restaurant
Mollydooker Velvet Glove 99 points
 The
latest issue of The Wine Advocate was released on October 31, 2007 and wow did they love the 2006 Mollydooker Wines.
Check out the top scoring wines:
- Velvet Glove - 99 points
- Carnival of Love - 97 points
- Blue Eyed Boy - 96 points
- Gigglepot Cabernet - 95 points
- Enchanted Path - 94 points
- Boxer Shiraz - 94 points
To read the official
Mollydooker Press Release and their Fall promotional offer,
click here.
Remember we hosted the 2006 Mollydooker
wine tasting at Cask 591. It was a blast and everyone loved the Velvet Glove. Now fast forward a few months
and the scores validate what our group experienced at Cask 591.
Congratulations to Sarah and Sparky Marquis, who are creating a great buzz in the Australian wine industry. If you have
not purchased your 2006 Mollydooker wines, you can visit their winery direct website at:
www.mollydookerwines.com
If you want to taste the Velvet Glove Shiraz, you should invite me over for dinner. If you want to buy wines today, keep
in mind that some of the wines may be sold out so make sure you get on their mailing list for priority allocations next
year. Read more on the Velvet Glove Shiraz.
Napa Valley Wine Adventures
 I
recently had the pleasure to meet us with Celia Masyczek in Napa at her winemaking facility to taste some of her upcoming releases.
If you don't already recognize the name, Celia is the winemaker that made two of my top 10 wines from California last
year; Scarecrow
and Keever Vineyards.
There is so many things to write about on this trip, but that will come in a few days. The reason I had to make a
short note here on the home page is that Celia is coming out with her own wine this Fall. Readers of my newsletter
are getting the first opportunity to get on her mailing list.
The new project is called Corra Winery and the website is
www.corrawines.com where you get place your name on her mailing list. I encourage all my readers to get your
name on her list before it is closed for new additions. Celia's winemaking skills and passion are bound to make
this wine an up and coming star in Napa.
Keever Vineyards - Snooze You Lose
In April 2007 I wrote about the
Keever Vineyards project that came on my radar screen with their stunning
2004 Keever Napa Cabernet. It was great new
find in 2007. So, on this trip I just had to stop in to meet with Keever Family and find out more about their wines.
So, winemaker Celia Masyczek took me over to have lunch with the Keever family on their terrace, overlooking their
vineyards. Pictured above are Jason Keever (left), Olga Keever (center), Celia Masyczek (right) . The vineyards in
the background are part of the Keever estate.
There is a full report coming from this visit but I have to encourage all my readers to get their pre-order of
the 2005 Keever Vineyards Cabernet
immediately. I tasted the wine and it was fantastic but Olga advised me that supplies are very limited.
The 2004 sold out early so the wine tasting room is starting to sample the 2005 vintage. This means shorter supply
to mailing list members, so get on their site and order a six-pack of the 2005 Cabernet.
Learn more about the 2005 vintage.
2006 Mollydooker Carnival of Love
 Wine
Spectator pre-released the scores for their upcoming September 22nd issue and Mollydooker 2006 Carnival of Love
was awarded 95 points.
My readers had advance notice of the 2006 COL and many have attended the Mollydooker 2006 wine tasting here in Long
Branch. The 2006 Carnival of Love was stunning
that evening and now the reviews are starting to come in for the 2006 vintage.
At the end of August, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate newsletter will be coming out and we hope that the Mollydooker
"party series" wines that retail at $20 per bottle will be covered.
For additional information on the 2006 Carnival of Love review, click through the hyperlink.
2004 Ghost Block Cabernet
It has been a few weeks since documented new wines that I have been tasting but when I taste something special, it
is a greater push to get to the keyboard and start to write.
Tonight I'm drinking (not tasting) the 2004 Ghost Block Cabernet.
When I tried to find out more about this wine it was extremely stressful. Once again, I'll rant about wineries not
doing proper SEO for their websites. View a perfect example of
SEO web marketing for online wineries, in this case it is hard NOT to find the winery which is the way it should be.
So, now back to the story, as small as it may be for now. The wine is sold through the Napa Valley Wine
Company which is a commune for small producers who can share winemaking facilities and create an economy of scale. The wine
retails for $55 a bottle at
www.cultwinecentral.com which is the pretentious URL for the Napa Wine Company.
When I first tasted then 2004 Ghost Block ... Read Ghost Block Article
2004 Scarecrow Cabernet
  So
the eagerly anticipated 2004 Scarecrow has arrived and along with that wine a host of other new comers arrived with my
spring wine shipments. Scarecrow Winery's 2003 Cabernet debut took the wine collecting world by storm. So
how does the 2004 Scarecrow stack up?
I tasted the 2004 Scarecrow Cabernet along with a few other wines this past week which included the 2004 Maybach
Materium and the 2004 Meander Cabernet. Read the Scarecrow Wine Review.
2004 Buccella Cabernet is #2 in 2007
 I have decided to create a list of the best wines in the past year that I have tasted and I have found my number two
wine of the year. I first wrote about Buccella Winery back in November 2006 when I discovered the
2003 Buccella Cabernet at Fresco by Scotto. I enjoyed the wine so much that I included it in my restaurant review
and encouraged my readers to get on their list.
This week my six-pack of the 2004 Buccella Cabernet arrived; packaged in an elegant box with wax seals. I took a
bottle with me for dinner at Thyme Square in Red Bank and ... read entire article on
The 2004 Buccella Cabernet.
|
Newsletter Archives
Andretta's Wine Dinner
April 3, 2008
On April 3, 2008 you are invited to attend a wine dinner hosted at Andretta's restaurant in Highlands
New Jersey. Advance Reservation are required and the cost per person is $80 which includes all charges, tax and
tip.
Brian Pasch and Don Asay will be speaking at the dinner and they have coordinated a special tasting menu with the chef
to compliment the wines that will be served. To learn more about the Andretta's Wine Dinner,
click here.
Search Engine Marketing Seminar
Red Bank, New Jersey
April 2, 2008
Click for more details
Table Restaurant's Prix Fixe Menu 
Table Restaurant in Little Silver NJ, will be offering a new Prix Fixe Menu on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights.
Going out to dinner could not be more affordable; set at $34.95 per person for a three course feast.
Bring a bottle of your favorite wine and enjoy a great meal;
Click to view Prix Fixe Menu
Table can accommodate parties and special family events.
Click to View Party Menu
Mcloone's Pier House
If you are looking for a casual spot for food and drinks with spectacular oceanfront views, I suggest that you check out
McLoone's Restaurant in Pier Village.
If you would like to view a list of all the restaurants and shops in Pier Village, Long Branch, follow hyperlink or click
on photo above.
New BMW cars in 2008
BMW has a number of new cars coming out in 2008. The BMW 1 Series is coming to dealer showrooms in
March. The 2008 BMW 128i and
2008 BMW 135i
will be in tight supply so you are advised to preorder them if you want a Spring delivery.
These two door coupes will fill an important entry level gap for smaller, fuel efficient cars that have the BMW ride.
There is hope that the diesel powered
BMW 120d will eventually come to the US market. Why?
Because the diesel BMW 120d get around 50 miles per gallon and still packs the power of a BMW Sports Car. Now
that's a WOW.
The BMW X6 will be coming to the US market
in the second quarter of 2008. And if you are looking for a diesel vehicle, BMW will be releasing a
Diesel X5 and
Diesel 335d.
Click on the hyperlink for more information and to signup for updates via
1-Series notification list.
Free Travel and Activities Guides
If you are coming to New Jersey and would like to read and prepare for your
Garden State vacation, visit our New Jersey Tourism information page. Download free maps, event
guides, outdoor activity planners and more. If you have any questions, send us a note and we will help make your
NJ vacation a success.
If you would like a concise directory of the shops in
Pier Village, located in Long Branch NJ and their websites, click here for: Pier Village Directory.
A directory for Pier Village in Long Branch was created since it seems that the individual tenant
websites are not being picked up by the major search engines. Pier village has dozens of great shops and restaurants
alongside the ocean in Long Branch. Pier Village restaurants include:
Articles on RSS Feed
 To make it easier to keep up with my latest wine reviews and Monmouth County
news, I have created an RSS feed so click below and add the link to your RSS reader. In the new Windows Vista operating
system an RSS reader comes on your desktop.
Raritan Bay Fishing Charters from Blue Dog
 If you looking for a great way to spend a summer day with your kids or with some friends, consider calling my friend Art
Torrone who is the owner of Blue Dog Charters. Blue Dog specializes in
Raritan Bay Fishing Charters.
Artie is a licensed captain and he loves to fish. he has been going out on the Raritan Bay since
he was a kid. If you are looking for someone who knows are local waters and will make your trip a great success,
give him a call to discuss rates and schedules. You can reach Art at 917-362-6070 or via e-mail at
captbluedog@aol.com
 Its
seems that the latest newcomers from California are coming out with tough names to pronounce. Coupe de Foudre
(koo dah foo drah) has just released their first Napa Cabernet. The 2004 Napa Cabernet label and
packaging are very nicely done and their website tells us that their name means "lightning strike", something unforgettable.
The team behind this new Napa project are Danielle Price and John Schwartz. Danielle is the Wine
Director for Wynn Resorts and John is the owner of Amuse Bouche Winery in
Napa. Their 2004 Cabernet has just arrived in my home and I will be tasting it and writing about my experience this week.
If you are interested in this wine you can reach the winery at 707-253-8300 and ask for Joy de Leon.
Here is my review of the 2004 Coupe de Foudre Cabernet
I had the opportunity to visit a business in Newark New Jersey operated by some mutual friends
and I was amazed how much activity surrounds the New Jersey and New York ports.
Everyone talks about the impact of manufacturing in China and oversees but view articles I have read documented the boom
domestic trucking services have seen in recent years.
Took a tour of their freight transportation and freight forwarding operations at the New York
port and was smiling at the bustle of activity. The global boom and rise in new economies is surely helping some
folks; the trucking companies at Port Newark!
Where is Ken Marcotte?
Ken Marcotte, former owner of his namesake restaurant is Westfield New Jersey where many members
of the NJ Wine Connection enjoyed wine with me in the 90's, has re-surfaced. He now operates
Marcotte Catering in Sea Girt, NJ. Watch out Monmouth County
|
