How to host a dinner party with your good wine

If you are a wine enthusiast, you probably have a few bottles you are only willing to share with friends who will really appreciate it. A dinner party is a great way to open a few good bottles, do a tasting, and have a great dinner to go with it.

Here’s how we like to do it.

Step 1: Pick a theme
A theme can create a bit of fun anticipation and give your party some focus. Last weekend, we hosted a “Que Syrah Syrah” party because had some terrific Syrahs we wanted to share. (Last year, we hosted a similar “Pinot Palooza” party.)

Step 2: Invite some friends who love wine
We prefer to keep the total to eight. A group this size is large enough to stimulate a lot of conversation, but small enough to comfortably fit around our dining table. We invited three other couples to Que Syrah Syrah that we knew would enjoy the wine and would mix well with each other.

Step 3: Select your bottles
We selected bottles we had purchased at wineries in 2010. This provided two advantages. First, we didn’t have to buy any extra wine for our tasting. Second, we could talk about our experiences tasting each one. Stories generally make wine taste even better.

Our Que Syrah Syrah menu:

Starter Wine
2006 Wattle Creek Triple Play (Syrah blend)

Wines for Blind Tasting & Dinner
2007 Wattle Creek Shiraz
2007 Cuvaison Diablo Syrah
2006 Domaine Serene Rockblock Reserve Syrah

Step 4: Create your menu
Sticking with one varietal makes it a little easier to come up with a menu that pairs well with the wine. Don’t worry if you aren't a wine pairing pro. Pick up a copy of What to Drink with What You Eat and you’ll always be right on the money. Que Syrah Syrah featured food that was perfect with Syrah.

Appetizer
Stuffed mushrooms
Gouda and Dubliner cheeses

Main Course
Marinated flank steak
Whipped potatoes and parsnips
White corn and zucchini fritters
Grilled eggplant

Dessert
Dark chocolate brownies with white chocolate shavings, raspberries, and whipped cream

Step 5: Set up a blind tasting
We like to do a blind tasting so we can discuss the wine and have a little fun. We were blind tasting three bottles, so each person was served in three glasses. The wine was poured from carafes to prevent our guests from seeing the bottles.

Informal works best for us. We like to sip each of the wines, discuss them with our friends, and ask everyone to pick their favorite. The wines are then revealed after a winner emerges.

Dinner is served once the wines are revealed. Our friends are free to pour themselves a glass of whichever wine they prefer.

Our Que Syrah Syrah winner
The ’07 Cuvaison Diablo took the Que Syrah Syrah title. It was silky smooth with a rich, earthy flavor that was outstanding by itself and paired well with our food.

The other two wines were no slouches, and each got at least one first place vote. Several of our friends noted the '07 Wattle Creek complimented the food very nicely while others appreciated the '06 Domaine Serene Rockblock's delicate flavors.

A great day in Willamette Valley, Oregon

It's Will-ah-met, damn it! The locals are a bit touchy about the pronunciation of their outstanding wine region, but Sally and I were willing to learn the local lingo in return for some great finds at some terrific wineries. Miles would be in heaven here because the main thing is Pinot Noir, but you can also find some good Pinot Blancs, Chardonnays, and even the occasional Syrah.

The Four Graces
Our first stop of the day was the Four Graces in Dundee Hills. Most wineries in the area open at 11 am, so the Four Graces was our pick because it sounded interesting and opened at 10. They poured a very crisp and refreshing Pinot Gris along with five different Pinot Noirs. It was interesting to taste the differences in the same varietal from the same winery. All were good, but our favorite was the '07 Dundee Hills Reserve Pinot Noir which smelled like good BBQ smoke and would go nicely with a piece of slow cooked meat. Mmmmmm.

Domain Drouhin
This winery is French-owned, so they were pouring wines from both sides of the pond. Our favorites were their very balanced 2008 Chardonnay Arthur and their 2007 Pinot Noir Laurene Cuvee that managed to be both delicate and complex at the same time.The grounds were beautiful with views of the valley that might be amazing if it weren't for the gray sky and slight fog.

Domain Serene
A worthy goal when wine tasting is to get a taste of something not on the menu. Going off the tasting menu seemed to be in the plans at the Four Graces and Domain Drouhin, but we had to do some smooth talking at Domain Serene. We started by tasting a Chardonnay and a couple of Pinot Noirs and then moved on to their "Rockblock" Syrah. Their '05 Rockblock Del Rio Vineyard Syrah was very impressive with deep fruit and a taste that grows in complexity. Our server mentioned they only had 17 bottles left of their '06 Rockblock Reserve Syrah so it wasn't open. Hmmmmmm. Fast forward a few minutes and it WAS open, we enjoyed it, and bought two bottles. Just like that they were down to 14 bottles. Almost sold out!  Domain Serene was another beautiful winery that would have some impressive views on a clear, sunny day.

White Rose Wines

Several people had recommended White Rose Wines throughout the day, so we had to stop by. They are perched on a hilltop with another would-be incredible view that was obscured by gray and fog. It was still cool though and their wine was very good. Several different Pinot Noirs to taste, though our favorite was the '08 White Rose Estate Dundee Hills Pinot Noir due to its classic Oregon Pinot taste (earthy) with a hint of spice. Yum!

And now, a lunchtime interlude... We dined at Farm to Fork, a gourmet deli and restaurant that was very 'wine country' with it's nice selection of locally sourced vegetables, wonderful meats, and innovative takes on traditional lunchtime sandwiches.

Back to wine...

Barrel Fence

We almost judged this book by it's cover, but a new friend at the Four Graces had told us this newly opened winery made great stuff and a tasting was worth it because they were seldom open.

The inside of their tasting room looked like a garage, complete with a beautiful '68 Corvette parked in the middle. Okay, it really WAS the guy's garage! But the wine was good and very interesting. He had an estate Pinot Noir from his Dundee Hills vineyard (45 North) and a Pinot Noir made from grapes grown on land he owned in New Zealand (45 South). Both were terrific and reasonably priced ($28/$29) compared to other comparable wines we'd tasted that day.

Penner-Ash
This was another winery that featured beautiful views (if only the day was clear). Like everywhere else, their main show was Pinot Noir, and their several varieties were solidly good.

One last note... Six wineries in one day. Were we drunk? No. Here's the secret to enjoying some wine tasting while still having gas in the tank at the end of the day.

1. Share. You've just cut your intake (and tasting fees) by 50%.
2. Don't drink it if you don't like it. There's no sense in quaffing everything put in front of you.
3. Don't drink it all if you don't love it. It's perfectly OK to take a sip and dump the rest of the glass.
4. Pick your favorite at the end of the day and THEN get pickled.

Wattle Creek's tasting room in San Francisco

Sally and I visited Wattle Creek's tasting room in San Francisco last weekend. It was a great time as always, and our new friend Brandy shared a lot of great Wattle Creek wine. Free tastings are one of the perks of being a wine club member, though we bought a few bottles on our way out so I don't know how 'free' it really was!

Here are some highlights.

2009 Sauvignon Blanc. One of the few Wattle Creek wines you can get outside of the winery. This is 100% Sauvignon Blanc fermented in stainless steel -- not our usual style but this one is light on grapefruit with a very refreshing taste.  It's perfect to sip on the patio on a warm summer evening.

2006 Malbec. One of our favorite wines - it's 92% Malbec and 8% Cabernet Sauvignon. Deep fruit with complex, well-structured flavors, it goes well with many types of foods. It's also only available to wine club members -- another perk of being 'in'.

2007 Shiraz. Great tobacco smell and bold flavors with that smooth fruit finish you expect from a Shiraz.

2007 Petite Sirah. Lots of dense fruit up front with light tannins and alcohol on the finish.

2006 Cabernet Sauvignon. This is a very solid Cab. Let's this one breathe for at least an hour and you'll be rewarded with stick to your teeth deliciousness. Lighter fruit to start and then a smooth but bold finish.

Day 2: Three Perfect Days in Napa and Sonoma Valley

This is Day 2 of our recent wine tour to the Napa and Sonoma wine regions.

Wine

One our second day of tasting we made our way a bit North towards St. Helena and Calistoga before heading back into Napa. Here are the highlights.

Cade. This is a sister winery to Plumpjack and they also make very good Cabernet Sauvignon. The tasting is $10 per person, which was a steal considering the exceptionally good wine, the scenic view from the hills above Napa Valley, and the beautiful, modern tasting room. We both enjoy softer, drier Sauvignon Blancs rather than the acidic, citrusy style, and their 2008 Sauvignon Blanc was right on the mark for us. Their 2006 Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon was a classic Cab with dense, complex fruit on the mouth and wonderful soft tannins that will go nicely with food.

Cuvaison. We had to visit Cuvaison because they consistently make some of our favorite wines, their Pinot Noir was the winner of our recent 'Pinot-palooza' challenge, and they have a new tasting room in Calistoga to boot. Let's just say we started the day as members of only one wine club (Wattle Creek) and are now members of two. Here are our highlights from Cuvaison:

• 2008 S Block Chardonnay. We recently drank the 2006 version and 2008 really holds up with a nice balance of buttery oak and light acidity.
• 2007 Diablo Syrah. This is a very balanced Syrah that has a rather earthy taste throughout.
• 2007 Block F5 Pinot Noir. This may just be the Pinot to take the next Pinot-palooza title. Nice, delicate fruit and an earthy finish that works before, during, and after food.
• 2006 Brandlin Vineyard Zinfandel. Strong fruit upfront (and butterscotch?!) with a subtle pepper finish. This will be versatile with a lot of food -- a great pick to bring to a restaurant.
• 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon. Big fruit, big tannins, sticks to your teeth without blasting you with alcohol. Yum.

Foile a Deux. Their wine is all very drinkable, and their 'Menage a Trois' table wines are an outstanding buy. Their Menage a Trois red lists for $12, but we've seen it for as low as $6.99 a bottle. It makes for a great mid-week wine to go with all sorts of dinner.

Robert Biale Vineyards. The previous night we hung out in Silos Jazz Club for some wine and jazz. Keith, the manager, has a good eye for local wine and he introduced us to Robert Biale's "Black Chicken" Zinfandel. As the story goes, "Black Chicken" was code for Zinfandel during Prohibition when Aldo Biale took orders over their party line and didn't want the neighbors to know he was selling alcohol. It's a fun story and a fun wine. (Be sure to make an appointment if you visit.) They also feature other great Zins and a few other varietals.

Dinner
Barbeque and wine go together like peas in a pod, and the Bounty Hunter in downtown Napa does it right. It's a bit funky - their small room is part restaurant, part wine bar, and part wine shop all in one space, but it works. Come prepared to make some new friends, taste some wine, and have some awesome BBQ. (Their beer can chicken is quite the sight to see -- the whole bird comes out sitting on a beer can.)