The 3rd Annual Napa Chili Cookoff

This past Saturday downtown Napa hosted one of various special events they regularly host: the 3rd Annual Napa Chili Cookoff. I have never been to this event before, and in all honesty might not have even known about it if it hadn't been for a heads-up (and free admission!) from our real estate agent, Mike Bolen (who happened to be working the "Raging Donkey" chili booth).

There were 18 chilis being represented at the competition, which took place on main street between 2nd and 3rd streets and required a $20 donation to Napa Food Bank as admission/tastings of all chili and a token to vote on your favorite.

I'm a pretty big fan of chili, so this wasn't a bad bet... especially since every single one of them was pretty decent (some much better than others, of course) -- I just wish it had stayed nice and foggy/overcast and cool like it was in the morning, but alas the sun burned it off and it was another typical sunny 80 degree summer day in Napa (I know what you're thinking: "And you're complaining about that?!")

The deal is that you walk around to different booths, most of them held by local businesses, charities, etc. (so they also get a little bit of publicity out of the deal), and you try a little cup of their chili. After tasting as many as you'd like, you can drop a token into their bucket if it's your favorite; the winner of the most tokens takes the "People's Choice" award.

As for the main 1st, 2nd, and 3rd prizes, these are awarded by a panel of judges, which this year included James Aptakin, Food Network regular and executive chef for San Francisco’s Hilton Financial District Hotel; local artist Gordon Huether; Napa Fire Chief Tim Borman; Catherine Bergen, owner of C Casa in the Oxbow Market; and L. Pierce Carson from the Napa Valley Register.

We stuck around long enough to meander to every booth and try every chili possible; Sarah is not a big fan of "heat" so she steered clear of some of them, but I devoured everything in sight without hesitation, and by the end I'd had a fairly substantial meal! The great thing is that, like wine tasting, there's plenty of variety -- subtle (or not so subtle) variations of "the same thing", which really lets you appreciate the nuances of ingredients and flavors.

L. Pierce Carson made it very apparent in his writeup that he was disappointed by the lack of heat/chili-power in this year's entries, and although I do believe chili should have some kick, I believe that kick can come from flavors such as spices making it "spicy" without necessarily being "hot" (fyi, Mr. Carson: not all peppers are hot.) There was one chili (I forget which) which was rather bland and too tomato-based... it was pretty awful. But as for the rest, I disagree that they were lackluster. Also, apparently the panel (only 2 of the 6 who actually have any sort of food expertise) was looking for the best rendition of a typical/traditional chili, because those are the only ones that seemed to win anything.

I personally found it refreshing that there were some sweeter chilis in the mix, some with hints of brown sugar or molasses or syrup in them. I actually gave my token to Bolen's Raging Donkey chili (which won 3rd place last year) -- it had some great slow-cooked braised short ribs and other meats, the meat was excellent and the flavor was different; I couldn't decide between that one and the one by Billco's Billiards... which was the most unique of the day, in my opinion, and it had an intriguing blend of spices (described by the server as "mediterranean spices")... I picked up maybe cinnamon? Allspice? Coriander? Hard to tell, but it was something you don't normally get in chili, and yet it worked very nicely. Apparently not for the judges, though. (Raging Donkey tipped the scales because they got me into the event, otherwise I might have slightly favored Billco's, but it was a tough call)

Sarah's vote was for Downtown Joe's chili colorado which had a minimalist and traditional -- but nicely done -- Mexican flavor to it.

Apparently others didn't agree, as they chose some of the most typical representations of chili to be the winners. I can't entirely blame them, though -- it was all surprisingly good (except for that one bland, stewed-tomato flavored one which shall remain nameless because it was completely forgettable).

Etude Wines

In my recent excursions down Cuttings Wharf Rd, to the riverfront homes of the Carneros region just southwest of Napa, I passed a winery called "Etude" which I was always curious about, but always too late to visit.

Then I was reminded when a coworker mentioned that "Etude has some good Carneros pinot, you should try them if you like pinot..." The name rang a bell, but I couldn't place it. Then suddenly I remembered, and just in time to check out another home for sale (maybe -- it's a weird situation, short-sale temporarily off-market trying to get a loan modification to avoid foreclosure), and decided it was time to pay Etude a visit.

The grounds are sprawling and so flat; the flat, marshy wetlands of Carneros are such a contrast compared to the hills and crags upvalley. The tasting room itself was large and had a vibe like a minimalist modern art gallery, with racks of wine mounted in front of a panel-lit wall and -- what's this that looks like wine but glows a strange amber color? Well, it turns out the place used to be a distillery that made brandy, and when Etude winery took over they decided to bottle and sell some of the brandy (limited production, no more being made), one of which is 100% pinot and the other is a blend of grapes, but neither available for tasting and both of them expensive ($150/bottle)!

The average age in here seemed to be about 60, with the ladies pouring being at least that or older. It wouldn't bother me except that, like some of the other older servers around here, they weren't too personable. Tastings are $20 each (we decided to share) and it included a chardonnay, two pinot noirs (a blend and the Deer Camp single vineyard), a "GBR Red" blend (85% merlot, 15% malbec), and a cabernet sauvignon.

All of the wines were definitely good with delicate, balanced flavors and smooth mouthfeel (I've come to realize the mouthfeel is so important to me); the pinots are somewhat typical for Carneros, in the sense that they are a somewhat ruby color which accurately represents a decent level of fruit in the wine. However, these Etude ones have a great deal of musky spice to them, and not too tart/sour like some pinot can be. Overall they had hints of black tea and cloves, a flavor profile I could definitely appreciate.

The darker reds -- both the GRB and cabernet -- were full-bodied but well-rounded, with very smooth tannins. I got sort of a yeasty, vanilla potpourri aroma from the GBR which, personally, I found very appealing; the cabernet was more licorice and cocoa. Like I said, everything was good... but none of it was cheap. The estate pinot is $42 and everything else is $60+, so at those prices I couldn't justify buying any bottles right now, though I'll definitely keep them in mind if I want something special in the future. They got bonus points for ending up waiving our tasting fee, as well, since we are locals -- I didn't know they are part of the Napa Neighbor program, but sure enough when I checked the website it lists free tasting for up to 4 people, plus a 15% discount.

Okay, that settles it... I'll be back!

New York Pizza Kitchen (Napa) Sucks

I've lived across from the Silverado Plaza shopping center (at Soscol and Trancas) for almost 4 years now, but had not yet tried all of the little restaurants there. Mainly because none of them are too special... they consist of:

• Starbucks (of course)
• Cold Stone Creamery (fun, but overpriced)
  
• High Tech Burrito -- went there once, liked the Godzilla Burrito, went back to get it again... and they had removed it from the menu because it was the only burrito worth its price. Instead, I settled for one of their standard burritos which is $6 and has about two ounces of meat in it. Those cheap bastards will not get another dime from me.
  
• Hop Hing Kitchen, a cheap fast-food chinese place (you know, the kind where you pick one or two dishes plus a rice or noodle side. Like Panda Express).
• New York Pizza Kitchen, which I unfortunately decided to finally try tonight

Today I was suddenly in the mood for a nice, authentic pizza -- we often do Little Caesar's... they're just down the street and a pretty good deal for the $5 it costs for a large pizza and breadsticks on Mondays, and for what it is, it's pretty good... but I wanted something a little more "homemade" today, and after the nice experience at Pizzeria Tra Vigne (which is unfortunately too far to bother driving to at the moment), I figured I'd give New York Pizza Kitchen a try.

I showed up, took a photo, and perused the menu... lots of toppings, but pretty expensive: $14 for a small 12" pizza, $20 for an extra large 18", not including any toppings which are about $2 extra for 1-2 toppings. Most of the toppings are pretty standard, with a few additions like salami, chicken, bacon, fresh basil, and roasted garlic. Some of the more interesting toppings cost extra ($2.50 per topping), which is unfortunate because the thought of artichoke hearts, sundried tomatoes, and feta sounds pretty good.

I was really tempted to try chicken and fresh basil, but called Sarah because she has a weird hang-up about chicken on pizza (she loves chicken and loves pizza, doesn't like chicken on pizza). Sure enough, she told me to get a veggie option -- mushrooms and roasted garlic. Despite that I really do like chicken pizza, this option was fine by me because I have always loved mushroom pizza, and roasted garlic is a rare opportunity... slow-roasted cloves, all soft and sweet and somewhat caramelized.

Only... this wasn't the case. I sat at the front table for 20 minutes reading the newspaper and waiting for my pizza. When it finally arrived I took it and headed home (about 1 minute away)... as soon as I got in, I opened the cardboard box and saw what appeared to be minced raw garlic - the kind you can get in the big, bulk jars pre-chopped and drowning in garlic juice. Apparently what they do for their "roasted garlic" topping is to take minced RAW garlic, slap some spoonfuls on top, and throw it in the oven for 8 minutes so that it chars (but remains raw) while the crust cooks and cheese melts? Unacceptable. There was nothing "roasted" about this... their garlic is straight-up raw. I took a few pieces off with my finger and realized the pizza would be pretty much inedible (roasting garlic mellows out the flavor, allows you to eat large doses at a time).

Well, when I returned to say that I was returning the pizza and wouldn't be accepting it (I hadn't eaten a single bite, other than the slivers of garlic I picked off to test), the goofy young guy behind the counter said "What do you mean? It's roasted... see? It's dark. It went in the oven."

I said "No. This is raw garlic. Sticking it in an oven for 8 minutes does not make it roasted garlic. You need to either take that off your menu or change the name to 'minced garlic', because this is not roasted garlic." He refused to accept that so finally I said "You know what, fine. I'll just dispute the charge on my card and tell the whole Internet how much you guys suck." Then he got quiet and found my receipt, handed me some cash back to leave.

I went to their website to try to send them an email with a link to a Google search for "roasted garlic" -- in which I don't see a single website showing a method where you take minced raw garlic and throw it on a pizza for a few minutes. Of course, their web skills are about as savvy as their pizza-making and garlic knowledge, so they have some crappy cookie cutter website provided by AT&T and, of course, no email address.

It really makes me wonder what their other toppings are like. Is the "fresh basil" actually dried basil? Is the "bacon" actually Baco-Bits?

Sad. There are only a few pizza places in Napa that I know of, but I think I'll stick to $5 pizzas from Little Caesar's (at least I know what I'm getting and it doesn't involve paying $20 for a bunch of attitude and crappy customer service) or maybe I'll try Browns Valley Pizza at some point...

Wal-Mart

Yes, that's right: Wal-Mart. This is not to say I am endorsing it or encouraging you to go there. Quite the contrary. But... that is the "special Napa location" I got to visit for today. It wasn't "new" to me, other than the fact that they have put in a grocery section and this makes it an even more horrible experience, waiting in line behind people standing there with 7 kids (yes, seven. I come from a big family of five kids, but I find seven pretty excessive) with not one but TWO shopping carts filled with things like 6 boxes of laundry detergent and 8 cartons of orange juice. Seriously?? That's not shopping for a family, that's hunting and gathering for a TRIBE.

I haven't been to Wal-Mart (located at the corner of Soscol and Lincoln, just in case you want to stop by and see what the Gates of Hell look like) in years, partly because I completely do not agree with their policies as a company (union-busting, gender discriminating) but also partly because I fear for my life sometimes. And when I can get over those two, I can't get over the depression that sets in when I walk in and start to be convinced that people probably don't really have souls. And many certainly don't have brains (as I watch a man gleefully wheel a brand new 40" flat panel TV to his beater of a car that looks like it barely runs... ah, priorities)

The only reason I was here is because, for some odd reason, it happens to be the only place in Napa I could manage to find some arts and crafts supplies for my students' projects. I hope to never return again. The only positive I can say is that this really encouraged me to be the best person I can be in life, because being stuck in line at Wal-Mart pretty much seemed like eternal damnation, and it was terrifying. Instead of door greeters, they should post Cerberus at the front entrance.

Osprey Seafood Market

I wouldn't expect anyone visiting Napa to cook their own food -- after all, this is home to The Culinary Institute of America, The French Laundry, and other world-class and Michelin-rated restaurants.

However, if you happen to like cooking your own meals and you like seafood (and you live here or have a vacation home or an extended stay with access to a kitchen), then there's a little place you might want to check out called Osprey Seafood Market.

This is a basic seafood shop, nothing fancy -- it's a small, no-frills building tucked off of Solano Rd (which runs parallel on the west side of Rt. 29 on the northern part of Napa). But they have a reasonable selection of seafood that you might not be able to find at one of the local grocery stores.

I was in the mood for cooking some seafood on the way home from work today, and I was originally thinking fish -- maybe a Moroccan-style monkfish with tiger prawns. But then I thought about lobster, which I haven't had in a while, and one minute later the Napa VINE 10S drove past Osprey, with a sign out for Maine lobster, $12/lb.

They did, in fact, have monkfish (not cheap at $18.95/lb, though) but I went with a live lobster ($15), took it home and steamed it in saltwater, served up with lemon butter (melted butter with juice of one lemon freshly squeezed into it) and a side of Trader Joe's "Polenta Provencale", spicy creamy polenta with spinach and peas. I couldn't decide on which wine to pair with it, but decided to base it off the polenta dish flavor rather than the lobster, so I went with the Ochoa 2003 Chardonnay I bought at his tasting room in Calistoga recently. This one has a bit of apple, some sweet flavor like toffee, and a little muskiness. There's oak there, but it's weird because I don't taste it but can definitely smell it. It turned out to be a good pairing.

Domaine Chandon is a ChanDON'T

I pass Domaine Chandon every day on my commute to Calistoga. I have tried to come and give it a shot TWICE now and have been completely ignored and/or rudely mistreated both times. Considering that Napa thrives on the "hospitality" industry, you will find no hospitality here. Just a bunch of bitter people working in an over-commercialized tourist trap / sorority party.

My first visit was about 5-6 months ago, and when we arrived to the tasting room we were promptly ignored for 20 minutes and then coldly told they were closing in 5 minutes so we wouldn't be served.

This week it was like deja vu. We showed up 15 minutes before closing time, came to the tasting bar about 10 minutes before closing, and -- you guessed -- were promptly ignored until 5:01 when the bitter older man behind the bar said "We're closed. Bye."

Okay. I get it. You don't want my business. And you don't want me to bring any of my guests or company VPs and business associates here when they visit and want me to take them out tasting. In other words, you're just so wealthy and wonderful that you must not need any extra business. Good! I won't provide you any. I have better things to do with my time and money.

Heck, going to the dentist is a more pleasant experience. This place has been the WORST experience I've ever had at any winery or tasting room in the world. And I've been to hundreds.

In-N-Out Burger

If you've never been to In-N-Out, then one of these must be true:

1. You don't live in California or Nevada.
2. You are a vegetarian.
3. You hate life.

And if you've never even heard of In-N-Out burgers, then... well, then I don't know how you get internet inside your cave.

In-N-Out Burger is an iconic establishment of West Coast fast food. Now, there has started to be some (slightly raging) debate over the best burgers in America. Fuddruckers caused a stir with its larger, more homestyle burgers, but some would argue that ventures away from the realm of fast food because they are more expensive and take longer to cook and to sit down and eat. On the other hand, many people are claiming the newer Five Guys burger chain (currently sweeping the nation; full disclosure: my uncle owns several of them) boasts the best burgers.

Right now, the biggest battle is between the In-N-Out diehards and the Five Guys fanatics. Both have achieved cult-like followings and loyalty, and both have fantastically fresh and sloppy burgers. It's almost like a West Coast versus East Coast rap rivalry here, folks.

Don't get me wrong, Five Guys burgers are pretty good, but the problem I have with them personally is the pricetag: they weigh in at close to $6 per cheeseburger. For about half that (a little over $3), I can get an Animal Style Double Double* at In-N-Out. To me, that says it all: bang for the buck. And in this department, you can't beat In-N-Out. Also, I don't know how they do it, but the workers at In-N-Out always seem a lot more wholesome and professional than you would normally expect from your typical teens working at a fast food joint. I sometimes wonder if they're back there singing Kumbaya while they mustard-grill my patties*

Now, let's be clear: In-N-Out is not a "strictly Napa" thing, unique to this area. No, they are everywhere, scattered throughout California and some parts of Nevada. But they are a California thing, and there is one right off of Soscol/Imola in Napa, so if you're craving a fast but fresh-made sloppy cheeseburger after a day of wine, this isn't a bad option.

Except their fries suck.

[We also don't have a Five Guys here, but you can find a great local burger at "Gott's Roadside" -- used to be known as Taylor's refresher -- with original location in St. Helena but also one at Oxbow Market in Napa]



* Yes, there is a special lingo at In-N-Out for their "secret menu"... some might find it annoying, some think it's fun, but it's all just part of the tradition and culture. You don't need to know the terms if you want a standard burger with normal toppings, but if you want some different toppings -- admittedly not as many offered as Five Guys -- you need to know the codenames. For me, Animal Style is the way to go: a mustard-grilled patty with sauce and sauteed onions. You can also get Animal Style fries, which is definitely an improvement.

Cole's Chop House

Sarah's boss was in town for a business trip, and he's a big fan of steak (Ruth's Chris being a regular weekly meal for him -- guess that's easy to do when you are a VP), so I had suggested we book a reservation at Cole's Chop House, but it was too last minute so we gave Rotisserie & Wine a try instead. Fortunately, their business day went late and he was too jet-lagged for that dinner. (I say "fortunately" because I think he would have found both the hipster-casual environment and the meat at Rotisserie and Wine to be subpar -- especially considering they were out of the only beef item they had on the menu.)

However, when that occurred I figured we should book the next night's dinner at Cole's Chop House in downtown Napa. I had never been to this restaurant, but you can't go wrong with a good chop house, and I'd heard this one was decent -- I figured, looking at the menu on the website, that with prices like that, it'd better be good! I had also seen the interior when dining at Ubuntu next door for my birthday a couple of years ago, and we have also tried Celadon, Cole's sister restaurant down the street, which is also decent and with a menu that's a little more varied and intriguing.

Cole's bills itself as a "Classic American Steakhouse" and it definitely has the standard old-school chop house vibe -- not unlike Ruth's Chris, but it's nice that Cole's is a unique location, not a chain. The atmosphere works well for this "gentlemanly" type approach: it's a lofty old brick building, which is in fact the 1886 Williams-Kyser building. Rather than describe the history of it, I will let their own website do the talking:

Named after its original owners, the Williams building was the first commercial block constructed north of the Napa creek. The hand-hewn native stone structure cost $26,000 to build and its designers were San Francisco architects Wright and Saunders.

While owned by the Williams family, the Main Street structure was used as an exhibition hall during the 1890 Napa and Solano counties fair. Three years later, the building was outfitted to be the temporary home of the local armory. At about the same time, D.S. Kyser became a tenant when he relocated his furniture and undertaking business to the Main Street block.

In 1897, the Williams Building became the site of both civic pride and notoriety. Shortly after the arrival of that year, January 15, 1897, the Napa County Courthouse was the scene of the last public execution held in California. That day, Billy Roe was hanged for murdering Lucina Greenwood of Napa in 1891. Kyser attended the execution in an official capacity as the Napa County Coroner. Eventually, Roe’s remains were delivered to Kyser’s Main Street undertaking business.

So, there you have it. Now on to the service and food. The waiter, like the atmosphere, fit a "classic American steakhouse" well. He was professional and well-mannered, serious but not aloof or unfriendly. He had the sort of "old world" service demeanor that I know some people are very fond of.

The menu is a little overwhelming at first, especially for someone like me who (I'll admit) is not exactly a beef connoisseur or meat expert. I have enough trouble distinguishing different cuts, let alone special features like Wagyu, Dry-Aged, or Certified Angus. The prices for any of the steaks are not cheap, most of them being close to $40 (some as high as $60 or $70!), and this is without any sides, which are served family-style separately. I opted for a special they had for the evening, mostly because it did come with sides and they sounded pretty great: a marinated New York strip with mushrooms sauteed in fois gras, served with truffled mashed potatoes.

However, the sides were a little unnecessary, considering we also ordered asparagus (cooked just right -- tender but bright green and a little crisp. I never know how they manage to do that at restaurants), creamed spinach, and mushrooms -- not just any mushrooms, but a seasonal special of sauteed wild mushrooms with garlic, shallots, red wine sauce, and truffle oil. This was fantastic and I'd say well worth the $15 (for a large portion that could easily be enough for 4 people).

After seeing the petite filet and filet mignon ordered by Sarah and her boss, I was a little disappointed in my selection. The sides were, in fact, pretty good, but the steak was not so tender (despite being ordered medium -- and served actually medium rare); the filets were clearly much more juicy and tender (to be expected, but my New York strip was pretty sub-par even when compared to ones I've ordered at places like Outback steakhouse, to give you some comparison). I tried Sarah's Double G Brand (Red Lodge Montanta) 7 oz. petite filet and it was, in fact, excellent -- very fresh, flavorful, juicy, tender.

We also ordered wine, for a few reasons: (1) what is filet mignon without a good red? Blasphemy, that's what. (2) Cole's has a very decent and pretty extensive wine list -- to give you some idea, it includes a table of contents, with local Napa wines being divided up by AVA -- how cool is that?? On top of that, although the markup is still pretty high, it still seems to be more reasonable here than at some other restaurants (such as Rotisserie & Wine). The corkage here is $25/bottle, which is absurd, but might still be the best route if you have one you know you like. We went with a Chimney Rock 2006 cabernet sauvignon, since that is one we know and like, but it was $105 (retails for $65). I'm going to stand by my belief that: (a) corkage should be reasonable, and (b) wine markups should be on par with corkage fees. One would think a markup of 40% would still net them some profit, instead of the 60% markup they charged for this bottle.

Rotisserie & Wine

During my little exploratory excursion to downtown Napa last month, I noticed a new restaurant at the Napa Riverfront complex (which is designed to be a live/shop environment, with condos over restaurants and shops. The shops are slowly appearing, and the restaurants are really starting to take root, as well); actually, I noticed a few new restaurants, but the one I had not heard of was "Rotisserie & Wine"

This is a restaurant by celebrity chef Tyler Florence partnered with Jeremy Fox (of Ubuntu fame -- not sure what happened there, but he up and split and became Florence's creative director). The general premise is very "Napa Valley" -- take down-home country cooking and give it an upscale twist (like practically everything else here). As the name suggests, there is a focus on rotisserie meats and a fairly large wine list. Essentially, the aim is "country comfort fusion" -- decor includes moonshine-jug shaped glowing-coil hanging lights. Servers wear plaid flannel shirts and speakers play classics from Guns n' Roses and Michael Jackson, though you can't really hear it from inside due to the general noisiness and proximity of everybody and everything. Considering the reasonable the size of the restaurant, the tables are oddly packed like sardines in one corner of the room (while the other half is devoted to a sort of "lunch counter" style eating and the namesake rotisserie ovens). This lends a feel of casual coziness, but detracts from any sensation of privacy or personal space.
I can only describe this genre as part of the new, hip "so casual it's not casual anymore" trend going around -- you know, the type of hipster thing where you pay a premium to go to an exclusive place where you can partake of blue-collar entertainment and drink Pabst Blue Ribbon.

Rotisserie & Wine isn't really that, per se, but in the same trendy vein. The beers and wines, however, are a notch above PBR -- with pricetags to match. I didn't recognize many of the wines on the list, but they sounded intriguing, with about half hailing from local regions and half international (mostly France). If someone else were footing the bill, I'd be tempted to try some. For example, I have been really enjoying all of the Santa Lucia Highlands pinots I've had recently, but I'll be damned if I'm going to spend $105 for a bottle like the one they sell here.

I came because the food sounded interesting, although it was a bit dismaying that the one meat entree I wanted -- prime rib -- they were all out of (at 7 pm?). They were also out of my second-choice charcuterie plate, as well as the olive assortment. Since I'm actually not really a fan of rotisserie chicken (and certainly not for $22), we opted for one entree of curry BBQ lamb ribs, and two smaller dishes of duck confit waffles (the Napatastic equivalent of "chicken and waffles") and farro verde, a buckwheat or spelt-like grain served up risotto style with foraged mushrooms and bits of fried sweetbreads. This started out with two delicious (but small) ladyfinger-like cornbread sticks served with sweet and delicious honey butter. This was more like cookies than like a bread serving.

The lamb ribs were a bit lackluster -- a decadent amount of fat with very little meat (seemed even more than usual for lamb) and the lamb flavor overwhelmed the curry BBQ flavor, which smelled enticing but really got lost in the flavor of lamb grease. The side dishes were more interesting; the foraged mushrooms were delicious and the sweetbreads were cooked perfectly, battered crisp and light and salty on the outside with that sweet, succulent creaminess within. The duck confit went well with the waffles and bourbon maple syrup, though the portion went down mighty quick and easy for a $14 dish. Still, when all was said and done, these three dishes together packed Sarah and I to the gills and we couldn't squeeze in dessert.

I might possibly come back and try this place again, if I had guests who were interested and somebody was willing to pay for the wine, but the overall lack of menu variety, the cramped quarters (I was basically a participant of the date happening at an adjacent table), and the expensive wines are deterrents.

Oxbow Market, Part 1: C Casa

Oxbow Market is... well, how can I make a long story short?

Oxbow Market is basically a collective of gourmet restaurants and shops; a sort of a Napa, upscale, niche-target food court /market. It is located near downtown Napa, but just east of Soscol Ave. and the Wine Train tracks, in the area of the COPIA building. (COPIA was a similar experiment, which attempted to merge high-end food alongside wine tastings and education, but the experiment had far too much money pumped into it to recoup its losses, and failed to the tune of bankruptcy and closure... alas, I never even got to give it a try)

I've been to Oxbow Market once or twice before, but really just to look around... the one restaurant here that kept being recommended (through local wine tasting rooms) was C Casa, an upscale taqueria. I guess I had never been tempted, due to the high prices -- $8+ for a taco is a bit prohibitive considering you can get them for $2 each (sometimes less) at local taco trucks and taquerias.

Still, I figured it's one of those things I should at least give a shot, and we happened to be in the area today so... why not?

I'll tell you why not: this place was a madhouse! Here I was, thinking that being the middle of the winter offseason might deter tourists a little bit. Word to the wise: tourists are never deterred from visiting Napa. So here I was, weaving my way between the privileged and the wanna-be-privileged, waiting in line for an expensive taco ("Gluten free!" the sign reads. Umm... I may be confused, but aren't tacos -- normally served on corn tortillas -- always gluten free??) and looking around to see no open tables available.

Still, within twenty minutes, Sarah and I had our gourmet tacos and found a small nook to sit at outside of the bar area in the middle of the cattle call. To be fair, they were well-presented and delicious: mine was a lamb taco with juicy meat and some mint and cilantro; Sarah's was a blackened prawn taco with some fresh-tasting and heavy-duty shrimp in there. The servings were not filling -- after all, they are pretty much normal-sized tacos, meaning you would need at least 2 for a full meal, but I don't think that warrants spending nearly $20 per person.

Verdict: Tasty gourmet tacos -- perhaps overhyped and overpriced, a yummy snack but doesn't fill you up for the price.

The crowds were a bit much and I actually was feeling pretty claustrophobic, so we didn't stay long -- on a warmer day, we might have headed to C Casa's outdoor eating section, but it was not one of those nice, warm days (and if it were, that area would probably be teeming with people, too!)

Butter Cream Bakery and Diner

Today was, of course, Valentine's Day. Normally, I find the notion of Valentine's Day to be pretty cheesy and uninspiring -- the one day of the year people are rushing around looking to buy a quick, cheap, trite way to express affection for somebody. If you ask me, "romance" means spontaneity and unexpectedness, it means doing things from the heart -- which means it can happen at any time, not on one set day of the year. And it should happen far more often than on a "once annually" basis.

Mostly, I just resent the unoriginality of it all, and the mad dash and crowds that happen to make many experiences (like trying to go out to dinner) decidedly unromantic. Today was no exception -- I decided, unoriginally, that it might be nice to do a "typical" V-Day gesture: a box of chocolates for Sarah. I swung by See's Candies, the local storefront for See's, a California brand of candies and chocolates (Overall I do not find them to be amazing, but they have the hands-down best dark chocolate bars I have ever had.)

Unsurprisingly, the place was a mad house, a sardine can of unimaginative sheeple herding into the chocolate corral to very unromantically fulfill a tacit obligation. To top it off, the one type of assortment I would actually be interested in buying -- the truffle centers -- were completely sold out (and it wasn't even 5 pm yet.) What a horrible, unpleasant experience.

Sarah was not expecting any gifts from me, aside from the dinner I had planned to cook, but I wanted to get a little surprise anyway... and I didn't have a dessert planned, so something sweet would be good. What to do?

I remembered that just around the corner is a bakery/diner I had heard of (and passed on numerous occasions -- it is candy-striped bright pastel pink and white. Kind of hard to miss.) called ButterCream Bakery, near the intersection of Jefferson and Lincoln. So I headed there.

To my pleasant surprise on this gray and misty day, they were open and practically empty, to boot. I had never been here before, and this was a perfect excuse to visit. The server girls were polite and unpushy, letting me take my time and look around and take photos. I didn't realize that this is not only a bakery (specializing in the sweet stuff -- mostly cakes and donuts) but also a diner, a typical old-fashioned place I would imagine seeing plenty of blue-hairs eating eggs and sipping coffee on Saturday mornings. That portion was closed (only open for breakfast/brunch/lunch), but I am almost 100% certain my imagination pegged the scene spot-on, but the only way I'll find out is to return at some point.

Being Valentine's Day, I just had to go for the enticing little spongy, confectioner's sugar-coated cakes with red jelly hearts on them. I wasn't quite sure what they were, but they looked like wonderfully fluffy and unhealthy sugar bombs, so I pointed and said "I'll take two of those, whatever they are" and also requested two red velvet cupcakes*.

They made for a very eye-widening and lip-salivating surprise for Sarah, and the two little confections for each of us were just the right dessert for the meal I whipped up of crab-stuffed flounder, broiled asparagus with meyer lemon confit, and whole wheat couscous.


* Ever since I attended college in North Carolina, I've been a big fan of red velvet cake. However, I'm not a big fan of how trendy it has become -- it is such a fad for the past couple of years it is ridiculous. And a lot of people do it just plain wrong, not realizing that genuine cream cheese frosting is half of what makes it so good. But at least on a positive note this trendiness means that I can still find it and eat it without having to live in the South.

Thai Kitchen - Napa

Thai Kitchen is a little restaurant off of Trancas, just around the corner from where I live. There is nothing fancy or super unique about this place... except for, you know, the fact that I don't actually know of any other Thai restaurants in Napa Valley!

Unfortunately, restaurants that might be a dime a dozen in cities like San Francisco are actually pretty scarce here -- namely, I am thinking of Thai, Indian, Korean, German (heck, German food seems pretty hard to find practically anywhere), and others. There is plenty of Mexican, some French and Italian, California Cuisine and steakhouses, a few Chinese places, and an up-and-coming scene of sushi and seafood. However, this is the only Thai restaurant that I know of around here, and for some reason it's always very enticing whenever the weather is gray or raining.

The interior is typical but cozy, a little one-room/small-kitchen affair. The place seems to be family-run and they are always friendly and accommodating (today was actually my third time visiting). Although it's not fancy or unique, the place is never empty so that should say something. When I visited today, I overheard a conversation saying "This is surprisingly good... certainly way better than Sushi Mambo" (Sushi Mambo is a Japanese place in downtown Napa which I have never tried).

We ordered crab fried rice (very tasty, lots of crab meat, large portion to share for 2 people), duck pineapple red curry, and a vegetable/tofu noodle dish (Sarah's go-to dish, pretty good). All of the food I've tried there is pretty decent -- nothing I'd write home about, but satisfying in the same way that soul food is: fills you up and warms you to the core, so no wonder I'm always craving it on a rainy day. Or when we have a hankering for the orange, caffeine-boosted Thai iced tea... although we tend to save some money by making that ourselves at home now, using Pantai Norasingh mix ($5 per 1 lb. bag) which tastes just like what you get in the restaurants!

Verdict: Being one of very few (if not the only one) Thai restaurants around, this place is not bad for comfortable, casual food with a little kick.

Discovering What to Do in Napa

I'm exhausted and this is another one of those all-work, no-play days. Left for work at 6:10 am, got home at 6:10 pm. Needless to say, there won't be anything too exciting for me to talk about today.

However, I have been pondering about how hard it is for me to actually figure out what is going on in the valley at any given point in time. How do people do it? For example, in the recent Calistoga wine tastings I have done, the tasting rooms were far busier than I would have expected. It turns out that there was a Winter Wine Passport promotion going on for the first time this year, in which $50 would get you a "passport" you could use for free tasting at several local tasting rooms: W.H. Smith, Ochoa/Rios, Lava Vine, Twomey, and Castello di Amarosa... amongst some others. This had been going in since the beginning of December, and this was the first I'd heard of it! (It just ended yesterday)

I do see signs for the local events in Calistoga, as they are advertised on banners strung across Lincoln Ave. For example, right now they are hyping the Mustard, Mud and Music weekend featuring jazz events in Calistoga on March 5 and 6. Nearby I often notice banners outside Calistoga Inn and Brewery advertising special events there (the one for a "Brewer's Dinner" of various beers paired with multiple courses in a prix-fixe meal caught my eye, and I've made a reservation to be attending that on Wednesday at 6:30 pm, $50/person for a six course meal and lots of different beers... should be good!)

Anyway, I really am clueless, so I decided to start going online and finding various tourism websites and listings of activities and events. It's actually not so easy to find out what is going on around here! How do people do it?? I imagine a lot of tourists might get info from hotels when they are calling and making reservations, or from the concierge once they arrive (ie. stumbling upon them by accident), but it would be nice if there were some sort of mailing list(s) or RSS feeds or something that would send auto-updates of special events. Unfortunately, the web designs of a lot of the local websites in the Valley are pretty rinky-dink. I mean, the wineries sure shell out money to get top-notch web design (because, let's face it, the Napa "brand" is 50% glitz and hype and marketing), so why can't the B&B's and city chambers of commerce and tourist bureaus do the same?

Anyway, I've started searching around for websites I can frequent in order to see the 411 for the Valley, so I'll share the ones I know about right here... if anybody knows other good sources or feeds for information, please share!

• Legendary Napa Valley - www.legendarynapavalley.com
  
• Yountville Chamber of Commerce - www.yountville.com
  
• St. Helena Chamber of Commerce - www.sthelena.com
• Calistoga Chamber of Commerce - www.calistogachamber.com
• Napa Valley Register - napavalleyregister.com
  

Ceja Vineyards

After trying the Vino de Casa red blend wine at Bistro Sabor last night -- and thoroughly enjoying it more than I expected -- I wanted to hit up the Ceja Vineyards tasting room as soon as possible and see what their other offerings are like.

I called Sarah from the VINE bus and asked if she'd want to join me at the downtown tasting room -- also on First St, not far from Bistro Sabor -- which I could make it into just before they close (open until 6 pm most days, but open until 8 pm Thurs - Sat... this is the benefit of being a tasting room within city limits, the restrictions on hours isn't as stringent)

She was under the weather, but I was on a mission. So I ended up at the tasting room, but I really felt she should be there with me in case I found some I liked and wanted to know if they would be worth purchasing. The tasting fee is $10 (refundable with pruchase of $100 or more) and no Napa Neighbors discount*, so we would probably just share a tasting like we usually do.

The tasting room is nicely decorated and lit -- as most of them are. People here know marketing and aesthetics are a huge factor. In addition to tastings, they also run as a lounge/wine bar where you can order wines by the glass. Surprisingly, they are even more expensive per glass here than they are at Bistro Sabor! (the Vino de Casa red is $9/glass and the pinot is $12) However, they might pour bigger servings... the Bistro Sabor pour seemed pretty skimpy (maybe 4 ounces?) You can also buy wine by the bottle and drink it there (same prices as Bistro Sabor in this case), but it's a much better deal to simply buy the wine at retail (which they also offer) and take it somewhere else to drink.

This is exactly what I decided to do, getting a bottle of the Vino de Casa Red ($20. they also have a white blend which I have not yet tried) and bringing it home to have with dinner. The pourer also gave me a two-for-one tasting card for when we decide to visit and taste.

Our fridge was empty and we've been sort of shelling out the cash lately, so not to break the bank I picked up some good old-fashioned American unhealthy fast food.

Vino de Casa red -- which is 40% pinot noir, 40% syrah, and 20% cabernet sauvignon -- pairs surprisingly well with Wendy's** double-stacks and junior bacon cheeseburgers!

* Actually, come to think of it, they were listed on the Napa Neighbors website as having 10% off wine purchases for locals... but I didn't get my 10% off and didn't think about it at the time.

** There are better burgers in the area, notably the classic California chain "In-N-Out" and the iconic Napa Valley establishment "Gott's Roadside", located in the Oxbow Market and originally known as "Taylor's Refresher" with its flagship location being in St. Helena. But these are both more expensive and a little more time-consuming, so Wendy's did the trick just fine for this time.

Downtown Joe's (the sequel) and Bistro Sabor

I had planned to take advantage of a local happy hour today -- specifically, happy hour at Bounty Hunter wines and BBQ in downtown Napa. The cool, rainy weekend really weather for some reason really put me in the mood for some barbecue, so we were thinking of Bounty Hunter but when we looked up their website, we saw that they have some happy hour specials during the week, so we decided to postpone it and give the Red Rock Cafe / Back Door BBQ a try instead.

Well, for some reason that mood has passed and I wasn't really in the mood for BBQ, or even wine for that matter. But Sarah and I were still home from work and available for a happy hour (a rare feat that we can both be home before 6 pm), so I hopped off the VINE route 10 bus at the Pearl St. transit center downtown anyway. On the way, I called Sarah and told her maybe we should give Downtown Joe's brewery/restaurant another try -- after all, I had been gypped out of their happy hour last time, so I wanted to give it a try and was also suddenly craving fried calamari (plus, I can't get their Old Magnolia stout out of my mind -- it is ridiculously smooth and well-balanced. I think it may be my new favorite stout.)

We showed up at 5:30, plenty of time to spare before happy hour ended (at 6:00). I had planned to take a seat at the bar like last time, but unlike last time (in which the bar was practically empty), today was crazy! Every seat at the bar was taken... on a Tuesday? What is up with this? I thought. We sat ourselves at one of the small tables, and were promptly ignored for 10 minutes. Eventually we talked to a hostess girl (who had not been there when we arrived) and she brought us some menus -- hmmm... no happy hour menus or mention of happy hour anywhere. I was pretty confused. Last time the happy hour menus were just sitting out. So we went and specifically asked her if there were happy hour specials; at that point, she said there were and gave us the menus. Wow, these folks will do anything to make you pay more money, huh? If you really don't want to give people a deal, why even bother having a happy hour? There's no law that says you have to.

After about 10 minutes, she came back and asked if we had been served; when we said no, she said she'd look into it. Nobody ever showed up, but we saw 2 people leave the bar and we decided to shift our location to where we might actually get service, at the bar. We sat down and were promptly ignored for another 10 minutes. Sarah said "This is ridiculous, I'm really about ready to leave", which we were about to do when finally the bartender (an unpolished woman by the name of "Patty") asked what she could get for us. We ordered a Tail Waggin' Amber, Old Magnolia Stout, and an order of calamari -- we had already talked it over and decided we wanted our main meal to be at the new downtown Latin/fusion taqueria called Bistro Sabor.

She quickly poured our beers for us and sloppily set them in front of us (to the point mine was a wet, sticky mess -- and with no napkins provided or in sight. I found one at one of the tables and used it to mop up my beer.) Eventually the calamari arrived and was actually pretty good -- nicely battered and tender and juicy -- but still no napkins or silverware. Meanwhile, Patty was pouring drinks left and right; it turns out, the reason they were being run ragged is because today happened to be the day they were holding a "BBQ Rib Cookoff" in their outdoor seating area, and already there were tons of people who are just the type for Downtown Joe's. If you are an Ed Hardy-wearing West Coast Choppers fan, this might be the place for you. I wouldn't be surprised to see Jesse James and one of his mistresses here. Then again, you won't get service unless you are one of the "regulars", with a name or nickname like Dusty or Smoky or Slim. Although this is not my type of people, I don't have anything against this particular subculture -- until they pull an exclusivist attitude like this and frown upon people who actually have class.

After our beers and snack, we headed west on First St. to Bistro Sabor, a corner taqueria with a twist. This is a newish establishment opened by Ariel Ceja, son of Amelia Ceja who is the owner of Ceja Vineyards winery. I had never tried Ceja's wines, but had heard of them, and had heard that the food at Bistro Sabor was pretty good.

We walked inside and looked around, trying to figure out how it worked -- looked like a typical order-at-the-counter-then-wait-at-a-table setup (with numbers marking where the order should be delivered), which has always made a lot of sense if you ask me. We perused the white board menu and a slender, hiply-dressed young Hispanic man came over and started talking to us, explaining the menu and how things worked. He was very friendly, eager and energetic, so I could only presume this was the owner (Ariel)... and I was right.

We ordered a chile relleno ($9) and an order of braised short-rib tacos ($10) -- actually sort of an Asian/Mexican fusion, as the ribs have sesame seeds and a sort of teriyaki flavor, served with Napa cabbage. In fact, the goal and vibe of this place is a sort of hip, urban mashup of popular "young people" foods -- Mexican, Asian, and Cuban influences. There is colorful graffiti mural art on one wall, and they serve 20 different beers as well as several types of sake... and, of course, Ceja wines. We decided to try a glass of wine as well, but the prices were a little prohibitive -- normally we would have tried a glass of the pinot noir, but at $11/glass (for your own house wine?) that was too steep. We decided to try the "Vino de Casa Red" blend (also seemed a bit pricey at $8/glass)

The wine was actually quite good -- very smooth and balanced, not sure what was in it but I definitely picked up on a pinot noir flavor which seems rare for red table wine blends, but it definitely had some richer grapes in there as well... seemed like syrah, but maybe merlot? cabernet? This is a very quaffable wine, though, and we polished it off quickly. The food was good, nothing to complain about -- the prices are a little higher than average; you can get similarly-good food at local taco trucks and taquerias for a little bit lower price... but not a whole lot less, and you can't get interesting fusions of flavors like the Asian-braised short ribs. Ariel was very attentive, checking to see how we liked the food and wine and also offering to bring us an extra glass of water when we needed it (even though the setup is self-serve). I found it refreshing to see a business owner recognize the value of being present and being hands-on, actually putting plenty of his own energy and labor and pride into his restaurant. You don't always find that everywhere.

Possibly the main selling point -- and the main reason I would return to Bistro Sabor -- is the fact that Ariel has recognized the need for a legitimate "night spot" in Napa; Bistro Sabor is open until midnight on weekdays and until 2 am on weekends, and they even move the tables and chairs aside to turn it into a little salsa-dancing club on Saturdays.

The Riverfront in Carneros

I decided to take a little drive today, a scenic detour to a part of Napa I didn't even know existed: a peninsula of wetlands, vineyards, and riverfront homes nestled right where the Napa River widens and deepens.

I found out about this area -- located south of Hwy 121 (which runs between Napa and Sonoma) by taking Cutting's Wharf Rd -- through my current house hunt in Napa County. There are several homes for sale on Milton Rd. right on the riverfront at the southern end of the peninsula.

I grew up near water (in Maryland, near the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay) and I love it. I love boats and would absolutely love to own a home on the Napa River, but particularly where the river is a little more secluded and is boat-accessible. This is that area.

The drive south is like another world -- flat, marshy fields with flocks of waterfowl silhouetted against the sunlight glinting from shallow pools of water and mud. There is an occasional cow pasture, and still plenty of vineyards, such as Etude (this is, after all, Carneros -- an AVA prized for the temperate cooling breezes and fogs that waft up from the Bay and the river, a territory loved by pinot noir and chardonnay) -- but now there are also boat launches and small harbors.

The strip of houses is different -- gone are the Victorians and craftsman homes so prominent (and beautiful) in most of Napa Valley. In their place are a motley hodgepodge of what can only be described as "beachfront" homes, vintage 50's-70's. It is not a place of staggering wealth, but seems to be a neighborhood of down-to-earth folk who just happen to love the seclusion (and plenty who want the water, replete with boats "out back" on the river)

To me, it's paradise. (Unfortunately, the homes are still too high out of my price range -- apparently nobody's told these folks that the real estate party is over and it's time to come back to reality. They are trying to sell homes for $500-$700k, when they are valued at $300-$500k on Zillow and Eppraisal)

Red Rock Cafe Back Door Barbecue

Rainstorms set in today, putting me in the mood for a casual, low-key comfort food sort of meal.

I've often seen a little cafe sitting along Lincoln Ave at the intersection of Main (between Jefferson and Soscol). Driving home, I pass by it frequently, and my eye is often drawn to it due to the preponderance of neon lights adorning the windows. More intriguing, however, is the fact that it always seems packed in the evenings, every day of the week. Being situated across from a 7-Eleven, "Lolita's Nail Salon", a billiards bar and a coin-op laundromat, this wouldn't normally be my first pick of establishment to randomly venture into. However, looking through the windows always revealed a pretty interesting assortment of people... elderly folks, yuppie-ish families, Harley and Ed Hardy types. But one thing is for certain: it is definitely popular.

So Sarah and I headed there tonight, out of curiosity but with no expectations. It's a tiny little place called "Red Rock Cafe Back Door Barbecue" -- I guess we arrived just early enough (around 6:00), although the place was already half full. Inside is somewhat kitschy, with weird little tchochkes adorning the walls and ceilings. We chose the smallest table, by the front window under a hanging lamp adorned with dangling plastic hot dogs and hamburgers.

The menu looks like it was printed on a computer circa 1990, but boasts a good list of American-style food, mostly centered around barbecue: tri-tip, brisket, chicken, ribs, sandwiches, potato salad, fries, cole slaw, etc. Normally I'd go straight for that, but I was drawn toward their salad offering -- it was a bit more affordable than their BBQ meals, which range from $12 for sandwich to $18 for dinner plate. The salads are $7.95 for a large one, plus $3 if you want it covered with meat. What I really liked was the way you could basically custom-design your salad, with a choice of iceberg or romaine lettuce or spinach (or a combination) plus you choose 7 toppings from a list of pretty much anything you would imagine putting on a salad: veggies, beans, various cheeses, egg, bacon, avocado, walnuts, pecans, sunflower seeds, raisins, all sorts of stuff. I ended up getting avocado, broccoli, hardboiled egg, bacon, pecan pieces, tomatoes, and jack cheese, covered with tri-tip (and plenty of it) and tortilla strips.

At first glance you would think the prices would be cheaper here than they actually are. They are not expensive, but not cheap, either. But then the food is delivered and you understand; the portions are HUGE. The "kids platters" I saw come out had more food on them than most standard-sized plates at other barbecue places like Bounty Hunter nearby in downtown Napa.

Oh yeah, and the meat is definitely good. I can only speak to the tri-tip, but it was cooked perfectly and was very tender and juicy. We also ordered some beer, of which they have about a half dozen varieties on tap -- nothing too fancy, but some nicer varieties than your standard American Budweiser/Coors garbage (I got a Red Tail while she had Alaskan Amber).

All in all, not a bad little place -- especially if you are hungry and want plenty of barbecued meat, and don't mind the fact that it is small/cozy and sometimes packed. One word of advice, though: if you don't want to be around a bunch of kids, I'd avoid going on a Saturday. About half of the people in there tonight were boys under the age of 10, and while this place clearly caters to families (they have some toys and games to be borrowed by the kids while they wait), I never see kids eating there when I drive by on the weekdays.

Two Tastings on Two Sides of the Valley: Darioush and Silenus Vintners

The weather has really cleared up here and it has been going to sunny and about 70 degrees here for the past several days (and yet has been dropping down below freezing at night! Makes it pretty difficult to know what to wear when it is 29 degrees when I head off to work and 70 degrees by the time I come home)

This, combined with the fact that it is still "off-season" as far as tourism goes, makes it a perfect time to enjoy the vineyards and wineries without the crowds (or the occasionally stifling heat of summer.)

As I've already said, I'm going to make it a mission to hit up wineries offering free tasting to Napa Neighbors first. We already know of one of these wineries which is not too far away up the Silverado Trail: Darioush. I've been to Darioush about 3 times... why? Because they clearly put a lot of attention into the atmosphere and the whole wine-tasting experience. But they also put a lot of attention into their wines, which are much better than I had expected. So these two reasons, along with its proximity, make it one of the destinations for visiting when I have guests. Today we don't have guests, but I recently received an email that they had released their limited production Shiraz, which I was curious about and was supposed to be pretty good.

We also wanted to try a new place, however. We've tried most of the wineries along Silverado Trail, but I noticed a smaller winery in the Napa Neighbors list which sounded intriguing: Ideology Cellars. They are a small, custom-crush operation and therefore do not have the real estate (or any good reason) to have their own winery site or tasting room. So what they do is share a co-op tasting room called Silenus Vintners. This is on the opposite side of the valley from Darioush, located off of St. Helena Highway (Hwy 29). However, it is about the same distance up the valley, which means there is a shortcut called Oak Knoll Avenue which cuts straight across the valley floor from Darioush to Silenus.

Darioush has a dominating and unmistakeable presence on the Silverado Trail: it looks like a large sandstone Persian temple, with a series of columns leading up to the front door. Indeed, the Persian influence is there because the winery was founded by Darioush Khaledi, an Iranian who found wealth by creating a successful chain of small grocery/corner stores in the Los Angeles area. The Persian theme continues with the prominence of Shiraz on their tasting menu; Shiraz is another name for Syrah, which was found through DNA testing to be a hybrid of two grape varietals from Rhône (France). However, Shiraz is also the name of the 6th-largest city in Iran, and shows that this grape probably found prominence and fame in that region.

The Shiraz made by Darioush was good -- rich and full-bodied without being overbearing -- and is a pretty limited production. So it's not always available for tasting. However, their "signature" wine is called "Duel", and is a blend of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon... also quite good. In fact, we really can't find anything wrong with any of the wines at Darioush, which is why we keep going back. Their whites are delicate but have a range from crisp pit-fruit to mellow and musky. Their reds are on the richer side, but medium-bodied and without harsh tannins. I know in the past we have purchased both a Chardonnay and a Cabernet Franc.

We decided not to buy anything this time, even after managing to get our pourer to give us a taste of the Shiraz (he informed us it has only been released to club members so far; it's not on the tasting menu), which was good but I felt it was no better than the Duel. The fact of the matter is that I feel it is decent but overpriced, considering I have had some wonderful Syrahs from Paso Robles in the range of $16-$24, and the Darioush Shiraz is $68.

However, the tasting itself (normally $20; free for Napa Neighbors) was enjoyable, as usual -- enhanced by their attention to aesthetics as well as a small bowl of delicious salted pistachios (nice and neutral on the palate) they serve with the tasting. I noticed it seemed to be far less busy than usual, with only 4 or 5 pairs of people tasting (at peak times, this place is packed)... maybe it's because of the time of year, or is it because of the NFL playoff games? [PS. If you go, try to get Ish as your server! He's the best! Very attentive and helpful, plus a good sense of humor!]

We drove across Oak Knoll Avenue -- which passes a few wineries but mostly just cruises through all the vineyards on the valley floor -- and made it to Silenus in just a few minutes. Silenus was even deader than Darioush -- in fact, we were the ONLY people there!

The pourer seemed excited for the change of pace and for having some customers to talk to, and he informed us that Silenus is a shared tasting room for multiple smaller custom-crush productions. They offer two tastings -- a tasting of whites ($15) and a tasting of reds ($25). He said one thing that is interesting (and perhaps unfortunate) is that the tasting menus change every week, so you don't ever actually have a chance to try all of the wines you might be curious about. (In addition, I think $25 is a pretty prohibitive tasting fee, if you ask me.)

Being Napa Neighbors, we decided to try everything on the menu (both whites and reds -- we're not picky, we like "whatever is good"), but we did decide to share a tasting. This is something we often do, both to save money but also to be sure we can taste a wide variety on wines without actually drinking too much (especially when we are driving).

The great thing I love about co-op tasting rooms like this -- and there are a handful in Napa, but seem to be more common in Sonoma -- is that you get a lot of variety all in one place. I've noticed in the bigger tasting rooms, there tends to be not as much variety. Even if they use several varietals (which most do), the personal tastes and style of the winemaker tends to shine through and so you might notice a common thread throughout multiple wines, like a leaning towards more acidity, or more tannins, etc.

Here at Silenus, we tried three cabernets from three different vineyards and three different winemakers and, lo and behold, the cabs were all vastly different.

Downtown Joe's Brewpub

Visited Downtown Joe's today, a brewery, restaurant, and bar in downtown Napa. Maybe this place should be called "Downtown Dicks" because they certainly weren't very welcoming in my first ever visit to this establishment. I showed up at about 5:55, paused to take a photo outside, then walked in the door and up to the counter -- wasn't exactly a rocking place, but it was also around 6 pm on a weeknight, so I don't know if it gets more exciting or not. The crowd was mixed, but definitely in favor of the gray-haired gentlemen camp.

I walked up to the bar, where I saw a late-night menu and happy hour menu specials menu (good until 6 pm) which I started perusing. The bartender said nothing to me, did not even acknowledge me. An older guy walks in, sits down next to me, and is immediately chatted up and served by the bartender, who then finally asks what I want to get (after checking my ID -- I guess my 20 or 30 gray hairs just didn't hold a candle to the sea of them around me.) He says "What can I get for ya? And do you want something to eat? Happy hour just ended." and with that he removes the happy hour menu that I was looking at. I mean, was that the tactic all along... ignore me until the clock strikes 6:00 (which it was, on the dot, when he did this... but it wasn't when I walked in the door) just to save a few bucks? Bad move -- extremely poor taste and rude. I've worked in a bar, and I can tell you: you just don't remove a menu that was there and available when the person came to the bar, who you just ignored for several minutes, and then say "too bad, you just missed it."

The irony is that the tourist you're serving might never come back, or will return once in a blue moon. I am a local that could patronize your establishment weekly... but now I'm not so inclined to do so.

I ordered the "Tantric IPA" a strong Indian Pale Ale. So I start drinking my pale ale (which is okay, pretty standard high-gravity, high-ABV IPA, not bad) and perusing the menu for something affordable. I suppose I'd gotten spoiled by the delicious $1.75 tacos and $8 tri-tip BBQ sandwiches I recently rounded up in Calistoga, because I simply didn't feel like paying the $12 they charge for their burgers. I was originally going to get calamari (at the $5 happy hour price -- a good deal) but that jumps to $12 when happy hour is over. I settled on the pulled pork sliders with cole slaw (also $5 at happy hour; $8.50 normal price)

An older man, the one who came in and sat next to me at the bar, starts to strike up a conversation. I ask where he's visiting from, he says Omaha and is enjoying getting away from the cold for a bit. Talks about the 9 day road trip he has been on to Kansas or Oklahoma (I forget which) then to Vegas and up to here. Then things get interesting. Sort of out of the blue, he tells me he's a conspiracy theorist.

"Have you seen the movie Conspiracy Theory?"

"Yep," he chuckles.

"Like, what kind of conspiracies? Political?" I query.

"Well, there's an organization that is running the media, spreading lies and deceiving everyone... they pretty much rule the world and pull the strings in secrecy."

"Oh, you mean like the Illuminati."

"Exactly. And they've been around for a long time, founded in 1776 by the Rothchild family, who own more than half the wealth in the world and are tied in with Satanism..."

Now, I've heard some of this stuff, bits and pieces. I find conspiracy theories fascinating. I'm skeptical enough that I don't get carried away in them, yet not close-minded enough to think that we don't truly get deceived and manipulated in certain ways.

He goes on to explain his beliefs, founded in becoming a Born-Again Christian in his 30s (he's now 63) after living a worldly life of sex, booze, and partying in his early years. Now he believes Catholics are paganists, Obama was born in Kenya, the Bushes have blood ties to the Rothschilds, and the End Times are upon us. He goes on to explain some of his revered celebrities in this arena (particularly Texe Marrs, Dr. Monteith, and Alex Jones' "infowars") and that he has compiled a book that lays it all out, but just a private book he gives to friends and such, not a published one. Also said he had been recently interviewed on Dr. Monteith's radio show.

Told me his name at the end of the conversation (which lasted two beers) and it sounded like "John Burke", but after thinking about it later I figure he probably actually said "John Birch" (haha, sorry... not buying that one, buddy)

Why do I mention all this? Because it just goes to show you never know what kind of people you'll run into in Napa, because they come from all over! Plus, there really wasn't much else noteworthy with Downtown Joe's... typical brewpub environment, with the same fare but above-average prices, and an unfriendly service.

Oh, but for my second beer -- it was an "Old Magnolia" nitro-pulled stout, which was more or less incredibly good: smooth and creamy, with that trademark toastiness of a stout but less biting and pronounced. It almost had an Asian feel to it, a flavor like toasted sesame and misoyaki; a little toasty, a littly salty, a little sweet, and a little tangy. Probably one of the best stouts I've ever had, actually.

And the conversation was definitely one of the most fascinating ones I've ever had with a stranger at a bar. That and the stout made the stop-in worthwhile after all.

Napa River Trail

There is a trail that runs right behind my apartment complex, and when the weather is nice or I am in the mood for a little exercise, I head straight to it. It's called "The Napa River Trail" and it was originally planned to run a long length of the Napa River, from the north end here at Trancas (you can pick up the trail off of Trancas near the intersection with Silverado Trail) all the way south to Vallejo. Obviously, that would be a huge undertaking and with the state of the state and local budgets, it hasn't been done. However, bits and pieces of the trail have been made, and one of them is here, running along the riverside for 1.1 miles between Trancas to the north and Lincoln to the south.

If you're ever in the area, or taking a bike ride through Napa, this can be a nice and leisurely little diversion -- despite running right behind homes and apartments, the trail is quite quiet and tranquil, populated by a variety of people seeking such asylum including families, dog-walkers, joggers, and even a few folks who head to the river bank for some leisurely fishing. At the southern end near Lincoln, there is also a complex of time-shares and tiny vacation cottages which can be rented, each their own self-contained unit with little decks, grills, and tables to enjoy a meal right next to the trickling stream (which is usually more like a creek at this part of the river).