Gettin' Blotto at Del Dotto

We headed up to Sonoma for the weekend to check out where our friend Clayton has been living for the last 4 months as he remodeled a condo just off Sonoma square. We headed down on Friday after work (roadies in tow for the 45-minute drive) and kicked off cocktail hour as soon as we arrived. Not much more to commemorate Friday except to say that Dave cut himself off that night....never in 11 years have I seen Dave cut himself off, but he left a full soldier standing at the last bar...enough was enough.

Don't be concerned though - we all knew we had a big day on Saturday. We started with Chef Brooklyn (speaking in the third person here) made La Jolla's famous "Coast Toast" from Brockton Villa (quite possibly the only dish I know how to make...for any meal).


Killin' the Coast Toast French Toast

We then headed over to Napa (basically parallel to Sonoma...about 20 miles east) and went to the new Oxbow Public Market, which was nothing short of adorable! It was developed based on the Ferry Building in San Fran (where the farmer's market is located every Thursday and Saturday) and we recently read about it in Daily Candy and The Thrillist (two of my fave e-newsletters). We enjoyed a flight of wines at a wine bar, then took off for The Main Event of the weekend...a wine tasting at Del Dotto.


Pre-Party Wine Tasting at Oxbow Public Market in Napa


The Caves at Del Dotto

This vineyard and winery has a different spin on wine tasting. Most wineries invite you to their "tasting room" which is more or less a bar space where you can be served a variety of wines from a list. Each is poured into a wine glass and the tasting is either complimentary or up to $10 (more or less). At Del Dotto, we had a private tour for the six of us that lasted about 1 1/2 hours and took us through the Del Dotto Caves for barrel tastings. If you haven't done a barrel tasting before, it's really quite cool. The wine guide uses a "wine thief", which is a device that allows you to pull out a relatively small amount of wine, directly from a wine barrel, that you can then transfer (in our case, into a glass).


Wine Thief...Yes, it looks like what you think it looks like


One of the dozens of barrels from which we tasted...


Group with Guide Thierry After Del Dotto Tour

The price of this luxurious private tour? It's pretty steep...$40/person! With six of us, that is $240 for the tour (yes, that BC degree sure is handy), but we still thought it was worth it for the experience. It's so different than any other wine tasting I've done - full of ambiance, education, delicious wines and a fantastic, fun tour guide!

At the end, Dave and I grabbed a quick photo in front of the caves. I am reminded again (and again, and again) how grateful I am for friends and how much I enjoy the love and laughter of my hubby....


Love of my life...

After Del Dotto, we went to Honig and had the luxury of a private tasting room. Honig is also in Napa and if you are in the area, it is a must to call ahead for a tasting reservation. Not to be a total snob here, but their Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc is absolutely delicious - it tastes like you are drinking delicious honey - SO GOOD!


Honig Private Tasting Room

Finally, I think this next photo says it all for the feeling of the weekend. Here is Clayton after Honig...


We (of course!) have a few more pics posted here...