March 2010
Now if you really want to do Napa, it'd be hard to imagine a better way than this 'tour' being auctioned. I've done a couple of things similar, but nothing quite up to this level, especially with the winemaker involvement (and the five cases of your own cuvee!). May seem a bit pricy,... Read moreNow if you really want to do Napa, it'd be hard to imagine a better way than this 'tour' being auctioned. I've done a couple of things similar, but nothing quite up to this level, especially with the winemaker involvement (and the five cases of your own cuvee!). May seem a bit pricy, but it also looks like a pretty special experience. ;-)
I received the intro from BPWines.
THE AUCTION: (check it out!)
Here's a heads-up from a local who is part of this awesome auction lot, open to the public for the first time! For those of you interested in Napa wines and visiting the Napa Valley, here is an incredible tour to consider being a part of. This is an item in a fundraising auction for The Young School, a small private elementary school in St. Helena. One small part of it includes lunch with some cool old wines from our cellar, with yours truly! Read the entire lot, it is truly extraordinary: incredible tastings, tours, dining, and blending seminars with some of the hottest wineries and winemakers, all parents at the YOUNG SCHOOL here in town. ---Stefan
Your hosts are Melissa Staid of VineView Scientific Aerial Imaging and John Ruston of Ruston Family Vineyards. The week-long tour is designed to explore the art and science behind some of the Valley's best wines. Here is an outline of what we will provide.
For 2 couples:
-- Two rooms for four nights at the Auberge du Soleil hotel in Rutherford.
-- Winery visits, with wine and barrel tastings conducted by the winemakers at: Araujo Estate - Matt Taylor and Francoise Peschon, Dunn Vineyards and Retro Cellars - Randy, Mike and Kristina Dunn, Harlan Estate - Bob Levy, O'Shaughnessy and Capiaux - Sean Capiaux, Outpost and Rivers Marie - Thomas Brown, Phifer-Pavitt “Datenight” – Ted Osborne, Philip Togni Vineyard - Philip and Lisa Togni, Sloan Estate - Martha McClellan, Realm and Relic - Mike Hirby, Tor, Rudius and Ruston - Jeff Ames, Turley and Failla - Ehren Jordan
-- Create your own cuvee -- Working with wine educator Karen MacNeil, you will create your own personal Napa blend using premium Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot wines (from the barrel). We will bottle, label and ship five cases of this wine to you to commemorate your trip.
-- Dinner at the Wine Spectator Greystone restaurant in St. Helena with wine merchant Stefan Blicker, who will be bringing older Napa wines from the collection of BPWine.com.
-- Dinner at La Toque restaurant in Napa, featuring a multi-course food and wine pairing with an international wine selection from our cellars and La Toque's, chosen by sommelier Yoon Ha, wine director Scott Tracy and chef Ken Frank.
-- Lunch "off the beaten path" at the home of Suzanne Phifer Pavitt and Shane Pavitt, with winemaker Ted Osborne, overlooking the Calistoga appellation.
-- A helicopter tour of Howell Mountain provided by Sonoma Helicopter, combined with a vineyard assessment using aerial imaging by Dr. Melissa Staid of VineView, with further discussions at the three Howell Mtn. wineries we will be visiting.
-- Vineyard assessment with Dr. Paul Skinner of Terra Spase consulting. Paul is author of Weather and Wine Grapes in the Napa Valley AVA and Soils and Wine Grapes in the Napa Valley AVA, and will provide signed copies of these reports. We'll compare an old head-trained Zinfandel vineyard and a modern closely spaced Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard, considering what the early Napa vintners knew and what we have learned, and re-learned, since then.
The tour is not available during harvest and crush since the winemakers will be busy. For full details and other important terms and conditions, please see the official auction site.
The tour is being auctioned online only through the BIDDINGFORGOOD.COM site, and the auction closes March 26. The link is: http://theyoungschool.cmarket.com (hide)
Starting at $39.95 
Starting at $44.99 
