Open That Bottle
Friday, February 19, 2010 at 10:46AM 
It's Premiere Napa Valley this weekend, one of Napa Valley's biggest trade auction events. Which of course means, almost all of the 200-plus participating wineries are hosting wine dinners, tastings, Roaring 20s parties and masquerades to kick off the week and show off their wines - the ones in their portfolio that aren't being poured at the auction - to distributors, restaurateurs and sommeliers from across the US.
Last night, I think I attended the best pre-party in the valley: Cliff Lede's Open that Bottle Party. What distinguished this from the other events was that everyone was invited to bring a wine from his or her cellar, something treasured ,OR, something that's been sitting neglected in a corner and was never going to be opened otherwise. Honestly, the rules were, there were no rules; you could bring whatever you wanted.
And people did. Two German Rieslings from the Mosel showed up, a 1989 and a 1990. Both Auslese with no petrol but gorgeous honey flavors as well as still-bright acidity on the 1990. There was an Aussie Shiraz from Victoria, a 1997 I believe, that blew my socks off with how beautifully alive it was (there's that acidity again). Kris Marjoram, the sommelier at Auberge du Soleil, brought a 1985 Stags' Leap and a 1998 Williams Selyem Chardonnay. The latter was, along with the Rieslings, a favorite of the night, with a color that suggested oxidation but with beautiful, rich flavors and brightness in the mouth.
In addition to the great wines, some of San Francisco's best sommeliers came and acted as servers (Christie Dufault from RN74 and Eugenio Jardim from Jardiniere) at the party. Tacos Michoacan pulled their truck upand took orders outside at one side of the winery and Rosso Pizzeria, one of my favorite Santa Rosa pizza places, set up their kitchen on the other. Carnitas tacos and hot Salsiccia pizza may sound like an unusual combination, but it worked.
In the midst of all this, Cliff Lede and his right hand man, Jack Bittner, happily poured their own wines, including a very pretty, balanced 2006 Poetry. I thought Cliff Lede showed amazing confidence in hosting an event like this; he simply let his own wines subtly shine among dozens of star caliber bottles. Nothing was shoved in your face. Nobody made a speech. Instead, Ciff and Jack were there to answer questions and to serve, if you needed them. The rest of the time, they took pleasure in being surrounded by great wines - others' and their own.
To walk into a party and have the house Sauv Blanc on one side and a 95 Ch. Ducru-Beaucaillou (which most people thought was too brett-y but I thought was lovely)...again, it speaks volumes about the Cliff Lede crew. I think this was my favorite Premiere event to date, and a great reminder that it's more fun to open those rare, odd or special bottles among friends.
Reader Comments (4)
So what did you bring?
I'm ashamed to admit I brought a bottle of Brachetto that I knew was never going to be opened or drunk at home. Of course, it was never opened or drunk there either! Fortunately, the fella pulled through with a weird, old Aussie Riesling.
PS - having never been before, I had no idea of the caliber of wines on display. I was told it was casual and just to bring "whatever."
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