With 2011 nearly here along with January’s arrival, arrives my favorite time to consume Chardonnay.   In other parts of the country where winter winds howl unmercifully and snow seemingly falls by the tonnage, my white wines would probably sit in a cellar waiting for March.   This is fair for I (and other wine connoisseurs and […]

Seemingly out of nowhere the week before Christmas has fallen upon us and here in the Bay Area and Napa Valley residents are enduring rain storm after rain storm.   Water is beginning to stand in low-lying vineyards and despite this, the first few blooms of mustard have risen above tall healthy green blades of grass […]

During the month of December, typically rain systems roll down off of the Pacific Ocean to shower on the Bay Area and across to Napa Valley before mustering themselves into snow for the Sierras a few hours to the east.   Some years during the month of December, moments of sun can be difficult to catch […]

Rolling into December, the grape vines of Napa Valley cling to the last of their now brown and lifeless leaves.   Mother Nature has readied the vines for oncoming winter such that they stand barren throughout acres upon acres of vineyards in Napa Valley.   Above, clouds rumble bringing long-awaited rain and fog (typically absent from California […]

Thanksgiving has come and gone leaving its aftermath of leftovers in the refrigerator, holiday decorating and shopping to finish and for many, an insurmountable backlog of work waiting in the office.   Surfacing for air the week after Thanksgiving may be an accomplishment in and of itself without trying to dream up an involved food and […]