B Cellars: Blending for Excellence in Calistoga
High up on the Silverado Trail in Napa Valley, just before you get to Calistoga, there is a small winery named B Cellars. It is a young enterprise (started in 2003) yet is quickly garnering a reputation. I was curious. I had never had their wines, but it piqued my interest based on a rating that I had read on one of the wines. The obvious path was to set an appointment.
That day, I was very surprised to step into a clean and modern, yet cabin-like tasting room. Check out the pictures of the interior. It was very nice. There was a porch area where guests can do their tastings. As we stood at the bar to start our tasting, we enjoyed a white blend. To my knowledge, there are not a lot of white blends, yet that is the signature of B Cellars — to produce great wines with depth of flavor by blending varietals and wine lots to achieve quality wines during each vintage. I was impressed by the blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier, with each varietal imparting different flavors and delivering balance. It was very nice; and, of course, I had to purchase some for home.
I had set up a tasting that included a seated experience which paired the wines with food. We were seated inside the winery itself, where workers were busy and the barrels rested quite comfortably. It was a pleasant setting and quite private, as it was only Jason (our host) and two of us. Jason led us through a flight of wines that were paired with food. Several wines captured my interest, especially the 2010 Cabernet and a 2008 Syrah. Both were well done with great depth of flavor.
Just a comment about tasting with food. I personally never eat food during wine tastings. I want to discern and discover what the wine has to offer on its own, and food can take away from that. I will only use crackers (there is a perfect brand called Wine Crackers) that will allow me to cleanse my palate to set up for the next wine. The mechanical impact of the cracker is that it will “scrape off” the tannins. I know, it sounds strange, yet the more reds you taste, the greater the build up of tannins will be and they will affect your tasting. A sparkling mineral water will work in the same way.
Notable as well, B Cellars will be moving shortly. They are expanding into a new winery site in Oakville just across from Rudd and other well-known wineries and vineyards.
Look for B Cellars wines locally or in restaurants. These are food-friendly wines with great depth of flavor.
Enjoy!
