Apres Sonoma - the Wine Tasting

Well the best part of the Sonoma Trial is the "Apres Sheepdog Trial" wine tasting.

As I did last year, after our runs were over I snuck away with Piper for a bit of wine tasting. You can get a list of wineries that permit you to bring your dog but I have pretty much found that by keeping to the smaller wineries (and a few of the big ones - but check first), Piper has been welcome at almost every winery we stop at. The only exception was one winery that had their own two Great Danes wandering around and I left her in the truck to avoid dog on dog issues. All I do is bring her to the door and ask first and the answer is almost always that she is welcome.

The picture above is Piper outside the Madrigal Vineyards where we picked up a nice bottle of Sauvignon Blanc. This was a small estate bottling with only 200 cases made so it is only available at the winery. It is somewhat richer in taste than the average Sauvignon Blanc and a very nice wine. It was purchased as a gift.

The funny thing - to me anyway - is how easily impressed everyone at the wineries is by a well behaved dog. The Wine Country Sheepdog Trials get a fair amount of local publicity so most everyone seems familiar with the concept of a Border Collie. But they are always amazed that I can just walk in - either off leash or just drop the leash - and tell Piper to "lie down" and she just stays there. For those of us in dog trialing she better darn well lie down at 3 feet because otherwise we will never get it at 300 yards - but for most people they seem way impressed. Guess they just are not use to dogs that do as they are told.

Well we hit a few wineries and picked up some nice bottles of wine.

Our first stop was at Ballentine Vineyards - a small well respected boutique winery - where we arrived just as a tour bus group of mostly young 20 something women was finishing their tasting. So it was a bit crowded and I hesitated before bringing Piper but I was assured she was welcome. She was a huge hit with the girls. Wow!

Here is a picture of Piper posing outside Ballentine. We bought a nice Merlot here.

My favorite winery this visit - and something of a surprise - was the Vermeil Winery tasting room right in Calistoga. I had kind of expected it was another celebrity slapping his name on a winery for publicity but apparently Coach Vermeil is a Napa born native and the roots and connections go way back. The winemaker (Paul Smith) was formerly at Mondavi and is partly responsible for one of the truly fabulous wines of the world - Opus One. Mary Sue Frediani (Paul's wife) literally grew up with Coach Vermeil and (wo)mans the tasting bar. She is a real joy and while I was there took time out to help a couple young girls find lodgings for the night.

Well I tasted a vertical flight of Zins from 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003 from the same vineyard. The difference was remarkable. While they were all great my favorite was the 2001 with an intense peppery taste and very full bodied. My next favorite was the 2003 which to me had a bit of a chocolaty taste. I bought a 2001 and 2003 in a gift box as a special gift for my sons future in laws.

Mary Sue was great in welcoming Piper and Miss Piper managed to behave herself for the entire 45 minutes or so that I enjoyed the tasting. (I kind of broke tasting protocol and drank the wine as it was my last stop before dinner across the street). She even moved along with me a few feet at a time as we heard the Vermeil/Frediani combined family history (told with obvious and well deserved pride and love).

The picture above is Piper chilling at the Vermeil/Frediani tasting bar.

On our way out of town we stopped at V. Sattui for some wine, salami and cheese. This is a larger operation but is always one of my favorite stops due to the wide selection, dog friendly atmosphere (except for the deli section we learned) and wonderful deli selection. They were even doing barbecue in the picnic area. If you are looking for a place to stop and lunch V. Sattui is hard to beat on a nice day. Just remember if you are using their picnic area it is supposed to be with their products.