Category Archives: Enticing Events

A Taste of Beringer

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The warm glow of a Christmas tree lights the way inside the ancient Beringer Vineyards wine caves.

I’ve been on many a wine-tasting tour in the Napa Valley.

But recently, I had the pleasure of enjoying a very special one.

Just what made it so memorable? It was the fact that my 22-year-old niece tagged along with me for what was not only her first trip to Napa, but her first time touring a winery.

Noodle Niece, as she so requested to be called because of her fondness for udon, ramen and all things pasta, developed a growing curiosity about wine after spending a college semester studying in France. Since her parents are not vino drinkers, my husband (aka Meat Boy) and I decided it was our duty to introduce her to the delights of the Napa Valley.

What a fun time it was, too. There’s something wondrous about getting to experience the familiar anew again. And there’s something downright delightful about catching a glimpse as someone’s face changes from nonchalance to “Wow!” when they discover tastes they’ve never had before.

The glam Rhine House at Beringer.

With Meat Boy the designated driver, Noodle Niece and I piled into the car on a sunny but chilly afternoon for the drive to Napa to visit Beringer Vineyards. Meat Boy’s good friend, who works for Beringer, had arranged for us to enjoy a private tour and tasting (normally $35 per person).

We thought Noodle Niece would find Beringer especially interesting, because it is the oldest continuously operating winery in the Napa Valley and is designated a Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places. Indeed, Beringer even continued to operate legally during Prohibition, according to our cordial guide, Michael. Apparently, a lot of doctors and priests were using Beringer wine back then for medicinal and religious purposes. Uh-huh.

Private dining room inside the cave.

Barrels being aged.

One-of-a-kind, hand-carved barrels.

Another Christmas tree decorates the caves.

Established in 1876, Beringer also boasts an extraordinary 1,200 linear feet of aging caves that naturally help keep the wines at 58 to 60 degrees year-round with a humidity level of 75 to 80 percent. The caves were hand-chiseled by Chinese laborers who also built the Trans-Continental Railroad. Look closely, and you’ll see the actual pick marks.

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Sweet Treats at the St. Regis

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Traditional Alsacian holiday cakes at Vitrine. (Photo courtesy of Marc Fiorito)

For Chef Romuald Feger of Vitrine, the restaurant inside the glam St. Regis San Francisco, winter is an especially sweet time of year.

As a child growing up in the Alsace region of France, he fondly remembers his Grandmother Alice lovingly baking more than 20 different kinds of bredele.

These holiday biscuits or small cakes are a staple there. And his prolific Grandmother would turn out upwards of 50 pounds of these treasured baked goods, most of which found their way into the lucky hands of friends and family.
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A Sweet Time at Parcel 104

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The best flan you'll ever eat.

If you needed to borrow some sugar, Santa Clara’s Parcel 104 was the place to be last Friday night, where the sweet stuff was on display in full force.

The restaurant’s pastry chef, Carlos Sanchez, hosted a select group of guests — including yours truly — for a decadently sweet holiday dessert party. Sanchez, who is also trained in the savory side, is now doing double-duty as Parcel 104’s chef de cuisine, too. So, he threw in a couple of savory courses just to keep things especially interesting.

The party got started with a demitasse of golden beet soup. Eggnog-like in color and very rich, the soup is deceptive. The creaminess hits you immediately, and then the sweetness of the natural sugars of the yellow beets powers through.

A surprising soup with the flavor of beets.

Next, a signature salad from Sanchez — a crispy nugget of flattened, breaded moist chicken atop seasonal greens with thin slices of pear, orange and persimmon. A Ranch-style creamy dressing with the heat of habanero woke things up, and added a perfect counterpoint to the sweet, refreshing fruit.

A crispy nugget of chicken with creamy habanero dressing.

Slightly warm citrus risotto followed. It was like a creamsicle in your mouth. Unlike rice pudding, where the grains are cooked until they almost break down, this dessert risotto was done al dente, giving it a more interesting texture.

Tangerine risotto.

That was followed by one of Sanchez’s most popular desserts — coffee flan. Even the so-called flan haters at my table went nuts for this version. This was no wiggly-jiggly flan. It is extremely firm and dense, yet out-worldly smooth. Take a spoonful in your mouth, and it’s almost like foie gras terrine in texture with an unbelievably unctuous quality.

A glittery, gooey chocolate cake.

Lastly, caramel-filled chocolate cake that was all aglitter with gold dust and served with an ajillo pepper ice cream. The velvety ganache gave way to gooey, thick caramel and a crunchy chocolate-cookie crust. The pepper in the ice cream was subtle, giving it a floral quality and a mere tickle on the back of the throat.

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New Restaurants, New Chefs, New Beard Papa and New Holiday Treats

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Sea scallops at the new Meritage in the Claremont Hotel. (Photo courtesy of John Benson)

The newly renovated Claremont Hotel, Club & Spa in the Berkeley hills has unveiled a swanky new restaurant, Meritage.

Guests can sidle up to a mahogany bar or take a seat in the main dining room with its wall of windows affording breathtaking views of the Bay.

Following on the heels of sister establishments, Meritage at the Boston Harbor Hotel and Le Meritage at the Maison Dupuy in New Orleans, the Berkeley locale features an extensive wine list to go with its seasonal, contemporary California cuisine.

Dishes include Castroville artichoke soup with crispy prosciutto and roasted tomatoes ($7/$12); Sonoma goat cheese-potato terrine($9/$17); seared sea scallops with celery root-Yukon Gold potato puree($15/$28); and Bay Area cioppino ($16/$29).

The nicely designed menu lets you order dishes in either small or large plate sizes. Dishes also are characterized by wine characteristics so that you can easily pair a dish to a particular varietal you’re fond of. For instance, the ahi tuna tartare with crispy rice, marinated cucumbers, sesame and ginger ($13/$25) is listed under “fruity reds.”

Creamy artichoke soup. (Photo courtesy of John Benson)

Beard Papa fans will rejoice that another branch of the popular Japanese cream puff bakery has opened — this one at 365 2nd Ave. in San Mateo.

It’s Beard Papa’s fifth Bay Area location. The bakery is famous for its cream puffs that have a unique crispy, pie crust-like exterior and traditional, airy choux pastry interior. The official grand opening complete with ribbon cutting ceremony will take place at noon Dec. 18. For more information, call (650) 342-PAPA.

Parcel 104 in Santa Clara has a not-so-new chef. Jonny Hall, former chef de cuisine of Parcel 104, has been named that restaurant’s executive chef, succeeding Robert Sapirman, who left earlier this year.

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French Laundry Holiday Party

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A giant clothespin ice sculpture greeted guests on Sunday at the French Laundry holiday party.

Yes, the French Laundry is the only Michelin three-star restaurant in California, and one of the hardest reservations in the country to snag.

But did you know that the tres elegant Yountville restaurant sure knows how to throw one heck of a holiday party, too?

This past Sunday afternoon under gray, threatening skies, the stone building was aglow with candles, a roaring fireplace, and gleaming white tents for its annual holiday party. Yours truly was among the throngs who gathered to enjoy the festivities.

Chef-proprietor Thomas Keller cheerfully greeted guests. Keller may be fond of Prada boots, but he donned some rather uncharacteristic footwear that afternoon that one couldn’t help but notice — real-deal red clogs.

Chef Thomas Keller

Keller's footwear of choice on Sunday.

Me to Keller: “Are you pulling a Mario Batali?”

Keller quipped back: “Don’t say that. Don’t say that. Mario’s are orange and plastic. These are leather and wood. A chef has to uphold standards.”

Fun was definitely in the air on Sunday. If you’re used to the serene environment of the French Laundry, this was noisy, crowded and oh-so casual. It was fun to see cooks who normally turn out exquisite “Oysters and Pearls” instead creating fluffs of pink cotton candy and truffled popcorn.

A French Laundry cook makes four-star cotton candy.

Truffle popcorn, anyone?

The signature salmon cornets that usually precede every dinner at the French Laundry were in attendance on Sunday, but in miniature form.

The famous salmon tartare cornets with creme fraiche.

An assembly line to make the cornets.

Mini versions of Bouchon Bakery’s Nutter Butter cookies and chocolate snowman cupcakes also could be found all over the restaurant, including some set around an old-fashioned gingerbread house display.

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