I attended with Lisa the 2 year anniversary of the Barrell Room this week. Can you believe that place has been around for 2 years already? If I had to wager a guess, I would have said barely over 1 year. I’m really happy that place is doing well. They could make some improvements (desert, main dishes), but their variety is great. They offer the always safe cheese and meat plate, great wine selection, and you can never go wrong with a build your own <panini>. I am either on a brie kick, or I love their brie there as well.
On to the wine. We had a bottle of the 2007 Layer Cake wich is a Cabernet Savignon from the True Vine winery in Napa. We paid $36 for the bottle. It retails for $24.99 The wine bottle had an endearing story behind its name. It said:
“My old grandfather made and enjoyed wine for 80 years. He told me the soils in which the vines lived were a layer cake. If properly made, the wine from these vines was like a delicious cake layerd with fruit, mocha, chocolate and hints of spice …and rich, always rich. ‘Never pass up a good Layer Cake’, he would say. I have always loved those words.” -A. Orlando Tribute, Jayson Woodbridge
Impressions
Sight
Lisa enjoyed this wine more than I did. I was first set off by the coloring. I wasn’t sure if it was due to the brown marble bar that we sat at, but the wine gave off a brownish tint–similar to how wine looks when it is going bad.
Scent
We tried to ascertain what smells the wine had, but surprisingly we couldn’t pick up a scent. Lisa stated “I couldn’t figure the scent out.” To which I replied, “Me neither, usually i just guess either peppery, oaky, or fruity.”
Taste
It wasn’t a super dry wine. It had a light finish. Lisa thought it was easy to drink and held a medium complex finish. I felt that the finish was weak. It kind of drained off and had a watery finish.
Score:
Lisa gave it a solid 6 while I gave it a weak 6 out of 10. She would order it again, but I would not choose to. Though, I would drink it if I had to.
The winery is currently facing charges of making wine without a license.
The wine maker recently spoke at the Culinary Institute Of America (C.I.A) for its recent graduation. If you are ever in Napa Valley, I reccomend that you visit the C.I.A. It’s really a beautiful campus and offers cooking demonstrations practically daily.
Winery Thoughts:
| Vintage: |
2007 |
| Wine Type: |
Bold Red Wine |
| Varietal: |
Cabernet Sauvignon |
| Appellation: |
Napa Valley |
| Bottling Date: |
July 2007 |
| Alcohol %: |
14.2 |
Tasting Notes:
Beautiful deep garnet color. Aromas of blackberry, cassis, violets, cedar, tobacco, and hints of minerals and graphite. Sweet, densely packed and creamy in the mouth, but with firm, underlying structure that gives lift to the dark berry, chocolate, and coffee flavors. This is a very lush, soft, complex wine that coats the palate and spreads out on the long, lingering finish.
Winemaker Notes:
We fermented this Napa Valley Cabernet using hand punch downs and gentle pumpovers; then transferring some to French oak for aging. The most structured, most powerful lots were put into new French oak for aging to balance the tannins and extract the rich flavors from the barrique. Some lots that would benefit from the softening effect of time in oak were put into French barrels that were used to age Hunderd Acre. By carefully blending the differnet lots – varying oak types and different vineyard lots – we created a balanced and compklex wine.
Arlene, Lisa, Joey, Adrian and I ate dinner recently at a great new restraunt. We had a splendid evening of laughter and food, and of course, wine. We had a bottle of the Acacia Pinot Noir 2006 from Napa. We thought it had a really pretty color. Arelene thought she sensed scents of apple, while Joey was accosted with the smell of snails. I think they were just smelling their food. The wine smelled a bit musky, was very fragrant, and had a bit of a peppery or spice to the taste. Arlene enjoyed the pretty gams. I gave it a 7 and a yes that I would order this wine again. Joey gave it a 9 and a yes. Adrian and Arlene both gave it a 7 and a yes. Lisa gave it an 8 and a yes. This wine at Hexagone cost $46, and it retails for 
approximately $25.
The myriad of dark fruit and floral notes in this Pinot Noir come from the cool, windy Los Carneros American Viticultural Area (AVA) in the southern reaches of Napa Valley. Satsuma plum, blackberry, red rose and violet notes weave through the enticing aromas, mingled with warm nuances of vanilla and toasted oak from barrel aging. Silky, elegant flavors echo the aromas, adding blueberry and plum to the rich fruit complexity. You’ll find this wine’s lush flavors, bright acidity and fine tannins are perfectly balanced to complement a broad range of foods.
I ate dinner at 
