Three Delightful Sonoma Wine and Food Pairing Experiences

Posted on   April 26,2018   By John Compisi

Three Delightful Sonoma Wine and Food Pairing Experiences

Tasting wine in Sonoma County is always a delightful experience. Tasting rooms typically have very knowledgeable tasting teams whose only focus is to educate and inform the tasting public. Recently, however, some wineries and estates have decided to elevate that experience through wine and food pairings. Although there is additional cost to the consumer, the experience better replicates and informs your purchasing decisions. After all, wine is best enjoyed with food. Three recent experiences at Benovia Winery, Lambert Bridge and J Vineyards & Winery highlight these very enjoyable opportunities to live and learn.

Benovia Winery is a family owned operation on the southwest side of Santa Rosa and specializes in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, although their Zinfandel is well respected. Some of their estate vineyards are co-located with the tasting room and winery while a couple are in the surrounding areas of the Russian River and Sonoma Coast. Benovia offers numerous unique experiences (see previous posting) but tastings are by appointment only. They have collaborated with Copain and Littorai to create A Trail of Treasures.

Benovia Tasting and Experience Center (L.Compisi)

Wine and food at Benovia (L.Compisi)

View of Benovia Estate vineyards (L.Compisi)

J Vineyards & Winery was established by Judy Jordan decades ago and was recently purchased by E&J Gallo for their premium wine division, a smart choice. Located just outside the city of Healdsburg (about 20 minutes north of Santa Rosa) also in the Russian River Valley, J also specializes in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay but may be best known for their sparkling wines. J offers a few unique tasting and pairing experiences but most noteworthy are their Legacy Tasting, Signature Tasting and the Bubble Room experience. Each is unique in their own right and all offer Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and/or sparkling flights. The Legacy Tasting pairs exceptional artisanal cheeses. Izzy Diaz was our host and he was fabulous. Knowledgeable and fun!

Legacy Tasting offers choices (L.Compisi)

The cheeses were well paired with J wines. (L.Compisi)

J Vineyards Legacy and Sparkling Tasting Menus (L.Compisi)

The penultimate experience was at Lambert Bridge in the Dry Creek Valley. Another family owned winery and estate, Lambert Bridge has made major changes to their business model and production volumes. Previously producing over 25,000 cases per year, they now limit yields and produce about 6,000 cases annually with a direct to consumer model and a premium quality focus. Our experience was centered around a very personalized pairing of Cow Girl Creamery cheeses and accouterments with five Bordeaux wines preceded by a delicious Viognier. The 2016 Dry Creek Valley Viognier was perhaps the best we ever tasted. The 2012 Sonoma County Merlot was to die for! The 2015 Cabernet Franc and the 2013 Chambers Vineyard Malbec were also quite special. Perhaps as tantalizing and welcoming were the tasting team. Sara Carli and Katie Boyer went well out of their way to make us feel special. Katie virtually accompanied us on the entire tasting journey without distraction in the wineries newly configured barrel room. A very special experience.

View from Barrel Room to Tasting Room at Lambert Bridge (L.Compisi)

Guest comfort and care is the primary focus at Lambert Bridge (L.Compisi)

A delightful deviation from the Bordeaux wines (L.Compisi)

A perfectly ethereal experience at Lambert Bridge (L.Compisi)

More and more wineries in Napa and Sonoma Counties are pushing the envelope to differentiate their offerings from the hundreds of choices in the North Coast but these three are worthy of special note and your attention.