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Revisiting Trentadue

April 24, 2007
We first happened upon Trentadue last summer. And I quite literally mean happened upon. Besides the idea that we wanted to go to the Bodega Bay Wine and Seafood Festival at least one day, we had no plans on our first trip to Sonoma. That would mainly be a result of the fact that in a few short months (May 2006-August 2006) I graduated from law school, studied for and took the bar, moved to the DC area and got married. All I wanted to do on our honeymoon was relax and have as little in the way of structure as possible. When we arrived in CA, we basically grabbed a map of the Russian River/Dry Creek/Alexander Valley area, listened to our innkeeper and headed out on our merry way. And one of those tops was Trentadue, where Matt fell in love with the Chocolate Amore Port. While eating a delicious breakfast of Dutch pancakes and fresh berries on this trip, our innkeeper was chatting with us and asking where we planned to go. I had a list this time, and one appointment to make, but all the places I wanted to get to didn't open until 11. The innkeeper suggested Trentadue, and got Matt thinking that he wanted more Chocolate Port. So off we went.

Trentadue's tasting room reminds of a Spanish villa from the outside, with the yellow stucco walls and the burnt red roof. The gardens were looking gorgeous with plenty of new flowers blooming and if it were a little later in the day I would have wanted to stop there and picnic at some of the tables. Inside is a decent sized tasting bar with a very friendly tasting room attendant who was modeling the newest in Trentadue merchandise. Upstairs is an art gallery and in the tasting room are many different special bottlings, Magnums, wine gifts sets, posters, etc.

Our server chatted away with us about houses and trying to buy a house and moving and all such things as she poured 6 regular offerings and 3 Port offerings off a special menu. Additionally, they offer a reserve menu, but the above was quite enough for us. The 6 regular offerings were all great values, with only one bottle breaching the $20 mark, and several under the $15 mark. Following is a run-down of what we tasted:

2005 Sauvignon Blanc- $14. Pear aromas with pear and citrus in the mouth. Light and crisp, perfect for summer and for the beautiful weather that day. We bought 2 bottles.

NV Grand Cuvee California Champagne- $12. A very light sparkler with the scent and flavor of green apples, good structure and lots of tiny bubbles. We brought home 3 bottles.

2004 Petite Sirah-$18. Blueberry cobbler and blackberries on the nose, and intense aroma. In the mouth it was lighter than I expected and I thought it needed to age.

2004 Sangiovese-$18. Raspberries and spice on the nose, currants and cherries in the mouth. Drinking well now, but could age longer.

2004 Old Patch Red-$14. Spicy, oaky and dark berries on the nose. Raspberries, dark fruit and spicy inthe mouth, I liked this blend a lot. We took home 1 bottle.

2004 Cabernet Sauvignon-$22. Vanilla and blackberries on the nose, blackberries and currants in the mouth. I liked this one too.

Special port tasting:
2005 Viognier Port- 375mL $25. Peach, pear and spice on the nose, citrus and orange in the mouth. A little sweet for me, but Matt liked it.

2004 Petite Sirah Port-500mL $25. Blackberries, dark spicy and smooth in the mouth. I loved this one and picked up a bottle for my dad as he loves port. A small thank you for the help he's giving us fixing up our house.

NV Chocolate Amore-375mL $25. A perennial favorite in our house. Chocolate and raspberries on the nose, more of the same in the mouth. This wine is infused with chocolate. A lot of fun and great for something different. We bought 2 bottles.

10 comments:

  1. Dr. Debs said...

    I've always been a sucker of Old Patch Red, which is usually a terrific buy. I'll keep my eye out for the Sauvignon--and Viognier Port? Never heard of such a thing!

    4/24/07, 2:27 PM  

  2. Nate said...

    Old Patch Red sounds like it's a style I'd like.. probably Zinfandel (the spiciness you describe) and maybe Petite Sirah? (the dark fruit, plus knowing that they make a Petite Sirah port leads me to that guess). Anyway, ever seen it for sale out yonder on the East Coast?

    And I think that Petite Sirah port sounds pretty fabulous - I'm a fan of traditional ports (tawnys, usually), and I've had a decent Zin port, but never tried a PS port...

    4/24/07, 2:54 PM  

  3. winedeb said...

    I have not had many ports at all. Cannot even remember the last one I tried. So this gives me another new avenue to head down! Thanks Sonadora, you and Dr. Deb's keep me going!

    4/25/07, 9:38 AM  

  4. Sonadora said...

    Dr.Debs, I've liked Trentadue since I first set foot in there. Lots of great values to be had. The Viognier port was a bit odd, I must say, but if you like sweet wines...

    Nate-Haven't seen it out this way, though they do ship. Certainly a good value and the PS port is worth hunting down!

    winedeb-Port for me is usually more of a winter thing. I'm certain that won't stop my dad from drinking his bottle though!

    4/25/07, 11:36 AM  

  5. Joe said...

    One of my first non-Gallo/Mondavi forays into California wine was a Trentadue Zinfadel, many years ago. It was great. I think my Fall 2007 "Sideways 3" trip will be to Sonoma (Sideways 2 was to Napa), so I am watching this space closely...

    4/26/07, 10:49 PM  

  6. Sonadora said...

    Joe-It's really a great place to visit, we love it there. I will keep posting reviews, so keep an eye out! We have been to 33 Vineyards there now....!

    4/27/07, 9:14 AM  

  7. Joe said...

    33 - how many days? Anybody can do 33 given enought time...:)

    4/27/07, 11:17 PM  

  8. Sonadora said...

    We've been out there for 10 days total, but only tasted for 6 of those days :)

    4/28/07, 8:07 PM  

  9. Joe said...

    That's a pretty good clip - I did 14 in 2.5 days, and I was burnt out...

    5/1/07, 10:13 PM  

  10. Anonymous said...

    I visited Trendadue a few years ago and spent a small fortune on several cases of their Chocolate and White Chocolate Port. They were delicious! Everytime I had a visitor I'd breakout a bottle and everyone felt special to share the bottle. Visit the winery and try the port.

    Sharon

    5/18/07, 11:55 PM  

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