Spring Wine Club Party  - April 30th 2016

Our bi annual party is an invitation to our Club Members to taste new releases that are not available to taste and purchase in the tasting room on a daily basis. These wines are pre released especially for our members to taste at our party.
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As per our tradition, Mat and I pair food bites to pair with our featured wines. We always take great consideration into the season, the product availability and preparation. We feature recipes that are easy to do at home. Check out the recipe page, most of them are there.

For this Spring our focus is on four wines
           - 2013 Brut Rose'
           - 2014 Weeks Vineyard Chardonnay
           - 2014 RRV Pinot
           - 2014 Bohemian Vineyard Pinot

Mat loves to cook and takes a lot of pride in preparing the food pairings, All the favorite cook books come out,  testing and tasting happens for weeks leading up to the event.

This Spring we chose  two recipes to pair. One from a local cookbook that we are currently selling in the tasting room and featuring for our August "Foodie Seminar" from Apple Festival.

The second recipe is from the Charles Phan, Home Cooking Book which is a favorite of Mat's. Both of these recipes will be added to the web site Recipe page.

We welcomed guests with a taste of the Brut Rose' paired with a Tomales Bay freshly shucked oyster and Seaside Metal's pink peppercorn Mignonette. Really, we believe you cannot go wrong with Sparkling and oysters but to add the spectacular mignonette from our local Seafood guru,
"Seaside Metal" of Guerneville. the two go so beautiful with the Pinot Noir based wine.

The next wine, our 2014 Weeks Vineyard Chardonnay, a beautiful rich yet balanced wine paired with the featured Apple recipe: Pulled Chicken Sliders with Apple Slaw. The chicken thighs are seared in spice and then braised in Chardonnay.  The Apple Slaw is a perfect refreshing component for Chardonnay and a beautifully sunny day in the backyard.

We were treated with the presence of two of our Vineyard families to pour the Pinot's. Dean and Karen ( Ruxton ) Barbieri and Tom and Sue Cleary of Bohemian Vineyard. The opportunity for members to meet the growers is a extra special treat.

The Pinot's were paired with Mama's Meatballs Vietnamese style and a huge hit. Comments came in of one Pinot working better than the other but the consistent comment was the love of these meatballs, unique preparation worth a try at home. Not your average meatball, about 2" in diameter with a very rich sauce.

The 2014 Pinot's will not officially release till late fall or early 2017. These wines are really fun and showing incredibly well given their youthful state.

In addition we offered two favorite cheeses, Beemster aged Gouda, Mat's favorite Pinot cheese and Cypress Grove's Midnight Moon, one of my favorite local producers.

The Event came and went in a blur. Overwhelmed by the response and support, I think this Fall our party will be sold out way in advance. Thank you to our fans.
Big hugs 

March 18 - 20   California Artisan Cheese Festival

              In it's 10th year, we continue to enjoy this great event.

Friday's Cheese Monger - from all over the Bay area...

Saturday's Gala of Bay area Chef's, starting with Girl and the Fig Sorbet

And the Finale, Sunday's Market place was filled with taste of cheese from the producer's, Salumi, wine, beer, cider, bread, chocolate, books and 1500 fans. What a great way to spent a rainy Sunday.

Paul Mathew Vineyards Brut Rose'

We clearly love pairing all wines and foods but Sparkling wine is spectacular to enjoy and easy to pair.

 Although we don't offer a taste of our 2013 Brut Rose' in the Tasting Room, when we do, it's available as a pairing. Usually one day or one weekend a month we offer this delightfully dry sparkling alongside a plate of 4 bites. Caviar is one of them, served with crème fraiche on a potato chip.

 We also love to pair our Brut with Foie Gras Mousse. This rich and creamy mouthful pairs so nicely.
A bonus is to stop by Nightingale Bakery in Forestville for a Forestville French Baguette and double your pleasure.

 Another favorite is our local  Cowgirl Creamery with it's guaranteed triple cream style, melt in your mouth enjoyment.

 We tried a mix of other bites including sushi, carrot soup, cous cous salad which all worked but without the WOW factor.

For us it is a constant taste test. Weather it's been Sparkling, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Gewurz... we enjoy the failures almost as much as the success's. One cannot discover without trying.

36 Hours in San Diego


A special invitation for Paul Mathew to present our wines and speak at the CMAA Conference in San Diego, why yes, That sounds wonderful.

Leaving from Santa Rosa airport is a great luxury, we left home at 9a.m. and we're in our Hotel at noon. Travel doesn't get much better than that.

First off lunch. An easy board walk stroll for a little ceviche with a unique addition of peanuts and a great presentation.

The CMAA evening begins with hors d'oeuvres on the 34th floor over looking San Diego's sky line.
Pork belly on a fork

 We sat down to 8 whites for the first two courses, Cured Salmon with Sauv Blanc and Vermentino

Poached Halibut paired with four Chardonnays including the PMV 2013 Weeks Vineyard.

 

Moving on to the next flight of four Pinot Noirs, 2 from 2012 and two from 2013 all from Sonoma County, paired with pork loin wrapped in prosciutto.

Main course of braised short ribs with 4 bolder reds that included Cabernets and syrah.

 Our gracious host Terry Anglin with our favorite Wine Country neighbor Joy Sterling.

Next day recovering by the pool and awaiting our favorite happy hour in the state at Nobu.

Spicy Tuna with crispy rice.

 Steamed Mussels with bacon miso 

 Yellowtail with Aji Amarillo sauce

 The signature blackcod lettuce wrap

 Shishito peppers stuffed with Wagyu beef tempera and a mustard sauce

Time for the Urban Crave Bahn Mi. And we're off. Thank you San Diego.

 2016 Mushroom Foray

This annual event is a big hit. Hiking on a beautiful February day in the woods with a warm lodge awaiting your return with a hearty lunch crackling fireplace and Paul Mathew wines. Nobodies complaining.

Another year of strange weather brought us a strange foraging season. We found a few porcini's in the Fall and then nothing for more than a month. We started seeing small amounts of hedgehogs and chanterelles and then finally some black trumpets. But between little rain all 2015 and serious cold in December, when the rain finally came it was not absorbing into the hard ground.

We still managed to have a great day for our foray. With a full group of 40 eager attendees.

Everyone comes back at their leisure to enjoy the warmth and the wine along with great company.

Once we have every one accounted for ( no search party needed ) David Campbell, mycology specialist and guide, gives a thorough explanation of the findings laid out on the table.

 We like these, black trumpets.

 And these hedgehogs.

 Now it's time for lunch.

 The pastry

 The filling

 Mushroom and Liberty Farms roast Duck Pot Pie.

A lot of love in the room: for mushrooms, wine, good company and most definitely our wonderful co  host Rich Mitchell.

Where would we be without you in our lives. Happy February