Hungry Blond Napa Chardonnay Fantesca Napa Cabernet

 Hungry Blond Napa Chardonnay and Fantesca Napa Cabernet for surf and turf dinner

Newlyweds Sean and Michelle joined us for an intimate dinner Linda prepared, serving lobster tails with cheese pasta and grilled tenderloin beef steaks. I pulled from our cellar two fun, special bottles of wine to commemorate the occasion, Hungry Blond Chardonnay and Fantesca Napa Cabernet.

Davis Estate Hungry Blonde Carneros Chardonnay 2016

 
This Hungry Blonde is the last bottle of several we special ordered last year. It was one of our favorite drinking everyday Chardonnays, a fun label to serve celebrating our two blonde daughters-in-law.

We discovered this wine from the winelist at Fiora Restaurant in Geneva during a lunch outing there last year during a pleasant summer afternoon outing. Interestingly, Sean now works out of an office nearby and walks past Fiora which lies between his office and the local trainstop on days he visits the office. 

 

At the time, I wrote about Davis Estate Hungry Blonde Carneros Chardonnay and how we liked it so much we went out and bought all the remaining inventory in local merchants, then special ordered more of this label, the then new vintage release.

"We love the distinctive taste profile of this full bodied, forward fruit filled Chardonnay. Jeb Dunnuck - jebdunnuck.com  said of the the 2015 release of this wine, "There's 2000 cases of the 2015 Chardonnay Hungry Blonde, and it's one seriously good Chardonnay.  It's the real deal and will keep for 5+ years. At 30 bucks it's a killer value." He gave it 94 points."

James Suckling gave the 2016 90 points. "A chardonnay with plenty of butter, apricot, flan and bread dough. There is good density to this and the acidity gives some form and clarity'"

Davis Estate Hungry Blonde Carneros Chardonnay 2016

Winemaker notes for the 2016, "Our Hungry Blonde Chardonnay is the perfect expression of cool-climate Napa Valley Chardonnay from the Carneros region. Inviting aromas of lemon zest and white flowers make way for waves of bosc pear, Tahitian vanilla, and baked apple tart. All held together with fresh acidity and a supple texture inviting another sip."

According to Wine Country Connection, Hungry Blonde is made by the well known Napa producer Cary Gott. The fruit comes from the Poe Vineyard, which sits adjacent to the world renowned Hyde Vineyard. Larry Hyde’s HDV Chardonnay, sells for $60.

 

Straw colored, full bodied, a rich concentrated buttery flavors that resemble butterscotch, notes of vanilla, oak and citrus fruits, stone fruit and white flowers. 

RM 91 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3289150

 

Continuing the theme for the occasion, we served this whimsically named Napa Cab, another fun tribute to our new daughter-in-law. 

 

The elegant upscale Fantesca packaging and branding features etched and painted weighty bottles each explaining the namesake Fantesca. 

 

The name of the winery comes from a character in the Italian comedy troupe that inspired Cirque Du Soleil. La Fantesca was the single female character in the early theatrical performances of Commedia dell’Arte. Both the lover and the equal of the protagonist, Harlequin, Fantesca could always be counted on to charm the audience. Owners, Duane and Susan Hoff write that "when we heard Fantesca described as ”Sexy, Smart, and Unpretentious,” we knew we had found a name worth living up to."'

 

We visited the Fantesca Estate & Winery during our Napa Valley Spring Mountain Experience in the autumn of 2009, and earlier during our Napa Wine Experience 2007.

 

We first met owner/producer Dwayne Hoff when we hosted him in our home during his promotion tour to Chicago shortly after acquiring the Spring Mountain Estate. 

 

 

Fantesca Estate and Winery, Spring Mountain District Cabernet Sauvignon 2004.

Fantesca Napa Valley,
Spring Mtn Cabernet Sauvignon
Etched glass, painted bottle.
(2006 shown)

Medium-full bodied, dark garnet color; complex but smooth and polished with bright forward fruits of black currant, dark berry and cherry, accented by sweet dark chocolate, a hint of cassis, and a tone of spice on the lingering refined tannin finish.

RM 91 points.

As always, this was the blockbuster hit of the evening, a great complement to grilled beef tenderloin steaks.

http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=355836

http://www.fantesca.com

 

@FantescaWine -  https://twitter.com/FantescaWine