Plumpjack Reserve Napa Chardonnay at Entourage Restaurant Naperville

Plumpjack Reserve Napa Chardonnay 2022 at Entourage Restaurant Naperville 

Son Alec & d-in-law Vivianna gave us a gift card to their latest favorite restaurant Entourage in Naperville, IL. It turns out Alec discovered the GM and Principle of the restaurant is a college buddy of one of his best buds from NYC, AJ, who has been to our home several times for wine and dinners. Hence, we were eager to try their restaurant find, which they highly recommended. 

Entourage features craftfully dry-aged cuts of beef, seafood, sandwiches, and small plate dishes. The founders opened a similar Entourage restaurant in suburban Schaumburg, IL in 2006 that was named “Restaurant of the Year” by a Chicago magazine, and neighboring Vai’s Italian Kitchen which earned best Italian restaurant honors two years in a row.

There is seating in and adjacent the lively bar, and a dining room to the rear with a couple booths, cushioned bench and table seating.

We decided on two seafood dishes for our entrees and hence ordered a bottle of Napa Valley Chardonnay as an accompaniment.

For a starter we had the Roasted Beets and Whipped Goat Cheese Salad with Arugula, Baby Gem, Spicy Pecans, Hot Honey, Blood Orange Vinaigrette and Fennel. Linda loved it but I found the whipped goat cheese uninspiring.

I chose the Branzino based on my favor for Meuniére sauce and for whipped potatoes. It too was uninspiring, okay but not great, a bit bland, perhaps because it was served less than hot. 

Linda ordered the Miso Marinated Chilean Seabass with Broccolini, Charred Peppers, Shiitake Mushrooms with Black Truffle Risotto, Yuzu and Sake Butter Sauce. This was extraordinary, delicious in all respects, the fish artfully prepared and served hot, and the Black Truffle Risoto was spectacular. I tried it and loved the Charred Peppers accent which Linda found slightly offputting to the dish. 

The Wood Grilled Branzino Meuniére was served with Yukon Pommes Puree, Baby Tomatoes, Artichoke Brussel Sprouts, Basil and Lemon Caper Sauce.

Entourage service was super, attentive and professional throughout the evening.   

The Entourage winelist offers a thoughtfully and carefully selected winelist of fifteen White wines and 30+ Reds, half of those BTG - By-The-Glass. It is mostly from the US but also offers some selections from Australia, Italy, France and some reds from Spain and whites from Germany.  Five Chardonnays were on offer in a range of five price points.

It includes several notable and some favorite producers including Darioush, Long Shadows, Shafer, (Cabernets), Domaine Drouhin, Foxen and Brave (Pinots), Rombauer, Fontanafredda Barolo, Anaperenna Barossa Shiraz, and Chateau LaNerthe Côtes-du-Rhône (Rose).

Despite our serious disdain for and distrust of the despicable owner producer, hypocrite politician, we order the Plumpjack Reserve Napa Chardonnay, putting politics aside for the evening to enjoy our wine dinner outing.

Plumpjack Reserve Napa Valley Chardonnay 2022

Plumpjack Estate Vineyards and Winery sits on the east end of Oakville Cross Road, just off the Silverado Trail, in southern Napa Valley. It used to be one of our favorite producers and sites to visit in Napa Valley before their ownership became so political, and regretably so radical and divisive. 

We visited the winery several times over the years and hosted their winemaker for a special dinner back in the early 90's. Over the years we acquired an extensive collection of Plumpjack Estate Napa Cabernets, some Merlots and Syrahs, including several vintages of their Cabernet Reserve offering dating back to 1995 through 1997. 

Some of these visits were chronicled in these pages's blogposts - 

Plumpjack Napa Valley Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon

Plumpjack Founders Reserve Cabernet

I mentioned our cellar collection of Plumpjack vintages during our last visit there during a private tasting and they eagerly tried to supplement our collection of those vintages from their library, but at $500 to $700 per bottle, we politely passed. 

We first visited Plumpjack in its earliest days at the PlumpJack Wine Store on Fillmore Street in San Francisco, opened in 1992 by partners that included former San Francisco mayor and current Governor of California, Gavin Newsom, and some of his benefactor supporters. 

Over the years the investment group backing Newsome as their high profile figurehead lead has amassed a collection of premier Napa Valley properties and brands including PlumpJack Estate Winery, CADE Estate Winery, Odette Estate Winery and 13th Vineyard.

They also own and operate the rustic PlumpJack Inn boutique hotel set in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in North Lake Tahoe, and several restaurants including Balboa Cafe in San Francisco, PlumpJack Cafe in Olympic Valley, Wildhawk, a neighborhood bar in San Francisco’s Mission district, and White Rabbit neighborhood bar in the Marina district.

The PlumpJack Winery sits in the heart of Napa Valley's renowned Oakville appellation, surrounded by the 42-acre estate vineyard. Both the winery building and the vineyard date back to the 1800s. The east  boundary of their vineyard lies along the foothills of the Vaca mountain range and yields grapes with the kind of bold fruit character that comes from well-drained hillside soils. To the west, their estate lies in the Napa River flood zone, where the vines take root in rich, deep clay soil yielding grapes with softer, more supple varietal character. From their oldest, rockiest section, the "I" Block, they source their Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, of which we hold a half dozen bottles from several aged vintages.

Plumpjack Reserve Napa Valley Chardonnay 2022

This Chardonnay is sourced from grapes grown in two vineyards in Napa Valley – one in the southern Napa Los Carneros appellation near San Pablo Bay, and another in St. Helena in the Central Valley. Just 30 miles apart, Los Carneros can be 10-15° cooler than St. Helena. Due to this difference and other important differences, such as soil type, these two vineyard sites vary significantly in character and expression. When blended, these differences in expression add layer upon layer of flavor to the nose and palate, creating a beautiful and complex Chardonnay.

Winemaker's notes - The 2022 PlumpJack Reserve Chardonnay is a gorgeous, multi-faceted wine. The nose delivers layers of aromas—apple, baked pear, and lemon curd mingle with white peach, apricot, and honeysuckle with a dash of nutmeg and cinnamon just beneath the fruit. The palate is energetic and dynamic, beginning with a rich, mouth-filling texture reminiscent of lemon curd, followed by bright acidity that evokes lemon zest and honey-crisp apples. Finally, the beautiful acidity pulls the wine through the back of the palate, creating a long, structured finish. 

Light straw colored, light medium bodied, crisp, tangy citrus with notes of apple and pear with bright acidity on the lingering finish. 

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4703905

https://plumpjackwinery.com/

We look forward to returning to Entourage, next time to try to Indiana Farm Raised beef with some favorite red wine (s). 

https://entouragerestaurant.com/

Lunch at Eataly during Gala Wedding Weekend Chicago

Gala Wedding Chicago Weekend Getaway - Lunch at Eataly Chicago 

We had a momentus getaway weekend to Chicago to attend the gala wedding celebration of longtime dear Hoosier friends Dennis and Bev M's daughter Megan at the iconic Intercontinental Hotel on Grand Michigan Avenue Magnificent Mile.

The ceremony was held in King Arthur's Court hall that was originally the historic Medinah Men's Athletic Club, back during the Roaring 20's, when it was the club's private smoking lounge. It features Edwardian wood paneling and an illuminated stain glassed wall and hand painted ceiling panels, overlooking Chicago's Michigan Avenue Miracle Mile. 

The reception celebration was held in the magnificent Renaissance ballroom on the 5th floor featuring ornate French King Louis XVI design, 22-foot ceilings with intricate hand-painted beams, crystal chandeliers, and ornate wood and stone carvings, dinner and dancing, with views spanning up and down the Magnificent Mile. 

The wedding festivities spanned Friday evening through to Sunday noon brunch in the Tower Suite. 

On Saturday afternoon, we trekked over and lunched at Eataly Chicago, one of our favorites and most vibrant high energy experiences in Chicago, with all things Italian - wine, eateries, restaurants, market, - dining, fooding and shopping.

The name Eataly is a fusion of Eat and Italy for “Eating Italian” which encompasses the history and the food culture of Italy and all aspects of its cuisine.The first Eataly opened in Torino, Italy, in an old vermouth factory in 2007, and has since expanded to more than 35 locations throughout Italy and the world.

Explore All Eataly Locations

While it may be a shadow of the original US Eataly on 23rd Street in the Flatiron neighborhood in New York, Eataly Chicago is a fun adventure and one of our favorite lunches in Chicago, almost, but not as much so as Eataly Flatiron NY.

Eataly is an Italian marketplace that features an array of several dining options, cafes, counters, restaurants, wine bars, a wine shop with over 1,200 labels, a cheese shop, Pasta Pantry, Bakery, Italian Ice, chocolates, meat and fish markets, Italian specialties of all kinds, private events space, even a cooking school.

We dined in the main restaurant and ordered a Kale salad, an Italian Meatball starter and Brinzano fresh fish entree, with accompanying selection of WBTG, wines by the glass. 

The Veal and Pork Meatball dish with red sauce and cheese, was the most succulent and flavorful I've every had, which we paired with a Chianti Classico Corleone Sangiovese.

 

 

We had the Brinzano white fish whole and it was succulent, served minimalist style with a side dish of baked then fried potatoes that were also delicious. 

 

With the fish course we tasted by the glass the Montenidoli Vernaccia Di San Gimignano 2020

We had this Chianti Classico Tuscan Sanviovese with the meatballs. 

Tenuta di Carleone, Chianti, Classico, Tuscany, Sangiovese 2019

Tenuta Carleone di Castiglioni dates back to the year 1078 when monks first founded it in Chianti, named for the village of Castiglioni meaning “small castle.” Consequently the winery “Tenuta Carleone di Castiglioni” named after the small village of “Castiglioni” (small castle). The property located in the heart of the Chianti region is covered with wooded hills, vineyards planted to the native varietal Sangiovese vines and olive trees. It was operated as a farm over the centuries, not developed as a winery until Tenuta di Carleone was established in 2012.

Austrian entrepeneur Karl Egger and his family had been visiting the region of Tuscany for decades and were most fond of the small corner, just outside the medieval town of Radda in Chianti between the cities of Siena and Florence.

Karl and his sister Kristine Egger began to restore the ruins of the old Castiglioni castle, just outside of Radda in 2012. They farm the estate that consists of just under 50 acres of small plots nestled among wooded hills, small streams and aged olive trees. The whole property, which covers an area of approximately 240 acres, comprises of wooded hills, small rivers and fertile plains. Nestled in between there are around 50 acres of mainly Sangiovese vineyards and some olive trees, some of them older than 60 years. 

The Egger Family has renovated the beautiful “Castiglioni” hamlet with its old chapel and the nearby farmhouse of “Pian Vecchio”. Some vines were planted in the 1970’s, with others more recently established or replanted. There is also a typical tuscan farmhouse called “Pian Vecchio” (old plain) on this land, where the family recently planted some white

They teamed up with winemaker Sean O’Callaghan in 2012 to operate the winery. Sean moved to Chianti in 1991 after studying winemaking in Germany. He was head winemaker at a renowned estate for 25 years and upon leaving, joined Eggers to pursue his dream at Tenuta di Carleone. Although not a native, Sean has a special affinity with the Sangiovese grape and a unique knowledge and understanding of the region.

He makes Sangiovese in the classic way, with nothing added to the wine, grappa, or cold-pressed olive oils. They produce several labels of estate grown Sangiovese, Il Guercio, Uno, Chianti Classico, and a classic Sangiovese grappa named “Zero.”

They produce the wine in two garages while they are currently renovating an old terra cotta factory to serve as the new cantina. Sean strive as winemaker to producing Sangiovese based wines that are a balance between structure and fruit. 

Tenuta di Carleone, Chianti, Classico, Tuscany, Sangiovese 2019

Winemakers' Tasting Notes: "The Carleone Chianti Classico is a notably fresh take, with red fruit on the nose and palate, notes of red cherry and strawberry. Nice grip with finely textured tannins for excellent drinkability."

“The Winery is right in the middle of Chianti Classico, within the original borders of the Chianti Storico. So we decided to honour the area and make a 100% Sangiovese that expresses our little corner of Radda in Chianti”.

Bright Ruby colored, medium bodied, expressive, polished, raspberry, plum & cherry red fruits with notes of herbs, tobacco and spice with nice acidity and soft smooth tannins on a moderate finish. 

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4126669

http://winery.tenutadicarleone.com/

 

Montenidoli Tradizionale Vernaccia Di San Gimignano 2020 

The estate dates back to Roman times, located just outside of the famed tower city of San Gimignano on the western border of the Chianti zone in Tuscany. The house of Montenidoli was first built by the Etuscans who planted olive trees and the rootstock of their early vines.

Montenidoli Tradizionale
Vernaccia Di San
Gimignano 2020

The Montenidoli estate consists of 500 acres of woods on the hill overlooking San Gimignano, in front of the Chianti Classico, between Florence and Siena. Elisabetta and her husband bought the property in the 60’s, renovating it from its abandoned state. 

When they arrived, in 1965, the land was abandoned and the woods had taken over the fields, the olive trees were running wild, the vines were covered by the bushes. They set upon restoring the property from the soil to the vines. They pruned only in winter when the vegetation was dormant and returned all the cuttings to the ground, fermented to make a compost to go back to fertilize the plants. 

This label is 100% grape varietal cultivated and produced in accordance with Vernaccia di San Gimignano DOCG appellation rules. It is called “Tradizionale,” a throwback to the old methods of vinifying Vernaccia, which were done like a red wine. 

Winemaker notes: "Not only is this Vernaccia mineral-forward and complex, the skin contact it undergoes imparts texture, concentration, and body." 

"A classic Tuscan white, structured though delicate and elegant white.  It has aromas of hay, white pepper and almond, the palate is medium bodied with notes of citrus, dried herbs, a slight nuttiness and great minerality."

Straw colored, medium light bodied, hints of delicate pear and citrus with stone fruit, hints of almond nut and white pepper on a crisp mineral finish.

RM 89 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4073052

https://www.montenidoli.com/tradizionale-vernaccia-di-san-gimignano-docg-dry-white-wine/

https://www.montenidoli.com/

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