Jayson Napa Valley Chardonnay BYOB at Captain Dave’s Destin

Jayson Napa Valley Chardonnay BYOB at Captain Dave’s Destin 

With visiting friends Eric, Cathy, Pat & Rodger, we dined at Captain Dave’s On The Gulf Seafood Restaurant in Destin, FL., a short walk from The Cove, our Destin vacation rental. 

Captain Dave’s On The Gulf is the oldest seafood restaurant in Destin, family owned and operated since 1968. It offers beach front views from the spacious high ceiling dining room overlooking the gulf. 

They feature the usual appetizers, soups, salads and sides. Their speciality is American seafood cuisine infused with a ‘contemporary Gulf Coast twist’. - the local fresh catch seafood dishes - Flounder, Grouper, Mahi Mahi, Snapper and Refish as well as shrimp, lobster and salmon as well as steaks and chicken dishes. 

“Captain Dave’s Faves” signature dishes are artfully prepared with imaginative preparations featuring their signature homemade sauces such as their Parmesan Italian Cream Sauce. Our veteran server provided prompt attentive gracious and friendly service. 

I enjoyed their Mahi Mahi with Parmesan Cream sauce last month and was eager to have it again, and, based on my raving about the entree, several of us ordered it as well. Everyone loved it, although, beware, the Parmesan crème sauce is rich and filling. 

I took from our cellar, BYOB, this Carneros Chardonnay for pairing with the fresh seafood dinners. With two attorneys at the table, it was whimsical and fitting that I selected a wine from an attorney turned wine producer. 

I wrote about this producer and label in detail in a blogpost back in 2023, Pahlmeyer Jayson Napa Chardonnay with Grilled Salmon, excerpted here:

We have several bottles in this collection so I pulled this, the oldest vintage to consume as part of cellar management..  

Jayson Pahlmeyer was a successful trial attorney who started becoming hooked by the wine industry and slowly phased out his law practice in pursuit of developing his own wines. He partnered with John Caldwell, owner of a 55-acre site in south-east Napa Valley. Together, they began planting French clones of red Bordeaux varieties.

“All I wanted to do was to create my own ‘California Mouton’ – a rich, powerful Napa Valley Bordeaux blend, a wine that would drop wine lovers to their knees,” says Jayson Pahlmeyer.

He made several trips to France to find some of the highest quality Bordeaux varietal clones, seeking assistance over several years from viti-cultural professors at the University of Bordeaux who analyzed the soil samples, exposure, rainfall and temperature data from Napa. 

Jayson and his partner were able to acquire Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec vines and managed to smuggle their “suitcase clones” through Canada and then took them back to California where he planted his own vineyard.

“My closest advisors, Helen Turley and John Wetlaufer told me ‘If you want to be a first-growth, you have to have your own vineyards,’” says Jayson Pahlmeyer. “I found this property in the eastern hills of Napa Valley that was owned by the Waters family - an incredible parcel with views to the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco skyline. John did the soil analysis, David Abreu studied the terrain, and speaking for all of them, Helen proclaimed it ‘paradisal’. It was rocky, desolate, low vigor, with good drainage. Perfect for growing Bordeaux varieties.

“I hired David Abreu to develop it, and Helen and Erin Green, Helen’s protégé and our longtime winemaker, selected the clones, which included those smuggled from Bordeaux that I had been using since my 1986 vintage.”

Planted in 1981, the French cuttings slowly adjusted. Pahlmeyer Wine released their first vintage in 1986 with the help of Randy Dunn, one of California’s foremost winemakers, the Pahlmeyer Proprietary Red was made and launched.

Helen Turley took over winemaking in 1993 and further improved the quality and consistency of Pahlmeyer wines. They started producing wine at the Napa Wine Co in 1994 soon after Napa Wine Co underwent a huge renovation to accommodate production from wineries who do not actually have their own physical winery at the time. 

Jayson’s daughter Cleo joined the team in 2008.

Today, the winemaker is Bibiana Gonzalez Rave. She received her oenology degree from the University of Bordeaux and has worked at estates in Bordeaux, the Rhone Valley, Santa Barbara County, Sonoma Valley and other locations in addition to Napa Valley. She was named Winemaker of the Year for 2015 by the San Francisco Chronicle.

Jason Pahlmeyer understood that making wines with exceptional concentration, complexity, and ageability required venturing to extremes. That’s what drew him to the rugged parcel of vines on the ridgeline of Atlas Peak that would become his iconic estate vineyard. 

 

The Pahlmeyer estate vineyards include Water’s Ranch, Stagecoach, and Antica parcels, that all sit above 1,400 feet elevation where they benefit from three more hours of sunshine per day compared to lower altitudes that are often cloaked in morning fog. This additional sunlight ensures the berries achieve a deep, rich color and complex flavor compounds. 

 

Location, map and technical information for Pahlmeyer Estate Vineyard.

We love Pahlmeyer wines and have served special large format bottles of our son's birthyear vintage bottles at his wedding celebration and birthday dinners as posted in these pages -  

Pahlmeyer Caldwell Vineyard Napa Valley Red Blend 1990, and,

Wedding Wines - Birthyear and Big Bottle Extravaganza Continues.

Pahlmeyer "Jayson" Napa Valley Chardonnay 2017

Over the years, the portfolio grew to also include the "Jayson" brand that includes several reds, and a Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc wines that sourced from lower elevation vineyard sites including some on the valley floor and in the Carneros region at the lower end of Napa Valley near San Pablo Bay. 

With daytime temperatures averaging 5-10 F cooler, our mountain vines respire less acidity to produce energy; the acidity retained in the grapes results in greater freshness and balance in the wines. Cooler temperatures also prolong the growing season, allowing the clusters to hang longer on the vine and achieve optimal flavor development. The Pahlmeyer Rancho Chimiles parcel, while slightly lower in elevation, sits close to the San Pablo Bay and enjoys cooling afternoon breezes that moderate temperature.

Tonight this big bold rich Jayson Chardonnay was ideal with our grilled mahi mahi and grouper dinners. 

Ironically, the week of that earlier blogpost, Pahlmeyer Twitter ('X') site features their Chardonnay harvest. 

 

This wine is a marriage of three distinctive Napa Valley regions: bright, elegant Carneros hillside; and rich, ripe St. Helena valley floor; with intense mountain fruit at its core. 

This was vinted by Winemaker Bibiana González Rave and blended by Jennifer Williams

Winemaker Notes - “This wine has brilliant golden straw color and aromas of warm spice, tangerine, and sweet orange; intriguing tropical floral notes carry over onto the palate. Flavors of ripe pear, apricot, and mango peel are accented by warm spice and rich caramel, for a wine that is both weighty and fresh.’

“The grapes were hand-sorted and gently whole-cluster pressed. After settling overnight, the juice was fermented in barrel, including 100% malolactic fermentation. The wine was aged in 35% new French oak barrels for eleven months.”

At eight years of age, the fill level, label, foil and most importantly the cork were all ideal. This was likely at the end of its prime drinking window, not likely to improve, but rather likely to start to diminish going forward, so it was time to drink. 

 

Similar to earlier tasting notes for this label, this was deep golden colored, medium full bodied, rich full bold apple and tropical and stone fruit flavors with hints of pineapple with a rich layer of vanilla and caramel/butterscotch with accents of oak, grapefruit and minerality on a roasted nut finish acidic finish. 

 

RM 91 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3105647

https://www.pahlmeyer.com/vintage/2017-jayson-chardonnay/

https://www.pahlmeyer.com/

https://twitter.com/Pahlmeyer

https://www.captdavesonthegulf.com/

Louisiana Lagniappe Destin Waterfront Dining Seafood Dinner

Louisiana Lagniappe Destin Waterfront Dining Seafood Dinner 

Our last night hosting Linda’s lady friends at The Cove, our Destin, FL vacation rental home, we took them to LOUISIANA LAGNIAPPE for dinner. Louisiana Lagniappe is a Destin institution since 1984 known for Gulf seafood with a Creole flair.  The upscale restaurant offers waterfront dining at the end of Destin Harbor. 

They also offer beachfront dining ant their two sister restaurants The Back Porch, and our favored Pompano Joes a beach walk from our vacation home. We regularly walk the beach to Pompano Joe’s for dinner or for their Happy Hour Signature PJ’s Punch. Shown below is our kids/grandkids there.

Among the hundreds of restaurants in Destin, Lagniappe is consistently ranked in the Top 10 restaurants on TripAdvisor and wins the Award of Excellence every year.  

The extensive Lagniappe menu features steaks but focuses on fresh seafood with a broad selection of “Chef’s Selections” and “Lagniappe Favorites”.

Lagniappe Chefs Selections include:

GROUPER PONTCHARTRAIN - Fresh Gulf Grouper, pan sautéed and topped with fried jumbo soft-shell crab, hollandaise sauce and honey roasted nuts 

TOURNEDOS OF BEEF - Medallions of Certified Angus Beef Filet Mignon topped with sautéed jumbo lump crab meat and shrimp and finished with béarnaise sauce

BAYOU GROUPER - Fresh Gulf Grouper, pan sautéed, topped with jumbo lump crabmeat and jumbo shrimp, then finished with meuniere sauce 

SHRIMP & GRITS - Jumbo Gulf Shrimp tossed in a smoked tasso ham cream sauce served over stone-ground cheese grits

BLACKENED REDFISH - Fresh filet of Redfish, blackened then topped with jumbo lump crabmeat, medallions of lobster and both hollandaise and garlic-beurre blanc sauce 

TWIN LOBSTER TAILS - Two Maine Lobster tails cooked to perfection

GROUPER CREVETTES - Fresh Gulf Grouper, pan sautéed and topped with grilled jumbo shrimp and hollandaise sauce

CHARGRILLED YELLOWFIN TUNA - Fresh Yellowfin Tuna topped with jumbo lump crabmeat and hollandaise sauce

BLACKENED SHRIMP OR SCALLOPS - Your choice of blackened jumbo shrimp or blackened bay scallops served with a pineapple-rum butter sauce, and 

SEAFOOD LAGNIAPPE - Gulf Grouper, sautéed and topped with medallions of lobster, hollandaise sauce and a light garlic-beurre blanc 

The Lagniappe Favorites include:

SNAPPER DESTIN - Gulf Snapper, stuffed with jumbo lump crabmeat, rice and cream cheese 

BARBECUE JUMBO SHRIMP - Peeled, spicy New Orleans style barbecue shrimp

JAMBALAYA - Chicken, sausage and shrimp cooked together with rice in a rich tomato sauce 

GROUPER LOUISIANNE SAUTÉED OR GRILLED - Fresh jumbo lump crabmeat in a seasoned butter atop a fresh fillet of Gulf Grouper 

GROUPER ALMONDINE - Fresh Gulf Grouper, pan sautéed and topped with toasted almonds and lemon butter

LAGNIAPPE STUFFED SHRIMP - Fresh jumbo shrimp topped with our shrimp and jumbo lump crabmeat stuffing

GROUPER MEUNIERE - Fresh Gulf Grouper, pan sautéed and finished with meuniere sauce

GROUPER PECAN - Fresh Gulf Grouper, pan sautéed and topped with toasted pecans and meuniere sauce

OYSTERS LAGNIAPPE - Baked with Lagniappe stuffing and jumbo lump crabmeat

CRESCENT CITY FETTUCCINE - Jumbo shrimp tossed in a smoked tasso ham cream sauce with fettuccine, finished with Parmesan Romano cheese

For our dinner we all selected variations of the Grouper selections … all were delicious, perfectly prepared, served hot, and included their signature twice baked potatoe and vegetable, along with their signature hush puppies starter.  

BAYOU GROUPER - Fresh Gulf Grouper, pan sautéed, topped with jumbo lump crabmeat and jumbo shrimp, then finished with meuniere sauce

Sonoma Cutrer Chardonnay 2023

From the basic fundamental wine list, we ordered this standard pleasant drinking Chardonnay. Sonoma Cutrer are consistently recognized for good value Chardonnay. 

This was ideal for pleasant easy sipping pairing with our fresh seafood.  

Wine Spectator-California - Sonoma County - "Appealing for its seamlessness and texture, this white is creamy and supple, with lemon meringue pie, shortbread and peach notes at the core on an elegant frame. Accents of lemon zest and wildflower honey linger on the finish..."

https://www.sonomacutrer.com/

https://www.thelouisianalagniappe.com/destin-menu

Far Niente Chardonnay highlights seafood dinner at Hugo's Frogbar Naperville

Far Niente Chardonnay highlights seafood dinner at Hugo's Frogbar Naperville - Pan Seared Walleye rivals favorite memorable fresh seafood dishes - a retrospective ...

We joined son Ryan and his family for his birthday celebration dinner. at Hugo's Frogbar in Naperville (IL). 

Hugo’s Frog Bar & Fish House (Chicago) opened its doors in February 1997 in the heart of Chicago’s Gold Coast neighborhood, next to sister restaurant Gibsons Bar & Steakhouse. Since its founding in 1989 the iconic Gibson's Bar & Steakhouse on Rush Street has been the flagship of what has become the Gibson's Restaurant Group. 

Over the years the Gibson's Restaurant Group portfolio has grown - today they own and operate several distinguished concept restaurants throughout Chicagoland and beyond: Gibsons Bar & Steakhouse, Hugo’s Frog Bar & Fish House (three locations including downtown and Naperville), LUXBAR, Quartino Ristorante & Wine Bar, Gibsons Italia, The BOATHOUSE Orlando, Hugo’s Frog Bar & Chop House (on behalf of Rivers Casino), Bazaar Meat Chicago, Bar Mar, Café By The River and Chi Sox Bar & Grill (on behalf of the Chicago White Sox).

For over 20 years, owners Hugo Ralli and Steve Lombardo have strived to become the city’s finest seafood restaurant, Hugo’s, as a destination for premier east and west coast oysters, crudos, frog legs, lobster and seasonal fish and shellfish.

Hugo’s seafood is delivered daily, earning The New York Times to praise “the fish could only be fresher if it swam in by itself.” 

Despite being in the middle of the country, it's not only possible, but customary, to get the daily fresh catch seafood here in numerous seafood restaurants. Notably, besides Hugo's, Chinn's in the northwest suburbs, one of the top 25 grossing restaurants in the US, posts the Bills of Lading airbills in the entrance showing all the fresh seafood flown in overnight from a half dozen or more coasts - Alaska, Hawaii, Florida, New England, Atlantic Coast, California, Seattle and so on. His nephew's seafood restaurant Chinn's Fishery Seafood, here in our hometown Lisle, IL did the same thing before closing at the height of the Covid shut-down.  As such, rather than getting the locale fresh catch from any one market, you have a broad selection from the fresh catch from a half dozen or more markets for a broad selection and variety. 

Over the years, I wrote about Chinn's and the daily specials sourced from around the world in numerous blogposts, that last one being Sunday, March 10, 2019 when I wrote, Nickle & Nickle Chardonnay for Chinns Seafood Dinner.

I was hesitant to feature and highlight the seafood at Hugo's, having had a bad experience there with the Hudson Valley scallops last year, but, tonight they redeemed themselves with a surefire winner with four out of four delectable seafood selections.  

Tonight, we had a broad selection of four fresh seafood selections for our entree choices - Walleye, Salmon, Crab and Sea Bass. Mine was a very pleasant surprise, exceeding my lofty expectations. 

I ordered the Pan Seared Walleye with Grilled Asparagus, Lemon Butter & Toasted Almonds.

I chose this dish, hoping it might be in the meunière style that is my favorite preparation. Many of my posts in these pages commemorate memorable dinners with delectable seafood and wine pairings. Forgive me as I obsess here, reliving several dinners featuring this preparation offering.

Notice the recurring theme of pairing these dishes with a full bodied round Napa Valley Chardonnay, an optimal wine and food pairing for enhancement of both.

My absolute favorite seafood selection was always Petrale Sole, or when available, the seasonally limited Sand Dabs, aka Rex Sole, with white wine, lemon butter meunière sauce. This is primarily only found in the San Francisco Bay and Monterey Bay central coast of California. 

For several years, I commuted regularly to Silicon Valley, during which time this was my go-to regular meal every trip - the best being from Scott's Seafood, adjacent our offices in Palo Alto. Second, was Scoma's in San Francisco on the wharf and across the bay in Sausalito.

Tonight's preparation reminded me of fond memories of that Petrale Sole served in with white wine, lemon butter meunière sauce, a delight and high praise, indeed.

My next favorite fresh seafood selection would be Dover Sole, prepared in a similar way. I have many great memories, and postings in these pages from Il Postino Ristorante Italiano in New York City and their Dover Sole preparation: June 19, 2018 - Cakebread Cellars Napa Chardonnay with Dover Sole at Il Postino NYC, and again ....  June 27, 2018 - Cakebread Cellars Napa Chardonnay with Dover Sole at Il Postino NYC, and again ... April 15, 2018 - Cakebread Cellars Napa Chardonnay at Il Postino NYC - a trifecta! 

And, Dover Sole here locally in Chicago - January 22, 2020 - Post UGCB Dinner with Dover Sole Rosebud Chicago; and again November 9, 2022 - California 2013 Duo BYOB with Dover Sole at Vistro Hinsdale.

Finally, I would say my near favorite seafood dish is Flounder, and once again one of my favorite and memorable eateries for such is in New York - October 24, 2019 - Eataly NYC Flounder Seafood Dinner, and October 23, 2016 -Eataly New York Wine Dine Options.

 

And, another favorite local east coast eatery where we were somewhat regulars over the years -January 28, 2020 - Pouilly-Fuisse, Chiles Valley Cabernet with Sautéed Flounder Francaise at Idylwild Grill in Falls Church, VA.

So it was, tonight's Pan Seared Walleye was reminiscent of those earlier memorable dinners.

As a starter we shared the Beet Salad - Golden & Red Beets, Spring Mix, Shaved Fennel, Orange Segments, Goat Cheese, Candied Hazlenuts with Citrus Vinaigrette.

Our other entree selections - 

Jumbo Lump Crab Cake - a small portion as she ordered the appetizer rather than the larger portion entree.

Pan Roasted Miso Marinated Chilean Sea Bass - Wild mushrooms, sweet peas, & soy reduction

Grilled Faroe Island Salmon - Roasted Sweet Potato Hash, Spinach, & Bacon Jam

For our wine pairing we had a premium Napa Valley Chardonnay, from the same producer that we had just the other evening. 

Far Niente Napa Valley Coombsville Estate Chardonnay 2020

Just the other evening we had at home from our cellar, the Nickel & Nickel Napa Valley Truchard Vineyard Chardonnay, from their single vineyard designated portfolio of labels. Tonight's selection is the flagship, estate bottled appellation bottling from the 'parent' winery producer Far Niente.

Far Niente is one of Napa Valley’s most historic wineries, founded in 1885 by John Benson. It closed during the Prohibition era in 1919. Sixty years later, the property was bought and restored by Gil Nickle who released the first vintage of Far Niente wine in the modern era in 1979 - this estate-bottled Napa Valley Chardonnay. It has been a namesake to the winery for over four decades ever since.

The grapes are grown in the Coombsville AVA, known for its more temperate climate and volcanic ash soils that give Far Niente’s Chardonnay its signature stone and tropical fruit flavors with a crushed rock minerality. The wine does not go through malolactic fermentation in the production process, which preserves the crisper malic acid, providing extra freshness on the palate and extending the wine’s longevity for years of drinking pleasure.

Far Niente Chardonnay is a blend of several superior Napa Valley estate (producer owned) vineyards located in Coombsville, down at the bottom of the valley, a cooler growing region nestled in the rolling countryside and protected by the hills east of the city of Napa. 

Coombsville offers the characteristic climate of Carneros, with less wind, along with deeper, well-drained gravelly loam and volcanic ash soils. The combination of these spectacular vineyards results in the subtle, tropical flavors, complex aromas and uncommon richness that have long been associated with Far Niente Chardonnay.

This is a marriage of fruit from the cooler, bay-influenced vineyards in southern Napa Valley, crafted to combine fragrant citrus blossom aromatics, rich fruit flavors and a silky finish to every occasion.

Winemaker notes - "Richly aromatic with notes of white fig, and citrus blossom, this captivating Chardonnay slowly builds on the palate, progressing from silky notes of honeydew, nectarine and lemon zest to a full finish supported by elegant, toasted oak. Crisp minerality and juicy acidity lift and support the generous fruit and provide the framework for graceful aging. This wine will continue to gain richness and complexity in the bottle and glass."

Pale straw colored, medium bodied, complex expressive rich sprites of minerality, acidity and hazelnut overshadow the subdued honeydew fruit notes. 

RM 90 points. 

This release was awarded 91 Points by Wine Advocate.  

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=4070961

https://farniente.com/

https://twitter.com/farnientewinery

https://www.hugosfrogbar.com/

https://twitter.com/HugosFrog

https://twitter.com/unwindwine