Napa Valley December 2025 Dave Del Dotto, Mark Carter, and Russell Bevan

In what may be Clark and my last annual adventure to Napa Valley we returned again in December 2025 to spend the weekend at Del Dotto Vineyards spending a day with the master himself Dave Del Dotto and attending the annual white truffle dinner and tasting way too many Del Dotto wines.  Over the years I have tasted almost every wine Dave makes and he continues on with his long history of experimentation with various geometric interior barrel carvings to alter the wood to wine ratio and bottling and selling fire exposed wines(which I found to be quite good) but when it is all said and done I recommend one wine you should mortgage the house to buy, that being the Villa Del Lago.  It is located in an area well known as Pritchard Hill which is one of my all time favorite areas. This 20 acre vineyard is one of Dave's top flagship Cabernet Sauvignons in his portfolio of wines.

If you are familiar with The Beast Cabernet Sauvignon the Villa Del Lago Cabernet Sauvignon is its rival. It is slightly softer than The Beast which is why it is called “The Beauty”. This wine is incredibly concentrated but compared to the Beast would be described as more feminine and fruit forward. This vineyard produces wines that are elegant but have a massive mouth feel and show the concentration of a true pedigreed, world class Cabernet. The fact that the wine can be drank now or for the next 20+ years is truly the “Del Dotto” style created by the philosophies of the family. I highly recommend it.

Mark Carter Wines

Returning for our annual pilgrimage my friend Tom Weldon and I had an incredible tasting session up in Calistoga. Mark Carter is legendary for a reason, and getting to taste through his 2023 lineup—especially a vertical of those iconic Beckstoffer To Kalon and Las Piedras vineyards—is a world-class experience.

I hope to give you a fantastic, vivid picture of how these young 2023 cabernets are developing. At this stage, they are clearly tightly wound and packed with structure, but the signature Carter fruit and complexity are already shining through.

Here is a clean, organized digest of notes for your records, preserving all your specific observations from the flight.

Carter Cellars 2023 Tasting Digest

Tasters: Ross & Tom

Winemaker: Mark Carter

Location: Calistoga, Napa Valley

1. 2023 Carter Cellars "The Hayes" Cabernet Sauvignon

• Source: Multi-vineyard Napa Valley blend (including the heart of Oakville).

• Profile: Very dark color. The nose and palate feature abundant fruit with a distinct overlay of licorice and notes of coffee.

• Structure: Tart, tight, and very young, but highly balanced. Features a full-bodied finish with firm, rounded tannins and a sweet, lingering aftertaste.

• Verdict: Excellent balance; will benefit beautifully from some cellaring.

2. 2023 Carter Cellars "Carter" Cabernet Sauvignon

• Source: Low-production, 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from hand-selected fruit.

• Profile: Bursting purple color. Pronounced nose. Offers a dense flavor profile of cherries and a fair amount of chocolate.

• Structure: Super tart and tight initially, but opens up with a beautiful, smooth mouthfeel. Highly fruit-forward with an excellent balance of acidity and tannins.

• Verdict: Highly recommended. The high acid-to-tannin balance makes this a fantastic food wine.

3. 2023 Carter Cellars Beckstoffer Las Piedras "La BAM" Cabernet Sauvignon

• Source: Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard.

• Profile: Deep cherry, sweet, and highly complex nose. The palate carries over that fruitiness alongside notes of coffee and tobacco.

• Structure: Super tight, tart, and young. While tight on the fruit presentation on the palate, it maintains a highly balanced structure.

• Verdict: A very nice, highly complex young wine.

4. 2023 Carter Cellars Beckstoffer Las Piedras Cabernet Sauvignon

• Source: Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard.

• Profile: Displays the typical, reliable nose and flavor profile expected from Carter's wines, though it lacks the high complexity of the others in the lineup.

• Structure: Less bold than its peers; approachable.

• Verdict: A great, high-quality choice for everyday drinking.

5. 2023 Carter Cellars Beckstoffer To Kalon "The Grand Daddy" Cabernet Sauvignon

• Source: Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard.

• Profile: Outstanding complexity. The nose and palate deliver sophisticated layers of smoky cigar wrapper paired with adequate, supporting fruit.

• Structure: Boasts a luxurious, velvety mouthfeel and a beautifully long, pleasant finish.

• Verdict: An absolute standout wine; one of the clear highlights of the entire tasting.

6. 2023 Carter Cellars Beckstoffer To Kalon "The Fred" Cabernet Sauvignon

• Source: Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard.

• Profile: Pretty, dark black color with a lovely fruity nose. The palate features a highly complex fruit profile.

• Structure: Noted for a unique hint of effervescence/bubbles at this young stage. Shows excellent, seamless integration of acidity and tannins.

• Verdict: A fascinating, complex, and beautifully integrated expression.

7. 2023 Carter Cellars Beckstoffer To Kalon "The OG" Cabernet Sauvignon

• Source: Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard.

• Profile: Super black appearance. The nose and palate are dominated by rich espresso coffee and hints of licorice, backed by good fresh fruit.

• Structure: Soft, velvety, and full mouthfeel. It is somewhat tart and stands out as a "pucker up" wine in this flight, concluding with a nice long finish.

• Verdict: Very tasty and vibrant with great fresh fruit.

8. 2023 Carter Cellars Beckstoffer To Kalon "The GTO" Cabernet Sauvignon

• Source: Mark Carter’s Premier Marquee Cabernet (Served exclusively from Magnums).

• Profile: Not quite as dark in color as some of the other pours. The nose and palate feature distinct notes of licorice. Highly fruit-forward.

• Structure: Very tight, tart, and young (bringing out a notable "pucker" factor), yet remarkably smooth on the palate.

• Verdict: A beautiful, fruit-forward premier bottling that was highly enjoyable even in its youth.

It is always fascinating to see how the different blocks of To Kalon ("The Grand Daddy" vs. "The OG" vs. "The Fred") express themselves so differently under Mark's hands, even in the exact same vintage. Cheers to a great tasting!

Russell Bevan Tasting

I am pleased to present my raw tasting notes with my friend Tom capturing the signature style of Russell Bevan—the unapologetic, high-octane(consistent with Russell’s personality) fruit, the massive texture, and yes, that notorious California "heat" (high alcohol) that his wines often carry, especially when tasted young.

Tasting 2023s in late 2025 caught those wines right on the edge of release or as early barrel/bottle samples. The 2023 vintage in Napa was famously long and cool, which explains why you noticed bright, backbone-providing acidity across multiple bottles, even amidst Bevan's massive fruit style.

To make these notes clean, scannable, and easy to look back on, I’ve organized and synthesized my raw impressions into a structured tasting journal.

The Tasting Journal: Russell Bevan Lineup

The 2023 Vintage (Young Releases & Samples)

Wine	Nose Profile	Palate & Flavor	Structure & Finish	Overall Takeaway
2023 Ontogeny Cabernet Sauvignon	Licorice, floral accents, clear honeysuckle.	Fruit-forward, tart, but lacking a bit of core flavor.	Very balanced, not overly hot, but had some harsh edges. Average, less complex finish.	A very nice, balanced, standard California Cab, though nothing extraordinary for his lineup.
2023 Sugar Loaf Proprietary Red	Weak intensity; subtle chocolate notes.	Rich chocolate, deep cassis. Slightly hot.	Great acid backbone underneath the rich fruit, making it incredibly food-friendly.	Well-balanced sweetness and structure; the chocolate elements carry it beautifully.
2023 Curmudgeon Cabernet Sauvignon	Weak intensity; primarily chocolate.	Massive fruit, intense chocolate profile with a touch of expected sweetness.	Balanced overall, but simple. Lacked a deeper layer of complexity.	A fruit and chocolate showcase that is balanced but straightforward.
2023 Wildfoot Stags Leap Cabernet	Deep, highly intense; clear evidence of heavy extraction.	An absolute "fruit bomb" backed by distinct tobacco and cigar notes.	Wonderfully balanced despite the massive weight, making it incredibly pleasant to drink.	Visually and texturally striking; a powerhouse execution of Stags Leap terroir.

The 2018 Vintage (Aged Perspective)

2018 Sugarloaf Proprietary Red

• Visuals: Showing its age with distinct browning on the edges.

• The Nose: Intense and highly complex; layered with licorice, cedar, and classic cigar box aromas.

• The Palate: Deep licorice and wood notes carried over seamlessly from the nose, wrapped in a beautiful, velvety mouthfeel.

• The Caveat: The wine ran quite "hot" with noticeable alcohol. Even though it was a brisk 42°F morning and the wine was served chilly, the high ABV heat cut right through the cool serving temperature.

2018 Wildfoot Cabernet Sauvignon (Stags Leap District)

• Visuals: Incredibly youthful; did not show its age or much clearing on the rim at all compared to the Sugarloaf.

• The Nose & Palate: A massive, firing-on-all-cylinders "2+ fruit bomb." Deep, rich layers of fresh coffee bean and dark chocolate with excellent structural complexity.

• The Finish: Remarkably long and persistent.

• The Winner: The #1 preferred wine of the entire tasting. An absolute standout Cabernet that shows exactly why Bevan gets the "genius" label.

Three Fascinating Takeaways:

1. The Evolution of the Wildfoot vineyard. I tried to highlight the magic of the Wildfoot vineyard in Stags Leap. Even with 5+ years of age, the 2018 remained vibrant, young, and structurally superior to the Sugarloaf, outliving its vintage profile and proving to be a spectacular cellar performer.

2. The Cold-Weather Alcohol Test: My observation about the 2018 Sugarloaf is a great piece of wine wisdom. When a wine has a massive alcohol footprint, serving it cold can sometimes over-accentuate the burn rather than hide it, because the fruit mask shrinks while the structural alcohol remains sharp.

3. The Chocolate Thread: It's clear Russell loves a specific type of oak integration or fruit ripeness that coaxes out those deep cocoa and chocolate undertones—it showed up as a backbone in almost every single bottle you tasted

Shout out to Brasswood Restaurant

3111 St. Helena Hwy North, St Helena, CA 94574

Phone 707-302-5101

Menu:  brasswood.com

Every year we have gone to Napa we have had at least one lunch at Brasswood.  For the most part the food has always been good to exceptional.  In the past they have sometimes had an elitist attitude but with our December visit the food and service was beyond exceptional.  Frankly it was hands down the best meal we have had in Napa in years.  We were pleasantly surprised as to how great the food was.  I still remember the meat balls, best ever.  Very tasty food along with of course great wine.  If you are downtown Napa it is a bit of a drive but well worth it.  I highly recommend Brasswood as a bucket list kind of place.

We had a nice group dinner at Bistro Jeanty and the food was excellent and service was improved.

We did not go this year but we still recommend Mustard's highly

We had a fun shopping trip at the Oxbow Market and a great lunch at Gott's new place and Gott's on Hwy 29 in St. Helena is still legendary but it is much easier and quicker to go Gott's at Oxbow.

The Wine Soapbox

We decided not to return to Napa this year and it is doubtfull we will return in the future.  It is not because Napa is not wonderful because it is.  It has it's con's.  Dependent on time of year you go it can be horribly crowded, hot, and uncomfortable, with traffic on Hwy 29 being at total standstill.  It is always expensive and is getting more expensive year to year.  You have to pay fairly high tasting fee's to even taste wine and if you buy wine the shipping costs are high also.  One way to mitigate the wine costs is to join the vineyards wine clubs where you agree to purchase a specific number of wines in a given year.  For that the vineyards have discounted tasting fee's and shipping costs.  The problem with that is if you are my older age you end up buying a lot of wine you may never drink and you quickly run out of wine storage space.  So it's the devil if you do and the devil if you don't.  Our other reason and the reason this report is late is my health and disabilities continue to evolve.  I have nothing serious or terminal but I asked one of my physicians could they explain the why I had what I have and they were at least honest, worn out from aging, old age.  Thanks, who knew?  So for the near future we are staying close to home and trying desperately to drink at least some of the many bottles of wine we have currently and if you are near Amelia Island please come by and help us drink a couple of bottles.  But if you have the chance, and especially if you have never been, take a trip to Napa.  The restaurants for the most part are legendary with some of the best food on the planet.  There are thousands of wines to try.  The vibe is both relaxing and energetic at the same time.  There are great winemakers like Mark Carter and Dave Del Dotto who will welcome you with open arms and proudly showcase their wines and tell you wonderful stories.  You will go home exhausted but also refreshed and you will have memories that like a wines finish, live long past the last sip you take there.

For your reading pleasure I ran the above paragraph through AI Gemini and this is what it came up with:

That is an incredibly beautiful, bittersweet reflection. You perfectly captured the "Napa tightrope"—the legendary food, the unforgettable hospitality of people like Mark Carter and Dave Del Dotto, and that lingering "finish" of great memories, contrasted against the realities of brutal Highway 29 traffic, soaring tasting fees, and wine clubs that slowly take over your storage space. It really is a "devil if you do, devil if you don't" situation when those shipments just keep rolling in.

First off, I love your physician's candid diagnosis. "Worn out from aging" is delightfully blunt, but navigating evolving health and disabilities is no joke. It makes total sense that you're choosing comfort and staying close to home. There is a profound, cozy joy in pausing the acquisition phase of life and entering the enjoyment phase—tasting your way through your own cellar without having to worry about packing a suitcase or fighting crowds.

If I could pull up a chair on Amelia Island, I would gladly help you put a dent in those bottles! Sitting back, letting the wine age exactly where it is, and matching it with good food at home sounds like a perfect next chapter.

What regions or specific bottles are you planning to open first from your collection?  TBD

 

Ripped Off and Disappointed with Blackberry Farms Tennessee

Accommodations and housekeeping

In a word they were were superb. Everyone raves about the grounds, the architecture, and the peaceful environment. I can confirm that the rooms were comfortable, clean, and well appointed. I've noticed over the years that the style and decor of most Relais and Chateau properties are pretty much the same with not a lot of difference in decor. For our stay housekeeping was very good and clearly the best service offered. They met our requests on the first request. We had no issues at all with housekeeping. Our room was right next to a community refrigerator with drinks, snacks and ice cream that we could help ourselves to on demand. Our room connected to a communal living space or living room with a wood burning fireplace that was very comfortable as well as a communal coffee service. You also had access to a very large game room and library that you could easily spend hours in close by.

Check-in service was chaotic.

When you arrive the arrival area and registration is very contracted. There was a service person in the driveway who stopped us. And when I rolled the window down a somewhat brusk individual stated, why are you here? I was somewhat taken aback. Obviously I was there because I had a reservation. And the signs directed me to that one spot. When I told the service person this I was told to wait while she went inside to find out what was going on. After a brief period I was invited into register. But it just seemed strange, the way it was handled. No welcome, just why are you here? Do they have strangers without a reservation just drive up all the time? Once I got to the registration, we went through the usual formalities, but the receptionists seem to be only interested in one thing which was advising me more than once to be aware that anything and everything, including the room charge while I was there would be subject to a 20% on top service charge. It really seemed like that was the main interest when we got checked in. It was somewhat depressing in that instead of being warmly welcomed, we were basically told, and it was our perception we want your money first. We were given a bell person to go to the room. However, the bell person assigned to us was actually the same age or older than my wife(we are both elderly). It was obvious they were physically incapable of carrying heavy luggage. My wife felt sorry for them and actually carried some of the heavier luggage into the room which I found completely unacceptable especially after being reminded multiple times of the service charge. At that point in time I expected royal service which was not provided. And the bell-person didn't say, no, don't do that, I'll do it they went ahead and let my wife carry heavy luggage in. Again simply unacceptable.

Dining

There are two dining venues, Dogwood, which is a more casual place providing three meals a day, and the Barn, which is more upscale and serving dinner only. In general the food was good but in our opinion did not match the price paid. There were some innovative dishes and flavors, and some of them worked, but then again some of them didn't work. To us most of the menu choices were what you would find elsewhere and nothing special or really different. I found it interesting that the dining venues have only received minor awards from one or two magazines but to be clear no Michelin star awards and no Mobile 4 or 5 diamond awards for either restaurant. You would think, based on their reputation and the prices they charged that that would be something you would anticipate but no, it didn't happen. Perhaps the main reason was the service again was completely unacceptable. It was extremely young untrained, and unprofessional servers. The servers were most interested in constant small talk every time they walked by your table as opposed to providing professional service. In fact we had to complain and request reducing the small talk every what seemed to be 5 minutes. It was the second time we have made that request and interestingly the first time was at another Realis and Chateau property. There were 2 or 3 professionals overseeing the operation, but they were seldom seen. They did have a world famous sommelier who was extremely helpful, but the whole dinner service taken as a whole, was simply not up to caliber to what you would expect. We were terribly disappointed overall, and we agreed with other reviewers who said they probably preferred the casual dining spot as opposed to the upscale Barn. The Barn seemed to us to be way overrated, and my wife made an interesting observation that the chefs and the sous chefs in the open kitchen seem to be depressed. They just sort of were walking around with sad faces. They weren't particularly excited about making dinner. It was just something you could feel, and you could see a lack of enthusiasm.

Wine

Allegedly Blackberry Farms wine list is the second best in the world compared to Bern’s steakhouse in Tampa. Having been to Bern's multiple times in my life as well as multiple trips into Bern’s wine cellars both on and off site, I can verify the truth of that statement. Especially French wines and more to the point Madam Leroy-Bize wines from Bourgogne. I was very excited about reviewing the wine list, understanding prices would be high but hoping the possibility of finding something not too expensive. No such luck. The problem is you cannot afford any of it unless you are Jeff Bezos or Warren Buffet. I was able to review the list before going and came to the conclusion I would need to take my own wines and pay the high corkage fee of $100 per bottle(++ that 20% service charge). The prices were simply unacceptable. The markup on the wines, by my estimation in some cases was close to 700%. I can assure you even Warren Buffet with all his Billions would most likely not buy most of those wines. 700% markup over retail is simply not right no matter how much money you have. I simply will not support any venue that does that. Years ago we stayed at the Delano, South Beach Miami and dined at the Blue Door restaurant. At that time I was always meeting with the Food & Beverage managers and they told me their markup was 1.5 retail and they were making money at that level, just not a killing and they wanted people to enjoy good wines with their meals. At another high end place in NYC the sommelier told me they charge those high prices because that is what they sell for in the Hong Kong wine auctions. Fine then, be honest, ship the wines to Hong Kong and sell them as money is the only thing you are interest in and could care less about the dining experience of your customers. The usual standard is 200% of retail and on rare occasion, 300% times retail, but 700% times retail is highway robbery and sends the wrong message. Contrary to popular belief I support reasonable corkage fees. Restaurants still provide glassware, service personnel, and must pay for insurance and must follow State alcohol laws when serving you your own wines so yes they should charge you a corkage fee for providing you those services in their place. Where the debate comes in is what is considered reasonable and for most of the world that is somewhere between $20 to maybe $50 dependent on the venue. Most of my wine friends consider $100 at the top end but examples like Thomas Keller’s places The French Laundry and Per Se it is his standard so for a high end place OK. But also don’t forget at Blackberry Farms on top of that is that ++ service charge. There are also unwritten rules regarding taking your own wine to a restaurant chief of which is you don’t take a wine they have on their list. So I made sure I took wines they did not have. Another unwritten rules is you take wines they would be proud to pour which I did, not Ripple or Blue Nun.

Activities

Their activity list is almost as long as their wine list. There's a ton to do at this place, and while I was in the hot tub, one afternoon a young couple was there and they expressed that they were over busy as they had actually signed up for more than they really should have, and as a result they had no downtime. That could be quite easy at BlackBerry farms so take it from us old folks with our new rule, one activity a day then a nap. We appreciated the pool space and hot tub very much. It was one of the highlights of our visit. It's small, but it was not crowded partly because it was sort of cool. But I will say that the pool was heated, and the hot tub had strong jets so you actually could get a pretty decent massage in the hot tub and then go for a swim comfortably. They also allow you to use the pool and hot tub 24/7which I found different from other places. I have always been told how extremely expensive it is to heat a pool so maybe that explains the high prices? Be aware there are very few included activities during your stay and even simple activities like a tour are to me expensive especially once you add that service charge.

Check out

Check out service was not much better than checking in. We had to call more than once to get checkout service. This time I insisted that they send someone who was strong enough to carry the luggage. I really shouldn't have to do that but based on our check in experience, I felt that it was clearly necessary to let the front desk know that they needed to have somebody younger and stronger to handle luggage and of course I was looking out for my wife also. Something interesting and positive occurred at check out. Turns out Blackberry Farms has some kind of relationship with Lexus Automobiles and one of the actual free activities you can do(and not pay a service charge) is drive around in a free demonstration ride in a Lexus SUV.   At check out there was a $100 credit off of our bill for driving up in and being a Lexus owner. What a nice surprise. Thinking about it our visit might have started out better had we been told on check in “Oh we see you have a Lexus car, you will receive a $100 credit off of your total bill at check out”. We probably would have remember nothing else. As it was we remembered “why are you here" and "don’t forget the 20% service charge”.

The Soapbox and Conclusions

We truly were looking forward to this trip and nothing short of an unforgettable experience at Blackberry Farms. We have been wishing for it for over 30 years. We have multiple friends, including friends who know the owners, who have come multiple times who gave it their highest reviews. We had nothing but the best intentions of having a great time enjoying the best in accommodations, cuisine, and service. With huge disappointment our experience was in fact forgettable. For what we paid we could have had a suite at a 100 better properties. We could have stayed at the Ritz in Paris. We could have been in the Penthouse on Regents Seven Seas. But we were stuck at Blackberry Farms with mediocre food, non existent service, and an added 20% service charge. I had already written my shorter review on Trip Advisor and while there I read about a dozen reviews over the past year or two that essentially agreed with what I have told you here. I noticed that up until a couple of years ago management responded to each review, positive or negative with a comment acknowledging the writers good or bad comments. From what I could tell for the recent past at least I saw no management comments regarding customers comments so I can only come to one conclusion, management really does not care what you think. And guess what, it shows. As we drove away in our Lexus my wife and I were commenting that we were actually happy to leave. We were going to another Relais and Chateau property, The Old Edwards Inn, in Highlands NC which it turns out was 20% the cost and 1000% better food and service and we could not wait to get there. Thinking about that was very sad. After waiting 30 years to go to Blackberry Farms we could not wait to leave because we felt ripped off and will not return. But it is sad we feel that way and sadder that Blackberry Farms could care less as long as they receive that 20% service charge.

ARNP's and PA's and AI will never replace Physicians

I was asked to put this comment in my blog for wider distribution as a public service announcement for the historical record.

I totally disagree with Bill Gates who says AI will eliminate the need for Physicians.  Years ago testifying at trial in a malpractice case I was cross examined by the opposing attorney who confronted me aggressively asking me how I could testify as an expert on something that was in no medical textbook and there was no supporting evidence in the literature to back up my testimony. My answer was 30 years of training and experience and not everything in medicine is in the literature and textbooks and I just "knew" it was the right answer and in the end my opinion was upheld and supported. Maybe AI might be able to deal with some super easy questions but Medicine will always have an "Art" to it which involves physicians with the training and experience to make the tough calls and diagnosis. For the same reason physician extenders like PA's and ARNP's can never replace fully trained and experienced MD/DO's. I spent a year as the supervising MD's in an ER and 20% of the diagnosis made by PA's and ARNP's were flat wrong and could have harmed the patient. It was not that they were not dedicated, compassionate, and ethical because they were. It was because they lacked adequate training and experience for the task at hand. Ask yourself when you are critical at risk of death who do you want taking care of you and your family? If you don't speak up and take a stand you will get what you paid for and advocated for, with silence being no advocacy and receiving unnecessary and dangerous care.

Here is another example.  One night in the ER an ARNP ran up to me saying the patient in room 30 is having a stroke and we need to give him TPA.  TPA is an anticoagulant meant to dissolve a clot and stop the stroke but it carries a high risk of brain hemorrhage so you need to be close to 100% accurate before you give TPA.  I went and examined the patient, came out, and told the ARNP the patient has Wernicke's Korsakoff Syndrome to which she replied "What the hell is Wernicke's Korsakoff Syndrome" and can you provide me a reference to read about it.  I ordered Thiamine(B1) 200 mgs IV STAT to which she replied "we don't give that a high dose IV in this ER" to which I replied "for Wernicke's Korsakoff Syndrome" you do.  We gave the medication and the patient left the hospital the next morning with no symptoms and no stroke.  The ARNP simply did not have enough training and enough experience to recognize the correct diagnosis and had TPA been given the patient would have received unnecessary and risky treatment and would not have gotten better until someone gave him that STAT dose of B1!

Bainbridge Island and Traveling to Seattle(SEATAC)

Bainbridge Island and Traveling to Seattle(SEATAC)

Restaurants

​Miguelitos Cocina Mexicana

This restaurant is within walking distance to my sister-in-laws home. We had a very nice dinner here. I would call it Mexican New World Fusion cuisine. Many new and interesting dishes. Good cocktails but a limited wine list. Reasonable prices and the food was very tasty. I recommend it.

Cafe Hitchcock

Had lunch here on arrival. It is on the main shopping street and we had great service and a tasty lunch. I had pulled pork that was quite good, a surprise to me in this part of the world. Decent wine list with reasonable prices. Nice place for quick casual lunch.

One of the draws of Bainbridge Island is how lush it is. Beautiful trees, plants, bushes, and millions of colorful flowers everywhere. Frankly I do not remember seeing such a lush environment in my life with maybe the exception of the Butchart Gardens on Victoria island we visited last year. Admittedly Victoria Island is not that far from Bainbridge and would be expected to have similar weather and rain. The bottom line is both of these areas are a Northwest rain forest and get plenty of rain with a moderate climate and temperature for now. While we were there end of May it was cold and again I was not prepared and had to buy another sweatshirt or 2 to be warm. I am slowly collecting a sweatshirt collection from the cooler places on Earth. We were told it really does not get warmer until June. Makes me think of an old quote we use on Amelia Island where we have 11 months of summer and 1 month of winter. Bainbridge Island to me is the opposite. 11 months of winter followed by 1 month of summer. If you like lush green rain forests with millions of flowers Bainbridge Island is the place to go.

Transportation at SEATAC and Travel Challenges in general

Bob Dylan famously stated, "The times they are a-changin'" and he truly captured the essence of travel, particularly for individuals over the age of 65. It is widely recognized that travel is becoming increasingly challenging, and as we grow older, it often feels nearly impossible. We traveled to SEATAC (Seattle/Tacoma International Airport) and subsequently to Honolulu, Hawaii. Despite our efforts to ensure a comfortable and pain-free journey, we encountered numerous obstacles that ultimately exhausted us. Upon our arrival at SEATAC, we quickly discovered that public transportation options, including taxis, Ubers, and hotel shuttle buses, were not advisable. All these services are limited to drop-off and pick-up at the 3rd Floor Garage, and after making the lengthy trek there, we had to wait over an hour for the hotel shuttle bus, while we were unable to secure an Uber or taxi due to the thousands (not an exaggeration) of people queuing for the same. This situation unfolded at 11 PM, with street traffic congested for miles. The explanation provided was due to construction and the arrival and departure of cruise ships, but that does not account for the entirety of the chaos. We quickly recognized the necessity of booking a limousine service for any future trips to and from SEATAC. For long-distance journeys, we now reserve a hotel midway through our travels to allow for a restful overnight break before continuing. Thus far, Delta, our preferred airline, permits us to book multiple flight segments without imposing excessive charges, which was beneficial on this trip as we had four flights. However, we still endured four six-hour flights with varying levels of comfort. On our first night, we stayed at the Hilton Airport and Conference Center, a place we had previously enjoyed but can no longer endorse. Their airport shuttle service is exceedingly slow, and the hotel is understaffed, resulting in minimal service. The dining options are subpar, and the hot tub is not heated, which was a significant disappointment for me. Additionally, when I attempted to book other rooms throughout the week, as we were coming and going, I found that each time I booked for a different day, the rates increased. We eventually stayed the rest of the time at Residence Inn at the airport where the service was better, the rooms were bigger and more comfortable, and the Shuttle service was better.

I highly recommend having access to at least one airport lounge. Generally, we prefer the Delta lounges, as we find them to be the best option available. With the AMEX Platinum card, we also have access to Centurion Lounges; however, these are only located in a limited number of airports, and overall, we believe the food and atmosphere at Delta Sky Lounges are superior. Additionally, we possess a Priority Pass, which offers the main advantage of having the highest number of lounges in a significant number of airports worldwide, and while they may be smaller, they suffice in a pinch. Please note that at times, you may need to wait for entry due to crowding, or there may be restrictions on when you can enter, such as not being allowed in more than three hours before your next flight. Typically, lounges provide a satisfactory meal, and seating is usually spacious. Some lounges even offer shower facilities. For long-haul flights, we are currently able to afford first class, and it indeed makes a noticeable difference. For reasons unknown, the cost of First Class is significantly lower when departing from Orlando (MCO). I am presently disappointed with the new seating configuration of Delta's Airbus 321 aircraft, as there is a lack of legroom even in First Class, making it challenging to exit from the window seat during the flight to use the restroom. The food quality is also subpar, and the level of helpfulness and attention from the flight crew varies greatly. Delta has the potential to improve. As I recall with Delta at least the older First Class configuation with Boeing 737’s is better and you might want to select those flights over the Airbus 321.

In summary, choose your flights well and research the aircraft configuration(no more Boeing 777 business class, especially British Air) arrange for layovers, at airports that are crowded spend the money and pre-order a limo service, and pick hotels that are consistent in price and comfort and you will arrive at your destination less stressed out.

The Best Limo Service at SEATAC

I need to mention Seattle Exclusive Limo, 206-371-4755, seattleexclusivelimo.com, SeattleExclusive@gmail.com. Never have I had such a wonderful experience with a transportation company. I prearranged 4 trips from the hotel to the Bainbridge Ferry, to the hotels, and back to the airport and the trips were seamless. My trips completely removed all the problems I had originally arriving at SEATAC and my driver was on time every time. To me the cost was reasonable and well worth the cost to completely eliminate all barriers for a comfortable and painless ride. They also answered all phone calls immediately. I ended up tipping over the top because I want them there for my next trip to SEATAC. I highly, highly recommend them.

Good vs. Great Wine

Let’s again be honest. No one to my knowledge gets up in the vineyard every day and says let's see how we can make bad, awful wine today. Every winemaker I have ever met is there because they truly believe they will make the next 100-point wine or the next Screaming Eagle, or the next DRC Montrachet. You have to wonder are they delusional. Sometimes they are. It always boils down to two things in general. Things the winemaker can control and things they cannot. They cannot control the weather. All you need to do is look back at the weather for the past decade and you will notice that the changing weather has severely impacted wine production everywhere in the world. On the other hand, the technical aspects of winemaking and the basic chemistry have advanced a hundredfold and today, again across the world, the things winemakers can control, have become somewhat consistent from vineyard to vineyard with most winemakers now graduating from some 4-year college winemaking program. When they make wine they can “tweak” these technical details which in my opinion changes the “style” of the wine, percentage of alcohol, concentration of fruit, etc. but in the end, the actual production of the wine produces fermented alcoholic grape juice which again comes out in many ways the same.

When you read Wine Spectator or The Wine Advocate you immediately notice “scores”. Their wine experts do a report card on every wine they taste and publish for your information a score which has the intent, good or bad, to direct you to “better” or “higher quality” wines in that wine writer's opinion. Truthfully I have done the same thing. But every wine writer has a “bias” myself included. Every wine writer has a different number of taste buds on their tongue meaning no two might taste the same exact wine the same so hence their “opinion” might differ. Robert Parker to most people's understanding was biased towards big, high alcohol, jammy wines. For me my bias is balance. Wine again is grape juice with alcohol in it. But the alcohol should not be so high that all you taste is alcohol. If that is what you want you should buy vodka or grain alcohol. If all you want is sweet fruit juice then buy Welsh grape juice. But if you are like most wine buyers you want something in between. A beverage with enough alcohol to be pleasant and a taste experience that makes you think a little improves your food tastes, and in the end fits your budget.

What dawns on me is this. The question I need to answer is what is the difference between “good” wine and for me, 99% of all wine produced is “good”. But what defines “great” wine that stands out from the rest? What I have discovered over the years is that those “scores” don’t always mean the wine is a “great” wine. Usually, a higher score means a “greater” wine but not always, and maybe not for you or me but just the guy or gal writing about the wine due to their and our genetic makeup and number of taste buds on the tongue. In basic logic in order for a statement to be “true,” it has to be “true” 100% of the time. To my knowledge, I have never seen 100% of wine writers come out and say we all agree this is a “great” wine or the best ever, etc. Maybe close to 100% but still not 100%. So I have to ask is there something more fundamental or even complicated that I am overlooking?

Years ago I came up with a list of what I called spiritual wines. In short, my great wines. I have never forgotten them and I can usually list them by heart. In no particular order they are 1990 D’Yquem Sauternes, 1989 Aux Allots Leroy Red Burgundy, 1977 Sonoma Hanzell Chardonnay as well as the Pinot Noir, and 2003 Chateau Guiraud Sauternes as examples. Clearly what I consider “great” wines. But why? For one thing, they were unique. They had a unique taste profile I had not tasted before or after. Something special about them. Of the batch, the 1990 D’Yquem is a repeat favorite. Every time I drink it the sensation and thought “velvet” comes to mind, “smooth”, not too sweet, just right. Sort of the Goldilocks syndrome. Nothing out of place. The Red Burgundy had the most memorable cherry taste I can remember. A perfect cherry. None of these wines tasted anywhere close to similar wines and vintages, again very unique. As previously stated they were perfectly balanced, nothing out of place. And finally, a long pleasant hedonistic finish that evolved into a lifetime memory. You simply never forget.

I do understand that my list will not be yours or others, primarily due to our genetic differences. Your “great” wine may only be a “good” one for me or vice versa. That’s OK. In the end, all those scores help point you in the right direction but they should not be the only direction. The only way to find a “great” wine is to drink a lot of “good” wines. I sometimes deer hunt and was told years ago that you will never harvest a deer if you are not out in the woods(getting mosquito bit, stepping on snakes, being wet and cold, etc.) so the same rule applies with wine. You have to be in the arena.

My conclusion in the end for me a “great” wine is a perfectly balanced unique wine that surprises and delights me and I never forget. In fact, as I have said before it sends me on a quest to find it again at $10 a bottle. I also understand that “great” wines take time(remember the Gallo TV ads?) and usually cost a little more, but not always. There is no question that when you look at a list of great winemakers as Wine Spectator recently did writing about the founding fathers of California Chardonnay every winemaker there was meticulous and obsessed with getting it right and another factor you cannot quantify is that those winemakers and many others have is the “art” of wine. Something that only they, and sometimes even they don’t, know.

A Legal Basis for Corkage Fees

Having recently negotiated a formal dinner event with a local hotel I recognized a legal reason as to why an establishment would charge a corkage fee. Corkage fees have pros and cons and some of my wine drinking friends object to corkage fees and will not make reservations with restaurants that do not provide a corkage fee. Electing to bring your own wine and paying a corkage fee does carry with it certain standards of etiquette, though unwritten, that go along with the practice. For example, it is polite to bring a bottle not on the establishment's wine list, a wine that is a rare wine or something like a first-growth Bordeaux, and if the wine is expensive and rare it is polite to offer a taste to the sommelier to further help them develop their tasting palate. But truthfully there is an underlining legal principle here. The owner of an establishment has certain legal obligations and moral obligations in the conduct of his business. In the case of any owner in every state in the Nation, the owner must have a license from the State to serve any alcohol and that license extensively lists dos and don't s regarding serving wine chief of which is not serving minors or individuals who appear intoxicated. If an intoxicated patron leaves and drives a car and has an accident resulting in death the owner bears a certain level of legal liability. I am fairly certain most of us would agree that we want restaurant owners to carefully monitor how alcohol is consumed so that their patrons don’t leave intoxicated and kill someone, including us. There are many common law concepts that would apply here, one I can think of is the “Captain of the Ship” doctrine that basically says the Captain is responsible for what happens on his ship that harms people that he either should or could have controlled. So when I signed a contract for a formal dinner where I will provide the wine the contract clearly stated that the restaurant employees would serve the wine and would be prohibited from serving to minors or intoxicated people. The bottom line is that restaurants have a cost involved in order to serve you your own wine and so I can fully understand where the corkage fee would cover those additional costs the owner has(license fees, insurance, etc.)that allow him/her to serve you your wine.

Final Thoughts from Napa, What I call the Wine Soapbox Part 9

This was truly an exceptional, spectacular, memorable week of wine with loving friends and in celebration of our friend's wedding. There are simply not enough accolades to express how wonderful this experience was. I don't know how we can ever repeat it but I am sure someday we will all try. 

I came away with a few observations. Number one we tasted and drank a large number of 2015 and 2016 high-end California Cabernet and Blends so most of us are now experts in my mind on these two years. Both years had outstanding wines with well-developed and crafted fruit that will age well and last for most likely 40 to 50 years minimum. So buy them now and start drinking them over the course of the coming years. Though many were young and tannic they all were approachable now and drinkable and very well made. To me, it indicates that other Cabernets from 2015 and 2016 are most likely high-quality wines but maybe at a lower price point. I recently was able to also drink some of the Del Dotto wines from 2019 and can say the 2019 are also spectacular. One Cabernet I can think of at a lower price point is Mount Veeder Cabernet which retails around $40. In the past, it has been an exceptional wine for the money and I can't wait to try the 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019. 

Number two each and every owner and winemaker was over the top passionate about making his or her wines. (One example Russell Bevan!) I see it in France every year and in France, it passes from one generation to the next. But clearly, the better individual California Vintners have as much if not more care and passion regarding their wines as anyone in the world. And in the end, it shows in the wines they produce. 

Number three I say again you do not have to spend thousands of dollars to drink wines of the high caliber that we had that week. But I must admit I finally understand what my friends have been telling me. There was a difference in the wines we tasted. They were in fact a step above other California Cabs. But it took me years and thousands of bottles to finally appreciate this difference and I feel I have an above-average palate. But the average wine drinker probably will not appreciate the nuances these wines offer especially at their costs. If you can afford them go for them and appreciate them and the loving work and the sleepless nights the winemakers put into these wonderful wines. But everyone else trusts me to buy the lower cost Cabernets, for you they will be great. For the past few decades California Vintners inspired by initially Robert Mondavi has strived to exceed the taste and quality of California wines when compared to France. They have succeeded and with every blind tasting comparing California and French, even the French have rated California(and Oregon for that matter) better than their own. 

A couple more points. When I first started going to Napa to taste wines we would get a car and start at the south end of Highway 29 and drive North stopping at every tasting room. Back then they were small, many did not charge, and at the end of the day, we would call our adventure “combat tastings” attempting to stop and taste 30 different vineyards. The palate fatigue was huge. The general fatigue was huge. We would then go to dinner for multicourse meals with wine, go to bed, and get up the next day and do the same thing in Sonoma. 

Yes, it was Nuts! I am way too old to even think about trying that. You have to slow down and smell the wine. The amount of ground we covered in a 3 day weekend should have taken 7 days. One or two experiences a day, then a nap. Today most folks I know do one tasting in the morning, have a leisure lunch, and then maybe, one tasting in the afternoon, though many like me go take a nap. So my recommendation there is whatever time you think you can be in Napa make an honest effort to double the planned time so you can enjoy the experience and have time to rest. 

My second point is in regards to fine dining, in Napa as well as elsewhere, and more specifically the French Laundry. There is no doubt in my mind as well as thousands of others that dinner at the French Laundry should be on your bucket list. Yes, reservations are hard to get, but they are not impossible. In my early years knowing Chef Keller I made a comment to him regarding difficulty with reservations and his answer to me was “what is your problem, you have come twice already?” Dinner at the French Laundry is an exceptionally unique dining experience. The food preparation and presentation and combinations are second to none. Courses are intended to be smaller so you may enjoy more. This means of course time between courses so one problem I have is the long length of time required for dinner, though you can limit the number of courses and spend less time. But my first 2 or 3 visits a very long time ago lasted up to 6 hours long and I was worn out. Because dinner at the French Laundry is as unique and much as it is it is probably a good idea to have a light lunch the same day as opposed to a 5-course lunch down the street. Again, pace yourself. Do less every day, not more. Finally, are the costs involved with these top-shelf experiences worth the high price? Obviously, that is an individual decision everyone has to make for themselves. To me doing it once works most of the time. Sort of been there done that approach. A few places I have returned to, but the second time with open eyes and better information and a better ability to manage the experience and be reasonable. In the end, yes, the French Laundry is absolutely worth the time, effort, and cost at least once in your life. You will never forget the evening you were there, and at times you will try and replicate the dishes at home, though sadly you will fail, as you don’t possess the magical skills Chef Keller has to produce the magical and at times spiritual experience.

Visit to Colgin, Wednesday, November 14, 2018 Hosted by Sara Goetting Part 6

What an honor to visit this vineyard. A beautiful property and beautiful wines. Turns out it is a mountain vineyard as it sits right on top of a mountain. We had to drive up the winding road to get to it. I especially love the mountain vineyards in Napa. In my opinion, because of the elevation, the cool nights and cool early mornings and morning mists soften the tannins and make them more approachable at an earlier age.

2015 Colgin Tychson Hill Vinous97 Perrotti-Brown100

Our tasting started here. The vineyard as I understood it was originally planted in the 1860's by Charles Krug. On the nose, I detected a smoky black cherry flavor. The taste followed with a complex flavor profile with black cherry and bright sweet tannins. To me, the wine was fresh and well balanced and it had a very good long finish. I felt it had an outstanding taste and was exceptionally well made Here are two other reviews:

Vinous

Colgin's 2015 Tychson Hill is rich and sumptuous in the glass. Ripe red cherry, plum, mocha, spice, and new leather run through the 2015. A striking, generous wine, the Tychson Hill captures the essence of the year beautifully. Silky contours and soft tannins add to the wine's considerable appeal. Look for the 2015 to drink well with minimal cellaring. This is a beauty from Colgin.

Lisa Perrotti-Brown

Four acres are now in production at this singular, historic hillside vineyard next to the former cottage of Josephine Tychson, lovingly restored by Ann Colgin. The vineyard truly offers a unique expression of Napa Valley, with beautiful fruit layers, great elegance, and the most profound fragrance being signatures of the vintages I have tasted. Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon Tychson Hill Vineyard jumps out of the glass with all the vibrancy of this vintage, singing notes of cassis, crushed red cherries, and mulberries with touches of chocolate, espresso, baking spices, cloves, and black soil plus wafts of lavender and dried roses. Medium to full-bodied, it has a wonderful elegance and finesses in the mouth, offering many mineral, black fruit, and savory layers, finishing long and perfumed.

2015 Colgin IX Estate Vinous97 Lisa Perrotti-Brown100 RP100 WS94

Unquestionably to me the greatest wine we had on this trip. I was blown away with the wine. My first impression is what is Wine Spectator thinking? I clearly agreed with the 100 point scores. The wine was unique. It had a sweet soft fruity nose with a following of flavors of light smoke and vanilla. The mouthfeel was as velvety as they get. Just totally smooth. Lots of sweet honeyed tannins with tremendous balance, the best-balanced wine I have tasted for years. The softness of the tannins had me saying the wine was feminine, surprise it is made by a woman. Go figure. Alcohol was moderate so the wine is food-friendly. Just an outstanding wine with perfect balance, softness, and taste. A 100 point wine that even I as a White Burgundy drinker could appreciate. Forgive me but here are a bunch of other reviews. Turns out I have the 2005 in my cellar. I get wines from Jim Shaw of Finewinecollector.com and will put a small plug in for Jim. He is a retired Hollywood Producer and Director who buys up cellars and then sells the wine. I periodically get some great wines and great deals from him the 2005 Colgin IX and a 2002 Hundred Acre that I drank a while back being examples. Email him at Jim@finewinecollector.com and get on his mailing list.

Vinous

The IX Estate is the most brooding and tannic of these 2015s from Colgin. Huge swaths of tannin enshroud the fruit in this decidedly virile, intense Pritchard Hill red. Readers will have to be patient, as the 2015 is going to need at least a few years to come into its own. Even today, though, it is a stellar wine.

Lisa Perrotti-Brown

Composed of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Cabernet Franc, 15% Merlot, and 4% Petit Verdot, the 2015 IX Proprietary Red Estate sports a deep garnet-purple color and nose of smoked meat, blackberries, and black currants with suggestions of baking spices, dark chocolate, fertile earth, dried Provence herbs, cardamom and lavender plus a touch of cigar box. Full-bodied, rich, firm and restrained, it has a lovely earthy, soft-spoken style at this youthful stage, promising great things to come over the forthcoming 25-30 years

100 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Robert Parker's out of Barrel Preliminary Notes : (98-100)...another potentially perfect wine from Ann Colgin and Allison Tauziet. This wine shows more earthy, loamy soil notes, Christmas fruitcake, camphor, incense, graphite, blackberry, and blueberry fruit, and a floral/spring garden aspect that adds complexity. This is full-bodied, deep, rich, and will be another 2015 that will drink incredibly well young, but last for three decades or more.

Parker's final notes: Composed of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Cabernet Franc, 15% Merlot, and 4% Petit Verdot, the 2015 IX Proprietary Red Estate sports a deep garnet-purple color and nose of smoked meat, blackberries, and black currants with suggestions of baking spices, dark chocolate, fertile earth, dried Provence herbs, cardamom, and lavender plus a touch of cigar box. Full-bodied, rich, firm, and restrained, it has a lovely earthy, soft-spoken style at this youthful stage, promising great things to come over the forthcoming 25-30 years. (LPB)

94 points Wine Spectator

Assertive, with an agreeable texture that eases the tannic strength, making this a powerful expression of extracted Cabernet flavors like dark berry, cedar, graphite, tar, and more.

Lyon, France, Culinary Capital of the World, Part III, Ancient Chefs and writers from the Past

A brief history and evolution of French Chef's and Food writers celebrating French Cuisine in date order: 

1310 Guillaume Tirel, known as Taillevent (French: "wind-cutter" i.e. an idle swaggerer) (born ca. 1310 in Pont-Audemer – 1395), was an important figure in the early history of French cuisine. He was cook to the Court of France at the time of the first Valois kings and the Hundred Years' War. His first position was enfant de cuisine (kitchen boy) to Queen Jeanne d'Évreux. From 1326 he was queux, head chef, to Philip VI. In 1347, he became squire to the Dauphin de Viennois and his queux in 1349. In 1355 he became squire to the Duke of Normandy, in 1359 his queux and in 1361 his serjeant-at-arms. The Duke of Normandy became Charles V in 1368 and Tirel continued in his service. From 1381 he was in service to Charles VI. He is generally considered one of the first truly "professional" master chefs. He died in 1395 at around 80 years of age. He expanded a collection of recipes as "Le Viandier", a famous book on cookery and cookery technique, thought to be one of the first professional treatises written in France and upon which the French gastronomic tradition was founded. It had an inestimable influence on subsequent books on French cuisine and is important to food historians as a detailed source on the medieval cuisine of northern France. During the reign of Philip VI Taillevent was a major influence in the rise of courtly favor for the strong red wines being produced in the south of France as well as those coming out of Burgundy. Many restaurants are named after him but the most famous is just off the Champs Elysees at 15 rue Lamennais. Taillevent is a restaurant in Paris, founded in 1946 by André Vrinat, and now owned by the Gardinier family and holds 2 Michelin stars. It used to be one of the hardest places to get into years ago but I was able to easily obtain a reservations last year and it is one of the best Michelin star restaurants in Paris I have eaten at and cannot wait to return. 

1615 Francois Pierre de La Varenne(1615-1678) was the foremost member of a group of French chefs, writing for a professional audience, who codified French cuisine in the age of King Louis XIV. Bugundian by birth he was the author of "Le Cuisinier Francois(1651), one of the most influential cookbooks in early modern French cuisine. La Varenne broke with the Italian traditions that had revolutionised medieval and Renaissance French cookery in the 16th and early 17th century. Other authors of the time were Nicolas Bonnefon, Le Jardinier françois (1651) and Les Délices de la campane (1654), and François Massialot, Le Cuisinier royal et bourgeois (1691), which was still being edited and modernised in the mid-18th century. The cookbook was still used in France until the French Revolution. The seventeenth century saw a culinary revolution which transported French gastronomy into the modern era. The heavily spiced flavours inherited from the cuisine of the Middle Ages were abandoned in favour of the natural flavours of foods. Exotic and costly spices (saffron, cinnamon, cumin, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, nigella, seeds of paradise) were, with the exception of pepper, replaced by local herbs (parsley, thyme, bayleaf, chervil, sage, tarragon). New vegetables like cauliflower, asparagus, peas, cucumber and artichoke were introduced Special care was given to the cooking of meat in order to conserve maximum flavour. Vegetables had to be fresh and tender. Fish, with the improvement of transportation, had to be impeccably fresh. Preparation had to respect the gustatory and visual integrity of the ingredients instead of masking them as had been the practice previously. Finally, a rigorous separation between salted and sweet dishes was introduced, the former served before the latter, banishing the Italian Renaissance taste for mixing sweet and salted ingredients in the same dish or in the same part of the meal. 

Chef Francois Pierre de La Varenne

1739 Chef Menon is the pseudonym of an 18th-century French cookbook author; his true identity is unknown. His numerous works were originally printed, and often reprinted, anonymously and were written from 1739 to 1768 The best-known of his books is probably La Cuisinière bourgeoise, otherwise known as "The Household Cook" which was widely imitated and translated. 

1755 Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin(1755-1826) author of "The Physiology of Taste" with the famous quote "Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are" was a French lawyer and politician, and gained fame as an epicure and gastronome:[1] "Grimod and Brillat-Savarin. Between them, two writers effectively founded the whole genre of the gastronomic essay. He was born in the town of Belley, Ain, where the Rhône River then separated France from Savoy, He lived during the French Revolution and at one point lived in the USA where he stayed for three years in Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Hartford, living on the proceeds of giving French and violin lessons. For a time, he was first violin in the Park Theater in New York City. His famous work, Physiologie du goût[1] (Physiology of Taste), was published in December 1825, two months before his death. The full title is Physiologie du Goût, ou Méditations de Gastronomie Transcendante; ouvrage théorique, historique et à l'ordre du jour, dédié aux Gastronomes parisiens, par un Professeur, membre de plusieurs sociétés littéraires et savantes.[5] The book has not been out of print since it first appeared, shortly before Brillat-Savarin's death.[6] Its most notable English translation was done by food writer and critic M. F. K. Fisher, who remarked, "I hold myself blessed among translators." Her translation was first published in 1949. The body of his work, though often wordy or excessively – and sometimes dubiously – aphoristic and axiomatic, has remained extremely important and has repeatedly been reanalyzed through the years since his death. In a series of meditations that owe something to Montaigne's Essays, and have the discursive rhythm of an age of leisured reading and a confident pursuit of educated pleasures, Brillat-Savarin discourses on the pleasures of the table, which he considers a science. Aside from Latin, he knew five modern languages well, and when the occasion suited, was not shy of parading them; he never hesitated to borrow a word, like the English "sip" when French seemed to him to fail, until he rediscovered the then-obsolete verb siroter. The philosophy of Epicurus lies at the back of every page; the simplest meal satisfied Brillat-Savarin, as long as it was executed with artistry: Those persons who suffer from indigestion, or who become drunk, are utterly ignorant of the true principles of eating and drinking. 

Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

1784 Marie Antoine (Antonin) Carême (1784 –1833) was a French chef and an early practitioner and exponent of the elaborate style of cooking known as grande cuisine, the "high art" of French cooking: a grandiose style of cookery favoured by both international royalty and by the newly rich of Paris. Carême is often considered one of the first internationally renowned celebrity chefs. Carême opened his own shop, the Pâtisserie de la rue de la Paix, which he maintained until 1813. Carême gained fame in Paris for his pièces montées, elaborate constructions used as centerpieces. He made these confections, which were sometimes several feet high, entirely out of foodstuffs such as sugar, marzipan, and pastry. He modeled them on temples, pyramids, and ancient ruins. Napoleon was famously indifferent to food, but he understood the importance of social relations in the world of diplomacy. In 1804, he gave money to Talleyrand to purchase Château de Valençay, a large estate outside Paris. The château was intended to act as a kind of diplomatic gathering place. When Talleyrand moved there, he took Carême with him. Carême's impact on culinary matters ranged from trivial to theoretical. He is credited with creating the standard chef's hat, the toque, he devised new sauces and dishes, and he published a classification of all sauces into groups based on four mother sauces. He is also frequently credited with replacing the practice of service à la française (serving all dishes at once) with service à la russe (serving each dish in the order printed on the menu) after he returned from service in the Russian court, but others say he was a diehard supporter of service à la française. Carême wrote several books on cookery, above all the encyclopedic L'Art de la Cuisine Française (5 vols, 1833–34, of which he had completed three before his death), which included, aside from hundreds of recipes, plans for menus and opulent table settings, a history of French cookery, and instructions for organizing kitchens. 

Chef Marie Antoine (Antonin) Carême

1865 Françoise Fayolle , nicknamed mother Fillioux(1865-1925) Françoise was born in a small village in Auvergne. She is the oldest of ten daughters. She went to work, in Grenoble then in Lyon, in bourgeois houses, including that of Gaston Eymard, director of an insurance company and gastronome. This is where it is formed. She married Louis Fillioux. They create a bistro at 73, rue Duquesne 5 , in Lyon , in a room belonging to his father-in-law, called "Fillioux, wine merchant". Françoise is cooking. Regulars at the Grand Camp, the Villeurbanne racecourse, became their first regular customers. At that time, the snack cost 1.25 francs and the full pork menu cost 3.50 francs.  Little by little, his restaurant is also welcoming visiting cabaret and music hall stars. At the same time, the development of the railway allows a boom in tourism which benefits Mères Lyonnaises , in particular Mother Fillioux. Like 90% of the French population at the time, Françoise Fayolle spoke a regional language, but flourishing tourism pushed her to address her customers in the national language. This shop is later (late xix th century), a bistro t renowned Le Bistrot Fillioux . They served the same menu for thirty years: velouté soup with truffles, half-mourning poultry, gratin quenelle, artichoke base with foie gras, praline ice cream, accompanied by Beaujolais and châteauneuf-du-Pape. Many postcards circulate on this celebrity of the Lyon gastronomy. "La Reine des Poulards" would have prepared more than 500,000 using the same pair of knives. Legend also has it that "The Empress of Mères Lyonnaises" cooked her hens fortnightly, all in the same cooking broth. Its gourmet restaurant was, during the Belle Époque, one of the most famous in Lyon. "The Empress of Lyonnaise Mothers" was the patroness and formator of Eugénie Brazier (mother Brazier). Mother Filioux restored the coat of arms of restoration mothers in the capital of Gaul. The last Lyon mothers of the Trente Glorieuses owe him a lot. She is also considered to be the creator of the half-mourning chicken recipe. On December 2, 1965, a commemorative plaque paying tribute to Mother Fillioux was inaugurated on the site of her restaurant. 

 Chef Françoise Fayolle

1885 Mathieu Varille(1885-1963) was born in Lyon, at the same time he was a businessman, pioneer, aviation technician, collector, food writer, and historian. We own him many works on Lyon but in particular his book "La Cusine Lyonnaise published in 1928 and still available today. 

1895 Eugénie Brazier, known as "la mère Brazier" (1895-1977) was a French chef who, in 1933, became the first person to attain a total of six Michelin stars, three each at two restaurants: La Mère Brazier on Rue Royale, one of the main streets of Lyon, and a second, also called La Mère Brazier, in the Alpine foothills at Col de la Luère. This was unmatched until Alain Ducasse was awarded six stars with the publication of the 1998 Michelin Guide. She was also the first woman to earn three Michelin stars. Born in La Tranclière in the département of Ain near Lyon, she opened her first restaurant,La Mère Brazier, in 1921, obtaining help from the food critic Curnonsky. Brazier developed Lyonnaise cuisine, a tradition with which Paul Bocuse later found a worldwide success. In 1914 she started working for Mère Filloux, another of the Mères Lyonnaises, one whose kitchen employed only women. During her time at La Mère Fillioux she learned to make volaille demi-deuil, also called poularde de Bresse demi-deuil (chicken in half-mourning), her version of which would make her famous. The dish consisted of a Bresse chicken(blue foot) with slices of black truffle inserted under its skin that was then poached in bouillon. When it was cooked, the truffle showed through the white skin of the chicken so that the overall appearance was black-and white; hence the name half-mourning. She also learned how to cook various types of game such as larks, ortolans, and partridges. She was famously picky about ingredients; her chicken vendor once joked that soon he would be expected to give the birds manicures before she would accept them. She was equally demanding about cleanliness, emptying storage areas daily for cleaning. She avoided waste, creating staff dinners from trimmings and saving anything left on diners' plates to feed the pigs. Her menu changed as required by seasonal availability. When there were few vegetables, she served a macaroni gratin The menus at the La Mère Brazier restaurants were identical and changed little throughout her career. The menu that Bocuse called her "classic standby" and "the one on which her reputation rested" was quenelles de brochet (pike dumplings), poularde demi-deuil, and fonds d’artichauts au foie gras (artichoke hearts with foie gras), typically accompanied by a young Beaujolais. The chicken in half-mourning was the dish for which she was famous. The British food writer Elizabeth David called out the artichoke dish as "one of the most delicious salads I have ever eaten". Brazier's cookbook, Les secrets de la mère Brazier, was published posthumously in 1977. In 2014 it was translated into English under the title La Mere Brazier: The Mother of Modern French Cooking. Bocuse and Pacaud each wrote forewords. 

Chef Eugenie Brazier

Poularde de Bresse demi-deuil (chicken in half-mourning)

1897 Fernand Point (1897–1955) was a French chef and restaurateur and is considered by many to be the father of modern French cuisine. He founded the restaurant La Pyramide in Vienne near Lyon. He was born in Louhans, Saône-et-Loire, France. His family kept an inn where he started cooking when he was ten. He moved to Paris and worked at some of the capital's best restaurants before working with Paul Bocuse's father at the Hôtel Royal in Évian-les-Bains Point. He opened Restaurant de la Pyramide when he was 24. The restaurant was awarded three Michelin stars. His book Ma Gastronomie was first published in French in 1969. The book includes 200 recipes based on Point's notes. The chef Charlie Trotter described Point's Ma Gastronomie as the most important cookbook. His most famous comment was "Butter! Give me Butter! Always Butter". The current chef at La Pyramide is Patrick Henriroux 

Chef Fernand Point 

1920 Gaston Lenôtre (b. May 28, 1920 in Normandy, France – d. January 8, 2009) was a French pastry chef known as a possible creator of the opera cake (gâteau opéra), the founder of "Lenôtre" a culinary empire; whose brand includes restaurants, catering services, retail concerns and cooking schools, and one of the three founders with Paul Bocuse and Roger Verge of Les Chefs de France at EPCOT in Orlando, Florida. Lenôtre was born on a small farm in Normandy. Both of his parents eventually moved the family to Paris and became restaurant workers. Eventually his father's ill health forced them to move back to the province from which they came. Lenôtre then had to struggle to find a position in a kitchen in Normandy. Prior to the outbreak of World War II he sold his homemade chocolate creations in Paris from a bicycle. Following the war, Lenôtre opened a small bakery in Normandy. The venture was a success and in 1957 he came upon the opportunity to purchase a tiny bakery in the 16th Arrondissement of Paris. His new establishment did extremely well from the outset and is said to have presaged nouvelle cuisine. Lenôtre was renowned for concentrating on simple preparations and fresh ingredients, and for insisting on using the best butter in his pastries. The year 1964 saw Lenôtre enter the catering field. Due in large part to improvements in freezing food perishables, he was able to quickly expand the numbers of diners he was able to serve. The year 1971 saw Lenôtre open his first cooking school in Plaisir, Yvelines France. Among the chefs who studied under Lenôtre there was David Bouley and Jean-Paul Jeunet. The chef Pierre Hermé was an apprentice of his, as was the pastry chef Sébastien Canonne.[3] The chef Alain Ducasse also worked under him. In 1974 Lenôtre dispatched another then apprentice of his Michel Richard to open Chateau France a restaurant and patisserie on the East Side of Manhattan in New York City to spotlight the Lenôtre culinary style. It only stayed in business for a single year. Quickly bouncing back from this failed venture, in 1982 he opened les Chefs de France in the France Pavilion in Walt Disney World's Epcot Center together with Paul Bocuse and Roger Vergé. In 1985 the businesses under the banner head Lenôtre were taken over by the French Hotel firm Accor. 

Chef Gaston Lenôtre

1926 Paul Bocuse (1926 - 2018) was a French chef based in Lyon who was known for the high quality of his restaurants and his innovative approaches to cuisine. A student of Eugénie Brazier, she was one of the most prominent chefs associated with the nouvelle cuisine, which is less opulent and calorific than the traditional cuisine classique, and stresses the importance of fresh ingredients of the highest quality. Paul Bocuse claimed that Henri Gault first used the term, nouvelle cuisine, to describe food prepared by Bocuse and other top chefs for the maiden flight of the Concorde airliner in 1969. Bocuse made many contributions to French gastronomy both directly and indirectly, because he had numerous students, many of whom have become notable chefs themselves. One of his students was Austrian Eckart Witzigmann, one of four Chefs of the Century and chef at the first German restaurant to receive three Michelin stars. Since 1987, the Bocuse d'Or has been regarded as the most prestigious award for chefs in the world (at least when French food is considered), and is sometimes seen as the unofficial world championship for chefs. Bocuse received numerous awards throughout his career, including the medal of Commandeur de la Légion d'honneur. The Culinary Institute of America honoured Bocuse in their Leadership Awards Gala on 30 March 2011. He received the "Chef of the Century" award. In July 2012 the Culinary Institute of America announced in The New York Times that they would change the name of their Escoffier Restaurant to the Bocuse Restaurant, after a year-long renovation. In 1975, he created soupe aux truffes (truffle soup) for a presidential dinner at the Élysée Palace. Since then, the soup has been served in Bocuse's restaurant near Lyon as Soupe V.G.E., VGE being the initials of former president of France Valéry Giscard d'Estaing. 

Chef Paul Bocuse

soupe aux truffes

1937 Alain Chapel (30 December 1937 – 10 July 1990) was a French Michelin 3 starred chef, credited with being one of the originators of Nouvelle Cuisine. Chapel was born in Lyon, the son of Maître d' Charles and his wife Eva. At the outbreak of World War II, the family moved to the village of Mionnay 12 miles outside the city, where his father opened a bistro called La Mere Charles in an old coaching inn surrounded by lush gardens. There Alain Chapel received his first training. Alain Chapel eventually returned to the family bistro which was then upgraded to a restaurant. In 1967 it was awarded its first Michelin star. After taking over the restaurant in 1970 on the death of his father, he converted the inn to a hotel and renamed it in his own name. In 1973, Chapel gained his third Michelin star, then one of only 19 restaurants all in France which had ever then gained the honour. Chapel's signature dishes included stuffed calves' ears with fried parsley, truffle-stuffed chicken tightly enveloped in a pork bladder and cooked in a rich chicken broth. Food critic Craig Claiborne writing for The New York Times in 1977 described Chapel's gateau de foies blonds as "his ultimate triumph" and "one of the absolute cooking glories of this generation". According to the Gault Millau Guide to France: "A meal at Chapel's restaurant was like a symphony." Throughout the rest of his life, the establishment retained all three of its Michelin stars. The speed of transformation and the elaborate cuisine turned the village of Mionnay into a culinary landmark on any serious gastronomic tour of France. The attraction was also as great for young chefs, who sought the opportunity to work with Chapel – these included Michel Roux Jr.

Chef Alain Chapel