2016wine, food and conversation from napa valley vintnersNapa Valley Cabernet SauvignonNapa Green 2020The Next GenerationFood Trucks in the Valley© 2016 JPMorgan Chase & Co. All rights reserved. J.P. Morgan is the marketing name for JPMorgan Chase & Co. and its subsidiaries and affiliates worldwide.J.P. Morgan exclusively delivers first-class business, in a first-class way. We are proud to join the Napa Valley Vintners in offering the highest quality food and wine to auction attendees, while giving back to Napa County. Food, wine and service... first-class in every way.2016 .NAPA VALLEY ViNtNErs35 napa valley cabernet sauvignon 11 napa green 2020 17 the next generation 27 napa valley insider 30 food trucks and recipes contentsA passion for quality winemaking, combined with the drive to protect the land and community is what sets Napa Valley apart.The valley’s combination of diverse soils, ideal climate and varied terrain are perfectly suited for growing a wide variety of fine wine grapes. Vineyards are intentionally farmed to produce low yields of the highest quality. Throughout the growing season, vines are carefully managed to ensure optimal fruit development. In the fall, grapes are harvested mostly by hand and often at night to preserve fresh fruit flavors.Napa Valley is the most renowned winegrowing region in the United States and also one of the smallest, producing a mere 4% of California’s annual wine grape harvest. The wineries are small, too, with 80% making fewer than 10,000 cases of wine annually and 95% are family owned. Although small in size, the Napa Valley wine industry has a big impact, creating more than 300,000 U.S. jobs and providing a $50 billion annual impact on the American economy.It’s not just the land that makes Napa Valley special. A history of leadership has also shaped this winegrowing region. From America’s first Agricultural Preserve to development of the Napa Green Certified Land and Winery programs to the more than $150 million given to area nonprofit organizations, Napa Valley’s vintners and growers are committed to cultivating excellence.Enjoy,Napa Valley VintnersWelcome to Napa!find us napavintners.cominstagram.com/napavintnerslike us facebook.com/napavintnersfollow us @napavintnerssee us youtube.com/napavintnersp.o. box 141 st. helena, ca 94574707.963.33882016 .NAPA VALLEY ViNtNErs42015 • NAPA VALLEY VINTNERS042011A Bouley and Tsuji Collaboration TWO VISIONARIES, ONE CONCEPT Super Potato THE ESSENCE OF DESIGNRising Star CHEF ISAO YAMADA Healthy Japanese Ingredients FROM TOFU TO KELP Fundamentally Pure Recipes: DASHI, TOFU MISO SOUP, AND CLEAR SOUP WITH DUMPLINGSGOTHAM journalA MAgAzine of Modern AMericAn food cultureThe heirloom issue2013FROM RUSTIC TO ELEGANT GRAvITATING TOwARd ITALIANLIFESTYLE SURROUNdEd bY ITALIAN dESIGNIN THE PAN COOkING FROM SCOTT CONANT’S ITALIAN PANTRYAROUNd TOwN FAvORITE FINdS FROM THE STAFFLIVE ITALIAN ISSUE2013Ultimate Wine Destinations Grand Crus at CortonGrand Award-Winning List at Tribeca Grill2013A NEW EpicurEAN ExpEriENcEchef david bouley SpriNg chlorophyll Soup With SWEEt pEAS, ASpArAguS, FAvA BEANS, AromAtic hErBS, ANd goldEN oSEtrA cAviArdivinediNiNgSMdivinedithe good lifeLDV HospitaLity RestauRants at ReVeL20132012CELEBRATING CRAFT AND FLAVOR WITH MICHAEL CHIARELLOAttention to Detail CHIARELLO STyLETeam Bottega ExpERIENCE AND ENERGyThe Wine Whisperer AMIGO BOBWith a Twist BALANCING THE CLASSICSHome Room A pRIVATE DINING ExpERIENCE2014full circlechefCELEBRATING CRAFT AND FLAVORTHE VALUE OF EXPERIENCE SEEING, TASTING, AND TOUCHING GIVE CREDIBILTYMUSSELS WHAT A LONG, STRANGE TRIP IT’S BEENRECIPES CHEF ROBERT WIEDMAIER’S FAVORITE DISHES2012Neue LiviNgart, cuisine, and culture through the eyes of chef Kurt gutenbrunner inspiring culinary excellenceBocuse d’Or usaissue 2 • vol. 1Destination: new York CitYinspiring culinary excellenceBocuse d’Or usaissue 1 • vol.1Destination: Yountville, Ca2009Fall/Winter 2009–2010Bouley Gastronomique A WORK OF ART An Artist’s Passion ILLUMINATING THE WALLSThe Light of Provence LANDSCAPES COME TO LIFEThe World Champion of Cheese A MASTER AFFINEURRecipes : Cheese Fondue And VeGeTABLes2012 The Journeyissue 1shaun Hergattfood • details • travel2011at our tableCONVERSATIONS ON FOOD, WINE, AND CULTUREMARKET STRATEGIES Two chefs craft different delectable dishes with the same ingredientsSHOW AND TELL:Behind the scenes of the Bacchus Group with Tim StannardSeeking thePERFECT CASKTeam Bacchus unearths hidden treasures in ScotlandWhen a sommelier and a master roaster form a coffee companybREWINGGREATNESS ISmeethautelife.comPublisher Michael GoldManEditor-in-Chief PaMela JouanDesign Director Seton RoSSiniManaging Editor chRiStian KaPPneRAssistant Editor StePhane henRion Senior Copy Editor Kelly Suzan waGGoneRContributing Writer PaMela JouanPhotography tony albRiGht bob Mcclenahan Matt MoRRiS alexandeR Rubin Advertising Inquiries 718.288.8688HauteLife Press a division of c-bon Media, llc. 321 dean Street Suite 1 brooklyn, ny 11217www.hautelifepress.com info@hautelifepress.comSubscription Inquiries 718.288.8688 subscriptions@hautelifepress.com or visit www.hautelifepress.com hautelife Press makes every effort to ensure that the information it publishes is correct but cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions.Printed and bound in the u.S.a.© 2016 all rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is strictly prohibited.2016 .NAPA VALLEY ViNtNErs5Connecting the Rocks on napa valley cabernet sauvignonIt seems only natural to let your mind wander to Napa Valley while enjoying a glass of great wine. You may also wonder how such a small region can create the diversity of Cabernet Sauvignon wines you enjoy. Well, ponder no longer. We’ve asked Master Sommelier Andrea Robinson to help us dig into the amazing quality and diversity of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons. But, before we literally get down into the rocks, we sat down with Christian Oggenfuss of the Napa Valley Wine Academy to help us appreciate the history and importance of the grape to the region.2016 .NAPA VALLEY ViNtNErs6“Cabernet Sauvignon has a rich history, and Napa Valley is one of the most exciting places for this grape to grow.” —christian oggenfuss2016 .NAPA VALLEY ViNtNErs7Cabernet Sauvignon Takes RootAs chief educational officer at the Napa Valley Wine Academy, Christian Oggenfuss enlightened us on the history of the grape, dating back to the 1700s in Bordeaux, France. “Cabernet Sauvignon has a rich history and Napa Valley is one of the most exciting places for this grape to grow.”According to Oggenfuss, genetic testing at the University of California, Davis in the 1990s determined that the grape is the result of a spontaneous cross between two varieties commonly found in Bordeaux: Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc.Like many European immigrants of the time, the grape headed west across the Atlantic in the 1800s, likely brought to Northern California by Hungarian-turned-American Agoston Haraszthy, considered the father of California viticulture.With no real understanding of the land like we have today, grape varieties were subject to trial and error. The diversity of soil types and climate zones in the Napa Valley forced early vintners to experiment with different varieties in different areas. Over the course of the next 50 years, grape growers soon figured out that Cabernet Sauvignon was ideally suited to many parts of the area, particularly in the central and northern valley and on the hillsides.When Prohibition was repealed in 1933, the wine industry was in shambles and there were only 100 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon planted in all of California. It didn't take long for the grape to re-establish itself at the hands of some of Napa Valley's legendary vintners, including Louis Martini, the Mondavi Family at Charles Krug and, perhaps most important, André Tchelistcheff at Beaulieu Vineyards, who led a wine-quality revolution in the Napa Valley, introducing practices like clean winemaking and the use of French oak barrels.By the early 1970s, local vintners and winemakers were convinced of the quality of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. All they had to do now was persuade the rest of the world, which didn’t take long. In 1976, British wine merchant Steven Spurrier put together a blind tasting of French and American wines in Paris. At the conclusion of the tasting, when all of the results were tallied, the panel of French judges voted the 1973 Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon as the top red wine, besting its French counterparts. The event was covered by George Taber of Time magazine and has been credited with raising awareness around the world of the quality of American, and more specifically, Napa Valley wines.In the wake of the Judgment of Paris, Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has continued to gain popularity and now represents 40 percent of the planted vineyard acreage in Napa County and 58 percent of the value of the country’s annual grape harvest. While Napa Valley is certainly known for wines other than Cabernet Sauvignon, the grape has established itself as the region’s premier variety in terms of both quality and popularity.cabernet sauvignon2016 .NAPA VALLEY ViNtNErs8in napa, cabernet is never just cabernet Why exactly is the Cabernet Sauvignon grape so well suited to Napa Valley? Master Sommelier Andrea Robinson explains through a quick lesson on the climate and soils of the region. “There really is nowhere else in the world with such reliably long growing-season weather,” says Robinson about one of the essential requirements for ripening great Cabernet Sauvignon. Napa Valley’s climate is classified as Mediterranean, characterized by warm, dry summers. Typically, rainfall only occurs during the region’s mild winters. Mediterranean climates are only found on 2 percent of the earth’s surface.“In addition to the warm, dry weather, we have this amazing diurnal temperature variation during the summer months that can produce as much as a 40-degree difference between the heat of the day and the cool of the night,” she says, attributing this to Napa Valley’s proximity to the cold waters of San Pablo Bay and Pacific Ocean. As the sun heats the valley during the day, warm air rises, creating a vacuum effect that allows the cool ocean fog to fill in underneath during the evening and overnight hours. “This shift in temperature is magical for maintaining proper acidity in the grape, which leads to the creation of balanced wine.” Robison likens acidity to salt: “It makes every other flavor around it pop, and that is really important.”In addition to the climate, Robinson also explains that the soils in the Napa Valley are ideal for growing Cabernet Sauvignon. Specific examples include the alluvial fans found along the edges of the valley and the rocky, well-drained soils of the hillsides. Vines planted in these areas face stressful conditions, which causes them to put their energy into producing small concentrated berries rather than growing excessive and unnecessary leaves and shoots. Vines planted in these areas produce grapes with rich, complex flavors. Combined with the long, dry growing season and drastic diurnal temperature shifts, growers in the Napa Valley are able to produce complex and powerful Cabernet Sauvignons with well-balanced acidity.Robinson goes on to explain how this combination helps to create a diversity of Cabernet Sauvignon expressions in Napa Valley. The climate of a particular vineyard site is determined by its proximity to water and its elevation, slope and aspect (defined as the direction the vineyard faces —north, south, east or west). Soils vary depending on the vineyard’s underlying bedrock material and soil-forming processes. All of this contributes to a variety of flavors that can be found in Napa Valley wines made from this one particular grape.For example, Cabernet Sauvignon produced from grapes grown on thin mountain soils of marine origin in the cool Mount Veeder American Viticultural Area (AVA) tend to be restrained with firm tannins, bright red fruit and distinct herbal tones. Cabernet Sauvignon sourced from gravelly alluvial fan vineyards on the valley floor in the warmer northern parts of the valley tend to have rich, opulent fruit flavors with softer tannins. Cabernet Sauvignon grown on the warm, volcanic hillsides of the Howell Mountain AVA are firmly structured and tannic with notes of black fruits and layers of complexity.2016 .NAPA VALLEY ViNtNErs9While the proof of Napa Valley’s diversity is found in the variety of aromas, flavors and textures one experiences when tasting the region’s different Cabernet Sauvignons, it’s also backed up by science and experience. Look at a soil map and see how each color represents a different soil series. Or drive down the valley from Calistoga to Los Carneros on a warm summer day where you’ll feel the temperature change dramatically as you travel the short 30 miles.Next time you and a couple of friends find an occasion to enjoy more than one bottle of wine around your dining room table, choose two bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon from different parts of the valley and experience for yourself the quality and diversity of the Napa Valley wine region.cabernet sauvignonR. Christian Oggenfuss, Diploma Wine & Spirits, French Wine Scholar, and Italian Wine Professional, is a second-year Master of Wine student at London’s Institute of Masters of Wine. He is a certified Champagne and Port wine location specialist, and founder and chief educational officer of the Napa Valley Wine Academy. Visit napavalleywineacademy.com.Andrea Robinson is one of only 21 female master sommeliers in the world. She is a graduate and former dean of the French Culinary Institute and winner of three James Beard Awards. She is widely featured across leading national television networks and publications as the go-to expert for all things related to wine.“This shift in temperature is magic for maintaining proper acidity in the grape, which leads to the creation of balanced wine. It makes every other flavor around it pop, and that is really important.” —andrea robinson