A leafy nave.

Considering California has had three rather dry winters in a row, and Vinoland's vineyard has not yet had the benefit of irrigation this year, the Orange muscat vines are growing very enthusiastically.  The vines are so enthusiastic that I decided to top them today.  It was very cosy inside the verdant, canopy tunnels, but in order to allow more overhead sunlight to penetrate to the lower leaves (and air to circulate), the vines had to be quite severely trimmed back.  Topping the vines will encourage more lateral growth, but at this point in the growing season additional photosynthetic potential from new leaf activity isn't a bad thing.

D is for...

...damned lucky!

A propitiously warm Napa evening had me, Vinomaker and the Vinodogs dining outside for what was only the 3rd time this year. A white bean cassoulet, green salad, and garlic bread was just what the doctor ordered after a hot afternoon spent in the vineyard suckering the vines.

We initially paired the cassoulet with a Saddleback Cellars 2008 Pinot blanc, a wine we have enjoyed a lot of lately. Nils Venge, the proprietor of Saddleback Cellars, is perhaps mostly known in these parts for being the first American ever to achieve a perfect 100 point score, given by internationally renowned wine critic Robert Parker Jr. It was OK with the cassoulet. I love this wine just on it's own, but we switched to a Groth 2005 Cabernet sauvignon - the winery at which Mr. Venge was employed when he vinted the 1985 Cabernet sauvignon Reserve that garnered the perfect score.

A French dish paired with French wine varietals on this the most auspicious of days...D-Day; when if it wasn't for our brave British troops, and their stalwart American and Canadian allies, I'd more than likely be sitting here drinking a Gewürztraminer right now!