When it comes to fine dining in Napa, there are so many wonderful choices I feel overwhelmed when trying to choose. This was my dilemma when my manager came to visit from Texas - we wanted to choose a restaurant that was different from anything she had in Texas and that was representative of Napa without being astonishingly difficult to get into (French Laundry) or prohibitively expensive (French Laundry - two strikes - ohhhhh!) Etoile was on the list, but we landed on Bottega because it has that fabulous outdoor living room area that no one else in Napa can replicate. Both the wine and the beer list are stellar, and you can find my five-star review of the restaurant on Open Table (http://www.opentable.com/) which I use to book just about all my reservations now.
What I drank:
Braida Barbera di Asti 2008 Monte Brune Piemonte
No secret that one of my favorite wine regions in Italy is Piemonte, where my relatives live in a tiny town in the French-Italian Alps. And I love Barbera, which is not so pricey as Barolo and a little more of a "table wine". This wine had a lovely oaky nose with hints of cedar and dark plum. The front of the wine was smooth and well-balanced, with flavors of bright cherry, cinnamon and oak that deepened mid-palate. The finish brought in round tannins and a lingering cherry cinnamon flavor that I loved. 8 out of 10 points. It went exceptionally well with my incredibly delish Confit of Duck...but you'll have to read about THAT on Open Table.
It was a perfect Napa spring day and we dined just as the sun was setting. I highly recommend Bottega. Michael Chiarelli is often on the premises (as he was this day) and seems to have a tight rein on quality and menu alike. Enjoy!
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