Dinner At Valette Healdsburg/Harry Bryan/ Katie O'Connor/Caviar

Tonight we are honored to be joined by a number of great people.We will learn of Caviar and great food and wine at Valette Healdsburg. We have two new features and a few more to follow shortly. Greg Morthole has joined us and brought a number of great wines. We are honred to also feature Katie O'Connor and learn more about Caviar. Harry Bryan greets us and welcomes us to the great Valette Healdsburg. Please click on the audio links at the bottom of this feature,and we did save you a seat! Asked to describe his approach to winemaking, Greg responds, “Mostly low impact, with the thinking that 98% of the work is done in the vineyard and at fermentation.” That’s perhaps a more humble answer than an accurate one, but Greg had the rare fortune to work alongside and learn from three of the legendary winemakers in California history: Rick Sayre, David Ramey and Davis Bynum. What does one learn from such highly regarded winemakers? “From Rick,” Greg says,” I learned to be honest about the wine, but find the positive and lend a voice to that. From David I learned to relax, don’t be too reactionary. And from Davis, to be humble and real and avoid telling the bookkeepers the true story if you need to.” There’s wisdom in that for just about every occupation. Fresh, bright and crisp, this Sauvignon Blanc is a wine of balance, richness and aromatic complexity. Leading with zesty citrus notes of grapefruit, Meyer lemon and a light grassiness, this wine gives way to more tropical fruit and melon characteristics. This classic Sonoma County style Sauvignon Blanc ends with clean, refreshing acidity and pairs beautifully with toasted brie, seared scallops, oysters with mignonette and fresh pasta with sweet peas and a lemon cream sauce. We have two great Sav Blanc today,pne from Rodney strong and thye other from Davis Bynum.In fact we have 2 vintages of this amazing wine. The Vineyards Deep in the heart of the Russian River Valley, we have a five acre gem of Sauvignon Blanc. As a tribute to Davis Bynum's second love, who he found later in life, we named the five acres Virginia's Block. The vines are planted in east-west rows in shallow gravelly Huichica loam. The vines are cane pruned and trained to open up the canopy to allow the sunlight to touch the fruit. These fruit clusters turn golden through harvest, as the flavors become fully mature. The dream of Valette began nearly two decades ago between two brothers. While enjoying a glass of wine on their father's porch overlooking the beautiful Alexander Valley vineyards of Sonoma County, Dustin Valette and Aaron Garzini envisioned opening a restaurant together which would provide a canvas for Sonoma County farmers, winemakers and artisans to showcase their craft. The restaurant would be located in Healdsburg, the heart of Sonoma County – and the location where their great-grandfather operated bakeries. They would serve high quality, yet honest food; offer warm and impeccable service; and house a collection of boutique, small production wines. At the time, Aaron was establishing himself as a dynamic server and sommelier in Sonoma County and Dustin was in New York learning the culinary craft that would be his lifelong passion. They never lost sight of their dream. In 2015, Valette Restaurant opened its doors to the public, showcasing the brothers’ combined forty-seven years of restaurant experience and a deep dedication to Sonoma County, its food, and its wine community. Our new friend Katie works for these great wineries and covers southern California.She will teach you about caviar and,and leave you intrigued to try this delicacy....Cheers! Let's clcik on the links at the bottom and enjoy the first couple audio features from this great evening! YES! We did save you a seat! CHEERS! Click here and join us as we enjoy great food and wine . Click here and join us as we enjoy great food and wine .