Our journey through Napa Valley continued at a winery we are quite familiar with but have never visited, Clif Family Winery. Winemaker Laura Barrett crafts the wines at Clif Family, from organically grown grapes in the estate vineyards, and with selected grapes from other growers. The Clif Family estate vineyards have been expanding, and she has more fruit directly under the winery’s control now. We started to follow Laura years ago, when she made the wine at Casey Flat Ranch in Yolo County, just across the Vaca Mountains from Napa Valley. There we fell in love with her rich red blends. That came to an end when the ranch was sold, and Laura moved over to Clif Family. They got themselves a great winemaker.
Clif Family is the child of Gary Erickson and Kit Crawford (and yes, they did start the Clif Bar empire if you are
wondering). They had spent some time cycling through Italy many years ago, and the Italian’s love of good food, wine and company led them to try and create that same experience at home, in this case Napa Valley. Combining their wines with produce and food products from their organic farms, they have now added a lively tasting room, a quieter Enoteca where you can experience a truly delightful food and wine pairing, and the Bruschetteria Food Truck, which can be found most days parked right next to the tasting room on Route 29 in St. Helena. While we were there we got the chance to experience all three venues, and can very confidently state they are all excellent. Let’s explore in more detail.
We had set up a time to catch up with Laura and the wine at the Enoteca, but found ourselves in St. Helena two days before, heading back to our inn from an earlier visit at another winery. It was lunch time and we were fairly ravenous, so we looked for a restaurant. This proved more difficult than expected, not helped by the fact that a large, popular local restaurant was closed for a private function that afternoon. One to two hour waits were in place everywhere else, so we pulled into the Clif Family Tasting Room to take a shot with their food truck. The tasting room is lively, bright and was busy. You can order wine by the glass, or grab a bottle, at the bar. You can also try a variety of food and wine pairings. Tables are scattered comfortably around the space, and there is an outside area as well. We first went outside and ordered some food at the truck, which has an amazingly good menu. Having been handed a beeper to let us know when the order was ready, we grabbed a table inside and ordered some wine. It was only 5-10 minutes before the call came to pick up our lunch.
This food truck was voted one of the best in the country, and we can see why. We split a roasted chicken and a bright, green salad. They were excellent, and equal in quality and flavor to any sit down restaurant we could have waited for. Not totally unexpected as we had read about the truck, but still somewhat beyond the levels one associates with even a top notch food truck. Clif Family Executive Chef John McConnell has taken the Farm to Table movement and put it on wheels in this Farm to Truck restaurant.
You can find the truck Wed – Sun, right outside the Clif Family Tasting Room at 709 Main Street in St. Helena. Orders can be placed ahead by phone or online. The tasting room itself is open 7 days a week.
There was still our scheduled visit to enjoy, so we returned for a morning reservation at the Enoteca. This is at the
The Enoteca
end of the side road off of Main Street right at the tasting room location. As you drive down the short road the Beckstoffer Vineyard is right in front of you, an iconic Napa Valley vineyard in the same class as the world famous To Kalon vineyards just down the road. The Enoteca itself is in a newly refurbished building at the edge of the vineyards. There is a beautifully decorated inside area, where you can lounge by the fireplace with a glass before sitting at the large table for the wine and food experience. In warmer months the outside patio provides a quiet spot with views of the surrounding vineyard and the Mayacamas mountains to the west. This place exudes comfort as soon as you walk in.
We enjoyed the Presto Gusto Tasting Experience while there, although there are others to choose from. We also had
Inside the Enoteca
a chance to taste an expanded range of Laura’s latest wines. Keegan was our host and with us the entire time. The food was impressive, and presented in a dramatic fashion. Delicacies
The Presto Gusto Spread
from the Clif Family farms were explained by Chef Evan, and included seasonal fruit and yogurt, preserves, farm eggs with caviar and buttermilk cheese biscuits served with prosciutto and Clif Family honey. The tasting experience comes with a series of wines from the Clif Family collection, ranging from the sublime Gewurstraminer to the big Cabernets from Howell Moutain. This is an elevated wine and food experience in a perfect setting. If you have a group of friends that wants to take it up a notch, we heartily recommend reserving a time here.
Did we mention there were wines? Quite a few actually, as we had a chance to sample a few extras. Here are our notes:
2021 Sauvignon Blanc – from the Oak Knoll estate vineyards, this is bright and crisp, with tropical fruit and
peach. It has a nice texture and is very smooth. A delicious wine and a great way to start the tasting. $38
2019 Gewurtztraminer – this wine is delightful. Pale straw in color, the juice is complex on the nose but restrained at the same time. Fruit aromas are coupled with floral notes and some herbs. It is dry, and very precise in the mouth. This is so refined and belies it 14% alcohol, you just don’t feel that. We loved it. $32
2019 Estate Chardonnay – this wine is finished in 30% new oak for nine months, and it does not see any malolactic fermentation. You definitely get the oak on the nose in this light, golden yellow colored wine. You get pear and apple too. It stays clean and crisp, and is super long. This is another elegant and delicious white wine. $42
2020 Le Celline Vineyards Zinfandel – color here is a medium ruby trending towards garnet. A scarce survivor of the 2020 fires, this wine was finished and in bottle before they hit, resting in caves. Plums, raspberry, spice and a little smoke greet you out of the glass. Rich fruit dominates the palate, balanced by crisp acid. This is a beautiful wine. It gets the Napa Valley Designation as the vineyard sits just below the starting elevation of the Howell Mountain AVA, which is 1400 feet, but it is Howell Mountain fruit. $65
2017 Croquet Cabernet Sauvignon – the Croquet vineyards sit on the north side of Howell Mountain, protected
from the ocean influences. There is actually a professional croquet court on the property – who knew there were professional croquet courts? It’s hotter on this side of the mountain. Grapes are generally picked the last few weeks of September. The wine is a dark ruby in color, with a nose of red and black fruit. This is berry fruit, currant and blackberry. You don’t get the blueberry that comes with Howell Mountain Cab in some vintages. You get a little oak. Tannins are medium. This has great balance and a beautiful purity of fruit running down the middle. It finishes very long. World class Cabernet. $150
2018 Cold Springs Cabernet Sauvignon – this is also from Howell Mountain, but Cold Springs is on the south side and receives the cooling influence of the fogs that come up the valley. This was picked a month later than the fruit at Croquet, and is usually the last fruit to be brought in. The fruit is darker, the aromas are less exuberant. Dark berries form the core and tannins build late on the palate. This is a little closed down right now, and needs some time to blossom and show what it has. Obviously an excellent wine, and Cheri preferred it over the Croquet. $150
2018 CIMA Cabernet Sauvignon – this is a blend of the best fruit from the two vineyards above, Croquet and
Cold Springs, and it really is the best of both. Dark, opaque ruby in color, this has a big nose of red and black fruit. It’s got the more brooding quality of Cold Springs in the background and the more approachable Croquet fruit. This vintage the blend was roughly 2/3 Croquet and 1/3 Cold Springs. This is an exclusive wine for CIMA club members. They made us an honorary member for one day so we could buy a bottle to ship home. $185
2019 Petite Sirah – this wine has always been a favorite of ours, and over the years we have bought cases. From a vineyard at 1200 feet in elevation in eastern Napa, Clif Family has purchased these grapes since 2012. Alas, nothing lasts forever, and the vineyard is not a viable source anymore. As such this is the last vintage of this wine. There was not a lot left, so we shipped half a case home. It’s typical for Laura’s version of this grape, dark ruby in color with a luscious nose full of black fruit with some herb nuances and a touch of orange peel at the end. It’s just full bodied and quite elegant in spite of the rich fruit. A great mid-palate holds through the long finish. If you want some of this better order it now. It might be gone. $45
NV Petite Sirah Dessert Wine – this is something new. Laura took two tons of the Petite Sirah and decided to
go after a dessert wine. This is in the style of a ruby port, but the fruit extraction is unreal. Pure waves of blueberry and blackberry coat your palate. You also get a little bit of tannin. It’s not overly sweet actually, and is a wine lover’s port. We sipped this with a chocolate pot au crème and it was pretty much perfect. You could pour it over vanilla ice cream as well. Yummy. $45
Really all we can say is that Laura is still at the top of her game. The wines are delicious, and show an incredible range. If you like elegant whites or big, complex cabs, you’re covered here. The port wine is a great addition to the portfolio. Couple this to the food and a memorable experience awaits you at Clif Family.
You can find the Tasting Room and Bruschetteria Food Truck at 709 Main Street in St Helena. The Clif Family website is at https://cliffamily.com/. The Enoteca is nearby, and reservations there are required. This is well worth a visit. We shipped home a case, and had the Gewurztraminer with our Thanksgiving meal. It was perfect match. Even better deals are there for club members, who get discounts on all wines.
You can read about the previous winery on our trip through Sonoma and Napa Valleys by clicking here. The next stop is available here.
A votre sante!
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