Last summer, I was invited to Robert Mondavi Winery for a Winemaker Dinner set at the lovely Napa Valley Winery on the incredible To Kalon Vineyard. This was an invitation I quickly accepted as I had never been to Robert Mondavi before (pretty hard to believe since he really is the founder of Napa Valley and credited with raising awareness to this California Winemaking region). See more of this incredible and delicious evening below…

We were welcomed with the Robert Mondavi Napa Valley Rosé during cocktail hour. This was super light and delicate, delicious for a hot summer night in wine country.

The beautiful table with spectacular views of To Kolan Vineyards as the backdrop of our dinner. This is the most picturesque winemaker dinner I have ever experienced. I fell in love with the florist who did this gorgeous set up. It’s so beautiful, but it does not distract from the vineyard views in the backdrop.

Cheers to a fabulous evening at Napa’s Robert Mondavi Winery. I was so excited to enjoy the incredible meal from Robert Mondavi Chef, Joff Mosher, and New York Chef, Theo Friedman (also the birthday boy the night of this event) all paired back to Robert Mondavi Wines. What a special occasion! I feel so lucky to have experienced this evening.

His recurring New York pop-up dinners have been dubbed as, “The 5 Most Amazing Underground Dining Experiences in America” by Vogue Magazine, and his talents have been chronicled in other publications, such as, the Village Voice and The Boston.

 

What a treat getting to dine with Winemaker Joe Harden (literally right across from him) and his lovely wife, Hannah, who is also a blogger. Her blog is called Vogue in Vines and it is stunning!

 

I was (of course) excited to try the Robert Mondavi Pinot Noir (as you know Pinot Noir is my favorite variety). As expected, this Pinot Noir is not made in Oakville like most of the Cabernet Sauvignon Wines Robert Mondavi makes. This is from Carneros and it was lovely. It had just enough spice to give it a kick (how I love my Pinot Noir), with a really nice, smooth body. I enjoyed this so much, I was asking for seconds come dessert.

This course was hands down my favorite (aside from dessert, of course). This was fried rice with duck confit and a quail egg. This paired very well with the Pinot Noir and was spectacular.

A welcome from Winemaker Joe Harden to the guests.

My second course was vegetarian (since I don’t eat duck). I felt bad that I had made the Chef create another dish, but it was yummy. It was eggplant with beans and some incredible flavors. It sounds simple, yet the simplicity is why I enjoyed the various flavors and spices the Chef added to this.

The Duck Entree! Although I did not eat this, I did taste the Succotash with pickled apricots and mustard. It was fabulous, so good that I could not keep my hands off the apricots and pickled mustard seeds. Beyond yummy!