Month: September 2020

Chef Thomas Keller’s Wine Spectator Grand Award winner the French Laundry in Yountville, Calif., resumed indoor service this month with the launch of a luxurious new dining format. For $850 per person, parties of two to eight guests can book a lone table in one of the restaurant’s three storied dining rooms. The private atmosphere sets the stage for an extended version of the eight-course chef’s tasting menu, with opulent supplements included such as truffles, caviar and Wagyu beef, plus additional canapés and dessert service.

“We did this because we have been hearing from many guests who are looking for extra-special ways to celebrate milestones,” said general manager Michael Minnillo in a statement shared with Wine Spectator. “The limitations in space offer a great sense of privacy.”

The meal kicks off with a bottle of 2006 Dom Pérignon, and guests can also order from the full wine list of 2,700 selections. Overseen by wine director Erik Johnson, the world-renowned program boasts numerous regional strengths, including California, Burgundy, Piedmont, Bordeaux and the Rhône. The standard tasting menus are still available at $350 per person, exclusively for outdoor dining.—Julie Harans

Dallas Welcomes Contemporary Comfort-Food Spot Yardbird

Fried chicken and waffles is among Yardbird’s popular hearty Southern dishes. (Munch Miami)

Yardbird Southern Table & Bar has flown its way to Dallas. On Sept. 17, 50 Eggs Hospitality Group opened a fifth location for the Southern-cuisine concept in the heart of the Texas city. The new restaurant joins sibling locations in Miami Beach, Fla., Singapore and an Award of Excellence–winning outpost in Las Vegas, plus a Los Angeles location that’s still temporarily closed due to the pandemic.

“Seeing the [Dallas] restaurant community evolve firsthand the way it has, especially over the past decade, has been incredible,” 50 Eggs founder and CEO John Kunkel told Wine Spectator via email. “It seemed like a natural fit for Yardbird’s genuine, made-from-scratch Southern cooking.”

In addition to a hefty whiskey collection, there’s a wine list of more than 70 labels, emphasizing picks from California, Spain, Italy, South America and even Texas, with several reds from the Lone Star State. “Dallas has, over the years, emerged as a cultural melting pot, and we wanted to offer a wine program that reflects that diversity,” Kunkel said.

Champagnes and other sparklers are also highlighted, ideal to match with Yardbird’s signature fried chicken. Other comforting menu items include buttermilk biscuits, shrimp and grits, and pork ribs, and desserts like cobbler and deep-fried Oreos. The space itself is contemporary and open, with industrial elements like metal rivets, floor-to-ceiling windows and brass furnishings. There’s also a Bourbon tasting room on the second floor.

After the coronavirus pandemic delayed original plans to open in March, Kunkel is optimistic that Yardbird will become a welcome part of the Dallas community. “Given the current challenges within the restaurant industry nationwide, we hope to contribute to the city’s ongoing positive perseverance,” he said. “We feel confident that the time is right to safely open our doors.”—Collin Dreizen

Chef Curtis Stone Debuts Los Angeles Pop-Up

Customers can take their Picnic Society meal to-go, or enjoy it in the grassy outdoor space. (Wonho Frank Lee)

Chef Curtis Stone, owner of Best of Award of Excellence winners Gwen Butcher Shop & Restaurant and Maude, opened Picnic Society by Gwen at the Grove in Los Angeles. Opened Sept. 14, the pop-up, slated for a four-month run, offers a full-service outdoor restaurant and market shop inspired by Gwen’s menu. “The world has changed in recent months, and so has the way that we enjoy food and come together,” Stone said, explaining the inspiration behind the concept in a statement shared with Wine Spectator. “I began thinking back to the stories of early 19th century gatherings of ‘picnic societies’ in Europe.”

Guests can opt to dine on-premise or purchase one of the many picnic-ready sets to take the experience anywhere in the city. The sets include baskets, miniature tables, blankets and utensils. “With good food and the right company, you can really make anywhere in the world your restaurant,” said Stone.

The menu offers classic dishes such as steak frites, lobster rolls and salad Niçoise. Led by sommelier and director of restaurant operations Ben Aviram, the wine program has been condensed into an abbreviated selection available to-go, featuring wines from California, Italy, France and beyond.—Taylor McBride

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It has been an unprecedented year for Sonoma’s vintners, who have grappled with COVID-19, tasting room shutdowns, wildfires and smoke, but that couldn’t stop the annual Sonoma County Wine Auction from going ahead this past weekend. One of the top charity auctions held in California wine country, it went virtual for 2020, with online events and remote bidding helping to raise $1.17 million for Sonoma charities.

As with other philanthropic wine events, the Sonoma auction faced uncharted waters this year with COVID scuttling in-person events. But the Sonoma County Vintners Foundation, which organizes the event, had no plans of canceling. “Not doing it was not an option,” Clay Mauritson, proprietor of Mauritson Wines and vice president of the Sonoma County Vintners, told Wine Spectator.

Bidding for the live-auction lots opened Sept. 17, as the event held an online welcome party with special guests including former San Francisco Giants star–turned-vintner Rich Aurilia. The final minute of live bidding came two days later during a virtual auction celebration. While the total fell short of 2019’s $6.1 million, organizers were still pleased. “I am over-the-moon happy and proud,” said honorary chair Jake Bilbro of Limerick Lane. “I’m more proud of the $1.1 million we raised given the circumstances than I would have been if we had broken the record in a different situation.”

The Sonoma County Vintners reduced the number of live lots to 12 this year to keep the virtual auction celebration to around an hour. Executive director Michael Haney emceed the event on Vimeo, alongside honorary chairs Mark McWilliams of Arista, Bilbro and Mauritson. The three vintners and longtime friends added a mix of hijinks and friendly banter to the program including initially taking the stage in their briefs, to Haney’s chagrin. But after a quick wardrobe change the vintners took a more serious tone as they encouraged bidders to give generously.

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Education was front and center, with the annual Fund-a-Need lot focused on raising money to bridge the digital divide for students in need. The donations will go toward buying computers, webcams and WiFi services for students who are having trouble accessing online education during the pandemic. “What has shifted dramatically with COVID is an equitable access to education,” said Mauritson, noting that the Fund-a-Need lot has focused on third-grade literacy in recent years. He said the funds generated will address a dire need in Sonoma. “It’s going to give everyone in our community the access to the same education.”

Despite the uncertain times, wineries stepped up and bid generously to help their community. Haney started the bidding by announcing that Courtney Foley had donated $250,000 on behalf of Foley Family Wines. Benovia’s Joe Anderson, Mary Dewane and Mike Sullivan and E. & J. Gallo both donated $100,000, with other prominent Sonoma wine families pitching in as well. “With all the travesty that we’ve had over the last month, we are very hopeful that what we put together can be beneficial to the county,” said Joe Anderson in a video. When the lot closed on Sunday, it had raised $726,000.

The top live lot of the event was a trip for two to Super Bowl LVI in 2022, along with a three-night stay at Williams Selyem’s estate and five large-format bottles of the winery’s 2018 Pinot Noir. That lot sold for $32,000. Another high-selling lot was a chance for 10 people to dine at chef Charlie Palmer’s home with Boulevard chef and owner Nancy Oakes plus wines from vintner Daryl Groom’s collection, which brought in $30,000.

One of the most heartfelt lots of the day was the Kids Krewe Cuvée, which offered bidders the chance to buy bottles of a 2019 red wine produced by Bilbro, McWilliams and Mauritson and their sons, with funds going to support wildfire-relief efforts. Bilbro felt the chance for the vintners to make a wine with their kids that would help other children was a lifetime lesson. “It’s a very simple concept of giving back, and it’s probably the most rewarding feeling and action that anyone can make,” said Bilbro. “For us to be able to share that opportunity as well as teach our children, that is doubly rewarding.”

Since its inception the Sonoma Auction has raised $37 million to benefit local charities. For Sonoma vintners, the auction is about building a stronger community. “This is going to make Sonoma County a better place to live for everybody,” said Mauritson.

Zachys auction house scored big in its European debut Sept. 12, thanks to a consignment from the Grand Award–winning restaurant Enoteca Pinchiorri. The New York–based auction house sold over 2,500 bottles from restaurant owner Giorgio Pinchiorri’s world-renowned cellar in Florence, Italy, bringing in a total of $4.1 million. The event took place at Cabotte Wine Bar and Restaurant in London, but was available via livestream and overseen from the Zachys home office in White Plains, N.Y., by president Jeff Zacharia and head of sales Charles Antin.

“The decision to eventually hold auctions in London was a natural next step for us, made long before COVID-19,” Jeff Zacharia told Wine Spectator. “Our year has been going so well, despite challenges, that we decided to press forward with the sale, and we’re glad we did.”

The Zachys and Enoteca Pinchiorri partnership comes as restaurants are struggling, while collectible wines remain in demand. Some restaurants are selling their wine inventory either in retail or at auctions to help stay afloat.

“An award-winning restaurant considers its cellar a fundamental resource,” Giorgio Pinchiorri told Wine Spectator. “We have auctioned only a small part of the wines in our cellar and the reasons for doing so have been the reorganization of our cellar and the funding of new restaurant projects.” A Grand Award winner since 1984, the Florence restaurant has 80,000 bottles in its cellar.

The auction took place Sept. 12, with 864 lots featuring some of wine’s biggest names, including Pétrus and Château d’Yquem bottles dating back to the 1920s. The auction sold 100 percent of its lots, mostly to European bidders, while setting 226 world records.

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Record breakers included a single magnum of Henri Jayer Richebourg 1979 and a Georges Roumier Musigny 1990, which sold for $60,400 each. A single imperial (6 liters) of Pétrus 2009 was picked up for $54,000, while a bottle of Jayer Richebourg 1985 sold for $44,500. A methuselah (Burgundy’s 6-liter bottle) of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée St.-Vivant 1981 fetched nearly $40,000.

Zachys’ London operation didn’t take shape overnight. The auction house assembled a team in Europe four years ago, and the original plan, pre-pandemic, was to celebrate the long-awaited expansion with a week of events culminating into a large live auction, but Zacharia says virtual auctions are and will continue to be a great source of growth for the family-run business.

“Nothing will change the excitement and camaraderie of a live auction, but these ‘studio sales’ are much easier logistically, so we can have more of them,” Zacharia said. “And our bidders love them.” Zachys is already planning a second London auction in November.

According to Zachys head of Europe Christy Erickson, Enoteca Pinchiorri’s owners felt it was the right time to let go of some of its wines, but the majority of the cellar still remains. The restaurant has consigned additional large-format bottles to Baghera Wines Auction & Trading for a sale later this year in Geneva.