WOODSIDE, CALIF. A SMALL TOWN ABOUT 30 MILES SOUTH OF SAN FRANCISCO, MAY NOT HAVE THE NATIONAL MARQUEE RESTAURANT NAMES OF BIGGER CITIES, BUT IT IS WELL-KNOWN AMONG FOOD AND WINE LOVERS.
Woodside is home to Wine Spectator Grand Award winner the Village Pub, which opened in 2001 and was the first restaurant from the Bacchus Management Group. Nearby are the group’s Village Bakery and Selby’s. In San Francisco is the company’s Grand Award– winning Spruce, home to some 2,500 wine selections and a 15,000-bottle inventory. All told, Bacchus has over a half-dozen restaurants from Mill Valley to San Jose.
The Bacchus properties exude the easy charm and sophistication of the West Coast’s best restaurants. The venues are comfortable and the service warm, but the food embodies a friendly yet cosmopolitan version of California cuisine. Some of the dishes are disarmingly simple. “The food that I do has a rusticity, but it’s still elegant. It’s really ingredient-focused,” says executive chef Mark Sullivan, who oversees the cuisine for Bacchus’ restaurants.
One dish might be a bowl of just pasta, egg yolk, Parmigiano and truffles, while another is straight-up meat and potatoes—but the meat is a rib eye cap and the sauce has a classical pedigree, similar to the roast lamb recipe, with a citrus-olive jus, found on page 60.
Ingredients are highly seasonal and owe greatly to the group’s exclusive partnership with SMIP Ranch, a 5-acre farm in the hills above Woodside that grows produce exclusively for Bacchus restaurants. Prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the farm also introduced direct-to-consumer sales through a CSA program, and they are planning to supply the restaurants again.
Esta historia es de la edición May 31, 2023 de Wine Spectator.
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Esta historia es de la edición May 31, 2023 de Wine Spectator.
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Openings: The Latest in Napa Tasting
Several new tasting options have opened in Napa Valley, particularly in downtown Napa where wineries are launching satellite tasting rooms. Standing out from the crowd means trying new approaches. Here are some highlights:
War in Middle East Affects Vintners
The 2024 harvest at Israel’s Dalton Winery was punctuated by nonstop rocket and drone attacks launched from just across the border in Hezbollah-controlled southern Lebanon.
Wineries Sue Napa County in Federal Court
Three Napa wineries filed a joint lawsuit in federal court in September alleging that Napa County officials violated their constitutional rights.
Savoring Persimmon Season
For many, persimmons are an enigma ingredient. Chef David Nayfeld of Award of Excellence-winning Che Fico in San Francisco and its Best of Award of Excellence sibling dangling persimmons off the tree with a stick at a childhood friend's house before realizing what they were. \"I remember his parents saying, 'Hey, don't hit the persimmons, those are food!\"\"
Tasting Plate: A German Six-Pack
Though it boasts Western Europe’s largest population and biggest economy, Germany is nowhere near the cheese juggernaut its neighbors Switzerland and France are. That said, the Germans love their fine cheeses, and they do turn out some excellent ones, fortunately including more than a handful that are currently available here in the U.S.
Gigondas Blanc Est Arrivé!
Ask winemakers in the Southern Rhône to name the most exciting white grape in their region and you will hear a growing number of them say \"Clairette.\"
THE SPLENDOR OF CHAMPAGNE
THE REGION'S LEADING PRODUCERS DELIVER HIGH QUALITY AMID A DIVERSE RANGE OF STYLES
MICHAEL BATTERBERRY: 1932-2010 Gourmet, Journalist, Gentleman
Before Food Network, Top Chef or Yelp ... before the term “foodie\" ... before tomatoes were heirloom and sushi was fast food... back when fancy restaurants were always French... Michael Batterberry and his wife, Ariane, were working to celebrate and elevate the status of American chefs and international cuisine. Julie Mautner, Food Arts' former executive editor, looks at the life and legacy of her late mentor, affectionately known as The Bat.
New Zealand's Success Story - From small beginnings, the country's wines have ascended to global prominence
Since then, New Zealand has become one of the world’s most successful wine nations. Currently there are 102,000 acres planted, and 40 million cases were sold in 2023, according to the New Zealand Winegrowers. The tiny country produces less than 2% of the global wine supply, but it’s the world’s sixth-largest exporter of wine by value. Another thing that’s evolved? The image of corks no longer applies, as most vintners there eschew cork (only about 15% of the wines we review still use the closure).
Wine Is Healthiest Choice for Drinkers - Decades of research has linked light to moderate drinking, especially of wine, to a range of health benefits.
There’s also strong evidence that alcohol consumption raises the risk of certain cancers and that heavy drinking carries serious health risks. But the reasons why moderate drinking seems to be neutral or beneficial for some people and harmful for others remains a mystery.A new study sought to solve that puzzle. Looking at health and lifestyle information for a large population, the researchers found that while any alcohol posed risks for adults with existing health problems from poorer areas, healthy adults from wealthier areas suffered no additional risks from moderate drinking, and those who drink wine with food even enjoyed better health.
