Sunday, September 4, 2011

Napa Trip Part 1: Bistro Jeanty, Etc.

As part of my birthday / anniversary this year, the boyfriend and I headed up to Napa for a lovely day trip. We went on the tour at Jarvis Winery at my co-worker's recommendation, and it was an amazing experience! They were the first guys to place all their wine-making operations -- with the exception of growing and harvesting the grapes -- completely underground, in a 45,000 square foot mountain cave that keeps a constant temperature of 61 degrees. Not only was the tour fascinating and the cave hauntingly beautiful, but their wines were pretty damn good! I fell in love with their merlot, and I don't even remember the last time a merlot had me swooning. Such luscious fruit and great balance. 

 Photo courtesy of WongCo Food

Other wineries visited -- V. Sattui  (always a pit stop for me in the area!) and Alpha Omega Winery (first and probably last time there).

And no Napa trip would be complete without some stellar meals! We had lunch at Bistro Jeanty, a casual French bistro that does all the classics right.

Roasted Bone Marrow
 Photo courtesy of WongCo Food

My first time trying bone marrow, and now I see what all the fuss is about. If you're into super rich and savory stuff (raises hand), this is for you! Though it's probably a good idea to split a dish like this so you're not loading up on all that fat...


 French Onion Soup

One of my fave versions of this soup, coming in close behind the one at Chapeau. Bistro Jeanty's version features a broth that is less meaty, allowing more of the sweet, fragrant flavors of the onions to come through. Both are delicious, but it just depends on what you're in the mood for.

Steamed Mussels
Big, juicy bivalves in a hearty broth. Perfect. 

Coming up next -- photos from our yummy dinner at REDD! Stay tuned!

Bistro Jeanty
6510 Washington Street
Yountville, CA 94599

5 comments:

Passionate Eater said...

As I told you before, your boyfriend is awesome! I expect him to deliver next August 17th!

おいしいイチゴ said...

i love bistro jeanty!!!!!! did you try the tomate en croute? i love that a lot better than the french onion!! =)

taste tester said...

@Passionate Eater: Oh yes, I expect that too! :)

@Linda: I didn't try the tomate en croute because I can't eat tomatoes much :( But I'm sure the puff part is delicious!

Cookie said...

What an awesome boyfriend! V Sattui is 1 of my favorite wineries too.

taste tester said...

@Cookie: Gamay Rouge? Muscat? Haha...