A Day on the Napa River, With Steak
“Why don’t you come over this weekend for a boat ride?” Linda asked me. We had just finished a listing presentation with a couple who wanted to sell their house in Westwood. Linda is a real estate agent and I was referring the couple to her, which, in the real estate world, means I get a cut of the commission.
“Absolutely,” I responded.
Linda and her husband Bob have this amazing house in River Park, a man made lagoon, like a tributary to the Napa River, just south of the Imola Bridge. It’s perched on its own mini-peninsula with a stunning view of the water. Across the river, you can see the hills of Skyline Park. Bob told me that this was the lot that the developer chose for himself on which to build his house. He considered it to be the best one in the development. I could see why. It is almost regal, commanding in its orientation to the water.
Last Saturday at 3PM, the afternoon warm and windy, we were all in shorts, T-shirts and sandals. After some fussing with the fuel, we lowered the boat into the water, and took off at a snail’s pace through the lagoon out to the Napa River. You aren’t supposed to leave a wake in the lagoon so that the other boats in the water don’t crash against their docks.
It was low tide. You could see the brown watermark against the cat tails on the eastern shore and the blackened rocks to the west.
The lagoon far behind us, Bob opened the boat up. The torque of the propeller plunged the rear of the boat into the water, and the bow shot up. I was in front, with wrap around sunglasses on. The wind was a constant force against my face and the sun, just beginning it’s descent from overhead, was unrelenting. Its reflection on the only slightly choppy water was magnificent - true Napa Valley view. I pulled out my phone to take a picture, gripping it furiously, as merely the idea of watching my precious lifeline plunge into the river made me panic.
Truman, Bob and Linda’s adorable cockapoo, was on the bench next to me. He has curly white hair and long soft ears. He is a sweet, quiet dog, the kind that is no trouble, cheerful: a true example of man’s best friend. Truman inched over to me and put his head in my lap.
I am not a dog person. I’m too cynical for the upfront, honest affection a dog would have. Nor am I prepared for the attention a dog requires. I much prefer the indifference of my grey tabby, named Creature, who is selfish and lazy and only is affectionate when it suits him.
That being said, I was touched by Truman’s affection, and massaged him behind his ears.
Soon we came past the derelict Napa Pipe crane. It’s rusty yellow cab and boom seemed so decrepit, it was hard to imagine that at one time it was functional. This is the location of all the fuss. I tried to imagine a Costco, nearly 1,000 houses and a shopping center. But I much preferred the rustle of the cattails in the breeze, the odd egret taking off, and the way the sun illuminated the flat, brackish marsh surrounding the river.
I know we have a housing shortage in Napa. I know how much money would be made if that development went in. But really, is it that big a deal that we have to drive to Fairfield or Vallejo for our industrial sized and underpriced jars of syrup or flats of strawberries?
Given the choice between a Costco and the peaceful, quiet, serene, natural river, I’ll take the river every time.
The Part About the Food
When we got back to the house, after the fuss of getting the boat into the dry dock and figuring which end of the tarp was the front, we started dinner.
You may have read last Tuesday’s article about what I do with the ten or twenty pounds of tomatoes I’ll harvest during this this time of year. I decided to bring some tomatoes to their house for a first course Caprese Salad. I got to work, slicing tomatoes and basil, placing mozzarella fresca, drizzling olive oil and sprinkling salt. It was Himalyan pink salt because Linda couldn’t find her sea salt.
Once that was done, I asked her what else I could do, and she put me to work slicing an onion and mincing garlic.
The menu consisted of steaks of beef tenderloin the size of Delaware, brussel sprouts, sautèed mushrooms and “smashed” potatoes. It was the perfect meal for a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.
Hysterically, “smashed” potatoes are boiled potatoes that have been crushed by a soup can, brushed with melted butter, garlic and herbs, then baked until slightly crispy. They looked like little cakes when she removed them from the oven.
The chopped onion was sautèed in butter AND olive oil, then the mushrooms were added. Then the garlic, beef stock, a splash of half and half and some tarragon. Sound familiar? If only you added some cognac, you’d have Steak Diane.
But it was the brussel sprouts that were a revelation. To start, she microwaves them so that they are cooked through. Then, she sautès them in butter, and just as they are beginning to brown, she adds butter and panko bread crumbs. At first I thought it was crazy, but they added this crunchiness, a positive grittiness, a texture which mixed with the charred leaves of the brussel sprouts and added a dry sense of depth. It was simple and perfect.
In Napa, you are never more truly welcomed in someone’s home when they tell you to simply go to the cellar and pick a bottle of wine.
“Are you sure? Is there anything off limits?” I asked.
“Nope,” Linda said.
I found a 2000 Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, aka RMW CSR. I shivered with anticipation of how beautiful this bottle was going to be.
Bob set the table in the pavilion, above the boat dock. Lights of the surrounding houses reflected in the still water. The beef, cut in half now, so Rhode Island-sized, was perfectly, gloriously medium rare. We brought out the mushrooms, brussel sprouts and potatoes and ate family style. I loaded up my plate, poured the wine into my glass, and my cup, proverbially, runeth-ed over.
The RMW CSR was ideal. A year shy of two decades in bottle is the perfect time to show a Napa Valley Cabernet from the most celebrated vineyard in the Napa Valley, which means in California, which means in North America, which means in the world. It was restrained, but floral; fresh, with just a small amount of tannin for structure, and the fruit, oh! - the fruit! like aged blackberry pie.
I ate. And I drank. I finished off the mushrooms, but was too full for the brussel sprouts.
Non-wine people won’t understand this: when you send someone to the cellar, there is an extraordinary amount of trust you are placing in them. What will be the perfect bottle for that night’s menu? Do you really want to open this bottle? Will it be too young?
Once, a friend brought over a 1971 Doctor Vineyard, German Riesling for an Indian Feast we were having. When I saw the bottle, I said, “Don’t you want to save that for a special occasion?”
He responded with, “the fact that you would say that means you’re going to appreciate it. THIS is that special occasion.”
That is how it was with the 2000 RMW CSR. It will be one of the most beautiful wines I have ever had, and I will remember it. And I will remember who I had it with, what I ate and where I was. It will become yet another spectacular meal, one in a long line, that you can only have in this beautiful Napa Valley.
Recipes
Linda’s Sautèed Mushrooms
1tb butter
1tb olive oil
½ onion chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 package sliced mushrooms
¼ c beef broth
Splash half and half
Salt & pepper
Dried tarragon
Melt butter and olive oil on medium heat. Add onion and cook until golden. Add garlic and cook until fragrant. Turn heat to medium well and add mushrooms. Sautè until brown. Add beef broth and cook until almost all is evaporated. Add half and half and stir. Cook for a minute or so until thickened. Add about 1 to 2 tsp tarragon, salt and pepper to taste.
Linda’s Brussels Sprouts
2 slices of bacon, chopped
2 tb butter
1 tb olive oil
½ onion, chopped
Red pepper flakes
20 to 25 brussel sprouts
Salt and pepper
Panko bread crumbs
Wash brussel sprouts, cut off stems and cut in half. Place in microwave safe container. Add 1 tb of water and cook in microwave for five minutes.
Meanwhile, melt 1 tb butter and heat olive oil in skillet. Add bacon, onion and red pepper flakes and cook until golden brown. Drain water from brussel sprouts and add them to the pan. Cook a few minutes until browned. Add the second tb butter. Once melted, add bread crumbs and stir until browned, about one minute. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Linda’s Smashed Potatoes
8 red potatoes
Salt
2 TB olive oil
1 TB butter
2 garlic cloves, pressed
2 tsp fresh thyme
½ cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
Heat oven to 450. Place potatoes in large pot. Add enough water to cover by two inches and bring to a boil. Add one tablespoon salt, reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 to 25 minutes.
Place each potato on a cookie sheet. With the bottom of a can or glass, gentle press until crushed but still intact. Brush with one tablespoon olive oil and roast for twenty minutes.
In a small bowl, combine melted butter, garlic, thyme and one tablespoon olive oil. Brush over potatoes, then roast until deep golden, about ten minutes.
