Swapping Irish mud for Californian sparkling wine

Normally, at this time of year, I’m scaring myself silly jumping over yawning ditches and muddy banks out hunting in Ireland, well fuelled with Guinness and cherry brandy and dancing all night at whichever hunt ball happens to be on that weekend. It’s an annual ritual that is often the highlight of my year, even if it is utterly exhausting and terrifying – our motto for our Irish hunting adventures is ‘go fer it, if ye fall, ye fall’. It was an exhortation we heard on our first trip several years ago and is the only possible philosophy when you’re faced with drains, double banks, bogs and crumbling stone walls, with hounds flying and mad Irishmen leading the pursuit. Of course, drinking Champagne and singing around the piano at 5.30am with the wonderful Noel Wallace of Bunratty Manor in no way impedes our abilities on horseback a few hours later!

A typical February Saturday - with the Irish hunting crew after a cracking day

This year, however, the extravagance of flying from California to Co Clare proved too much to stomach, so I soothed my yearning for the Emerald Isle with a glass of bubbly (or six) in Napa Valley. Our destination was Mumm Napa, a winery on the Silverado Trail that specializes in sparkling wine. I’ve been lucky enough to drink many of the greats in my time – Pol Roger, Bollinger, Taittinger – but I honestly think I prefer Mumm’s offerings to any I’ve tried before. There’s a freshness and sweetness to them that’s redolent of the sun-soaked Californian countryside, and the best place to drink them is undoubtedly seated in the winery’s tasting room with a view across the vine-filled valley.

Not a bad view of an afternoon

Of course, much of Mumm’s success is rooted in the French tradition, as it was the great Champagne house G. H. Mumm who sent winemaker Guy Devaux to America to find the ideal winegrowing area some 30 years ago. Searching for a terroir that would allow him to use traditional Champagne grapes (Chardonnay and Pinot Noir) and the production process methode champenoise, he finally discovered the Napa Valley and established Mumm Cuvée Napa in 1986. After Devaux’s death in 1995, the tradition of using classic techniques, the méthode traditionnelle, continued, although, naturally, wine produced outside the eponymous French region is never Champagne. The sparkling wine produced here has a character all of its own, due to, as the winery puts it, the ‘energetic, independent attitude’ of the grapes. It’s easy to smile sometimes at the overblown language of wine buffs, but there’s no doubt that the brains behind Mumm Napa know exactly what they’re talking about, and no one minds a bit of linguistic embellishment when the results are so good.

Michelle and me on a sunny Saturday. Ah, the bliss of a Californian February!

We tried two tasting selections, three glasses each that were expertly filled by our waitress Alicia, who, seemingly without looking, poured each glass so that it bubbled above the rim, but never spilt. The first, featuring Mumm's flagship DVX range, the ‘winemaker’s finest’, included the 2007 DVX, the 2006 DVX and the 2008 DVX Rosé. All three were delicious, especially the 2006, which had a rich, many-layered nose and inviting flavours. Next was the Club Vivant featured selection, the pale, dry 2009 Blanc de Blancs, the wonderful Brut Reserve Rosé and the delightful Demi-Sec. This last was definitely my favourite, light and fruity with a creamy aftertaste. If the day ever comes, it will be the chosen bubbly at my wedding!

One word: yummy.

As the late-afternoon sunlight faded to a chilly purple dusk, we moved onto the Louis M. Martini vineyard for a spot of red wine to finish. Founded in 1933 by Italian-born and trained Louis Martini, after he spent the Prohibition years producing sacramental wine and grapes for home winemaking, the winery specializes in cabernet sauvignon and boasts an extremely attractive tasting room with a gravelled area outside that was especially beguiling in the twilight. We tried the ‘Limited Release’ selection (consisting of the 2010 Cellar No 254 Meritage, the 2010 Monte Rosso Mountain Red and the 2011 Cellar No 254 Petite Sirah) and the ‘Taste the Appellations’ group (the 2011 Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2010 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and the 2010 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon). Pick of the bunch was the Meritage, a wonderful blend of cherry, cinnamon, brown spice and blackberry that reminded me of a comfortable drawing room filled with firelight and cigar smoke. Also a favourite was the Sonoma County cab, a classic red with notes of plum jam and oak. We finished with two pudding wines, Napa Valley Port and Moscato Amabile, served with a chocolate truffle and an amaretto biscuit that set the seal on a perfect afternoon.

Tasting notes for the Louis M. Martini winery

From the sublime to the satisfying – we finished the day off with a sumptuous burger and far too many garlic fries at the famous Gott’s Roadside, a brilliantly simple American diner with picnic tables and friendly staff. My Western Bacon Blue Ring burger, lavishily adorned with blue cheese, may have been a tad messy, but was just the thing to soak everything up. There’s nothing like a spot of indulgence on a hot Californian day, and although nothing truly compares with Bunratty’s black-pudding bread and a blistering day on horseback, this was as good an alternative as I could have wished for. Bon appetit! 

My ring is a sparkling fox, as worn by all the Irish hunting crew,

at least, all the girls!

The usual finish to a night in Ireland, with Champagne round the piano

San Francisco, the doggiest city in America. Or is it?

San Francisco is a doggy city. Dogs outnumber children, it is widely believed. They are allowed in many shops and offices, dog-walking areas are tucked away in every available corner and water bowls are left out for them on the street. In every square and park, canines galore chase balls, sniff indiscriminately and gossip with their fellows. Yet now, an extraordinary threat has risen its head in this most dog-friendly of cities, a threat that I, for whom the dogginess of San Francisco was an instant attraction, can hardly believe is true.

Fanny dog, one of my favourite walking companions, off the leash

Fanny on the beach at Crissy Field

In short, the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, an extension of the National Park Service, is proposing to ban off-leash dog-walking in 90% of the currently open areas within its remit. The list of places it would affect is lengthy and shocking: Crissy Field, Ocean Beach, Fort Funston, Land’s End, Baker Beach and more in San Francisco, and everywhere but Rodeo Beach in Marin County. These are gloriously wide-open places beloved by walkers, horse-riders, cyclists, kite-surfers, picnickers and, of course, dogs.

The vast expanse of Ocean Beach, a favourite with dogs and walkers alike

One of the city's many dog walkers with their charges at Fort Funston

There might be over 100 dogs frequenting these places at any one time, but there is seldom even an angry woof, as they all seem to get on remarkably well. In fact, they probably rub along better being off the leash, as they don’t feel trapped and they know they can get away if they feel the need. Of course, it all relies on dog owners being responsible, clearing up after their pets and making sure they’re sufficiently well trained to be seen in public, but San Franciscans seem particularly responsible in this respect. The vast majority of owners get their dogs from rescue centres, and I have heard several inspiring stories of neglected and frightened animals being given a new lease of life. A new lease of life that is enhanced immeasurably by being able to run and explore to their hearts content off the leash.

Fanny definitely prefers to be bounding free!

The problem is that the GGNRA seems to be changing the direction of its purpose, from providing recreational space for everyone to preserving open space and offering a 'national park experience’. The emphasis is changing from recreation to conservation, which is more in line with the non-profit organization GoldenGate National Parks Conservancy. The latter’s remit is to ‘preserve the Golden Gate National Parks, enhance the park visitor experience and build a community dedicated to conserving the parks for the future’. This is all very admirable and no one would contest their work, but the GGNRA should have a different slant, as befits the ‘Recreation’ part of its name. The changes could have an adverse impact on all kinds of park users, not just dog walkers, as the wording of the plan is worryingly open-ended. It talks about how it intends to ‘restore natural integrity while providing a backcountry-type visitor experience’ and ‘agressively’ tackle ‘external threats’ to natural resources, and states that ‘visitor use would be controlled’. Presumably, the GGNRA would decide what constituted an ‘external threat’ – dogs?! – and the idea of controlling visitor use conjures all kinds of fence-related spectres. Park officials say that dogs disturb wildlife and destroy vegetation, but such opinions are contested by opponents, who say that the effects of dogs are exaggerated. Besides, areas such as Fort Funston and Crissy Field have always been intended as open spaces where the people of San Francisco, and their dogs, can escape the pressures of the city. Although their conservation is important, and vital work is done to restore habitats and preserve wildlife, they are not mini Yellowstones and the primary purpose of giving people space to breathe should be prioritized.

Some of Ocean Beach is a 'snowy plover protection area', 

meaning dogs should be kept on a lead near the birds. 

The changes could lead to parts of the beach being fenced off altogether

But it is not over yet. There has been a public outcry at the plans, unsurprisingly, and the dog owners of San Francisco won't let this go through without a fight. The Save Off Leash campaign has an excellent and comprehensive website detailing affected areas and how people can protest, together with lengthy examinations of the exact wording of the proposals and links to related sites. The public has until February 18^th to add their voice to the outcry by submitting comments to the GGNRA. I can’t imagine a San Francisco without the likes of my canine friends, Fanny, Sebastian, Delilah, Gal and Whisky, charging around free and unfettered by their leads or unwelcome barriers. If they could talk, their reaction to the proposals would no doubt be vociferous. WOOF.

With thanks to Chad Jones and Todd Stein, proud owners of Fanny

This is what Fanny likes to do - not trot along on the end of a lead!

Queen of the beach

I doubt any owners are going to want to enter the freezing waters of the Bay

just because their dogs want to!