A 20-minute walk or a 5-minute drive from The Inn On First, a Napa Bed and Breakfast, is a tasting room called Twenty Rows, named after one area of their vineyards that is, yes, 20 rows. We had heard about this space from guests who had visited and made our way over there last week and met with Tim Nuss, son of the owner, and part-time winemaker. The space itself is quite fun, with small seating areas set up for guests to lounge in small groups, or at a communal table, or even at a more traditional wine bar. The equipment can all be seen in the tasting room and that is half the fun of going there. It really is a multi-purpose room that also serves as winery and barrel room. Of course, during big events, such as the Super Bowl, or The Oscars, the large screen in the room is central to a great party space to enjoy good wine, food, and entertainment.
As for the wines, we enjoyed a full round of both Twenty Rows and Vinoce label wines, both produced by Twenty Rows. Vinoce is a liberal play on words: Vino and Noce (walnut) = "wine nut". Of the Twenty Rows label, we tasted the Merlot (fruit forward, cherries, spice- only 100 cases made), The Grappler, a Zinfandel Blend (fruit forward, tobacco flavors, light cherry notes), and the 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon (Mt. Veeder fruit, dark red fruit flavors, black currant, with a hint of cedar or sandalwood). We enjoyed all of them and were happy to hear the price point was only $20.00.From the Vinoce label we tasted the Cabernet Franc Blend (red raspberries, light on the palate, with a hint of cassis) and the 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve (blackberry notes, soft dark spices, with a beautiful nose). These wines were both delicious and are $60 and $75 respectively.The tasting room is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Worth a visit, if only to sit and talk to Tim about wine, his family, and wrestling.
