View of the vineyards at David Girard on a grey November afternoon.

Last weekend, I ventured eastward to Gold Country with a group of friends.  The travelling band of wine tasters varied in size from 7 on Friday to 14 on Saturday and 4 on Sunday.  It was a wonderful opportunity to share my passion for Gold Country and Gold Country wines with friends, some of whom had never been there before.

One of our first stops on Friday afternoon was David Girard Vineyards.  Since I was driving, I didn’t complete the entire tasting menu, but did sample a couple of their whites and a couple of reds.

The standout in my mind, and the wine I purchased, was their 2009 Tryptych, El Dorado. It is a blend of Syrah, Grenache and Counoise.  It is an easy drinking medium bodied red. It is smooth and complex.  I like its easy accessibility.  It went well with itself and I think it will pair well with pasta dishes or roast chicken.  I am looking forward to opening this bottle and drinking it with dinner over an hour or so with friends.

The other wine that stands out is their 2009 Riv D’Or, which is, if my memory serves me, made from estate grown fruit.  It is a heavier wine that the Tryptych, smooth and spicy with pretty strong cinnamon on both the nose and palate.  It is also a blend.  This time of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec.  This is a much more complex wine than the Tryptych and has nice acidity and soft tannins that suggest that this should be consumed with food.