I had heard good things about Vino Locale, a (relatively) new wine bar in a quaint Victorian in Palo Alto, but I had yet to try it out until the Junior League of Palo Alto/Mid-Peninsula hosted their first fall fundraiser there a few weeks ago. Imagine my surprise when I walked in to find an incredible range of wines - all local.
The European-style wine bar, featuring daily wine tastings, local wines, food and rotating art collections, also hosts special events and provides catering. (Hmm, this gives me a few ideas for planning our much-belated housewarming party that has yet to materialize.) The day we went, we tried a Roudon-Smith 2006 Sauvignon Blanc that I liked, a Silver Mountain 2002 Chardonnay with organic grapes - the first organic wine, I might add, that I've really liked. Both wineries are located in the Santa Cruz mountains.
Then we met up with Dane Stark of the Page Mill Winery (no longer located on Page Mill Road, but I think they still harvest some grapes from there) and we spent some significant time trying their wines. My favorites were the 2006 Sauvignon Blanc and the 2005 Pinot Blanc. The winery is now in Livermore where they can participate in the blossoming Livermore wine tours.
Meanwhile, the party was bustling in the back yard as the Jr. League thanked Randy, the owner of Vino Locale, for having us there as Leauge members and friends gobbled up the remaining appetizers provided. The Vino Locale food menu is significant for a wine bar. It includes hummus, crostini, olives and breads, cheese plates, paninis, salads, sausage sandwiches, truffles and biscoti.
Special thanks to Andrea Brant, Hilary Burcell, Christine Meyer and Elizabeth Brazinski for organizing the event that day and fall fundraising chairs Jan Hickman and Nandini Gondhalekar. I'm looking forward to the next League event and I need to come up with another excuse to visit Vino Locale again soon. For fans of Bay Area Wines, Vino Locale should be a regular stop on your wine trail.
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