We attended the "Cab is King" Wine Dinner with Bell Wine Cellars at The James Restaurant in nearby Geneva (IL). The evening featured a carefully curated multi-course menu prepared by The James Executive Chef, Steven Blackburn,
and his culinary team. Each course was thoughtfully paired with a wine from Napa Valley Bell Wine Cellars crafted to enhance the
unique characteristics of the food and the wines, creating a harmonious symphony of
flavors.We were joined by fellow Pour Boy Lyle and Terry who came out from the city (Chicago) to attend the event.
We learned of the event during our lunch at The James last month which we featured in these pages -
The James Geneva features wine friendly menu and fine wines.
The dinner was held in the fabulous Sun Porch dining room which provided an elegant picturesque setting for the memorable evening.
The wine flight featured an extraordinary selection of Bell Wine
Cellars' finest limited production and allocated wines.
Bell Wine Cellars is an ultra-premium Yountville
(Napa Valley) winery known for small-lot, single clone, Napa Cabernet Sauvignon, as
well as other Bordeaux varietals, Chardonnay and Syrah. They produce several limited production Single-Clone appellation (AVA - American Viticultural area) specific designated Cabernet Sauvignons from leading vineyard sources across Napa Valley.
Tonight's flight featured four of the Bell Wine Cellars' Napa Valley Cabernets, three Cabernet Sauvignons, a Cabernet Franc and a sparkling white Blanc de Noir from Sonoma County.
A small independent winery was founded by winemaker
Anthony Bell; he recently retired and the Bell Wine Cellars estate and winery in Yountville were taken over and are owned today by the Berberian and Spanos Families.
Visiting from California presenting the wines was Bell Wine Cellars Director of Sales, Hillary Cole, who guided the tasting flight, sharing insights and stories about the wines and their unique characteristics.
Hillary's journey as a Wine Master follows an incredible career as a military linguist and counter-terrorism analyst. Her work travel in national security intelligence took her to Europe where she had the opportunity to
visit vineyards in the finest wine growing regions where she was drawn to the serenity and romance of
the settings, such a stark contrast to her work.
Following her government service she earned her MBA and immersed herself in Sommelier studies. She worked her way to become General Manager and Sommelier for three
Sacramento-area restaurant groups running the wine program at Ella Dining Room and Bar in Sacramento.
Hillary completed several wine certification programs, her favorites included French Wine Scholar, Champagne Master Level, Napa
Valley Wine Expert, and The Business of Wine. She continues her studies of the French language and is currently a Bordeaux Master
candidate. Building on her background in
business, wine, and leadership afforded her the position as Director of Sales at
Bell Wine Cellars.
Hillary represents the new Bell Wine Cellars team that was brought in by the new owners, the Berberian and Spanos Families.
The Berberian Family were prominent wine and spirits wholesalers for five decades in California and Nevada, and then, owners of the Bank of
Agriculture and Commerce, launched in 1965 in Stockton, California. Ron Berberian
grew the bank to 11 branches, serving San Joaquin
and Contra Costa Counties. The Berberians’ longstanding knowledge and expertise of quality
wines eventually brought them to Napa Valley where Ron and Dea are dedicated to enhancing the
experience of visiting Bell Wines and offering the best quality award-winning wines.
The Spanos Family, today most known as owners of the NFL Los Angeles Chargers, were notable in real estate development and construction, and equally
known for their philanthropy to education, health, and youth
initiatives. Native to Northern California over several
generations, Napa Valley and the wine industry always held their
interest and admiration with their affiliation with Bell Wine Cellars dating
to 2002.
Bell Wine Cellars team with several leading notable growers to source grapes from some of the premiere vineyards that represent the varied appellations of Napa Valley.
The Bell Wines served tonight were crafted by founder and winemaker
Anthony Bell who has since recently retired. Going forward this will be overseen by Winemaker and General Manager John Hazak. A native of southern California, John earned a Master of Science
degree in Viticulture and Enology from the University of California,
Davis before working
in the Cotes-de-Nuits, Burgundy. Returning from France in 2005,
John honed his skills as Assistant Winemaker at Provenance Vineyards
under seasoned winemaker Tom Rinaldi, then at Sterling Vineyards as an Associate Winemaker, heading
their production of all white wines and Reserve red wine tier.
He returned to Provenance Vineyards in 2015 to direct
production of Provenance and Hewitt wines where he modernized Provenance
into a small-lot, luxury Cabernet house, then doing the same at Beaulieu Vineyards in 2017.
John joined Bell Wine Cellars in February of 2020. His
previous experiences paved the way to Bell, where he hopes to continue Bell's vision of craft winemaking and constant improvement, while
starting a new chapter with this team.
"At Bell Wine Cellars, above and beyond is second nature. We encapsulate
these efforts as Napa’s most prolific researcher and producer of
Single-Clone Cabernet Sauvignon, a labor of equal parts love and
diligence to express Cabernet Sauvignon as its own purest ingredient."
John Hazak,Winemaker & GM.
The dinner menu featured five courses each thoughtfully paired with a Bell Cellars wine. I write often in these pages about the importance and impact of optimally pairing food and wine, accentuating and amplifying the enjoyment of both.
The James Executive Chef, Steven Blackburn presented each course and discussed its preparation followed by Bell Cellars Director Hillary Cole who presented the accompanying wine, its composition, source and characteristics in applying it to the course.