Lodi Wine & Chocolate: The Good, the Bad and the Drunk

 Michael David - The BEST winery in Lodi

We both began and ended our day here and in doing so learned a very important lesson: always end at Michael David. When the light of day starts to fade and the Lodi faithful become more and more inebriated, Michael David becomes a safe haven in the middle of a s**t show. Far from the chaos of drunk cougars and aging cover bands at the downtown locations, we sat in Adirondack chairs basking in the sunshine and playing lawn games in peace until the festivities were over. It's a must do from now on.

 Their Gluttony and Lust Zins and Rapture Cab are to DIE FOR. They were pouring Gluttony and Lust this weekend which is an example of how MD always seems to one-up the other wineries who never offer their best wines for tasting.

I'm also a fan of their Sauvignon Blanc. It's the perfect light summer wine - nice and fruity but not too sweet and not too dry.

 Lucas

 Another one of our favorites. At Lucas you are greeted at the front door by Mr. David Lucas himself and the ladies are given a single rose. In back they layout tables with paints and brushes for everyone to decorate their glass. 

This year they were only pouring 4 wines - their Estate Chardonnay, C'T'Z'N Rose, Zinstar Zin and C'T'Z'N Zin. All are good but the Chardonnay sticks out to me, mainly because I'm so ruined by the Michael David zins that all others pale in comparison.

 

 Langetwins

If Micheal David is the classic quaint Lodi winery, this is its

behemoth brother. Driving up it looks like a cross between a prison and Lawrence Livermore Lab. But as soon as you walk in to the new "Press Room" tasting room, it's feels like you've transported to a modern upscale winery in Napa. Surrounded by barrels of wine and art from local artists, it becomes almost cozy.

Their featured wine was Caricature, which is a new blend of Cab and Zin. It didn't knock my socks off but I did quite enjoy their Midnight Reserve red blend and Sangiovese Rose, which was on the sweet side.

 Macchia

 I'm not going to lie, I can only think of one wine I tasted here, their 'Righteous' Barbera, which was very bright and fruit-forward but again, nothing to write home about. 

Aside from the wine, the draw for Macchia is the wood fired pizzas you can buy to soak up some of that wine, the lively and sunny patio to relax on, the yummy meatballs and best of all, the photo booth. Who doesn't love to throw on a crazy hat and some oversized glasses and make a fool out of themselves? 

 

Klinker Brick

 This is the second time we've chosen KB on our W&C tour since they opened up a tasting room last year. Their Old Vine Zin is very highly decorated and gets love from some of the most well known wine critics and bloggers out there, which is pretty cool for a little local winery. The 2010 vintage stays true to the Lodi tradition if bold Zins and then throws in a little pepper to make things interesting. 

They also have a lively patio with an outdoor tasting bar and a little lawn, but the mood more party than relaxing. Not a bad thing, just good to know when you're planning your W&C route.

 The Dancing Fox

 Known as a quaint restaurant with good food in downtown Lodi, apparently they are pretty proud of their wines as well. I'm sure the wines are great, but trying to cram into a tasting area the size of a prison cell makes one reluctant to stick around and try them all. They also were pouring a few ports accompanied by some decadent-looking brownies, but my impatience didn't let me get that far.

I may revisit the kitschy establishment again for brunch, but I would recommend steering clear of it for W&C.

 The Cellar Door 

Remember my earlier comment about drunk cougars? Well, welcome to The Cellar Door. To be fair, this was one of the last places we visited and it was late in the day. But honestly, does that give the woman pouring (dressed as a giant heart, no less) the right to greet me with "We have a white and couple a' reds"?? After shouting over the music for a minutes, we made a speedy exit and fled to the comfort of Michael David. 

The Cellar Door is a nice wine bar in downtown Lodi, but like The Dancing Fox, it made us realize that sticking to the wineries for W&C is the only  way to go.

I hope everyone heads out to Lodi for Wine & Chocolate next year and has enjoys it as much as I do!

~ Sara