It’s that time of year for graduations, commencements, and homecomings and Tracie B and I felt like homecoming queen and king Friday night at Jaynes Gastropub in San Diego where our friends lined up a pretty spectacular flight of wines to welcome us back. It’s only been a few months since our last visit but it was just a thrill to see everyone and catch up. Jaynes has always been great and chef Daniel Manrique has really taken the menu up a notch. The food was excellent: I had my favorite, the Jaynes Burger, rare, topped with brined red onions, and Tracie B had the shepherd’s pie (it warmed our bodies on a mild evening during San Diego’s “June gloom,” which generally sees cooler-than-summertime temperatures).
Above, from left: John and Megan Yelenosky, Jayne Battle and Jon Erickson, and Tracie B and me.
My highschool bud John Yelenosky (top San Diego wine professional) and his wife Megan (one of the city’s leading sommeliers) treated us to a stunning bottle of Billecart-Salmon rosé (on the list at Jaynes). The nose on this wine was so thrilling you almost didn’t want to drink it.
Above: I was surprised at how well the 2002 Cerbaiona showed. Not a lot of Brunello producers bottled their wine as such in the rainy 2002 vintage but the “Pilot’s Brunello” tasted like Sangiovese through and through.
One of the surprising wines was a 2002 Cerbaiona Brunello di Montalcino. I used to sell those wines back in the day in NYC. They’re one of my “guilty-pleasure” wines: they’re expensive, they lean toward the modern in style, but they can also be lip-smacking delicious. The wines showed nicely with my Jaynes Burger.
Above: The Selvapiana Chianti Rufina 2007 by the glass at Jaynes is awesome.
But the wine that really impressed me that night was the Selvapiana 2007 Chianti Rufina: still a little green around the edges but so powerfully tannic and rich. Similarly to the 2007 bottling of Langhe Nebbiolo by Produttori del Barbaresco, Selvapiana’s “entry-level” or “gateway” wine nearly transcends its designation. I haven’t tasted a lot of 2007 from Tuscan yet but anecdotal reports indicate it’s going to be a great vintage for the region, a harvest in which a lot of winemakers were able to make larger quantities of great Sangiovese. It will be interesting to see what this baby does in the bottle.
On deck for tomorrow: CEVICHE PORN!!! Stay tuned…
Do Bianchi 
If I ever make it to S.D., I’ll have to make a trip to Jayne’s. It’s on my culinary map.
did you actually have to go and post a burger pic? you’re killing me. i’m dying for a good burger.
Eccomi qua!
ciao Jeremy,complimenti per tutto e come ti ho scritto nell’e mail mi fa molto piacere ti abbia colpito il Chianti Rufina 2007 Selvapiana!Grande azienda portavoce di pura autenticità da una delle zone più straordinarie della denominazione Chianti.Qui il signor sangiovese si fa ancor più elegante,fine,sottile ma mai magro.Sicura la longevità..che lo renderà sublime.Ricco di quella freschezza che è suo patrimonio e ricchezza.Freschezza che permetteranno alle più autentiche bottiglie di crescere e regalarci grandi emozioni..Una delle mie ultime esperienze più belle da quella zona:Vigneto Bucerchiale 2004 Selvapiana..elegante,succoso,vivo e che dal calice ti dice orgoglioso e sincero:sono io,sono il sangiovese!E qui del sangiovese hai l’anima.E se vorremo attenderlo…dal nostro calice non potranno che uscire ancora emozioni.
un caro saluto a tutti e se vi capita provate della stessa zona i Veroni e Cerreto Libri!
Ciao
Simone
I especially liked in the picture how Tracie B draped her arm around your shoulder to show off her “rock”
Small world! I’ve met Megan. Had dinner with her at AOC. Congrats to her on the passing the SA Advanced test!
Oops! Typo–I meant MS Advanced test :-)
Selvapiana!!! I agree. Right now I am pouring it by the glass and love it through and through, as do our guests. I visited Silvia and Federico a couple months ago and tasted through their line up and was blown away by the value of the entry level Chianti.
Cerbaiona – had a bottle of the 98 last week – great people and like you say always delicious wine!!!