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April, 2009
Rating:
9 out of 10
Tariff :
Location
Downtown Napa next to the Napa River
is an old train yard. Now it is home to the Napa Valley Wine Train
business with three
engines, numerous cars, a 'muscle' kitchen, and an
education center. They own about 25 miles of rail and the
trip up the Valley and back covers about 36 miles. Nearby is the
'station' or public gateway to the Wine Train. This large
square building is raised slightly due to repeated flooding
of the Napa River and is encircled on three sides by a wrap around deck.
Inside are a tour desk, ticket counter, wine shop, gift
shop, rest rooms, wine tasting bar and adjacent area with
tall tables, photo counter, conference room, and huge
central area outfitted with plush upholstered couches for
riders to congregate, taste wines, listen to presentations,
and begin their journey. This is not a small operation; we
were told the Wine Train employs 140 people.
History
The Wine Train is celebrating its
20th anniversary and has hosted over 2 million guests over
these years. About 130,000 come through the station
annually, according to Melodie Hilton, Director of Marketing
and PR. Visitors from all over the world--US, Canada,
Japan--both amateurs and wine aficionados, come to ride the
train. It is a complex operation with 3 kitchens aboard the
train and a 'muscle' kitchen at the depot. Originally it was
built by Sam Brennan to take people from Vallejo to
Calistoga. Then it was bought by the California
Southern Pacific Railroad. After that it was dormant
and falling into ruin, although the rail corridor was kept
open. Vincent DiDominico had a vision--he bought it and turned it into the
Wine Train. He passed away last year, but his family
still owns and runs the business.
For Train Buffs
There are only 535 short line
railroads still in existence, fewer freight trains, fewer
passenger trains, still fewer antique trains, thus making
the wine train quite a unique operation. The train we rode
on had 9 cars and a capacity of about 300 passengers: The
Pullman cars were built in 1915-1917 and weigh about 80,000
lbs. each; the Vista Dome car, the first full length dome
car, was built in 1952; the ALCO (American Locomotive
Co.) engines were built in 1958-59 in Montreal and began
their working life on the Canadian National Railroad.
From there they went to the Canadian Via and then were
'retired' here. These are 4 of the 20 working ALCO FB4A
engines in the US. They can travel 92 miles/hour and have 1800
horse power.
Atmosphere
The configuration of cars on our
trip was (from rear to front) a lounge car, a dining car
with wine bar and piano, the Silverado "BBQ" car, a gourmet
dining car, the main kitchen, another gourmet dining car,
the Vista Dome car--2 stories with exclusive seating, view,
service, and menu (for a very private experience); two
additional lounge cars, and the engine. Interestingly enough,
at the end of the run North, the engines run back alongside
the train on a parallel track (see below) and hook up to the rear (which
becomes the front) for the return trip. As we toured the
various cars we were impressed by the rich appointments: red
velvet drapes, antique wood paneling and trim, pull down
shades, brass wall lamps in the style of old carriage lamps,
wood ceiling fans, etched glass panels, art on the walls to
the side of each doorway, and crisp white linens set with
silver, china, and glass in the dining cars.
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Gourmet Dining Car |
Onboard Wine Bar |
The Silverado car is unique in that
it is open air (unairconditioned!) and very casual; guests
are seated in wooden chairs at simple tables. The cost
is $50 and riders order from an ala carte menu. The
decorations are vintage movie pictures of famous actors
and westerns. This car is where the "family date
night" babysitting is held, while parents dine nearby. The
gourmet dining car, which is carpeted with upholstered
chairs, gold drapes, and linen table cloths, offers a trip
from which guests can depart the train and take a 1 1/2 hour
tour of Grgich Hills Winery ($119). A separate set of guests takes
a shuttle to 2 wineries.
The kitchen cooks everything to
order and functions like clockwork due to time and space
constraints and a massive number of menu items between all
the different cars.
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Chef
Kelly Macdonald Talks to the Press |
Cooks
in the Train's Main Galley |
The head chef, Kelly Macdonald has been
with the Train for 8 years. He is a personable
Irishman--red hair and freckles, quick humor, opinionated,
no nonsense management style. He works as a team with
2 assistants and is close with his international staff. Of
the stains on his black chef's coat, he remarks, "I believe
you have to be present to win in the kitchen." He
creates 200-250 menus a year. He tastes wines. He talks to
the diners on board. He says, "I'm not arrogant; I'm sure of
what I do, but don't mistake that for arrogance." [smile]
Wine Train Goes Green
Recently The Wine Train made the
news by converting their #73 engine to run on CNG
(compressed natural gas),
making it the first and only US train to do so--and one of
only a few in the world--Peru and India also have this
technology. Running on compressed natural gas reduces
harmful emissions by 80%.
Not only do they use this innovative,
environmentally friendly engine, but recently a "CAR(e)-FREE"
ride has been added. This involves taking the ferry
from San Francisco to Vallejo ($26) and then taking a
shuttle to the Napa Valley Wine Train station ($15). Why not
avoid driving in traffic and start your relaxing day in wine
country early?
Service
There are abundant staff in the
station, on the train, and in the Wine Train kitchen.
Each and every person we met was pleasant; some I would say
were enthusiastic. The overall effect is one of
professionalism due to the staff's crisp black and white
uniforms, attitude, and training. Our waiter at lunch was
well versed in all aspects of the menu and willing to check
on details such as whether the sole was locally farm raised
or wild. He also offered us a complimentary appetizer when
we asked about an unusual menu item: French fried avocado. I
had never heard of this before and found it to be rich and
creamy with a very light breading--just delicious.
French Fried Avocado Wedges
As far as the people leading our
tour, Melodie Hilton and her assistant Andrea were very easy
going and personable, as well as highly knowledgeable about
this business. And Chef Macdonald was gave us a good bit of
attention, considering how busy he is, regaling us with
facts, figures, and anecdotes.
Food
Our journey began in the lounge car,
with a glass of sparkling wine. I sat in a plush
swivel seat looking out the window to the east. There we
were served a lovely appetizer plate with a piece of
cantaloupe, a slice of duck breast with a sweet, smokey
mustard sauce, mozzarella slices and crisp toasts, and a bit
of smoked salmon with lemon aioli.
After a bit we moved into the
dining car and ordered lunch. Lunches were accompanied by
either the soup of the day, which was butternut squash with
fruit compote or a salad of baby lettuce with candied
walnuts and smoked goat cheese in a honey cider vinaigrette.
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Butternut Squash Soup |
Salad |
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Roasted Beef Tenderloin |
Petrale Sole |
There was a
special of grilled rib eye and veggie ratatouille. Menu
choices were roasted beef tenderloin, grilled pork chop,
roasted chicken breast, seared petrale sole and, my
selection, the roasted polenta and eggplant Wellington.
This was served with grilled zucchini and peppered goat
cheese. The firm triangles of polenta, speckled with
spices were perfect and the grilled veggies were lightly
cooked and seasoned. The Wellington pastry was beautiful,
but I found out the hard way that its contents were molten!
Eggplant
Wellington
Each
menu item has a suggested wine pairing--I tried a glass of
Paul Matthew Gamay Noir ($8.50) with my lunch. One
surprising thing was that after the first glass of sparkling
wine, no other wine was included with the lunch or dessert
except for purchase. Several guests remarked that this
was the Wine Train and we might have been given an
opportunity to sample more wines. The Wine Train is
reportedly impartial in its wine selection. Their shop at
the 'station' stocks some 300 wines and the train has
approximately 100 more.
Ushered into the lounge car once
again, we were served
coffee and dessert. Our choices were a decadent
brownie sundae and a vanilla crème Brule topped with fresh
berries. The crème Brulee was very rich, speckled with the
vanilla seeds, and topped with a sugar crust that was
finished to perfection--not too thick, no burnt sugar taste.
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Coffee with a View |
Creme
Brulee |
The morning following our trip we
were offered a private tour of the stationary kitchen
Chef Kelly refers to as the "muscle" kitchen. It is a huge,
spotless room full of stainless steel counters,
appliances, and work stations; it was bustling with activity as the
kitchen staff prepared for another day. There is a breezeway and a
ramp that lets the staff load large rolling carts of
ingredients from the kitchen straight onto the train.
Upstairs is the Wine Train Culinary Kitchen with a
conference room, an
attractive dining area, and a covered patio overlooking the
Napa River.
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In
the Muscle Kitchen |
The
Pastry Chef |
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Assembling the Dishes |
Fruit
and Cheese Boards |
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A
Fresh Assortment of Spices is Waiting |
Loading the Food onto the Train |
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The
Rail Yard |
The
Napa River |
Specialty Tours
One of the programs offered
periodically by the Wine Train is to bring a well known wine
maker (the next special guest was to be Heidi Barrett) and have
him or her give a talk and tasting of wines with Wine
Director Ryan Graham and a menu
prepared by Executive Chef Kelly Macdonald for the weekly
Vintner's Lunch ($154) or the Wine Maker Dinner Series
($154-$225). Other events include the Murder Mystery Dinner
Theatre with four act drama and four course dinner ($145),
The Moonlight Escape ($154), and various holiday outings.
Napa Valley
Wine Train
1275 McKinstry Street
Napa, CA 94559
888-504-0975 |
