Winemaker dinner with:
John Williams of Frog’s Leap, Rutherford, Napa Valley
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9th 6:00 p.m.
We’re excited to welcome Frog’s Leap founding owner!
First winery to be Certified Organic in Napa Valley, since 1989
Founding owner of Frog’s Leap, since 1981
A curated 5-course food and wine pairing
$165 per person event cost, excluding tax and gratuity
Each event participant is encouraged to purchase a minimum of 2 bottles of Frog’s Leap wine to-go at the end of the event
Indulge in this rare opportunity to meet one of the PIONEERS OF ORGANIC FARMING and winemaking in napa valley.
The event cost is $165 per person, including dinner and wine pairing. Price per person does not include tax or gratuity. Participants must be age 21 or over.
A select amount of retail wine bottles will be available for purchase to-go at the end of the event.
Larger retail bulk purchases can be picked up the following week.
DINNER:
ROSEMARY FOCACCIA - roasted garlic butter
WILD STRIPED SEA BASS - pear, parsnip, poblano sofrito
MUSHROOM AGNOLOTTI - french onion, pumpkin seed, sage
BRAISED DUCK LEG - lentils, fennel, currants
KOJI CURED FILET - rosemary potato, broccolini, soy soubise
PUMPKIN POT DE CREME - blackberry, coffee, chocolate
Dinner will last approximately 2.5 hours, from 6:00 - 8:30 p.m.
John Williams founded Frog’s Leap in 1981, producing 450 cases of Sauvignon Blanc and 350 cases of Zinfandel.
John spent his days at Stag’s Leap and his nights in the lab at Robert Mondavi Winery working on his thesis in order to complete his Masters in Viticulture and Enology at U.C. Davis in 1977. During those early years, in 1975, John had the rare opportunity to help bottle the Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon that put Napa Valley on the world wine map after winning the Paris Tasting.
Later working as a full-time winemaker at Spring Mountain, John pressed grapes for his first vintage from his friend Larry Turley’s property (known as the Frog Farm) and released the inaugural Frog’s Leap vintage in 1982. By 1984, John was able to quit his “day job” to focus on his own label.
In 1987, he purchased his first vineyard (35 acres) in Rutherford, Napa Valley. With the acquisition of his own land, John turned his focus towards healthy soils as a driver for quality wine production. In 1989, in accordance with his vision, Frog’s Leap became the first winery in Napa Valley to receive Organic Certification for its vineyards through California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF).
Today, Frog’s Leap produces wine with an unwavering commitment to organic principles and practices dry farming that stretches back over 35 years in Rutherford, Napa Valley. Long storied for its great Cabernets in the gravelly benchland soils; and outside of the benchland, swathes of clay, silt, and deep river soil hold the key to their Sauvignon Blanc and limited plantings of Merlot.
We look forward to welcoming this extraordinary farmer and Napa Valley winemaker at Forrest, A Food Studio! We're their only dinner stop in Traverse City before heading to Petoskey and back down to Detroit.
A rare opportunity to meet such an impressive winemaker and purchase bottles to-go to showcase at your next social gathering!
wines to be featured:
Chardonnay, Shale & Stone, 2022 - $45
Sauvignon Blanc, Concrete Aged, 2024 - $63
Red Blend, Flycatcher, 2023 - $35
Merlot, Rutherford, 2023 - $54
Cabernet Sauvignon, Estate Grown - $81
Zinfandel, Napa Valley, 2022 - $50
