Kauai Update; Wine Updates

Kauai

We went to Kauai in October. We stayed in Poipu at Koloa Landing Resort at Poipu and Autograph Collection Marriott Condo hotel. https://www.marriott.com/en-us/hotels/lihak-koloa-landing-resort-at-poipu-autograph-collection/overview/?scid=f2ae0541-1279-4f24-b197-a979c79310b0 We love this place. It was the second time we have stayed there.

We were upgraded to a 3 bedroom condo which was a palace. The service at the hotel is great. They have several pools - an infinity pool, one  with water slides and several other pools. Parking is free. It is on the coast but it is a  10 minute walk to a very nice beach. The hotel has a restaurant, Holoholo grill, https://holohologrill.com/ which is very good. It is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It is very casual. Great salads, fish and they a very good poke bowl. Prices are reasonable and you can take out and eat in your condo unit. We bought some great wines in Costco and had some great meals. Desserts from Orly. 

There is a very good French bakery  in Lihue. It is a shopping enter near Safeway. Orly Patisserie  https://orlypatisseriekauai.com/ The pastries tasted as good as they look.

We had great weather in October. Clear and mid 80's during the day. No rain of consequence. 

Also keep in mind that Kauai has traffic especially since it has one major road. Rush hours can be bad and going to Princeville through Kapaa is daunting.

Poipu Beach. Hawaii is very protective  of sea lions napping.

We ate at a Roy Yamaguchi restaurant in Poipu, Eating House 1849. https://www.royyamaguchi.com/eating-house-koloa. The food was very good and the wine list had reasonable prices for decent wines.

Deep fried red snapper.

A fish stew.

Wine we drank. Light and tart. No overly fruity.

We took a catamaran tour of the Napili Coast from Holo Holo Charter tours. https://www.holoholokauaiboattours.com/ They are in Port Allen which is where most boat tours leave from. It is about a 25 minute drive from Poipu.

The Napili Coast is spectacular. The water is not rough in October. winter sails are quite rough with large swells. See my prior trip to Kauai.

My favorite breakfast, just need passionfruit.

There is a farmers market in  a botanical garden and estate, Allerton Garden. https://ntbg.org/gardens/allerton/ The market is on  Thursday and is not bad. Has some craft vendors, food vendors,  a hula show that is not flashy, and a small stand where 2  young men are selling Neapolitan style pizza. The pizza was good. Probably one of the best on the island. They are still working on the cheese and sauce. They hope to get to NJ soon to refine their pizza. No admission to go to the market.

Holoholo restaurant at the hotel.

Our unit.

Local turtle.

Poke bowl.

Our lanai was treetop.

Another great place for food is Kiawe Roots. https://www.eatatkiawe.com/ On the main road about 15 minutes from Poipu. A small restaurant without much ambiance. However the food is great and reasonably priced.. Barbecue and assorted items. Takeout is packed precisely.

 

Recent wine vintages

Vintages do matter for wines from a number of areas around the world.

It looks like 2021 is a great year for Tuscany (Chianti etc.)

Bordeaux has had a number  of good vintages lately 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2022. 2022 has been getting raves but wines will not be available until late 2024. Only 2021 was not that good. This string of good vintages translates into many buying opportunities. I am seeing top Bordeaux's for prices much less than anything comparable from California or Burgundy.

New Jersey had a very good 2022 vintage

The Willamette Valley in Oregon had a great 2021 vintage. 2020 was smoke filled and many wineries did not produce any red wines. Be wary of any that you buy. Smoke can become problematical as a wine a ages.

Wine prices are edging up but you can find a very good bottle for under $30. Once  again I will remind you that if you buy wine by price, where you buy the wine becomes incredibly important. Make sure that when you buy, the per bottle price is the case price. I do not like stores where you need to buy 6 or 12 bottles to obtain a discount.

Some wine critics are starting to pay attention to the alcohol content of wines as hotter weather has been increasing the sugar in grapes. I am not so sure the average person notices but there is a big difference between 12% abv wine and a 15% abv wine. Just saw a Napa Cab the other day over 16% abv.