Gary Erickson and Kit Crawford began their love of food and wine with cycling adventures through Italy where long days of cycling would end in leisurely evenings of good wine, food and hospitality. As great lovers of food, wine and adventure, Gary and Kit sought to bring these memorable experiences to their Napa Valley home. It is a delightful winery with a small production of Napa Valley wines, artisan food & food truck. Clif Family is the place to go and/or to be a Wine Club Member like I am!!
I love food trucks and this one right there is one of the best in the entire Napa Valley. They cook with seasonal ingredients from the certified organic Clif Family Farm. The Clif Family Bruschetteria serves a unique menu of bruschette, porchetta, rotisserie chicken, farm fresh salads and seasonal sides. The Executive Chef John McConnell has taken a farm to food truck approach to cooking up some amazingly delicious bites using the freshest ingredients possible from their farm. Below I will share some of the lunch options we’ve tried recently.
We were greeted with a Sauvignon Blanc, my absolutely favorite white wine varietal. This wine is perfect to drink all summer long…and winter, too 🙂 ! I call Sauvignon Blanc a Napa Valley breakfast wine; a fresh and yummy way to start the day. We paired our wine with salad, arancini balls (breaded risotto with fontina), honey nut squash served with salsa pomodoro, and healthy fries!! OMG we had so much delicious food!!
The Clif Family hospitality team is so friendly, as they treat everyone like royalty. We are proud club members there, and so happy to be able to drop in any time for a wine tasting + food truck meal. Our next adventure is to book one of their cycling excursions, which I’m sure will be a fun way to earn a glass of wine and food upon our return to their tasting room in St. Helena.
Who doesn’t love Bruschetta?? Our next order involved generous portions of tasty Bruschetta paired perfectly with Cabernet Sauvignon, which is a prime example of a mountain Cabernet full of juicy and rich flavors, bold tannins, and great ageing potential.
Just when you think you’re done eating and you’re feeling satisfied, they bring you a variety of chocolates along with freshly baked dark Chocolate Sea Salt Almonds cookies that come with toasted sliced almonds. A hint: always save room for dessert, because it Clif Family does it with decadence!!
Many thanks to all the Clif Family team who always host us with so much love and enthusiasm!! I highly recommend a casual visit to try their extensive collection of wine varietals. They have so many varietals to choose from, including Rosé, Gewurztraminer, Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Syrah, Grenache, Zinfandel and several variations of Cabernet Sauvignon!! Enjoy your visit and let them know Isabel Freeman from Napavalleytip sent you there!!