Simple Hedonisms

Posts Tagged ‘wine’

Guest post by Ed Thralls of WineTonite and Windsor Vineyards.

Healdsburg is a quaint little town in the northern part of Sonoma County that has really grown in prestige and popularity as a wine country vacation destination.  Located right at the crossroads of Russian River Valley, Dry Creek Valley and Alexander Valley it is a great home base for your next trip.  It seems to make sense that if Windsor Vineyards wanted to share their quality wines sourced from vineyards these same great AVAs (American Viticultural Areas) as well as the extreme Sonoma Coast that they have produced in Sonoma since 1959 then a return this great town was imminent.

Event

Celebrate the Grand re-Opening this weekend, September 16-18th (Link to EVENT details), with a weekend of wine, food, music and wine country festivities.  There will be special offers and unique flights all weekend starting on Friday night as well as live music and nibbles Saturday & Sunday from 2-5pm each day.  The delicious bites will be provided by Tim Vallery and Peloton Catering and the music will be provided by two local Healdsburg favorites:

• Saturday, 9/17 2-5PM: Chris Herrod
• Sunday, 9/18 2-5PM: Brandon Hassur

The Tasting Room

At the heart of Healdsburg is “The Plaza,” which is in the shape of a square lined with with trees, grass, benches and a pergola for concerts and surrounded by shops old and new as well as tasting rooms, bars and some of the best local restaurants in wine country.  Imagine waking up and taking the dog for a walk in the early morning fog, while you stop for a cup of coffee at the Flying Goat Coffee shop.  Perhaps, for breakfast, you might be craving the pastry delights from the Downtown Bakery & Creamery including their popular donut muffins or sticky buns.  It just so happens that the bakery is the next door neighbor at 308 Center St. and the location provides a pristine view of the Plaza.

The unobstructed Plaza vista is framed by sliding glass windows that remain open throughout Summer providing an atmosphere that is relaxing and scenic and pairs best  with a glass of wine.  This is a great place to hang before, during and after the summer’s Music on the Plaza every Tuesdays.  This is country living, folks.  Leave your big city dreams at home and become assimilated.  The tasting bar has plenty of room for everyone to enjoy and if you are looking for some privacy, you can reserve the VIP room in the rear for private tastings too.
View Larger Map

Bring your friends and family.  Afterall, that is how wine is best enjoyed.  Cheers!

The  Grenache Symposium has declared Sept 23rd as Grenache Day. The main website still shows the 2010 Sept 24th event, but the press release, and how to map your event, is here. You can also follow them on Facebook here, and their blog here, which also confirms the Sept 23 2011 date. 

Organizations all over the world have already registered their events as you can see on the Google Map. Simple Hedonisms is taking the Sonoma count lead with another greenhouse event, and hope as many of you Rhone Rangers will follow. Personally, its a bad week, as I am locked up for 3 day judging the Sonoma County Harvest Fair competition, and its my birthday week – but hey, what better way to celebrate than recognizing my favorite red varietal.

Calling For Vintners to Participate and Pour, Sept 23 in Santa Rosa  Tasting (And Everywhere)

As a board member of the Rhone Rangers, and  the cat herder leading the new North Coast Rhone Rangers chapter, launching in late September with a new North Coast tasting room map (details soon), I am committed to the cause of domestic Rhone producers, and helping further the cause in the North Coast counties (Sonoma, Napa, Lake, and Mendocino.)

As I did for #chardonnay day and #PinotSmackdown, I will be holding an ABC licensed, walk around tasting.

Feedback both from wineries and attendees has been extremely enthusiastic – its an evolution of the (yawn) walk around tasting getting long in the tooth.

Why? First, a small, focused number of producers. (In the case of #Pinotsmackdown, gone through an elimination round tasting.)

Second, unique attributes for vintner selection, broadening the attendees exposure, no matter how experienced. (Chardonnay with skin contact. A great 50 case Pinot from Humboldt county, as two of many examples.)

Third, the attendees have been serious wine enthusiasts who ask questions, take notes, and taste, learn – not a drunk fest of baby birds with their glasses out.

Event Details For Vintners

Update: registered Vintners so far: Quivira, Ridge, Mounts, Sheldon, Wind Gap Wines, and El Dorado vintner Baiocchi Wines. Room for only two more!

The official Eventbrite registration is up and has already issued 25 of the 80 attendee spots, not too shabby considering it just went up at 8pm last night!

Details here: http://grenacheday.eventbrite.com/

This event is ABC licensed, and sponsored by the YWCA, to whom a portion of donations go to. Your ‘table fee’ is a bottle of wine of each poured, donated to me as the host, and a $20 donation, or a bottle to the YWCA, which they use for future events and fundraisers.

Your table is provided – you should bring a table cloth, dump bucket, 6-8 bottles (to be safe, average pour is 4-6 bottles), and your a certificate of insurance. (Standard new protocol now I am told.) Use of marketing colleteral, email sign ups, wine club and order forms is suggested.  Up to 2 persons from the winery may attend to pour. (And is encourage so can also walk around.)

Wine poured can be grenache, grenache rose’, or a blend where grenache is the leading varietal. You may call my cell at 415 613 5731 or email me at simplehedonisms at gmail.com with questions. We will cap at 8-10 producers.

Whether you pour or not, if you are a grenache producer or a grenache lover – to take the time to celebrate this wonderful variety.

Cheers!

Related Articles

#PinotSmackdown Greenhouse Tasting Winners & Photos! (Grenache up next!)

Seeing California Chardonnay in a New Light: #Chardonnay Day Greenhouse Tasting, Attendees Top Picks. Up Next – Aug 18 Pinot Day

Wine Tasting Events Must Evolve – An Example at the Saturday June 11th Vinify Winery Collective Event in Santa Rosa

I recently attended Wines with Altitude, where the vintners of Lake County California brought their wines to town — literally, to a stunning San Francisco venue on Treasure Island.  Casually dressed wine-makers and staff members poured and chatted with the attendees between baguettes and hummus.  A folksy event put together by the Lake County Winery Association, the four-hour pow-wow came with a classy glass sporting the Wines with Altitude slogan, a fresh personal-size baguette, and booklet with info and space for wine-tasting notes.  I attended as press.

The event was held at The Winery SF on Treasure Island. WARNING: This is a place of jaw-dropping city views. It was easy access and there were a couple of food trucks outside with picnic tables.

Inside there was a large main floor of wine pouring. An upstairs room featured winning wines from the 2011 Lake County Wine awards. In all, over 100 different wines were pouring from 20 or so wineries. There were olives and olive oil, pizzettas and gazpacho and some nice lounging areas in the old building.

I’ve been known to favor Lake County Sauvignon Blancs. The Altitude theme suggested Reds.  I arrived with my notebook and spit-cup, eager to commence tasting, and not really knowing what to expect.  It turned out to be a day of surprises, some professional – like tasting a Lake County Aglianico, and some personal – like running into Napa Valley winemaker Nils Venge, the first person who exposed me to garagiste winemaking. The story: About twenty years or so ago, a group of friends and I loyally appeared every season to help Nils bottle his fledgling Saddleback Cellars wines in a small concrete block building on Money Road in Rutherford, CA. The little block building is still the nucleus of Saddleback and Nils now also owns Cougar’s Leap in Lake County.

I made an effort to taste every Sauvignon Blanc (SB), and there were quite a few. The Lake County SB’s were each so different, I couldn’t identify a Lake County “style” or varietal “character.” The only label I recognized was Guenoc, a widely distributed and solid SB. This was a good sign I was discovering a number of labels for the first time. I learned that Guenoc is a Valley – and it’s own AVA — and that the premium SB is their Langtry Sauvignon Blanc (250 cases produced vs thousands of Guenoc). I liked the Langtry.  My other favorite Sauvignon Blanc’s were 2 from Six Sigma Michael’s Vineyard – the 2010 stainless with bright fresh melon on the nose and classic grapefruit on the palette – and a single vineyard, very lightly oaked version that maintains a crisp, cleansing acidity while adding dimension from the oak.  This wine recently won best-in-class in the 2011 Lake County Wine Awards Competition, directed by Ray Johnson.

Winemaker Nils Venge

Cougar’s Leap offered a unique Sauvignon Blanc rendition – the 2010 Black Rock White which is 70% Semillion, 30% SB and, according to vintner Nils Venge, includes a boost from a one-time barrel of Albarino. Cougar’s Leap was pouring 2 other wines and they were memorable: The 2008 Black Rock Zinfandel with lots of fruit coming through structure and tannins, and which Venge claims with a crooked grin is “17% alcohol.” Reviewers have dubbed it “Ballistic!” Definitely a wine with “Altitude.” I finished with a 2007 Petite Sirah at Cougar’s Leap.

Nils introduced me to Gregory Graham, and I spent quite a bit of time at Greg’s table. Former wine-maker at Rombauer, Graham has been at it for 30 years.  At one point he was making 4 different Zinfandels for them.  For his own label, he makes only small lots using bins for fermentation. He says this has freed him from the constraints of tank-based wine-making, giving him a lot of flexibility.  He was pouring several wines. I tasted the 2009 Gregory Graham Red Hills Bartolucci Vineyard Viognier, one of the nicest Viognier’s I’ve had … and it’s a $16, 13.5% alcohol wine.  Graham’s 2007 Grenache was my personal favorite of the day, delivering a mouth-filling intensity and lingering romance of fruit and texture on the palette.  The 2008 Cinder Cone was my red blend favorite of the day – 48% Syrah, 24% Cabernet, and 14% each Malbec and Grenache. Big, balanced, and Red. Graham’s wines are well-priced, running from $15-16 for Dry Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc, to a high of $38 for a Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir he wasn’t pouring, and a number of wines in the $18-24 range. Gregory Graham wines represent star-quality wine-making at excellent value pricing.

Rosa d’Oro Aglianico.  This is a red varietal grape of Southern Italian regions – Basilicata and Campania – pronounced alianico.  I’ve had the Corte Normana from Campania (imported by Salvia Bianca), and heard of one or two Aglianico’s being vinted in California. So I was pleased and surprised to find Pietro Buttitta pouring his family’s estate-grown 2008 Aglianico. It’s a lovely wine expressing the full Aglianico character, if in a smoother, less rustic style than it’s Italian brethren. Well-priced at $18.  I tasted the 2008 Barbera, which won a Silver medal in the Chronicle Wine Competition – also a fine wine at the $18 price point.

I decided the only way to cope with the bounty of Rosa d’Oro, is to visit the their Tasting Room in Kelseyville and do some serious sampling of the Primativo, Nebbiolo, Sangiovese, Dolcetto and maybe a Rosato. And in another year or two, they will be bringing out a NegroAmaro! (You read it here first.) Pietro is also a prolific blogger – check him out here.

SF from Treasure Island

It’s clear I have a lot to learn about Lake county as a wine region and I’m planning to make a trip. You can find various Lake County Wine events online; next up is the Lake County Wine Auction on Sept 17. The event that interests me most is the People’s Choice Wine Awards and blind tasting on November 5.

I love blind tastings … as long as I can see the view!

One last surprise: Many of Lake County Wineries have active Facebook pages, but there is definitely room for growth in the Twitter realm. The Winery SF’s most recent tweet was in July, nearly 2 months ago. One would expect better care and feeding, especially when you have a high-profile name, location, and over 2000 Twitter followers.

I haven’t written much about it, (although some of the 2010 Garagiste saga was documented in (My 2010 Rhone Harvest – Garagiste or Passion Gone Runaway? ) but I have been working quietly on a small wine brand of my own. 2010 production was 175 cases, 2011 will be (cash depending) ~300 cases.

One might wonder if  that means the end of Simple Hedonisms, and the start of a new career? No, not really, nor do I see any conflict of interest or threat.

In many ways its a combination of a hobby run amok, and a science project, as well as yet another way to further my never ending thirst for wine knowledge.  It just happens that I will need to sell a bit of my hobby as I go. Long term, perhaps this is a future path, but that remains to be seen. I hope to have website launched, and wine for sale in 60 days.

Label Design Help

I am far behind schedule on this project, having only just recently bottled my three whites, a Grenache Blanc, a Viognier, and a Roussanne/Marsanne blend (with a touch of Viognier.) The red blend to be finalized and bottled next week. Thankfully I now have the help of my partner Michelle, who has come on  as a minority partner to assist .

Label Design Contest

We will likely ultimately hire an experienced label designer for all the final details, but time is very short, and cash tight, so why not take advantage of crowd sourcing.  So here is our idea:

•  Concept Winner: If we love your design or concept we will offer $200 cash & $200 in wine credit, or $500 in wine credit, plus design recognition.

•  Concept Runner Up: Over time we may have multiple labels, so if we love but don’t use your design at this time, we will award it with  $75 cash and $75 in wine credit , or $200 in wine credit, with the right to use the design in the future, with design recognition.

Logo Design Contest

Logo Idea : We also need to design a small logo that can be used on stationery, capsule (the foil at top), literature etc.

We are leaning towards something with two shepherds crooks, (staffs) at 45 degree angles and crossing each other, but are open and looking for creativity.

            •   Logo Design Winner: If we love your design or concept we will offer $100 cash & $100 in wine credit, or $250 in wine credit, plus design recognition.

 Please have submissions in by Sept 7th.

Two Shepherds Label Design – Background

Two Shepherds needs to get a new label done, quickly. We have have 175 cases bottled that need labels NOW.  After spending hours pouring through stock illustrations, we are close to what we want, but need some help finishing, as no stock illustration or picture quite fit the bill.

The Story: “Two Shepherds” concept is of two people (myself and Michelle), both shepherds one by personality and the other by name who have created a Rhone wine label, the intent to shepherd or guide consumers back to interesting wines of nuance, subtlety, and approachability.

Label Idea: Monochromatic or grayscale sketch or photograph. Ideally depicting a vineyard scene, rural scene,  herded sheep, vines, grapes or anything illuding to two shepherds or shepherding.  It DOES NOT have to be a literal illustration of two shepherds.  It can also be as basic as a font or the font in an interesting layout.  We played around with a Shepherd’s crook or staff and writing the words two shepherds across the staff. We think this has potential but really needs some polishing.

Color Theme: Gray/Silver, White and Teal/Blue.  This can always be tweaked or modified later but we seem to like the look of this color scheme and are trying to keep color palete to a 2 to 3 color max for printing purposes later.

Logo Idea : We also need to design a small logo that can be used on stationery, capsule (the foil at top), literature etc. Leaning towards something with two shepherds crooks, (staffs) at 45 degree angles and crossing each other.

Please note that for the label and logo, we are planning on Two Shepherds, not 2 Shepherds. We don’t dislike the latter, but are concerned ‘2010 2 Shepherds’ will look confusing.

Examples

#1

These are good examples of the “grayscale” images that interest us.  We feel grayscale tends to lend itself to the “old world” feel of French wines and their traditional engraved labels.

#2

This is a nice illustration and a great sketch of a shepherdess but not necessary the image we want. We don’t feel it is so necessary to be so literal (illustrating two shepherds) since “Two Shepherds” will be the name on the label.  Maybe a scenic sketch with vineyards and sheep illustrating and depicting more the sheep and vineyards or the vines.  More focus on the wine.

 
#3

These are a few more sketches. The feel is there but the subject (vine rows) are a bit too generic.  We are looking for creativity!  If done right I believe a sketch since it is already in pencil is a nice look and coloring.

#4

 




These are examples of  non traditional crooks/staffs.  One idea is a staff is a strong symbol of a shepherd without actually placing the shepherd and shepherdess in the label. Some kind of play on the staff could be very interesting. Whether that is with vines running up them, them hanging on a trellis, etc… Ideas are endless.

 Logo Ideas

As stated, We are leaning towards something with two shepherds crooks, (staffs) at 45 degree angles and crossing each other, but are open and looking for creativity.

Below are several examples for your consideration.

When the contest is done, we will post all interesting submissions, with design credit, should you wish it. Best of luck and don’t hesitate to email simplehedonisms @ gmail.com with any questions.

Cheers!

Thursday August 18th was #PinotSmackdown day, organized by Ed Thralls of Wine Tonite. As I did for Rick Bakas #Chardonnay day, I hosted a walk around tasting. Click here for Ed’s overall summary and the impressions.

Unfortunately most of my 80 attendees didn’t vote for #CA as most would have. (I didn’t receive any OR, NZ, or French submissions.) Had they, California would have ‘won’ the Smackdown.

Tasting Pinot in The Greenhouse

Feedback and buzz from the #chardonnay tasting was three times the targeted table capacity so a pre-tasting was held by a panel of judges to narrow it down. I have been evangelizing walk around tastings need to evolve, so by design, this one was kept small and focused.

A few weeks prior a panel of 5 judges consisting of myself, 2 winemakers, and a wine enthusiast tasted through 30 wines bagged, labeled, and divided into regions so that we’d have representation from multiple regions. This sounds like fun, but its actually work, and time consuming way to spend a weekend evening, so many thanks for the help. It helped assure we had a great lineup of Pinot’s for the evening.

Event Logistics

The event was also a fundraiser for the YWCA, who assisted with my ABC license. Wineries paid a small table fee of wine or donation to pour. They were required to pour the wine that won, and were allowed to pour a second Pinot if desired, as long as it was currently for sale, no library wines or barrel samples.  The event is held in my greenhouse, adjacent to my new vineyard. Tables are setup – the atmosphere is cozy, and enthusiastic.

As an experiment, we had a food truck, Goodeatz, offer food. Unfortunately we fell a few hundred dollars short of goal they needed to be onsite, but those who stayed and ate (self included) raved about the food. They are not available for my planned Sept 23 #Grenache tasting, but I am looking into others.

The 80 attendees were given a 2 page spreadsheet with details on each wine, as well as a final voting sheet to pick their Top 3 choices of the evening. Armed with clipboard, glass, and spitcup, they went in to sample the 19 pinots being poured.

The night seemed an even bigger success than chardonnay day. While we didn’t have quite as many epiphany moments as we did the chardonnay bashers who came away with new perspective – attendees gushed about the quality of the vintners, not a single bad wine, and every winery member I spoke to was very pleased with the energy and enthusiasm.  Sounds like we got tight on parking later in the evening, something I will work on, as well as encourage car pooling.

Watch for #Grenache Day – Sept 23, Calling Producers

September 23^rd is Grenache day, as declared by the Grenache Symposium in France. This isn’t a great date for me as I am locked down for 4 days wine judging the Sonoma County Harvest Fair. But its Grenache, my fave varietal, what I am planting, and as a Rhone Ranger board member, it’s a moral imperative.  Last year I held a smaller tasting and a HUGE party afterwards complete with fire dancers. Not in this years budget, but sitting out just doesn’t seem an option. Contact me if you have a Grenache and/or Grenache based blend, and are interested.

The Results

As the spreadsheet shows, votes were tallied and added up. A #1 got 3 points, #2 2 points, and #3 1 point. Unfortunately a few people didn’t specify WHICH of the two wines a winery poured, so in those cases I had to

give half credit to each wine.

A bit surprising. I am a personal fan of Phil Baxter’s wines, but for Baxter, to clearly win both 1^st and 2^nd place. Freestone Vineyard was right behind with third. 4^th place was a dogfight, with Sojourn, Deux Punx

, Joseph Swan, Bjornstaad, and Londer all within 1.5 points. Literally one vote could have changed these. This reflects the high quality of the evening, and difficulty the crowd had in choosing.

Congrats to all producers. There was a much higher spread of votes across all, and with Pinots ranging from $22-to $60+. Remember this was narrowed down from 30.

The full score sheet is here on Google Documents.

Overall & Regional Winners

Simple Hedonisms invites you to join us Monday August 29th from 5-7 p.m. (and beyond, see below!) for our August meetup at Santa Rosa Wine Trail member Inspiration Vineyards. (Same area as our June meetup at Vinoteca.)
Event features:
*  boutique winery pouring small lot wines
* Industry discount on all wines for the night
* Networking with industry wine makers, hospitality, consumers.

No charge for industry and only $10 for consumers, no drink tickets etc. Entry includes all food & wine for the event, and door prizes.

• WINE Industry: Winery Staff, Production, Trade, Media, Retail) NO CHARGE (Please bring a biz card or proof)
• Consumers/Friends/Family -  $10 ($9 in advance) BUT includes all Food & Wine. In spirit of good karma & small business please don’t abuse. Consumer friends etc should pay.

Attendees will also receive a Santa Rosa Wine Trail card with its first stamp.

Pre-Register for Raffle prizes

Pre-register in advance to help us plan for food & staffing costs. It also gets (consumers) a second chance to win a raffle. Raffle drawn at 630 pm, must be present to win.
Bring a business card to enter to win drawings for the night. Register at: http://augustwinemeetup.eventbrite.com/

You can get additional chances to win by:

(1) being a consumer and pre-registering or

(2) being a winery and donating a prize to raffle.

New – STAY AFTER; Food Truck Party!

The event ends at 7, but the party continues. All wines by the glass only $5 and food truck vendor Street-Eatz will be selling food. They were a big hit at my recent Pinot event.

If you think you might stay, answer the question during registration so we can plan on tables & chairs.

Wines Poured:

Inspiration Vineyards is a small winery, specialing in wines made in a  classic French style; think Sancerre not New Zealand Sauv Blanc, Burgundy not buttered popcorn chardonnay. Approachable Cab, not oak planks.

• 2009 Russian River Chardonnay – $24
• 2009 Dry Creek Sauvignon Blanc – $22
• 2008 Alexander Valley Zinfandel  – $23
• 2006  Dry Creek Cabernet Sauvignon -  $30

All Inspiration Vineyards current releases are available for sale this night only for a special 30% discount.

Put the Social in Social Networking! Every month people who have been virtual friends become real life ones!

Register at: http://augustwinemeetup.eventbrite.com/

Please use Twitter hashtag #SoCoWine

cheers!

Your hosts:
William Allen – Simple Hedonisms

Jon & Barbara Phillips – Inspiration Vineyards

Wine Aficionados , especially Rhone lovers,  have an opportunity for a special treat this Saturday. Donelan Family Wines, a  boutique winery which  is normally open by appointment only, is opening its doors, bottles and barrels as a treat, as well as showing off its newly renovated tasting room and winery. There is also a (limited space) seminar, by one of my favorite winemakers, Tyler Thomas.

A Unique and Talented Winemaker

Thanks to an introduction via Vinecrowd, I have had the opportunity to spend some time with Tyler and interview him, as well as welcome him as the newest member of the Rhone Rangers. (One of my roles as a new board member.) Donelan and Tyler captured my attention at my #chardonnay day event. Their inuagural chardonnay release, Nancie, was one of the top 3 wines picked by attendees, and my personal favorite of the day.

Later I went to the winery to spend more time with Tyler to taste through his wines, talk about his winemaking practices, and just talk shop.

I already knew as a “shepherd of the yeast” Tyler was talented and creative. Tasting through the rest of the portfolio simply reinforced that. What also struck me about Tyler was his strong grasp of the industry, trends, and marketing.

I spend a lot of time with wineries, especially small ones, and generally you find two different skill sets, and individuals, driving success. The artisan, ‘left brain’ winemaker, focused on making the very best wine he or she can, but  not always in touch with the aspects of marketing and branding.  Often a second person “right brain”  person on the team focuses and executes on sales & marketing, a different but equally critical set of skills. The best vintage of your career means nothing if no one is aware of it to purchase.

Tyler is a talented winemaker, innovate, and technically very deep. He is also passionate about the business aspects and as we sat and discussed marketing techniques, events, industry trends, and eager to learn more and try new things.  I was truly impressed, and excited when Donelan Wines decided to join the Rhone Rangers national organization, and will be a part of our new North Coast Chapter, an effort I am spearheading. Donelan and Tyler’s wines and energy, enthusiasm, are a welcome addition.

RSVP for Limited Seminar: Cuvees: Building Northern Rhone Blends

From 1-2 pm Tyler is giving a seminar  about the process of making Northern Rhone inspired wines. Donelan’s goal  is to produce the best wines possible using only the best-of-the-best juice from our unique, cool climate Sonoma County terroirs.  The careful process of  blending barrels is key in producing outstanding signature cuvees and single vineyard wines. Tyler will discuss how Donelan makes complete wines of certain styles and illustrate his points with tastings.  Learn & taste the process that results in a ‘complete’ wine: complex aromas, perceived depth and weight on the palate, a long pleasing finish, and tremendous balance. In essence what makes a Donelan wine a Donelan wine. Seating is limited, an RSVP IS required. Call 203 658 1248.

You can also see a video about the seminar  on Donelan’s new blog:  just click here.

2-4 PM – Open House, Barrel Samples and Other Rare Treats

From 2-4 pm the public is invited to taste Donelan’s latest vintage with an assortment of charcuterie and cheeses. In addition to the 2009 vintage they will be pouring barrel samples of three wines: the incredible new 2010 Donelan “Two Brothers” Pinot Noir, the  2010 Donelan “Nancie” Chardonnay  and the 2009 Richard’s Family Vineyard Syrah. These three wines are produced in extremely limited quantities. This will be an extraordinary chance to taste these amazing wines.

Donelan is normally open by appointment only, so don’t miss this chance to spend an afternoon learning, tasting and meeting this talented team.

By the way, they are in a business park in Santa Rosa that houses 3 other open wineries, Inspiration Vineyards, Carol Shelton, and the new Vinoteca tasting room. Visit these 3 members of the Santa Rosa Wine Trail and make a day of it without having to drive! (Remember a to put a cooler in your car for your wine purchases!)

See you there, followed by Russian River Valley  Hog in The Fog after! Cheers!

Russian River Valley – I have written and waxed poetic about what a magical place this is for me, so much so I moved here two years ago.

This is no small amount of praise from someone who has trekked to many wine regions, domestic and abroad. This weekend is the 16th Annual celebration of this world renowned wine region. The format, improved in my opinion, is more focused and manageable.

I am a proud member of the Russian River Valley Winegrowers, with my new Grenache vineyard, and my new (<300 cases) Rhone wine label,  Two Shepherds, sourced mostly from  – yes Russian River Valley. I am also moderating one of the weekend’s panels.

Saturday August 20th – Enjoy Seminars, Tours, Tasting, BBQ and More!

Seminars & Tours

Spend your Saturday in an enjoyable choice of seminars or tours. Pick from these Seminars, only $50 for one, or $80 for two.

Got Other White Wines? - 10 a.m to 12:00 pm

Saralee’s Vineyard, 3575 Slusser Road, Windsor

What about those other white wines from the Russian River Valley? Come meet this collection of who’s who that source fruit from Saralee’s Vineyard for white wine other than Chardonnay.

William Allen of Simple Hedonisms (hey thats me!) will both present his wine (be the very first to try the Viognier of my new Two Shepherds label!) and moderate a panel discussion that includes Argot, Arrowood Winery, Clos du Bois, Coterie, Eric Ross Winery, Halleck Winery, Joseph Swan Vineyards, Montemaggiore and Thumbprint Cellars. Meet Saralee of Saralee’s Vineyard and enjoy some lively discussion as you sample small bites from Park Avenue Catering paired with these fabulous “other whites” including Gewurztraminer, Malvasia Bianca, Marsanne, Roussanne, Viognier and White Riesling.  Purchase Tickets

Wines and Wagons – 11 am to 1 pm
Leras Vineyard, 3210 Woolsey Road, Windsor
Enjoy an inside glimpse into the life of a winegrower as you taste wines from the Russian River Valley. Hosted by Leras Vineyard owner, Nick Leras, you’ll enjoy a covered wagon tour around the Leras Vineyard and discuss the trials, tribulations, joys and excitement of winegrowing in the Russian River Valley. You’ll see the actual vineyard that produces the grapes in some of the wine you’ll be tasting – from Papapietro Perry, George Wine Estates, Neothomas Wines, Chloe Creek and Russian Hill Estate. In addition, we are happy to announce that our friends from Ancient Oak Cellars and Sandole Wines will also be on site pouring some of their fabulous Russian River Valley wines. This vineyard tour also includes a BBQ lunch you won’t soon forget!  Purchase Tickets

One Vineyard, Two Grapes, Many Winemakers – 1 pm to 3 pm
Dutton Ranch, 10717 Graton Road, Sebastopol
Love Pinot? Enjoy a great Chardonnay? Here is your opportunity to try wines made from grapes grown in the Russian River Valley by Dutton Ranch but made by different winemakers!

Meet the winemakers as you taste through the wines learning about the differences. Question some of the best palates about the hows and whys of winemaking – what makes each of the wines so unique knowing that all of the grapes are all sourced from Dutton Ranch. Wineries include Dutton-Goldfield, Dutton Estate, DuMol, Patz & Hall and Coppola will be paired with nibbles prepared by Park Avenue Catering. Purchase Tickets

Hog in The Fog -  Tasting, BBQ, Silent Auction & Live Music: A Pre-Harvest Celebration

Call this the last hurrah before harvest – that frenetic, fast paced time of little sleep and much activity.

There might be some fog and quite definitely there will be hog at the Hog in the Fog Pre-Harvest Party this  Saturda.

The Russian River Valley Winegrowers and I invite you to join our winemakers and growers as we celebrate the fruits of our labor …drinking great wine, feasting off the land and dancing the night away at this unique Pre-Harvest Party.

The party starts with a wine tasting reception and Farmer’s Market at 4 pm showcasing more than 70 wineries, growers and producers of the Russian River Valley Winegrowers.

Taste Russian River Valley wines, sample fresh and local delicacies from local restaurants and caterers and shop for fresh produce and products from local artisan food producers. Wine, dine and shop while you stroll through the park-like setting at Richard’s Grove & Saralee’s Vineyard viewing the work of local artists; and bidding on the silent auction of oversized and special bottlings, restaurant dinners and gift baskets.

Here comes the hog…following the reception will be a feast like no other…a savory barbecue dinner of pulled pork, steak, chicken and all the fixins. And, of course we will have homemade Gravenstein apple pie fresh warmed in the wood brick oven for dessert and topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Don’t miss the spectacular live auction filled with excursions and overnight stays to land you back in the Russian River Valley for more wine and excitement. The night wraps up with music by Urban Oasis playing an upbeat and entertaining mixture of rock, blues, latin and jazz.

Check here for ticket availability (some are as of now.)

Hope to see many of you in my seminar and the BBQ – cheers!

Spain.  A country I had somehow never visited, a hole in my travel experiences I was keen to fill. I had attended several great Spanish tastings earlier this year sponsored by Vibrant Rioja and  LaMancha Wines, and was looking forward to touring numerous wine regions, and tasting through a wide range of wine styles and varietals.

The itinerary of this whirlwind 6 day tour can be found in Simple Hedonisms heads to Spain on a 6 Day Media Tour of Rioja, Priorat and Ribera del Duero;  Simple Hedonisms  will cover each day in a separate article.

About Grupo Freixenet (Or its not just Cava)

Freixenet is a large wine producer, the 9^th largest in the world, with a total production capacity across its many brands of 230 million bottles, or 19.1 million cases of wine, per year. (In Europe they refer to production capacity in releases in bottles, not cases, like we do in the US.)

Cava, a Spanish sparkling wine, is what they are globally recognized for, and they produce 80% of all cava.  However they have wineries all over the world, some quite small, producing a wide range of wine varietals and styles. Indeed just for cava alone, there are many more variants produced that we unfortunately don’t see as they are exported. (We will tease you with some later.)

A few people who weren’t familiar with the breadth of wines in the Freixenet portfolio, wondered if my 6 day experience was limited mostly to the $10 black bottle, widely sold in the US. I knew it wouldn’t be, and was excited for an opportunity to help educate and enlighten my readers about a group of estate wineries known as the Heredad Collection.  Little did I know how much my eyes would be opened.

Day One – Madrid

After 14 hours of air transit time, I arrived in Madrid. I had a few hours to kill, resisted the urge to nap. (Something I would regret later when sleep would be a precious commodity.) But, I was glad to get to see a little of Madrid on foot.

My expectations for accommodations was modest have traveled through other regions, especially Italy, where even a Marriot in Milan can be a pair of hard twin beds pushed together.

This hotel, the Hotel Urban was gorgeous, comfortable, modern but very tasteful. The high class bar was set.

Dinner, The Pace is Set

At 845 we left for dinner, a jet lagged but enthusiastic group, most having also traveled all day. In addition to the writers noted, we were joined by 4 of Freixenet’s top sales managers, and Freixenet/Gloria Ferrer’s US newly appointed head of communications, Cindy Friedman.

The location was stunning, and first class, and a good preview of what we could expect the entire tour. The Restaurante el Teatro Real, located in the former Ballroom of Queen Isabel II, was a regal display, as we walked through 3 richly appointed foyers before reaching an expansive dining room.

The meal and wines were mouthwatering and perfectly paired. Unfortunately I was too fatigued and a tad out of sorts coming down from an Ambien I used to sleep  a few hours on the plane) to take detailed tasting notes and food pics. Fortunately, we visited most of the wines again later over the next 5 days.

As we commenced with  an Albariño from the Rias Biaxas region , under the label Vionta, my eyes were immediately opened up to the experience I was about to embark on. I have been tasting quite a few Albarinos, especially domestic, and this was stunning. Bright, full of crisp stone fruit, great aromas, and wonderfully balanced mouth feel and weight.

Next we tasted Elyssian, a sparkling Pinot rose cava – an anomaly  as cava is traditionally made from the white wine grapes of Macabeo, Parellada and Xarel·lo 3 unique Spanish grapes, not the traditional Pinot Noir & Chardonnay many sparklings and champagne are made from. It was the first night, and we were already far off the ‘black bottle’ path.

Dinner was 6 courses all paired with a wine, over 3 hours. each it seemed better than the last. Unlike how we eat in the US, each was appropriately sized.  This became the norm for the entire trip.

Apologies to readers in my jetlag I didn’t capture more, however I promised to share articles in a summary post from other writer.

Without a doubt, the course that blew everyone away, and for most was never bested, was Iberian pork. The pig is fed a diet of acorns, a rich nut, and the impact on the meat was incredible. The cut was like a pork loin, sliced into strips, but the texture and flavor was unlike any pork dish I ever had, or any meat for that matter.  Rich in texture, but not fatty, it melted in your mouth.

Photo Journal

I will post larger album of pictures for each days events and activities. Day One can be found here.

The Next Five Days – Follow Adventure, Learn, Enjoy

We will break out each day’s experiences along with photos. Simple Hedonisms is all about helping it’s readers broaden their horizons, shatter myths, and expand your wine palate. In each article there will be one or more educational topics I think will be new information for many readers.  I hope you will follow along, enjoy, and learn.

Without giving too much away in the first of these six articles, this was one of the best multiday wine experiences  I have had.  The hospitality , openness and welcome of the Spanish people was unparalleled. Americans and Europeans alike have much it could learn from this country.

The food and entertainment experiences remarkable. The wines were of exceptional quality and value,  produced by passionate people,  often eye opening  and a treat each day to taste; something I can’t always say as a wine writer.

Additionally, my travel companions, both the Freixenet team, and the journalists, proved to be great companions. The environment, while fun, was one of working, paired with limited sleep (often self imposed) and a fast pace. Its was one where a married couple, well acquainted, could have easily bickered  and irritated each other. Yet we worked together, supported each other,  and learned from each others unique experiences. I consider myself fortunate to have met each and every one, something I wouldn’t say easily. I was one of the wine ‘geekier’ of the wine writers (although I can’t hold a candle to Charlie) and I hope I provided back value, and not annoyance, myself.

Thanks for reading, and enjoy the adventure over the next two weeks as it unfolds here.  Salud!

Guest post by Ed Thralls of WineTonite.

One of the coolest places, both literally and figuratively speaking, I have been since moving to wine country is Tomales Bay near Pt. Reyes, where I enjoyed the freshest oysters I have ever had.  This occurred over an entire beautiful sunny Saturday (it’s often quite foggy and cold) amongst great wine and food friends like William Allen, who was gracious enough to allow me to guest post here on his blog.  This day left me with such joy and amazement, not to mention a serious sunburn, the wife and I have been on an oyster binge ever since.  Not only were the oysters themselves just fresh as can be plucked right out of the bay over our shoulders, but when paired with wine, it was truly one of the choicest life experiences to date.

Wines you should enjoy for a perfect oyster pairing include bubbles (Cava, Prosecco, Champagne, etc.), Sauvignon Blanc, Muscadet, Picpoul Blanc or anything that is crisp, minerally or has essence of ocean or brine.  But, nothing is stopping you from being creative and finding that perfect pairing for your palate.  On this particular day, the Muscadet brought by Nick (@fermented) and Katie stole the show and is often considered by many to be the “perfect oyster wine.”  Muscadet is from the western part of the Loire Valley in France and are very fresh, crisp and can have a hint of brininess to them.  Personally, I prefer the bubbles.

Needless to say, my wife and I are now oyster and wine junkies and can often be found on Wednesdays or Thursdays at Hog Island Oyster Co. at the Oxbow Market in Napa.  This is why I want to let you in on this little secret, as if you already didn’t know, and get an opportunity to try this perfect pairing yourselves if you’re in Sonoma County in the middle of July.  The Vintage Wine Estates Tasting Room in Healdsburg is teaming up with The Oyster Girls to create some palate pleasing combinations on July 16th, 2011 from 1-5pm for only $25.  The Oyster Girls are a traveling oyster bar that serves only local, fresh oysters from Tomales Bay.

This Price includes 6 oysters and 5 wines per person.  Full Disclosure: I work for Vintage Wine Estates and would love to have you join me in this cool culinary experience.  You can purchase tickets in advance HERE.

WIN a Pair of Complimentary Tickets

Comment here on the blog below about your most memorable wine pairing experience and we’ll draw a random winner next Wednesday, July 13th at 5pm PT who will receive 2 complimentary tickets available via Will Call at the event.

Here’s more information: