• J Vineyards 2.0

    Updated: 2012-07-31 11:00:00
    When you’re making the best, why would you bother to go after the rest? Varietal wines, that is… This is the time of shrinking shelf space. What once was, is no longer available. I learned in sales years ago that supermarket chains squeeze the daylights out of wineries, in order for wine to be on [...]

  • An intimate, pre-release tasting at J with winemakers Melissa Stackhouse and Scott Anderson

    Updated: 2012-07-30 11:00:11
    This wine tasting, followed by lunch with their winemaking team, was arranged by my friend and PR pro extraordinaire George Rose. J’s got a great PR person working for them, but this isn’t an isolated case. Leadership at J Vineyards starts at the top with Judy Jordan. I recently wrote about Judy in a story [...]

  • What wine writers talk about at dinner

    Updated: 2012-07-30 08:10:53
    We’re in NY (“we” being Wine Enthusiast’s editors, here for the annual editorial conference), and we had a nice dinner with plenty of wine. We’re staying at a cool inn in Chappaqua, the Kittle House, said to have one of the best restaurants in Westchester. The wine list certainly is impressive, one of those telephone [...]

  • Updated Review: *** Chez Ray Syrah, Lodi, CA, 2004 (S4)

    Updated: 2012-07-29 01:50:00
    : : , , , skip to main skip to sidebar Chez Ray Winemaking Trials , tribulations and . tips Saturday , July 28, 2012 Updated Review : Chez Ray Syrah , Lodi , CA , 2004 S4 By way of background The Chez Ray Syrah , 2004, code S4 was made from Lodi grapes , fermented warm , with a combination of French and American . oak Original review September , : 2010 In the glass : Medium to deep red in the glass , no brick . overtones On the nose : Sweet , fragrant , knitted red fruit , some muddled strawberry and raspberry blended . in On the palate : Light and subtle , feels like raspberry juice in your mouth , showing a touch of acid , a touch of sugar and a touch of tannin . nbsp But there is only the merest hint of fruit , so I could not call this balanced . nbsp It is a pleasant , bright ,

  • Review and Rating: *+ Chez Ray Elderberry, CT, 2010

    Updated: 2012-07-29 01:12:00
    : : , , skip to main skip to sidebar Chez Ray Winemaking Trials , tribulations and . tips Saturday , July 28, 2012 Review and Rating : Chez Ray Elderberry , CT , 2010 By way of : background This wine was fermented from a frozen batch of elderberry fruit from Elmstead Lane , Westport , . CT Review In the glass , it is musty ruby red . nbsp Aromas are bright red and full of stinky socks . nbsp Not appealing at all . nbsp The palate is more accommodating , bringing sharp red fruits together with a full mid-red mouth feel . nbsp The acrid aroma hangs in the background , however . nbsp Not sure what to do with that . nbsp Achieves merely one star with a plus on the five-star Spirit of Wine scale . nbsp No : comments Post a Comment Newer Post Older Post Home Subscribe to : Post Comments Atom

  • Who’s more responsible for higher alochol wines: Mother Nature, Wine Critics, or Winemakers?

    Updated: 2012-07-27 11:00:48
    Mother Nature Argument Anyone who doesn’t believe in global warming yet surely has his or her head buried in the sand. Blame it on the natural way of the world and/or human intervention… it’s happening. I saw a comparative image this past week, and I thought, “Well, I wonder if my cousin will still say [...]

  • Today’s post is all about wine!

    Updated: 2012-07-26 15:23:23
    A reader griped the other day that I was writing  too much about social media and not enough about wine. So here goes! These are my 5 top-scoring wines from three popular varieties over the past several months. (All reviews and scores have been published, either in Wine Enthusiast’s print Buying Guide, online, or both. [...]

  • An Interview with Zemanta, a resource my blog can’t live without…

    Updated: 2012-07-26 11:00:44
    I recently received the following Email. Dear Jo, On Z-Blog we regularly feature Zemanta power users. Hence, I’d like to ask you whether I can send you a few interview questions to introduce you on our Z-BLOG? Let me know. Thank you and have a nice week, Nenad I thought, sure, why not… let’s see [...]

  • Laurel Glen – Cabernet, Sonoma Style

    Updated: 2012-07-25 23:32:44
    Laurel Glen Vineyard, a thousand feet up the slopes of Sonoma Mountain, was well known as an excellent site for Cabernet Sauvignon even before the 1st vintage of Laurel Glen Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon was produced in 1981. But it was the 16 acre vineyard developed in the 1970’s by Sonoma wine pioneer Patrick Campbell that [...]

  • Thoughts on the 2009 Cabernet vintage

    Updated: 2012-07-25 15:34:06
    Even before the grapes were picked in 2010, there was widespread speculation that the cool vintage would result in the sorts of Cabernet Sauvignons not much seen in the previous 20 years: wines of moderate alcohol (perhaps even below 14%, in the hopes of ardent anti-alcoholists), dryness, complexity and ageability. That may well turn out [...]

  • Having a wine event? You need to get a one day liquor license, and here’s the process

    Updated: 2012-07-25 11:00:34
    Each year, as I produce a wine event for PS I Love You called Dark & Delicious, I set one day aside for “the process.” The following is a great check list. In fact, I’ll be using this myself, so I don’t forget anything. It seems like I forget at least one thing each year, [...]

  • Rice Wine and Sushi

    Updated: 2012-07-24 11:00:39
    I know next to nothing about rice wine, I know even less about sushi. I have major allergies to fish, so I can’t go there. Seaweed wrap just turns my stomach, because it’s got that “fishy” smell, so please don’t try to sell me on their non-fish rolls. Now… being in the wine business gives [...]

  • Stone Bluff Grape Stomp August 12, 2012

    Updated: 2012-07-23 18:26:15
    : Oklahoma Wine News Statewide Oklahoma wine industry news and vineyard events . Never miss a local wine tasting event . Our wine blog includes an online archive of winery news , festival dates , state wine law news , grape growing tips , and a full list of Okahoma winery . websites 7 23 2012 Stone Bluff Grape Stomp August 12, 2012 Stone Bluff Cellars is partnering with the Leukemia Lymphoma Society to create a great , family friendly Grape Stomp event on Sunday , Sunday , August 12, 2012 from Noon until 4pm in Haskell , Oklahoma about 30 minutes southeast of Tulsa If you want to wait for cooler weather , the Stone Bluff Cellars annual Green Country Wine Festival is scheduled for Saturday , October 13, 2012. http : www.stonebluffcellars.com index.html Posted by Thomas at 10:26:00 AM Email

  • Superstars Announced for Concannon Vineyard’s Tenth Annual Petite Sirah Symposium, July 31, 2012

    Updated: 2012-07-23 11:00:18
    KEYNOTE SPEAKER ~ Evan Goldstein, Master Sommelier, Full Circle Wine Consultant ~ Why Evan Believes in Petite Sirah Evan Goldstein, MS, is one of the nation’s most prolific food and wine industry veterans. His food and wine career started at age 19 in the kitchens of the Restaurant Le Saintongeais and the Hotel Lancaster in [...]

  • Review and Rating: ****+ Chez Ray M5 Las Brisas Merlot, 2005, Carneros, Sonoma County CA

    Updated: 2012-07-21 00:45:00
    : : , , skip to main skip to sidebar Chez Ray Winemaking Trials , tribulations and . tips Friday , July 20, 2012 Review and Rating : Chez Ray M5 Las Brisas Merlot , 2005, Carneros , Sonoma County CA Original Review , July , 2008 : This is a newer vintage Chez Ray wine , vinted from Brehm frozen grapes from Sonoma county . This pure-breed merlot was first sampled here and its making was described here Let's see what it brings to the table : In the glass , it is a deep magenta with dark purple tinged highlights . The aromas is beefy , sweet , fruity , oaky , chocolate and slightly dark a nice combo On the palate , the first note is an extracted , lightly acidic plum , pushed along by the deeper cocoa notes . Finish seems to fade , but comes back on a substantive rebound . I do believe this

  • Pips and pots ~ How old is wine, anyway?

    Updated: 2012-07-20 11:00:06
    When I’ve wondered about how old wine could possibly be, I envision a cave woman putting grapes that were brought to her in some kind of container. Her mate also brought way too many grapes, so the weight of the grapes, plus not being able to eat them all right away, began the fermenting process. [...]

  • Review and Rating: ***+ Chez Ray Syrah, 2002, Yakima, WA, from 1999 vintage grapes

    Updated: 2012-07-07 22:27:00
    : : , , , skip to main skip to sidebar Chez Ray Winemaking Trials , tribulations and . tips Saturday , July 07, 2012 Review and Rating : Chez Ray Syrah , 2002, Yakima , WA , from 1999 vintage grapes Original Review May , 2008 : This is the 2002 vintage of Chez Ray Yakima Syrah , vinted from Yakima , Washington , grapes grown during the 1999 season . The grapes were harvested in 1999, frozen and provided by Brehm Vineyards in 2002. Freezing red grapes seems to create little problem in winemaking in fact , some folks say it softens tannins , similar to what cold maceration does . In the glass , the wine is medium magenta in color , showing both purple and brick highlights seemingly poised between youth and age . Aromas are yummy yeasty and lightly-oaked deep fruit . Touch of shoe leather . .

  • *** Chez Ray Meritage, Lodi, CA, 2003

    Updated: 2012-07-07 22:23:00
    This is Chez Ray Meritage (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc) from Valley Oaks in Lodi, California, 2003 vintage, now 9 years from vintage date.  Showing some brick color at the edge. Soft, round fruit aromas. Full, sweet, deep mid-palate experience, showing sweet black cherry. Fully round, ripe and drink-up-able now.

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