2^nd Barrel Tasting Ticket Give-Away….Simple Hedonisms contest

It’s been fun having people write in with various wine related questions.  Love the opportunity to do something a bit different from my normal work day…fun to some share my ideas and do a little research.  As an extra bonus, it gives us a chance to give away a few more Barrel Tasting tickets!

Cathy Piggott - Question: I want to show off  Sonoma County wines to my out-of-town friends. What is the best varietal to serve with a cheese tray?

Had to answer this question for sure…working for the Wine Road I attend multiple press tours a year and often visit local wineries that offer amazing wine and food pairings. They ALL seem to offer a variety of cheeses with their wines.  So here is what I’ve observed and tasted along the way;

Semi soft cheeses or mild brie are perfectly paired with bubbles or chardonnay.  If you’re a fan of goat cheese or herbed cheeses, try sauvignon blanc.  For red wine fans; cabernet sauvignon or merlot, try pairing with Cheddar, Gouda, Swiss, Gruyere or a Mild Parmesan.  At my house, we’re fans of syrah and zinfandel so we match them up with stinky cheeses…just have to make sure everyone has some!  This is a general starting point – but experimenting is part of the fun.  Locally find a Whole Foods, or a small upscale deli and they’ll be more than happy to give you some ideas and share the new cheeses they are trying. Most cheese vendors love to get your feedback when you try their “new discoveries”.

http://www.traversos.com/

http://maps.google.com/maps/place?q=-&fb=1&cid=10123978035045010021

http://www.yelp.com/biz/molsberry-market-santa-rosa

Patti Kruse - If pinot noir is a thin skinned grape, what varietal is known as a thick skinned grape? And, are many of the thick skinned grapes grown in Sonoma County?

Pretty sure this is not Patti, but it's the photo she has on Facebook!

Well Patti, checking all of my reference books for grapes with thick skins, these are the five that seem to always appear; Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah/Shiraz, Nebbiolo. Tempranillo, and Malbec.  All of which are grown in Sonoma County to varying degrees.  Because vineyards are a bit of a moving target, with some always being replanted, I have no firm number on the total acres, but here is a ballpark estimate:

Sonoma County Acreage: Cabernet Sauvignon an estimated 12,600 acres.

Sonoma County Acreage: Syrah accounts for 1,820 acres in Sonoma County.

Sorry to say I couldn’t find any numbers for Nebbiolo, Tempranillo or Malbec.

I do know that about a dozen of our member wineries grow these varietals.

For the most part having a thick skin makes them a bit more resilient to various growing conditions but they all perform best in slightly dry and warm climates with soils that allow for good drainage and requires the grape to struggle a bit to become concentrated. The thick skin results in higher tannin concentration.

Here are the bacis grape descriptions for each from taken from:

http://www.wineonline.ie/winery/varietals1.htm and

http://www.thewinedoctor.com/advisory/tasteclassicgrapesred.shtml

Cabernet Sauvignon

It has small, blue-black berries which have thick skins, providing necessary tannin, colour and flavour.

Syrah/Shiraz

This thick-skinned grape may produce potentially tannic and long-lived wines. It is also late-ripening, explaining why it has gravitated towards warm regions such as the Rhône and Australia, although it is also producing good wines in South Africa, Chile and California.

Nebbiolo

It would seem ideally suited to planting in warmer climes, as this thick-skinned variety is late ripening. Indeed, the name Nebbiolo may be derived from nebbia, a fog which hangs over the vineyards during the Autumn harvest.

Tempranillo

By far Spain’s most noble indigenous grape it has similar characteristics to the Pinot – strawberries when young, earthy vegetal when mature – and it ages very well. It ripens early (‘temprana’ is the Spanish for ‘early’) is thick-skinned and gives good colour and extract but low alcohol and acidity.  It is grown throughout Spain but very much as a grape for blending as opposed to a straight varietal. Outside Spain the grape is quite prolific in Argentina and to a lesser extent in California.

Malbec
A small, dark, thick-skinned grape, it gives intense colour, big tannins and lots of structure to the wines and is generally blended with a little Merlot for subtlety. Has become very popular in Argentina where it adapts well to the hot climate.

Cheers, Beth

We were thrilled that so many people logged on and asked questions for our Barrel Tasting ticket contest. I didn’t seem right to only select one. Although William Allen, one of our favorite bloggers (Simple Hedonisms) did a fantastic job selecting one to answer, we wanted to pick a few more. William’s answer was very informative and in-depth, but I’m going with my standard, brief/quick, answers. But hey, we’re still going to send each of these people two tickets to Barrel Tasting!

John B

This will be the 32nd ‘Barrel Tasting’ event on the Wine Road. This year there are more than 160 wineries along the Road, and well over 100 are participating in the event. How many wineries were there thirty-two years ago, and how many participated in that first Barrel Tasting event?

Well John, I did manage to find a dusty old filing box in our warehouse, with some great info to help me answer your question.

So, here’s the scoop…the Russian River Wine Road was formed in 1976.  At the time these were the founding wineries…

1. L. Foppiano
2. Cambiaso Winery and Vineyard
3. Geyser Peak Winery
4. Nervo Winery
5. J. Pedroncelli Winery
6. Simi Winery
7. Souverain Alexander Valley
8. Trentadue Winery
9. Pastori Wnery

Their mission was to work together to promote the wineries that literally were along the Russian River, thus the original name, Russian River Wine Road.  Their first order of business was to produce a map, which would be for visitors, hotels and visitor centers.

As you can see here, after a few months of brainstorming the first map was designed and it also listed, Johnson’s Alexander Valley, Dry Creek Vineyard, and Sonoma Vineyards, so 12 wineries all together.

By the time Barrel Tasting was launched there were about 16 wineries involved and it was promoted by word of mouth, which drew about 100-200 people, mostly locals.  Since it’s inception Barrel Tasting has been the first full weekend in March.

Beginning in 2007 we extended the event to the first TWO weekends in March and as you noted, we now have over 100 wineries that participate each year.

As much as the event has grown, the initial objective has not changed – Barrel Tasting is designed to give visitors a unique experience of visiting wineries and getting into the cellar.  Just as the early days, wineries gear up to sell “futures” of their barrel wines.

Most of the wineries I have spoken to about the early days of Barrel Tasting say it was pretty a low key event.  Most rolled out one or two barrel to pull samples from, along side their current release, bottled wines.  With just a few hundred attendees, it was a festive weekend, but not crowded.  Wineries had plenty of time to really talk with visitors and build some long lasting relationships.

Every year we hear from one or two customers who have been attending for 25 or more years.  Most of those folks love the event because they enjoy buying “futures”.  Many wineries plan their bottling so that if you buy “futures” this year, they will be ready for you to pick up the following year during Barrel Tasting.

I loved this question so much, I’m going to do some more research and make our Wine Road history an ongoing post.

Veronica Martinez

What exactly is Tannin? I would like to know also how Tannins affect a wine’s taste and how it pairs with food.

I always hear people using the term “tannin” when talking about or describing a wine, but I’m not sure everyone really knows what it is.

Here are my “beginning to understand wine” answers: Tannin is phenolic compounds extracted from the skins, stems, and seeds of grapes. They also contribute to the taste of wine. The longer the wine stays in contact with the skins, stems, and seeds the more tannin that is absorbed.

I wouldn’t say there is a specific taste to tannin, but more the feeling in the back of your mouth when you drink red wines…sort of a dry feeling on your tongue and mouth.  When you swallow, that’s typically when people will say, “there is so much tannin in that wine”.  It’s the mouth feel.  For the most part, wines without enough tannin are described as flat. Wine without enough tannin may taste more like fruit punch than a great wine.  If you’ve ever sampled a wine and felt your cheeks suck in and your lips pucker, you know instantly – too much tannin!

Since tannin can be extracted from the seeds of the grapes – experiment.  Bite into a grape seed and you’ll know what tannin is!

Tannin is an astringent that occurs naturally in grapes and acts as a natural fining agent. Proteins combine with tannin to form heavy solids that sink to the bottom of the barrel or bottle. This process is called flocculation and is a natural clearing process in wine. Wine that is cloudy is often in need of tannin.

For a full-blown, more detailed chemistry lesson on tannins, you should check out this article: http://www.wineanorak.com/tannins.htm

When you’re trying to pair your wines with food, some simple rues of thumb;

• Sweet foods taste less sweet with tannic wines
• Salty foods emphasize tannins
• A wine high in tannin, such as a Cabernet Sauvignon matched with a tannic food such as tomato sauce will produce a very dry and astringent flavour.

Courtney Paige Bransford

What country did the varietal Zinfandel originally come from?

When I began in the wine industry about 20 years ago, I learned that zinfandel originated in Croatia.  Other research connects it with southern Italy’s Apulia region, where the genetically related Primitive variety is grown. Now most researchers agree that the roots of Zinfandel (as well as Primitivo) are most likely in the Dalmatian province of Croatia (in the former Yugoslavia) where DNA matches have been made with a variety locally known by the name of Crljenak Kasteljanski (also Pribidrag or Tribidrag). The genetic linkage and similar origins of Italy’s Primitivo and California’s Zinfandel has been supported by the work of both Croatian and UC Davis researchers.

I’m confident if you were to pose this same question to various zinfandel growers throughout our Dry Creek Valley, you would get a variety of answers. This is my answer, and I’m sticking to it!

Thanks to everyone who wrote in with questions – this was fun!

Cheers – Beth

WINTER ALONG WINE ROAD

By TR

Photos by Marta Hayden

Came off of Winter Wineland into some spectacular, driving, much-needed rain, which cooperatevely held off, more or less, until WW was done- and then it hit, trees down, power out, Russian River UP, as high as it has been in quite some years.  This was a record year for WW- more tickets purchased in advance than ever before in all these 18 years- 5400- so most likely we had well over 6000 attendees.  Wow!  Smooth sailing and positive experiences for our guests, wineries and lodgings- and for me and Beth, too- no fires!

Quiet time along Wine Road now, weather is wet, cold, gray, but some sun, too.  Plants show heavy evidence of the hard frosts of last December, but daffodils and paper whites are up- looks like acacia and other flowering trees are starting to get a wee bit ready to bloom. Vineyards are sleeping, but mustard is up, perhaps waiting to see if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow.  Valentine’s Day, the holiday oasis in the gloom of winter, is approaching- many of our wineries and lodgings plan specials and events around that three day President’s Day Weekend.  This is a great time to plan a romantic getaway to visit us- cozy up to your sweetie by a roaring fireplace, sip and savor wine and dream.

Barrel Tasting, the first two weekends in March, including the Fridays, too, at many participants, has already gone up on sale on our website and is taking off, too:  http://www.wineroad.com/annualevents/3 .  This year most guests are purchasing advance tickets online – and we are trying to spread out our guests to all of the participating wineries to avoid any clogs or slow-downs at check in- you will see when you click over to the event page.  Tickets purchased in advance save you money and help us better stage the event. This is the 32^nd annual BT- amazingly long-lived, popular, and traditional, memory-laden- many guests have been coming to it since they turned 21 and many new guests call to ask just what in the world IS Barrel Tasting?  (Beth put it well: “Barrel Tasting is EXACTLY what it sounds like.”)  It is definitely our largest Event with the most guests- a few years back we had 35,000 attend over the two weekends- we are excited to see what this year will bring.

What could be cooler than heading into the cellar to taste evolving, not-quite finished, incipient wine thieved directly out of the barrel- truly Tasting & Purchasing The Future!   Pricing on Futures is a great deal and it allows you to make sure that you get your share of wines that will sell out before even being bottled.  Then you get to come back for another visit in 6 – 18 months to pick up your bottled, finished wine (or it can often be shipped to you).  This year we have just about 123 wineries participating- a record-breaking number.  Come on Friday (if you do, make sure that the winery you have chosen for check in is participating on Friday) and make a whole weekend of it- stay with one of our lodging members and check out our great restaurants!