I am spending more time back at the winery, rather than keeping in touch via the wonders of modern science. This allows for tracking progress through primary and malo-lactic fermentation and allows me know when to sulphur but doesn't necessarily help either manner of topping or adds.  Because those decisions are made based on taste and appearance.  What I mean by manner of topping is if the wine is clean (no surface film), I stir and then top it.  If there is a surface film then I flush the film onto the ground, and repeat this at least one more time.  Adds are also different for me I do all of them after bench trials, and by taste.  “Bench trials” are done by pulling a sample of the wine and making additions in the same ratio that they would be in the whole lot of wine.  Since I don’t like to alter the environment that the yeast or ML bacteria are working (living) in I almost always wait until the completion of all desired fermentations before making adds.

Okay enough about winemaking, you want to know how the wines are showing (tasting).  All the wines are showing well for the stage they’re at in the aging process.  For those that like the ’08 Sauvignon Blanc, the ’09 is looking to be very similar.  The Pinots are developing nicely, with the components of the Sonoma Coast looking like the better vineyards and the vintage is going to lead to a “bigger” Pinot this year. The Chardonnay’s are a little hard to evaluate because they’re racing through ML and are mostly "buttered popcorn" right now, that will eventually change.  The Zins are both doing fine and just need another 6 months to smooth out the rough edges.

Last but not least, we will be pouring at ZAP this weekend (Jan. 30/31), both ‘06s and a preview of the ’07 Alta (down to less than 10 cases of ’06).  If you want to say hello to me personally, head to the table before 1:30 PM as I’ll be leaving early to host a winemaker dinner for Londer Estates, but Shea and Adrian will be there to answer your questions. 

Cheers!
 
 
The holiday season is busy for all and we are no exception.  The last three weeks of each year find us traveling to the East Coast.  Ten days in Baltimore with family and visiting a few key accounts in Maryland, then onto visit with several friends in Pennsylvannia, New Jersey and the Finger Lakes Region of New York.  We are particularly looking forward to the Finger Lakes portion of the trip as we'll have an opportunity to visit a few of the Finger Lakes wineries.  The region is becoming well-known for Gewurztraminer and Riesling winegrowing and is a region of which I have not tasted since the late 1980's.

Year-end wine sales introduced a fun, new surprise in our first corporate gift order!  This corporate gift order was even more interesting to us because the organization shares our name....Calstar Products.  It makes perfect sense for us to work together to send out wine gifts to their customers with a similar name.  Note to self:  contact companies who share our name!

On the winemaking side, the 2009 Pinots finished up ML (malolactic fermentation) and were sulphured and reinoculations are moving along.  Other reinoculations are for two lots of Chardonnay that I’m doing in barrel.  It looks like they’ll make it on the first try though one is moving slower than the other.  Interestingly enough, ML fermentations, which usually prefer warmer conditions, are taking off and finishing in the 55-60 degree F cellar.  Go figure.  Also, I have done fining on the 2009 Sauvignon Blanc and Gewürztraminers in preparation for bottling in the next couple of months.  I like to bottle aromatic whites early to preserve their fruit character.

With that, we wish all of you a very happy and healthy New Year!
 
Holiday Activity 12/07/2009
 
The last couple of weeks have been a little nutty, monitoring ferments, doing sales calls AND I’ve added two craft fairs in two weeks to the mix (have I mentioned that I’m a leatherworker in a previous life?).  This meant that I was dealing with two stuck ferments, evaluating two sets of fining trials, evaluating two sets of bentonite trials (one of which made no sense), helping at two client tasting events all while traveling on back-to–back weekends.  Who says harvest is the busiest time of year?

            I helped Londer Estate, a winery for whom I consult, pour at the Faralon Pinot Fest, and found it reassuring regarding what I’m trying to do in making Pinot.   If you like a fruit-driven style, the Londer wines were as good or better than the “competition”.  The Londer release event at the Presidio Club in San Francisco went well with both a good reception for the wines and good sales. I found myself liking the 2007 Ferrington Pinot Noir more than I had in the past and thought the other wines were showing extremely well.

            My other passion, craft fairs, have been good; with the exception of a four-hour power loss due to high winds in Nevada City, but are extremely tiring when coupled with winemaking/wine sales duties.  While in Nevada City, I tasted two current accounts, New Moon Café and Carrington’s Fine Wines, on current releases and checked out several new possible accounts.  More on these in January, after I go back up there for a sales trip.  For those of you who get up to Nevada City, I heartily recommend New Moon Café for imaginative food and a truly interesting wine list.  

This past weekend we were doing a show in Carmel Valley, which gave us the opportunity to eat at our favorite restaurant in Monterey, Passionfish, which as you might guess has a great seafood menu and a equally good wine list that is generally priced just above retail.  Additionally, they are big supporters of sustainable fishing, and have no problematic seafood on the menu.

The holidays are fast approaching and we wish you a healthy and happy holiday! 
 
 
While crush ended in mid-October, harvest still goes on. And, of course,  so does bottling preparation and wine marketing.  By "harvest" I mean that all of the wines are not yet through primary and secondary fermentation and have not been sulphured.  Therefore, I continue to monitor the progress on a daily basis and make decisions about the best ways in which to achieve our goals for each lot. So far, most of them have been "well behaved children" and I’m very excited by the overall quality of the vintage.

Given the slow-down post-harvest, I've had more time to sell wine, which after all is the point of making it!  Sales have been going well, including the addition of a Colorado distributor and several local restaurants.  Also having more time allows me to do leatherwork as I'm preparing for two Holiday Shows.
 
 
Crush for me and my clients ended this past Monday with the last of the fruit coming in.  Harvest goes through the completion of primary fermentation for all my lots, but as of today, this process got a lot easier with the pressing off of the last of the Pinot Noir, Londer Vineyards Valley Foothills lot that makes up part of the Parabol Blend (my largest lot and project).  This allows me to focus, in the next month, on monitoring completion of primary fermentation (sugar –alcohol) and secondary (malic acid – lactic acid acid).

The Anderson Valley fruit this year is back to “normal” after the issues with “smoke taint” last year.  I’m excited by the quality of fruit from a new vineyard from which Londer Estates sourced fruit, Angel’s Camp. 

For my own Calstar Cellars project, I brought in fruit from two new Pinot Noir vineyards, new Sauvignon Blanc and three Chardonnay vineyards, as well as getting fruit off two additional blocks of Sangiacomo Pinot Noir.  This gave me Clones 115, 777 and Swan from the Sangiacomo Roberts Road Vineyard and fruit from Marshall and Vining vineyards in Sonoma County.  I'm excited that all blocks are showing well.  All three Chardonnays are showing well (Sangiacomo Roberts Road, Inspiration Vineyard, and Manchester Ridge Vineyard) and I plan on bottling two vineyard designates and a Sonoma Coast blend from these new acquisitions.  For the Zin lovers, this vintage of Zin is looking great!

Futures for the 2009 Vintage will be made available soon and will be available until March 1, 2010.  Don't miss out!

All of this and now the Holidays are approaching - time for me to work on my leather work (my hobby) for upcoming craft shows, oh, and, take my wife on a date!
 
 
The past couple of weeks have been activity-filled and slowing down or catching up on sleep are all unlikely.  Aside from Winemaking, one of my 'other' professions/passions is leatherwork and with two shows back-to-back, it is busy!  These shows, in addition to the Family Winemakers event in San Francisco and finalizing bottling for a couple of clients, will lead me into Harvest 2009.

This week (and next) I will be spending a lot of time looking closely at vineyards in prep for harvest.  So far, Anderson Valley vineyards are looking good with an “average” crop set and no fires in the area the year.  The only remaining worry from these vineyards is residual “smoke taint” in the soil from last year's fires.

The Sonoma County vineyards are generally looking good, although, this year may see us picking Pinot Noir well before the Sauvignon Blanc off comparable sites - a less common occurrence but this is what makes mother nature and science part friend, part foe.

Harvest 2009 is almost upon us - stay tuned for harvest updates.
 
 
I spent last Friday afternoon looking at vineyards, from which I am sourcing fruit. The one I was working in, Marshall, looks good with lighter crop load than last year’s.  The second vineyard, Devoto, is in 3rd leaf and I will get a max of 1T off of it this year.  Stan is doing a good job of vineyard management, on top of growing “vintage” apples and has several interesting clones in the ground. Looking forward to working with his fruit in coming years. The last vineyard suffers from being planted meter by meter and has significant mildew pressure. Fortunately, we caught it early and can probably catch the mildew before it becomes a real problem and I haven’t committed to it yet.

I have an in store tasting to pour at this weekend where I'll be pouring Zin.  And, I've finally lined up staff for Family Winemakers of California on August 23rd and 24th at Fort Mason in SF - also busy but good exposure.  Also getting ready for ACC Craft Show in San Francisco, where I’ll be selling my leatherwork as well as having Todd and David pour and sell Calstar Cellars wines.  Doing the Tiburon Arts Festival the following week. 

Personally, I am continuing to make time for bike rides weekly (at least one) and getting a little time for gardening.  Looking forward to a couple of meals out at favorite restaurants this weekend and a short vacation the week after Labor Day.

This is wine country living!
 
Summer's Bounty 07/31/2009
 
As we approach August, we’re not only full of anticipation for the upcoming grape harvest but also excited to enjoy the bounty of the garden.  Fresh fruits and vegetables abound with warm days and cool evenings in Northern California and this year offers no exception.  The garden my wife and I tend at our home in Santa Rosa is coming along nicely and includes some of the basics, some delicate fruit selections and a transplant from the East Coast.  

The basics include what could become an instant summer salad with basil tomatoes (add Mozzarella and our Calstar 2008 Sauvignon Blanc and you’re done!) as well as onions and peppers (who needs Philly, just a nice BBQ and our 2006 Alta Zin).  A more interesting, and perhaps risky vegetable is asparagus, which is doing well for being in its second year, and we hope to have a nice crop next year (with a little luck).  

Our fruits include persimmon and lemon trees, both doing well but an apple a day may not be in our future, as the apple and the peach trees are not fairing as well.  The delicate includes the raspberry plants that we received from the Londer family (of the same family that we source our Londer Estate Pinot Noir) which are taking (second time’s a charm) having planted them in the spot that previously housed four Merlot vines.  We will reap the delicious results of this change but I will miss the vines as they did provide nice smoker material.

Transplanting can be difficult, both for people, and for trees (seeds) but time and luck can prove successful.  The maple seeds I brought back from a visit back East (Maryland) bore one seedling that is doing well and there is nothing better than being a transplant with reminder of home.

Rounding out this week and prepping for the 2009 vintage included confirmation of grape sourcing, and have lined up the following:

-10T Pinot Noir, Sangiacomo Roberts Road Vineyard
-4T Pinot Noir, Marshall Vineyard
-1T Pinot Noir, Vining Vineyard
-3T Sauvignon Blanc, Hopkins Ranch
-3T Chardonnay, Sangiacomo Roberts Road Vineyard
-5T (Pending) Zinfandel, Stokes and Cardannini Vineyards and Manchester Ridge Chardonnay

I am excited about Harvest, both personal and of the vine.
 
The Odds & Ends 07/21/2009
 

The last week has been about wrapping up some of the odds & ends of summer before Harvest 2009 begins.  The week was filled with fining trials, negotiating contracts and shipping wine (the fun part!).

Fining trials are experiments on small portions of a blend to determine the best way of optimizing the blend’s flavors. This is the last creative part of winemaking, and enjoyable, though quite time consuming to set up and taste through each blend.

Grape sourcing negotiations are more a matter of meeting growers and looking at the vineyards than 'lawyer-speak' contractual administration.  I’ve worked with most of the growers with whom I source fruit either for my project or clients projects, so negotiations are mainly to assure optimum fruit quality.  Ensuring the level of quality that I require will likely involve doing a lot of the necessary work myself including fruit load adjustment in the vineyard.  Fortunately, I work closely with my growers and collaboratively work to achiever this quality.  I've acquired extensive knowledge through this collaboration over the years and this offers great satisfaction.

Shipping wine to the East Coast (we always prefer pallets, naturally) and working on a contract for distribution to Colorado is the fun part of these odds & ends of the season.  Soon, I hope to bring Calstar wines to some excellent wine retailers and restaurants throughout Colorado.  Stay tuned for updates!

Wrapping up the 2008 vintage and preparing for 2009 is an interesting combination of creativity, sales and planning which can be fun, scary, frustrating and, let's face it boring at time.  But, these are the 'Odds & Ends'.

 
 

The summer months of July and August are about prepping wines for bottling, finalizing sources for grapes and working sales.  

This year, addressing smoke taint, a reality for Northern California wines given excessive draught throughout the region, in the Anderson Valley wines has made bottle prep much harder and more time consuming.   The upside to this bottling season is the non-smoke tainted lots are showing really well and this is exciting. One wine that is particularly exciting for me is the small lot Sangiacomo Pinot Noir, my first release from the well-known Sangiacomo family vineyards.

Bottle prep is the final creative step in a vintage where I consider flavors that I like and what should be altered for each blend.  The bottling process is a matter of making sure all supplies are ready and that the equipment is operating properly.  A matter of dotting I's and crossing T's, not necessarily creative, but very important.

The 2009 vintage is exciting, as I will be adding 5 new sources to my portfolio. Pinot Noir from Marshall, Vining and Saginani Vineyards; Chardonnay from Sangiacomo, and Manchester Ridge Vineyards as well as adding to the Pinot Noir sourced Sangiacomo's Roberts Road Vineyard.

Sales are going well despite the economy, particularly in Maryland, where the 2008 Sauvignon Blanc was particularly well received.

Summer in the Cellar.