We picked Chardonnay a week ago today. It has started to ferment thanks to the native yeast.

I made a few videos with my flip camera - here is one of the better ones.

Harvest season has officially started. Monday our team picked, sorted, stomped and pressed the bright and juicy Chardonnay grapes. Ever since Jared, Justin, and I tasted the fresh grape juice last week, I've been waiting anxiously for harvest to officially begin. Seriously, I would've gulped down a whole glass of the sugary but full-flavored stuff if there was not the threat of a terrible stomach ache to follow.

We met at the winery around noon, and discussed the game plan over fried chicken sandwiches from Bakesale Betty. Or rather, Jared and Tracey attempted to explain the plan over high-pitched yelps from Izzy, who was playing hide-and-seek behind the huge truckload of grapes. Soon our small but mighty group of workers got started. Though I missed some of the floor action while I was holed up in the lab, I did witness some brave efforts. First, there was Linda, with the eyes of a hawk, spotting and plucking numerous earwigs who loved hiding in the clusters. Then I experienced my first black widow encounter as Lisa risked her life (or at least the possibility of getting a very painful bite) by removing it from the sorting table. Also worthy of mention was Alex's foot-stomping skills. He hopped in the huge barrel of green grapes not once but twice, despite the rather unpleasant feeling of perpetually sinking in cold, sticky juice. Meanwhile, I proudly donned the geeky lab goggles and was thrilled to realize that the painful Monday through Friday summer Chemistry class that I just completed was actually making lab work easier! I measured the pH and titratable acidity and based on the numbers and the vibrant taste of the Chardonnay grapes and juice, it looks to be another great year.

I am so glad I had the opportunity to be a part, however small, of Donkey and a Goat's harvest this year. Jared and Tracey have taught me so much in the past year, and I can't wait to learn from their former mentor, Eric Texier, in France. I owe them so much and can't wait to hear how the rest of the harvest season unfolds!

had such a good game last Saturday, we suspect it was because of the wine served before the game...


Thanks Scott and Helen for the photo and your support!

Two of our Syrah Vineyards are off the grid in Mendocino. We spent time at both of them this past weekend.

Perli Vineyards is south of Anderson Valley beyond the end of the pavement on Fish Rock Road. It has been in the Alden Family for several generations. The vineyard has a complete collections of wildlife - rattlesnakes, bears, scorpions, goats, deer, and raccoons just to name a few. In fact legend has it that Steve Alden, the owner, made a living trapping animals many years back.

We grafted a vineyard over a few years back with Steve - Hog Pen. In this video, Steve talks about the clones and the vineyard name. We like 877. He likes 174.

As a family, we camped on the vineyard. Didn't see a bear or a live rattlesnake, but we did see a scorpion. Isabel makes a short appearance in the background. We left the Prius at the cabin/campsite this time - didn't want to have it towed out from the vineyard again.

Labels: Syrah

Verasion is just starting for some of our Syrah in the Anderson Valley and Mendocino Ridge area. We spent the weekend in the vineyards checking on status, camping and eating a great dinner thanks to Steve Alden at Perli Vineyards.



More videos are coming.

Thinking about our party coming up - take a look at the spring party.

Over a wonderful bottle of 2000 Rousseau, I recently spent an evening talking about the embattled Governor of South Carolina. Evidently, he is considered a hero by many in France for following his heart or at least being torn about what to do. This honestly and tension is unusual for an American. (Until I had heard this perspective, I tended to focus solely on his hypocrisy.)

Winemakers often face a similar dilemma. Last year, the LA Times ran an article about a famous winemaker who, according to the writer, had tried to make wines for a very famous critic and himself and got lost in the process. You can read the article here - http://shar.es/94HL. (N.B. The winemaker claims to have been misquoted.) More recently, Eric Asimov wrote about one of my favorite wineries in Spain, López de Heredia, who has stuck to their tradition and not tried to follow two masters. In the article, Mr. Asimov quotes another wineries sales director:

“Our technical director is very keen to protect the Marqués de Riscal identity, which I understand, but business is business,” the commercial director, Javier Ybañez Creus, told me. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/12/dining/12pour.html?pagewanted=3&ref=dining

In both cases, a desire for commercial success caused something to be lost.

Being small, we are lucky that our friends support us and we are able to follow our hearts. We do this with our Chardonnay - using Ver Jus and making something unique to us. We also do this with our Syrahs - bucking the trends and doing what we want. I hope we are able to stay true to our hearts and continue our no compromise wine making....

Our fall release has been posted and the wines are all tasting great. Included in the release is our schedule of events. One that I wish I was attending is another wine dinner in Greenwich CT. Chis, the chef/owner, is a great guy and this looks tasty. Tracey will be there and on the East Coast for a full week. Isabel and I (along with Justin and Lisa) will hold down the fort/winery.

If you are reading this blog on our website, you are seeing the new look and feel. We lauched the site on Wednesday evening - it is still not complete but we are getting there. Hopefully, we will get it done over the weekend.



The new look is too match our new label. After 4 (or 5 if you count the rose or 6 if you count the unreleased 2003 wines) harvests with our first label, we decided it was time to change the look. We love our original label but felt we need to the label to match our wines a bit better - refined, elegant and balanced.

The old label will live on for experimental and on the edge wines. in 2010, look for a small release of Isabel's Crazy... with the old label.

On top of our new label, we are getting ready for harvest. We have two delightful new interns starting at the winery for harvest - Justin and Lisa. Justin has already started - picking up our new 1 year old barrels. In the lab, we will have Anna starting to help on weekends as well. Hopefully they will all occasionally post on the blog.

Danielle is leaving us for harvest in Charnay with Eric Texier. We will miss her around the winery and the help her ultimate team provided last year. Of course, having worked harvest with Eric, we are sure she will have a wonderful time and learn an incredible amount.