The earliest history of grape growing in Suisun Valley can be traced back to Mae Fisher Purcell. Mae wrote for the Eighteenth Anniversary Edition And All County Chamber of Commerce Atlas of Solano County, Information-Section 4-1935, in a story entitled, "Claus Mangels Renowned Solano Winery and Notable Estate is Beauty Spot of Suisun Valley: When T...

What's happening to the wine blog world? Attrition. It reminds me of my college classes. We'd start the year with 40 students in the class, and by the end of the semester, we'd be down to half that size. The only class that didn't go that way, and actually seemed to grow, was the Wine The post What's happening to the wine blog world? appeared first...

This is a rerun, people, because it's still so relevant. I know that not everyone in the business had read this – in fact, probably most people haven't.  But, everyone I know who pours wine can relate, once they've read the following story. I love W. Blake Gray, of the Gray Market Report. When he The post Charm School Dropouts at Wine Tasting...

Ah to be young and unencumbered, and to be able to just "do what you want trips"… David Shabelman was working for The Hess Collection, last I knew, and then he just slipped away. It happens a lot in the wine business… It's a swinging door of "who's now where?" our here. With 6,000 wineries The post Do what you want trips, a wine friend ...

The Third Annual Oregon Pinot Gris Symposium is announced by Oak Knoll Winery, as Oregon Pinot Gris continues to gather national awareness and the effort for understanding it continues. The Third Annual Oregon Pinot Gris Symposium will be held on Thursday, June 13, 2013 at Oak Knoll Winery. This year’s focus is going to be The post The Third Annual...

I've specifically written a blog post called, "Content Marketers: If you’ve *really* been reading my blog, then you know it’s my personal wine journal." [Definition of content marketing: Wiki ~ "Content marketing is any marketing format that involves the creation and sharing of media and publishing content in order to acquire customers."] Now, when...

I got an Email and thought, "BARRA of Mendocino is offering a wonderful way to honor moms, with a Mother's Day brunch?" … How lovely is that, and I wish I still had my mother, so I could honor her. Instead, I still remember her last words to me. She had been looking up to The post BARRA of Mendocino is offering a wonderful way to honor your m...

The Petite Sirah Symposium, about to go into its eleventh incarnation, has been a sellout every single year of its existence. The mother lode of single variety symposiums, people have gathered in the past to discuss a single variety known as Petite Sirah; but those events have never been formal or continuous, nor have they The post Turning up the s...

Viszlay Vineyard in the field with John Viszlay and Jose Diaz… Being in the vineyards with a winemaker who loves what he's doing is always such a pleasure. I've got a green thumb and love helping things to grow organically. Sharing that passion with someone else who loves to be part of a "growing things" The post Viszlay Vineyard in the field...

Oak Knoll Winery's Annual Wine label art contest for Portland Oregon's Annual Rose Festival was unveiled on April 25 in downtown Portland. Just as it takes a village to raise a child, it also takes a community to sponsor an annual festival that fosters complete pride by all members of its neighborhood. This is what The post Portland Oregon's Annual...

Jim Pratt's (Cornerstone Certified Vineyards) been working as a wine grape grower of the stars for nearly 30 years, which also includes being a veteran of the grapevine nursery business. In 1995, Jim Pratt bought what he would later call the "Pratt Vineyard," after a career working with Rich Kunde at Sonoma Grapevines (a Santa The post Jim Pratt Co...

House Band Wines 375ml Flex Pouch is going to make its debut at Memphis in May's 37th Annual Beale Street Music Festival this coming May 3 though May 5, 2013.    If you think the millennial demographic isn't coming on strong… think again.  Juice boxes grow up with the kids, as evidenced by this image. I The post House Band Wines 375ml Flex Po...

Natural Merchants introduces Spanish Tarantas Monastrell, made with 100 percent organically grown grapes. Based in Grants Pass, Oregon, and Cartagena, Spain, Natural Merchants is pleased to be a leading importer and distributor of the finest natural and organic foods, as well as organic and biodynamic wines. They source their products directly from...

The Heart of the Rose nestling in the Venissa Vineyard to celebrate the feast of the rosebud… To celebrate the ancient annual tradition of April 25th, a heart-shaped bed of roses has been fashioned against the background of the Venissa Vineyard in the estate at the heart of Native Venice…. This is a press release The post The Heart of t...

Steve Hall of Robert Biale Vineyards has that very easy, very comfortable way about him; and he uses that accessible trait to describe meticulous details of his craft… Namely: working with vineyard owners being at the mercy of mother nature knowing as much about each vine as he possibly could; from the good of the The post Steve Hall of Rober...

My partner in all things Jose Diaz and winemaker Joe Freeman of River Road Family Vineyard and Winery explore what happens to a vineyard after all the grapes of that season have been harvested. According to owner Ron Rubin, ""Quality has always been the number one priority for River Road Family Vineyards and Winery, and on The post River Road Famil...

Jared Diamond, Earth Day, and Wine of the Week ~ Iron Horse's New Chardonnay Releases all began this past weekend… My pick for this week is the 2011 Iron Horse UnOaked Chardonnay. A refreshingly delicious wine, with flavors that bring in ripe pear, baked to perfection in a delicious crisp dessert (sans sugar), this wine The post Jared Diamond...

Nick Wise has written a really great book about celebrity vineyards; one that I've thoroughly enjoyed reading. His style, grace, and stories about Napa, Tuscany, and beyond, about superlative wines and extraordinary vintners, is very informative and parallels my own story… so much so that I immediately found that common bond and was drawn in....

I was very fortunate to be hired for a couple of years by Enoforum Wines to advocate for Portuguese wines. Part of my PR job actually took me to Portugal, so I could learn about their culture. Any civilized culture includes their wine history. Portugal's wine culture took serious root, when the Romans invaded. These The post Wine Life Highlights ~ ...

There are two separate segments with this interview between Jose Diaz of Diaz Communications and Miro Tcholakov, the winemaker for Trentadue Winery. Miro makes wine for both Trentadue Winery and also his own brand, Miro Cellars. Miro's got the dream job… And, he's one of the winemakers whom I've adored for a very long time....

On this past Monday, the California Assembly voted to approve HR 9, a resolution that recognizes of the contribution that living historic vineyards have made, and continue to make to the agricultural and social history of California. HR 9 was introduced by Assemblymember Tom Daly (District 69, Anaheim) and is supported by the Historic Vineyard...

AmericanWineryGuide.com has entered into affiliate agreements with the two leading winery reservation systems, VinoVisit.com and CellarPass.com. Integrating these systems with AmericanWineryGuide.com makes it easy for tourists to find and make reservations at some of America's finest wineries. According to proprietor Jim Finley, “Our goal has alway...

When I first got into the wine business just about two decades ago, my eyes were opened to a whole new world that was so exciting. I remember saying to myself, "Please, don't ever let me take any of this for granted." In those first years, I met a very special woman, Jean Arnold Sessions.

In keeping with Wine Blog's dedication to oral journals from winemakers, this is the second part of a four part series with David Mounts. My reason for breaking up these videos is because I'm acutely aware that no one has the time to sit through a 30 to 40 minute video during the day. That

I love advocating for one of the members of PS I Love You. They've all done so much to advance the cause for Petite Sirah's place in history, and they deserve all the publicity I can afford to give them. That's one of the greatest gifts of this blog…the ability to give back to a

Gustafson Family Vineyard has been a favorite on Wine-Blog, because both owner Dan Gustafson and winemaker Emmett Reed have gone out of their way to over deliver. Both articulate gentlemen are very eager to share. Some people are just easy to be around, and that would be Dan and Emmett. There's never been a time

David Coffaro, owner and winemaker for David Coffaro Wines, discusses with Jose Diaz his 100 year old field blend vineyard, his wines, his diary, and his weather station. At least six or seven varieties have been identified by UC Davis, but there are many more vines not yet identified. He discusses how each vine looks,

According to Dave Pramuk, Robert Biale’s co-founder and marketing strategist, “Robert Biale Vineyards is delighted with this project – the most significant planting of Zinfandel in Napa Valley in our modern era. In the pioneering days of California viticulture, Zinfandel was the grape of choice across the state. In Napa Valley, Zinfandel once...

It's so great to see Robert Parker Bob-bob-bobbing along. (Whew!) In early February I had to ask the question, "How important is the Wine Advocate Now," because it had become a moving target with so many structural changes. Everyone in my profession was talking about this behind the scenes. "Where's it all going and where...

This first video is a photo journal of the 20th anniversary of the tasting room location event. I'm showing you this one just in case you'd like to see Ravenswood Winery and their celebration. The second video below is an interview between Joel Peterson and Jose Diaz, talking about Ravenswood and Joel's history in the

Minimal Intervention ~ Maximum Attention, … That's a Paul Draper quote, by the way. Even though "Minimal Intervention ~ Maximum Attention" flowed easily from V.P. Of Vineyard Operations David Gates in conversation, he was quick to tell me, when I said that's a great title, that those words belong to Paul Draper. (Off to an...

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Chile’s unique and varying terroir has distinct geographic barriers: the Atacama Desert to the north, the Andes Mountains to the east, the Patagonian ice fields to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Each defined geographic point makes Chile a truly unique agricultural haven for wine grape growing. As a singular wine grape

Last year, as a member of a female wine writers and bloggers group, when the Wine Blog Awards' nomination process was opened, I heard some rumblings about how women just weren't getting a voice in the nomination process.  I'm one of those people who tends to "worry about the things I can change," so I

A couple of weeks ago, I saw a image that my friend and fellow photographer George Rose put on Facebook. It was of bicyclists and cars, sharing the road… And, it was scary. With a new law in Sonoma County that says we have to stay at least five feet away from bicyclists, our roads

I'm a huge fan of Iron Horse's Earth Day events. Joy Sterling is committed to the environment in ways that inspire me. While I build a collage of the trash I've been collecting from the neighboring school children (left in our front yard over the past year) in order to create my annual "art" gift

The Central Coast of California is very laid back… think Santa Cruz and its granola element, Monterey and its golf courses, and Carmel with its artistic community. Nothing hurries, and unlike other viticultural areas, it's not a "wine on steroids" destination. Wine lists in high end restaurants are bare in comparison to the North Coast....

Personally, I believe that an Oregon Pinot Gris is the perfect match for this one… But then, I'm somewhat connected and invested in Oregon Pinot Gris' success. Still, I don't get myself involved if I don't believe in the product in the first place. If I advocate for it, it's because I love it… So,

With so much time away from my blog and work, I have so much catching up to do. Yesterday, the Foods From Chile consolation prize arrived… a box of foods from that country, which also includes a great canvas tote bag. These canvas bags have replaced paper bags in my Big John's supermarket. They really

I'm going to be away from my blog for awhile… If I don't have walking pneumonia, I'm pretty close to that line. Tomorrow is doctor's appointment, and until I get rid of this crud, I just don't have any energy to write for the blog. Take care, my friends, and I'm going to do the

I've not written on my blog for the past 10 days. I've been to the depths of Hades and back with a cold, too weak to even get off the couch. I refused to stay in bed, because we've got better cable in the living room. I feel upon Downton Abbey, and began the journey

I don't believe that in any other industry it's permissible to just show up without a ticket and expect to be let into a venue… a sporting event, a concert, a movie, a club that sells tickets? I may be wrong, and I'd love to know what other event invites such funny behavior… Bring it

When I arrived in California 20 years ago, Pure Luxury Transportation was just two years old as a business. Having come from a radio background, and being accustomed to taking winners backstage to meet rock n'roll's performing artists, part of the deal was escorting them in limos. This continued as Jose segued from Portland, Maine

While in Portugal and the Alentejo wine grape growing region, I was a guest of Enoforum Wines. At the time, I received a well-rounded education from my friend Delfim Costa. From the beginning of our friendship, Delfim has taught me that to understand Portuguese wines it's most important to first understand the people of Portugal.

I just read on Facebook: That moment you realize an email you sent, which declared your credentials as an editor, contains a typo. This kind of realization always brings me back to my Happy Daze, and how I learned to ease up on myself and – more important – others. EARLY 1970s: I was professionally

A few years ago, a wine writer of great fame was coming into my area to participate in a book signing and story telling from the publishing of his latest tome. His publisher hadn't even given him a stipend for his travels and time, which is a very common practice, I've learned. I recently had

I entered a contest, "Why are you the right blogger (or writer) for this Chilean culinary adventure?" Chile… one of my New Year's resolution.  I felt like this was the year for Chile at the end of December, so I proclaimed it to myself. That's exactly how I quit smoking back in 1972. I proclaimed