Jun 6, 2006
Today is the 62nd anniversary of D-Day, the cross channel invasion of Normandy, France during World War II that would lead to a victory in that war. My father took part in the D-Day invasion as pilot of P-47. He, along with the rest of his squadron, was charged with attacking German supply lines feeding the front. On June 8 he was shot down, was able to safely crash land his plane two miles on the German side of the…
Jun 5, 2006
If you are so-inclined you can catch me on the radio today at 1pm PST. I’ll be sitting behind the microphone with Richard (KAZ) Kasmier on WineBiz 2.4 on the mighty KSVY 91.3 Sonoma. Co-host Eric Aho is taking the day off and I’m filling in. WineBiz 2.4 is a weekly show tha features wine news from around the world and commentary in a loose, fun format. However, clearly their standards are not what they should be given that they…
Jun 2, 2006
Boy do we get letters!! Most of the comments that come into FERMENTATION are just that…comments in the comment section. Sometimes, however, we get e-mail that speak to issues covered n this blog. And I got a doosy yesterday in response to our post about the new Wine Shipping & Sales rules signed into law yesterday in Arizona. I can’t figure why the anonymous e-mailer was 1) anonymous and 2) didn’t just post it in the comments section. So, with…
Jun 1, 2006
For real wine lovers the act of "putting down" wines to age is not an exercise in possessing or building a bigger cache than the neighbor. It is foresight. It is about making an investment in time that is at once an optimistic act and also an act of faith that what your wine will evolve into after some years will be an altogether interesting, satisfying and intellectually inspiring wine. Charles Olken, the publisher of the Connoisseurs Guide to California…
May 12, 2006
Early and productive morning. Got up at 5am…did some work, got the kids up, fed them, then headed off to take some spring morning shots of Bucklin’s Old Hill Ranch in Sonoma Valley for projects we are working on. It’s beautiful in the vineyard at 6:45. The sun is just coming up over the Mayacamus Range on the east side of Sonoma Valley. The Old Hill Ranch vineyard is just starting to leaf out. This is one of the best…