Jun 22, 2006
It is 5:45pm on June 22 as I write this and the temperature in the shade reads 103. This is down from an earlier temperature of 106. Earlier today I was with a client who was visiting with a wine writer. We walked out into the vineyard. Talked for about 10 minutes. Then we all sort of collectively, but silently, acknowledged that shade was needed…Now! We simply turned together, headed back to the cars and quickly found ourselves at the…
May 11, 2006
How do you know it’s time to break open the Dry Rose? When your seven day forecast looks like this. Yesterday I decided to move up my official "Rose Break Out Day" from Memorial Day to, well, yesterday. The opening salvo in my attack on defining "pleasure" was a 2004 Ravenswood Rosato. It was cool, had a darkish hue, brimmed with early raspberry aromas and flavors and the requisite acid backbone necessary to be the quaffer it was designed as….
Apr 7, 2006
Everyone you talk to in Northern California can’t seem to get past the dismal weather we’ve been experiencing. Even yesterday’s momentary headfake by Mother Nature when the sun shone for an hour or two caused people to criticize the Great Mother rather than thank her for the momentary rays. Now the media is starting to talk about it. How could they not. We’ve had what seems to be a constantly grey sky now for nearly 40 days. The main concern…
Apr 3, 2006
I’m happy to report the ARK is moving toward completion at a very fast clip. Once the mast is reconstructed after the last storm here in Northern California destroyed it, we set about to rebuild it. Also, we have set about collecting a number of different grape cuttings so that when the responsibility falls upon us to repopulate the earth, we will be bringing wine with us (we have plans for a male and female winemaker to board the ark.)….