Wine in the News: May - June 2007.
redwinebuzz.com brings you news from the world of wine. Our goal for this section is not to provide comprehensive coverage of an issue, but to make each entry a gateway to the complete story. The only exception to this is when we are the only source of the story. We seek out stories that are relevant and interesting - whether they are serious or not. Older stories are in our wine news archive.
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July 13, 2007
Wine, limousines and yellow cards.
It appears that we are not the only ones concerned by rowdy wine tourists in limousines who storm one tasting room after another, chug wine, toast their friends, a coming nuptials or past joint adventures in loud, often slurred voices. New York's Finger Lakes wine country has had enough as well. They have employed a yellow card system for "cutting off" rowdy revelers in chauffeured tours. Full story It may be feasible to police participants in organized commercial tours, but many groups, small or large, arrive in their own vehicles. At redwinebuzz.com, we encourage wineries and wine tasters to practice a program of responsible and safe wine tasting such as "S to the fourth power".
July 11, 2007
Santa Barbara County Wine Competition Winners.
The Gold, Silver and Bronze medal winners of the Santa Barbara County Fair Wine competition were showcased at the kick off party at the Santa Barbara County Fairgrounds yesterday. redwinebuzz.com founder, Arthur was there. While the full list of winners may be viewed here, below are Arthur's notes on the wines poured at yesterday's event:
| Addamo Vineyards: | 2005 Estate Pinot noir - GOLD | Cola, cherry and spice on a supple core. | ||
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| Briddlewood Winery: | 2005 Arabesque: SILVER | Bright cherry with red currant on a fleshy, soft palate. | ||
| 2003 Estate Syrah: GOLD | Black cherry and currant with silky tannins. | |||
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| Curtis Winery: | 2004 Curtis Syrah, Vogelzang Vineyard: GOLD, Best of Show - Red. | Fleshy and soft, with dusty berries. | ||
| 2004 Heritage Cuvée: SILVER | Smoky fruit: plum and pomegranate, licorice. Tight and oaky with brawny tannins. | |||
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| Flying Goat: | 2005 Solomon Hills Pinot noir: GOLD | Bigger and plush with black cherry, light pepper and orange rind. | ||
| 2005 Pinot noir, Rio Vista Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills: SILVER | Nice pepper, earth and leather notes over red currant. | |||
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| Harrison-Clarke: | 2005 Grenache: GOLD | Strawberry and cherry compote and hints of red vines. Fleshy fruit on a well-structured backbone. | ||
| 2005 Syrah: SILVER | Black currant and plum with a light barnyard character and nicely proportioned oak. | |||
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| Huber Cellars: | 2005 Chardonnay: GOLD | Citrus aromas and flavors dominate over tropical fruit. Zingy acidity. | ||
| 2005 Estate Pinot noir: BRONZE | Cherry, spice and leather with a sweet note. | |||
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| Kenneth Volk Vineyards: | 2005 Chardonnay, “Santa Maria Cuvée”: Best of Show - White. | Tropical fruit and buttercream notes with nice acids. | ||
| 2004 Pinot noir, Santa Maria Valley: SILVER | Pepper, spice and black currant with like oak and leather notes. Big but, kind tannins for a Burgundian style. | |||
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| McKeon-Phillips: | Cabernet Franc, Vogelzang Vineyard: GOLD | Roasted spice - big on coffee. Caramel and plum. | ||
| Cabernet Franc, Goodchild Vineyard: GOLD | Soft, with coconut, tropical fruit and a citrus finish. | |||
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| Rancho Sisquoc: | 2004 Estate Syrah: GOLD | Big, dusty fruit flavors with graphite, leather and oak. | ||
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| Sunstone | 2006 Syrah Rosé: GOLD | Light fleshy fruit with a dry finish. | ||
| NV Rhapsody du Soleil: SILVER | Quite complex with iodine, pepper and graphite at first. Darker fruit, cherry and roasted mocha. Fleshy and silky. | |||
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| William James Cellars | 2005 Hampton Family Vineyard Syrah: DOUBLE GOLD | Robust but elegant with a sensational nose. Read the full review | ||
| William James, 2005 Grenache | Juicy plump fruit with a touch of Syrah for "oompf" and backbone. Read the full review. |
June 27, 2007
A crush on Buellton.
Santa Maria has Fess Parker’s Wine Center and Central Coast Wine Services and Lompoc has the "Wine Ghetto". Now, a custom crush facility is being developed at 35 Industrial Way Buellton, CA by the Terravant Wine Company. Buellton's Planning Commission approved the plans for a two-building, two-phase development last week. The planned 125,455 square foot facility will house wine making facilities (including: crush pads, fermentation facilities and bottling lines) for small producers (2,500 ton capacity) as well as large producers (7,500 ton capacity). Additionally, the facility will house long-term wine storage, administrative space and a large, public wine-tasting center. Read the full story
June 26, 2007
If Joe Camel makes kids smoke, will a Chardonnay with a cartoon character on the label make them drink wine? Or is it that Walt Disney Co., attempting to capture the customer base raised on its films, is tapping that part of the wine market? In the fall, Costco will be moving over its bottles of drummer Mick Fleetwood Private Cellar to make room for a Burgundy-sourced Chardonnay with the "Ratatouille" title character on the bottle. Is this the next step in the evolution of the "critter label"? Is it time to renew your Costco membership? We're not sure, but we think we know what Jonathan Nossiter will have to say about the Disneyfication of wine... Read the full story.
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