Chardonnay 08

Today we racked 2008 chardonnay to keep it moving to clarity by natural settling. Malolactic fermentation is done in the primary chard batch although we have a small "commando" batch that is doing its own thing (native yeasts, etc.) that is still creeping along. A few more months to let things sort out and we should be ready to bottle.

Rockroom on Facebook

Taking a break from sorting out vineyard choices for the 2009 harvest (it's only 7 months away!), we thought it was time to get Facebookin'. Check out our new page which will include updates from the rockroom winemaking cooperative blog. Come have a chat!

WOW - a little age is a good thing

I know I just posted a pinot with a little age on it a couple weeks back but this week the wine is older and the staying power even more impressive. This 2002 Siduri pinot from Van Der Kamp Vineyard was stunning with bold fruit and a silky texture that was perfect with mushroom and tomato saute on pasta. So just a reminder to pick up an extra bottle or two when you buy the good stuff. Then leave at least one bottle alone and pop it for a special occasion at least a year later. You will almost certainly be rewarded for your patience. Oh and yes, Saturday night qualifies as a special occasion. Or even Friday. And sometimes Monday...

WOW - Ridge with paella

Appropriate I think that with this Wine of the Week we honor the memory of Donn Reisen who died last week after 32 years building Ridge into one of only a few true icons of California wine. Remember that Ridge, with its Montebello cab blend, joined with a few other California wineries (like Stags' Leap Cellars, the ultimate winner) to beat the French at the 1976 "Judgement of Paris" pitting California cabs against some of Bordeaux's finest. A much more humble wine, Ridge's Three Valleys is a Sonoma County blend that is mostly zin with a splash of petite sirah and carignan. It is pretty easy to find, easy drinking and like most Ridge zins is a friend to food. A hit with paella Saturday as we celebrated Eugene Sepulveda's birthday. Happy birthday Eugene!

Racking the 07s

While 2007 whites and lighter reds like pinot noir have already gone to bottle (and in some cases table) many of the bigger reds are being moved (racked) from one barrel to another one last time before bottling. This will help settle out any remaining solids and clarify the wine without requiring filtering. Here is a shot of our experimental zinfandel being racked. This week I will be in CA to check on syrah and cab too.

wine for your valentine

We just did a bit of a news flash about a couple specials on rockroom wine for Valentine's Day wine buyers. Wine is such a no-brainer for Val Day and our super sexy food friendly pinot noirs and chardonnay should be on more tables for dinner. Fun thing about niche wines like ours is that gift recipients won't see them on store shelves everywhere so it feels like a unique gift instead of just checkin' off the box with chocolates or roses. Anyway, enough of a ramble and I know I'm mostly preaching to the choir on this one!

wine science

Co-op member Dave and daughter Sam have some dark pink plonk here as we made some science fair wine from grocery store grapes. A fun learning experience about fruit and yeast and what happens when they get together. And how's the wine, you ask? ...Uh, a fun learning experience...

WOW Burgundy by any other name

A wine factoid that many of us learn early on is that a red French wine from Burgundy is always made from pinot noir. Great rule of thumb for us varietal-focused Americanos, right? Only it's wrong. Wine of the week this week is Beaujolais. Named for a region that sits inside the Burgundy appellation, these red wines are 100% gamay, not pinot noir. And it often says right there on the label "Red Burgundy Wine" as well as "Red Beaujolais Wine". Confusing, no? Now maybe you sip Noveau Beaujolais each November when it is released but this is different stuff - same grape but built for aging, these wines are beautiful. All fruit, no oak with soft tannins and aromas of fresh flowers, cherries and subtle spices. Simple wines that don't persist on the finish or keep up with bold foods, but for $12-25 these are a great deal. Especially look for the Francois Labet 2006 (the off-the-bottle label in this photo). Terrific wine. The other two pictured here are very good as well. Avoid the cheapest that just carry the "Beaujolais" name and spend an extra buck or two for "Beaujolais Villages" or one of the subregions like Julienas, Morgan, Brouilly or Fleurie (especially a hit on Valentines Day - which is coming soon!)

wow - great American pinot still showing great

Loring pinot noirs are generally made in a style to be big, bold and fresh immediately upon release with less emphasis on how the wines will age. That is not just my experience over the couple dozen Loring wines I have had - it is the stated goal of winemaker Brian Loring. So when I ran across this 2004 Keefer Ranch pinot I thought it might be past its prime. So did I snub it? Sorry, no - curiosity got the better of me. Well not to worry! The wine was fabulous starting off with smoky, earthy aromas and finishing strong with bold fruit and soft oak nuances. Maybe the screwtop (an unusual feature on a $50 wine) held in all that goodness, but probably just good winemaking from a great vineyard. So don't hesitate to pop some American pinots that are a year or two or three past release - most hold up pretty well.

wow - Not Champagne

Where the heck is Limoux? Because if it's on the way home from work I will definitely stop in to have some bubbly! Well Limoux, situated in southern France just up from the Spanish border, is just one of several regions in France making sparkling wine. In fact locals there claim sparkling wine, labeled as either Blanquette or Cremant if from Limoux, was invented in the early 1500s by the Benedictine monks at the local abbey and that dom Perignon stole the idea by taking it to Champagne when he was just passing through. Fun tempest-in-a-teapot rivalry that of course will never be settled since it is all REALLY ancient history. So what's the diff when compared with better known French bubbly? Well there can be a healthy dose of chenin blanc and little if any pinot noir so the wines will lean toward leaner, crisper style. Think fresh green apples. And there is no Champagne regional pedigree so you may have to search a bit for something like this Cremant de Limoux Brut from Domaine Collin. Now if you are in Austin don't search: just go downtown to Austin Wine Merchant on 6th Street and get a bottle. A screamin deal at 17 bucks.

WOW - pinot vertical

Some terrific pinots are coming from Zepaltas and they made a great Christmas Eve pairing with truffled mac n' cheese. Zepaltas holds back a tad on the oak with the vineyard driving the wine's profile. This makes for especially good vertical tasting [that's different years from the same winery and vineyard source]. 05, 06, and 07 from Suacci vineyard were all good with the 07 showing well what a great vintage that is. Get some soon!

W.O.W. - It's Bohemian

I hope you got to enjoy a great pinot noir with your roast turkey - I know I did. If there is more roasted turkey, duck, lamb or even a juicy, lean filet mignon in your remaining holiday plans, then you really should consider popping a bottle of our very own 2007 Bohemian Vineyard pinot from Russian River California. Just released, this wine is already showing beautiful lush fruit and great acid balance, and is the ideal partner for food with some heft. Turkey leg anyone?

Austin ferments

Our co-operative wines for 2008 are fermenting along nicely and the sangiovese and zinfandel (pictured here foaming like mad during punchdown) will be ready to press within a week or so. Barrel fermented Carneros chard is just now completely dry and gets a stir daily to move it along the way to smoothing out and gaining complexity. All to say that if you want to see your wine at this early stage of its life you better do it soon!

WOW-Franc-ly tasty

Some interesting (if a tad funky) cab francs lined up at Uncorked in East Austin. Volante from Sonoma was big and bold while Bernard Baudry, from Loire Valley in France where they lead with cab franc, was earthy and complex. Try a cab franc when you get a chance - it's not just for blending anymore.

WOW - Malbec Tasting

Hard to say there was a clear favorite as we gathered for a malbec tasting. Most of the wines were from Argentina with a couple of French Cahors thrown in for variety. All wines were dense, dark and pretty tannic and benefitted from pairing with food: good with flavorful chorizo or an empanada. Flavors ranged from simple bold fruit to vegetal and herbal with fennel, mint, asparagus, and even spinach. In some wines the most pleasant aromas came from the oak. Overall verdict: blend this stuff! It adds interesting depth, color and tannin structure to a blend but on it's own can be a bit chunky and one-dimensional. Having said that, if grilled meat is on the menu these wines can be a great value as most are under $25 retail. Makes one wonder if the rockroom co-op should try our hand at a malbec or malbec-driven blend!? Maybe in 2009...

WOW - Old world Chianti

We all fall for great labels sometimes and this 2005 Fattoria Monsanto Chianti Classico really pulled me in. Looks like a postcard someone sent from Italy 40 years ago. Nice wine too - big dose of sangiovese like a good Chianti should have with 7% Canaiolo and 3% Colorino for those of you keeping score at home. Here in Austin pick it up for $24 at Tony Mandola's (along with some great Italian groceries or takeout).

wine with gravitas

Here we go draining free run wine by gravity from a bin of Anderson Valley pinot noir. By separating free run from press wine we can later bring together the mix that makes the best wine after seeing how the flavors, acidity and tannin levels settle out.

it was a dark and chilly morning...

Starting at 6am (and 40 degrees - brrr) we are picking Russian River pinot noir today. Well, the pros are picking it and I am taking pictures and driving the truck. Dijon clones 115 and 667 today, more next week. More pictures later of the truck assuming I survive the Friday rush hour ride to the custom crush through downtown San Francisco in a 13+ ton 24' diesel rig. Gulp!

Hey, syrah syrah

White Hawk Vineyard down in Santa Barbara County picked yesterday and we destemmed the fruit today. Well most of it - as we did last year we will do some whole clusters of grapes still on the stems. A little nod to France's Rhone valley approach to syrah. And see those brown patches in the bin? Another French touch is to include a couple percent viognier grapes in the mix, so we will do likewise. Did it last year and the results (still in barrel) are promising.

vineyard news and views

For you serious wine geeks here is some great information direct from the vineyard manager about La Encantada pinot noir vineyard in the Santa Rita Hills near Santa Barbara. We should be getting grapes next week for our second rockroom vineyard-designated wine from this organically farmed vineyard.