SEVEN % SOLUTION Wine Tasting: Time to Try Something New

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Seven Percent Solutions Wine Tasting Logo Here’s an event that’s new and fun:  The SEVEN % SOLUTION Wine Tasting.  Next Saturday, Bergamot Alley (328A Healdbsurg Avenue, Healdsburg, 707-433-8720) hosts a wine tasting focused on less-common varietals such as Vermentino, Picpoul, Cinsault, and Aglianico.  This is an exciting opportunity to visit Healdsburg, enjoy well-crafted wines, and discover some new varietals (and wineries) you hadn’t been exposed to before.  This tasting event runs between 3:00 and 7:00 pm on May 11, and tickets are $40 per person.  Please go here soon to purchase your tickets, as the event is expected to sell out.

The wine tasting’s name comes from the group’s calculation that roughly 93% of the North Coast Appellation vineyard acreage is planted to eight major grape varietals (Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, etc.).  The remaining 7% of acreage is home to numerous lesser known varietals and while these varietals may be heavily planted in their respective native lands (France, Spain, Portugal, etc.) they remain largely unknown to many California wine consumers. Some of the “seven percent” varietals you can expect to taste at SEVEN % SOLUTION include: Trousseau, Semillon, Montepulciano, Chenin, Picpoul, Grenache, Touriga Nacional, Albariño, Mourvèdre, Vermentino, Gamay, Ribolla Gialla, Counoise, Barbera, Grenache Blanc, Cinsault, Carignan, St. Laurent, Tinta Cão, Aglianico, and Verdelho.

Broc Cellars

Broc Cellars

The wineries at SEVEN % SOLUTION are embracing varietals which show tremendous potential for making delicious, expressive and balanced terroir-driven wines.  Creating wines that retain varietal correctness while also exhibiting characteristics true to their California soils and climate is part of the challenge for these winemakers.  Participating wineries include: Arnot-Roberts, Bedrock Wine Co., Broc Cellars, Dirty & Rowdy Family Winery, Forlorn Hope Wines, Idlewild Wines, Jolie-Laide Wines, Leo Steen Wines, Massican, Matthiasson, RPM Wines, Ryme Cellars, Stark Wine, The Scholium Project, Two Shepherds, Unti Vineyards, and Wind Gap.
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Come Taste Alexander Valley, Twenty Eight Times

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Taste Alexander ValleyIn just a few weeks, Taste Alexander Valley unfolds over the weekend of May 17-19, 2013, in Sonoma County’s majestic Alexander Valley.  Festivities begin on Friday night with an outdoor gala at Trione Vineyards and Winery.  On Saturday and Sunday, May 18-19, twenty eight wineries will open their vineyards, wineries and tasting rooms for guests to enjoy the latest releases of their world class wines alongside wine and food pairings, live entertainment, and special wine discounts.  The wineries will be welcoming guests between 11:00 am and 4:00 pm each day.

Full details for the weekend, a map of participating wineries, and tickets are available here. Passes for both Saturday and Sunday are $65 in advance and $75 at the door. Sunday-Only tickets are available for $45 in advance and $55 at the door. There are also significantly reduced designated driver tickets available ($20 in advance for weekend, $15 in advance for Sunday only).

Francis Ford Coppola Winery

The Pool at Francis Ford Coppola Winery

Some of our favorite wineries participating in the 2013 Taste Alexander Valley are deLorimier Winery, Francis Ford Coppola Winery, Hawkes Wine, Medlock Ames, Stonestreet Winery, Stryker Sonoma, Stuhlmuller Vineyards, Trione Vineyards and Winery, and White Oak Vineyards and Winery.

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Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival: More Than Just Awesome Open Houses

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Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival Pinot Noir fans should check their calendars and grab their credit cards because it’s almost time for this year’s Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival up in beautiful Mendocino County from May 17-19, 2013.  The Grand Tasting on May 18 will feature over 40 Pinot Noir producers from around California promoting and celebrating Anderson Valley Pinot Noir. Other key events over the weekend are a Technical Conference, a casual BBQ, four Winemaker Dinners, and over 20 Winery Open Houses throughout Anderson Valley.

We strongly encourage you to act quickly: the Grand Tasting is almost sold out, and the only Winemaker Dinner that hasn’t sold out yet is really close to that.  However, even if you can’t make it to the first two days of events you should still seriously consider driving over for the Winery Open Houses on Sunday, May 19th.  Come for food, wine, music, gorgeous scenery, and the temperature is usually about 75 degrees this time of year.

Keep reading to get more information about the Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival, now in its 16th year. To buy tickets for activities on May 17 or 18, please go here.  The Open Houses on May 19th do not require a ticket.
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Passport to Cabernet: Passport to Fun

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Passport to CabernetIf you’re going to be in or near San Francisco on Monday, May 6th, there is a very good reason to leave work early: over 100 Cabernet Sauvignons from California are coming to town.  Passport to Cabernet: The 23rd Annual Spring Barrel and New Release Wine Tasting event is a great opportunity to taste outstanding Cabernet Sauvignon wines at Bently Reserve (301 Battery Street, San Francisco).  Between 4:00 and 6:00 pm that evening, you don’t want to miss this rare opportunity to have a first glimpse of the 2012 Cabernet harvest.

Consumer Tickets for this event are $55 per person in advance and can be purchased here. If you need to purchase tickets at the door, you can, but the onsite ticket price increases to $75 so you should really just buy your tickets now. Admission to Passport to Cabernet includes Cabernet Sauvignon wines and food pairings from Winery Chefs with assorted artisan cheeses, charcuterie, seasonal fruit, nuts, olives and Bouchon breads.

Star Lane Vineyard

Tasting Room for Star Lane Vineyard (and Dierberg Vineyard) in Santa Rita Hills

Here are just a few of the California wineries expected to participate at Passport to Cabernet:  Bell Wine Cellars, Cain Vineyard & Winery, Charles Krug, Cornerstone Cellars, Guilliams Vineyards, Jordan Vineyard & Winery, Keenan Winery, Kristine Ashe Vineyards, Mario Bazán Cellars, Pine Ridge Vineyards, Sebastiani Vineyards & Winery, Star Lane Vineyard, Steven Kent Winery, Trinchero Napa Valley, VIADER, and ZD Wines.

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Wine Country Recipe: Honey Harvest Tomato Bisque

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Honey Harvest Tomato Bisque

Honey Harvest Tomato Bisque

It’s still too early for Heirloom Tomatoes, so we thought we’d share our favorite recipe for tomatoes during the winter and early spring.  It’s a Honey Harvest Tomato Bisque  we discovered at the A Wine and Food Affair event in northern Sonoma County.  This event (sponsored by the Wine Road) is one of our favorites and you can read about how much we enjoyed it last November here.  The Honey Harvest Tomato Bisque is outstanding on its own, although we can also highly recommend combining it with the Cheddar Biscuits recipe from Stephen Barber for a heartier meal (just follow that link for the recipe).

We love this recipe because it is quick, easy, and delicious.  It comes from Amber Balshaw at Preferred Sonoma Caterers, and it was paired with Dutcher Crossing Winery Proprietor’s Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon the first time we had it.  This version of Ms. Balshaw’s recipe is from the 14th Volume of the Tasting Along the Wine Road Cookbook.

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bASH Knocks It Out Of The Park, Again

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Moroccan Spiced Waffle Cones

Moroccan Spiced Waffle Cones, one of the Food Pairings at the 2013 bASH

Well, they did it again.  Last Saturday night, Appellation St. Helena presented bASH, a competition for pairing food and wine held at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone featuring wines from this Napa Valley appellation.  This was the second year for bASH and we found significantly more white wines being poured this time as well as more food pairings with white wines, a development we heartily endorse.

What made the evening so terrific? First of all, the spectrum of wines. Napa Valley may be Cabernet Sauvignon country but the Appellation St. Helena wineries were also pouring Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Sangiovese, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Petite Sirah, and Zinfandel.  In fact, one table even had a Sparkling Wine as an option.

Short Rib Sliders with Horseradish Aioli

Short Rib Sliders with Horseradish Aioli

The second major attraction at bASH  was the variety of delicious and well-executed food offered alongside the wines.  It was clear that a lot of thought (and effort) had gone into the chefs’ creations.  The small plates used Sliders, Tostadas, Cones, Crostatas, Ravioli, Croquettes, Lettuce Wraps, and even Breadsticks as delivery methods for tasty dishes based on Beef, Pork, Lamb, Duck, and a variety of Vegetables.

So what did we like?   A lot.  The wines were outstanding, many of the dishes made us want seconds, and multiple times we were excited to find highly effective and interesting pairings of food ingredients and spices with the flavor components of the wines they were paired with.   Which was, after all, the whole point of the evening.
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Cabernet Cookoff In Napa Valley: Come Judge For Yourself

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Hall Cabernet Cookoff Notice Come join fellow Cabernet Sauvignon lovers and Foodies as they converge at HALL Wines on Saturday, April 27th for the Fourth Annual HALL Cabernet Cookoff™.  Competing chefs from the Napa Valley and Bay Area will craft small bites dishes to pair with the HALL 2010 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon as they try to raise money for their favorite local charity.  This epicurean event promises a lot of fun, food, and wine and will take place between 11 am and 2 pm at HALL Wines (401 St. Helena Highway South, St. Helena, 707-967-2626). 

The 2010 HALL Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is a blend of special lots from their estate vineyards along with fruit from their premiere Napa Valley vineyard partners.  Before tasting the wine, you may discover a bouquet of dark ripe fruit, blackberry pie and hints of espresso on the nose.  When tasted, this wine is opulent with flavors of plum, cherry and jam leading to a velvety finish.  These characteristics should provide interesting options for chefs to use as a basis for their delicious competition entries.

 

Clinic Ole

Clinic Ole, Represented by Oenotri at the 2013 HALL Cabernet Cookoff

All tickets proceeds and a portion of wine purchases during the Hall Cabernet Cookoff will be donated to local charities.  So, please go here now to purchase your tickets in advance as this event is sure to sell out.  Tickets are $65 per person or $50 for HALL Wine Club Members.  You can also order tickets by phone at (707) 967-2626.  Last year’s crowd of wine and food lovers were able to raise a record $13,000.

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