Bottle Juice

ADDITIONAL SCREENINGS IN TORONTO & PASO ROBLES

Just before that, on Saturday, November 12, Life on the Douro will be showing at the Toronto International Portuguese Film Festival

and the following Saturday, November 19, at Paso Robles Film Festival (exact time TBA)

I'll be attending the Paso Robles Film Festival with Roy Hersh, but unfortunately, I won't be able to make it to Toronto.

INTERNATIONAL SCREENINGS

Looking ahead, there …

• Topics: Douro DOC, San Francisco, Zev Robinson, Los Angeles, Port
• Quevedo: Life on the Douro part 2, by Zev Robinson
• Bordeaux Undiscovered - Nick's Blog: Dinastia Vivanco by Zev Robinson
• 1 Wine Dude: Born Digital, Buried In Content (The 2010 Born Digital Wine Awards)
• The Rosa d'Oro Vineyards Blog: Fetzer, Heimoff, Appellations and Absurdity - A Measured Response
• Quady Winery Blog: Wine Enthusiast Declares Batch 88 Starboard an Editor's Choice

…Daniel presides over an amazingly gorgeous setting on his mountaintop vineyards and facility in Paso Robles. The higher elevation of his vineyards means his grapes develop in temperatures an average of almost 10 degrees lower than the sometimes-oppressive heat of some other regions in the Paso AVA. In fact, Daniel likens the DAOU climate with that of Oakville in Napa (and, as you will see below, that is one of his favorite AVAs), and the calcerous soils around him with those of France…

• Topics: Daniel, DAOU, Vineyards, Daniel Daou, France
• Wine Reviews: A Wine Story: Blending at Mas Belles Eaux
• HaKerem: The Israeli Wine Blog: Rhodes On Rogov's Tribute Evening
• New Zealand Food and Wine TV: Eveline Fraser to Join Daniel Le Brun as Chief Winemaker
• Off The Presses: Two Bottles of 1959 Latour Wasted on Charlie Sheen
• Brooklynguy's Wine and Food Blog: Melon-Queue-Rouge. What is it, Exactly?
• Enobytes Wine Online: 2003 Luigi Bosca Gala 2 Red Blend, Mendoza

…interested in a more detailed (and more cartological) picture of how the rainfall differs within the Paso Robles AVA you might check out my post A Closer Look at Paso Robles' Microclimates from last year.

Will we get enough tonight to move the needle? I hope so. Even after last night we're only at half of our normal annual rainfall. Still, we're not panicking. Our lowest-ever total came the winter of 2006-2007 and the wines we made in 2007 were some of our most …

• Topics: Paso Robles, Templeton, Gap, Jason Haas
• Wine Peeps: Paso Robles: Dusi Vineyard
• The Passionate Foodie: Paso Robles: Overall Impressions--Part 2
• The Wine Spies: 2006 Calcareous Vineyard York Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon
• My Vine Spot: @DonAndSons Appellation Brands #Wine Tasting
• Blog: Behind the Wine: The Ancient Peaks Family
• CheapWineRatings.com: Exploring Wine Country in Paso Robles

…some wine. With a wet wet wet 2010-11 growing season under way, Tablas - and most of Paso Robles- has seen a lot of rain. In a place where a typical year sees 28 inches of rain, so far (and this was in April) they have seen 36 inches. Tablas Creek is dry farmed, and with this kind of rain and whacky snow, sleet and frost, there has been some damage to the vines recently. Fortunately, most of the crop was saved, and there will be wine to show for it. What will this year's weather …

• Topics: Tablas Creek, Jason, Patelin, Beaucastel, Tablas Blanc
• Tablas Creek Vineyard Blog: Cream of Grilled Asparagus Soup Recipe
• AmByth Estate Farm Journal: Screw Cap vs. Cork: And the Verdict is...?
• Good Wine Under $20: Join the Rhone Rangers: Sunday August 8 in LA
• STEVE HEIMOFF| WINE BLOG: The heat is on
• Wine: Top 10 Holiday Wine & Movie Pairings
• Dr Vino's wine blog: Inventor of box wine, wineonomics, "sham" — sipped and spit

By Robert Haas

This week we are filing a petition to recognize Terret Noir, Vaccarese, Picardan, and Bourboulenc for use as grape varietal names on labels in the United States. The petition, ready to go out yesterday afternoon:

In 1990, when Tablas Creek Vineyard was founded, it was our intention to establish a Châteauneuf-du-Pape-like, Rhône-style vineyard and winery in the Paso Robles AVA. Châteauneuf-du-Pape is famous for planting thirteen grape varieties, although …

• Topics: Grenache, Picardan, Brun Argenté, Terret Noir, Bourboulenc
• : My Wine Century Count
• Young Winos of LA: 12/13/11 - Prioritizing Priorat
• Alltop RSS: Jemrose Vineyards Estate 2008 Foggy Knoll Grenache - 2 Pack - $56.99
• Luscious Lushes: Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya...
• Blue State Carpetbagger's Purple(?) State Wine Blog: 2010 Birichino GRENACHE "Vieilles Vignes Besson Vineyards" (Central Coast, Cal.)
• WineZag: Grace Connects Wine & Winemaker

…understand what makes it unique from other regions. This is remarkably similar to what's occurring in Paso Robles, where I also moderated a panel just a few weeks ago for their Cab Collective, an event aimed-not at somms-but at the public, but also meant to demonstrate how good Paso Cab can be.

Panel 1 yesterday was on Cabs of the southern part of Alexander Valley: Alexander Valley's Reserve, Lancaster Estate, Hawkes Pyramid, Stuhlmuller Reserve, Simi Landslide…

• Topics: Alexander Valley, Gus, Hoot Owl, Stonestreet, Cabernet Sauvignon
• TexaCali Wine Trail: Wine of the Week - a Cabernet??!!
• Wine Spies: Today's Deal: Blue Rock Vineyard 2006 'Blue Rock' Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
• Bigger Than Your Head: Sonoma: It Ain't Just a County Anymore
• The Wine Spies: 2006 Trione Vineyards & Winery Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Block 21
• Wine Peeps: Rodney Strong Single Vineyards: Rockaway and Brothers Ridge
• Alltop RSS: Pedroncelli Winery - Mixed Case - $99.99

Paso Robles AVA. Red pins indicate wineries. Paso Robles is where you go for punch you in the face, no holds-barred, swift kick in the cohones wines. This is Zinfandel country with some wineries rocking 60+ year old vines. The wines are big, fat, juicy, jammy wines that pack one of the biggest...

• Topics: Paso Robles, Zinfandel, Magazine
• Wine Imbiber: The Taste: Paso Robles Pioneers
• The Wine Rack: 2006 Ancient Peaks Zinfandel
• Tablas Creek Vineyard Blog: A Closer Look at Paso Robles' Microclimates
• Notes From The Cellar: A Different Kind of Pink Wine
• The Passionate Foodie: Hearst Ranch: Grass-Fed Beef
• i-WineReview Blog: Tasting Paso Robles Wines

…read the rest. But I think you will. Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc 2010, Paso Robles. 13.5% alc. 2,100 cases. 60% roussanne, 35% grenache blanc, 5% picpoul blanc. Pale straw-gold color; lovely balance and poise, light on its feet with a wonderful well-knit texture with finely-honed acidity and plangent steely, limestone qualities; again, a white wine of shades and degrees of nuance, lightly spiced, delicately fitted with lemon and pear flavors and a hint of apricot; all bound …

• Topics: Fredric Koeppel, 2010, Thyme, Times, Nashville
• Foursight Wines Inc.: Bigger Than Your Head Reviews
• Benito's Wine Reviews: Gentle Riposte
• blog.Cellarer: Champagne is bready from autolysis
• PALATE PRESS: Vino 2011: To Oak or Not to Oak
• Bigger Than Your Head: Wine of the Week
• Drinks Are On Me: Tom Wark Interviews Fredric Koeppel

The Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance sponsored a tasting of wines from Paso Robles in Washington earlier this month. While we've reviewed the wines of individual Paso Robles wineries in the past, this was an opportunity to taste a much wider cross-section of wines from the Paso Robles AVA. We tasted wines from Cass, Cypher, Eberle, Justin, L'Aventure, Le Vigne, Proulx, Tablas Creek, and Thacher. We'll be tasting many more as we prepare …

• Topics: Cass, Vineyard, Shiraz, Rhone, Cabernet Sauvignon
• Wine Spies: Today's Deal: Cass Winery 2008 Rockin' One
• Wine Peeps: Paso Robles: The Food
• BACCHUS FOR YOU: Soil moisture monitoring saves water, improves wine grape quality
• Organic Wine Journal: AmByth Estate Accidentally Becomes Paso Robles First Biodynamic Winery : TreeHugger
• Tablas Creek Vineyard Blog: Refreshingly... brisk? An assessment of the unusual weather of summer 2010
• The Passionate Foodie: Hearst Ranch: Grass-Fed Beef

…Minassian-Young 2011 ( Paso Robles); La Grand Côte 2011 L'Estate ( Paso Robles); Sanglier 2011 Rosé du Tusque ( Sonoma County): Muscardini 2011 Alice's Vineyard Rosato di Sangiovese ( Sonoma Valley); Birichino 2011 Vin Gris ( California); Balleto 2011 Rosé of Pinot Noir ( Russian River Valley); Luli 2012 ( Central Coast); Lynmar 2012 Rosé of Syrah ( Russian River Valley) and Chiarello 2012 Chiara Rosé of Zinfandel ( Napa Valley). All over 90 points, …

• Topics: California, Napa Valley, Vineyard, Russian River Valley, Rosato di Sangiovese
• Appellation Australia: Dinner with Californian Cult and Highly Regarded Wines
• J News You Can Use: This Just In! J's 2010 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Gets a 92 from Wine Spectator
• Daily Wine News: Safeway has occasion-based wine category all wrapped up (US)
• The Passionate Foodie: The Drops of God: New World
• East Coast Wineries: Queens Chronicle Highlights Hudson Valley Wineries (NY)
• The Wine Economist: Extreme Wine South Africa: The International Connection