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Yountville, CA

Temperature: 70°F
Humidity: 56.4%
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Sunrise: 5:55 am GMT-8
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Updated: 9:54 am GMT-8

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Wine and Hot Dogs for the Fourth!

July 2, 2009 in Food & Wine, Just For Fun and Wine. 0 Comments

What, you thought you’re stuck with beer??? Noooooooo… indeed

I know - it sounds pretty silly – but, why should you be deprived of a great American wine on this quintessentially-American holiday?

You know how we feel about pairing wine and food around here: have fun with it! That’s the most important thing, since most wines and foods taste pretty good together. If you like the food and you like the wine, that’s all that really counts.

But hot dogs? Honestly, that’s a tricky one to ponder. But, who doesn’t like a challenge!!

Just for the heck of it, let’s be analytical and break down the components in your hot dog to figure out what sort of wine might work best.

1. The dog itself: That’s one very salty piece of meat. Salt is generally pretty wine friendly unless it’s extreme. You want red? I’d go with a low-tannin, moderate alcohol red and somehow fruitiness sounds really good too. Our AmerItal, a fruit-driven, light-bodied Zin or a Beaujolais style – especially a nouveau, should taste great.

2. Then there are the condiments: You have to slather on plenty of salty, vinegary mustard, or it isn’t a hot dog, right? Since the vinegar is sharp, you probably want a wine with a pretty good acid so it doesn’t get flattened out. I start thinking of my personal default wine – when in doubt I have a glass of sparkling wine. It’s reliably high in acid and seems to get along with almost any kind if food. A sparkling rose would have lots of fruit, too – good choice! Also fruity, high acid whites like our Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling or Gewurtztraminer should be yummy.

3. Now, do you put pickle relish on your dog? Hmmm… sweet. Now, I’m thinking Riesling, Gewurtztraminer again – and it won’t hurt if they’re a little sweet like our Chenin Blanc . Sweet food can make dry wine taste sour. It kind of depends on how much relish you use.

4. For ketchup lovers, same advice - crisp acidity and a little sweet should put a smile on your face.

Of course, the Fourth is about independence, right? Create your own food and wine magic – and then tell us about it! Happy 4th!

Wine Trivia du Jour

June 19, 2009 in Just For Fun and Wine Education. 1 Comment

True or false: Harvesting the cork kills the cork-oak tree.

What do you say? Find the answer in our Wine Trivia Challenge!

stripping 042

Didn’t realize cork comes from an oak tree? And that it comes all the way from Portugal? We’ve got sooooo many ways for you to learn more: Articles and articles! Podcast episodes and episodes! Careful not to OD on cork trivia

Q: When is harvest?

June 15, 2009 in Answers, Ask our Educator and Wine Education. 0 Comments

Question from Beverly: What time of the year is the grape harvest?

Reply: Hi, Beverly! Thanks for writing!

In the Napa Valley, sparkling wine producers usually begin harvesting around mid-to-late August (they need to pick their grapes a little less ripe than the rest of us). The table-wine harvest usually begins around Labor Day with early-ripening varieties, such as Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc and continues through most of October, finishing with Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot.

harvesting by hand

The harvest can be relatively early or late, depending upon the weather. If you’re planning a visit, I’d suggest you time it for mid-to-late September. That’s often the peak and there’s sure to be something going on regardless of the weather.

If you do, it’s smart to plan ahead because it’s also the peak time for visitors and your preferred hotels and restaurants will book up quickly. But, it’s worth it! You can see, smell and taste things that don’t exist any other time of year.

HM crush 004

I hope that answers your question. We have an article on the annual vineyard cycle if you’d like to know more about what happens from season to season. We also have a podcast episode, if you prefer to listen.

If you’re planning a visit, there’s help on our website under ”Plan your Visit”.

guests_

Thanks, again, for writing! Cheers!

Coming Along Nicely

June 8, 2009 in Vineyard Update and Vintage Update. 0 Comments

We’re making progress – or I should say the vines are. A few weeks ago we reported that the vines were in flower. Well, they’re all done now and things are developing nicely!

We’ve gone from this:

Flowering

To this:

Early fruitset

To this:

: fruitset

The weather has been quite agreeable and it looks like came through without any of the problems that plagued us last year.

We had a little bit of heat in early May but, since then, it’s been remarkably mild, even a bit chilly some days. If this sort of weather continues it will slow things up a bit, which isn’t good or bad – it just depends on what happens weatherwise between now and harvest.

It’s time for cluster counts and, perhaps, thinning. Shoot and leaf thinning is ongoing. More on the vineyard annual cycle.

Wine Trivia du Jour

May 29, 2009 in Just For Fun and Wine Education. 0 Comments

Which wine closure does the best job of protecting the wine from oxidation?

a) Natural cork

b) Plastic corks

c) Screw caps

d) They’re all about the same

What do you say? Find the answer in our Wine Trivia Challenge!

Teaser: This seal does such a superior job of protecting the wine from oxidation that some enologists believe that, over the long term, the wine will go the opposite direction and become reduced – which makes it smell like burnt rubber! Charming There’s just not enough long-term data to be certain at this point. Learn more.

Romance blossoms in the vineyard

May 22, 2009 in Vintage Update. 1 Comment

The vines are in flower. Even as we speak, the flower petals are shedding their delicate caps to open up, liberating the pollen to fertilize the waiting ovules!

Gracious me! I think I need a drink!

Surely, if they are destined to become wine in a few months these must be spectacular, fragrant blooms hanging from our vines.

NOT!

I’m afraid these plain, tiny little blossoms are so unnoticeable that they’re not likely to attract a bee, much less, your attention.

flowering

And, actually, that’s all to the good. Our very busy vines don’t have to spend their precious time trying to attract insects or rely on the wind to get the job done. The flowers are hermaphrodites, which is just a college word to say they take care of themselves, if you know what I mean. The flowers contain the male stamens and the female ovary and could successfully pollinate if totally cut off from the outside world. Isn’t that convenient? We just need good weather and, fortunately, May is usually quite a nice month around here.

So far, aside from a little heat last weekend, the weather has been quite delightful. We’re looking for an even-keel weather situation to make for even pollination which leads to relatively even fruit-set. If the clusters are fairly uniform it makes it much easier for Geoff Gorsuch, our Winemaker, to make a harvest decision a few months from now.

I saw the first sign of flowering in our neighbor’s Chardonnay way back on May 8th, so I quickly ran to check our Merlot, but nothing. The Merlot and Cabernet Franc got going a few days later. Today, the 22nd, our Cabernet is in full bloom, so we should be all done here pretty quick, which means things are running right on time.

Interestingly, come harvest time, you’ll probably see a similar sequence for these grapes landing on our door step. The Chardonnay will probably be ready just about the time the Merlot and Cab Franc are. The Cab and Petit Verdot like to hang in there until the bitter end.

But, for now, we see adorable little baby grapes already taking the place of the buds.

Fruitset

Before you know it, they’ll look like little peas.

Next up: Geoff counts the clusters to see how this all turns out. Of course, there’s nothing he can do if there are fewer than he anticipated but if there are more, he’ll thin the excess out so that the remaining ones have plenty of flavor intensity.

Wine.Woot and a sweet deal on sweet wine

May 11, 2009 in Shipping Wine, Wine and Wine Releases. 0 Comments

Do you Woot? You might like to, ya know

Warning: it may be habit forming! If you really like to shop you could find yourself wooting daily, lord help you…

What is Woot? New item daily, priced to make your jaw drop, buy now or – poof! – it’s gone.

More importantly: What is WineWoot? As they choose to explain it: “Like our uncouth, barely-civilized older stepbrother, woot.com, here we’ll offer one-time-only prices that put the rest of the Internet to shame. Shame on you, Internet!”

The real issue: Why do we care?

Have we got a deal for you! We woot often, at Goosecross, as needy consumers, but to woot a special offer? Now, that’s rare! But even rare things have to happen sometime and this is just in time for all your warm weather fun things to do: picnics in the park, romantic walks on the beach, contemplating your navel by the pool… all things that are immeasurably enhanced by a glass of well-chilled, delightfully refreshing white wine.

Enter Goosecross 2007 Chenin Blanc: The ultimate picnic wine! So light, so refreshing, just sweet enough to taste great with that fresh fruit and cheese you have stashed in your picnic basket. Or, with your hot, spicy Thai dinner. Or, with your Orange Chicken. Or, with nothing at all.
And State Lane (by Goosecross) 2007 Orange Muscat. Such a heady aroma on this wine. Honest to goodness, I’ve considered dabbing a bit behind my ears from time to time, but I’m afraid of attracting bees. Exotic, floral, tropical, apricoty/peachy, YUMMY! And un-apologetically sweet - we’re talking 11% sugar and 100% delicious! Savor it well chilled as a solo act – heavenly. Or with the fruit dessert of your choice – pure bliss…

The deal: 2 bottles of each wine for the unheard of price of $59.99. The icing on the cake (and Orange Muscat goes great with your cake): only $5.00 for shipping. You can’t afford not to do this! But, don’t call us – go to Wine.Woot right now! No amount of groveling or tears will bring this deal back once it’s gone…

Part of the fun of wooting is following the comments of your fellow buyers and, of course, making your own! And that part’s free! This is one of the many reasons we love Woot. In fact, we’re such Woot fans that we’re actually going to interview these guys on our podcast - stay tuned!

Cheers and happy summer!

The Perfect Menu for Mother’s Day!

May 4, 2009 in Food & Wine and Recipes. 0 Comments

It’s just a few, short days away and you want to do something really special for the one who gave you milk and cookies after school and dried your tears when your feelings got hurt, right? Well, Colleen, a thankful daughter and a mother herself, came up with this stress-free, three-course menu that’s as easy as pie – sorry, no pie included and absolutely yummy!

First course: Endive with Goat Cheese and Smoked Salmon Goat cheese + Sauvignon Blanc = :-) Dill weed + Sauvignon Blanc = :-) And, honestly, this will take you all of ten minutes to prepare, it’s very tasty and pretty to look at, too! Don’t forget the Sauvignon Blanc!
Entrée: Grilled Steaks with Black & Raspberry Reduction Sauce Mom will be berry happy you grilled up such a delicious steak! And that reduction sauce does a great job of bringing out the very-berry character of our 2006 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon!
Dessert: Super-easy and delicious Orange Muscat Slush! A great, refreshing dessert for an al fresco lunch or dinner! Just pour the State Lane Orange Muscat into dessert cups and mix in a heaping tsp. of superfine sugar and a good squeeze of lemon, to taste. Put the dessert cups in the freezer for about 1.5 hours (for 4 oz. cups, longer for bigger). It should be nearly hard. Stir it up so that the frozen rim mixes with the liquid interior and freeze, again, for about 15 minutes. Stir in some berries, if you like, and serve! If you want pink slush, just puree some berries and stir them in (strawberries or raspberries are particularly good). Enjoy!

About Orange Muscat: Never heard of it? You’ve got lots of company! There are only a few hundred acres of it in the entire state, but those of us with access take full advantage…

A berry happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers, daughters and sons out there! Cheers!

Q: Conversion rate for fermentation?

April 27, 2009 in Answers, Ask our Educator, Wine and Winemaking. 0 Comments

Question from Karen: I have a question for you… If you crush wine grapes and the juice has 20% sugar, is the alcohol 5%??? Looking forward to your answer. Thank you.

Reply: Hi, Karen! Thanks for writing!

Here’s a brief reply from our winemaker, Geoff Gorsuch: “Depending on all the parameters, yeast, temperature, nutrients, and how the crush and pre-fermentation treatment is handled you should end up around 9-12% alcohol if fermentation is finished.” By finished, he means if you let the wine ferment dry rather than stopping it in order to retain some sweetness.

The most common conversion rate of sugar to alcohol is 50-60% and Geoff allowed for a little more than that. The choice of yeast is one of the biggest factors and late-model, “cleaned up” yeasts are playing a role in the whole “hang-time” discussion regarding the alcohol in the finished wine.

Here’s how Wikipedia explains fermentation. Hope that helps! Cheers!

Just Released: 2006 Napa Valley Merlot

April 13, 2009 in Food & Wine, Recipes, Wine and Wine Releases. 0 Comments

Better stop by the tasting room! We’ve just released our 2006 Merlot and it’s sure to put a smile on your face. About 1/2 the grapes were grown on our estate right here at the winery. This mid-valley location allows for plenty of ripeness and full, opulent flavors. The rest of the fruit came from the Carneros, where it’s a bit cooler, so the component is a little leaner and higher in acid, which, besides being delicious, brings elegance to the the total blend and helps it comply with our ever present “food-friendly” requirement.

Speaking of food, a springtime release makes me hungry for Spring Lamb! Colleen put together a delicious recipe that has springtime written all over it – lots of herbs and even some fresh lavender! So, better fire up the grill for Spring Lamb with Honey-Thyme Root Vegetables and be sure to try it with our hot off the presses, 2006 Merlot!

2006 Merlot Audio Winemaker Notes

More recipes, paired with wine!

Cheers!