Sacred Drop 
Washington #Merlot being processed at Hawks View
Posted on October 7, 2012
A quick video of the Washington Merlot we processed on Monday, October 1st at Hawks View Cellars. We processed 22,000 lbs or 11 tons of grapes this day. What you see here are the grapes coming in, which have been hand picked. We then hand process them by removing any leaves or bad grapes- such as dried grapes of grapes that are not in good shape- then it is destemmed with the machine. The grapes are separated from the stem and the stem leaves from the top part and the grapes, the size of blueberries leave through the side shoot.
The merlot we processed was smaller than a dime!
La Vendimia 2011- The 2011 Harvest at Juan Carlos Sancha Winery in La Rioja, Spain
Posted on September 5, 2012 4 Comments
In preparation for this year’s harvest, I thought I would show you what I did last year as part of my masters program at University of La Rioja in Logroño, Spain. I had a chance to work with Juan Carlos Sancha at his Ad Libitum Winery in Baños de Río Tobía, La Rioja, Spain. We participated in the 2011 harvest, analysis and watched as the fermentation process began at this artisan winery.
For more information on Juan Carlos Sancha’s wines visit: http://www.juancarlossancha.com
Bet yet…visit them in La Rioja, Spain! Juan Carlos and Marian will take incredible care of you!
The welcome surprise at the Wine Bloggers’ Conference #wbc12…Portuguese wines!
Posted on September 4, 2012 3 Comments
Portuguese wines were a huge surprise to me the first time I tried them and continue to be whenever I initiate others into this small but grand wine world of Portuguese wines.
Portugal has more to offer than just Port wines, they have amazing still wines a.k.a regular wines, that will blow you away! Having lived in Spain for the past two years and finally after being in the same Iberian Peninsula as Portugal, I ventured out to Oporto and then to the Douro River valley to taste some of the finest wines I had tasted in my life. Had I experienced these wines earlier, I would have potentially made Régua or Pinhão my new home instead of beautiful Rioja. I would have worked in a beautiful Quinta do…(add the name of any amazing Quinta here) and loved every minute of it. But I discovered this region already half way through my Masters of Viticulture and Enology program to be able to change paths at that point. There is always the future!
Viticulture and Enology Masters Group visiting the beautiful region of Douro, Portugal
I have taken with me, however, my love of Portuguese wines and am always happy to share this best kept secret with others.
Most recently, at the Wine Bloggers’ Conference in Portland this past month, there was a reason to share and to celebrate. During the recent Live Wine Blogging event focused on Reds, which is similar to a speed dating event with wine, I was served the 2010 Herdade do Esporão, Portugal Red “Quatro Castas 4” made with none other than one of my favorite grape varieties, Tempranillo, also known as Aragonez in Portugal. This wine is made of four different varieties: Aragonez, Tinta Miuda, Tinta Caiada, and Alfrocheiro.
2010 Herdade do Esporão, Quatro Castas 4
It was produced in a new region for me of Portugal, Alentejano. This region is located west of Lisbon, on the way to Badajoz, Spain. For a price point of $17, I was happily surprised to have such a quality wine at that price point. It was complex yet easy to drink, it is a medium-bodied wine that in your mouth explodes with raspberries, ripe plums, and touch of cherry (must be the Tempranillo, aka, Aragonez).
For me this was the first time, I had a chance to try Portuguese wines from Alentejano and now I have two very good wine regions of Portugal to direct fellow wine lovers to, Douro and Alentejano. I also have a new location on my list of places to visit in the near future! Tchim-tchim! Saúde! Cheers!
To find out more about Esporão wines, visit them at Esporão Winery or follow them on Twitter at @esporaowines
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