Livermore, California

You can’t think of American wine without thinking about California.  They go hand in hand like Icewine and Canada or Pinot Noir and Burgundy.  There are many California regions that people are familiar with like Napa Valley and Sonoma County, but there is so much more to California than that.  Today we are going to visit Livermore, which is located just east of San Francisco.  It is home to over 40 wineries.

In the late 18^th century this valley was used as grazing lands for cattle and sheep.  Shortly after that, the Mexican land grants began and one such land grant was given to a Mexican rancher of English birth named Robert Livermore (you can see where this is going). Robert’s ranch was so large that it comprised much of what is today the main townsite of Livermore.  There is no doubt that Robert loved the cattle and sheep ranching, but he also loved viticulture and horticulture.  In the mid 1800’s he planted the first vineyards and orchards in this region.  Unfortunately he passed away in 1858.  The town of Livermore was given its name less than a quarter of a century later.[1]

With a Mediterranean climate, it is no wonder that people came from all over, including Italy.  The Italians were noted for making a contribution to forming the wineries in the area.  Then there was C.H. Wente, James Concannon and Charles Wetmore who founded their wineries in the late 19^th century.  James Concannon is going to be our subject today.

So the Italians, among many others, cametohis beautiful place.  ‘Concannon’ doesn’t sound too Italian, though.  James Concannon was from the Emerald Isle… Ireland.  The same country that half of my ancestors called home.  He believed that the rocky soils of Livermore would produce great wine.  “He established Concannon as a founding family of California wine.”[2]There are a lot of ‘firsts’ when it comes to the Concannon family.  They were the first successful winery started by an Irish Immigrant.  They were one of the first California wineries to produce ‘Bordeaux style’ wines.  51 years ago they hired the first professional female winemaker.  50 years ago they were the first winery in the U.S.A. to plant Petite Sirah.  That is a pretty impressive list.  Oh and I forgot another one.  They also “pioneered the creation of the widely adopted Cabernet Sauvignon clones 7, 8 and 11, also known as the Concannon clones, now planted in many of Napa’s most prestigious vineyards.”

“We have embraced sustainable vineyard practices and re-rooted historic clones in our estate vineyards. We utilize state-of-the-art technology in our winery to ensure quality. With a focus on renewable energy, we have installed solar panels on 80% of our winery’s roof.  All of these efforts are designed with one goal in mind, to create extraordinary wines that would make James Concannon proud.”[3]

As we mentioned earlier, Concannon was the first home to Petite Sirah in the United States.  They will be celebrating the 50^th anniversary of making Petite Sirah this year.  (a.k.a. Petite Syrah, Petit Syrah, Petit Sirah, Durif)Perfect time for a tasting.  We’ll do the Merlot first and then head to the Petite Sirah.

Concannon Merlot

Winery: Concannon Vineyard
Location: Central Coast, California, U.S.A.
Blend: Merlot
Tasting: Wednesday, June 8, 2011 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m

“For nearly 125 years, our winery has chosen grapes harvested in California’s diverse Central Coast region. We carefully select the most ideal vineyards for growing each variety. We then craft the expressive fruit into wines that you will remember long after you finish the last sip.”

California’s Central Coast covers a large areathat stretchesdown the Pacific Coast for 250 miles from San Francisco Bay all the way to Santa Barbara.  This region produces 15% of California’s winegrapes and is home to in excess of 350 wineries including the ConcannonVineryard in Livermore.  This region gets an influence from the ocean, the bays, the mountains and valleys. On average the days are warm and the evenings are a bit on the cool side.

The winemaker has a few words to say about this wine:  “The 2007 Merlot, Selected Vineyards is a luscious wine with soft edges and rich flavors. Its’ lovely magenta hue introducesripe fruit flavors of cherry, currant and plum. Warm toasty oakon the nose accompanies the red fruit to the long mid-palateand soft yet ample tannins lead to a smooth finish.”

Food Pairing:

Grilled Portobello Mushroom Burgers;Beer Barbequed Chicken; Barbequed Pork Sandwiches

CSPC:     741483
Price:

$13.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing.  Price subject to change without notice

Concannon Conservancy Petite Sirah

Winery: Concannon Winery
Location: Livermore, California, U.S.A.
Blend: 100% Petite Sirah
Tasting: Wednesday, June 8, 2011 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

The name on this particular release from Concannon, “Conservancy,” is a nod to the efforts the winery has made to protect their vineyards from urban sprawl.  In 1996, Concannon was the first Livermore Valley vineyard to place its land into a permanent conservation easement.  Other vineyards have since followed suit to ensure that urbanization doesn’t threaten Livermore Valley as a wine producing region.  Yeah Concannon!

For almost a decade there has been an annual Petite Sirah Symposium.  This year, the ninth annual, will be held a Concannon Vineyard on July 26, 2011.  All the people in the know will gather to discuss the grape variety.  They talk about growing, winemaking and even marketing.  I have discovered that these people have a real passion, not only for winemaking, but for Petite Sirah in particular.

What does the winemaker have to say about this one?  “The 2007 Petite Sirah, Conservancy has fantastic depth andcharacter. It exhibits a rich nose of fresh berry fruit, and theflavorful palate shows blackberries, chocolate, mocha andplums. Subtle notes of molasses, cedarwood, and ripemulberries are complemented by soft, creamy oak tones and asmooth, silky finish.

Food Pairing:

Grilled Lamb Chops; French Onion Beef Tenderloin for Two;

CSPC:     741969
Price:

$18.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing.  Price subject to change without notice

New Zealand.  We haven’t been there for a while.  Let’s see what’s up down there.

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[1] Wikipedia and Livermore Websites

[2]Concannon Website

[3]Concannon Website

Winery: Sebastiani
Vintage: 2007
Location: Sonoma County, California, USA
Alcohol: 13.5 %
Blend: 82% Zinfandel, 9.8% Petit Syrah, 7.2% Syrah
Tasting: Wednesday, June 23, 2010 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

We had the pleasure of tasting the Sebastiani wines a few years ago.  There was a Cabernet Sauvignon, a Merlot and a Zinfandel.  Now they make a number of other wines, but these three we had tried at the time.  After doing a little research on the winery, we discovered some interesting information about the vineyards and winery that made up Sebastiani.

Over one hundred years ago is when the story of this winery began when Samuele Sebastiani emigrated from Tuscany Italy.  A mere nine years after he emigrated he started the winery.  He was a man with a vision for sure.  During the period of Prohibition in the United States (1920-1933), the winery was allowed to continue making wine because it made a small amount of sacramental and medicinal wines, which was allowed under the law.  However not all of Samuele’s neighbours faired so well.  He came up with a plan to initiate some major projects both at the winery and at the plaza around one of the churches to help keep people employed.  When there was not enough at the winery to keep his employees working, he decided to start canning fruit to make up some of the difference.  He was a hard worker himself, and he expected the same of others, but he did everything he could to help people during this period of Great Depression.

Samuele passed away in 1944.  His son and daughter-in-law, August and Sylvie, purchased the winery from the estate and thus began the next expansion of Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery.  August added new varietals and proprietary blends. He was a big believer in supporting the craftsmen of Sonoma and put their skills to good use at Sebastiani, which is why you still see some of the hand-carved Sebastiani barrels at the winery today.  August was also devoted to birds and their preservation.  He had a collection of very rare doves and black swans and was also a supporter of Ducks Unlimited.  Upon August’s passing, Sylvie and their children, Sam, Don and Mary-Ann took over the management of the winery.  Sam left six years later to start his own winery.  During this period, the winery grew and started a ‘value’ brand of wines which became very successful and was eventually sold in 2001 so the family could ‘refocus’ on the family brand wines.

Don eventually left to devote his time to a winery he started in 1985 with his brother-in-law Roy Cecchetti… Cecchetti Sebastiani Cellars (now called Don Sebastiani & Sons).  Mary Ann Sebastiani Cuneo, assumed the role of president and CEO and helped lead the company through its period of transition.  “She spearheaded the multi-million dollar remodel of the Sebastiani tasting room and hospitality center completed in 2001″.  In order to make an emphasis on small lot artisan wines, the winemaking facility underwent major renovations.

In 2008, Bill Foley of Foley Family Wines acquired Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery.  There is a lot of history for sure and a there are lot of wonderful wines to come in the future.   Let’s get tasting this wine…

First of all, as always, get the wine out of the bottle so it can breathe for a while.  The nice zinfandel flavours will be more pronounced.  We usually like to let this zinfandel sit for about an hour.  This wine doesn’t have huge alcohol levels.  It comes in at 13.5% ABV.   With a lower alcohol, the fruit comes shining through.  The colour is dark ruby with purple and violet overtones.  The cherry and juicy red fruit flavours are quite noticeable.  But there are also some notes of vanilla (aged in casks for 5 months).  Bam… there is that nice spice that we love about zinfandel.  It isn’t overpowering, just a wee bit of black pepper… just enough to make it interesting.

Food Pairing:

Braised, BBQ’d or roasted Italian/Chorizo Sausage, Beef, Lamb, Pork or Venison;  Ribs with a nice spicy BBQ sauce; Parmesan cheese; Manchego (Spanish) cheese; Eggplant lasagna.

CSPC:     37275
Price:

$19.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price correct at time of printing. Price subject to change without notice

Next week is June 30^th, the day before Canada Day!  See you then.

Winery: Bonterra
Vintage: 2007
Location: California, United States of America
Alcohol: 14%
Blend: 86% Zinfandel 11% Petit Syrah 3% Syrah
Tasting: Wednesday, June 9, 2010 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

Bonterra - good earth - well that just about describes it in a nutshell.  And that is just what this company is all about.  They make wine out of organically grown grapes.   Now I know some people out there think that that is a bunch of baloney, but that fact of the matter is organically produced products overall are on the rise and many consumers are demanding them.  It just so happens that in the wine part of things, Bonterra was ahead of a lot of other winemakers in producing and marketing their organic wines.

“Decades of learning and winemaking accolades have reinforced our passionate belief that our organic grapes make better wine.”   Now they ought to know, as they started this practice in 1987.  I am trying to think back 23 years ago to see what wines were being marketed as organic and I’ll be darned, but I cannot think of any right off the top of my head.  Today we are seeing many more people asking for organically grown products and it is nice to know that some companies have had a leg up for a while.

Sherbrooke carries many of the Bonterra wines.  Now some of you know that we are Zinfandel fans, so the fact that we picked the Zinfandel out of their lineup of wines to do may not be a big surprise.  Frankly, we have not had this Zin in quite some time, so it is a real pleasure to taste it again.

The grapes used to make this wine are mostly from dry-farmed fruit.  Now what does that mean to you and I?  Well, it means that the vines have to dig deep into the ground to search for that water.  What that gives the wine is more depth and character, generally speaking.  More fruit that is concentrated and less watered down.  We think of growing vegetables and fruit in our back yards, and we water the plants, right?  Well believe it or not, you don’t want do do that with your grape vines.

The grape vines that are used to make this wine are about 35 - 40 years old.  And that is a good thing.  As we humans say ‘with age comes wisdom’ and ain’t that the truth.  So it is also true that the fruit that you get from older vines, well they are going to be a little more complex and give lots of wonderful flavours.

Okay let’s tasting this wine.  Now you know that I am a big fan of decanting, so get this wine out of the bottle and let it breather for awhile.  It will bring out all the wonderful fruit and spicy notes that are so characteristic of Zinfandel.  Red Raspberry, blackberry along with some nice spicy pepper is what you will notice right off the bat.  Try it along with Diana and see what you think.  On to the food…

Food Pairing:

Spicy beef fajitas (or some other Mexican foods); BBQ beef (of course); hard cheeses; spicy spaghetti and meat sauce; turkey

CSPC:     530139
Price:

$20.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

*Price subject to change without notice.  Price correct at time of printing.