“Rumor has it that the Vampire Vineyards are actually owned by a circle of vampires, and the company’s founder, an entertainment attorney from New York, is actually just a front. (Whether he and his convertible were commandeered by a Vampire is still a subject for debate.) We do know however that after satiating themselves for years with their Transylvanian blood of the vine, the powers that be decided to spice things up and migrate westward like so many vampires before them.” (Vampire.com website)

Now I know a lot of you are probably thinking that here is a company riding the Vampire band wagon. You would be correct about vampires being more popular with the onset of Twilight, True Blood, The Vampire Diaries and a number of other books, movies and TV shows. Although this onslaught of vampire-media has created more awareness, what you may not know is that Vampire Wines have been around since the mid 1980’s. The idea was the brainchild of lawyer Michael Machat.

The wines originally came from Transylvania. Yes you read that correctly. We first started to see these Transylvanian wines on the shelves in Alberta around 1996. They were produced in relatively small amounts at that time. The first labels had a demonic funky feel to them. They were reproduced from tapestries that hung in old castles in Romania.

The brand started to grow and the label changed to become a little more “main stream”. More growth saw more changes. The owners of Vampire wines wanted people to take them seriously. They didn’t want a gimmicky label that would make people think that they made gimmicky wines. Mark Morton of Vampire Wines says “We are proud of our wines.” “The Vampire wines are made for everyday consumption.” Not just for around this time of the year.

The wines made a leap from Transylvania, Romania to California, U.S.A. The move allowed Vampire to have more control from the ground to the bottle. It also allowed for further growth. In 2006 Vampire became a licensed winery. They “wanted to ensure high quality.” They purchase their grapes from a number of vineyards throughout the North Coast region. “The grapes may be from Napa, Sonoma or other counties in the region.” They have the ‘advantage of purchasing the grapes from wherever’ they want. They also have a winemaking team who help to bring their vision to consumers.

Vampire Wines will be opening a Tasting Room in Beverly Hills in the not too distant future. It will be the only tasting room in Beverly Hills. It will be located on Santa Monica Boulevard across from The Peninsula Beverly Hills. There isn’t a firm date for opening, but tune into their website. I am sure a date will be posted as soon as it gets a bit closer.

Vampire Cabernet Sauvignon

Winery: Vampire Vineyards
Location: North Coast Appellation, California, U.S.A.
Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon (with just a touch of Syrah and Merlot)
Tasting: Wednesday, October 27, 2010 - 4:00 – 7:00 p.m

Map sourced from “California Wine Info”

The Vampire Vineyards folks say: “Classic, small-lot fermentations, followed by aging with both European and American oak, gives full expression to the rich varietal flavors in this wine. Judiciously blended with small amounts of Merlot for softness, and Syrah for added structure, our Cabernet displays ripe flavor character and a lovely aroma that will continue to develop with additional time in bottle.”

Food Pairing:

Grilled Pork Chops with onions, peppers and a Cabernet Sauvignon reduction; Roast Beef; Grilled hamburgers with rosemary.

CSPC: 726562
Price:

$16.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

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

Vampire White Zinfandel

Winery: Vampire Vineyards
Location: North Coast Appellation, California, U.S.A.
Blend: White Zinfandel
Tasting: Wednesday, October 27, 2010 - 4:00 – 7:00 p.m.

Vampire Vineyards says that this White Zinfandel is “the perfect wine for picnics, luncheons or lighter fare, our White Zinfandel is also an ideal aperitif or casual afternoon sipping wine. Enjoy with good food and great friends.” Mark Morton of Vampire Vineyards says that the White Zinfandel “is the best kept secret in our portfolio”. It came into the marketplace about 3 years ago.

Food Pairing:

Roast Pork with a sweet fruit sauce; Chicken salad; Apple Crisp

CSPC: 726564
Price:

$16.99 (Minus Winesday 10% discount.)

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

We are taking a road trip to British Columbia next week. Come share the ride with us. We have lots of room and would love to have your company.

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.

Winery: Sokol Blosser
Location: Oregon, U.S.A.
Alcohol: 12%
Blend: 9 varietals (Evolution); Pinot Noir, Syrah &
Zinfandel (Meditrina)
Tasting: Wednesday, February 10, 2010 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.

How do you spell fun?  We spell it S-o-k-o-l B-l-o-s-s-e-r.  You probably think we are a few bricks short of a load, but you will see what we mean once you read the following info and come by and enjoy the wines on Wednesday.

Sokol Blosser Winery was started by Susan and Bill Sokol Blosser in 1971.  They have taken a forward thinking approach to the land, the winery and the wine.  Not only were they USDA Certified Organic in 2005, LEEDS certified and are Salmon Safe, but they make some pretty fantastic wines.  The two we are talking about and tasting are the “whimsical” Evolution and Meditrina.  Most wines have a vintage on the label (2005, 1994 etc.).  Evolution and Meditrina are a little different.  They have “Editions”.  Evolution is on its “Lucky” Edition (13… but it doesn’t use that number anywhere on the label, only the word “lucky”), and the latest Meditrina is the 6^th Edition.

Evolution was first introduced 13 years ago.  The “fan base” for Evolution is all over North America and Europe.  Why are so many people enjoying this wine?  It has character.  Sokol Blosser Winery states that it wanted to “kick the wine world up a notch or two.”   This is a splendid wine, and not like any other white wine you have sipped.  The blend is a wonderful “merge” of:  Pinot Gris, Muller Thurgau, White Riesling, Semillon, Muscat Canelli, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay and Sylvaner.  Yes… you read it correctly - 9 different varietals.

Sokol Blosser has stated “It was with great intention that we created this off-dry, somewhat tropical wine with a crisp finish to be enjoyed year round.”  When Richard and I have tasted this wine previously there have been a number of interesting comments, but none more interesting than from a couple of ‘I only drink red wine’ customers.  One person said ‘you know I don’t drink whites, because there isn’t much to them.  This isn’t like any white I have ever tried.  There is something to it.’  Another customer commented ‘I thought white wines had no depth to them.  That was before I tried this wine.  There is a ton of flavour here.  This is a white wine I will drink.’

Food pairings for Evolution:

Thai, Chinese, Indian, Mexican, Caribbean, and Spanish food (the blend of the spices used in these foods matches so beautifully with this wine); seafood, poultry dishes.

The first thing you will notice about Meditrina is the label.  It is a standout red label with a white stylized “M”.  As you look closer, you will notice an outline of a female.  This profile is of Meditrina, the Roman Goddess of wine.  The label is an eye catcher for sure, but that is not where the ‘standout’ ends.

The wine is a blend of Pinot Noir, Syrah and Zinfandel.   Our first thought on this wine before we tasted it was… that is an interesting blend of red grapes.  We weren’t sure what to expect.  What we found was a wine with a lot of red fruit and red berries and a little bit of spice.  One of our first thoughts was - this is going to be very food friendly.  And we weren’t wrong.   Decant this wine for 30 - 60 minutes before drinking.  This will bring out some of the appealing flavours that that each of these grapes brings to the wine.

Food Pairings:

Pasta, pizza, grilled chicken, pork, fish and grilled fish (grilled salmon is very good with this wine).

Price:

Evolution $23.99* (Minus Winesday 10% discount)
Meditrina $23.50* (Minus Winesday 10% discount)

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