Hooking up

 

 

John on Wine – Hooking up

 

Originally published in the Ukiah Daily Journal today, Thursday, July 31, 2014
By John Cesano

John Cesano of John On Wine

The new format for the Ukiah Daily Journal, color splashed throughout, looks great but comes with a cost; deadlines for columns are earlier, much earlier. I used to enjoy the incredible luxury of being able to attend a weekend wine event, write a recap draft for a column on Monday, brush it up and submit it on Tuesday, and see it run on Thursday, which was great. Now, I have to submit my column by noon on Friday, before the weekend’s events, for this Thursday wine column. I attended the Second annual Anderson Valley Barrel Tasting weekend last weekend, but with a deadline before the event, I’ll have to write about last weekend this week to send by tomorrow, so you can read about it all next week. The column used to feel fresh; now it feels like some columns are about things nearly two weeks old.

 

I received a big “thank you” from someone who sells wine for a piece I wrote recently. I couldn’t remember the piece, even when reminded what it was about. I write pieces, turn them in, and move on, but the longer time between turn in and reader reaction means I may seriously have forgotten what I wrote, so please be patient as I ask you to remind me.

 

I’m writing this not as complaint, but explanation. I receive invitations to wine events, and I like to recap them. My hope is that if I describe something well enough then a reader will want to attend an annual event the following year. I have seen posters advertising events with my own quoted words, and I am heartened; I would love more folks to benefit from a bump in event ticket sales because of something I have written – even something written in recap the year before. I’ll still do recaps of events I attend, but they will come out a little later than they used to. What my column can continue to do well, and in a timely manner, is promote events before they happen, offered up in a calendar of upcoming events or featured in a section of a column. I would like to do that better, and for that I am using this week’s column to ask for help. I’ve got to ask folks in the wine industry to help me out getting the great events in front of readers. I won’t be mentioning every anniversary, wine club pick up party, or sale, but if the wineries in Redwood Valley, Anderson Valley, Yorkville Highlands, greater Hopland, or throughout the county are having a major collaborative event, Passport, barrel tasting, or other big festival, please reach out to me at least one month in advance so I can get a good mention. A press invite is always appreciated as well, so I can attend and write up the event – hopefully, you’ll save the write up and use it the following year in your marketing efforts to bring more people to visit and taste your wines. WineSong, Mushroom Train, Mendo Crab & Wine or Mushroom & Wine Fest events … you too. Let me know well in advance, so I can let my column readers, both in the paper and online, know about your event so they can buy tickets and come to your events. I can’t come to every winery dinner, I have to pick and choose. With almost 100 wineries hosting wine club events, picnics or dinners, and every wine friendly restaurant putting on a version of a chef’s wine dinner, I can’t possibly afford either the time or money that attending all would entail. That said, if your event is amazing (I’m looking at you, Testa, with your blending party, with dinner, and McKenna Faith playing live, and fantastic blend judges; and you, Crush Ukiah – when are we going to do a McFadden dinner?), then reach out to me and I’ll try to promote your event. Coro Mendocino, I’ve written about you about 205 times and moderated a TV shoot with your winemakers; keep me in mind when you send your press releases and when you make your press invitations for future events.

 

Visit Ukiah, Visit Mendocino, Mendocino Winegrowers Inc.; I need your help to help broadcast the best wine news. You know how to reach me, please do, again with both news in advance of your events, and an invite to those you would like me to cover.

 

Owners and winemakers, send me an email and let’s taste through your wines one fine weekend day, we can do it in an hour, and then you can show me your vineyard, winery, tasting room, whatever you are proud of, with the result being a spotlight winery feature. Bob, Hoss, Rich, and Greg – you’ve each offered up a taste, let’s set up a date. Everyone else, just reach out. I’m a cheerleader for the industry. I haven’t written harshly of any wines in this column. That is easy when there are always so many great things to write about. Bottom line: if you are involved in wine events, please let me know about your events; JohnOnWine@gmail.com is the email to use. Want to send wine or something else through the mail? John Cesano, 13275 S Hwy 101 #5, PO Box 624, Hopland, CA 95449 works great.

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Tomorrow, is the Mendocino County Fair Wine Competition. The judges will gather and taste through the morning and afternoon, deciding on Bronze, silver, and Gold medals for wines. The rare wine to take unanimous Gold votes from the judges will get Double Gold medals. Top medal winners will be tasted again for Best of Class, Best Red, Best White, Best Sparkling, and Best Dessert honors. The best part of it all is the award ceremony and dinner that will follow the judging at the Mendocino College Student Plaza from 6-9 p.m. I love it and attend every year. Enjoy a delicious three course dinner prepared by the Mendocino College Culinary Arts program led by Chef Nicholas Petti of Mendo Bistro, while sampling award winning wines from the competition.

 

Tickets are just $55 and available at www.mendowine.com; get your tickets before they stop sales.

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John Cesano writes the popular wine blog John On Wine at www.johnonwine.com

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Editor’s note:

 

We really appreciate all of our unpaid columnists and the work they put in so that we may meet out deadlines. Our roster of local writers have done a great job submitted timely, relevant and informative articles for our readers to enjoy, and they deserve a big tip-of-the-hat for their efforts.

••••••••••

EDITED TO ADD: I love my editor, Kelly Hancock, and I must have seemed grudgey, or just outright bitchy, for her to have come in to add her note. I am touched by her sweetness, and apologize for any bitchiness on my part.

My intent was to say, “Hey, I’ve got this deadline, and it lends itself to promotion of future events, so you wine area tourism groups, or county tourism groups, or wine groups, or restaurants, or wineries – send me a heads up if you have something truly noteworthy for me to mention, and extending an invite might get the event written up some time after.”  Of course, that isn’t enough words to fill a column, so I may have chosen an intemperate word or set a tone not really intended, with the extra words I did use.

 

 

Mendocino County Wine Judge – a tasty gig!

Tomorrow, the writers who devote the most time to tasting Mendocino county wines throughout the year, who write the most words about Mendocino County wines for newspapers and magazines, will gather in judgement of the entries for the 2014 Mendocino County Fair Wine Competition.

All work and no play is not how things are done in Mendocino County.

Today, the Coro Mendocino winemakers will pour a selection of library wines for those judges, an opportunity for them to relax and enjoy Mendocino County’s flagship wine.

Tonight, Destination Hopland and Mendocino Winegrowers, Inc. present a welcome dinner for the judges at Seebass Family Vineyard and Wines.

Here’s a working menu, featuring wines and farm goods from both Seebass Family Wines and McFadden Farm, as well as the local, organic, delicious bounty of the top artisanal purveyors of food and ingredients from throughout Mendocino County:

APPETIZERS – standing – passed – Paired with McFadden 2009 Reserve Brut

Bruschetta – Schat’s bread with white bean puree and sundried tomatoes and basil
Bread – Schat’s baguette
Olive Oil – Terra Savia/Olivino
Sundried tomatoes – Seebass
Speckled bayo beans – McFadden Farm
Basil – Seebass

Meat Balls – spiced beef meat balls
Beef – McFadden Farm
Egg – Seebass
Onions – Cinnamon Bear Farms
Herbs – McFadden Farm grilling herbs, lemon pepper, and garlic powder
Bread Crumbs – Schat’s

SALAD – Greens with champagne vinaigrette, roasted fresh beets and goat cheese – Paired with Seebass Barrel-Sampled 2011 Old Vine Zinfandel
Greens – Seebass
Edible flowers – Seebass
Beets – Cinnamon Bear Farms
Goat cheese – Pennyroyal Farms
Bacon crumbles – Mendocino Organics
Champagne vinaigrette – McFadden Sparkling Brut Rose, Terra Savia/Olivino olive oil, mustard, acid

GAZPACHO – Chunkier version with avocado garnish – Paired with McFadden 2007 Pinot Noir
Tomatoes – Cinnamon Bear
Cucumbers – Seebass
Red Onions – Cinnamon Bear
Cilantro – Cinnamon Bear
Red wine – 2010 McFadden Coro Mendocino
Chicken stock – Seebass
Avocado
Lime

SALMON – Broiled fresh wild king salmon with peach salsa – Paired with Seebass 2011 Grand Reserve Chardonnay
Salmon – The Fish Peddler
Peaches – Cinnamon Bear
Red Onion – Cinnamon Bear
Cilantro – Cinnamon Bear
Lime

LAMB – Herb crusted grilled Mediterranean lamb leg with wild rice, gold raisin and parley and grilled summer squash with plum/stone fruit wine reduction glaze – Paired with 2011 Seebass Syrah
Lamb – Mendocino Organics
Herbs – cumin +
Wild rice – McFadden Farm
Golden raisins – Seebass
Parsley, fresh herbs – Seebass
Baby zucchini – Seebass

CHEESE – Paired with McFadden 2012 Riesling
Hard cheeses – Pennyroyal Farms
Spiced Walnuts – Seebass
Honey – Seebass

DESSERT – Blackberry crumble with homemade vanilla ice cream and dark chocolate drizzle – Paired with McFadden 2009 Coro
Blackberries – Seebass
Crumble – Flour, butter, brown sugar, nuts
Dark chocolate, melted –
Homemade ice cream – cream, vanilla, eggs – Seebass

Coffee – Black Oak
Tea – Mendocino Tea
Cream –

After tasting Mendocino County’s best wines tomorrow morning and afternoon, after deciding upon Silver and Gold medals, and Best of Red and Best of White honors; the judges will enjoy one more fine meal. The best part is that you can join them for this event!

The Mendocino County Fair Wine Competition awards dinner and ceremony will be tomorrow, Friday, August 1 at 6:00 p.m. at the Mendocino College Student Plaza. Dinner will be three courses by Chef Nicholas Petti of Mendo Bistro and his team of culinary students from the college, accompanied by wines entered into competition. Tickets are only $55 and available at mendocinowinecompetition.eventbrite.com or at the event.

 

Hunting up great wine

John On Wine – Hunting up great wine
Originally published in the Ukiah Daily Journal newspaper on  July 24, 2014

John Cesano of John On Wine

Can you imagine Jon Bonné, the wine editor for the San Francisco Chronicle, or Eric Asimov, the wine editor for the New York Times, sitting down to write a piece where they wonder in print which wine to use in a marinade for a jack rabbit their son shot in the head with an open sight 22 rifle and further, that while they were reaching for the wine, the rabbit was making a literal bloody mess of their kitchen as the skinning and gutting had not been done in the field?

The Ukiah Daily Journal wine column will always stand out as unique. We aren’t city folk, and this column will put an exclamation point on that. My son Charlie shot his first rabbit last night and brought the thing home, hoping I would help him dress it out. I used to hunt, but that was 35 years ago; I didn’t like gutting animals then, and I really didn’t want to do it last night. Charlie and his friend Jordan, with the help of YouTube videos for guidance, managed the task just fine.

I made a hasenpfeffer marinade, with a blend of 2008 V. Sattui Zinfandel, Black-Sears Vineyard, Howell Mountain, Napa Valley and 2013 Carol Shelton Wild Thing Rendezvous Rosé, Mendocino County (85% Mendocino County, Cox Vineyard, Ukiah, CCOF Certified Organically Grown; 15% Sonoma County, sustainably grown) wines. I also used red wine vinegar and a ton of herbs from the farm I work for.

Of course, I had to taste both wines. The 2008 V. Sattui Zinfandel was still big and bold as can be with dark black berry and earth notes, brambly fruit supported by wood. It was darn big, too big really. Great as a glass of wine by itself, but it was going to overpower the meat, so to soften the marinade a bit, I opened the 2013 Carol Shelton Wild Thing Rendezvous Rosé. This is such a delightful wine, sweet without being sugary, tart without being puckery, balanced bright succulent strawberry and watermelon fruit with a touch of citrus. The day’s temperature had been over 100 degrees, and the Carol Shelton Rosé was the better wine for summer season heat, while the V. Sattui Zin was more of a winter weight wine.

The rabbit meat will soak for four days and then the boys will cook it. Of course, I would never give the boys a taste of wine, so keep your letters to the editor about the perils of underage drinking to yourself, but if I were to let them taste a wine made to go with a wild hare, I think I would recommend the 2012 McFadden Old Vine Zinfandel. The McFadden Zin is cool climate grown, lower in alcohol, and brighter in fruit notes. A red wine, sweet tart candy noted – cherry, strawberry, and raspberry, with just a tickle of black pepper and herb in support of the fruit. Flavorful enough to go with wild rabbit, but light enough to not overpower it.

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On Friday, August 1, 2014, a group of respected wine writers will sit down to taste flight after flight of Mendocino County wines as judges for the 2014 Mendocino County Fair Wine Competition.

The competition is open to any wine made from Mendocino County grapes, even wineries from out of county may enter their Mendocino County wines. Wineries enter their wines in a spirit of friendly competition and winners get bragging rights for the following year.

The competition judging takes place in the morning and early afternoon, and the winners are announced at a fun dinner early the same evening.

Taste a delicious three course dinner prepared by the Mendocino College Culinary Arts program led by Chef Nicholas Petti of Mendo Bistro, while sampling award winning wines from the competition at the Mendocino County Fair Wine Competition Awards Ceremony and Dinner, open to the public, tickets are just $55 each. Again, the dinner and award ceremony are on Friday, August 1, 2014 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. with plenty of wine from the competition to enjoy.

This year’s dinner benefits the Mendocino College Foundation.

Last year, I sat at a table with Potter Valley folk, and Gracia Brown of Visit Mendocino. Each time any Potter Valley wine award was mentioned, Bronze to Gold, our table cheered wildly. The fun and comradery of the dinner highlight the cooperative nature of the county, even at what is supposed to be a competition.

For your tickets, hit the LINK.

Not open to the public, but fun for the judges who come the day before the competition, there will be a tasting of Coro Mendocino wines hosted by Golden Vineyards in Hopland, and then a six course wine pairing dinner featuring wines of McFadden Farm and Seebass Family Wines plus the overwhelming bounty of fresh, organic, heirloom, and artisanal ingredients provided by Mendocino County’s best protein and produce growers, hosted by Seebass on Old River Road near Talmage

•••

Speaking of Seebass Family Wines, they recently opened a new tasting room in the Anderson Valley on Hwy 128.

Owners Michelle Myrenne Willoughby and husband Scott Willoughby run things, and their current releases include Chardonnay, Syrah, Merlot, and a Rosé of Grenache, called Fantasie. Look for an Old Vine Zinfandel this August 2014, and new 2013 vintage Chardonnay wines too.

Open 11-5 daily, the tasting room is in the heart of Boonville, right across the street from the Boonville Hotel; visit if you are in the area. This may be Anderson Valley’s only spot without Pinot Noir!

•••

EDITED TO ADD: Okay, a few more words for this online posting that didn’t appear in this week’s newspaper column…first I want to let you know that I made a change for this post and used a hyperlink to the Mendo Wine Comp Dinner Ticket page, where the newspaper piece had a web address as hyperlinks do not work in print ink.

Also, one more mention for this weekend’s Second Annual Anderson Valley Barrel Tasting Weekend event. $20 gets you a glass and wristband, with wonderful barrel tastings, Pinot Noir a major focus for most participating wineries, throughout the Anderson Valley and beyond…Yorkville Highland wineries will also be participating, making this more of a Highway 128 Barrel Tasting weekend (BT128). Online ticket sales have closed. You may purchase tickets at any one of the participating wineries during the event. Payment by cash or check is most appreciated to join the Saturday, July 26 and Sunday, July 27 fun. I will be attending this event as a guest of the Anderson Valley Winegrowers Association, and I am grateful for the invitation.