Last night I poured at the Basic, discussed in the last post. It is a thin crust pizza restaurant in a revitalized portion of Roseville. We had fun and and people were interested and really liked the wine. We served many youngsters(by my definition) many who have been on this earth less time than the winery has been in existence. They tasted and then bought glasses of the wine. I took 2 whites and 4 reds. We sold multiple glasses of the all the reds and no glasses of the whites. The younger set seems to go for reds and no whites.
This week friends from my previous life, before the winery, flew in for the American Wine society from OHIO and spent a couple days with us. We toured part Amador county one day and saw that since Sutter Creek and adjacent are being bypassed they will eventually become ghost towns. It's too bad to loose some history due to "progress".
The next day we had a photo session at Tahoe. Emerald bay was gorgeous with some great photos and of course we had a little snow on the ground.
Then we had lunch at the Blue Water Bistro where they had the best clam chowder I have had on the west coast. While we were eating the clouds came in and we even saw a few snowflakes. We took some more photos and the sun peeking through the clouds gave some interesting shots from the Nevada side of the lake.
Many of you know that we make a dry rose called Belle Rose that has always had a large percentage of Grenache in it. This week we traded out some 2005 Belle Rose in one of the local Raley's for some Fume Blanc that will sell better. I am tasting the 2005 Belle Rose as I am writing this and it is quite good. Maybe even better than when it was young. Well made roses can improve with age so if you have an old bottle try it . It may be delicious.
Be sure and come to our Holiday Celebration described at http://www.sierravistawinery.com/pages/events.php
As I have said before:The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista. One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.
Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com Until next week that is all John MacCready, owner & winemaker, Sierra Vista Winery
Friday, November 7, 2008
Friday, October 24, 2008
Harvest is over.
This week we pressed the last wine that we harvested, zinfandel. It's strange but the first grapes we picked this year were Zinfandel and the last grapes we picked were Zinfandel. We will have some nice 2008 Zinfandel.
Last weekend we had a great winemaker dinner at Zachary Jacques with most of the attendees were club members. Because we had a grand child due in the later part of July Barbara did not schedule a dinner on the lawn as we usually do but I think I enjoyed the one at Zachary Jacques as much if not more. It was more intimate and Barbara did not have to work as hard to make the event a success. The Food was great.
Annual Holiday Event
November 22,23
11:00am to 4:pm
Featuring the release and tasting of our first Five Star Reserve Cabernet Sayuvignon since 1999
Come taste the 2005 Five Star Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
In addition we will have hor dourvres paired wih some of our other new and current releases with emphasis on Thanksgiving pairings
More details on offerings coming soon
Last weekend we had a great winemaker dinner at Zachary Jacques with most of the attendees were club members. Because we had a grand child due in the later part of July Barbara did not schedule a dinner on the lawn as we usually do but I think I enjoyed the one at Zachary Jacques as much if not more. It was more intimate and Barbara did not have to work as hard to make the event a success. The Food was great.
In the coming weeks we will have two events, one in Roseville and one at the winery. The first is
Wine tasting at the Basic Urban Kitchen
Come taste 5 Sierra Vista wines and try them with the best New Haven, Connecticut thin crust brick oven pizzas outside Connecticut. Sierra Vista will be pouring Chardonnay, Fume Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Zinfandel.
Wine tasting at the Basic Urban Kitchen
Come taste 5 Sierra Vista wines and try them with the best New Haven, Connecticut thin crust brick oven pizzas outside Connecticut. Sierra Vista will be pouring Chardonnay, Fume Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Zinfandel.
112 Pacific st, Roseville, CA 95678
November 5, 2008
6:00 to 8:00 PM916.749.4641
November 5, 2008
6:00 to 8:00 PM916.749.4641
______________________________________________________________
The next is one that replaces the Chilli and chocolate because we have not been really pleased with the chilli we could get. see below for details:
Annual Holiday Event
November 22,23
11:00am to 4:pm
Featuring the release and tasting of our first Five Star Reserve Cabernet Sayuvignon since 1999
Come taste the 2005 Five Star Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
In addition we will have hor dourvres paired wih some of our other new and current releases with emphasis on Thanksgiving pairings
More details on offerings coming soon
Come see us.
__________________________________________________________________
As I have said before:The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista. One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.
Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com Until next week that is allJohn MacCreadyowner & winemakerSierra Vista Winery
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Monday, October 13, 2008
Crush is almost over
As I said last time it the weather forecasters were calling for rain on Oct. 3 and knowing that they are always right we started harvesting the last blocks on Sept. 29 and picked every day and got almost everything in and crushed by the 3rd. We finished up all except the Zin secondaries by about 3PM Friday and it started raining about 4 PM. We had to finish cleaning the equipment and cover the open top fermenters in the rain. A real fun week but everything looks great.
One of the last things we harvested was the Syrah block 1 that was planted in 1979, the oldest Syrah vineyard in the foothills and one of the oldest in California. The cuttings we used to plant were from the old Estrella River Winery which subsequently lost its Syrah vineyards to phyloxera. We could arguably call this Syrah "Old Vine Syrah" but maybe something else would be more catchy or elegant. Any suggestions? go to the comment page.
Another newbe will be a Fleur de Montagne Blanc that will be bottled in March I hope. It will be a blend of the Rhone varieties Grenache, Roussanne, and Vioignier. Although all the varieties in the Fleur de Montagne are from Chateauneuf-du-Pape the Fleur Blanc will not be. Viognier is not allowed in Chateauneuf-du-Pape but I never claimed that the Fleur is a CDP but a California blend using the same grapes so now the blanc will be a Calif. Rhone style blend.
Friday Oct. 10 we picked the Reeves Zinfandel secondaries. Since it was so cold 40 degrees when we started picking we let them cold soak over the weekend and added yeast today. We are completely finished with harvest and will finish pressing everything but the Zin tomorrow. It's great to be almost done even though it is the most exciting time of the year. We will have some great wines although the quantity is down so you will have to get your 2008 wines when they first come out.
On October 18 we are having a winemaker dinner at Zachary Jacques restaurant. An excellent food wine pairing is being prepared by Chef John Evans to go with Sierra Vista wines. be sure to check out the menu at http://www.sierravistawinery.com/pages/events.php
As I have said before:The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista. One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.
Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com Until next week that is all
John MacCready
owner & winemaker
Sierra Vista Winery
One of the last things we harvested was the Syrah block 1 that was planted in 1979, the oldest Syrah vineyard in the foothills and one of the oldest in California. The cuttings we used to plant were from the old Estrella River Winery which subsequently lost its Syrah vineyards to phyloxera. We could arguably call this Syrah "Old Vine Syrah" but maybe something else would be more catchy or elegant. Any suggestions? go to the comment page.
Another newbe will be a Fleur de Montagne Blanc that will be bottled in March I hope. It will be a blend of the Rhone varieties Grenache, Roussanne, and Vioignier. Although all the varieties in the Fleur de Montagne are from Chateauneuf-du-Pape the Fleur Blanc will not be. Viognier is not allowed in Chateauneuf-du-Pape but I never claimed that the Fleur is a CDP but a California blend using the same grapes so now the blanc will be a Calif. Rhone style blend.
Friday Oct. 10 we picked the Reeves Zinfandel secondaries. Since it was so cold 40 degrees when we started picking we let them cold soak over the weekend and added yeast today. We are completely finished with harvest and will finish pressing everything but the Zin tomorrow. It's great to be almost done even though it is the most exciting time of the year. We will have some great wines although the quantity is down so you will have to get your 2008 wines when they first come out.
On October 18 we are having a winemaker dinner at Zachary Jacques restaurant. An excellent food wine pairing is being prepared by Chef John Evans to go with Sierra Vista wines. be sure to check out the menu at http://www.sierravistawinery.com/pages/events.php
As I have said before:The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista. One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.
Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com Until next week that is all
John MacCready
owner & winemaker
Sierra Vista Winery
Friday, September 26, 2008
Harvest is almost over
If you are not a blogger and want to comment on this just go to the comment link below and click on it.
Well, since my last post I have harvested all the Cab except the Old Clone(vine) and they have all finished fermenting. We pressed block 2 today because it was fermented in an open top fermenter. The other was fermented in a tank and we are going to do an extended maceration on it to give it more complexity and to smooth it out.
Next week it is supposed to get cooler and possibly shower toward the end of the week. I have left Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre on for extended hang time. The Roussanne just was not ripening up and will save it to pick last and may give it more time on the vines if it doesn't rain. Every thing else I may pick but I reserve the right to change my mind if it doesn't rain.
On October 18 we are having a winemaker dinner at Zachary Jacques restaurant. An excellent food wine pairing is being prepared by Chef John Evans to go with Sierra Vista wines. be sure to check out the menu at http://www.sierravistawinery.com/pages/events.php
As I have said before:The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista. One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.
Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com Until next week that is all
John MacCready
owner & winemaker
Sierra Vista Winery
Well, since my last post I have harvested all the Cab except the Old Clone(vine) and they have all finished fermenting. We pressed block 2 today because it was fermented in an open top fermenter. The other was fermented in a tank and we are going to do an extended maceration on it to give it more complexity and to smooth it out.
Next week it is supposed to get cooler and possibly shower toward the end of the week. I have left Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre on for extended hang time. The Roussanne just was not ripening up and will save it to pick last and may give it more time on the vines if it doesn't rain. Every thing else I may pick but I reserve the right to change my mind if it doesn't rain.
On October 18 we are having a winemaker dinner at Zachary Jacques restaurant. An excellent food wine pairing is being prepared by Chef John Evans to go with Sierra Vista wines. be sure to check out the menu at http://www.sierravistawinery.com/pages/events.php
As I have said before:The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista. One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.
Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com Until next week that is all
John MacCready
owner & winemaker
Sierra Vista Winery
Monday, September 15, 2008
Harvest is in full swing
If you are not a blogger go and want to comment on this just go to the comment link below and click on it.
On Sept 6th we had a successful release party for our club members. Good food paired with our outstanding wines. A good time was had by all. Then on September 12 we harvested our Chardonnay. It came in perfect with ideal sugar-acid balance. We will have a little less than usual so you should watch for the 2008. The next day we harvested the Viognier and again it is perfect with a rich flowery nose and the juice is yummy. Again we got about half what we got in 2007.
Today we harvested the first of our four blocks of Cabernet Sauvignon. The block I call old clone or maybe old vine was planted in 1974 and is a little behind the rest. It is harder to pick than the others because the bunches and berries are so small. It is concentrated because the juice to seed ratio is also very small.
Tomorrow we will harvest our second block of Cabernet and then take a rest for a couple days.
Crush is always my favorite time of the year. The work is hard but exciting and you can see how well you have treated your grapes. It is true that in a winery where terroir is expressed in the wine the wine is made in the vineyard. That is why Sierra Vista wines differ from year to year because terroir, the essence of the climate, soil, exposure(N,S, E ,W) varies especially with climate so our grapes and wine are a result of that variance. And that is what makes our wines exciting and delicious.
As I have said before:The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista. One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating. Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com
On Sept 6th we had a successful release party for our club members. Good food paired with our outstanding wines. A good time was had by all. Then on September 12 we harvested our Chardonnay. It came in perfect with ideal sugar-acid balance. We will have a little less than usual so you should watch for the 2008. The next day we harvested the Viognier and again it is perfect with a rich flowery nose and the juice is yummy. Again we got about half what we got in 2007.
Today we harvested the first of our four blocks of Cabernet Sauvignon. The block I call old clone or maybe old vine was planted in 1974 and is a little behind the rest. It is harder to pick than the others because the bunches and berries are so small. It is concentrated because the juice to seed ratio is also very small.
Tomorrow we will harvest our second block of Cabernet and then take a rest for a couple days.
Crush is always my favorite time of the year. The work is hard but exciting and you can see how well you have treated your grapes. It is true that in a winery where terroir is expressed in the wine the wine is made in the vineyard. That is why Sierra Vista wines differ from year to year because terroir, the essence of the climate, soil, exposure(N,S, E ,W) varies especially with climate so our grapes and wine are a result of that variance. And that is what makes our wines exciting and delicious.
As I have said before:The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista. One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating. Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com
Friday, September 5, 2008
Current events at Sierra Vista
Rocky is gone.
Well I know that some people are reading our blog because I got a couple comments. Great!! However, one was from one of Rocky's fans questioning what happened to him. I know that he died and is not wandering around. Our vineyard foreman actually saw him the next morning after the event just lying in the vineyard just as if he went to sleep. Juan was afraid to tell us right away. We all miss him and Barbara has not been able to discuss getting another cat but she may if you encourage her next time you come up.
SIERRA VISTA HARVEST HAS STARTED!!!! On Sept 3, 2008 we harvested the Reeves Zin, the Old Clone Zin and the Cinsault all of which grow over at the Reeves Vineyard. They were the best grapes from that vineyard in all the years it has been producing. That may be because it is the smallest crop we have ever had. Because it was so small and so good I don't expect we will have any regular Zin because all will go to Reeves and Old Clone. So when the 2008 Zin is released it may be allocated or limited.
On Sept 4th we harvested the Merlot. It was just really great and the tonnage was just down a little. Both these vineyards ripened very early, probably because the yield is down. Most of the rest of the vineyard is on schedule and won't be early. In fact, some looks very late. Maybe even into October. That makes life easier because when it all comes in at once it is really hectic around here.
Club release party
Tomorrow we have our club release party with great food and some wonderful wine pairings. We have been getting reservations way past the cutoff date and are trying to accommodate everyone although the caterer ordered food for all with reservations last Tuesday.
That's all till next week.
The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista.One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com
Well I know that some people are reading our blog because I got a couple comments. Great!! However, one was from one of Rocky's fans questioning what happened to him. I know that he died and is not wandering around. Our vineyard foreman actually saw him the next morning after the event just lying in the vineyard just as if he went to sleep. Juan was afraid to tell us right away. We all miss him and Barbara has not been able to discuss getting another cat but she may if you encourage her next time you come up.
SIERRA VISTA HARVEST HAS STARTED!!!! On Sept 3, 2008 we harvested the Reeves Zin, the Old Clone Zin and the Cinsault all of which grow over at the Reeves Vineyard. They were the best grapes from that vineyard in all the years it has been producing. That may be because it is the smallest crop we have ever had. Because it was so small and so good I don't expect we will have any regular Zin because all will go to Reeves and Old Clone. So when the 2008 Zin is released it may be allocated or limited.
On Sept 4th we harvested the Merlot. It was just really great and the tonnage was just down a little. Both these vineyards ripened very early, probably because the yield is down. Most of the rest of the vineyard is on schedule and won't be early. In fact, some looks very late. Maybe even into October. That makes life easier because when it all comes in at once it is really hectic around here.
Club release party
Tomorrow we have our club release party with great food and some wonderful wine pairings. We have been getting reservations way past the cutoff date and are trying to accommodate everyone although the caterer ordered food for all with reservations last Tuesday.
That's all till next week.
The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista.One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Summer fall Sierra Vista Newsletter with events
Blogs are not just a one way flow of information as web sites are. At the bottom of this post there is the word "comment" underlined. You just click on that and write anything you want in the space provided.
Our vineyards have consistently produced grapes with lots of fruit character. Our older vineyards are on their own roots and many feel that own-rooted vines have the most fruit character. (Remember that all the old Bordeaux and Burgundy wines that aged so well -20 plus years- were on their own roots until the European phlyoxera infestation arrived) .
Even though the current wine writer bias is for off- dry high alcohol wines with residual sugar, Sierra Vista has continued to produce wines with moderate alcohol and a dry finish. Many chefs are on our side for they find the sweet, high alcohol wines do not pair well with foods. If you read the wine and food magazines, you will notice more and more chefs complaining about the high alcohol wines.
New Releases:
2006 Roussanne
2006 Viognier
2006 Fleur de Montagne
2006 Zinfandel Reeves Vineyard
Charlene (Charli) Anderson works part-time in our tasting room and even handles outside sales to restaurants. Charli is from the pharmaceutical industry and an expert at getting products approved by the FDA. You will enjoy her energy and enthusiasm for wine.
I'm sure you have all noticed how "green" is in. At Sierra Vista John has been farming our vineyards with sustainable methods for the past 34 years. As early as 1977 John would buck the current trend and would not use seed suppressant since it leaves a residual in the soil, even though the farm advice at that time was for its use. Now John used an organic product for mildew, mite and leafhopper control called stylet oil which is not the current farm advice either.
Solar panels installed on the roof of the winery.
We were one of the early wineries in El Dorado County to install solar panels. At first they were not very efficient until the inverters were moved inside the winery and out of the sun. Now the system is a constant help reducing our carbon footprint.
This past year we began using recyclable products for our events. These products cost more but Sierra Vista feels we all need to reduce negative impacts on the earth.
At the end of July a new software system was installed for retail and wholesale orders. You will see a computer in our tasting room instead of the old cash registers. Finally after many patches and modifications, Barbara convinced John that we needed to upgrade instead of buying more winemaking equipment. The old inventory and invoicing system was purchased in 1980 and we really did get our money's worth. The staff is looking forward to the new system and we are asking for your patience while we convert and get trained with the new one. The wine clubs will all be handled by the new software as well as inventory and invoicing.
Up coming events
32rd Harvest Celebration
We will have our 32nd harvest celebration and Wine Club pick-up barbecue on Saturday, September 6th, from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
Again this year Rick Custom Meats will bring out their grill and fire it up with lots of shrimp and tri-tip. As always they will serve plenty of beef, shrimp, pasta salad, Caesar salad, garlic bread and brownies. The price this year is $24 per person. We had to raise the price since everything has gone up. Wine club members get to come for $20 per person. Four reservations per wine club member at this price. Please email, call or fax the winery soon to save your place.
Saturday and Sunday, September 13th and 14th, Tour de Vine, El Dorado Wine Harvest Festival. At Sierra Vista we will “Sense the Harvest”. Demonstration of how to tell when the grapes are ready to harvest, hear the fermentation sounds, identify the smells for a particular grape variety fermenting and the aromas of the finished wine, experience the flavors for the same wine alone, and finally savor the wine with food.
Stars Wine Club Winemaker dinner at Zachary Jacques Restaurant
Saturday, October 18th, 6:00 PM
Since our new grandson’s arrival at the end of July prevented our usual dinner on the lawn at the winery, we asked John Evans if he would be willing to host a dinner for us in October. In October we cannot count on good weather for outside dinning and sunset is early so we felt we should plan on dinner inside.
We hope you will join us for this event. There is limited seating so reserve your space as soon as possible. You can see the menu at http://www.sierravistawinery.com/pages/events.php
Our beloved cat, Rocky, never showed up after the Sunday evening of Rocks and Rhones. Rocky had a wonderful last day with lots of attention and petting from the staff and guests. Late in the afternoon he amazed us all when he caught a gopher since Rocky was blind in both eyes at that time. He was very proud of this gopher and John caught this photo of him that evening.
Rockys last catch on his last day
By the way we did harvest our Sauvignon blanc on the 19th and as usual it is delicious even now. When it is fermenting it goes through various stages of taste. When first crushed and pressed it tastes like Sauvignon Blanc grapes, but now after a week it tastes like grapefruit juice (but sweeter). If you come and ask for a taste I will get you one if I am here and it has not finished fermenting. Just ask whoever is in the tasting room to get me. John
The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista.
One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.
Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com
NEWSLETTER
Thirty-two years ago when we began making wine, the in style was big with high alcohol and even raisiny character. In 1978 we made a Zinfandel with close to 18% alcohol. Were we ever disappointed with how this wine aged and it did not compliment food either. Although the wine sold well, we were not happy about the wine or its quality. This experience initiated our balanced and dry fruity wine style. We found that dry, well structured wines compliment foods easily and also age well, especially the reds. Sierra Vista's wines all have good acidity and this helps with the aging and as food companions. So now 32 years later, we still produce consistent dry, balanced wines with good acidity and plenty of fruit, not overpowered by oak.Our vineyards have consistently produced grapes with lots of fruit character. Our older vineyards are on their own roots and many feel that own-rooted vines have the most fruit character. (Remember that all the old Bordeaux and Burgundy wines that aged so well -20 plus years- were on their own roots until the European phlyoxera infestation arrived) .
Even though the current wine writer bias is for off- dry high alcohol wines with residual sugar, Sierra Vista has continued to produce wines with moderate alcohol and a dry finish. Many chefs are on our side for they find the sweet, high alcohol wines do not pair well with foods. If you read the wine and food magazines, you will notice more and more chefs complaining about the high alcohol wines.
New Releases:
2006 Roussanne
2006 Viognier
2006 Fleur de Montagne
2006 Zinfandel Reeves Vineyard
Enid Reeves in her vineyard
2006 Grenache
2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve
2005 Merlot Reserve
2005 Mourvedre 
thinning Mourvedre grapes
New Faces at the Winery
Tyler Grace joined John in the cellar last August. Tyler had spent 6 years working at a Napa winery before joining us. His family has a vineyard in Apple Hill. Tyler is serious and meticulous in his cellar and winemaking work. It's great to have him here.
Charlene (Charli) Anderson works part-time in our tasting room and even handles outside sales to restaurants. Charli is from the pharmaceutical industry and an expert at getting products approved by the FDA. You will enjoy her energy and enthusiasm for wine.
I'm sure you have all noticed how "green" is in. At Sierra Vista John has been farming our vineyards with sustainable methods for the past 34 years. As early as 1977 John would buck the current trend and would not use seed suppressant since it leaves a residual in the soil, even though the farm advice at that time was for its use. Now John used an organic product for mildew, mite and leafhopper control called stylet oil which is not the current farm advice either.
Solar panels installed on the roof of the winery.
We were one of the early wineries in El Dorado County to install solar panels. At first they were not very efficient until the inverters were moved inside the winery and out of the sun. Now the system is a constant help reducing our carbon footprint.This past year we began using recyclable products for our events. These products cost more but Sierra Vista feels we all need to reduce negative impacts on the earth.
At the end of July a new software system was installed for retail and wholesale orders. You will see a computer in our tasting room instead of the old cash registers. Finally after many patches and modifications, Barbara convinced John that we needed to upgrade instead of buying more winemaking equipment. The old inventory and invoicing system was purchased in 1980 and we really did get our money's worth. The staff is looking forward to the new system and we are asking for your patience while we convert and get trained with the new one. The wine clubs will all be handled by the new software as well as inventory and invoicing.
Up coming events
32rd Harvest Celebration
We will have our 32nd harvest celebration and Wine Club pick-up barbecue on Saturday, September 6th, from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
Again this year Rick Custom Meats will bring out their grill and fire it up with lots of shrimp and tri-tip. As always they will serve plenty of beef, shrimp, pasta salad, Caesar salad, garlic bread and brownies. The price this year is $24 per person. We had to raise the price since everything has gone up. Wine club members get to come for $20 per person. Four reservations per wine club member at this price. Please email, call or fax the winery soon to save your place.
Saturday and Sunday, September 13th and 14th, Tour de Vine, El Dorado Wine Harvest Festival. At Sierra Vista we will “Sense the Harvest”. Demonstration of how to tell when the grapes are ready to harvest, hear the fermentation sounds, identify the smells for a particular grape variety fermenting and the aromas of the finished wine, experience the flavors for the same wine alone, and finally savor the wine with food.
Stars Wine Club Winemaker dinner at Zachary Jacques Restaurant
Saturday, October 18th, 6:00 PM
Since our new grandson’s arrival at the end of July prevented our usual dinner on the lawn at the winery, we asked John Evans if he would be willing to host a dinner for us in October. In October we cannot count on good weather for outside dinning and sunset is early so we felt we should plan on dinner inside.
We hope you will join us for this event. There is limited seating so reserve your space as soon as possible. You can see the menu at http://www.sierravistawinery.com/pages/events.php
Our beloved cat, Rocky, never showed up after the Sunday evening of Rocks and Rhones. Rocky had a wonderful last day with lots of attention and petting from the staff and guests. Late in the afternoon he amazed us all when he caught a gopher since Rocky was blind in both eyes at that time. He was very proud of this gopher and John caught this photo of him that evening.
Rockys last catch on his last day
By the way we did harvest our Sauvignon blanc on the 19th and as usual it is delicious even now. When it is fermenting it goes through various stages of taste. When first crushed and pressed it tastes like Sauvignon Blanc grapes, but now after a week it tastes like grapefruit juice (but sweeter). If you come and ask for a taste I will get you one if I am here and it has not finished fermenting. Just ask whoever is in the tasting room to get me. John
The following I will be including on every blog I post. This is because I hope you will forward our blog address to all your email friends and you never know who might be able to help Sierra Vista.
One thing I would like to hear about is when you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoy and why you liked it. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.
Another thing is, as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts, is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state, please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Early harvest
I am writing this from a friends house in Vancouver, Washington. This week I did ridewiths with sales representatives of my Oregon distributor. We worked in Eugene, Corvallis, and Portland. Successful I think!
On the way to wrapping up the week with a meeting of all the distributor's staff Friday morning I received a call from my assistant winemaker that our Sauvignon Blanc supplier called and wanted to pick Sunday. He told me last week that the grapes would not be ready to pick until the last week of August. Of course we can't pick Sunday the 17th because Barbara and I will be flying home Sunday. On the way home I will stop by the vineyard and sample to verify that the grapes are actually ready to harvest. If so it will be the earliest start of harvest ever. Why so early? I suspect it is because the vineyard got hit with frost and is not carrying as heavy a load as usual and therefore is ripening faster. Another factor is that Amador is much hotter than Sierra Vista. The earliest of our grapes look to be 2-3 weeks from harvest. This is a real pain because we are bottling Friday the 22nd and have scheduled filtering for this week.
Blogs are not just a one way flow of information as web sites are. At the bottom of this post there is the word "comment" underlined. You just click on that and write anything you want in the space provided.
One thing I would like to hear about is if you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoyed. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.
Another thing is as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com
On the way to wrapping up the week with a meeting of all the distributor's staff Friday morning I received a call from my assistant winemaker that our Sauvignon Blanc supplier called and wanted to pick Sunday. He told me last week that the grapes would not be ready to pick until the last week of August. Of course we can't pick Sunday the 17th because Barbara and I will be flying home Sunday. On the way home I will stop by the vineyard and sample to verify that the grapes are actually ready to harvest. If so it will be the earliest start of harvest ever. Why so early? I suspect it is because the vineyard got hit with frost and is not carrying as heavy a load as usual and therefore is ripening faster. Another factor is that Amador is much hotter than Sierra Vista. The earliest of our grapes look to be 2-3 weeks from harvest. This is a real pain because we are bottling Friday the 22nd and have scheduled filtering for this week.
Blogs are not just a one way flow of information as web sites are. At the bottom of this post there is the word "comment" underlined. You just click on that and write anything you want in the space provided.
One thing I would like to hear about is if you drink a bottle of Sierra Vista wine that you really enjoyed. I would also like to hear about what food you had it with or if you drank it without eating.
Another thing is as I mentioned in the previous post and will include in all future posts is if any of you know a small wine distributor in any state please let me know so I can contact them about carrying our wine. If you don't know any distributors you might ask at your favorite wine shop for the names of several small distributors and include them in your comment on this blog. I would appreciate it very much. If you do not want to comment on this blog you could email me at syrah@sierravistawinery.com
Friday, August 8, 2008
I will not be able to post a message every day nor even every week but I will try to do one on Monday and Friday except next week I will be on a sales trip to Oregon. I am combining business with pleasure and staying with friends in Portland so will probably not do one next week. And this leads into a discussion of distributors who we would like more of. If you know any small distributors, preferably family owned who is looking for a premium winery from the Eastern Highlands of Californi please have them get in touch with me, either through this blog or at syrah@sierravistawinery.com.
As always Sierra Vista is looking for more sales so yesterday I had lunch at the Broiler in Sacramento with a prospective new sales person. The Broiler is a long time supporter of Sierra Vista. They have the steak sandwich to which we compare all others and their seafood choice is always tops.
Until next time have a good an profitable week.
John
As always Sierra Vista is looking for more sales so yesterday I had lunch at the Broiler in Sacramento with a prospective new sales person. The Broiler is a long time supporter of Sierra Vista. They have the steak sandwich to which we compare all others and their seafood choice is always tops.
Until next time have a good an profitable week.
John
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Hi all,
The overwhelming response from 3 people is that this is a good idea so I will continue. this is a light hearted start to a new post.
Now to a more somber and sad announcement. Last night Rick Quarry died in his sleep. We and many others will miss his good hearted and great food contribution to the world of catering and his contribution to the wine industry of El Dorado County.
Barbara has figured out how to use the new POS system in ways her instructor could not figure. It will help speed up service in the tasting room and help our staff be more accurate when dealing with customers.
In the vineyard the first of verasion started about a week earlier than I expected but it still puts us starting harvest Sept 6. At least I will have something to do at our release party.
Thats all for now.
John
The overwhelming response from 3 people is that this is a good idea so I will continue. this is a light hearted start to a new post.
Now to a more somber and sad announcement. Last night Rick Quarry died in his sleep. We and many others will miss his good hearted and great food contribution to the world of catering and his contribution to the wine industry of El Dorado County.
Barbara has figured out how to use the new POS system in ways her instructor could not figure. It will help speed up service in the tasting room and help our staff be more accurate when dealing with customers.
In the vineyard the first of verasion started about a week earlier than I expected but it still puts us starting harvest Sept 6. At least I will have something to do at our release party.
Thats all for now.
John
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Hi all,
This is an attempt at starting a blog to let you know what is happening at Sierra Vista in a timely fashion.
The first thing is that our daughter had a baby boy on July 30. Lucky little guy, not close t0 Christmas on either side. 6lbs 12 oz. All three are doing great, baby, mother and father.
The next thing is that Barbara, Donna, and Clyda have been training on a new point of sale, inventory control and invoice generator system for the last two weeks. Lots of work and very costly but we hope it will help make the service we proivde you better and more timely.
So do you think a blog is a good idea or a waste of time. Let me know.
John
This is an attempt at starting a blog to let you know what is happening at Sierra Vista in a timely fashion.
The first thing is that our daughter had a baby boy on July 30. Lucky little guy, not close t0 Christmas on either side. 6lbs 12 oz. All three are doing great, baby, mother and father.
The next thing is that Barbara, Donna, and Clyda have been training on a new point of sale, inventory control and invoice generator system for the last two weeks. Lots of work and very costly but we hope it will help make the service we proivde you better and more timely.
So do you think a blog is a good idea or a waste of time. Let me know.
John
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