Washington’s Leonetti Vineyards during the wildfires of 2015.
This September has been horrible for pretty much all of the winemaking regions in California, Oregon and Washington. Wildfires are burning in each of those states and pose considerable danger to this year’s harvest and to the vineyards and the people living and working in those regions. British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley may face risk as well. The physical danger posed by these fires is very real and our hearts go out to all those affected; they are in our thoughts and we are sending up our wishes for their safety.
The Champagne house Veuve Clicquot might just be the region’s most recognizable name. Its distinctive yellow/orange label is the envy of every marketing grad across the world as Veuve Clicquot’s brand identity is unsurpassed. Now a part of luxury brand owner LMVH, Veuve Clicquot is a marketing powerhouse within a marketing powerhouse.
Cavallo is the latest project of Frank Gigliotti, the record executive turned management consultant who decided to drop his business career and focus on the two things he loves most: wine and music. Frank is a high-energy entrepreneur who has a passion for everything he does, especially when it comes to making wine.
Winemaking in Chile dates back to the 16th century where at that time production was largely by way of unsophisticated techniques that resulted in simple wines meant to be enjoyed young, with little thought to cellaring. As a result, the country became well known for decent value wines, but it was a rarity to see a Chilean bottle within a fine wine collection. That started to change in the 19th century when wealthy businessmen travelling to Europe started bringing Bordeaux varieties back to Chile to plant on their properties. They also brought with them French winemaking techniques that has since transformed Chile’s wine reputation from quaffable to world-class.
The gorgeous view at Barnett Vineyards on Spring Mountain.
For the past two decades, we’ve been visiting the Napa and Sonoma Valleys almost annually. The two Valleys run parallel, separated by the Mayacamas Mountains in northern California. Both are terrific tourist destinations and among the top wine regions in the United States. While Sonoma is much larger in terms of vineyard area and variety of wines produced, Napa is the better-known region of the two with a world-class reputation built on Cabernet Sauvignon. For years, wine enthusiasts have debated the difference between the Cabernets produced on the Valley floor versus those produced from fruit higher up on the mountainsides.
The term “cult cab” gained great currency in the late 1990s and early 2000s. It was really a California phenomenon, though certainly other regions have their iconic wines. The California cult wines were predominately Cabernet Sauvignon and mostly came from Napa. The cult wines were so-named because of a nearly fanatical group of wealthy collectors who would pay huge prices to obtain bottles in a cult-like devotion to a group of small, quality-focused wineries.
For almost 60 years the Zuccardi family has been making wine in Argentina’s Mendoza region. We visited one of their 3 wineries to hear their story first-hand, have a delicious traditional asado lunch and to taste their wines.
Our latest Video AdVINEture features our very own ‘backyard’, British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley. We met with some old favourites like Meyer Family Vineyards, Painted Rock Estate Winery, and Okanagan Crush Pad, as well as two discoveries which have quickly become new favourites: Little Engine Wines and Kismet Winery. This is just a sneak peek of our recent trip, click on the individual links for the full story on each. Cheers!
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