350 Cases of wine bottled.  Thanks to Uzi, Caleb and our volunteers for all the hardwork!

racking before bottling

This Friday we bottle the 2009 Stomping Girl Pinot Noir.  So much preparation goes in to this one day (design and print labels, get federal approval for labels, order capsules and corks, find workers [thanks volunteers!], line up warehouse to store bottled wine, etc. etc, but the most important thing is always the wine.  We sample and blend wine, decide which barrels are ready to bottle, run lab test on the wine to determine alcohol level, ph, etc., and we rack the barreled wine off the lees.  To do this, all the barrels are moved to the floor of the winery, no small feat in a small space, and the wine is pushed through hoses into large stainless steel tanks using argon gas (see picture above.)  Then the wine is allowed to settle for a while before its big day.  It is our last opportunity to taste and make any adjustments before it goes into bottle. Or as someone (wise?) once said, this is last opportunity for the winemaker to screw up the wine.

]]> http://blog.stompinggirlwines.com/2010/07/27/aftermath-of-a-dinner-party/feed/ 0 stompinggirl dinner party http://blog.stompinggirlwines.com/2010/07/14/vineyards-in-late-june/ http://blog.stompinggirlwines.com/2010/07/14/vineyards-in-late-june/#comments Thu, 15 Jul 2010 05:51:09 +0000 stompinggirl http://blog.stompinggirlwines.com/?p=1917 ]]> We popped in on Beresini Vineyard and Corona Creek Vineyard in late June to check on the fruit.  Here they are:

Beresini vineyard (first photo) is in Carneros.  The berries are a little farther developed than those in Corona Creek (2nd photo) located in Sonoma Coast.  In 2009, we harvested Beresini over 2 weeks before Corona Creek.

We also stopped at the Fremont Diner in Carneros, just down the road from Beresini, for some down home cooking.  The big yellow square in the photo is butter, right behind it is a pig’s leg. Definitely not the place to go if you’re on a diet.

2008 Stomping Girl, Lone Oak Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highland, Pinot Noir – 90 Points

“Deep and earthy…”

Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands Lone Oak Vineyard
Medium-deep ruby color; deep, black cherry and earthy
aromas with some spice and oak notes; rich, black cherry
and earthy flavors with some sweet oak notes; silky
texture; good structure and balance; long finish. Deep and
earthy Pinot with a lot of interesting flavors.

2008 Stomping Girl Split Rock Vineyard, Sonoma Coast, Pinot Noir - 91 Points

“Spicy and complex…”
Stomping Girl Wines
Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast Split Rock Vineyard
2008
Medium-deep ruby color; lots of complex, pretty aromas
of cherry and earth; deep, full cherry flavors with complex
spice and earth notes; silky texture; good structure and
balance; long finish. Spicy and complex Pinot that is a
great match for grilled meats.

]]> http://blog.stompinggirlwines.com/2010/06/11/pinot-report-review-of-stomping-girl-wines/feed/ 1 rc212 http://blog.stompinggirlwines.com/2010/06/07/bottles-and-capsules-and-corks-oh-my/ http://blog.stompinggirlwines.com/2010/06/07/bottles-and-capsules-and-corks-oh-my/#comments Tue, 08 Jun 2010 05:51:01 +0000 stompinggirl http://blog.stompinggirlwines.com/?p=1867 ]]>

bottles, capsules and cork samples

Winemaking is not always about making wine.  There are always less glamorous tasks to be done, like packaging, which we are working on now. Later this summer we will bottle our 2009 vintage and we are lining up packaging details now. This means decisions have to be made on what size, color and nationality the bottle will be. We must choose what type of cork to use and if our logo will be branded on it. Then there is the capsule–what material, color, size do we want? Logo or no logo?  And last, but not least, we must update our label for the 3 different vineyards 2009.

Under my radar, downstairs, Uzi has been busy mixing and matching different colored capsules with various styles of bottles with our 2008 label slapped on to get a visual of what we want to end up with.

During his mix and match process, Uzi put a filled bottle with our 2008 Stomping Girl label, a red capsule and a Stomping Girl branded cork in it on our kitchen counter for me to see.  In an ironic twist of fate, later that same day a sommelier/wine director from a very well-known restaurant coincidentally paid me a surprise visit on an unrelated matter (we were working together on a project for our kids’ school.) He knows we make wine and spontaneously asked if he could try it.  I obliged, of course, after all there was the bottle of it right there in front of us on the counter. Had I followed rule #1 of pouring your wine to trade, I would have tasted it, and I would have known that it was not the 2008 Stomping Girl Lone Oak Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands that was clearly indicated on the label and that I portrayed it to be.

The gentleman gave it a sniff and a whirl.  His feedback was brief as he was in a hurry. He observed cranberries on the nose and the palette and then had to run to an appointment. Cranberries???  I should have known something was up at that point.  Our Lone Oak definitely does not invoke cranberries.  It has a much darker red fruit component.

That night I discovered the wine that had been on the counter, that I had poured for our new friend was not what I thought it was.  Aack!  I had been waiting weeks for the perfect opportunity to pour our wine for this man and I blew it!  How was I to know that a bottle labeled 2008 Stomping Girl Lone Oak Pinot Noir was in fact a bottle of our 2007 basement Pinot? Still a perfectly drinkable Pinot but not our Stomping Girl that retails for $38.

Luckily, we had a nice chuckle over it later and I promised to pour the real Stomping Girl for him next time.  Wonder if he’ll believe me?

new vineyard growth

We went up with the kids to the vineyard in the Russian River Valley we source fruit from this weekend.  The young shoots are out in full force, reaching for the sun and tiny clusters of flowers are starting to form.  It was a beautiful day and we are off to a fabulous start for another great harvest from Lauterbach vineyard.

spring in russian river valley vineyard

We have been taking the kids to wineries and vineyards for so many years and it is starting to pay off.  Finally, no complaints, no arguing in the back seat. And they happily trekked after Dad up and down the rows, stopping, inspecting and enjoying themselves.  A picnic and a stop at Powell’s Sweet Shoppe in Windsor on the way home might have helped a bit as well.

Stomping Girl at Vin12

We had a great time pouring at last week’s Vin12 One Year Anniversary event.  This was our second time pouring for them.  Vin12 holds monthly wine tasting events in San Francisco, each one a new wine theme.  These events attract young, wine drinking crowds; some are Vin12 groupies who attend every Vin12 event, others are new to the scene.

The events are held in a great spot called the Solarium in the lower floor of an office building on Second Street just below Market.  Its location is convenient for the after-work crowd, the setting is very attractive and it’s a great opportunity to try some new wines.  We’ll be pouring at some of their upcoming events (we’ll update our Facebook page when we pour.)  If you plan to come to one, give me a heads up–I’ll see if I can get you a complimentary ticket.

Each time we sample, a different wine seems to be the favorite.  The first time around it was our Corona Creek (Sonoma Coast) samples. Next time we preferred the Beresini (Carneros.)  The third time, we tasted with Steve Beresini (he grows what else?  our Beresini.)  Steve liked them all but in the end he “admitted” that at that moment in time, he preferred the Corona Creek.  This last time that Uzi and I tasted, our Lauterbach (Russian River) seemed to be the winner.  This, I think, reflects three things:  1) the different vineyards expressing unique characteristics; 2) the nature of Pinot Noir and how it changes and evolves in the barrel, in the bottle and in the glass; and 3) that we will end up with three distinct Pinots and definitely something for everyone.

Officially, kosher wine is served for Passover.  For a wine to be kosher, there are many rules that must be followed, such as:

1. The vines on which the grapes are grown must be at least 4 years old and left unharvested every seventh year.
2. Only kosher, non-animal ingredients may go into the wine (i.e., only certain yeasts may be used and egg white, a common fining ingredient, may not be used.)
3. Only male, Sabbath-observant Jews are allowed to handle the wine through the entire winemaking process from the harvesting of the grapes, through fermentation, to bottling.
4. One Percent of the wine must be discarded.
5. Barrels must cleaned 3 times before use.

The Cohen family Passover wine enjoyed by them every year in Israel was not officially kosher, being that Esther and Michal handled the grapes and the wine.  But it was close enough for Grandmother Esther.

For us here in California, the # 1 rule for Passover wine is that it must taste great.  After all, you are supposed to drink four glass of it every night.  And, though not Sabbath observant, our chief winemaker is Jewish and from Israel…and that makes Stomping Girl Wine pretty close to being kosher.  Passover starts next week, and I bet you know what wine we’ll be serving.