Letters from Lodi
An insightful and objective look at viticulture and winemaking from the Lodi
Appellation and the growers and vintners behind these crafts. Told from the
perspective of multi-award winning wine journalist, Randy Caparoso.
The consequential role of women in the Lodi wine industry
March is Women's History Month. We should, no doubt, celebrate the contributions of women to events and history every month, on each day of the year; but in its wisdom, U.S. Congress (in 1987) selected March as the month to celebrate the achievements of women towards our nation's fortunes and destiny.
The wine industry, however, is one place where women are still "catching up," so to speak, despite the fact that women make up just over half of the country's population, and currently over 58% of the country's overall work force...
Continue »Latest update on the 100+ grapes grown in Lodi
When the first-ever scholarly book on Lodi winegrowing was published in 2022, an entire chapter was devoted to 130 grapes, complete with photographs, representing each and every variety commercially grown in the appellation. Re Lodi! The Definitive Guide and History of America's Largest Winegrowing Region (2022, KitchenCinco Press).
Almost immediately after this 400-page tome was published, it was out of date. At least insofar as grape varieties.
A few grapes listed in the 2022 publication have since been dropped by growers, just over the past three years. A larger number has been added, simply because both new and established growers in Lodi have been a restless lot, busily cultivating brand new (at least for Lodi, if not most of California) varieties. The winegrowing industry, after all, is a fluid business, controlled by supply and demand, consumer trends and economic factors...
Continue »Vivid images of Lodi's Beauty of Days Gone By
In the seasonal rhythms of life, the cusp of spring (in 2024, coming up on March 19) is when the earth is exhaling, after and months and months of breathing and holding still, conserving energy for the longer days, the warmer temperatures and brighter, more nourishing light.
We respond in kind, as walking, talking, singing organic extensions of the Mother we call Nature. Spring awakens our appetites, and our thirst for wines and life is piqued, re-energized, hopeful, healing, as pent up and bracing as rushing, uncontained snowmelt...
Continue »The magic of Tempranillo (particularly with meaty dishes such as chocolate chili)
Tempranillo is not an obvious wine.
Yet by now, you have had either a personal experience or have heard all about this red wine varietal, made from the cultivar of this name that is native to Spain.
At least within the Lodi appellation, where the varietal has a place of little more importance than in other American wine regions. Among local wineries, there are now as many bottlings of Tempranillo as Cabernet Sauvignon (but not nearly as many as Zinfandel, Lodi's signature variety)...
Continue »Early sensory report on Lodi's challenging, yet exceptionally promising, 2023 vintage
California's 2023 harvest, you might have heard, was problematic, especially in the Lodi appellation.
In Lodi, the challenges were more economic than those of issues imposed by Mother Nature. It was, in short, a cooler than usual vintage. Theoretically, this is good, because Lodi is a warm climate winegrowing region. But as San Joaquin County Viticulture Farm Advisor Jim Kissler put it, “Some growers had trouble obtaining the minimum sugar requirements of 22˚ Brix [i.e., sugar readings]... and growers without a home for their grapes found it frustrating."
As of 2023, the entire California wine grape industry is beset with a problem of oversupply. Many vineyards up and down the state went unpicked last year, with vineyard owners left holding the bag. According to a report posted by Stuart Spencer (Executive Director, Lodi Winegrape Commission) this past December 4 on the Lodi Growers page...
Continue »Ode to Lodi's legendary Flame Tokay, never to be forgotten
About eight miles east of the City of Lodi, there is a short country lane called Tokay Colony Road, demarcated by Hwy. 88 to the west and N. Tully Rd. at its eastern end. It's an interesting road because it was named for the grape variety called Tokay—more properly known by its full name, Flame Tokay—which for about 100 years was the most widely planted grape in the Lodi wine appellation.
Only, it was never really a wine grape. Flame Tokay was primarily a table grape, grown for the fresh market, in supply for no more than a month's time each year...
Continue »Favorite Lodi Zinfandel and cheese matches
The air is still a little nippy, if not downright damp, which is why I, for one, tend to tucker down in the safety of my four walls at night. Preferably with a bottle of Zinfandel.
I drink Zinfandel with almost everything, including my favorite foods, such as spaghetti and meatballs, pan fried pork chops, Asian spiced barbecued baby back ribs, hibachi grilled salmon, or just plain pasta and garlic. How do you spell comfort?
Zinfandel, as it were, is also surprisingly good with cheese. Especially the gourmet type cheeses you find at Cheese Central, the artisanal cheese store owned by Cindy Della Monica, located in Downtown Lodi...
Continue »For one last time: level of alcohol has little to do with overall quality or balance in wines
There was an unexpected response to one of our articles posted at the end of January on Zinfandels tasted at the last big Zinfandel Advocates & Producers Grand Tasting in San Francisco (see At 2024 ZAP, it is clear that California Zinfandel has finally grown up).
On social media, one widely known wine journalist asked, "Why did you not list alcohol levels of the Zinfandels you wrote about?" His explanation for his question: "Knowing the alcohol levels helps me decide if I like a wine or not."
When it comes to wine, the rule is always to-each-his-own. Neither I nor anyone can never tell you how to appreciate wine. But when it comes to alcohol, particularly as it pertains to California Zinfandel, I can advise you based on simple facts: It is a big mistake to pre-judge a wine by its level of alcohol—something the industry often refers to as ABV, or Alcohol by Volume, usually listed in small print on the sides of wine labels...
Continue »Christopher Cellars' blend of classic Lodi grapes among Best of Class winners at 2024 San Francisco Chronicle Competition
The yearly San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition is a massive affair, taking place at the end of each January. The 2024 edition involved 52 professional judges tasting over 5,500 wines.
Wines are entered from anywhere in North America. Consequently, when the 2024 winners of the 177 classes of wines were announced, winning bottlings hailed from everywhere from California's Napa Valley and Sonoma County to Washington, Oregon, Michigan, Texas, Idaho and New York...
Continue »Photographic memories of Lodi's 27th Wine and Chocolate weekend
Neither rain (luckily, minimal!) nor blustery winds seemed to deter thousands of Lodi wine lovers enjoying the region's 27th annual Wine and Chocolate weekend, this past February 2-4, 2024.
Friday the 2nd started with intimate dinners or special tasting events Heritage Oak, Housley's Century Oak, Oak Farm, Peltier, Rippey Family, St. Amant and The Dancing Fox wineries...
Continue »