Lodi's stoned dry, soulful rosés

Bechthold Vineyard Cinsaut (ancient vines planted in 1886) during July 2015 veraison; source of some of the finest roses in California

Summer, as many Lodi wine lovers well know, is the time for backyards brimming with tinkles and laughter, hovering hummingbirds, and the pungently earthy scent of golden paellas or the wispy gray smoke of grilling vegetables and marinated white or red meats; the heat bending the optics of multi-colored flora through the dappled shades and blinding rays of sun penetrating through the typically towering trees nourished by our fertile Delta soil.

Jul 20, 2015 at 4:21 PM Permalink

Are we brainwashed by wine prices and ratings?

The non-existent connection between quality and price

How much of what we perceive or think about wine is a mind trick - much less real than we may suspect?

Naturally, here in Lodi – where average bottle prices tend to be slightly lower than that of other wine regions because of a number of circumstances, beginning with grape prices – we have reason to dwell on this question. In our case: How much of what consumers (as well as critics and wine industry professionals) think of Lodi wines is real, and how much is simply unfounded perception?

Jul 12, 2015 at 3:13 PM Permalink

How warm (or cool) is Lodi?

Taking Lodi’s temperature over the past century 

There are things about the Lodi Viticultural Area that are not exactly common knowledge among wine lovers.

The growing of wine grapes in this Delta region, for instance, dates back to the 1860s. Yet Lodi is still considered an “up and coming” wine region. Fair enough. Although Lodi is easily the largest wine grape growing region in the U.S. in terms of acreage (table grapes and raisins play almost no role in Lodi’s viticultural industry), top quality varietal wines that say “Lodi” on the label didn’t actually appear in the market until the late 1990s. In that sense, Lodi is very up and coming.

Jul 7, 2015 at 2:52 PM Permalink

Sensible wines for summer barbecues

Lodi's Jon Bjork grilling up some Korean style short ribs

Who doesn’t associate summer with barbecue? It’s an American thing, but you might also consider it a return to primal instincts. “Ugh, me Tarzan, you Jane, we smoke ribs and drink Zinfandel tonight.”

Over the years we have gathered perfectly intellectual thoughts on the art of enjoying barbecues with wine. Not. It’s really more of a sensory thing – you feel what are the best wines for different barbecues, you don’t think it.

Jul 3, 2015 at 1:58 PM Permalink

Lodi son cooks Hawaiian inspired lunch with Acquiesce wines

What happens when a young, curious, forward-thinking, Lodi raised chef, after rigorous training under one of Hawai`i’s most renowned chefs, is given the opportunity to create a menu to match the wines of the Lod Viticultural Area’s Acquiesce Winery?

Summery hot, fun, culinary fireworks, of course!“

Jul 1, 2015 at 12:42 PM Permalink

Lodi wines garner top honors at California State Fair

Oak Farm Albarino: California State Fair’s “Best of Show White”

At the The Best of California Awards Ceremony this past Tuesday, June 23 in Sacramento's Cal Expo, a significant number of Lodi AVA grown wines were awarded Blue Ribbons or Golden Bear trophies for finishing at the very top of several categories at the 2015 California State Fair Commercial Wine Competiton.

Jun 25, 2015 at 8:00 AM Permalink

PRIE Vineyards joins Lodi's community of small, artisanal wineries

PRIE Vineyards co-owner/winemaker John Gash in his Cabernet Sauvignon estate planting 

The Lodi Viticultural Area’s latest artisanal wine producer, PRIE Vineyards, quietly opened its tasting room at 15628 N. Alpine Rd. (practically across the street from Klinker Brick Winery’s tasting room), this past April.

Owners John and Lisa Gash may be newbies – “home” winemakers since 2005, and commercial winemakers since 2011 – but they are dead-serious about their winegrowing operation; having invested in an 8.5-acre vineyard previously planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, surrounding their low-key winery facilities designed for a maximum yearly production of 2000 cases.

Jun 22, 2015 at 7:41 PM Permalink

Dreams of real, velvety wines (or, dream case of Lodi drinking reds)

Photo by Evgeniy Lankin (image available through fineartamerica.com)

We have this recurring dream. It’s almost mid-day. We wake up late, after some wine-soaked conversation deep into the night before, and still haven’t yet eaten. So after stopping at a tiny charcuterie for some cooked sausages, marinated olives, a round of local bread – tasting as sweet and silky as pancakes in the inside, crunchy as toasted crusts on the outside – and a bottle of wine, we follow a winding brook at the foot of a steep hill outside the village, in search of a table in the sky.

Jun 17, 2015 at 8:00 AM Permalink

Why cool kids are lovin' Lodi

Wine lovers at 2015 Lodi ZinFest

Recently, folks at local wineries have been reporting a growing influx of wine lovers of a different stripe. They’ve been coming in from major cities – San Francisco, L.A., Dallas, Chicago, New York, Vancouver – after reading about it in national magazines or the blogosphere, or catching a taste of it in a few bottles that say “Lodi.”  Sleek women in citified heels (awkward for walking between the rows of grapevines for selfies), and guys in goatees and/or hipster hats.

Jun 11, 2015 at 5:59 PM Permalink

Lodi Grenache reds rated among the finest in California

Lodi grower Phil Abba and McCay Cellars winemaker/owner Mike McCay in Abba Vineyard

Some things just creep up on you – like the unsuspected appeal of red wines made from the black skinned Grenache grape. Especially those grown in Lodi.

Earlier in the month we endeavored to take a measure of varietal bottlings of Lodi grown Grenache; gathering 15 of the finest examples grown and produced in California for a “blind” tasting. Meaning, the bottles were poured from paper sacks, their identities unknown to the tasters, which included three of Lodi’s most respected vintners: Markus Bokisch of Bokisch Vineyards, Chad Joseph of Harney Lane Winery and Oak Farm Vineyards (plus three more Lodi based wineries), and Michael McCay of McCay Cellars.

Jun 9, 2015 at 8:15 PM Permalink