Luiz Alberto on East vs. West - Terroir speaks louder than winemaking in Lodi

Luiz Alberto (front) with fellow visiting Snooth journalists in Lodi this past April (photo courtesy of Michelle Williams)

For this blog post, we are pleased to feature the words and impressions of a guest writer: Luiz Alberto, the Brazilian born, Boston based founder/author of The Wine Hub, one of the most popular multifaceted consumer-service sites on the web, where Mr. Alberto regularly plies his boots-on-the-ground international experiences to share his vinous pearls of wisdom.

Mr. Alberto, however, is not just another “blogger.” He’s also a dreamer and schemer, and a visionary and incendiary, of the highest order, on a global scale. Intrigued by the simple concept of wine bringing people of all walks of life together – and wine, after all, is the most social of beverages (it’s like coffee, but with the liberating touch of natural alcohol) – a few short years ago Alberto founded the #winelover community as a Web site and as a Facebook page, the latter now sporting over 23,400 followers or "members." On Instagram, as of this week, nearly 7 million images have been posted on the #winelover community page...

Jun 4, 2019 at 1:00 PM Permalink

Lodi 101 (for true-blue Lodi wine lovers)

Lodi wine lovers at 2019 Lodi ZinFest

Have you found yourself becoming a true-blue Lodi wine lover, almost to the point of some kind of geekiness?

Scary thought? Well, if you’ve come to love the gentle yet refreshingly pure and fruit-forward styles of Lodi grown wines... not just the sumptuous yet feminine Zinfandels, but also the pungently spiced Grenaches and earthy Tempranillos, the crisp and precise Albariños and Vermentinos, plus the sheer variety (everything from Aglianico to Barbera, Kerner to Piquepoul, Touriga to Zweigelt) being grown here...

If you’ve also become intrigued by the history of Lodi’s winegrowing industry – how most of it, for instance, is dominated by families who have been farming in the region as far back as the 1860s (the opposite of the “new money” feel of what passes for “wine country” these days) – not to mention the region’s “small town” charm and earnest hospitality...

May 28, 2019 at 3:00 PM Permalink

2019 ZinFest Blind Tasting: How Lodi Zinfandels compare to some of California’s finest

Round 1 (of 3) wines in ZinFest Zinfandel Blind Tasting (special thanks to Suzanne Ledbetter for photos in this article)

The 2019 Zinfandel Blind Tasting – taking place on May 17, the Friday before the ZinFest Wine Festival – was meant to be a study of ancient vine Zinfandels from not just Lodi, but also some of the most prestigious vineyards in the rest of California. While nearly 40% of California Zinfandel is grown in Lodi, regions like Sonoma County and Napa Valley have long (and justifiably) been considered the finest in the state.

But when we say “finest,” what do we mean? Is it the biggest Zinfandels with the ripest varietal fruit expressions? Or does “finest” mean more finely balanced, subtle styles of Zinfandel – lighter wines, less ripe, maybe even the opposite of “big.” Like the concept of beauty, how each of us defines the “finest” among wines always comes from the eye of the beholder. As well it should...

May 23, 2019 at 4:00 PM Permalink

15 wines that will rock your world at this Saturday's 2019 ZinFest Wine Festival

2019’s weather, we expect, will be a little chill (calling for a high of 63°), and there’s a chance of drizzle, but we’ve seen that before at Lodi’s yearly ZinFest Wine Festival; and everytime, everyone still had a grand ol’ time mastering of the art of sipping wine while balancing an umbrella or wrap.

It’s highly unlikely that it will be “Woodstock wet,” but no one was complaining about that little get-together either.

While not a rose garden, one thing we can promise is that, like our most recent ZinFests, you will be sure to find a plethora of wines that just might rock your world...

May 15, 2019 at 2:00 PM Permalink

Why ancient vines are so wise, and you should not miss ZinFest’s phenomenal Zinfandel Blind Tasting

Majestic 100-plus-year-old Zinfandel in Lodi's Mokelumne River AVA

As part of Lodi’s 2019 ZinFest, there will be a Zinfandel Blind Tasting taking place at 2 PM on May 17 in the Wine & Roses Hotel Ballroom. We are also calling this event: A Study of Ancient Vine Zinfandels of California.

The blind tasting will be led by a panel of three unimpeachable wine pundits: Mike Dunne (former longtime wine columnist of The Sacramento Bee), Steve Eliot (Editor of the authoritative Connoisseurs’ Guide to California Wine), and Master Sommelier Catherine Fallis (Planet Grape®, Grape Goddess®, and author of the hot selling “Ten Grapes to Know”). These experts, incidentally, will be tasting the wines blind right along with the audience (so it will be the blind leading the blind, letting the wines themselves do most of the talking!)...

May 9, 2019 at 3:00 PM Permalink

The 100 (plus!) grapes of Lodi

2018 harvesting of Kerner grapes (producing, crisp, minerally, floral dry whites) in Lodi's Mokelumne Glen Vineyards

If anything, the Lodi Viticultural Area is prolific. We now count over 125 grape varieties planted in the region; all variations of Vitis vinifera, belonging to the original European family or species of wine grapes.

Why Lodi? Simply put, this is where the California wine industry sources most of the grapes going into wines sold for $10 and under, which is about 74% of all the wine sold in the U.S.

Needless to say, Lodi also furnishes a huge percentage of grapes going into premium priced (anything above $10) California wines. The wide variety of specialty wine grapes cultivated by Lodi growers such as Bokisch Ranches, Ripken Vineyards, Mohr-Fry Ranches, Silvaspoons Vineyards, Vino Farms and others supply both giant producers (such as E. & J. Gallo, Constellation Brands, Trinchero Family Estates and Fetzer Vineyards) and the tiniest boutique wineries (The Scholium Project, Leaf and Vine, Odisea/Cochon, Loma Prieta, Michael Klouda, etc.), and wineries of all sizes in between (Bonny Doon Vineyards, Neyers, Michael David, Jeff Runquist, et al.)...

May 6, 2019 at 9:00 AM Permalink

Direct influence of east vs. west side terroirs on the taste of Lodi Zinfandels

Lodi Winegrape Commission's Stephanie Bolton with cluster of 2018 Steacy Ranch Zinfandel (planted in 1907) on Mokelumne River-Lodi's east side

The French call it terroir – a “sense of place” reflecting each vineyard’s unique soil, climate, aspect and overall topography, which is reflected on how vines grow, their resulting grape clusters, and ultimately in the wines coming from those grapes.

Terroir explains why wines from certain vineyards and regions have sensory qualities that are different from wines grown in other vineyards and regions. And yes, there are terroir related distinctions in the wines of Lodi – even those made from grapes as familiar to us as Zinfandel...

May 2, 2019 at 1:00 PM Permalink

Everything’s coming up rosés in a blind tasting of Lodi bottlngs

Lodi's ever expanding plethora of dry style rosés

Just ten years ago, whenever a wine connoisseur was served a pink wine he/she would run away screaming, thinking it was a White Zinfandel.

These days what you hear are mostly oohs and ahs because more and more pink wines are being produced either bone dry or very nearly dry. Like “serious” wines, you might say.

What makes them super-fun and interesting is that they’re made from a full range of black skinned grapes. In Lodi, for instance, dry style rosés are not just crafted from the more familiar Southern French grapes such as Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre, but also Cinsaut, Carignan, Barbera, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot noir, Sangiovese, Tempranillo, Aglianico, and even (gasp!) Zinfandel...

Apr 26, 2019 at 9:00 AM Permalink

Catherine Fallis (Master Sommelier and author of Ten Grapes to Know) headlines 2019 Lodi ZinFest Wine School

Learnng while enjoying the immense pleasures of Lodi wine at ZinFest Wine School

It’s nearly that time again: the annual Lodi ZinFest Wine Festival, taking place Saturday, May 18, 2019 at the stunningly bucolic Lodi Lake Park. This year festival will begin at 12 PM for Early Entrance guests (admission $75, available only with advance purchase), and then go from 1 PM to 5 PM for General Admission enthusiasts ($55 in advance, $65 at the gate).

Apart from a grand tasting of over 200 wines representing the dizzying range of fresh, pristinely expressive wines (from Albariño to Zinfandel) now being produced by Lodi wineries, there will also be opportunities to further your wine and culinary knowledge at ongoing demonstrations, including the Up in Smoke BBQ Demo (manned by Food Network celebrity chef Chad Rosenthal) and the ZinFest Wine School (kicking off at 1:30 PM)...

Apr 18, 2019 at 11:00 AM Permalink

2019 ZinFest Blind Tasting – a study of ancient vine Zinfandels of California

ZinFest blind tasting coming up at Wine & Roses Hotel!

Friday, May 17, 2019 – 2:00-4:00 PM – Wine & Roses Hotel Ballroom (Lodi)

Exactly how do Zinfandels from Lodi’s oldest vines compare to ancient vine Zinfandels grown in Sonoma County, Napa Valley, Paso Robles, Contra Costa and Amador County? The best way to find out is to taste them “blind,” with no preconceptions, just sensory qualities to lead you to conclusions. Preferably with the guidance of some of the most Zinfandel-knowledgeable wine professionals in the state...

Apr 16, 2019 at 12:00 PM Permalink