We're taking a week-long trip to Maui starting tomorrow. Because of the limited wine scene there, we've decided to take a case of wine with us.
What we're taking with us:
2 - 2005 LaVelle Pinot Gris
2 - 2006 Sokol-Blosser Pinot Gris
1 - 2007 Chamisal Vineyards Edna Valley Chardonnay
1 - 2008 Archery Summit Rose
3 - 2007 Archery Summit Premier Cuvee
1 - 2006 Archery Summit Red Hills
1 - 2007 Purple Hands
1 - 2006 Pine Ridge Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
We've got a deep sea fishing trip planned, and have thoughts of going snorkling at some point. Is there anything we can't miss while we're there?
Showing posts with label Sokol Blosser. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sokol Blosser. Show all posts
Monday, February 1, 2010
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Blind Tasting of '05 Cuvees
During the weekend trip to the lakehouse, I decided to put together a double blind tasting for everybody. I wanted to find 4 wines that had similar characteristics that could be compared. The wines that we chose were:
A) '05 Archery Summit Winery Premier Cuvee
B) '05 Cristom Mt. Jeffersom Cuvee
C) '05 Sokol Blosser Estate Cuvee
D) '05 Lachini Estate
Each of the wines were 2005 vintage Pinot Noirs, with three of the four being cuvees. it was really interesting to see how differently the 6 people ranked the wines differently.
Rankings:
1st: AABCDB
2nd: BDCBAC
3rd: CCDACA
4th: DBADBD
No clear winner (or best) of the night. All the wines scored the same (giving 4 points for 1st, 3 for 2nd, 2 for 3rd, 1 for 4th), with the exception of the Cristom. That one had a funk to it that turned many of the tasters off (as shown with the 3 4th-place votes). The interesting thing is that no two people ranked the wines the same way, and that the one that a few people didn't like as much (Cristom), it was still ranked as both 1st and 2nd by two of the tasters.
Being able to taste these wines in this way was really insightful, as it eliminated any bias or preconceived notions the taster's might've had, and let the wines speak for themselves. The success of this tasting has be planning other blinds tastings already.
Some of the tasting notes written down during the tasting:
Lachini: red fruit, bits of blackberry, hints of charcoal, good mouthfeel, decent finish, earthy, smokey
SB: red fruit, hints of pepper, short & flat finish, light on palate, dies
ASW: the most tannic of the wines, almost chewy, fruit was hidden behind the level of tannins, would like to see this wine in another 8 years.
Cristom: A funk that turned a few off, but was interesting to others, good mouthfeel and balance
A) '05 Archery Summit Winery Premier Cuvee
B) '05 Cristom Mt. Jeffersom Cuvee
C) '05 Sokol Blosser Estate Cuvee
D) '05 Lachini Estate
Each of the wines were 2005 vintage Pinot Noirs, with three of the four being cuvees. it was really interesting to see how differently the 6 people ranked the wines differently.
Rankings:
1st: AABCDB
2nd: BDCBAC
3rd: CCDACA
4th: DBADBD
No clear winner (or best) of the night. All the wines scored the same (giving 4 points for 1st, 3 for 2nd, 2 for 3rd, 1 for 4th), with the exception of the Cristom. That one had a funk to it that turned many of the tasters off (as shown with the 3 4th-place votes). The interesting thing is that no two people ranked the wines the same way, and that the one that a few people didn't like as much (Cristom), it was still ranked as both 1st and 2nd by two of the tasters.
Being able to taste these wines in this way was really insightful, as it eliminated any bias or preconceived notions the taster's might've had, and let the wines speak for themselves. The success of this tasting has be planning other blinds tastings already.
Some of the tasting notes written down during the tasting:
Lachini: red fruit, bits of blackberry, hints of charcoal, good mouthfeel, decent finish, earthy, smokey
SB: red fruit, hints of pepper, short & flat finish, light on palate, dies
ASW: the most tannic of the wines, almost chewy, fruit was hidden behind the level of tannins, would like to see this wine in another 8 years.
Cristom: A funk that turned a few off, but was interesting to others, good mouthfeel and balance
Friday, September 21, 2007
Harvest and Wine Clubs
The Willamette Valley is getting ready for harvest time, and that means one thing...wine club parties! Well, it really means lots of things, especially for those who make wine, but I'm not on that side of the world. With this in mind, I started to really think about the wine clubs that we are members of, why we are, and the benefits that we get. There are some places that we really enjoy being members at (Sokol Blosser, Erath, and LaVelle) because of the events they have. These events are fun and enjoyable, and they really make you feel appreciated as a customer. Other clubs we are members of (King Estate, and Cristom) are mostly just for the wine. Both of these wineries do not have events very often, so we are members mostly because we love the wine, and we get discounts on it, and in the case of Cristom, it forces us to buy some age-worthy wine that we might otherwise forget about.
So what makes a great wine club? I think this is a question that most wineries have asked, and that I've even asked myself, so I thought I'd take a stab at answering the question from my point of view.
I think the first thing is to have a really great wine club coordinator. This person is the face of the wine club, and many times, the face of the winery to club members. They need to be very personable, and really show interest in the people that come to the events, as well as be available and responsive to questions asked. I think the best example of this would be Brooke at Sokol Blosser. Its really amazing how good it makes you feel when somebody recognizes you, especially when we've only been members for less than a year. This friendliness would extend to the rest of the staff, but that should be a given for a winery/tasting room. Being treated a little special is really nice as well. King Estate is a great example of this. They have a list of wines that they are tasting for the day, and it is usually limited to 6-8 wines. When we go there, it feels like they roll out the red carpet for us. One time we went, I think we ended up with 20 or so bottles of wine in front of us that we had tasted, and most of it was stuff not on the list, and that they only let us try because we were club members.
The second thing is to have fun and accessible events. Sokol Blosser, LaVelle, and Erath all have fun events that we can usually attend. They are on the weekend, and usually free, and always fun. We just recently cancelled a wine club membership because the events were always on a Tuesday or Thursday evening, from 5-7pm. Now, I get off work at 5, and so trying to attend one of these events (after crossing through all of Portland's horrible traffic) would require me to leave about 3pm. Not only is the day and time not very convenient, but the events are not well planned out. The one event we actually made it to, you had to stand in line for about 10 minutes to get a 2-3 ounce taste of wine. On the other hand, we are heading to LaVelle on the 30th for their harvest party, which we attended last year as well. The wine was and is easy to get in your glass (from both the tasting room bar, staffed by 2-3 people, or the bar they set up outside, with 1-2 people working there, so never a line), the event is from 12-5pm, so plenty of time to come and go as we please, and we get to go pick some grapes, stomp them into juice, and potentially wine prizes. These are the kinds of events that make being a member worth it.
I think the quality of the events is the key determination if a wine club will be successful or not. Erath recently had a luau, with a roasted pig and everything. This was a really fun and engaging event, and makes me really glad to be a member. Having free events is also a requirement, especially being a 20-something with a new mortgage and still paying off school loans. Dinners that are $50 or so a plate (some I've seen are as high as $125) are out of reach for us. I'm fine with having those events, as I'm sure I'll attend them in a few years, but I also want to see some free, fun, and special events for those of us on a budget.
The last thing is the wine shipments and discounts. Now, I realize that the winery still needs to make money on the wines, so a 15-20% discount is what I would expect, potentially increasing to up to 30% if purchasing a case or more. I also like getting a variety of stuff in a shipment. Cristom and King Estate are really good about this, as whenever we get a shipment, its like Christmas in finding out what we got. I would rather have 3 shipments in a year, with each shipment having a variety, than 4 or 5 shipments where each one is a couple bottles of the same wine. I'm not afraid of getting a wine I don't like, because we chose the wine clubs to be members of based on the fact that we enjoy all their wines.
Now I don't think I'm an expert on wine clubs. I just know what I like, coming from my perspective and experience. I'm sure that different things work for different people, and that's what is great. If I owned a winery, I think my ramblings above would be how I would run my club, and I guess the only way to know if it would work would be try it out.
So what makes a great wine club? I think this is a question that most wineries have asked, and that I've even asked myself, so I thought I'd take a stab at answering the question from my point of view.
I think the first thing is to have a really great wine club coordinator. This person is the face of the wine club, and many times, the face of the winery to club members. They need to be very personable, and really show interest in the people that come to the events, as well as be available and responsive to questions asked. I think the best example of this would be Brooke at Sokol Blosser. Its really amazing how good it makes you feel when somebody recognizes you, especially when we've only been members for less than a year. This friendliness would extend to the rest of the staff, but that should be a given for a winery/tasting room. Being treated a little special is really nice as well. King Estate is a great example of this. They have a list of wines that they are tasting for the day, and it is usually limited to 6-8 wines. When we go there, it feels like they roll out the red carpet for us. One time we went, I think we ended up with 20 or so bottles of wine in front of us that we had tasted, and most of it was stuff not on the list, and that they only let us try because we were club members.
The second thing is to have fun and accessible events. Sokol Blosser, LaVelle, and Erath all have fun events that we can usually attend. They are on the weekend, and usually free, and always fun. We just recently cancelled a wine club membership because the events were always on a Tuesday or Thursday evening, from 5-7pm. Now, I get off work at 5, and so trying to attend one of these events (after crossing through all of Portland's horrible traffic) would require me to leave about 3pm. Not only is the day and time not very convenient, but the events are not well planned out. The one event we actually made it to, you had to stand in line for about 10 minutes to get a 2-3 ounce taste of wine. On the other hand, we are heading to LaVelle on the 30th for their harvest party, which we attended last year as well. The wine was and is easy to get in your glass (from both the tasting room bar, staffed by 2-3 people, or the bar they set up outside, with 1-2 people working there, so never a line), the event is from 12-5pm, so plenty of time to come and go as we please, and we get to go pick some grapes, stomp them into juice, and potentially wine prizes. These are the kinds of events that make being a member worth it.
I think the quality of the events is the key determination if a wine club will be successful or not. Erath recently had a luau, with a roasted pig and everything. This was a really fun and engaging event, and makes me really glad to be a member. Having free events is also a requirement, especially being a 20-something with a new mortgage and still paying off school loans. Dinners that are $50 or so a plate (some I've seen are as high as $125) are out of reach for us. I'm fine with having those events, as I'm sure I'll attend them in a few years, but I also want to see some free, fun, and special events for those of us on a budget.
The last thing is the wine shipments and discounts. Now, I realize that the winery still needs to make money on the wines, so a 15-20% discount is what I would expect, potentially increasing to up to 30% if purchasing a case or more. I also like getting a variety of stuff in a shipment. Cristom and King Estate are really good about this, as whenever we get a shipment, its like Christmas in finding out what we got. I would rather have 3 shipments in a year, with each shipment having a variety, than 4 or 5 shipments where each one is a couple bottles of the same wine. I'm not afraid of getting a wine I don't like, because we chose the wine clubs to be members of based on the fact that we enjoy all their wines.
Now I don't think I'm an expert on wine clubs. I just know what I like, coming from my perspective and experience. I'm sure that different things work for different people, and that's what is great. If I owned a winery, I think my ramblings above would be how I would run my club, and I guess the only way to know if it would work would be try it out.
Friday, July 27, 2007
Air Effects on a Rose
Last night I opened up a 2006 Sokol Blosser Rose. When I first opened it, and was drinking it with dinner, the taste and smell were really subdued, and it didn't seem like there was much there. I've drank and tasted the wine multiple times before, and so I know what to expect, and this was just not living up to expectations. I sealed it up (rubber stopper, pumped the air out) and put it in the fridge, intent on drinking it later.
After returning from running some errands about 2 hours later, I decided to give the Rose another shot. I opened it up and took a taste, and whammo, intense flavors and nose. I was expecting the same wine I had drank earlier with little change, especially since it had been in the fridge and I had sealed it up. Turns out, this Rose needs a little time to open up, which really suprised me. I think the next time I drink the wine, I'm going to open it up, and let it sit out for 30 minutes or so. If it was a blind tasting between the two, you would've thought they were two completely different wines.
Sokol Blosser
After returning from running some errands about 2 hours later, I decided to give the Rose another shot. I opened it up and took a taste, and whammo, intense flavors and nose. I was expecting the same wine I had drank earlier with little change, especially since it had been in the fridge and I had sealed it up. Turns out, this Rose needs a little time to open up, which really suprised me. I think the next time I drink the wine, I'm going to open it up, and let it sit out for 30 minutes or so. If it was a blind tasting between the two, you would've thought they were two completely different wines.
Sokol Blosser
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