Monthly Archives: June 2013

6th Annual Ventura County Wine Trail Celebration Sells Out!

998599_683640348328552_70706217_nIf you were waiting until the last minute to purchase a ticket to the The 6th Annual Ventura County Wine Trail Celebration today, June 20 at 5:30-8:30pm, you waited too long because tickets are sold out!

 

Why? 

1. This year, the festival will be held at a brand new venue– The Collection Riverpark’s outdoor event center located by the brand new REI and Whole Foods across from the old Esplanade near the intersection of the 101 and Highway 1 in Oxnard.

2. 17 of Ventura County’s local boutique wineries pouring tastes of their new releases.

3. Wines made from every major wine grape growing region in California from Napa Valley to Malibu.

4. Over 30  different varietals and blends to sample.

5. Opportunity to meet and talk with area wine makers.

6. The very best in local cuisine with restaurants prepared their signature dishes onsite.


7. Great musical entertainment by The Shoemakers Brothers.


Event tickets WERE available for $40 at www.VenturaCountyWineTrail.com, and  WERE going to be for $50 at the door. A portion of the evening’s proceeds will be donated to the Ventura County FOOD SHARE, a food bank that houses and distributes millions of pounds of food each year to the hungry of Ventura County.

So next year, get your tickets in advance!

The 6th Annual Ventura County Wine Trail Celebration
Returns to Celebrate the Bounty of the County!

 The Ventura County Wine Trail brings the 6th annual Wine Trail Celebration to Ventura County, June 20th, 2013. This year, the festival will be held at The Collection Riverpark’s outdoor event center – West Ventura County’s newest shopping, dining and entertainment destination.

This year, the festival will feature more than 17 of Ventura County’s local boutique wineries; each sharing their latest releases. For wine lovers, this event is truly unique – as local wine makers bring in grapes from every major growing region across California (from Napa Valley to Malibu). This allows Ventura County Wine Trail tasters to experience the very best of California wine county – all without the road trip. This event will boast more than 30 different varietals and blends, and provide an opportunity to meet the wine makers behind them.

In addition to the lineup of wines, guests will taste the very best in local cuisine – fresh from the area’s hottest restaurants. Chefs prepare their signature dishes onsite for attendees to enjoy over the three hour festival. In previous years, attendees have been treated to inspired culinary creations – such as Black & Blue Filet, Poached Salmon with dill cream sauce and Lamb Burgers.

This year’s special musical guests are local favorites, The Shoemakers Brothers. Musicians and fans alike declare this band to be one of the best live acts they have ever heard or seen. The Brothers astound audiences by switching instruments, as they perform; they are all classically trained on string instruments, they all sing lead vocals and harmonies, and they all play guitar, piano, drums and bass.

Between the delicious wines, mouthwatering fare and unforgettable music – the 6th annual Ventura County Wine Trail Celebration is festival not to miss!The festival begins at 5:30pm – 8:30pm, June 20th, 2013. Event tickets are available for $40 and for sale online at www.VenturaCountyWineTrail.com, and for $50 at the door. A portion of the evening’s proceeds will be donated to the Ventura County FOOD SHARE, a food bank that houses and distributes millions of pounds of food each year to the hungry of Ventura County.

– See more at: http://www.venturacountywinetrail.com/event/the-6th-annual-ventura-county-wine-trail-celebration#sthash.LP4735rn.dpuf

Happy 100th Birthday, Robert Mondavi!

1004433_4961974648979_884967214_nToday Tuesday June 18, 2013, at 5pm Pacific Standard Time, join me and other wine lovers  around the world in a toast of appreciation for the leadership in the wine industry of Robert Mondavi. 

Known as the father of California wine,  Mondavi influenced just about every wine you might find on your grocery store or cellar shelf so choose a Mondavi brand wine or not for your toast.

As the Mondavi brands Woodbridge and the Robert Mondavi name are now owned by Constellation, if you want a wine made by a Mondavi, try Divining Rod by Marc Mondavi, who is a certified water witch (read a review here).

Click on the second image for more details.download

Note: A bottle of wine was shipped to me to participate in the toast and for review consideration; however, due to a shipping misfortune, I will not be able to participate using the sample wine until after 5pm. I will, however, be at the Ojai Vineyards tasting room toasting Mondavi with the wine at hand!

PS Coming up on Wine Predator: Friday is Lambrusco Day! And I have plenty more to say about my trip to Canada–specifically, a series of three posts about Tinhorn Creek in Oliver, BC!

Speed Tasting #WBC13 Part 2: Red #Wine & 5 Tips for Twitter Tastings

On Friday, during the Wine Bloggers Conference in Penticton, British Columbia, we celebrated the white wines of the region during our speed tasting of 10 white, sparkling, rose, and ice wines.

On Saturday, we moved onto the red wines. Continue reading →

Speed Tasting at WBC13 Part 1: White Wines

Speed tasting wine at a Wine Bloggers’ Conference is not for the faint hearted. Continue reading →

Painted Rock & Poplar Grove Merlot from the Okanagan, British Columbia

kittenOKmerlotflowers1So being the Wine Predator that I am, I acquired numerous bottles of open and closed wine during and after the Wine Bloggers Conference that I either tasted before I left (nothing like a 3am taste and dump session to break your heart!) or I snaked across the border.

Somehow, I was blessed to bring home three bottles of Okanagan merlot (pictured). One bottle of these bottles that made it home open was Continue reading →

Some OK Falls & A Spectacular Painted Rock

For the first time, the Wine Bloggers Conference ended on Saturday night instead of Sunday (after announcing that 2014’s gathering will be in Santa Barbara which is practically in my backyard! So excited about that!!)

This left bloggers up to their own devices, and while many of them headed to flights from Kelowna or drives West to Vancouver or South and West toward Seattle and Portland, others stuck around for a day or two to learn more about wine in BC.

Personally, I knew I wanted to spend time at Tinhorn Creek. I’d met winemaker/CEO Sandra Oldfield in 2011 through Twitter where I also connected with her husband Kenn. I wanted to learn more about what it’s been like for her as a winemaker in this region for 20 years as well as about their sustainable practices–and about how she balances the demands of being a winemaker with being a mom.

But when I went on the excursion “Walk to Wine” where we trekked up a steep mountain and were greeted with a picnic with wine from the OK Falls winery association, and I tasted Painted Rock’s syrah and met owner John Skinner, I knew I had to somehow get there to hike to the painted rock, taste the wines, and learn more about his vision.

Luckily for me, John was willing to pick me up at the Lakeside Resort, home of this year’s Wine Blogger’s Conference and my home for the previous three days.PaintedRockArt

It was a beautiful hike to see the Painted Rock: Continue reading →

Wine Bloggers Head to Santa Barbara County July 11-14, 2014!

WBC14SBI am so excited! On the last night of the Wine Bloggers Conference, organizers announced that the next WBC  will be held in my backyard July 11-13, 2014!

Well okay so Santa Barbara is not exactly in my backyard (although I already have people signing up to camp there) but practically!

In 2014, wine bloggers from around the world will gather in Buellton, in the heart of Santa Barbara wine country, near Los Olivos and the Hitching Post of Sideways fame. That’s a little more than an hour drive from my house in Ventura.

Not only I am looking forward to finally (finally!) learning more about the wines growing in my ‘hood, but this time I am definitely getting more involved in every aspect that I can for the conference. Continue reading →