When the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians invested in Kitá Wines, they became the very first Native American tribe to have a Native American winemaker, vineyard and winemaking operation run solely by their own people. Winemaker Tara Gomez was there from the beginning, masterfully managing every step and blending the wines. “When we embarked on this journey in 2010, my mission from the very beginning was to approach these wines the same way I approach life: with a heart full of gratitude and a healthy appetite for adventure,” says Tara on Kita’s Facebook page. “There wasn’t a lot of discussion happening around Native American-made wines when we first started, and I am so proud to be part of the movement happening around the world as people look toward the original stewards of the land for unique and amazing wine, beer and spirits.”
Chumash Winemaker Tara Gomez
“Every step of the way I have been grateful for the opportunities provided by my tribe; both through the education and experience they have made available to me, and by being entrusted to share the story of our ancestors through wine cultivated from our ancestral land.”
NFL Super Star’s Intercept Pinot Noir Paired with Smoked Ham
In football, it’s all about the team, and how well they partner together. For the Super Bowl, it’s 53 players on a team, offensive and defensive, working together to make plays that win games.
Wine also is about team work: growing grapes, harvesting them at the right time, making them into wine. For Intercept, wine aficionado, television personality, retired football superstar, and one of the all-time leaders in NFL interceptions, NFL Super Star Charles Woodsonpartners with O’Neill Vintners & Distillers.
When I think of wine made from the Pinot Noir grape, the regions of Burgundy in France, New Zealand’s South Island, Oregon’s Willamette Valley, and California’s Sta Rita Hills in Santa Barbara County come to mind. So I was quite surprised to learn that the third largest region (not country) in the world planted for Pinot Noir production is Oltrepò Pavese! Located in the Lombardy region of Northern Italy, Oltrepò Pavese sits on the 45th parallel, the same place on Earth where we find the Willamette Valley, Burgundy, and Marlborough. Continue reading →
In January 2019, this journalist (me!) embedded herself into a Ventura County winery, Clos des Amis, to better understand how wine grapes are grown and wine is made. And then in January 2022, she embedded herself even more literally by planting cuttings Continue reading →
The Old Farmer’s Almanac says January’s full Moon is called the Wolf Moon because wolves could be heard howling in winter to define their territory, locate their pack members, reinforce their social bonds, and coordinate their hunting. Assiniboine people of the Northern Great Plains call the January full moon Center Moon because it marks the middle of the winter cold. Along the same lines, the Cree call it Cold Moon or Frost Exploding Moon, Algonquin refer to it as Freeze Up Moon, and the Dakotas say it’s the Severe Moon or the Hard Moon which means fresh fallen snow on the hard crust of older snow. Other records show: Canada Goose Moon (Tlingit), Great Moon (Cree), Greetings Moon (Western Abenaki), and Spirit Moon (Ojibwe).
Voodoo Moon and Blue cheese
And now we also have “Voodoo Moon”! Of course in Western Australia, where Voodoo Moon comes from, it’s the middle of summer, and not cold at all! Under a brightly lit sky, Marshall grilled us the “ultimate burger” blend from Main Street Meats in Ventura which we served with a hearty helping of arugula plus sweet potato oven chips to pair with this Western Australian wine from Margaret River’s Vinaceous Wines “Voodoo Moon Malbec.”
in 2021, on the fourth Saturday of every month, the #WorldWineTravel group of wine writers did a deep dive into the wines of Spain with articles published on specific themes and a twitter chat at 8am Pacific:Continue reading →
“In the name of productivity, the ‘fast life’ has changed our lifestyle and now threatens our environment and our land (and city) scapes.” Carlo Petrini, SLOW FOOD MANIFESTO
With a reliance on in-person winery visits and winemaker interviews, The Slow Wine Guide today evaluates over 400 different wineries in Italy and almost 300 in the US Continue reading →
wine predator.............. gwendolyn alley 