Today 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.
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!
So 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 →
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.
I 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 →
The Wine Blog Awards have been given out at the Wine Bloggers Conference since the first conference in 2008, but when Mutineer Magazine took over presenting them…well the production values went up a notch–like all the way to 11. Once again tonight, Alan Kropf of Mutineer Magazine announced the winners of this year’s wine blog awards.
This included video and a trumpet call. I was talking with Alan about next year’s wine blog awards.
And we’re talking fire dancers, art cars, and more…
Best New Wine Blog went to Chasing the Vine by Lauren Mowery who I met on the pre-excursion trip from Seattle to Lake Chelan AVA and the rest of the way to Penticton. This is a newer category and it’s great to honor the newer bloggers, even if they are experienced writers and photojournalists like Lauren (who like me also attended the conference on a scholarship –thanks again scholarship committee!). Continue reading →
Today 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. 
wine predator.............. gwendolyn alley 