WINEormous

Wow! World of Wine Barrel Tasting In Temecula

Tom Plant — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:14:34 +0000

Gray skies, temperatures on the chilly side and a few drops of rain couldn’t deter hundreds of wine lovers from enjoying the World of Wine barrel tasting event presented this past weekend by the Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association. 27 wineries offered tastes of their wines, though not all offered barrel samples. If you check out [...]

Vince & Audrey Cilurzo – Pioneers of The Temecula Wine Country

Tom Plant — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 15:30:43 +0000

"We just had this faith that everything was going to be good over the years and it was." They developed a fantastic following. "In the early days Audrey could sit down in the tasting room and read an entire book and if five people would come, that would be a pretty good day."

Olson Ogden – John Ogden Brings Sonoma County To Temecula

Tom Plant — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 19:52:00 +0000

This past Thursday at The Wine Company in Temecula, twenty fortunate souls had the opportunity to visit with John Ogden from Sonoma County’s Olson Ogden Wines. John brought five of his wines along, two Pinot Noirs and three Syrahs all from the 2007 vintage, and shared the Olson Ogden philosophy of winemaking with us while [...]

Valentine’s Day In Temecula Wine Country

Tom Plant — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 19:27:48 +0000

It was a picture perfect day in Temecula Wine Country for Valentine’s Day. I’ll let the photos do the talking.

Briar Rose Rocks The Counter Club

Tom Plant — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:44:19 +0000

There's one trait I have noticed that is shared by every good winemaker I have met - passion. Les exudes it. He is proud of his wines and describes them not only in glowing terms, but explained what goes into making each one in a way that could be easily understood by both novices and wine connoisseurs alike.

New Face In Old Town Temecula – Lorimar Winery

Tom Plant — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 18:12:35 +0000

Mark has no desire to have Temecula's biggest winery. His focus is to have a lovely, quaint spot when friends can gather and enjoy good wine and good times. The wine club will offer lots of events, from cooking classes to get togethers. He envisions it as more of a family than a wine club.

Wine At Sea – Meet Cellar Master Fernando Bacsa

Tom Plant — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 19:08:55 +0000

The IFWTWA “Conference At Sea” was an opportunity for a group of writers to not only enjoy a cruise on the Caribbean, but also to see the inner workings of a cruise ship. As a wine writer, I was curious to see the challenges faced by a Cellar Master whose job includes making sure that [...]

Wine At Sea, Day 4 – St Thomas, USVI

Tom Plant — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 21:56:03 +0000

All this time you’ve probably been wondering – where’s the wine? At Beacon Point in St. Thomas, we found Guava Berry Wine. I’ll tell you about that stop later in the story. We docked at Charlotte Amalie at about 8:00 Wednesday morning, splitting up into three groups. One group chose the Skyride, a seven minute [...]

Wine At Sea – A Stop In San Juan

Tom Plant — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 18:44:52 +0000

It was warm and we walked for about three hours, but we took in some splendid sights and Poppo was a patient and knowledgeable guide and proud of his island's history and heritage. We wound our way up cobblestone streets and then climbed a grassy hill where we were rewarded with a cooling sea breeze.

Wine At Sea – A Week Aboard Holland America’s ms Eurodam (1-26 update)

Tom Plant — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 11:24:48 +0000

We were blessed to have winemaker par excellece Don Reha sailing with us. Don is the Executive Winemaker at both Thornton and Orfila Wineries and he presided over the first of several wine tastings scheduled for the week. We tasted Thornton’s non-vintage Brut Reserve Methode Champenoise Sparkling Wine, Sans Oak Chardonnay, Cabernet-Merlot and finally the incredible Estate Syrah, accompanied by a selection of fruit and cheeses.