Santa Barbara Winemakers. March Edition.

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Paul Lato.

Cabernet franc news. March 27, 2006
I'm hearing rumours of a problem facing cab franc vines. It appears it is suffering from some blight that is halting the ripening at veraison. Not sure what the full symptoms are just yet. The vines in Happy Canyon is where the incidents have been noticed. There are only 200+ acres planted in the county with Silver, Buttonwood, Foxen, Sunstone among the prominent cab franc producers. I'll be updating this issue as and when information becomes available.


Urgent: March 2, 2006
Custom crush facility needed by established Santa Barbara winemaker, 2,000 case producer. Bottling line may also be needed. If anyone here in SB has or knows about space for soon to be "homeless" winemaker contact us here at admin@sbwinemakers.com. The winemaker has a great portfolio of wines.
There may be other winemakers in the same predicament soon too. Contact us here with details of any space you have available.



Zinfandel, the State grape for California?
Came across this the other day. Curious little piece that went under most radars down here. With only 70 acres planted in the county, shared among only five vineyards, it's not that earth shattering news. Why not have zin as the state grape? It does have a verifiably longer history than most varietals in the state. Why not the Mission or would that be construed the wrong way? The choice of zin though is a good idea because it still has an air of mystery about its past and it may give the RED zin makers a chance to shine with this bit of promotion. I'm only familiar with Bridlewood's zins and think they have a place at the table, especially the '03 and '04 with the violets and forthrightness. Nevertheless this award may also acknowledge the work done at UCDavis and the extensive research conducted by Carole Meredith. A brace of quail, a vase of poppies and a glass of zin should grace every California kitchen ideal. It's about the wine. It certainly won't weaken the popularity of other varietals, nor does it usurp any other nations' pride.

Raisin Hell.
Notes on a recent tasting excursion. Read at your own peril.


March 3 - 4.
World of Pinot Noir 2006. Over 120 Pinot Noir producers from around the globe will gather at The Cliffs Resort in Shell Beach, California for two days of education, tastings and camaraderie. A lot of Santa Barbara winemakers will no doubt be giving everyone else pinot envy. Any winemakers who want to share their experiences at the festival, drop us a line. Happy birthday to Norm Yost.

March 23
Tasting notes, with a focus on grenache.

March 28
The weather so far this month has been intense to say the least. We started the month off with the "Pineapple Express" running through bringing tropical storms. Then we had snow across the lower elevations of the San Rafael and Santa Ynez ranges (below 2,000 feet) and now it still rains. Not much bud break yet though Clay at Zaca Mesa says the chards have just started. Are we on for a long growing season? January, by the way was hot with temps reaching 95f.