Four Vine 2006 Old Vine Cuvee ZINFANDEL

We received this wine as a gift from the winery in spring ‘08. It was a treat to receive because Zinfandels are always welcome in our home any time of the year from anywhere.

I am not familiar with this winery, except for that I know it exists in Paso Robles on the Central Coast of California. One of my top 10 favorite regions in the world is Paso. Great Rhone varietals come from this region, but it is also known for robust Zinfandels, especially from the Templeton gap area.

So let’s break down the name and get to work on this wine.… Old Vine and Cuvee.

What goes in to one glass of wine?

1 grape cluster = 1 glass
75 grapes = 1 cluster
4 clusters = 1 bottle
40 clusters = 1 vine

Toasts for all occasions

Toasts to help you with the holiday or other occasions

Funny
"Here's to you and here's to me,
Friends may we always be!
But, if by chance we disagree,
Up yours! Here's to me!"

Unison 2002 Hawk’s Bay – Merlot, Cab, Syrah

One of the (obvious) perks to working in the wine industry is a large wine cellar. This weekend after a long work week and lots of Christmas shopping, I had some time to do what I call “Grab and Drink”.

Give something unique this holiday…a wine party

--Looking for that unique gift for that person that has everything? A wine event is the perfect gift for the wine lover, the social butterfly, the entertainer, the new wine lover or the wine connoisseur. Decant Wine Events, a local Orange County wine event company is offering gift certificates for wine tastings, wine 101 or wine pairing dinners.

Break from holiday shopping for unique grapes....Mosby wines

Join Wes Kollar from Decant Wine Events & Specialty Cellars at California Taste in Laguna Niguel on Friday, December 18 at 6pm to taste the delicious wines from Mosby Estate Winery.

Cystic Fibrosis OC Wine Opener Event

Sunday Wes and I attended the Cystic Fibrosis, Inaugural Wine Opener event at the OC Wine & Food Center sponsored by the OC Restaurant Association, OC Life Magazine and A-Med Health Care benefiting the CFF’s research and care programs. What is a Wine Opener Event? I know you might wonder because I did too. The event was basically a “taste of” with many local restaurants and wineries showcasing their specialties along with local jewelers, clothing and accessories offering special priced items and a silent auction with great holiday items. The VIP event featured a special celebrity chef guest appearance and cooking demonstration with award-winning executive chef, Bravo Top Chef Finalist, and host of a television cooking segment, Brian Malarkey. Brian recently won San Diego Magazine’s “Chef of the Year”, and will be appearing in Bravo’s, Top Chef Masters.

The Wine Opener included some specialty vendors as well, such as Karma Tequila (this was a fun table), Saint James Spirits and Maya Trade Corporation (Olive Oil & Spice Imports).

We really enjoyed the event and thought the atmosphere and vendors blended well together. It was a small and quaint affair which was perfect for mixing and mingling with other guests. We arrived early which allowed us to “hit up” the tables and maneuver through the crowds with ease. Each vendor provided a small portion of their cuisine, wine or other. Of course we had our favorites which we shamelessly found ourselves visiting over and over. Our first stop was to a Costa Mesa classic, Antonello’s whose penne pasta was delicious and filling. We shifted from Italian to Asian to the Geisha House for the lobster/mango roll everyone was lined up to try. We moved quickly to Citrus City Grille to feast on the delicious ahi poke and beef wellington. Healthy and organic 118 Degrees sparked our interest with their refreshing and flavorful zucchini salad. Their products are available at Whole Foods Market and are gluten free, lactose free and 100% vegan. I don’t know about you but I have a few lactose/gluten free vegans in my life and now I know what to serve and where to find it.

We couldn’t wait to sample the wines since there were several Wes hadn’t tried yet and he was excited about. We were able to visit the tables of Semler & Saddlerock Wines, Oreana Winery, Briar Rose Winery and our favorites of the night, Jumping Vines (a hidden secret in Orange County) and b Cellars. Jumping Vines Wines are produced at Hamilton Oaks Vineyard nestled close to us in Trabuco Canyon. This was the first time we’d heard about the winery so we were shocked to hear that it’s conveniently located in the hills of Orange County. We enjoyed their wines and were able to meet the winemaker Ron Tamez who was in attendance. We are looking forward to our first trip to Hamilton Oaks in the near future to learn more about the wines and winery so more to come.

Our favorite specialty table of the night (besides the tequila table) was Maya Trade Corporation manned by Yasemin and Volca Altuner. Yasemin and Volca offer a variety of high-quality, premium olive oil imported from Lalei estate in Edremit Bay, a region of Turkey. Edremit Bay is well known as producing one of the best olives in the world. We were able to sample several of their products which were as fresh as they expressed. They offer unique aromatic flavored oils including Rosemary (my personal favorite), Thyme, Bay leaf, Red Bell Pepper, Garlic, Basil and more. Their oils are different from their competitors because the aromatic flavoring ingredient is crushed with the olive at the time of processing. This allows the natural oils of the aromatic to be mixed with the olive oil. The bottles and packaging are beautiful and make great gifts. I was able to snag Rosemary oil which my parents will love this Christmas. Yasemin offers home parties, demonstrations and cooking classes so we are definitely recommending their products and services to our Decant readers.

At the end of the night we were full and felt as if we just played a full-court press defense against the LA Lakers (we’re LA natives btw). As the night grew, so did the crowds which made it harder and harder to meet, greet and mingle. We were extremely excited to be able to attend and participate in this inaugural event and we look forward to next year’s festivities. It was a great night for a great cause. Congratulations to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
By Jen Guran


http://www.cff.org/Chapters/sca/index.cfm?ID=12542&blnShowBack=True&idContentType=1249&Event=12542

Canadian Wine Tasting at Whole Foods...by Winos Anonymous

Check out this great post from Winos Anonymous (Carly Seward) about the Canadian Wine tasting at Whole Foods.

http://winosanonymousblog.com/2009/12/06/weekend-run-down-part-2-saturday-canadian-wine-tasting/

Explore Canada with Us, Eh! ~ Dec. 5th ~ Whole Foods Market, Venice

Come Explore Canadian white wines with us.
On Saturday, December 5th at 6:00pm Decant will be at the Whole Foods in Venice (Los Angeles) pouring four wines from the Niagara-on-the-Lake region of Ontario, Canada. Canada is known for their white wines because the cold weather provides great growing conditions. We'll have: Pinot Blanc, Vioginer, Aligote and the very famous Canadian Ice Wine which was in the Top 100 Wines of the World in 2009. All are perfect for the Holiday Season and for entertaining.

If you need to restock because your in-laws drank all your wine at Thanksgving, here is a perfect time. All wines are available for purchase.

Whole Foods Market
225 Lincoln Blvd. Venice,
CA 90291

Decant Wine Events Launch

Ever want to be able to swirl and sniff properly and understand why you’re doing it? Ever wonder which wine goes you’re favorite steak or the difference between Petite Sirah and Syrah? Choosing the perfect wine can be a sobering experience. Now learning about wine can be enjoyable and effortless and done in your own home.

Wes Kollar, a Southern California Wine Specialist and wine Distributor and partner Jennifer Guran launched a new mobile wine events company that educates while entertaining. Decant Wine Events specializes in Wine Pairings dinners, Wine Tastings, Wine 101 classes held in your home or desired location. Decant Wine Events are perfect for corporate functions, charity events/fundraisers, weddings, birthday/holiday/bachelorette parties, team buildings events or private events. Decant also specializes wine cellar consultation from design to temperature control to crafting your collection. Decant Wine Events are fully customized and personalized making it a one-of-a-kind experience, unique to any occasion.

Wes and Jennifer have a passion for wine and entertaining and have incorporated the two together. Decant events offer a unique wine experience while offering an alternative to a normal dinner or party. It’s an easy way to add some pizzazz to your event.

Wes and Jennifer have over thirty years combined event experience in wine, entertainment and social events.

Wes Kollar has over 18 years of experience in the wine industry. His professional journey began as a starving student on a football scholarship at Sonoma State University, where he studied marine biology. To earn money in college he landed his first job in the wine industry has a Cellar Rat – at DeLoach Vineyards where he moved wine from barrel to tank, tank to barrel, doing pump overs, cleaning, and adding yeast and bacteria to fermenting juice.

He subsequently worked with over a dozen wineries throughout Santa Rosa, Sonoma, Santa Barbara and the Napa Valley where he gained experience with vineyard management and laboratory analyses. This foundation led to tasting room experience, working in Barrel Rooms, and hands-on experience making wine.

Wes has traveled to regions in Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland and North America to sample wines and work one-on-one with vineyards in vineyard design and consulting. He has hosted hundreds of Wine Events throughout California, specializing in Wine Pairing Dinners, for both large and intimate groups. His goal for each event is to work with the chef to personalize the perfect wine pairing to fully express the style and flavor of the cuisine, along with the personality of the customer and occasion.

Jennifer Guran has worked in event planning in various aspects for the past 15 years. She has worked with Anaheim Angels and Mighty Ducks in Community Relations planning the teams charitable functions. She moved to Sponsorship Services where she planned and organized sponsorship parties, vacations and outings for over 50 high-level clients. From there, she was responsible for all marketing events at ESPN Zone a division of the Walt Disney Company, including celebrity and corporate parties, TV shows and tapings and movie events.

CNBC.com’s Wines For the Holidays

CNBC.com’s Wines For the Holidays

Cupcakes and wine….a perfect combination.

Yesterday we attended a wine and cupcake tasting at Anne’s Boutique Wines in Costa Mesa. It was a packed house as customers squeezed into the tasting room to grab their sweet delight. Anne paired four dessert wines with Courtney Hetrick’s mini-cupcakes. We enjoyed an Abbazia Malvasia Rose with a Maple Brown Sugar Cupcake, 2008’s top 100 Wine’s of the World Konzelamm 2006 Vidal Ice Wine with a Carrot Cake Cupcake, Martin & Weyrich Moscato paired with an Apple Cidar Cupcake and a Zinfandel Port with a Cinnamon Cupcake. As usual, my favorite was the Port & Cinnamon while Wes really enjoyed the Ice Wine pairing. The cupcakes were delicious and just the right amount to experience the chemical bond between the wine and food. It really allowed for some unique flavors. It was a fun event for customers especially gearing up for the holidays while providing some great entertaining ideas. I wish I could have been part of the “scientific research” for this pairing event. We definitely recommend experiencing this type of tasting.
-By Jennifer Guran/Decant

Decant Pre-Launch Wine Tasting Event at WineStyles in Seal Beach, Ca

We always enjoy wine tasting events at WineStyles because it’s great to meet all the local wine lovers from that area. Many of the Wine Club members dropped in to help WineStyles celebrate their second anniversary party. Saturday, we poured wines from around the world including a beautiful Sauvignon Blanc from Chile, New Zealand Pinot Noir, Merlot from Argentina and a Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley which was the favorite of the night. The Merlot is the current “Best Buy” for the Wine Enthusiast which was the second best seller. The theme for the night amongst tasters was the great value of the South American wines compared to North American wines. The South American wines were such a great value for the wine.

We had a great time on Saturday and look forward to many more events in Seal Beach. Special thanks to Todd Stahl, Jenn Keefe, Ryan at WineStyles