Vineyard Pedicure
2007-03-10 18:42:00
The Twin Vines vineyard has had its winter makeover. Our seven-year-olds describe this as the vines having their toenails clipped--grown ups, however, use serious technical terms such as pruning.Pruning even a small vineyard can be very painful work unless you've built up a fair amount of strength in your hands. When we first started out, we would prune the entire Twin Vines vineyard ourselves, and consequently suffer for days afterward. These days we call in the professionals!Twin Vines is now four years old, and we're hoping to harvest about four tons of fruit from it this year for a Bordeaux-style field blend we've been planning for some time. It'll be an interesting and fun experiment, and we'll keep you posted as harvest time draws nearer. That's provided the huge wild pig Star chased out of the vineyard a few days ago keeps a healthy distance--time to keep those gates shut tight! And speaking of wild things, here's a picture of a couple of small bucks we recently found wan
Read more: Vineyard
WineQ
2007-03-08 19:10:00
Escafeld wines are now available online through WineQ!With WineQ you can queue up wines to create your own personal wine club. It works similarly to the delivery queues at Netflix, except you get to decide how often your shipments are sent, and how many items are included in each shipment, all with free shipping on orders over $35! With new wines added every month, you can queue up wines from top artisan producers such as Deerfield, Twisted Oak, Lava Cap, Croze, Steven Kent, Ceja, Smith-Wooton, la Rochelle, RustRidge and Peterson.You also have the option to review your wines, and read all about them in the WineQ blog--their most recent post includes a great write up about Escafeld, so check it out...ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Wine Relief - Red Nose Day
2007-03-01 22:08:00
The final day to support Wine Relief in the UK is March 16--this year's official Red Nose Day
. From Jan 31st - March 16th, the UK's biggest wine retailers are donating 10 percent from the sale of selected wines to help tackle poverty and social injustice in the UK and Africa.Wine relief, part of the larger Comic Relief initiative, has raised a staggering 2 million pounds since its launch in 1999, with this year's Wine Relief effort promising to be the biggest yet. The project is driven by Jancis Robinson, who has been something of a hero of mine ever since I saw her presenting my favorite show, Channel 4's The Wine Programme, back in the early eighties.UK readers can support Wine Relief by rushing down (preferably wearing your red nose) to the following stores and purchasing select wines--just look out for the comic relief and wine relief logo: Majestic, Marks & Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury's, Somerfield, Tesco, Threshers, Waitrose, Cafe Rouge.As a native Brit, this is an event I
2004 Petit Verdot
2007-02-24 18:52:00
There's a review of our 2004 Petit
Verdot included over at Alan Uchrinscko's blog today. Always a great read, Alan's latest post talks about Petit Verdot's unique role in classic Bordeaux blends and many California reds.ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition Public Tasting
2007-02-23 18:00:00
I hope you have Feb 24th marked on your calendar. You won't want to miss the San Francisco
Chronicle
Wine Competition public tasting event at Fort Mason this Saturday.Doors open at 1pm sharp, and you won't want to miss a minute as you'll have the opportunity to taste award winning wines from the largest competition of American wines in the world--including our double gold medal winning Petit Verdot.The event also offers a tasting of hand crafted creations from some of the world’s premier artisan food purveyors. You'll taste award winning hand crafted breads, savory meats, exotic oils, artisan cheeses, desserts, jams, sauces, and fabulous creations from Bay Area restaurants--all with spectacular views of the Golden Gate Bridge.If you haven't already purchased your tickets, or need directions to the event, you can get all the info you need here.ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Read more: Public
, San Francisco
, San Francisco Chronicle
Zin and the Art of Great American Cooking
2007-02-16 22:03:00
There's a great write up about our 2003 Zin included over at Alan Uchrinscko's blog today. Alan's blog is always extremely informative, and I always learn something new. Not surprising, as his enviable career in the wine industry has taken him from New York's Burgundy Wine Company to Assistant Vice-President of Christie's North American
Wine Department, to Director of Fine Wine for Crush Wine & Spirits.His latest series of posts pairs our Zinfandel, with one of America's favorite dishes, and includes a mouthwatering recipe that I'll be cooking up with friends this weekend!ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Read more: Great
Shipping to Oregon
2007-02-15 20:30:00
Great news for readers in the Northwest, as we've just added Oregon
to the list of states we ship to: Oregon residents can now order up to two cases of wine per month for personal use. As always, if you have any questions, give us a call, or send along an e-mail.ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Read more: Shipping
VinUnici
2007-02-08 21:25:00
You can now find a selection of Escafeld wines online at VinUnici, a specialty wine site offering unique, hand-picked wines of great quality and diversity in style. At VinUnici, you'll find the finest artisan wines from California, Oregon, Argentina, Australia and more; and as if that's not enough, they also offer lots of other great features such as stemware, wine bundles and unique wine gift baskets.So if you're looking for top quality wine from the road less traveled, look no further...
Valley of the World Update
2007-01-29 20:02:00
Even though we didn't make it along to see many our fellow bloggers at ZAP on Saturday, we had a great time at The Valley
of the World
Wine and Food Festival.Approximately 40 local wineries, and some of Monterey County's top restaurants filled the Steinbeck center in downtown Salinas, offering some of the best wine and food to be found on the Central Coast. We received lots of reports that our Petit Verdot and Zin were among the favorite wines of the evening!Apart from the perfect setting, the thing I love most about this event is the people who attend. All passionate about local agriculture and wines, and all excited to be part of the growth of the Monterey County wine industry. If you have the opportunity to attend next year, pick up your tickets early!ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Read more: Update
A Taste of Wine & Broadway: South County Strings
2007-01-26 20:01:00
If you'll be in South
Monterey County
this Sunday, put this event on your calendar:South County Strings is hosting a benefit from 5:30-8:30pm on Sunday January 28th at St. Marks Episcopal Church at 301 Bassett St in King City. The event will feature live performances of your favorite Broadway
tunes, a sampling of fine local wines, delicious hors d'oeuvres and a silent auction. All proceeds benefit South County Strings, which provides free instruction for students playing violin, viola, cello and bass in South County schools.I'll be there, pouring along with Scheid, Paraiso, San Bernabe, Lockwood Vineyards, Hahn, Black Diamond and Rotta.Don't miss this fun and very worthwhile event! More information is available by calling Jackie at (831) 385-0669.ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Valley of the World Wine & Food Festival
2007-01-25 21:09:00
We won't make it along to the ZAP tasting this weekend, but if you're in the Monterey County area, you can taste our wines this coming Saturday at the Valley
of the World
Wine and Food Festival
. This is always a fun event, held at the Steinbeck Center, so be there promptly at 6pm and head straight for the Escafeld table. Steve and I will both be there pouring our new releases. You'll also have an opportunity to bid on our silent auction item: 6 bottles of our Double Gold medal winning pure varietal Petit Verdot!See you there!ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
News Link
2007-01-18 20:52:00
There was a nice article about Escafeld and our latest San Antonio Valley release in The Californian on Monday. You can view it online here.ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition: Results Are In!
2007-01-14 07:44:00
The results of the 2007 San Francisco
Chronicle
wine competition were released today, and I'm thrilled to say that our '04 Petit Verdot did us proud, winning Double Gold, Best of Class! This competition is the largest wine competition of American wines in the world. Fifty five professional judges, representing trade, education, media, retail, and restaurants throughout the United States spent the week of Jan 8 evaluating 3,800 wines. Winning wines were awarded bronze, silver, gold, and double gold (unanimous gold by the judges). In addition, there were Best of Class awards given for each category.A public tasting will be held in San Francisco
at the Festival Pavilion, Fort Mason Center on February 24, 2007, 1-5 PM, so be sure to save the date. Tickets for the event are available online.ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Read more: San Francisco Chronicle
PinotBlogger
2007-01-12 18:12:00
We had fun at Argyle Vineyards yesterday. Steve, Jon and I went along to do a shoot for the Californian, and while there I snapped this shot for Josh over at PinotBlogger. Great t-shirt, Josh, I love it!Josh and his family own Capozzi Winery in the Russian River Valley, and his blog details the process of starting and building a family winery. Also in the middle of planning their tasting room, his latest post, and a great read, is about what can make and break an exceptional tasting room experience. There are some great ideas there, and as Escafeld is getting closer to breaking ground for our own tasting room, I'm taking careful notes! ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Variety: The Spice of Life
2007-01-11 00:25:00
Grape variety that is...I've been thrilled with public response to the recent release of our 2004 Petit Verdot. At first, Steve and I weren't sure how sales would go. Some retailers said there would be no market for such an unusual varietal, and others couldn't wait to get behind it--all we knew was that we loved it!We produced less than 500 cases of this wine, and it's quickly become something of a breakout product for us. Even the label is unique, as this is the first wine released under the San Antonio Valley appellation designation. We decided on the label's soft green background due to PVs reputation as a late ripener--Petit Verdot, loosely translated from the French, means small green one! Our PV vines, however, enjoy plenty of sunshine, and reach their ripening potential, producing a delicious and ageworthy wine that is soft, spicy and full on the palate. So if you're looking to explore something new and quite wonderful, I think our 2004 Petit Verdot might just be the perf
Read more: Variety
, Spice
American Wine Blog Awards, 2007
2007-01-09 21:22:00
The 2007 American
Wine Blog Awards
are here! Nominations began yesterday, and I'm excited to see that Escafeld has been nominated in the Best Winery Blog category!The awards are hosted by Tom Wark, who's hugely popular blog, Fermentation: The Daily Wine Blog, is a favorite of mine. If you're like me, and you've gotta have your blogs, take a look and vote for your favorites. The deadline for nominations is Jan 18, 2007.ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Read more: Blog Awards
AVAWine.com
2007-01-09 00:01:00
Escafeld wines are now available online at AVAwine.com. This site is a terrific resource for wine lovers, as it focuses exclusively on top quality, smaller, privately owned wineries, whose selections are often difficult to track down. Their wine of the month club is the oldest on the internet, and shipping with AVAWine.com is always free! In addition to Escafeld, they also offer some other great Monterey County wines by Pessagno and Manzoni, so check them out at www.avawine.com. And while you're there, take a look at the two very informative blogs maintained by: William Bellomo and Alan Uchrinscko.Happy Shopping,ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
A Rosy Reflection...
2007-01-06 05:45:00
The first week of January has been filled with a rosy glow here at Escafeld, as we've received lots of feedback and stories about how much you all enjoyed sharing our wines with friends and family during the holidays. Thanks for all the kind comments, it's encouraging to know that we're establishing a strong niche in a very competitive market, and that our wines are finding a following, not only within Monterey County, but also across the US!Keep on writing and e-mailing us your stories (and tapping me on the shoulder in Vons!). We love to hear from you, afterall, without your support our endeavors don't mean a thing!ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Big Sur Coast Camping, Hiking, Wining & Dining
2007-01-02 18:58:00
We've just returned from an amazing camping trip on the Big Sur coast. Immediately after boxing day (you'll have to look that one up), we took the Nacimiento-Ferguson road from Jolon, which winds over the Santa Lucia mountain range to coastal Highway 1, where we settled in at a campground near a craggy beach, probably just 20 miles or so (as the crow flies) from Escafeld.We spent mornings overlooking a sparkling ocean with steaming coffee cups in hand and breakfast sizzling on the grill; afternoons exploring rock pools, or hiking through quiet redwood flanked creeks; and evenings around a roaring campfire enjoying some of the best BBQ we've had in some time, paired, of course, with Escafeld 2003 Merlot. This Merlot is a great compliment to wintertime grilling; the fresh black cherry and berry flavors, and soft oak undertones were a wonderful combination with the dishes we grilled over our oakwood firepit.My favorite dish this trip was half chicken, liberally seasoned with garlic pep
Read more: Coast
, Camping
, Hiking
, Dining
Escafeld 2004 Petit Verdot bottling progress, and more ...
2006-09-22 19:56:00
Here is a quick update on our progress
toward bottling our Escafeld 2004 Petit
Verdot. As a reminder, this is a pure varietal wine made with a grape that is grown in Bordeaux principally as a blending component (it'll typically make up a couple of percentage points in a red Bordeaux wine). Here in California, Petit Verdot is not too widely planted, but the conditions here in the San Antonio Valley are perfect for this grape, which develops to its full ripeness potential without difficulty. I've written before about the Petit Verdot grape - here is a link.So, our labels are approved by the TTB, we've approved proofs from the printer, and bottles, corks and foils have been ordered. We're expecting to have everything in place for a mid-October bottling.This will be one of the first (if not the first) wines to carry the San Antonio Valley appellation, and it's also a new varietal for us (along with our Merlot and Zinfandel), so needless to say we are pretty excited about it. We'll po
American Appellations
2006-08-31 20:58:00
There's a great article, written by Roger Dial, posted at Appellation America today, highlighting the threat that mass production could pose to small wine producers, and to public awareness of the diversity of North America's winegrowing regions. A sense of place plays a major part in my wine purchasing decisions. I like to know a little about the region, the vineyard, the producer--it's the flavor of the place that makes a wine so fascinating. Our San Antonio Valley Zinfandel is a varietal that is not commonly grown in Monterey County, but here in this highland valley, with it's warmer climate and coastal influence, we're producing great Zins with unique and complex characteristics.So take a closer look at America's appellations, and the small wineries who focus on producing wines with regional character; Appellation America is a great place to start.ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Read more: American
Blogs about the San Antonio Valley
2006-06-22 23:17:00
Annette Hoff, the very talented winemaker over at Cima Collina has included a great article about the new San Antonio
Valley
appellation in her blog, Cellar Rap. In her article, Annette, who specializes in artisan wines from small Monterey County vineyards, discusses the unique characteristics that make the San Antonio Valley such a great and intriguing winegrowing region. Enjoy,ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Read more: Blogs
Escafeld Winewear
2006-05-31 20:27:00
Our stock of summer winewear is on its way! I'm so excited about this, as our pink ladies tees were such a huge hit with everyone last year.These are my all-time favorite t-shirts; and one of those rare items of clothing that always make you look terrific. The cut is so flattering and color so fresh and pretty with our pink Zinfandel label printed on the back (this is now the closest you can get to buying our 2002 Zin!) and our Escafeld Vineyards logo on the front. Spoil yourself and add something beautiful to your wardrobe this summer. These tees come in small, medium, large and extra large. We can special order other sizes too, so just drop us a line with your order.We also have men's golf shirts and white t-shirts available. Visit our website at www.escafeld.com to see more items and to place your order. As always, if you have any questions at all, just drop us a line at info@escafeld.com.ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Twin Vines photo's ...
2006-04-30 21:19:00
As promised, here are some photo's snapped today (Sunday April 30) of the Twin Vines
vineyard (the images are quite large, and you can click on them for an even bigger version). Steve WetherillEscafeld VineyardsJolon CA
13th Annual Monterey Winemakers' Celebration!
2005-05-28 20:29:00
Escafeld Vineyards to pour at the 2005 Monterey Winemakers' Celebration.Escafeld Vineyards is proud to announce its participation in the 13th Annual
Monterey Winemakers' Celebration! The event takes place on August 13, 2005 (12:00pm - 4:00pm) at the Custom House Plaza, Monterey, California.The event is ticket-only (tickets are sold at the event, but are available in advance at a discount), and features winetasting from over 40 Monterey County wineries including:Baywood Cellars * Bernardus Winery * Blackstone Winery * Carmichael Vintners * Chateau Christina * Chateau Julien Wine Estate * De Tierra Vineyards * Estancia Vineyard * Galante Vineyards * Hahn Estates / Smith & Hook Winery * Hames Valley Vineyards * Heller Estate * J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines * Jekel Vineyards * Joullian Vineyards * Kendall-Jackson Vineyards & Winery * Lockwood Vineyard * Marilyn Remark Wines * McIntyre Vineyards * Meador Estate / Ventana Vineyards * Monterra * Morgan Winery * Muirwood / Steel Creek * Para
Montrio Bistro
2007-03-15 03:03:00
You'll soon be able to enjoy a glass or two of Escafeld's limited production Double Gold winning Petit Verdot with dinner at Monterey's famed Montrio Bistro
.Inspired by the best European and American cuisine, and dedicated to organic and sustainable ingredients, Montrio's executive chef, Tony Baker, has created a distinctive and innovative menu, packed with delicious dishes such as wild salmon with green peppercorn cream, beer braised veal cheeks, and a "Small Bites" selection featuring one of my all time favorites, roast beef and Yorkshire pudding.A fellow Brit, Tony's career began in the UK at several Michelin-acclaimed restaurants. These included the Luckman Park Hotel, England's 1991 Hotel of the Year, and Hintlesham Hall. In 1991 he was the recipient of the Frank Hawley Medal for Outstanding Achievement in Culinary Arts.The award winning Montrio Bistro promises you great food, great service, fine wines and an unforgettable dining experience. Ready to reserve your table? Visi
Rattlesnake Season
2007-03-17 22:47:00
The weather is warming up quickly, which means that the rattlers are emerging again. We've encountered two beauties near the vineyard just this week.Last year, Star the Dog decided to take one on, and received a nasty strike to the nose for her trouble. She obviously hasn't learned her lesson, as she went straight for our latest visitor, pouncing and barking and generally getting it nice and riled up--coiled and sizzling--just in time for us to have to deal with it. Coming from the UK, where the most dangerous animal I ever encountered was a large cantankerous swan, this whole rattlesnake thing is quite daunting. Where's Austin Stevens when you need him?ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
Read more: Season
AlaWine.com
2007-03-26 23:30:00
There's a nice review of our 2004 Escafeld Petit Verdot over at AlaWine.com today.Home of 100 Top Wine Blogs, The Wine Blog Tasting Room, 100 Great Wines and the Wine Blog Search Engine, AlaWine.com is a top portal for wine news, reviews, blogs and commentary. Visit them online and read their latest reviews at AlaWine.com.ElsbethEscafeld Vineyards
VinUnici asks ...
2007-04-05 23:40:00
Brett over @ VinUnici (www.vinunici.com) recently intrviewed Elsbeth & myself for their regular "Winemaker Q&A" feature - you can read the results here. The interview contains a fair amount of detail about how Escafeld came about, what our respective roles are here and some thoughts on what the future holds.In case you don't know, VinUnici is a cool wine website offering "unique wines . . . from the road less traveled" (including Escafeld!), with the unique factor of mixed-case orders, so you can try one or two bottles from a number of interesting wineries and combine them into one order (and so save on shipping!).So, visit the VinUnici site, and perhaps order a bottle or two of wine. We can tell you from first-hand experience that VinUnici carries some excellent wines - even the non-Escafeld ones! :)
Fish 'n' Quips: Is British Food a Joke?
2007-04-20 01:39:00
Today's post is a contribution to a very worthy cause. In response to the call from Sam at Becks & Posh, bloggers are joining forces to prove that English food is no joke.Brit food has long had a reputation in the US for being bland and unimaginative, but that's simply not the case. English dishes, such as steak and kidney pudding, may seem a little quirky, but they're delicious, satisfying and full of flavor, and there's a fascinating story behind every regional dish.Take scouse for instance: originally brought to my home town of Liverpool by Dutch sailors, scouse soon became the city's staple dish due to its inexpensive and readily available ingredients. It must have been wildly popular in times gone by, as folks from Liverpool are now affectionately known as Scousers.Dr. Debs recently posted about her Scouse roots over at her wonderful blog Good Wine Under $20, so timing for this post is perfect. It would be interesting to pin down a wine pairing for this dish, so if anyone has
Read more: British
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