Archive for the 'Other News' Category

Santa Maria Valley AVA Expanding?

Published on March 19, 2010 in Other News. 0 Comments

Interesting article about the possible expansion of the Santa Maria Valley AVA.  Santa Maria Valley is one of four AVA’s in Santa Barbara County, the other of which are Sta. Rita Hills, Santa Ynez Valley, and the most recent, Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara.

Santa Maria, Calif. — After the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) rejected a 2006 petition to expand the Santa Maria Valley AVA (American Viticulture Area), members of Santa Maria Valley Wine Country rallied their resources and redrew their proposal. This time, the TTB deemed the proposal “merits consideration and public comment,” and posted it on the bureau’s website March 8.

The proposal would add some 18,700 acres in Santa Barbara County to the 97,483-acre Santa Maria Valley AVA, which spans parts of southern San Luis Obispo and northern Santa Barbara counties. (Click here to see a map.) The added acreage currently includes nine vineyards with just 255 acres of commercial vineyards, and another 60 to 200 acres under viticultural development, according to the petition. Santa Maria Valley AVA is the oldest in Santa Barbara County, established in 1981, and drawn up then with more concern for highways and roads than geological or climatic distinctions, according to Jim Fiolek, executive director of Santa Barbara County Vintners.

Why here, why now?
Fiolek told Wines & Vines that the current AVA boundaries bisect some vineyards, and that the redrawn borders make more sense from a viticultural viewpoint. “These lines are drawn with regard for natural drainage, wind, soil, and will make the AVA more uniform for climatic and geologic reasons,” he pointed out. Several grapegrowers and vintners have properties on both sides of the current line, creating obvious difficulties in labeling…

Click Here for the rest of the article.

Joanie Hudson, Director of National and International Marketing, Santa Barbara Winery / Lafond Winery & Vineyards

The Henry Wine Group CA Trade Tastings

Published on March 15, 2010 in Joanie Hudson, Lafond Winery, Other News and Santa Barbara Winery. 0 Comments

Next week I will be traveling throughout California attending The Henry Wine Group Trade Tastings.  Our wine is distributed in California by The Henry Wine Group, and these tastings provide the opportunity to visit and engage three different markets: San Francisco (March 22), San Diego (March 24), and Los Angeles (March 25). 

These tastings are organized for members of the trade (hotels, restaurants, wine bars, etc.).  If you are in the trade and interested in attending, please contact me at winesales@sbwinery.com for registration inquiries.  The tastings will run from 11am-5pm.

Taste the World of The Henry Wine Group
March 22 2010   Four Seasons Hotel, 757 Market St. San Francisco
March 24 2010   Hilton La Jolla, 10950 North Tory Pines Rd., La Jolla
March 25 2010   Beverly Hills Hotel, Sunset Blvd., Beverly Hills

Winemaker Bruce McGuire will be helping me pour at the Beverly Hills tasting.
 
Joanie Hudson, Director of National and International Marketing, Santa Barbara Winery / Lafond Winery & Vineyards

Santa Barbara County Panel

Published on June 19, 2009 in Joanie Hudson and Other News. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

On Wednesday night, June 17, in Santa Barbara, the MIT Enterprise Forum of the Central Coast hosted an informative panel focused on “Winemaking in Santa Barbara County – A World of Entrepreneurs,” at the Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center.  

Topics of a struggling economy, growing competition, and challenges of the wine business were at the forefront.  I was out of town and unable to attend, but the Daily Sound did a great job in covering some of the highlights.

Despite the troubled economy and growing foreign competition, a panel of Santa Barbara County wine experts said while the industry is faced with problems, it will follow a cycle and rebound as it has over the past four decades.

The MIT Enterprise Forum of the Central Coast hosted the Wednesday night panel, titled “Winemaking in Santa Barbara County – A World of Entrepreneurs,”at the Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center.

While the fourth quarter of last year “was the worst ever” for California’s 2,700 wineries, Central Valley and Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo sales continued to rise even though Napa and Sonoma counties declined, said Rob McMillan, executive vice president and founder of Silicon Valley Bank Wine Practice.

However, Santa Barbara County’s 90 wineries have only 20,000 acres of wine grapes planted while Napa has twice that, he said. And, vineyard land costs about $50,000 an acre while Napa land goes for $250,000 an acre.

Historically, Napa and Sonoma were once considered the state’s “wine country”since regions such as Santa Barbara did not start large-scale production until 40 years ago when only 200 acres were planted with grape vines.

Several of those wineries are of commercial Napa Valley size. The rest are entrepreneurial enterprises founded by winemakers, growers, retired chief executive officers, gentlemen farmers and others in a bizarre collection of interconnecting relationships.

Making a profit

To make a profit, McMillan said, Santa Barbara-area wineries must sell their products for $25 a bottle. That will yield about a 12 percent profit. Most premium California wines sell for about $15 a bottle. But the biggest problem is getting the wine to the consumer, he said.

Read the Full Article

Joanie Hudson, Director National and International Marketing, Santa Barbara Winery / Lafond Winery & Vineyards

Taste of Solvang

Published on March 16, 2009 in Other News. 1 Comment Tags: , , .

Don’t miss the chance to head out to the Santa Ynez Valley this weekend to stop by the Taste of Solvang 17th Annual Food & Wine Festival.  The weekend kicks off at 7pm this Friday evening (March 20) and will carry on through Sunday (March 22).  Solvang is known for it’s Danish roots, tasty desserts, and winery tasting rooms.  I am always looking for an excuse to drive the scenic road out to wine country and sample a variety of local treats.  Stop by Lafond on your trip to get a sense of the difference that an appellation makes in our Santa Barbara County wines. 

A Weekend Passport including logo tote bag & souvenir wine glass is $70 per person. Individual event tickets (ala carte) may be purchased as well: Dessert Reception $25; Walking Smorgaasbord $30; Wine Walk $35; from the Solvang Visitors Bureau.

For complete details and advance tickets, call 805-688-6144; visit www.SolvangUSA.com or stop by the Visitors Bureau at 1511-A Mission Drive (Highway 246) at the corner of Fifth Street in downtown Solvang.

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Tasting Room Manager, Santa Barbara Winery

Wine from the Kitchen Sink?

Published on October 26, 2008 in Joanie Hudson and Other News. 0 Comments

What would you do if you went to your kitchen sink to fill of a flower vase with water and instead of water coming out, wine was in fact flowing through the pipes?  I would probably think I was dreaming, as I’m sure those who live in the tiny town of Marino, just south of Rome in Italy, did when it happened to them earlier this month. 

I came across the article on Decanter’s website, which tells the playful story that seems like something from a movie.  The town holds an annual harvest celebration, which they call the Sagra dell’ Uva, during which a crowd gathers to watch 3000 liters of the newly pressed vintage spray out of a 17th century fountain.  Well, instead of connecting the wine with the fountain, the local plumbers accidentally connected it with the local water supply.  So wine was literally flowing freely out of the kitchen sink.  As word spread, people filled up whatever they could find with wine.  What an amazing story…

Frascati is the straw-colored white wine produced in this area of Italy, and it is made from trebbiano and malvasia grapes. 

You can read the full article here:

http://www.decanter.com/news/269612.html

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Tasting Room Manager, Santa Barbara Winery

LocalWineEvents.com

Published on September 3, 2008 in Joanie Hudson, Other News and Special Events. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

I recently discovered a great comprehensive resource for finding wine events in Santa Barbara. Localwineevents.com has all sorts of information on events happening all over the world.  The calendar of food and drink events has a weekly e-newsletter that is called The Juice, and it displays wine tastings, wine dinners, wine festivals, cooking classes, beer festivals, and more – in your area coming up in the next 30 days.  Food and drink professionals can add their events to the calendar for free. They have resources where you can find answers to the most obscure wine questions, wine articles, and blogs.  

Each Juice newsletter contains quiz questions to test your wine knowledge or learn something new, the calendar of food and wine events, a Q&A section, Wine FAQ’s, and tidbits.  The calendar provides event details, costs, and contact information.  I get my newsletters every Tuesday morning, and it has been the best way that I have found to find out about events in the area.  It’s also just an great way to keep in touch with the wine community, see what everybody is doing, and learn one or two tidbits a week.  To sign up for the newsletter just go to localwineevents.com and register (click on ‘be notified’).  

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Tasting Room Manager, Santa Barbara Winery