Baby, it's cold outside.

And I'm loving it.  The past five mornings have been white and bright.
After so much rain last Thursday, 3.5 inches fell in just under 5 hours, the sunny, dry, crisp weather has been a more than welcome respite. Of course, all that rain meant there was plenty of moisture about to actually freeze and the resulting 1/8 inch of hoarfrost over every surface, including Vinoland's grapevines, made for some spectacular sugar-sprinkled vistas on my early morning walks with Vinodog 2.  And it made everything seem just that little bit more Christmassy.  Love it.

The rain and wind beat dark December.

A rainy December day called for something robust with dinner.  The Mi Sueño, 2011 Tempranillo, Rancho Chimiles (Napa Valley AVA), was just the wine to banish the rain-blahs away.  Lots of red plum and spicy red currant, and with great tannins, this Tempranillo was a great California rendition of an old Spanish classic.
I had actually tasted this wine before, although in a very different stage of the wine's development.  Usually, I don't care for barrel samples, as I am not a winemaker and I don't have a crystal ball that will tell me what to expect of the finished product.  However, I remember the barrel-sample of this wine as being quite stunning, even in its infancy.  Now that this Tempranillo is all grown up, I'm enjoying it once again.

Happy anniversary ale!

 

This year is the 40th time that Anchor Brewing Company have produced their wonderful, limited edition Christmas Ale.  The recipe might change every year, but it never fails to disappoint.  This year the label is adorned with a charming ink drawing of a Sequoiadendron giganteum - the Giant Sequoia - which is a wonderful choice of tree this year.
Giant sequoias are the world's largest tree and can grow to upwards of 275 feet.  That's a lot of firewood!  To be able to visit a grove of these majestic trees, and stand in the cathedral-like space beneath their lofty bows, is just one of the great things about California.  Big tree.  Big anniversary.  Nice beer.  Well done Anchor Brewing Company, and happy Christmas.  I'm looking forward to your 41st edition.

The end of Wines of the World is nigh.

Tonight my Wines of the World class came to it's conclusion (on the eve of the end of the world), as ordained by Dr. Krebs in his class syllabus.  The Mayans (nice folks, once) may have other ideas for tomorrow, but tonight I had a final to take.  The written portion of the exam, I knew, was going to be fairly routine, but the blind tasting component was the cause of a little consternation for me.  Six, brown-bagged, anonymous wines loomed large on a desk in the corner of the classroom...argh!
Unlike the results of the written exam, my classmates and I were given the identity of the mystery wines when we had finished taking the final. Unfortunately, I only managed to identify 4 out of the 6 wines.  The Riesling, Gewürtztraminer, Pinot noir and Sherry were really quite easy to identify.  A light, citrusy wine I identified as an Albariño was in fact a Facelli Winery, 2011, Washington State, Fumé blanc - oops!  And a nondescript, thin to medium bodied, vinous red wine which I identified as a Merlot turned out to be a Red Bicyclette, 2005, Syrah - damn French! On the whole I think I did alright, as I overheard some of my classmates bemoaning the fact that they only scored 2 or 3 out of the six - and they're budding, young winemakers.
Wines of the World, what a terrific class.  It's been a great semester, I learned a lot and I had a lot of fun to boot.  But then again, I have had fun in every class I have taken that was given by Dr. Krebs...he even managed to make Vineyard Soils entertaining!
Thanks Dr. Krebs.