Overview - Itinerary Wineries Rutherford Ranch - Napa Valley Andretti Winery – Napa Valley V. Sattui - Napa Valley Domaine Chandon - Napa Valley Luna Vineyards – Alternate Signorello Winery - Alternate

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Steps in Wine Making

Wine is a drink which is fantasized by many, now have you ever wondered how this mesmerizing drink is made. This article will explain you how this mouth watering drink is prepared.

The steps through which wine is made can be summarized as follows:
  • Extort the flavor and aroma from the base ingredients by chopping, crushing, boiling or soaking them.
  • Sugar, acid, nutrients and yeast is to be added to the fermented liquid to obtain the proper ratio and then ferment the liquid in a fermentation vessel for 3-10 days at 70-75 degree Fahrenheit.
  • Strain the liquid from the pulp, then pour the liquid into a secondary fermentation vessel and air lock the mouth of the bottle and then allow it to ferment at60-65 degrees Fahrenheit till the bubbling ceases.
  • When wine is clear, pure and the entire fermentation process has stopped, pour it into wine bottles and firmly secure the cork.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Wine tasting at Rutherford Ranch Winery

Situated a short distance from the Silverado Trail at the Rutherford Crossroad, Rutherford Ranch Winery is on the banks of a somewhat meandering creek.

rutherford-ranch-winery The vineyards Rutherford Ranch is a picturesque property and the wines crafted here, Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc and Zinfandel, are of such excellent quality and that is the reason why the Napa Valley and the unique Rutherford appellation are world renowned. The Rutherford Ranch Vineyards and Winery are no doubt centrally located in the world famous Rutherford appellation, in the heart of the beautiful Napa Valley. Rutherford Ranch wines have been lovingly created to express the class that the Napa Valley wine is known for.

At Rutherford Ranch wineries have been making ultra-premium wines for almost thirty years, constantly striving rutherford-ranch-wine to offer wine lovers exceptional quality at reasonable prices. Winery visitors are always warmly greeted to taste an array of award-winning wines and their hospitality is truly heart-warming. Their specialists are only too eager to share their vast wine making knowledge. In the shade of old-growth oaks and 100-year old olive trees guests are asked to sit with a glass of wine or to stroll along the creek while enjoying beautiful vineyard vistas.

Each Rutherford Ranch wine is made in one of the Napa Valley's prized vineyards and is carefully hand crafted. rutherford-ranch-tasting-terrace A gentle fermentation is followed by many months of aging in small French and American oak barrels. The result is a wine that is wholesome and full-bodied, yet pleasing to the palate and ready to be enjoyed accompanied by your favorite dishes.

It is no exaggeration to say that wines from Rutherford reflect the true essence of Napa Valley. The wineries here create wines with fresh aromas, rich flavors and a smooth balanced finish. Along with exemplary taste, Rutherford signorello-vineyards Ranch offers genuine value to wine lovers who come here. Mr. Robert Parker, well-respected critic and wine writer for The Wine Advocate, commended the Rutherford Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon calling it the premium wine. He said "One of the great values in California Cabernet Sauvignon (believe me there aren't many of them)..." Parker also called the Rutherford Ranch Rhiannon and Rutherford Ranch Chardonnay as amazing wines.

Rutherford Ranch began in the late 1970s and was earlier known as Round Hill Winery. Today the winery is part of the Rutherford Wine Company group that includes Rutherford Ranch, Rutherford Ranch Reserve, Round Hill and Grand Pacific brands. Added to these, ASV Wineries, located in Delano and San Martin, is also a part of the same ownership, making it one of the giant producers in the state. The Rutherford Ranch label represents wines with some of the best values in the Valley. Rutherford Ranch wines are produced from fruit sourced from many different vineyards in Napa Valley, while most of the fruit for the Round Hill wines is sourced from other areas of California.

The scenic beauty of the wineries is something unique, featuring many trees, walkways, rock gardens, brightly chardonnay-lodge-resortcolored umbrellas and a pond. The modern, attractive winery building is a fascinating mix of glass, concrete and natural wood. The tasting room has the right ambience and one sees bright fall colors highlighted by heavy wood beams supporting the ceiling. The petite tasting counter provides a wide range of wines including Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, a sweet Moscato, White Zinfandel, Pinot Noir, and Syrah. A new wine is their proprietary red blend Rhiannon, made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petite Syrah, Syrah and Zinfandel. There is a separate VIP tasting room as those desiring a quiet personal experience seek advance reservations.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Dark Red Wine fights against liver diseases

Surprisingly, a glass of wine a day is capable to cut your odds of non-alcoholic oily liver disease in half, according to the University of California, San Diego. For unidentified reasons, this disease is rising and by now affected more than 40 million American adults!

It's not wine's drink that is defensive. One conjecture is that dark red wines like merlot, cabernet sauvignon and other kind of Shiraz has antioxidants, comprising resveratrol, exposed in studies to assist fight many diseases. Research displays that, actually, red wine is your great choice if you desire to get the health advantages related with reasonable alcohol consumption.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Shuttle Ride over V. Sattui to Andretti Winery

napa-valley-wine-countryThe tour shuttle ride over V. Sattui to Andretti Winery is vastly different from all other Napa Valley Tours from San Francisco. On this tour shuttle ride, you visit four premium Napa wineries and have the opportunity to taste a selection of red wines, white wines and sparkling wines, have a picnic lunch at one of the wineries. The tour also includes a ride over the Golden Gate Bridge, with stops at both large and smaller family-owned wineries. The shuttle ride passes through some exciting stops. You will drive over the Golden Gate Bridge on our way to the exotic Napa Valley and your first winery stop - Domaine Chandon.

Domaine Chandon - is located on an expansive landscaped property featuring spring-fed ponds domaine-chandon-vineyards in the heart of the Napa Valley. Domaine Chandon is known for its award winning sparkling and still wines and cosy restaurant. Domaine Chandon will provide you fun and excitement during your wine country tour. Their tasting room offers a spacious arena to relax and take in the beautiful wine country vista that sits right behind the tasting bar. One understands the reason why Napa Valley has more prominent and popular wineries than elsewhere in the world after visiting Domaine Chandon.


v-sattui-winery V. Sattui Winery - here you will find a family-owned winery selling its award-winning wines which you cannot get anywhere else. Their stone winery building and Cheese Shop and Deli are surrounded by two and a half acres of quiet, tree-shaded picnic grounds.


Picnic Lunch - have an exciting picnic lunch in Napa Valley with the entire tour group. After a Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot tasting at V. Sattui, you are at liberty to order what you like from a wide variety of dishes. There are many items including cheese, sausage mashed potato and olive plates as well as meat/vegetarian sandwiches. It is recommended buying your favorite bottle of wine or sparkling wine that you tasted during the first part of the tour to have with your lunch.

napa-valley-wine-country-sightseeing-private-tours
Andretti Winery - established in the year 1996, this winery is named after its founder, Mario Andretti, the famous Italian Indy 500 race car driver. This is located in the middle of the beautiful Napa Valley on our way to the Silverado Trail. Andretti winery offers you the best of service as they provide you a special place in front of the vineyards and mountains to taste their Napa Valley wines. They offer four different varieties to try during the tour.


Rutherford Ranch Winery - situated on the fabled Silverado Trail on the quiet side of the Napa Valley, Rutherford Ranch Winery has been nationally and internationally recognized forrutherford-ranch-wineryconsistently producing quality wines.Since the mid 1980's Napa has been home to Rutherford Ranch, allowing them to build a reputation as one of the finest winery region. Originally planned to only grow grapes and sell to others wineries changes as the harvest one year during the mid 1980's gave way to Rutherford to produce their own estate wines as well as private label wines.

You will enjoy this invariably small and intimate group shuttle tour consisting of not more than 40 persons including your guide. You will have ample time to relax and leisurely get to know your fellow passengers if you wish. The Tour Guides are indeed knowledgeable and keep informing about the various wineries and their special features, answering your doubts, providing feedback and generally entertaining you. Enjoy complimentary bottled-water throughout your Napa Valley Wine Tour. On this tour you will take the Bay Link Vallejo Ferry cruise from Napa Valley back to San Francisco around the sunset hour. You can go outside and confront the wind blowing across your face. Along the way you'll pass close to Alcatraz Island and see the Golden Gate Bridge. Depending on the time of year you take your tour you may see the sun setting behind the Golden Gate Bridge.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Interactive Napa valley Wine Country Tour

napa-wine-country-toursNapa Valley Wineries have come into limelight from dim obscurity in less than forty years. The region has witnessed America's fine wine revolution and it is now one of the best wine producing areas in the world.

One of the most famous wine regions is Carneros which is home to several excellent Napa Valley Wineries.

The other best-known Oak Knoll wine region is located north. In 2004, after a decade of Herculean effort, theoak-knoll-winery Trefethen Family successfully gained AVA (American Viticulture Areas) status for this region.

Very close on the eastern side lies the Coombsville wine region, also known as Tulocay. Although not yet declared an AVA, the wine region boasts of many excellent Napa Valley Wineries like Farella Vineyards.

The Yountville AVA has grown phenomenally in the past two decades. The climate in this region is still relatively cool by Napa Valley standards. The Yountville Mounts block much of the wind and fog from the San Pablo Bay from advancing through Napa Valley Wine Country.

Oakville, Rutherford and St. Helena - three of the widely acknowledged famous wine regions lie next to each other. These three regions have earned renown by producing world class Cabernet Sauvignon. These AVAs are home to some of the best wineries in the state, and consistently produce premium quality wine.

The Stage Leap AVA is somewhat isolated from the Napa Valley floor by a range of hills. But the region is pleasant and cool while most of the other Napa Valley Wineries are hot.

sangiovese-vineyardsSituated at a higher altitude in the hills, Atlas Peak was once home to a significant number of Sangiovese vineyards. But many producers are now replanting with Cabernet Sauvignon in line with most wineries in Napa Valley Wine Country.

The Mount Veeder AVA has all along been renowned for its rare and superior quality grape production. Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel and Syrah are extensively grown on these sunny mountain slopes. The Napa Valley Wineries from these regions are noted for cult Cabernet Sauvignon that is otherwise made in extremely low quantities.

Howell Mountain is located in another elevated region in the northeastern hills of Napa Valley Wine Country. The region enjoys remarkably good weather, full of famous wineries, and draws a large number of tourists. Grapes grown here have distinct flavor and aroma.

Chiles Valley is indisputably one of the state's premium Zinfandel producing regions and it contains some historic vineyards that have survived the ravages of time. Napa Valley Wine Country's latest AVA, Wild Horse Valley is situated in the southeastern hills. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay flourish here principally due to the cool, windy climate.

Some of the other well-known wineries in Napa Valley that a tourist must visit are: Artesa Winery, Farella artesa-winery Vineyard, Plump Jack Winery, Jade Mountain Winery and Rudd Winery.

The Napa Valley is recognized as the most famous wine region and three wines made here won places in the 2006 Wine Spectator Top 100 list.

Kongsgaard is one of the widely acclaimed Chardonnay producers in the New World. John and Maggie Kongsgaard produce The Judge (very limited Chardonnay), Chardonnay, and a white blend of Viognier and Roussanne.

The Judge gets rave reviews with every passing year, but it is not made in large quantities and thus many people have never tasted it.

2004 Napa Valley Chardonnay of the Hess Collection also found a place on the Top 100 list. The Hess Collection is set to acquire a historic property located high in the Mount Veeder AVA. The property is renowned because Brother Timothy of the Christian Brothers used to make wine here.

Yae another winery located in the Oak Knoll AVA is Lewis Cellars. They buy from several premium Napa Valley vineyards and produce nearly 9000 cases every year. Their 2006 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon won the 22nd place in the 2006 Top 100 list.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Harvest Season in Napa Valley

In Napa Valley County, it is now time to assemble the fruits of a season's labor. The harvest has started and it follows a tricky growing season, which might, or might not, be a sign of more to appear.

Napa grapes may look like smaller, but they are of course tastier. But they do not come easy. In fact, Last spring was the coldest in more than three decades. After that spring frostiness, the area had heavy rains right in the middle of blossoming season. Then, there were three odd heat waves before mid July, followed by chill temperatures till now. No one has sufficient long-term data to blame a altering climate, but the thought is out there. So as the 2008 crop comes in, another crop turns up to reflect another growing season. If the era has a sure memorable strength, the people who grew it, earned it.

Friday, August 8, 2008

Americans Drink Less Beer and More Wine

A 50 year study has revealed that Americans are now drinking less alcohol, but health issues associated to alcohol consumption yet do not decline. Framingham Heart Study is a reading concerning 8000 participants born among 1900 and 1959. Researchers occasionally questioned participants once in four years among 1948 until 2003. All contributors were cautiously looked at for health and drinking history.

Researchers reviewed the data, which was collected in 50 year period and established that drinking levels are considerably declining. People are now drinking less beer and more wine, but hard liquor consumption rates continue the same.

Friday, August 1, 2008

Geyserville gem offer richer wine tasting experience

With many wine country tour spot across California, it often happens that visitors miss out on some amazing trees. Touring form one huge name place to another the roving wine taster usually passes wonderfully by discovered gems, which could actually offer them richer experience

One such superb gem is Geyserville, a tiny; discreetly silence town placed on the banks of the Russian River and shoehorned amid the Dry Creek and Alexander valleys. That it occurs to exist in one of the huge American appellations (Alexander Valley) is a plus not just for the wine makers who settle the area, but as well for the wine aficionado that desires a calmer pace with his first-rate tasting experience. Geyserville is yet a small town, the type of place, which would make you feel right at home.