Sunday, March 30, 2008
Oh, so soil matters after all…
A new study by German researchers (from the Service Center of Rural Areas) shows that soil type may have a greater influence than climate on the characteristics of wines. This contradicts conventional wisdom. Taking samples of Riesling grapes grown across Germany, researchers put lots of grapes from different vineyards through identical winemaking processes, then compared them based on soil types. What did they find? Riesling gown in Limestone based soils - even when grown hundreds of miles apart in completely different climates - had similar characteristics of tropical fruit and honey with intense color. Meanwhile, Riesling grown in sandstone soils all showed mineral and citrus qualities. Interesting stuff. These results were based on two years of study and are just the beginning. The next phase of the study will look specifically at climate differences. Stay tuned! And for more info, check out the January 2008 issue of Wines & Vines magazine.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Volcano Vineyards 2005 Syrah gets OUTSTANDING Review
The Spring 2008 issue of Wine Press Northwest is out and for the second year in a row, we’ve gotten a rating of “OUTSTANDING!” I have to say, this is the best review we’ve ever gotten. I LOVE Wine Press Norhtwest! Check this out:
“OUTSTANDING! Top-flight Syrahs from Scott Ratcliff in Bend, OR are becoming a tradition. This vineyard-designate near Jacksonville, OR is on the precocious side with youthful, lip-smacking sweet brambleberries and balanced oak. A dark midpalate leads to a rich and lingering finish of semi-sweet chocolate that brings you back. The Ratcliffs, who have a background in fine cuisine, suggest pairing this with pulled pork or salty and bitter foods such as greens, olives, lemons, eggplant and asparagus.”
“OUTSTANDING! Top-flight Syrahs from Scott Ratcliff in Bend, OR are becoming a tradition. This vineyard-designate near Jacksonville, OR is on the precocious side with youthful, lip-smacking sweet brambleberries and balanced oak. A dark midpalate leads to a rich and lingering finish of semi-sweet chocolate that brings you back. The Ratcliffs, who have a background in fine cuisine, suggest pairing this with pulled pork or salty and bitter foods such as greens, olives, lemons, eggplant and asparagus.”
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Vintner's Dinner at McMenamins St. Francis
Join us on Saturday April 19 at 7 pm at McMenamins St. Francis for a four course wine dinner. Cost is $50 per person. Call 541-382-5174 for reservations. Here is the fabulous menu:
Hazelnut-crusted Rogue Creamery blue cheese with rosemary shortbread and champagne grapes
Volcano Vineyards 2005 Viognier
Mixed greens with Manchego cheese, spiced marcona almonds and Spanish olive vinaigrette Volcano Vineyards 2005 Syrah
Smoked buffalo tenderloin with truffle butter, roasted fingerling potatoes and sugar snap peas Volcano Vineyards 2005 Merlot
Chocolate lava cake with cherry-Syrah reduction
Volcano Vineyards Lava Red Blend
Hazelnut-crusted Rogue Creamery blue cheese with rosemary shortbread and champagne grapes
Volcano Vineyards 2005 Viognier
Mixed greens with Manchego cheese, spiced marcona almonds and Spanish olive vinaigrette Volcano Vineyards 2005 Syrah
Smoked buffalo tenderloin with truffle butter, roasted fingerling potatoes and sugar snap peas Volcano Vineyards 2005 Merlot
Chocolate lava cake with cherry-Syrah reduction
Volcano Vineyards Lava Red Blend
Friday, February 29, 2008
Another Gold Medal
We are very pleased to announce that we were awarded a Gold Medal at the 2008 Grand Harvest awards. The Gold Medal winning wine was our Volcano Vineyards 2005 Syrah from the Rogue Valley AVA in Southern Oregon. The Grand Harvest Awards are sponsored by Vineyard and Winery Management magazine. The focus of the competition is on terroir – the influence of soil, weather conditions, climate, etc. on the grapes. Wines are grouped not by varietal but by region or appellation. Volcano Vineyards was the only Gold Medal winner from the Rogue Valley AVA designation.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Valentine's Day Wine Dinner at Balay
Still have not made plans for Valentine’s Day? You are in luck! We are teaming up with Balay Coffee House (next to The Pine Tavern) to present a five course wine dinner featuring our Volcano Vineyards wines. Cost is $100 per couple. Space is limited, so reserve your spot today by calling 323-6417
FIRST COURSE
Wild Mushroom Tart
Riondo Pink Prosecco
SECOND COURSE
Endive, Apple, Blue Cheese and Hickory Salad
Volcano Vineyards 2005 Viognier
THIRD COURSE
Beef Provencal
Volcano Vineyards 2005 Merlot, Rogue Valley
FOURTH COURSE
Tumalo Farms Cheeses
Volcano Vineyards 2005 Syrah, Rogue Valley
FIFTH COURSE
Sticky Toffee Pudding Cake with Creme Anglaise
Harris Bridge Pinot Noir Dessert Wine
Hope to see you there!
FIRST COURSE
Wild Mushroom Tart
Riondo Pink Prosecco
SECOND COURSE
Endive, Apple, Blue Cheese and Hickory Salad
Volcano Vineyards 2005 Viognier
THIRD COURSE
Beef Provencal
Volcano Vineyards 2005 Merlot, Rogue Valley
FOURTH COURSE
Tumalo Farms Cheeses
Volcano Vineyards 2005 Syrah, Rogue Valley
FIFTH COURSE
Sticky Toffee Pudding Cake with Creme Anglaise
Harris Bridge Pinot Noir Dessert Wine
Hope to see you there!
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
...Once Were Waiters
Since many of you are just learning of Volcano Vineyards, this is who we are:
Scott and I were both introduced to the wine industry at young ages. While I wish we could say that we learned to walk in granddad’s vineyards or jammed Uncle Harry’s bottling line with a Barbie Doll, the fact is our initial exposure was on the consumer side. Scott’s folks were big foodies and started visiting Napa Valley in the late 60s, became members of the Chaine des Rotisseurs, and have amassed an enormous wine cellar. My dad was hit with the wine bug in the early 80s, falling in love with Chateauneuf du Pape. The day we discussed French wines in my high school French class, I was the only person who said anything – Monsieur Beckman was so excited because I NEVER said anything in that class ever and suddenly I was “Cotes du Rhone-ing” all over the place.
Scott and I met when we were both waiters in San Francisco. San Francisco waiters are professionals who love food, love restaurants and love wine (and in the best restaurants, that will always be the case). As a waiter in a four or five star restaurant (such as McCormick & Kuleto’s or The Sherman House), the more you know about the food you are serving and the wine on your list that perfectly complements it, the better the experience your guests will have (and presumably, the better your tip). Restaurants spend an enormous amount of time and money training their wait staffs on wine, wineries, the nuances of food pairing. We were 70 minutes from Sonoma and Napa and spent almost every weekend up there, first visiting wineries, then spending time at Gallaway Vineyards in Healdsburg - the vineyard that Scott helped plant - which belonged to family friends. Once those vines matured, we started home winemaking, using Gallaway Vineyards grapes that were left on the vines after harvest. In the late ‘90s we both got lured into desk jobs, which was a nice break. But we both missed the buzz from the restaurant biz, we missed the people who are drawn to working in food and wine, and we missed the daily exposure to (and the consumption of) all that great food and wine!
In the fall of 2001 we moved from San Francisco to Bend, Oregon. And again, while I wish we could say that we were cashing out stock options or that we had sold our cracker box house for a million dollars, that wasn’t the case. We were renters in San Francisco, and when the house up the street from us in the Inner Sunset sold for $650,000 and the new owners proceeded to knock it down and build a new house, we knew it was time to go. We figured out very quickly that Bend is an entrepreneurial town, thriving thanks to small businesses. After a few months we went back to the Bay Area for a wedding. While there, Scott sent off an email to Randall Grahm, (founder of Bonny Doon Vineyards and the "Original Rhone DeRanger") stating that he was a local boy thinking about going “pro” with his home winemaking and would Mr. Grahm have any advice. About 20 minutes later the phone rang in Scott’s parents’ house (where we were staying) and it was Randall Grahm himself who said he had just had surgery, was bored out of his skull and would we like to come to his house to talk wine. When we arrived, he said to us, “If I were in your position, this is what I would do…” And by the end of that meeting, Scott had thrown his heart off the cliff, and there was no turning back. Volcano Vineyards was born.
Scott and I were both introduced to the wine industry at young ages. While I wish we could say that we learned to walk in granddad’s vineyards or jammed Uncle Harry’s bottling line with a Barbie Doll, the fact is our initial exposure was on the consumer side. Scott’s folks were big foodies and started visiting Napa Valley in the late 60s, became members of the Chaine des Rotisseurs, and have amassed an enormous wine cellar. My dad was hit with the wine bug in the early 80s, falling in love with Chateauneuf du Pape. The day we discussed French wines in my high school French class, I was the only person who said anything – Monsieur Beckman was so excited because I NEVER said anything in that class ever and suddenly I was “Cotes du Rhone-ing” all over the place.
Scott and I met when we were both waiters in San Francisco. San Francisco waiters are professionals who love food, love restaurants and love wine (and in the best restaurants, that will always be the case). As a waiter in a four or five star restaurant (such as McCormick & Kuleto’s or The Sherman House), the more you know about the food you are serving and the wine on your list that perfectly complements it, the better the experience your guests will have (and presumably, the better your tip). Restaurants spend an enormous amount of time and money training their wait staffs on wine, wineries, the nuances of food pairing. We were 70 minutes from Sonoma and Napa and spent almost every weekend up there, first visiting wineries, then spending time at Gallaway Vineyards in Healdsburg - the vineyard that Scott helped plant - which belonged to family friends. Once those vines matured, we started home winemaking, using Gallaway Vineyards grapes that were left on the vines after harvest. In the late ‘90s we both got lured into desk jobs, which was a nice break. But we both missed the buzz from the restaurant biz, we missed the people who are drawn to working in food and wine, and we missed the daily exposure to (and the consumption of) all that great food and wine!
In the fall of 2001 we moved from San Francisco to Bend, Oregon. And again, while I wish we could say that we were cashing out stock options or that we had sold our cracker box house for a million dollars, that wasn’t the case. We were renters in San Francisco, and when the house up the street from us in the Inner Sunset sold for $650,000 and the new owners proceeded to knock it down and build a new house, we knew it was time to go. We figured out very quickly that Bend is an entrepreneurial town, thriving thanks to small businesses. After a few months we went back to the Bay Area for a wedding. While there, Scott sent off an email to Randall Grahm, (founder of Bonny Doon Vineyards and the "Original Rhone DeRanger") stating that he was a local boy thinking about going “pro” with his home winemaking and would Mr. Grahm have any advice. About 20 minutes later the phone rang in Scott’s parents’ house (where we were staying) and it was Randall Grahm himself who said he had just had surgery, was bored out of his skull and would we like to come to his house to talk wine. When we arrived, he said to us, “If I were in your position, this is what I would do…” And by the end of that meeting, Scott had thrown his heart off the cliff, and there was no turning back. Volcano Vineyards was born.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Wrap Up of the 2008 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition for Volcano Vineyards
In case you missed it, we were awarded two Gold Medals at the 2008 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition. The Gold Medal winners were the Volcano Vineyards 2006 Syrah and their Volcano Vineyards Lava Red Blend both from the Rogue Valley AVA in Southern Oregon. Both wines are set to be released later in 2008.
The San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition is the world’s largest judging of wines produced in the US. This year, a record 4235 wines from 1500 wineries were tasted.
Wineries from Oregon fared better in the 2008 competition, winning a total of 8 Gold Medals, compared with only 3 in 2007. Volcano Vineyards is the only Oregon winery to have won Gold in both of the last two years, with our Volcano Vineyards 2004 Syrah winning Gold in 2007.
We submitted three other wines for judging, with all three winning Silver Medals. Those wines were our Volcano Vineyards 2005 Syrah, Lakeside Vineyard, the 2005 Merlot and the 2006 Merlot, Fortmiller Vineyard. All of our award winning wines were grown and produced in the Rogue Valley, Southern Oregon.
For those of you in the San Francisco Bay Area, Scott will be pouring our wines at the San Francisco Public Tasting on Saturday February 16 at the Fort Mason Festival Pavilion from 2 to 5 pm. All wineries who won Gold Medals or better will be there. Tickets are $50 in advance, $70 at the door. Check out winejudging.com for more info.
The San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition is the world’s largest judging of wines produced in the US. This year, a record 4235 wines from 1500 wineries were tasted.
Wineries from Oregon fared better in the 2008 competition, winning a total of 8 Gold Medals, compared with only 3 in 2007. Volcano Vineyards is the only Oregon winery to have won Gold in both of the last two years, with our Volcano Vineyards 2004 Syrah winning Gold in 2007.
We submitted three other wines for judging, with all three winning Silver Medals. Those wines were our Volcano Vineyards 2005 Syrah, Lakeside Vineyard, the 2005 Merlot and the 2006 Merlot, Fortmiller Vineyard. All of our award winning wines were grown and produced in the Rogue Valley, Southern Oregon.
For those of you in the San Francisco Bay Area, Scott will be pouring our wines at the San Francisco Public Tasting on Saturday February 16 at the Fort Mason Festival Pavilion from 2 to 5 pm. All wineries who won Gold Medals or better will be there. Tickets are $50 in advance, $70 at the door. Check out winejudging.com for more info.
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