“VINE LINES”

Central Coast Wines Newsletter

March, 2011

Along with March came our first Wine Club shipment of 2011. Many of our members have already picked up their selections and all the out-of-area members should have received their shipments by now! If you haven’t picked up your wine club yet, come on in, we’ve got it ready for you!

Every quarter we go through the process of tasting and selecting wines that we think you’ll enjoy. Sometimes we are fortunate enough to be able to introduce you to a new label and sometimes it’s a label you might be familiar with but a new release that we liked – such as the Carina Cellars – 07’ Clairvoyant which received a 91 point rating from Wine Spectator. This quarter we introduced you to the relatively new Oso Libre winery with their fantastic Cabernet Sauvignon, a new Terry Hoage release, and new labels from Riverbench, Alchemy and Baehner Fournier. We hope you have fun with the selections and we welcome your comments or suggestions – www.mail@ccwines.com.

RE-ORDERING WINE CLUB SELECTIONS

Reminder: You can re-order any wine featured in our March wine club at 15% off through the month of March. Many members have been purchasing additional Carina Clairvoyant which we can continue to get (as of the time this was written), however, since it’s 91 point rating, we don’t expect this wine will be available much longer. Also, the Terry Hoage Grenache is extremely limited. If you received it and like it or you would like to try this tremendous wine at a discounted price, now is the time to order…..we’re not sure we can purchase any additional supplies! We remind you that Terry Hoage will soon become “allocated” which means it will be extremely difficult to get any varietal of his wines.

MARCH CELLAR SALE

This month’s “Cellar Sale” features Justin 01’ Reserve Syrah…..it is drinking beautifully right now but has additional cellar time left if you are a collector. You can save 10% during the month of March on this fabulous Syrah from the famous Justin Winery. Call the store or check our website at www.ccwines.com for ordering. Quantities are limited!

WINE AND CHEESE PAIRING

Our next Wine and Cheese Pairing is scheduled for April 24 and will feature wines from Spain! Watch your emails for more details closer to date of the event.

BEER TASTING

Our next Beer Tasting event is scheduled for Saturday evening, March 27 and features Sprecher Brewing Company. Randy Sprecher, founder and owner will be on-site to educate us on his brewing processes and if you’re not a beer fan, we will also be offering his fabulous sodas that include Root Beer, Orange Dream Soda, Crème Soda and a couple of new soda releases from Randy! Emails containing specifics for this event will be sent within the next week!

FARMERS MARKET POURINGS – THURSDAY NIGHTS

March 18 Clesi

March 25 The Wines of Kevin Riley

(Proulx, Sextant, Blackburn)

April 1 Eberle

April 8 WCP Cellars (Will Persell)

WINE FACTS

Five Tips for Storing Wine

1. Store wine in a cool, dark place, ideally a temperature controlled, refrigerated unit. A cabinet or dark room will work but never place wine in an area with direct sunlight or an area where the wine will be come heated. Ultraviolet light leads to oxidation.

2. Keep bottles away from any vibration, such as a refrigerator compressor, washing machine, dryer, etc.

3. Storage temperature should be cool and constant – 65 degrees is good, 55 degrees is better, but 70 degrees or over is too warm.

4. Avoid dramatic temperature fluctuations. It’s not as important that it’s a steady 55 degrees or a steady 65 degrees, as long as it’s steady.

5. Always store your bottles on their sides or upside down so that the cork stays moist.

Question of the Month!

This Edna Valley winemaker is well-known for pioneering Rhone grapes in cooler climates and he is a pioneer of the Rhone Rangers movement. He is considered one of the most influential American Rhone producers and is well-known for varietals that include Syrah, Grenache, Rousanne, Viognier, Mourvedre. In 1989, he began the first American winery and vineyard established exclusively for Rhone varietals and he continues to produce some of the most award-winning Rhone varietals in California! Who is this famous winemaker?

First local and first out-of-town reader to correctly answer the question gets a $20 Gift Card!

Wine brings to light the hidden secrets of the soul, gives being to our hopes, bids the coward flight, drives dull care away, and teaches new means for the accomplishment of our wishes." --- Horace