Construction Update Week of August 29

Here are some updated pictures of the construction....

Casa Cassera and Brian Freeborn

I received a phone call the other day from a young gentleman requesting a visit so we could taste his wine. He is the head winemaker for Casa Cassera out of Lompoc. Since The Wine Cottage is still in the construction phase, we usually meet winemakers and distributors at my house. After speaking to Brian for a little while I could see that in order to get a full experience in tasting his wines we needed to meet him in the vineyard. We met him at the corner of 246 and Mail Rd. because he said he didn't want us getting lost. We then traversed a mountain which lead us to the most incredible view of the entire Santa Rita AVA and Santa Barbara County. He graciously lined up all his wine from the light, citrusy Sauv Blanc to the deep, rich Syrah. All in all we tasted over 12 wines. The wines that Brian creates are complex and beautiful. The estate Pinot from their own 5 acre parcel was our favorite. The Syrah from Colson Canyon was a very close second.

Brian is also in his 9th crush, meaning he started very young. He is a mild, unassuming winemaker who is passionate about his wine and the roll he is able to play. He is also very generous and hospitable. He sent us home with the remaining wine that we were not able to taste. We had a surprise party for Ron and Yolanda so having the wine to share with our friends made the entire experience complete.

We are excited to have Brian on board with The Wine Cottage and be able to show case his wines. He will be our first Wine Maker dinner and feature Winery for the Month of December. Look on our site for more information on Brian and Casa Cassara wines.

It's All About the Story

For some of you that know me you have heard me say it a million times, "Its all about the story". Where ever our research and development take my sister and I and whomever we ask to tag along with us we are always looking for the story. Really, it is the people that make our travels special.

Our most recent R&D trip was to Paso Robles. We combined a trip to the fair for an awesome concert with Ozomotli, with a visit to some area wineries. As is a custom on our R&D trips, we were accompanied by our cousins, Dawn & Rene as well as Tim & Brandy.

We visited J.Lohr winery and what a refreshing visit that was. The tasting room is beautifully decorated with high ceilings, wood floor and steel trusses. The color palette was soothing and tranquil. The tasting was free with 6 tastes. We were able to tailor our tasting for our preferences in wine. This is a great way to accomodate the variety of tastes among wine drinkers. I, of course, wanted to try them all but with a list of over 20 wines, that would have left me waiting in the car for the rest of the tour. The 2004 J. Lohr Estates Wildflower Valdiguié. This was a refreshing, light, georgeous jewel like, reddish wine perfect for summer and fall with fish, chicken or even a blue cheese burger from The Wine Cottage. We had the most fantastic pourer, Bettina, serving us. She had an enthusiasm for J. Lohr wines that prompted us all to make purchases before we left.

Time was running out before the concert so we decided just one more winery would be possible. Little did we know that we were about to meet our "story" for the day. The winery was called Silver Horse. A beautiful, newly built tasting room amidst 40 acres of lush vines was the setting for some fantastic wines. First we were greeted by a hord of slobbering black and yellow labs. Since we have some in our family, Molly and Owen, we couldn't help but play with the dogs on our way to the door. Once inside we see a young, handsome gentleman (being that I turn 40 on Saturday, I emphasize YOUNG!) who excuses himself to get some more wine. He comes back and starts to pour us the wine. From the first sip of the cool, crisp Albarino, we knew this would be an Alapay experience (see past blogs to know what that was). We ranted and raved about this first pour and asked who the winemaker was, our pourer said shyly, "That's me". He makes the most remarkable wines but is so humble that you are taken back. With some big egos out there it is refreshing to see that some still humbly say it's not them its the fruit. We fell in love with Steven. He is a trained and educated Architect but found that was not his passion. He began making wine before he could even legally drink the stuff. Now in his 9th crush he is a seasoned winemaker with the credentials in the bottle. The next pour was the blend of Syrah and Cab. Wonderful full finish, smooth and luscious. At this point we signed up for his wine club. We didn't need to taste anymore. We were sold. The next 4 wines that we tasted were equally great, still in the barrel, called Futures. We will be receiving bottles of these in the fall with our first shipment. Aimee was able to label and foil the bottles that we took with us. Steven is an artisian winemaker still doing all the work by himself. It connects him with the wine like a mother with her child.
We drug ourselves away with much reservation, but we will be back. In fact since we are club members we will be stomping the grapes with Steven in the upcoming harvest.
Thanks for listening. And don't forget to join our mailing list. The next newsletter will have a coupon for a free glass of wine.
The Wine Girls