The Punch Down

2012 Napa Valley Vintage Update!

For those of you who may not know this… Team Expression is Team TETRA too. That’s right...Our passion for wine is not limited to Pinot and Chard. When we are not working in Oregon or Sta. Rita - we are focused on our highly limited Bordeaux-style red blend from four incredible Napa Valley Vineyards...

Our Winemaker Patrick Mahaney recently released his 2012 Napa Valley Vintage update and we thought you might like to take a peek into our Napa vineyards too!

Hope you enjoy...

Meg

 

Greetings from Napa Valley!

As the summer stretches on, I am very happy to report that our vineyards are developing beautifully along the same lines as the outstanding 2008 and 2009 vintages. Based on this consistency - we expect harvest to be late September through mid-October.

 

For those who are interested in numbers - here is a stat breakdown as of August 12th:

•  2008 and 2012 are virtually identical with 1,950 growing-degree days (GDDs)

• 2009 had 1,865 GDDs at the same point, about 4% less

• 2010 and 2011 had about 1,700 GDDs at the same point, about 13% less.  I note that we were able to obtain full maturity in 2010 and 2011 due to beautiful weather in October and early November in both years.

Growing-degree days (GDD): A way of determining if a prospective area has sufficient “ripening power” for the establishment of an orchard or vineyard.  The grouping of geographic areas into discreet growing zones to guide the selection of landscape plants employs GDDs as a component.  The annual measurement of GDDs is useful for guiding certain viticultural decisions as well as providing a way to quantify differences among growing seasons.

• Rainfall: Generally normal winter rainfall, but a dry February was of concern.  Fortunately, March brought several inches of rain, so we started the season with bud-break at the end of March with soil moisture in perfect condition. We have had no significant rainfall since late March with consistently dry, warm weather to date.

• Crop size: Slightly larger than average but berry size is typically small – small berries are the most important yield factor determining concentration of the wine.

• Veraison (berry coloring and softening): is occurring right now.  This is the time when we hand-thin clusters and berries that are lagging in development to ensure consistently ripe fruit at harvest.

                                                                                             (Broken Rock Vineyard, Napa Valley)

As more develops I will send out additional updates. It's a pleasure sharing TETRA's journey from vineyard to glass with you and I look forward to keeping you in-the-know as harvest nears.

Thank you for being a part of the TETRA (and Expression) family!

Cheers!

Patrick Mahaney

Winemaker, TETRA Napa Valley & Expression Wines

 

Discovered!

Pinot Days was all we had hoped for and more... We were thrilled to share our wines with Cortney Roudebush - the girl behind the fantastic wine blog Sip, Swirl, Savor - who enjoyed our Pinots enough to mention them in her top picks of the day! Thanks Cortney! We are so glad you discovered us!

Cheers!

Beside Ourselves In Joy...

Pinot Days, San Francisco is this Saturday!!! Our corkscrews and best new releases are at the ready.

Expect our 92 Point Rated 44º Roserock Vineyard Pinot to make an appearance with two equally luscious wines from latitudes 38º  and 39º.

Only two days to go... Oh the anticipation! 

Join us on the big day and let us pour a taste or two for you! 

Official Stats:

June 16, 2012 2:00pm-5:00pm
Festival Pavilion, Fort Mason Center, San Francisco - Buchanan Street and Marina Boulevard, San Francisco

Hundreds of Pinots from producers from around the world will be featured and for three glorious hours they are yours to explore.

And ours...

Oh sweet bliss!

See you there!

Wine Quote Wednesday

"A gourmet meal without a glass of wine just seems tragic to me somehow." -- Kathy Mattea

Meet you in San Francisco!

Have you heard of TETRA? It's our Napa Valley wine project. (Yes, when we are not growing world class Pinot Noir we sneak in a little Cab. What can we say? We are wine lovers.) And we will be sharing tastes of this beautiful Bordeaux-style Red Wine Blend at Food From The Heart this Friday...

"A romantic mood will envelop the 1898 Ferry Building Marketplace on Valentine's weekend. Providing a rare opportunity to experience the magic and beauty of the waterfront at night, the 8th annual "Food From the Heart" will kick off on Friday night, February 10th, in the candlelit Grand Nave."

Yes - there will be wine. There will be hors d'oeuvres there will be chocolate tastings...  Even tango dancing!

And as though that wasn't enticing enough - proceeds from purchases of wine and hors d'oeuvres will benefit Slow Food San Francisco's programs such as the School Garden Projects.

Good times supporting good stuff!

See you there!!!

When:
Friday, Feb. 10th
5:30-8:00 pm

Cost:
Free entrance.
Taste tickets available at the event.

Where:
Ferry Building Marketplace
One Ferry Building
San Francisco, California 94111
(415) 983-8000


More Info:
Napa Valley Vintners

 

 

(An oldie but a goodie... Enjoy!) Last Minute Superbowl Party. Woooo!

Mikey: "Hi Honey, Remember the Superbowl party we were going to go to? Well the guy having it had to cancel, so I said we could do it at our place! That's cool right? I was thinking Nacho Bar..."

Me: "Hmmmm. Nachos are cool. Yea - but I'm thinking I want a little something to go with the Chard in the fridge too. You know the bottle I was going to bring..."

Off to the computer I go.

Hot artichoke dip? Spinach dip? Obviously I like dip. Okay what else is there?

And then I found:

Crispy, Creamy Rock Shrimp with Sweet Chile Aioli and Apple Slaw

Yumnumnumnumnum!!!! Num yum num!

And much, much more thanks to the Epicurious.com feature: Chefs' Super Bowl Recipes

Check out http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/holidays/superbowl ASAP if you are planning to have a few friends over for the big game.

Not that you need too much of an excuse to make this delish party perfect snacks... I know we'll be busting out the rock shrimp on a regular basis.

Enjoy the food! (And the wine...and the beer...)

 

Monday Meal Inspiration: Go Oregonian!

Rachel Ray! You have done it again...

This recipe was born to highlight our Expression 44º 2008 Zena Crown Vineyard Pinot Noir. Yum-o!

Oregon Style Pork Chops with Pinot Noir and Cranberries, Oregon Hash with Wild Mushrooms, Greens, Beets, Hazelnuts and Blue Cheese, Charred Whole Grain Bread with Butter and Chives

I think the image below properly depicts my excitement about tonight's meal...

Thirsty Thursday.

Feeling a little parched this on this Thirsty Thursday.

Drinking coffee. But thinking about...wine.

Pinot actually.

Mmmmm Pinot.

The Pinot I was sipping while watching The Layover.

Anthony Bourdain was not drinking Pinot. 

Anthony Bourdain... I like him. Would he like our Pinot?

I don't know.

But according to this interview with Delish his house is a mess and he likes steak.

I'm down with both of those things.

Steak. I'm gonna make steak tonight.

Anthony Bourdain's Steak au Poivre

And I'm gonna serve it on up with some 2009 Expression 39º Pinot Noir.

Thirsty Thursday? You will be owned.

Pics to come...

Cheers

Time To Cook!

Ah, the New Year.

So many possibilities for personal betterment in the coming months...

My resolution inventory includes the classics. Be healthier, save more money, read more, of course drink more wine, (you know, for research purposes) and then there is the biggie.

The time has come for me to dust off my apron...and get cooking.

Yes, 2012 - it is my turn to prepare fabulous, delicious, healthy and indulgent meals for friends and fam.

And it's a bit over-due.

It isn't that I can't cook, you see.

In fact, I can follow a recipe to excellent ends. But living in Napa Valley and working in wine - well I just didn't really have to.

Plus I adore dining out.

Every aspect of it excites me. New inventive dishes, the wait-staff expertly navigating the floor, the bartender shaking cocktails...

I love exploring the wine lists and sampling cuisine I certainly don't have the expertise to create. At least not yet. Okay probably never.

I mean, don't you have to be certified to even touch fugu?

And I love, love, love to eat. To taste. The aromas, the presentation...

I'm sad when my food is all gone. I'm thrilled to get the dessert menu.

Lucky for me, Napa Valley's restaurant scene is amazing - but who of average means can sustain such an addiction? Again, I am in luck! My boyfriend Mike is a wonderful cook and loves to make the most of the kitchen. He's the natural sort who can become inspired by a single ingredient and throw together an impromptu masterpiece.

But it's my turn. I'm ready to get in on the action again. And so far, so good.

Starting out slowly, I broke in our new soup pot with some simple comfort fare.

A rich chili con carne recipe courtesy of the Food Network magazine I picked up in the produce section at Safeway. (The cover pic caught my eye.) Our Gap's Crown Pinot took this recipe over the top as a pairing by the way.

(Though my boyfriend paired his with the Amber Ale I used in the recipe.)

I tried a clam chowder from the same publication as well and it was hit if I do say so myself. My first time making this family favorite came out picture perfect. Creamy, balanced...delish with Chard.

But the best part (other than sharing the food-love with my boys - was that in both instances I indulged myself in the pleasures of preparation. The aspect of food I miss completely out on during my dining excursions.

The aromatics of bacon sizzling, of chopping fresh thyme...

And when was the last time you took a blade to a crisp rib of celery? I forgot how delicious celery smells.

Celery.

Talk about being easily excited.

But I'm not ashamed. Mike tried to help but I was much too into it.

My kitchen take-over was well in progress. So what's next in my culinary coup d'état?

Just like the restaurant scene in Napa - the possibilites are endless. But of course at home we don't have to tip. And Mikey gets to kiss the cook.

Best New Year's Resolution ever!

Cheers,

Megan

 

Wine Quote Wednesday

"Wine has been created to make people happy...drunk at the proper time and in moderation is rejoicing heart and gladness of soul..." - Sirach 31:27--30