First on the docket is De Loach Vineryards. Uncoincidentally, they are one of the earlier tasting rooms to open. I had never heard of this winery before and I really wasn't planning on buying anything from there. I was there for the morning eye-opener.
Our host was an older woman named I don't remember. She was most definitely one of the more charismatic winery hosts that I've had the pleasure of drinking with. Another party was there with us - an older group who apparently was a some sorta long standing wine club member.
The host pulled out all the stops for them. One of the privileges as a wine club member is that member tastings are free and are not limited to what is listed on the wineries tasting menu - members get to taste the good shit. And since she was pouring for the good shit for one of the parties there, she poured the good shit for us too.
All in all, I say the wine is good and the hospitality was better. The host was extremely welcoming and charismatic. One interesting tidbit that she shared with us is that weed is a beeellion $ a year cash crop in central California. It brings in so much revenue that authorities are leary of cracking down on it. I guess so long as it isn't driving the rate of violent crime, then they are willing to reap the benefits of the sticky-icky-icky-icky. I dunno - I'm just guessing. In any case, you know this area is freakin loaded if their major exports are weed and booze.
Here's a pic of me outside their winery next to a giant sculpture of a rabbit made from recycled cardboard packaging and a wire frame.
The next winery was chosen on an educated guess. Way back in the day, Trader Joe's stocked a < $10 bottle of wine that could make you pop wood. It was that damn good - made better by the rock bottom price. The wine was by a winery named M. Ray. Trader Joe's no longer carries it and I went through a period of mourning when I discovered that the wine was no longer available. To this day, I still keep an eye out it every time I shop there. I knew that some wineries sometimes sell there wines under a different moniker. One reason why a winery would do this is that they can produce more than there is demand for in the wine market. Supply n' demand and all that shit. The winery wants to protect their price and the "limited" aspect of their fine wines and so would sell the excess stock under a different name. In this case, M. Ray. was actually Martin Ray from Sonoma and they had entered a joint venture with Trader Joe's to sell there excess stock at lower prices.
The host at the winery gave me the skinny on what went down with the M. Ray brand. Needless to say, pricing a +$50 wine for < $10 will inevitably sell well. Martin Ray realized that they could probably get more mahnies for their product and asked Trader Joe's to bump up the price. I imagine the meeting between the two companies went something like this:
Trader Joe's: Make it rain! I make it reign on dem ho's!
Martin Ray: How 'bout chargin more mahnies for teh vino? It's teh shit and it be selling like a muthafucka.
Trader Joe's: l0lw0t?
Martin Ray: more mahnies?
Trader Joe's: GTFO. dat's not how we roll
Martin Ray: man fuckthis shit.
That's how I pictured it. Anyway despite that heart wrenching story, I managed to sample quite a few of their wines. It was full of win. I highly recommend paying them a visit if you're ever in the area. I ended up purchasing a bottle of the 2006 Stag's Leap District Cabernet. Here's a pic of me and my first phat l3wts of the day:
If I look like a kid in a candy store, it's because I iz. I love wine country.We also hit up Kendal Jackson which is one of the larger wineries in Sonoma. If you've ever perused the wine selection at anywhere from a 7-11 to a Ralph's, then I'm sure you've seen there vino for sale. It's everything you can expect from a high volume winery like KJ - beautiful, sprawling visitor center complete with fountains and lush landscaping.
I'm really not a fan of visiting the big wineries unless you know someone there or are able to get past the artificial sincerity of their reception. Otherwise, the experience tends to be very polite and cordial and not at all welcoming. I usually avoid the really big wineries but I think what swayed us to visit them was a coupon for free tastings. We sampled the wines from their cheapo list which was unremarkable; pretty much the supermarket stuff. Normally, I don't mind paying a bit more for the good tasting list. (Wineries usually offer a cheap list and a good list for a few bucks more.) This time around, I just wanted to cash in on teh coupon. Here's a pic of my gf in front of the visitor center.
Next, we visited the J winery by accident. According to the hostess, it happens all the time. They share a driveway with Rodney Strong which is one of the larger wineries. J winery happens to be the first building along the driveway so we stopped and went on in. The wine was a cut above average but still not worth my mahnies. I recall thinking that it was overpriced for what I would be getting. The hostess was nice, though. She was an older lady that used to live in Hawaii doing something or another.
After a few drinks, we proceeded down the driveway to Rodney Strong. They are one of the larger wineries but not quite as large as Kendal Jackson. They are large enough that you can find their wine in most grocery stores. Both the wine and the hospitality was excellent. I paid more mahnies for the better tasting and the host went the extra mile and poured me all kinds of shit mostly not on the lists. We talked, we laughed, we drank. When all was said and done, I walked out of there with a 2006 Reserve Cabernet and a big shit eating grin.
The last winery we visited was Armida. The grounds were beautiful but the decor was something different, a bit eclectic in a morbid kinda way. The theme was a bit like a halloween store; it had skulls, coffins, and candles. It was kinda done up like Avril Lavigne's style, not like Rob Zombie style. The wine was good; I remember it having very robust flavor. I think their best selling wine is their Zinfandel. Give it a shot. You won't be disappointed. I walked out of there empty handed but I wouldn't mind stopping by again next time I'm in the area.
Sonoma's a great place to spend a long weekend. Between the food, beer, and wine there's never lack of anything new to try. They have a very small town feel but are forward thinking at the same time. Case in point: here's a pic I took while we were driving around. Sonoma being a smaller town, I guess Home Depot hasn't set up a store there yet. Day laborers took it upon themselves to set up an informal "recruitment" center; a homeless depot if you will.
See? Forward thinking! More importantly, it shows initiative on their part. However, I do think they shot themselves in the foot by putting up a shade as opposed to building something more substantial to show off their 1337 construction skillz. I guess in this part of Cali, it's all about teh green thumbs.
Here's another pic I snapped off while putting around Sonoma. Long before the Cash 4 Clunkers program, Sonoma had moved towards smaller and more fuel efficient cars. Here's a pic of the Zapcar dealership. Although I didn't stop to learn more about it, I surmise from the name "Zapcar" that it's an electric car. Judging from the pic, the green one is a sedan and the burnt orange one is a truck.
Big pimpin', I know. How can you not get laid while rolling down Main St. Sonoma in one of these G-rides?
Overall, the Sonoma wine experience was very different from Napa. Both offer great wines. Napa has much more top notch restaurants although Sonoma has their share of fine dining as well. Sonoma tends to be more friendly and sincere while Napa felt more commercialized and touristy. I love spending time at either region and I look forward to returning.
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