Coffee Shop Blog
VARIETY FOCUS: OPTIMIZING MERLOT
OCTOBER 8, 2018. BY STAN GRANT. Beginning in the late 1980's, Merlot became a major fixture in the California wine grape industry largely because it lends itself to smooth, fruity, darkly colored, and approachable red wines. Merlot is truly an international variety...
THE RED BORDEAUX GRAPES OF LODI
OCTOBER 1, 2018. BY RANDY CAPAROSO. Cabernet Sauvignon has been the most popular varietal red wine in the American wine industry for longer than anyone can remember. Most certainly, it has been #1 ever since the days when sales of varietal wines began to overtake...
THE PHYSICAL IMPACT OF SOIL AND SELECTION ON LODI ZINFANDELS
SEPTEMBER 24, 2018. BY RANDY CAPAROSO. In recent years projects like Lodi Native – where groups of Lodi winemakers have been producing single-vineyard Zinfandels following the exact same, native yeast/neutral oak protocols (thus eliminating brand or winemaker styles...
RIPENING PERIOD POTASSIUM DEFICIENCY
SEPTEMBER 17, 2018. BY STEPHANIE BOLTON & STAN GRANT. Every conversation between Lodi growers right now includes some sort of theory on why we're seeing more potassium (K+) deficiency than anyone can remember. We discussed it at our monthly PCA Network Breakfast...
VARIETAL FOCUS: MOURVЀDRE
SEPTEMBER 10, 2018. BY RANDY CAPAROSO. Mourvèdre (a.k.a. Monastrell, Mataró) more • ved • ruh Mourvèdre, like Tempranillo, is thought to have first been planted in Spain by the Phoenicians as early as 500 BC; and established in vineyards throughout Southern France –...
VARIETAL FOCUS: GRENACHE BLANC
SEPTEMBER 4, 2018. BY RANDY CAPAROSO. Grenache Blanc (a.k.a. Garnacha blanca) gruh • nasch blahnk Grenache blanc is a white wine mutation of the black skinned Grenache noir grape; planted all over North-East Spain – the variety’s point of origin – and Southern...
SOME WINE MAKING PROBLEMS & VINEYARD MANAGEMENT
AUGUST 27, 2018. BY STAN GRANT. You probably have heard the phrase ‘wine begins in the vineyard’ (Figure 1). It is another way of saying that many of the compounds contributing to the color, flavor, aroma, and mouthfeel of wines are already present in the harvested...
LODI’S SINGLE-VINEYARD WINES
AUGUST 20, 2018. BY RANDY CAPAROSO. What are the top Lodi Viticultural Area vineyards identified as vineyard-designate wines on highly regarded Lodi grown bottlings, and why do they matter? They matter because of the precedent set in European countries long ago: The...