Jake Fetzer joins Steve Jaxon and Dan Berger on California Wine Country today. Jake’s family founded Fetzer in 1968 and now Jake has also has opened Masut Vineyard and Winery. Both are located in Mendocino County. Barney Fetzer was an iconic character in the industry. He came to Mendocino to be an executive in the logging industry. He had a lot of ideas about how to promote wine. He bought only the best grapes and hired the […]
Ornella Molon and Loris Traverso are in with Don Chigazola today on California Wine Country with Steve Jaxon and Dan Berger. Ornella Molon and her son Loris Traverso produce wine at their family’s two wineries, in the Veneto and Friuli regions of Italy. (In a couple of places, Ornella speaks in Italian, then her son translates for her. For anyone interested in her comments in Italian, there is a transcript and translation of her words, at the […]
David Lattin, winemaker at Emeritus Vineyards, joins Steve Jaxon and Dan Berger on California Wine Country. Barry Herbst from Bottle Barn is also in. Emeritus Vineyards specializes in Russian River Valley estate-grown Pinot Noir. Dan Berger says that this wine is exemplary of Russian River Valley. With all the fog, the land is a little cooler than the rest of the county. Emeritus has made careful selections of which clones are planed in exactly which vineyards. […]
Robert Larsen is back with Steve Jaxon and Dan Berger on California Wine Country today. He has brought the Grenache and Grenache Rosé from his personal label, The Larsen Projekt. Robert Larsen is also a publicist with many years experience in the wine business. The 2018 Rosés are coming out now and Robert has brought his entry. Dan Berger starts with a big compliment to Robert’s wines. “The most important thing is, it’s dry!” says Dan. It […]
Nova Perrill is our guest today on California Wine Country with Steve Jaxon and Dan Berger. He is the winemaker at Foppiano Vineyards. (The owner and CEO of Foppiano Vineyards were on CWC last August, here is the podcast page of that episode.) Nova Perrill tells how he took a Crop Science degree at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo then he got hired at Mount Eden, where he learned winemaking and viticulture and where he was […]
Barbara Lindblom visits with Steve Jaxon and Dan Berger today, to remember Mary Ann Graf, a pioneering, iconic local winemaker who passed away recently. Barbara Lindblom also worked at Simi Winery (as laboratory director) then as a winemaker in some other places. She is now retired. Mary Ann Graf studied at UC Davis and was the first woman in the US to graduate with a degree in Oenology. She was the winemaker at Simi Winery, the […]
(This week CWC is off due to a live Golden State Warriors basketball game on our home station KSRO in Santa Rosa. For the podcast, here is a reprise of our Aug. 9, 2017 show featuring Rex Pickett, author of Sideways, and Trevor Durling, winemaker at Beaulieu Vineyard.) Today’s pre-show guest is Rex Pickett, author of Sideways. The main show guest is Trevor Durling, Winemaker at Beaulieu Vineyard. In the live segment before CWC begins at the […]
We welcome Pierre and Monique Seillan from Verité Wines today. Tom Simoneau, Dan Berger and Barry Herbst are all in today with Steve Jaxon. Pierre is a Vigneron, a winemaker and vineyard master. Tom has watched him take great care with his vines, separating the clusters by hand to get them perfect sun exposure. Pierre and Monique met Barbara and Jess Jackson 25 years ago in Bordeaux. Pierre makes wine in France, Italy and Sonoma County. […]
(Due to NBA basketball on home station KSRO, there is no new CWC show today. For this week’s podcast here is a reprise of this June 2017 show.) Bob Cabral is here to taste and talk about the three wines that comprise the launch of his own new winery, Bob Cabral Wines. He has worked at De Loach and Kunde and others, was winemaker at Williams Selyem (from 1998-2014) and is now at Three Sticks Winery. Tom […]
Tom Simoneau has brought David Ramey and the Ramey family in to join Steve Jaxon and Dan Berger today on California Wine Country. Barry Herbst is back from a trip to France where he visited all of the Boisset family properties. Boisset wines were mentioned on Tom Simoneau’s 2018 Wines of the Year show last December.) David’s wife Carla, their elder daughter Claire, who has worked in the family business for six years and her brother […]
Erik Miller from Kokomo Winery visits Steve Jaxon and Dan Berger on California Wine Country today. Kokomo Winery is named after Erik’s hometown in Indiana. Kokomo started in 2004 and Erik was working at a winery in Dry Creek. He is now up to his 17th harvest. After taking a business degree from Purdue University in Indiana, he learned winemaking in the cellar, with some classes at UC Davis (but not a winemaking degree). Erik also […]
On California Wine Country today, Dan Berger is back from 3 weeks in New Zealand. Barry Herbst from Bottle Barn is also in, with Steve Jaxon. In New Zealand it is the end of their Summer. They had warm weather and a really early harvest. The whole situation in New Zealand has changed, in terms of wine. Dan has visited there 10 times in the last several years and has followed their growth. Dan shipped about […]
(This episode of CWC was first heard on March 29, 2017. There is no new show this week due to NBA games on KSRO. We’re back with a new show next week.) Eileen Crane, the CEO, founding builder and winemaker from Domaine Carneros joins Steve Jaxon, Dan Berger and Tom Simoneau. Today Eileen Crane tells about being hired thirty years ago to build and open Domaine Carneros and how it became one of the most famous and important […]
From Trombetta Family Wines, today’s guests are Rickey Trombetta, proprietor and CEO and her daughter Erica Stancliff, their winemaker. Erica grew up in Forrestville while her parents were home wine makers. Her father was a full time engineer. In the 1990s her mother got a call from a friend. They did a lot of charity events for Pace Memorial Hospital and others. There was a new winemaker in town, who turned out to be Paul Hobbs […]
Tom Simoneau this week has brought two guests from Silver Oak Cellars, David Duncan, proprietor, chairman and CEO and Nate Weiss, vice president of wine growing. Barry Herbst is also in. Tom says Silver Oak is maybe the original cult Cabernet Sauvignon producer in the Napa Valley. 1972 was the first vintage. They made the 1972 through 1976 before they started selling the 1972. (They still wait 4 years to release so they just released their […]
Carol Shelton, winemaker of her very own Carol Shelton Wines is back on California Wine Country with Steve Jaxon and Dan Berger. Carol Shelton is back on California Wine Country this week after a 14 month absence. She is called the Queen of Zinfandel. Dan tells about her great success with finding its character without having to be very high in percentage of alcohol. She also makes Petit Syrah and a white wine from Rhone grapes […]
