Here is a round-up of what several growers reported this week:

Alexander Valley: Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc are finished. According to  Jim Murphy and Duff Bevill, Cabernet, Merlot and Malbec still need some more time and they are hoping that the weather holds out and there isn’t rain. Pete Opatz is working on Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Malbec.

Dry Creek Valley: Avtar Sandhu reports he has better than expected tonnage of Cabernet Sauvignon and will be wrapping up the balance of his harvest by the end of this week. Duff Bevill will continue to pick Merlot and Zinfandel this week and Malbec will be finished today. His Cabernet Sauvignon is just about ready.

Russian River Valley: John Balletto continues to pick Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Duff Bevill is finishing up the last Chardonnay block this week. He reports that the fruit made it through the light rain last month with no Botrytis at all and great flavors. Pete Opatz is harvesting Zinfandel.

Sonoma Coast and Carneros: Steve Sangiacomo is still harvesting Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in Carneros and just beginning those varietals in the Sonoma Coast. Pete Opatz is also still harvesting Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Merlot and “can’t believe Pinot is still out there.”

Marin: Mark Pasternak reports he is picking Pinot Noir and a few vineyards will not be ready until next week. Reisling will also be done this week while Chardonnay and Gewurtztraminer are still ripening. “Quality continues to be excellent.”

In speaking with several growers over the weekend, none have found any damage after the rains nine days ago.

Here is a round up on what will be picked this week by area:

• Alexander Valley: Jim Murphy will be harvesting Chardonnay this week. He mentioned that the rain last week probably was helpful in freshening up the vines.
• Knights Valley: Tim Carl finished up his Sauvignon Blanc and is in the middle of Chardonnay. Crop is about 10 percent higher than average.
• Dry Creek Valley: Brad Peterson picked 41 tons of Dry Creek Zinfandel on Saturday and is starting Cabernet Sauvignon today. Duff Bevill is picking Zinfandel on the western hills at the north end of the valley. Sauvignon Blanc is pretty much finished and Merlot will be in full swing this week. Chardonnay still needs some more time to ripen.
• Russian River Valley: John Balletto is harvesting Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Duff Bevill also states that they picked Russian River Pinot Noir last week at night and all the berries had great color, flavors and “wonderful quality overall.”
• Carnernos: Steve Sangiacomo reports that harvest in now in full force and Chardonnay is picking up.
• Sonoma Coast/Petuluma Gap: Joan Griffin says that she finished Pinot Noir last week and Syrah is ripening quickly–should be ready in a week or two. She reports that the Pinot was mature at much lower brix with great flavors and lower alcohol wines.
• Marin County: Mark Pasternak is finishing Pinot Noir for sparkling today and just beginning to pick the rest of the Marin Pinot Noir. He says “quality continues to be excellent and the bulk of Marin grapes will be harvested in October–not unusal for this cooler area.”

Jim Murphy of Murphy Family Vineyards says that he will be harvesting Chardonnay, Merlot and Muscat in Alexander Valley.

In Dry Creek Valley, Duff Bevill of Bevill Vineyard Management will be finishing up Pinot Noir in the Russian River Valley and harvesting Chardonnay while starting some Zinfandel and finishing up on Sauvignon Blanc. Avtar Sandhu of Sandhu Vineyards says that he finished his Sauvignon Blanc in Dry Creek Valley

John Balletto of Balletto Vineyards will be picking Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris in the Russian River Valley.

In the Petaluma Gap and Sonoma Coast, Joan Griffin of Griffin’s Lair Vineyard reports that Pinot Noir is fast and furious with Chardonnay also underway. Most of the harvesting has been done at night with lights. This past Saturday the pick was foiled by thunder, lightning and off-and-on rain.

“This year our winemakers are picking more grapes at much lower sugar levels, says Griffin. “We’re seeing mature, intensely flavored fruit, with brown seeds, at lower sugars. This should mean some fantastic lower-alcohol Pinots for the ’09 vintage. Our crop is ‘average size,’ welcome after two years of light yields.”

Steve Sangiacomo of Sangiacomo Vineyards states that the harvest is just beginning for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in Carneros.

In Marin County, Mark Pasternak of Devil’s Gulch Ranch says he will be picking Pinot Noir for sparkling wine and he will be harvesting Pinot from the Skywalker Ranch in Lucas Valley (as in noted filmmaker George Lucas). The quality is “excellent” for everything so far.

Vineyards walks at Montemaggiore Vineyards in Dry Creek Valley at the Wine Blogger Conference

The 2009 Wine Blogger Conference was just hosted in Sonoma County in its second year. More than 275 wine bloggers from across the U.S., Europe and New Zealand attended the three-day event. It was comprised of tastings, seminars, winery visits and vineyard walks. The Sonoma County Winegrape Commission and Sonoma County Vintners sponsored the opening lunch and Sonoma County Grand Tasting while Sonoma County Tourism and Sonoma Valley Vintners and Growers presented the Friday dinner.

The conference began with an overview of Sonoma County and its AVAs by Chris Sawyer, sommelier at Carneros Bistro at the Lodge at Sonoma. This was followed by live blogging featuring more than 20 wineries where winemakers went from table to table and shared their stories and wines (very much like speed dating). It was a terrific way to meet winemakers from all of California and taste their wines. Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon Vineyard was there and it was great to see him. What a cool person who has helped made wine fun for all!

The Sonoma Grand Tasting was then held by the pool at the host Flamingo Hotel and 36 wineries poured their wines served with a fine selection of Sonoma County cheeses prepared by Chef/Owner Bruce Riezenman of Park Avenue Catering. Some of the wineries included Paul Hobbs, Skipstone, Quivira and Murphy Goode, with its new media ambassador, Hardy Wallace, winner of the “Really Goode Job” national contest.

Speaking of this promotion, at the dinner that night the wine bloggers went wild when Tim Zahner from the Sonoma Tourism Bureau previewed his new video, “A Fairly Decent Jobbe.”

After dinner, several top Russian River Valley wineries poured at an intimate wine and dessert tasting.

Saturday was Napa day. It started at the Culinary Institute of America where Barry Schuler, former CEO of America Online, provided an amusing history of the media and how bloggers are now reshaping this world. Today, Barry is in the venture capital business and with his wife Tracy co-own Meteor Vineyard, located in the Coombsville region of the Napa Valley, with noted winemakers Bill and Dawnine Dyer.

There were then visits to various wineries for lunch and dinner with a Grand Napa tasting at Quintesssa in the late afternoon. For a nightcap, there was a tasting of Portugese wines at the Flamingo.

Sunday was full of nuts and bolts seminars on wine blogging for wineries and individuals. Then there were several Sonoma County vineyard walks for the participants.

Overall, I attended the conference and was amazed at the energy and how serious wine bloggers are about wine and learning all they can about it. I think both Sonoma and Napa did a wonderful job of showcasing these important California wine regions.

A toast to Zephyr Adventures and the Open Wine Consortium for producing a terrific conference.

Next year, the Wine Blogger Conference will be held on June 25-27 in Walla Walla, Washington.

Winery Owner Joe Dutton pouring barrel sample for Winemaker Mat Gustafson at Dutton Estate

This weekend, March 14 & 15, 2009 is Barrel Weekend again.

You can visit wineries in Russian River Valley, Dry Creek Valley and Alexander Valley and taste what has just harvested.

Fun to do with friends.

The weather is going to be gorgeous. Come to Sonoma County this weekend for fun in the sun and taste some awesome wines from the 08 vintage.

Or download the release here: Sonoma County Harvest Heads For Chicago (DOC)

• September 10: 6:00 p.m. – 9:30 p.m. – A Taste of Sonoma
• September 11: 11:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. – Media & Trade Seminar & Luncheon
• September 11: 7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. – Sonoma Harvest Feast Dinner

Presented by the Sonoma County Winegrape Commission

All proceeds benefit Common Threads, a nonprofit dedicated to helping children discover the world through food.

Hosted by the recently renovated historic Allerton Hotel at 701 North Michigan Avenue

Limited space is available. Register Now!
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