2008 Estate Zinfandel and Petite Sirah Released...

Wines from the 2008 vintage will be very special, this one included - try this wine and you'll be back for more.

The winter season started out as rainy on the central coast with nearly record rainfall, but quickly turned dry. We began pruning in January and cut back the head-trained vines to even fewer spirs (or arms) than usual to curb some of the green growth in wetter years. A dry spring saw first bud break on March 14th and I note still no rain in weeks. In April, the vineyard suffered from a few frosty nights and several vines lost their precious young growth. Generally, growth in the Toucan Vineyard was normal in 2008, more balanced than some vintages, and the dry season yielded our first ripe fruit on September 7th and the last of the ripe fruit was picked on October 26th. The 300 Estate Petite Sirah vines were picked on September 25th.

The 2008 Estate Zinfandel was harvested in seven pickings, plus the Petite Sirah, and in each case cold soaked in small fermentation bins and slowly fermented. Each picking was barreled down separately in a mix of 60% new oak and 40% second and third year barrels. Partially combined once ML was completed in December, we did the final blending determined at racking in September of 2009. That final blend included 14% of Estate Petite Sirah for body, flavor and complexity. One final racking before bottling, and on March 15th, 2010 we hand-bottled 271 cases unfined and unfiltered. A separate bottling of 24 cases of the 2008 Estate Petite Sirah was also bottled from our estate vineyard.

The finished wine

Opulent and balanced best describe the 2008, dark and rich in color with a pop of beautiful complex fruit and a long inviting finish. Big, lush, and inviting sums up the 2008 vintage.

The 2008 Estate Zinfandel is a big, opulent, complex wine that spent 16 months in mostly new French, Hungarian, and American barrels. Dark garnet/purple with a huge nose of ripe wild berry and complex fruits. Lush, ripe berry fruit welcomes your taste-buds with a core of delicious fruit. And the big full mouth-feel and long finish invites your next taste. Best enjoyed 2010 - 2016

Harvest: September 7^th - October 26th

Bottled: March 15, 2010

Acid: .8

Alcohol: 15%

Release: 271 cases (including 375ml and 1500ml bottles)

Order directly from the winery and receive 20% by the case (or and mixed case of 12 bottles). Orders of the 2008 Petite Sirah is limited to 6 bottles - no limit for Club Members.

2006 Estate Zinfandel SPECIAL $20 DIRECT

I have a short stack of this wine and I'd rather see it in the cellars and on the tables of our customers and friends, than in my cellar. So, here's your chance...

2006 Estate Zinfandel SPECIAL DISCOUNT -- $20/bottle (Regular $34) that's over 41% off (for a limited time) - we ship a minimum of three bottles. And we'll still ship a case of 12 bottles in California for $1.

ORDER NOW

Many of you love this wine and many haven’t yet tried it. This vintage was slow to open up, due in part to my inclusion of 19% Estate Petite Sirah – now it's totally opened up to become a big Zin and all the Petite Sirah showing through. I call this our steak wine that tastes as much like Syrah or our 06’ Petite Sirah as it does Zinfandel. Here’s a very recent wine critic’s review of the wine:

2006 Toucan Estate Zinfandel Arroyo Grande Valley; 14.7% alc., $34 -- "Integrated aromatics suggest very ripe plums with some faint tropical fruit components and a hint of smoke. A gentle, mature Zinfandel with nicely resolved tannins and blended flavors." I’ll add that each bottle has a small bit of sediment in the neck, as all our wines are unfiltered – and an earthiness on the nose and structure that holds up to the biggest foods. Again, only $20/bottle.

Order this wine directly or find it at a few local wine shops, email me for locations.

Old Vine Carignane Harvested...

Last Saturday, with Photo Bob our favorite photographer and transportation director, we fetched and processed a wonderful load of Old Vine Carignane - making this our third vintage from the beautiful Evangelho Vineyard.

Compared to 2008, our journey was relatively smooth - we made good time, the weather was mild, and we arrived safely home to find plenty of help to move the fruit through the crush.

We started this year's journey at 11:30 Friday evening, but we had done some pre-planning in the weeks prior. We made new lids and had lining for the bins, and we were much better prepared for transportation issues. This planning helped keep the fruit cool, arriving at 66 degrees after a long day traveling in the sunshine.

We arrived in Contra Costa at 4:30am in time for a quick bite at Denny's and arrived at the vineyard before the pickers. As the Sun came up over this 120 year old vineyard, our bins were getting full. We worked to find the ideal spots within the vineyard and by 9:30 we had loaded the bins and we were back on the road.

Today, the Old Vine Cariginane is beginning to ferment in small bins inside our cool winery. Everything has gone perfectly for this wine so far, we look forward to another killer wine from this old vineyard.

Just Waiting for the Fruit to Ripen...

The netting of the vineyard is done and we have at least 2 more weeks before we start to pick any estate fruit. And we await the right day next week to pick our old vine Carignane - we've made the old vine Carignane twice before (2006 and 2008) and now our third vintage is about ready to harvest.

The title above isn't really true, we're taking advantage of this time to get a few things done around the house. But, it has been HOT out and working outside is nowhere near as fun when its hot. Now, we'll clean the winery top to bottom and prepare for our first crush of the season.

The Toucan Wines vineyard looks good, we did suffer a little from the mid-August heat wave. The result of some burned clusters will reduce our crop, but all in all, the vineyard is holding up well. Thank you to all our volunteers who helped with netting day. I look forward to seeing you all again during harvest. Pictured: friend and neighbor Ray during netting, he's waiting for those of us behind the tractor to catch-up.

Will this little-known blending grape become an important single-variety wine in the years ahead?

Written by Alan Boehmer July 31, 2010

Carignan (Fr)—Carignane (U.S.)—Carignano (It)—Cariñena (Sp). It’s the same grape and it has played an important role in southern France over the past century. In fact, it has been the most widely planted red grape variety in France, but for all the wrong reasons.

Carignan’s Profile

Carignan is noted more by its faults than by its positive characteristics. It’s high in acids, tannins, bitterness, and color, but lacks balance and finesse. UC Davis crossed Carignan with Cabernet Sauvignon to produce Ruby Cabernet, a variety designed for California‘s warmer growing regions. It’s rough in its youth but doesn’t have the necessary components for a graceful development. It’s hugely prolific, typically yielding up to 11 tons per acre on bush-pruned vines that disallow mechanical harvesting. (Typical “noble” varieties are usually held to 1-4 tons yield per acre.) It has historically produced cheap wine for Europe’s vin ordinaire and over the past decades it has been continually replaced by higher quality varieties at the behest of Europe’s Vine Pull Program. Total acreage in southern France has been reduced from 350,000 acres to 250,000, but it’s still the most widely grown variety, outpacing Grenache Noir by a significant margin. It grows mostly on 30+ year old vines and almost nobody introduces new plantings of Carignan.

The Carignan Revolution

So why the uptick in interest in this much maligned variety? Perhaps because there might be more about this variety than we thought. A few growers, particularly in California, grow old-vine Carignan as a serious variety, controlling its natural high yield to focus the variety’s characteristics into fewer clusters. Most notable is the Evangelho Vineyard in California’s Contra Costa County east of San Francisco. Bush-pruned vines here are 120 years old.

A few producers are offering quality California Carignans. And there’s a community of Carignan enthusiasts on Facebook. Carignan is now considered to be the third member of Chile’s 3 Cs: Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere, Carignan. And a Carignan from Maule Valley’s Ordfjell Vineyards took the top prize in the 7th Annual Wines of Chile competition in the Other Reds category.

In the U.S. the variety has attracted the attention of a handful of California’s top winemakers and at least three old vine Carignan vineyards have been identified: the 120 year-old Evangelho vineyard in Contra Costa County; the 65 year-old Dante Dusi vineyard in San Luis Obispo County; and the 60 year-old Garzini Ranch in Mendocino County. These vineyards are planted in the old-world tradition with bush-pruned vines and yields are carefully controlled to achieve maximum expression.

Reviews

2006 Domaine de Nizas Carignan Vielles Vignes Vin de Pays de Caux; 13.5% alc., $18

Made from 50 year-old vines in France’s Languedoc-Roussillon département, Domaine de Nizas Carignan features a distinctive aroma reminiscent of sweet, dark cherries, hard candy, and tarragon. The sweet aromatics do not inform the flavor, which is quite dry. Carignan’s signature tannins are prominent, but not oppressive. Also in evidence is the variety’s characteristic bitter finish and bright acidity. Very full-bodied and thickly colored. This wine is a model example of French Carignan.

2008 Artezin Carignan Contra Costa County Evangelho Vineyard; 14.2% alc., $26

A product of Napa Valley’s Hess Family, the 08 Artezin Carignan shows bright aromatics with under-ripe blackberries dominating. Thick and rich on the palate, it displays good acid and moderately resolved tannins. The bitter component that characterizes this variety is well controlled and there’s a faint, pleasant sweetness on the finish. All-in-all, a fine example of a carefully crafted California Carignan. Recommended.

2008 J Dusi Carignane Paso Robles Dante Dusi Vineyard; 14.9% alc., $38

Lighter and elegant in style, the J Dusi Carignan has fine, clean aromatics suggestive of unripe cherries and white pepper. Delicious flavors delight the palate with none of the typical high acid and harsh tannins associated with this variety. A perfect wine for those desiring an alternative to the ubiquitous Cabernet/Merlot/Syrah offerings. If there could be a feminine-styled Carignan, this is it. Beautifully balanced, J Dusi Carignan is equally appropriate as a sipping wine or a dinner complement. Highly recommended.

2008 Toucan Wines Carignane Contra Costa County Evangelho Vineyard; 15.9% alc., $32

Dark, with strongly perfumed aromatics of Santa Rosa plums, orange zest, fennel, and white pepper. Assertive mouth-filling flavors follow the aroma. Toucan Carignan has many of the characteristics of Petite Sirah, but with livelier acids and greater complexity. No trace of Carignan’s typical bitterness. Tannins are well-controlled. A superb example of New World Carignane. Highly recommended.

http://newworldwine.suite101.com/article.cfm/the-carignan-revolution

Also, visit the Carignane Revolution on Facebook

The Carignane Revolution @ Granada Bistro

Join the Revolution and three central coast wineries pouring 3 very special wines produced from old vine Carignane and the 2008 vintage. The winemakers of Ranchero Cellars, J Dusi Wines, and Toucan Wines will all be at the Granada Bistro in San Luis Obispo, Tuesday July 27th 6-8pm

Wine Tasting in the Arroyo Grande Village...

It's been three weeks since we've poured our wines at Lund's in the Arroyo Grande Village, but the events we've attended have been a blast. Tomorrow, I'm back in the village pouring our wines and looking forward to seeing our friends and fans. I should be at Lund's every Saturday afternoon through the Summer. Stop in a pay a visit.

The vineyard is growing well and this year's fruit-set was as good as I remember. We also have quite a bit of work still to do in the vineyard. Thinning, mowing, spraying all have to accomplished up to the day we elect to net to protect from the bird damage.

Our wines are available directly from our small winery - we ship directly from our cellar, and through a number of fine wine shops and restaurants.

Event Season and Awards for Toucan Wines

It's Wine Festival season and you'll find Toucan Wines at several events this year. To join us at one of our events, first locate the event on our website and then contact the promoter for tickets. And let us know your coming. Pictured is Terrie, at the Ojai Wine Festival last weekend, waiting for the festival to open. That was a busy day!

We're also pleased to announce that our 2007 Estate Zinfandel and Estate Toucanet have been awarded recognition from a number of wine competitions. Here's the current break down:

2007 Toucan Wines Estate Zinfandel: GOLD and BEST OF CLASS, Los Angeles Int. Wine Competition - GOLD, San Diego Wine Competition - SILVER, California State Wine Competition.

Estate Toucanet: GOLD, Pacific Rim Wine Competition - SILVER, Los Angeles Int. Wine Competition.

And in the vineyard, we just finished tying the vines and I'm ready for another mowing of the grass. The fruit set looks plentiful and beautiful and should yield a very high quality crop this year.

Remember, 12 bottle orders receive 20% off and only $1 shipping in California.

Work in the Vineyard....

Work in the vineyard seems endless this time of year. The Toucan Wines Vineyard is only 3 1/2 acres but it requires extra attention this year given the 32 inches of rain we experienced this season.

Hoeing is always a big job, but given the rains, our weeds have grown stronger and earlier than usual. Green growth in the vineyard this year is as strong and full as I've seen it, and thinning (or suckering) is the removal of unwanted shoots. Usually, two full passes through the vineyard does the job of shoot thinning. Currently I'm tying the longer than usual shoots to the drip line wire (our only wire) and to the posts to prevent damage to the shoots from the tractor when mowing or spraying the vineyard.

This week we'll experience our first heat surge of the season with temps in the 90's this weekend. This time of year the winds are usually blowing strong - this year has been no exception. Strong winds seems to come up just about every afternoon.

Overall, the set as we finish bloom looks beautiful and I anticipate a crop of normal quantity and hope for exceptional quality. This means a mere 350 cases of estate wine from our small vineyard.

2008 Old Vine Carignane - Now Available

Harvested from the low-yielding 120 year old vines, grown in the Evangelho vineyard in Contra Costa County. This wine was slowly fermented after a period of cold soaking and pressed to a combination of French, Hungarian and American oak barrels for 17 months. The resulting wine is a classic varietal bottling from this outstanding old vine vineyard. We proudly hand bottled 217 cases unfined and unfiltered.

This wine is big and beautiful offering an elegant nose and lush plump ripe berry on the palate and a beautiful finish. It's great now, but do consider laying down a case of this wine, as I expect it to improve with another year or more in the bottle.

We've been sharing this wine with customers over the past week and getting great feedback. You can find this wine today in four wine shops on the central coast: Lund's in the village of Arroyo Grande, Tastes of the Valleys, Pismo and Solvang locations, and Monterey Street Wines in San Luis Obispo.

Of course you can also order the wine directly from the winery cellar too. This weekend, I'll be pouring the 2008 Carignane at Lund's during this weekend’s Strawberry Festival. To learn more about this wine and one of the craziest days of my life, read the upcoming June Newsletter.