pinot noir

A Day in the Life: Gavin Chanin

by whit on September 25, 2011

We’ve got a new series on the blog! I know. Exciting. I not only want to know what people are drinking “For Sipper” now I need to know about every minute of their entire day. I’m thorough like that.

Introducing A Day in the Life. First up is young winemaker Gavin Chanin of Chanin Wine. He’s also assistant winemaker of Au Bon Climat and Qupe. He’s a BUSY dude. The photos below are from my visit to Santa Maria last month. But, here’s what Gavin was up to on Friday, September 16th…

9.16.11
6am- Deliver 6 cases of Pinot to an account in Santa Barbara.

7am- Sample my Santa Rita vineyard source.

8am- Work starts at winery. Crush and check that sample from the Santa Rita vineyard. Punch down, pump over, check all white wine fermentations, set up destemmer and clean tanks.

11am- White wine arrives. Load the press, clean tanks, runs hoses, start press.

12pm- Lunch

1pm- Punch downs all over again…and pump overs. Clean the white press.

4pm- Red grapes arrive. Start crushing and putting into tanks, get samples for the lab, add a small amount of SO2, cover tanks and then add CO2 (dry ice) to protect from oxygen.

6:30pm-  Dinner at the bosses’ house. Wine highlights: 1990 La Turque and 1993 Drouhin Romanee St. Vivant.

10:30pm- Go to sleep.

3am- Wake up, drive to Sonoma.

9am- Arrive at Sonoma vineyard. Sample, walk the property, meet with the vineyard manager. Then, start driving home.

Gavin is making some delicious chardonnay and pinot noir and I strongly encourage you to try it. The wines are “hand crafted with minimal intervention, and with a preference for the natural side of winemaking, not the scientific. No added sugar, acid, lab created tannins or enzymes are ever used. We strive to create a natural product from soil to bottle.” Bravo!

If you want to read more about my and Christina’s time up the coast, head to her blog!

{ 1 comment }

Sunday Sip: My Pinot Cup Runneth Over

by whit on January 18, 2010



Yesterday, I attended the first annual Pinot Days tasting at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica. Pinot and airplanes- a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

wings

pinot hungry

hangar

I have to say, this event was very well organized. It was in a spacious venue, the tables were organized alphabetically, parking attendants made it a breeze to get in and out, outposts of bread and cheese kept a serious buzz and hunger at bay and plentiful spitoons were available. And they were constantly being emptied- a majorly important activity in my book. My biggest pet peeve at tastings is having hundreds of tasters’ mouth-rinsed wine remains splash up in my face as I spit into an overflowing bucket. Gross. Gross times 10.

On to the wine. I love Pinot Noir.  As do many people, especially after Sideways blew up everyone’s wine worlds. So, I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to taste newly released vintages from some fabulous pinot producers from California and Oregon or the ability to side by side compare these distinctly different growing regions. My friend Rachel and I were really digging the Russian River Valley and Central Coast Cali pinots. They tended to express more fruit and less minerality than their Oregon counterparts. And what I really love about pinot is the fruit and when that fruit is elegantly expressed.  Some may be surprised to know that there are definitely producers in Southern California making pinot noir that wouldn’t be likened to an oaky fruit “bomb.”

[click to continue…]

{ 1 comment }