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Al Osterheld

The people who subscribe to the publication understand that he's not writing all the notes (unless they're illiterate). As far as the people who rely on shelf talkers, I think that's its own reward but I also doubt the majority of them care, they just want some guidance and I doubt they've done any ...

Al Osterheld

I'm sure it was a fun visit, I need to make it up to the Willamette Valley area one of these years. I have an order of the 2017s showing up tomorrow, I've been quite happy with the style and the individual wines from the past couple of years.

-Al

Al Osterheld

In a large gated community in Danville with mansions and a golf course, called Blackhawk, there are two place to buy wine - a bottle shop and a Safeway. Draeger's. May not be the greatest prices, but better selection than the Safeway and probably the bottle shop (haven't been in years since wasn't ...

Al Osterheld

Sheez, he likes Caymus. With sushi, he doesn't care.

About a year ago, I was with three of my wine friends at one of the best sushi places in the SF Bay area (small place, 9 seats at the counter). A couple who were there brought a 2000 Chateau Angelus.

-Al

Al Osterheld

FWIW, my experience is certainly not definitive but the old Barolo with problematic sediment that needed special attention were from the 1960s and 1970s, haven't had nearly the same level of issues with Barolo from the 1990s and 2000s. I'm not sure whether it's the age or whether it's from changes ...

Al Osterheld

FWIW, my experience is certainly not definitive but the old Barolo with problematic sediment that needed special attention were from the 1960s and 1970s, haven't had nearly the same level of issues with Barolo from the 1990s and 2000s. I'm not sure whether it's the age or whether it's from changes i...

Al Osterheld

The settling time depends on the size and density of the particles (this has been studied although not so much specifically for wine). For many wines, the sediment tends to form into fairly large chunks that settle quickly. Very old Nebbiolo (and sometimes Pinot) can have very fine sediment that tak...

Al Osterheld

I also had good luck with them, although was not a major customer so would not question the experiences of others. The Pier 19 location was kind of a weird place to visit. I drove by once, decided I must have the wrong address. Then I bought some wine for pick-up at their location and they told me t...

Al Osterheld

If the wine smells good and tastes good, it's not going to hurt you. Well, maybe if you drank a couple of bottles, it would, but not from the funky looking blob.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Supposedly, she was motivated to plant the vineyard after tasting a Martin Ray Cabernet from a vineyard nearby. Yes, I think she planted own-rooted (not sure if all the vines, though). It's not uncommon for small family vineyards to be sold in certain parts of CA when parents pass, especially when o...

Al Osterheld

I first ran into Marty and the Kathryn Kennedy wines at a wine event back in the 1980s, great wines. The original estate vineyard was planted in 1973 at a time when large parts of Silicon Valley were devoted to agriculture. Eventually, the vineyard became a small island in a sea of houses. I think s...

Al Osterheld

I fell asleep while reading this thread, and I now feel a strange compulsion to go out and buy cases of 2014 Lanessan.

Well, it won't set you back very much.

-Al

Al Osterheld

The Minnesota requirement for out of state entities to collect and remit sales tax for goods shipped into Minnesota is quite recent. I believe they passed a law that could only be enforced if the Wayfair case was decided in favor of states, and I think it goes into effect for goods shipped after Oct...

Al Osterheld

Not barrels.

-Al

Al Osterheld

The pressure is four atmospheres or more for most Champagne. The additional pressure difference, even worst case, is still in the range bottles are built to withstand (less than an atmosphere more). But, the cargo hold is likely to be pressurized on most flights.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Until you have a waiting list, why would you kick anyone off? It costs very little to send them offers. Even if you're selling out your wine (which is difficult at first), you're presumably increasing production. So, why get rid of potential buyers? You need buyers. When you're starting out, you don...

Al Osterheld

I haven't had the 2016, but have tried the 2014. It wasn't thin or herbaceous, but rather it was forward and a bit extracted with a little more oak than it needs. Did have some tobacco, but that doesn't change the overall assessment. Okay at the price I paid ($20).

-Al

Al Osterheld

I've never visited, but also love Pradeaux.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Someone has to pay the lawyer to sue them. There is also the issue of proving a case, "how could they not know" would not be enough.

-Al

Al Osterheld

If you sell wine for hogs or gold, the various taxing entities still want their cut, BTC is no different. If a licensed seller exchanges wine for BTC, they would be crazy to not pay those taxes. If a non-licensed seller exchanges wine for BTC, they have additional issues, but the taxing entities def...

Al Osterheld

Alf is drinker, not spelling champ.

-Al

Al Osterheld

I think it's difficult to buy wine with gold. It's a commodity, not a currency, and its value is not based on the ability to buy things with it.

-Al

Al Osterheld

FWIW, winemaking and style evolved later in his career, especially with Pinot Noir.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Kudos on the pre-start safety meeting.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Avocados are a water intensive crop, but so is marijuana. Not sure which uses more (probably depends on choice of metrics). But, I do know which one is causing the greater concern about impacts to the ecosystem.

-Al

Al Osterheld

In addition to possibly tainting wine, another concern is whether someone who drank the wine would fail a drug test. I don't know enough about the chemistry of cannabis or drug testing to know whether this is a realistic concern.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Well. No matter what happens, you'll want something to drink. So, buy what you want to drink. The price in the future may be higher or lower, just buy something you will continue to want to drink. If the economy tanks hard, Nathan may be drinking pruno while lording it over the poor fools drinking 2...

Al Osterheld

I've tried a couple of vintages of the Lichen PN/PG blend, generally quite nice.

-Al

Al Osterheld

I drank a bottle of the 2011 La Croix Boissee about a year and half ago, agree it's quite nice!

-Al

Al Osterheld

The original post didn't just state a large number of people were leaving, rather that they were fleeing because CA is "off the charts hyper-regulated, environmentally excessive, business unfriendly state" (as described by someone that was quoted). I understood Neal's claim he was wrong to include t...

Al Osterheld

Don't take Old La Honda Road. Other than that, the mapping apps tend to be okay.

It's not so much that is slow, just stressful.

-Al

Al Osterheld

As a brand new winery, I think you will probably need to start out mostly mailing list as opposed to club until people get to know your wines and style. It's also worth some thought about how to best get your wines in front of people. Marketing is the hardest part of the business for most new, small...

Al Osterheld

Mel Hill wrote: ↑
August 8th, 2019, 9:58 am

Al Osterheld wrote: ↑
August 8th, 2019, 8:23 am
There may be bodies buried under the reservoir.

-Al
Jimmy Hoffa?

Has anyone seen Brinkman lately?

I think the point was that secret or implied information has the same value as invisible money.

-Al

Al Osterheld

There may be bodies buried under the reservoir.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Not sure we will forgive, but we will forget.

-Al

Al Osterheld

The kinetic processes that mix the different components of the gas take some time. So, if you are actively producing CO2, like when a wine is fermenting, it takes some time to diffuse out of the fermentation vessel. When fermentation stops, you need some other method to protect the must/wine from ox...

Al Osterheld

FYI, as has been discussed in other threads, argon does not form a protective layer because it's heavier than oxygen. At any temperature where the wine is liquid, the gas molecules are moving at pretty high velocities and colliding with each other. These processes keep the different gases in a bottl...

Al Osterheld

I find it depends on the wax. With a pliable wax and young corks, just ignore it. Over time, some wax gets less pliable and the corks less sturdy so you can end up with corks breaking especially if the wax is thicker.

And then there is the lovely shellac type wax on Puffeney and Raveneau.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Pretty sure the regulatory agencies just consider the construction folks agents of the owner of the property. Whether Rhys pursued claims against them would be their decision, but I don't think he will be discussing here in either case.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Not an expert, I would think it's difficult to get permits while settlement of the notice of violations is pending.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Always wanted to try this wine, but it’s just about more expensive than any other carricante coming out of Italy. Wonder if those that own this wine have compared to the best Italian producers. It is a wine coming out of Italy, made by the former winemaker and vineyard use for one of the top produc...

Al Osterheld

Yeah, I also think Carricante shows salinity, at least in the better regions of Mount Etna. It will be interesting to see how it performs in California.

-Al

Al Osterheld

Carricante also seems to have an interesting waxy textural component, a little reminiscent of Chenin but not as strong.

-Al

Al Osterheld

And rather than hand money over to the State, they should have volunteered to fix all the damage, irrespective of the costs involved. My understanding is that they have agreed to fix the issues except for removing the vineyard, including fixing or decommissioning all preexisting roads on the ranch ...

Al Osterheld

Uhhh....I think that this is the vnyd where Kevin is doing Italian varieties, mainly Nebbiolo.
Tom

No, that vineyard is on Centennial Mountain west of Lake Sonoma.

-Al

Al Osterheld

More than the vineyard, per se, I think the most significant environmental aspect is the potential erosion and sediment that could reach the waterways from the roads, preexisting reservoirs, and crossings. Some of that was present before the purchase but the owner acquired the responsibility to miti...

Al Osterheld

The Clarke Ranch land area is in two different river drainage basins, the South Fork of the Eel River, and the Ten Mile River. Both are important salmon and steelhead rivers, the Eel may be the most important salmon habitat on the West Coast of the US and is populated by wild rather than hatchery sa...

Al Osterheld

Not sure from your post whether you were misled from the thread title. The vineyard that is the subject of this thread is nowhere near Floodgate Creek, the Navarro River, or Anderson Valley. It also did not cover anything a steelhead ever saw. It's at higher elevations and the "stream" only exists d...

Al Osterheld

They could have been ordered to take out the vineyard and restore that land as close as possible. I think the regulators decided the good that would be done by the restoration projects they would fund (fixing problems created by others) significantly exceeded any damage caused by covering half an ac...

Al Osterheld

Much of the water in the US starts out in small unnamed streams including seasonal and ephemeral streams (only present after rains). No one of the streams is important by itself, but collectively they are critically important and that's why they are regulated. Well, that's why they are currently reg...

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