Tag Archives: Solis Winery

And The Winner Is…..

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wpid-2013102095194341.jpgFor those of you that attended our 2013 Santa Clara County Rosѐ Challenge, or Throw Down, thank you for making this a great event. For those of you that missed it, your loss. The Hayes Mansion provided a great location and hospitality for the intimate event. We purposely invited a variety of wine palates to the event so we would have a good cross section of society to judge the wines.
Although I am not usually a big fan of Rosѐ, I do like them with a picnic style lunch or light summer dinner. They generally come in two styles, “old world” or European Rosѐ lean towards the dryer side, and “new world” Rosѐ lean towards the sweeter side. Rosѐ has recently become much more popular here in the US and a lot of wine makers are getting creative with its production. From single varietals to blends to secret fomulas, it is often the wild card in their lineup.
So who was the big winner at our event? Well congratulations to Solis Winery for getting both the highest number of first place votes and the highest number of overall votes. A nicely balanced “new world” style Rosѐ, it is not too sweet to pair well with a number of different appetizers or light meals. After Solis our crowd went back to the “old world” style giving Aver Family Vineyard the second most first place votes and Jason Stevens (my first choice) to most second place votes. Interstingly we had a tie for third place between the secret formula “old word” style Thomas Kruse Winery and the “new world” style light but flavorful Clos La Chance.
So there you have it, we tasted seven different Rosѐ from Santa Clara County, some sweet, some light, some balanced and some with a very tart, dry finish. Overall a good cross selection of what Rosѐ can be. Thanks again to all our judges and the staff at Hayes Mansion for making it a night to remember.

Rosé Challenge Results

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Challengers are lined up

Challengers are lined up

1391463_1426580644220916_142933016_nThe first Santa Clara Valley Rosé Challenge  was held at the Dolce Hayes Masion in San Jose California.  A special thanks to Heather Moggia and the Dolce Hayes Mansion for their hospitalilty.  The tables were set and the wine was chilled. The challengers were Thomas Kruse Winery, Aver Family Vineyard, Sycamore Creek Vineyard, Guglielmo Winery, Clos LaChance Winery, Solis Winery, Jason Stephens Winery.  One of the things I like most about Rosé is that they are truly like a box of chocolates.  Each one is so different.  Some of the wines were single varietals and others were blends.  We lined them up head to head to see which wine makers inspiration would be most popular with our diverse group of participants.

We asked everyone to rank the wines from their most favorite to their least favorite.  The results were; 

First Place:  Solis Winery received the most First place votes followed by Aver Family and Thomas Kruse.

Jason Stephens received the most Second place votes followed by Solis and Sycamore Creek.

Clos LaChance received the most Third place votes followed by Thomas Kruse and a tie between Guglielmo and Jason Stephens.

Over all;  Solis received the most total votes followed by Jason Stephens, Thomas Kruse, Sycamore Creek, Aver, Guglielmo and Clos Lachance. 

It appears this group was drawn towards the sweeter rosés in the challenge.  A good time was had by all and we look forward to the next challenge. 

 

Second Chances

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Three years ago I participated in my first Santa Clara Valley Wine Passport Weekend.  We visited a few wineries, one being Sarah’s Vineyard.  The young ladies pouring that day must have been tired of the numerous participants trampling through their tasting room staying only long enough to finish their tasting.  When my little group approached the counter, we were greeted with snarls and exasperation.  Not a good way to start off.  I admit we arrived 30 minutes before closing.  They were only pouring three wines so I believed we had plenty of time for the tasting.  The crowd was thinning out and only my group remained at the counter.  We waited.  We waited patiently.  We were finally approached by a young lady that requested to see our passports.  She stamped them and poured our first tasting.  I”m not sure if it was my first impression of the tasting room or the wine but I was not a fan of wine.  I have not been back since.  Fast forward to the present.

A friend invited me to go to Solis with her to pick up her club shipment.  I’m not one to pass up an opportunity to taste Solis wines.  While standing at the tasting counter, another wine enthusiast told us he had just come from Sarah’s Vineyard and he really liked their wines.  I was surprised to hear that.  I just assumed everyone had the same experience I did.  After listening to him talk about their Rhone blends I was intrigued.   So off we went. But not without apprehension.

I opened the door to the tasting room and the first thing I heard was, “Hi guys, come on in.”  We followed the voice and that was when we met Megan.  A big smile and as sweet as can be.  She introduced the wines to us and asked us where we wanted to start.  Megan is a Sommelier and very knowledgable about their wines and wines in general.  I really enjoyed their wines and we had some great conversation with Megan.  So here is to second chances.  I am now a Sarah’s Vineyard wine club member.

 Cheers…

 

 

Santa Clara Wine Passport Weekend, Fall 2012.

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The Fan 4 took part in the Santa Clara Wine Passport Weekend.  We got a great deal for a limo from Garlic City limousine and we invited 10 friends to join us.  The first Winery we stopped at was Aver Family Winery followed by Martin Ranch, Solis and Sara Vineyards.

Our first stop was Aver Family. It always a pleasure to talk to John about hiswines. Aver Family had a band and they were pouring two of their wines; 2009 Family Album is a petite sirah blend, 2009 Hope is a Rhone style blend.  Hope is one of my favorites.  It has a fruity bouquet, flavors of black berry on the front, light tannins and a caramel finish.  If you like roses, you have to try theirs.

Our next stop was Martin Ranch.  Martin Ranch is only open on the third weekend of every month so, it was a treat to be able to taste some wines from their extensive list.    I favor red wines but I have to admit, their chardonnay got me all excited.  It is the perfect 50% from an oak barrel and 50% from a stainless steel barrel.  I bought a case of it.  I also liked their 2008 Sangiovese and J.D Hurley 2008 Zinfandel.  If you like Cabernet, they have six.  Ranging from their 2005 Estate Cabernet to the J.D Hurley 2008 Cabernet.  Martin Ranch wines are reasonably priced and a great value.

Solis WineryThen it was onto Solis.  Solis also has an extensive list of wines for sale.  Vic Vanni is one of the owners, along with his brother Michael, and he can usually be found around the winery and he is more than happy to talk to you about his wines.  They had a passport weekend special of a bottle of their 2007 Merlot and their 2009 Estate Sangiovese for $20.  That was a no brainer.  I stocked up.  If you like white wines, you will love their Fiano. Their Vino Roseo di Sangiovese 2011 is one of my favorites. For the passport weekend, they were serving sliders.  I paired that with their Sangiovese 2011 and it was delicious.  Solis wines are reasonably priced and a good addition to your wine closet.

Our last stop was Sarah’s Vineyard.  I enjoyed their 2010 Pinot Noir Estate.  It is a light Pinot that is good for drinking on its own.  They also poured their 2008 Cote de Madrone.  Being a Rhone blend fan, I enjoyed the blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre with a hint of tobacco on the finish.

If you have never visited any of the wineries in Santa Clara County, may I suggest you start with these four.  There are a dozen other wineries that we will be talking about later, to give you an idea of what to expect.  Such as, Thomas Kruse.  The only winery I ever visited that paid ME to wine taste.  Thomas Kruse is a legend in the Valley and he enjoys everyone that visits his winery.  Fortino’s.  Just a fun fun atmosphere  and enjoyable wines.  Bertha is awesome.

After your visit, send me an email and tell me what you thought.  Parting shout out to Ed, our driver from Garlic City Limousine.  Thank you Ed for hauling us around and lugging all of our wine purchases.