 Pierce Ranch Vineyards' tasting room is within slingshot distance to Cannery Row and bucket list hotels right on the Monterey Bay. I've had the chance to taste there a few times, but was eager to pick up some wines again. The Iberian varietals are a welcome change from the California rinse-and-repeat varietals you often see. These wines are terrific on their own or with food. Anticipate personality! Just before the SIP, I messaged Josh and let him know I was in the area and hoping to come by for a tasting. He pinged me, and fast forward, there was a glass of Pierce Ranch wine in my hand as my husband and I were chatting it up with his amazing staff.  Owner, Josh Pierce, is often sharing and pouring his wines at Monterey County Vintners & Growers events, such as: trade tastings, winemaker tastings, and more. His tasting room is a relaxing place to savor the wines and enjoy a leisurely chat with a friend. While I've featured Josh's wines a way back, I do love the chance to taste current vintages. Here's a look at my tastings.
While we're waiting to get back to the tasting rooms, Pierce Ranch Vineyards (Link) can be found online, with available curb-side pick up. ------------------------------- Health to you and yours! Shondra Savadkohi ----------------------- Do you have wine questions during SIP? Or do you wish you had your own wine guide? CalWineJaunt.com offers Personalized Wine Consulting for your shelter-in-place wine needs. 
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 Wine is meant to be shared. It's the liquid for celebrations, community, and for gathering with friends and family. I want to acknowledge that all of this has come to a screeching halt. We all are, to some degree, dealing with Covid-19. Some are instantly without work. Others are on the front line. And hopefully, all are making efforts to shelter in place for everyone's health and safety. It's difficult to be separated from our loved ones and experience this much change at once. For a piece of bright news, Bay Area wines are, thankfully, still available. At this time, wineries are not allowed to be open to the public for purchases in the tasting room or wine tasting on site. But winemakers are being creative and resourceful in an effort to keep their businesses-- and to keep sharing their wines with tasters. If you're still in a place to purchase wine and enjoy it, now is the time. Here's how:
 For a list of wineries and their current offerings and shipping, visit the following links. The specials will likely vary and change as needed. Wineries of Santa Clara Valley The site currently lists their winery options for delivery, curbside, shipping, and specials. Visit Santa Clara Wines. Monterey County Vintners & Growers Find wineries in Carmel, Soledad, and Monterey. Contact the winery directly for current offerings. Visit Monterey County Wines. Santa Cruz Mountains Winegrower Assoc. Find a listing of pick-up, delivery, and discount options by winery. Visit Santa Cruz Mountain Wines. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Health to you and yours in this time, and a few words of comfort... God is my refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Psalms 46:1 A Prayer of one afflicted, when he is faint and pours out his complaint before the Lord. 'Hear my prayer, O Lord; let my cry come to you!' Psalms 102:1 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Blessings to you, Shondra Savadkohi Travel from the comfort of you home and snag a few ideas from this Home-Tasting of 3 Reds...   I had the pleasure of a private tasting hosted by Kristen Barnhisel at the J. Lohr Wine Center, near Downtown San Jose. Kristen's resume reads something like an international wine journal. Along with a B.A. In Italian Literature, Kristen's winemaking and world experience extends to three continents. Adding to that, she is the ASEV President for 2019-2020. As J. Lohr's white wine maker, Kristen pours two decades of winemaking into her line of wines. Her winemaking style is stamped on each of her wines—pleasing mid-palate textures, wines that finish with a lasting impression, and fresh aromatics.  J. Lohr Vineyards and Wines is quintessential Californian. Founder Jerry Lohr and team have been crafting wines from California fruit for over 50 years. With a focus on sourcing grapes from noteworthy growing regions, wine enthusiasts can enjoy white wines from the Arroyo Seco and Santa Lucia Highlands regions in Monterey County. Or tuck into J. Lohr reds, grown and produced in Paso Robles, as well as Carol's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon from the Napa Valley. J. Lohr Vineyards and Wines produce and bottle all of their wines. That control in the vineyard leads to quality wines. And with bottles ranging from $10-60, there are options for everyone. For J. Lohr's reds and additional selections, visit their site at: (Link.)  For the Wines
As with any fine wine tasting, J. Lohr Wines offers a dessert wine. 2017 Late Harvest White Riesling, Arroyo Seco. Kristen cleverly called this “the noble rot dessert wine.” Meaning, the influence of Botrytis on the graves gives this dessert wine beautiful textures as it softly coats the mouth. Flavors of honey, apricot, stone fruits, and marmalade would pair seamlessly with a cheese board, Medjool dates, or semi-sweet chocolate. From J. Lohr's select vineyards to its savvy and knowledgeable wine staff, the end results are wines that leave a lasting impression. With a tasting room in San Jose, and one in Paso Robles, you're bound to find an opportunity to taste J. Lohr Wines. -------------------------------------------------- Here's to the wines that start & finish well. Shondra Savadkohi Looking for Wine Beyond the Tasting Room? Read on...  The Annual Silicon Valley Wine Auction offered a collage of wines from the region. Winemakers from Corralitos to the Peninsula gathered to pour their wines. The commonality? All the wines were made with grapes sourced from the Santa Cruz Mountain AVA. Enjoy the tour!  Hosted at: Montalvo Arts Center, Saratoga.  Thank you, Santa Cruz Mountains Wine Growers Assoc., for the invitation to cover the 2019 SVWA! I volunteered for the Santa Cruz Mountain Winegrowers Association (Link) for almost four years. During that time, I cut my teeth on SCM varietals. These local wines became the foundation for my wine palate. Without meaning to, I often compare and contrast the wines from other regions to my local wines. Some SCM wines are smooth, some silky, others light, others hearty. Producing wines that are tannic, to raw, to elegant in palate, the region is a wine playground within reach of the beach and the nation's tech capital. ----------------------------- A toast to your collage of wines! Shondra Savadkohi Looking for wines in Monterey County? Read on...  Sunday, June 23, 1-5pm at Equinox Tasting Room, Santa Cruz Join Nicole Walsh, owner & winemaker of Ser Winery for a Pop-Up Tasting! Enjoy Wine Flights and Wines by the Glass Nicole is a Santa Cruz based artisan winemaker “specializing in varietal, vineyard designated, old world style wines, produced in a natural way...” Come relax and savor wines made with a fresh, yet experienced approach!  For more on Nicole and her wines at Ser Winery, visit: www.serwinery.com/
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