Wine Competitions- good or bad

Tis the season for wine competitions- newspapers, fairs, magazines. Making the decision what is the right competition or whether to compete is difficult. And for good reason. You never know what the outcome will be. One taster loves you, the next thinks you are not worthy of mentioning. Then, if you have a varietal that is not mainstream, well, you never know what you are going to be compared to. For example, Tempranillo. The standards are from Spain and even there they are going through a major evolution- so I say standard somewhat loosely. There are not that many of us making Tempranillo yet, so these wines get lumped in as Miscellaneous Red. That can make coming up with a fair evaluation a challenge even for the most experienced of tasters. So, I am challenged- any comments, recommendations- how do you look at competitions?

Take a look at Tempranillo wineries and vineyards @ www.tapasociety.org/ - this is an organization that is growing and gaining some momentum. When I started with this group there was just a handful, now there are four. A recruitment drive is on, so I expect we will see this list grow.

I also wanted to share a couple of sites that are promoting varietals and appellations : www.avawine.com and www.appellationamerica.com - another good source for domestic Tempranillo as well as other fun varietals.

Well, it is time for a glass of wine and watch the rain- Cheers from the Mustang Winemaker

Mustang Winemaker Birthday

Well, it has been a couple of weeks since I have written. Sometimes time just slips by............

Saturday was a total lunar eclipse and it was my birthday! Unfortunately I was not able to see the eclipse here in California, but my birthday arrived none the less. I won't say how many years I have lived- more than I imagined and that I feel have passed. Nice day, sun was shining, birds out building their nests, and I made an incredible dinner. Duck breast with orange sauce that I made from oranges out of my yard, wild mushroom risotto, and steamed broccoli. Dessert was my favorite Dagoba chocolate.

This week is the week I will be bottling the 2006 Rose'. I will be picking up a sample for evaluation today, tomorrow it will be filtered, then Wednesday into the bottle. My baby has grown up and is ready for the world!

The 2005 Tempranillo will be getting labels this week as well. This will give me a chance to give it a taste and see where it is now that it has had some time to rest.

Well, now it is time to go back to my day job- more winemaking!

Cheers until next week- the Mustang Winemaker, another year older