David Coffaro Vineyard and Winery

arrow November 24- December 21, 2024





Monday November 25, 2024

Jose is setting up for our racking and thus blending our 2024 wines. Some of the whites will be bottled in January, that is our Gewurztraminer, Viognier and Sauvignon Blanc, otherwise all the reds will be bottled in July or January 2025. This January we are bottling our 2023 16 Month wines along with the whites I mentioned. I am looking forward to trying all those bottled wines!

Also I am trying barrel samples of our new 2024 Sagrantino and also our 2024 Sangiovese. And I will try two other barrels, a blend of 40% Barbera and 60% Montepulciano and barrel of 33% Lagrein and 67% Sagrantino. I am thinking of blending the later into the Sagrantino so we can have more than 74 cases to bottle next January 2025, it would only have as much as 10% Lagrein, but we would bottle 123 cases of 90% Sagrantino. I have been tasting some bottled Italian Sagrantino wines and I have been very impressed!

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving! Besides our two daughters and son in law, we will have our soon to be 3 Maia and our new grandson, Jude. And not to forget my Brother in law and niece and her two children. Turkey and all the trimmings!! Oh and Maia has a new Tesla car to drive around, it has two settings, 5 miles an hour or 2, obviously it will be 2 miles an hour to start!
 
ENJOY!!

Friday December 6, 2024

We have a big event for our customers tomorrow so we are getting ready.

After a few months up stairs in my movie room with a desk and this computer, today we moved all my communication items like this computer and display and the weather equipment down to my office. I am confident everything will go well. The only thing I will miss is an easy access to my bathroom. Downstairs I will have to go up two flights of stairs which should be easy enough. My back is still not great and probably will never be restored to where It was a few years ago, but at 81 years old I think I am doing well enough, especially since I have lost 30 pounds. I am still using my stair lift but also at times bypassing it. Obviously it is safer to use it!

Salvador and Jose have been racking our 2024 wines and I have samples I will taste tonight. On Monday after the Customer open house tomorrow Salvador and Jose will start again and finish the racking by the end of next week. It looks like our labels will be ready to start bottling our 2023 16 month aged wines and our new white wines, 2024 Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier and Gewurztraminer.

Saturday December 14, 2024

I have received many samples from Jose and Salvador of our new 2024 wines. That means they have collected all the barrels and racked each wine in to a tank with instructions from my excel spreadsheet. Then they filled the barrels back up and collect a small sample of the blended wine for me to taste. The big news is I was extremely happy with my new Super Tuscan style wine sample. Originally we were going to call this new wine The Ultimate Cuvee but now we have decided to make up a new wine name for my Super Tuscan style wine and so far we are thinking of Ultimo Clasico. I also tasted our 2024 barrel sample of Block 4 (The smoothest with great complexity), Our Italiano Style (which had great fruit) our Sagrantino (The most intense structure) and the Ultimo Clasico had great structure with intense complexity. As you can tell I am very happy with the 2024 vintage. I am looking forward to tasting our 3 white wines (Gewürztraminer, Viognier and Sauvignon Blanc) to be bottled in the third week of January.

I had fun asking ChatGPT to describe my Ultimo Clasico wine with Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese, Nebbiolo, Zinfandel and Merlot and here is what was described:

An Ultimo Clásico wine blend featuring Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese, Merlot, Nebbiolo, and Zinfandel would offer a rich, complex tasting experience. Each grape variety brings its own distinct characteristics to the blend:

  • Cabernet Sauvignon: Known for its full-bodied structure, it provides bold tannins, deep black fruit flavors like blackcurrant, blackberry, and plum, along with hints of cedar, tobacco, and sometimes green pepper. This grape adds backbone and depth to the wine.

  • Sangiovese: This Italian grape variety introduces vibrant acidity and bright red fruit notes, such as cherry, raspberry, and strawberry. It might also contribute subtle earthy and herbal undertones, with a hint of leather or spice. Sangiovese balances the richness of the other varieties with its refreshing lift.

  • Merlot: A softer, rounder variety, Merlot contributes smooth tannins and fruit-forward flavors like ripe plum, black cherry, and sometimes chocolate or mocha. It rounds out the wine, offering smoothness and a more approachable texture.

  • Nebbiolo: Known for its high acidity and tannin structure, Nebbiolo offers complexity with aromas of rose, tar, dried herbs, and earthy tones, alongside flavors of red fruit like raspberry and cherry. It adds a layer of elegance and an aged quality to the blend.

  • Zinfandel: Zinfandel can bring intensity and spice to the wine, with notes of black pepper, blackberry, and even a touch of anise. It’s often characterized by a slightly sweet fruitiness and can lend a bit of warmth, depending on the ripeness, adding depth and a certain rustic flair.

Together, this blend would create a multi-layered wine with a deep, complex profile: rich dark fruits and spice, balanced by refreshing acidity and smoothness, with earthy, floral, and herbal undertones. It would likely offer a full-bodied mouthfeel with a long, persistent finish, making it ideal for pairing with hearty dishes or enjoying on its own.

Friday December 20, 2024

Last night I tasted an Italian Super Tuscan which is a blend of 50% Sangiovese and 50% Merlot so I found that interesting because usually an Italian Super Tuscan includes Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend and our Super Tuscan, Ultimo Clásico, Includes Cab and also Nebbiolo and some Zin. SO, I opened up our 2022 Sangiovese and our 2023 Merlot and mixed that 50-50 together to try with the Italian wine and our Barrel sample of Aglianico and two other Sangiovese wines from Italy. I was really surprised the Merlot dominated the blend I made up so tasting all those wines blind, I picked it out easily, it had so much fruit, very nice. Also the Italian blend of Merlot and Sangiovese was much more structured so the Merlot used must have been more like the Sangiovese, more apparent intensity upfront on the palate. I then tasted our 2022 Sangiovese blind compared to the other wines. I was pleasantly surprised I had trouble distinguishing the barrel sample of our Aglianico from the other Sangiovese based wines. Again I think the 2024 vintage will be great. Over all the wines tasted blind were rated high by me and I look forward to tasting the 5 wines again tonight to see how they change after day. I am sure I will be able to taste some differences.

Oh, forgot, I have an Italian Sagrantino I tasted, not two other Sangiovese wines. So 5 wines to taste again tonight, My 2022 Sangiovese, the Sagrantino, the blend of Sangiovese and Merlot, my 2024 Barrel sample of Aglianico and an Italian Sangiovese......fun

Tuesday December 31, 2024

When I grew up this was one of my favorite days, New Years Eve and especially Mid Night! After my Father died when I was 10 years old, My Mother took my sister Lynda and I to San Francisco on Market street where there was a tradition to through calendars from the last year all over the street from the buildings above. I remember walking through them and scraping my feet and enjoying it so much. Lynda and I were treated to a first run movie and the three of us were happy again but still thought about my Father and how much we missed him. Today I say I have always stayed up to Mid Night every year since then and will do it as long as I live and I still think about those great times with My Mother and Lynda! Enjoy to all who read this diary!! Happy New Year..........



Dave

For any comments or questions I encourage any of you to e-mail.....david@coffaro.com



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