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St. Francis Winery was established and christened after St. Francis of Assisi, in recognition of the Saint's role as protector of the natural world and as acknowledgment of the Franciscan order, believed to have been the first first to bring European grape cultivation to the New World. The winery's roots date back to 1971 when Joe Martin, a San Francisco businessman and his wife, Emma, purchased the 100 acre Behler Ranch Vineyard in Sonoma Valley, Ca., located in the historic town of Kenwood. In 1979, after several years of growing and selling grapes to local wineries, Martin and partner, Lloyd Canton, decided to build their own winery. A few years later, Martin hired Tom Mackey to be his winemaker, and the rest is award-winning history. Thirty years later, Tom Mackey is still the winemaker. "When people ask me, 'What is the best wine you have ever made? I always reply, 'I haven't made it yet.' But today I think we are getting closer," he says. Indian Late Harvest Chenin Blanc (dessert Wine) From connoisseurs to those just beginning to explore the world of wine, this weekend’s 12th Annual Spring Wine Festival at Daniel Vineyards will have something for everyone. “We have every wine so, from beginning to expert, we have something for them to appreciate,” said Chad Fox, hospitality representative for Daniel Vineyards. The festival is a showcase for West Virginian wine as guests will have the opportunity to experience not only wine from Daniel Vineyards but also wine from Forks of Cheat Winery in Morgantown, West Whitehill Winery in Moorefield, Watts Roost Winery in Lewisburg, Lambert’s Vintage Wines in Weston, Jones Cabin Vineyards in Tanner and Wine Tree Vineyards in Vienna. I realized the other day that I mention quite a few wine festivals, open houses, barrel tastings and such, but have never done a follow-up report. So should you Wine Liners out there just take my word, lay out your money and go? Of course, not. However, if I do mention a wine event, I have attended and enjoyed it. I have also witnessed several popular wine events that self-destruct. The word gets out how "great-fun-super-neat-wine-cool" the event is, but sometimes by the third year, it's a mob scene and all that wine-coolness is long gone. Bummer. The first is the "Celebration of Wine" hosted by the Department of Viticulture and Enology of Fresno State University. Proceeds go to raise money for the Vincent Petrucci Library. The event is held at a beautiful horse ranch just south of Madera called Rancho Vista del Rio. This year there were 80 wineries and 50 restaurants serving their best. The event ends with dessert and coffee and dancing to Big Band Swing music. It is a first-class event and well worth the $70 donation. Comments that include profanity or personal attacks or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. Additionally, entries that are unsigned or contain "signatures" by someone other than the actual author will be removed. Finally, we will take steps to block users who violate any of our posting standards, terms of use or privacy policies or any other policies governing this site. Please review the full rules governing commentaries and discussions. You are fully responsible for the content that you post. Late Harvest Chenin Blanc (dessert Wine) India When the economy tanked in late 2008, many high-end wineries suffered a precipitous drop in sales. Americans suddenly were "buying down," eating at less-expensive restaurants or at home and choosing wines considerably cheaper than those they were accustomed to, favoring value over prestige.Yet last year, David Adelsheim, founder of one of the oldest and most revered wineries in Oregon's Willamette Valley, marked an increase in sales of his upper-tier wines. How did he manage to grow in a shrinking economy? Direct-to-consumer sales. That’s what led to the new $22 price point for our wine of the week winner — the Gloria Ferrer, 2006 Carneros Pinot Noir. The pinot was sold for $28 in the winery's tasting room until May. “The new price was dictated by the realities of the market of late,” according to winemaker Bob Iantosca. The economic downturn has people looking for bargains, yes, even bargain pinot. Late Harvest Chenin Blanc (dessert Wine) India How can the winery afford the new price tag? “We are fortunate to have our own established vineyards as well as our own in-house vineyard crew which allows us to produce high quality fruit at a reasonable cost,” Iantosca said. The winery also has the benefit of scale, with a production level of 15,000 to 20,000 cases of pinot noir, he added.
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