EARLY FALL 2009 NEWSLETTER

Calicaro Launch Party

This Wine Meetup Group is great fun and has grown to 375+ wine lovers. The sign up is free, there are no membership fees and there is no obligation to participate in anything. Even if you can't come to the Calicaro Launch Party, I recommend the Meetup Group if you have an interest in wine.

Calicaro Wine Dinner

Please join us at the Calicaro Wine Dinner at Devereaux's on November 19. Chef Steven Devereaux Greene will be creating a special menu to pair with Calicaro wines. With Steven's culinary talents, the sophisticated ambiance of Devereux's and our wines, this promises to be a memorable evening. We hope we can share it with you! Sign up for the dinner at http://table301.com or call Devereaux's at 864-241-3030.

Euphoria Event

On September 17-19, Greenville hosts the wonderful food and wine weekend called Euphoria. Celebrity chefs, fabulous dinners, wine tasting and education by top notch professionals and music too! This year, Calicaro is honored to be pouring for the private media party and at the Grand Tasting on Saturday. If coming to the Grand Tasting, please stop by our table and say hello. Check out Euphoria at http://www.euphoriagreenville.com/

Pinot Noir "Smack Down" Results

Richard Peck of Table 301 and I went toe to toe / mano a mano recently on Pinot Noir. Richard poured four more restrained and elegant Old World Burgundian style Pinots (at least in theory- more on that later) and I poured four bigger, bolder New World style Pinots (again, in theory).

There were a number of ironies in this tasting. First, the 2007 Calicaro "Poinsett" from Anderson Valley was first up on Richard's lineup. So...here I was supposedly arguing against my own wine!

Next up for him was an Italian Pinot Noir called Grosjean, 04 Arcadian Pisoni (which turned out to be an atypically big and high alcohol wine for Arcadian- it weighed in at 15.9% alc!) and a Morey St Denis Burgundy.

I poured 07 Siduri Sonoma County, 06 Lucia Garys' Vineyard, 05 Martinelli Bella Vigna and 05 Siduri Sonatera.

All showed reasonably well or better, although some of the bigger Pinots would benefit from more bottle time.

We had 24 folks at the tasting and perhaps an even split in preference between the first four and the second four. However, the Burgundy and the Pisoni were both quite big wines.

So...the question for me was how the Calicaro would hold up against a $150 retail Burgundy, a $90 Arcadian from a highly regarded vineyard and the Martinelli, Siduri and Lucia wines? The answer is very, very well. The Calicaro was widely praised and alot of folks called it their Wine of the Night.

One commenter posting on eRobertParker.com had this to say:

"Calicaro 'Poinsett' Haley Vineyard, Anderson Valley 2007 – this was the most balanced and elegant wine of the night. Beautiful aromatics, a lightweight feel on the tongue, and the perfect balance of Cali fruit, earthiness, and acidity, this wine will go great with food. This was the overall Wine of the Night – some of the new world people voted for bolder Cali wines, and some old world people voted for the Burg that I am getting to – but in the context of the discussion we were having – this wine pleased everyone. Mine and my wife’s #2 Wine of the Night (PS – CaliCaro = California/Carolina, as the wine is the product of a Greenville guy – David Ball)"

My worthy adversary Richard sang its praises too. Were folks just giving it the hometown advantage? Maybe that was a factor but I was proud of the wine and it clearly was not outclassed. I am just glad it could run with the big dogs.

2009 Vineyard Update

Here is a mid summer (July 17) report from the vineyard manager, Mitchell Klug:

"For the first time this season, I see quite a few vineyards showing some signs of water stress in the vine canopy. Considering the recent heat we have had, it’s only expected - and I’m sure there is more to come. The dry and cooler spring was trending vine growth later than average. But while an extended growing season sounds great for flavor development, growers run the risks of rain and frost going into late fall. Rain and frost would be detrimental to any unharvested fruit.

The recent heat and subsequent vine stress, comes when earlier ripening varietals (Chardonnay and Pinot Noir) are rapidly approaching veraison. Veraison is the transition the vine goes through from vegetative phase of growth toward the fruitful phase. The plant shifts its focus from leaves and shoot growth to maturation of the berries and increasing sugar-levels. An effortless transition during veraison is a benchmark for a great growing season.

At the mid-point in the growing season, grape growers are still working hard to complete whatever canopy work remains to be done. While many believe that it is an above-average crop year, this theory will not be confirmed until mid-season clusters have been weighed.

All in all, the vines are looking healthy as we head into veraison. So far, there is great cause to be optimistic for this growing season!"

Hope to see you at the Calicaro Launch Party, the Wine Dinner, Euphoria or all of the above!

Cheers,

Dave Ball

Calicaro Wine