Timothy drinking the first bottle off the line.
I really should be better at chronicling my life I mean I sit at a computer most of the day. I guess I think it’s pretty much boring and of no interest to anyone. It took Timothy to send me some pictures and a message “for your blog” to even give me the idea to put this here. This year we bottled our 2008 “the obvious” Sauvignon Blanc at Larson Family Winery, in a small mobile bottling truck. It’s a really cool way to do it, as the wine bottles go in one side and out the other with wine inside, a label, and a stelvin capsule. It’s not magic but very quick and clean. The whole process took about two hours.

Me tasting that same bottle.

A curious event unfolds today in Santa Rosa. The first ever, “Great West End and Downtown Railroad Square Handcar Regatta and Exposition of Mechanical and Artistic Wonders.” Yup! It’s a mouthful, but oh FUN! Created by our dear friend, Spring Maxfield (partner-in-crime of famed local artist, Todd Barricklow), the Handcar Regatta is nothing short of a stroke of genius. For those of you having trouble wrapping your head around this human powered race, here’s a 60-Second Weekend podcast by Press Democrat Arts & Entertainment prankster, John Beck. Our Wine Hero will be on hand, serving as emcee and race-day coordinator, and we’ll be pouring our wines in the beer & wine tent. Come play with us!

In today’s Seattle Times, Wine Guy Paul Gregutt poses a mouthful of a question, “What is the foolproof, all-weather, any-food, surefire celebration Fourth of July wine?” His beyond-any-doubt answer? “There is only one possible answer: zinfandel.” The sharp and worthy read goes on to describe a brief history of the country’s native grape, noting the meteoric rise of the Skittles-sweet white zins that were as ubiquitous as white polyester in ’70s and beyond. Fortunately, “Zinfandel has since been reclaimed, rediscovered as the great red wine it truly can be.” He argues that while zinfandel is grown and made all over California, Sonoma County (particularly Dry Creek) – wink, wink - is the epicenter for many of the greatest examples. We tend to agree and are pretty damned happy he included “The Reverend” Zinfandel in his case of twelve recommended zins. So scoop up some zin up for your Fourth, or any and all other summer celebrations. And hurry, because supplies of our 92-point (Wine Enthusiast) offering are extremely limited.

Sorry I’ve been remiss in updating this blog over the holidays. But we’ve been on a trans-Atlantic adventure and let’s just say Africa doesn’t have too many wireless hotspots. Yup… Africa. A few of us flew to Ghana for Christmas and then to Cape Town to ring in the New Year. I won’t bore you with too many details, just a few photos.

Justice (of our Justice Syrah fame) had fun flying through the air.

Naomi got her kicks feeding the monkeys in a sanctuary in Ghana.

And me… I spent a couple of hours in a cage within a severed-arm’s reach of Great White sharks.  Here’s the seal decoy that kept the sharks interested in my neck of the Indian Ocean.

Now that we’re back, you can expect more fresh content from your Roshamblogger. So keep checking in and of course, share your Roshambo stories with me or the comments page. We love hearing from you! Happy holidays.