Twice a year our winemaking team spends several weeks conducting a series of blind tastings to assess the merits of each cooperage from which we source barrels. Although we only work with the finest coopers, we still believe it’s important to test their performance every year to ensure the quality and consistency of the oak [...]
Cooperage trial tastings: which barrel producers make the cut
by Ronald on April 15, 2010 in From the Cellar
Spring growing season update from our garden
by Todd on April 9, 2010 in From the Kitchen
Ideal spring weather in Alexander Valley has already afforded us an exciting harvest of lettuces, onions, strawberries and herbs, as well as near-perfect blooms on our fruit trees and impressive growth of our raspberry bushes. In this video, I discuss what’s happening this month in our garden behind the winery, including our tree-grafting experiments, which [...]
Visiting Jordan: new cheese pairings
by Todd on April 7, 2010 in From the Kitchen, News
Guests who visit the Jordan estate to experience our tours and tastings sample little tastes from our kitchen to complement Jordan Chardonnay, followed by artisanal cheeses paired with two vintages of Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon. When we changed our Chardonnay pairing tastes in March (see previous blog post), I also decided to select a few new artisanal American cheeses to serve with our current [...]
Springtime snow on the mountains
by Brent on April 2, 2010 in From the Vineyards
An interesting cold front lingered over the Alexander Valley and its vineyards earlier this week. Geyser Peak (3,455 feet elevation) and the surrounding mountains were dusted with snow, high above the vineyards on the valley floor–most of which recently underwent budbreak. We were a little nervous about the buds being harmed by frosts, but luckily [...]
Pruning olive trees and reusing cuttings
by Dana on March 31, 2010 in From the Land
After the vineyard team finishes pruning grapevines each March, we move onto pruning 18 acres of olive trees planted on hillsides near Jordan’s two lakes. It takes just one minute to prune a grapevine, but an olive tree—due to its size and number of branches—requires 10 minutes of grooming to create proper shaping and light exposure, which ensures efficient picking [...]
Black Swans released on Jordan lake
by Lisa on March 24, 2010 in From the Heart, News
The Jordan family recently adopted six Black Swans, which were released onto the Jordan lake on March 16. Sally Jordan, co-founder of the winery, tells the story of how these swans touched her heart and why they now call Jordan estate home.
New Chardonnay pairings inspired by our garden and spring
by Todd on March 22, 2010 in From the Kitchen, News
Guests who visit the Jordan estate to experience our 11 a.m. Winery Tour enjoy little tastes from our kitchen, prepared by myself and Sous Chef Manuel Reyes to complement two vintages of Jordan Chardonnay. These pairings, in addition to our cheese course served with two vintages of Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon, change seasonally, and our Chardonnay taste pairings are [...]
Alexander Valley Winegrowers Barrel Tasting
by Dana on March 15, 2010 in Events
Each March, members of the Alexander Valley Winegrowers Association gather at the Alexander Valley Community Hall to share barrel samples of the previous vintage with fellow winemakers and grape growers. Our board members also pass the reins to newly elected leadership, trade groups speak about important issues to our wine community, the coveted pruning awards [...]
Saying goodbye to used barrels … but not for long
by Patrick on March 12, 2010 in From the Cellar
Our recent post about the new barrel inspection process discussed the pristine barrels French and American cooperages deliver to our cellar door every winter. But only one-third of our Cabernet Sauvignon is aged in new oak barrels each vintage, so used barrels play a critical role in our winemaking philosophy. Barrels raise our wine for three [...]
Reusable wine totes replace cardboard
by Lisa on March 9, 2010 in News
Today, winery guests had the opportunity to test out our new reusable wine totes, created by N’Take EcoDurable Products, which will replace the cardboard boxes we’ve packaged wine purchases in for many years. Guest Services Manager Sean Brosnihan announces the program in this week’s video.
