I am sitting in the Atlantic Airport, waiting for my connecting flight to San Francisco. For the past three days I have toured the west coast of Florida, visiting Total Wine & More stores and conducting tastings in Orlando, Tampa, St Petersburg, Sarasota, Ft Myers and Naples. A grueling schedule, but the response to our wines was heartening, and the perfect weather was very welcome. A couple of highlights for me included seeing the after church crowd descend on the Naples store; and bumping into an old friend who once owned a wine shop in Sag Harbor in New York and was now working in Sarasota.
The harvest is over and a calm of sorts has returned to the winery. The bottling line is open for business, however; so there is always plenty to do.
We had a great time at the recent Russian River Wine Road Wine and Food Affair, held the weekend of November 4th and 5th. We had our biggest crowds ever, with over 180 visitors on Sunday. I made and smoked 40 pounds of sausage (over 30 feet!) to pair with our 2007 Russian River Valley Zinfandel Cobblestone Vineyard and our 2006 Dry Creek Valley Syrah St Emydius Acres. Yum!
Later this week it’s off to Phoenix, where we will visit the Total Wine & More stores in the area, pouring our wines and spreading the Taft Street word. The fun just never ends.
With Thanksgiving coming up fast, time is running out on our Turkey Day Special. The focus will be on our 2008 Mendocino Gewurztraminer and the 2008 Russian River Valley Riesling – both GOLD MEDAL winners. Buy six and pay for five (yes, you can mix and match). We pay the shipping! So give Kaitlyn a call (800) 334-TAFT and get your Thanksgiving Beverages.
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Mike Tierney