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Barrel tastings

Wine clubs sometimes hold barrel tastings — usually in the spring or summer, long before the vineyard is busy with the harvest. What makes a barrel tasting special is that the wines all come straight from the barrel. You may get the opportunity to buy discounted wine futures. If you don’t happen to know the wine-tasting etiquette, here are a couple of basic rules:

• Don’t wear perfume or cologne — it interferes with the wine’s aroma.

• Act like you were at an upscale cocktail party, not a bar.

Barrel tastings at a vineyard near St. Helena

Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards in Napa Valley, a 10-minute drive from downtown St. Helena, holds tastings in its barrel caves, where current releases and library wines may be sampled and visitors can learn all about the process of making and storing the wine. Tastings are $65, but one tasting fee can be waived by joining their wine club or making a $100 purchase.

One wine you might want to try at an Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards barrel tasting is the Right Bank. Their first Right Bank, the dark ruby 2008, has an aroma rich with mocha, cedar, blackberries, black pepper and plums. The year 2008 was one of those years where the weather places great stress on the grapevines, reducing yield but producing wines of singular quality — in this case, a red wine with a rich, full palate of mocha, espresso and black fruit integrated with sweet tannins. It also has an excellent texture and a silky finish that lingers on the palate for several minutes. This wine is expected to improve for twelve to fifteen years and be good for ten more. Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards doesn’t issue a Right Bank every year. Try their latest Right Bank today.

St. Helena wineries world-renowned

Wine clubs of St. Helena

The St. Helena American Viticulture Area is at the northern end of Napa Valley. Warmer and drier than the southern parts of the valley, tis soils range from gravel and clay to volcanic soil. Deep, ripe Cabernet Sauvignons and Merlots all come from St. Helena wineries. St. Helena is is one of the centers of the world’s wine industry. Joining a wine club is a good way to go on tours of this town and its surrounding area and visit its numerous fine wineries.

A winery near St. Helena

Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards is a great St. Helena winery. Near downtown St. Helena, it has a microclimate cooler than other parts of the valley. At the vineyard, you will have the chance to meet the owners and wine-makers and taste excellent wine stored in the vineyard’s cave.

Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards has been owned and operated by the Anderson family since 1983. By ordering six bottles or more per year, you can join the Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards Wine Club. Club membership will get you a discount on many of their finest wines, as well as the chance to try library wines such as their 2007 Éloge. This dark ruby wine has an aroma of mocha, chocolate and black stone fruits balanced with oakiness. Its flavor begins with the juicy taste of ripe blackberries, followed by more dark fruit flavors with coffee bean spice perfectly matched with fruit tannins. It has a finish lasting two to three minutes in the mouth, making it a wine to savor. The ’07 Éloge is expected to get even better as it ages. Try a bottle of ACVV wine today.

Operating Napa’s best vineyards is hard work

The best vineyards in Napa

Running one of the best vineyards in Napa is hard work. The winemaker must find the right variety of grape for the terroir and harvest the grapes at just the right moment. Each piece of equipment used at a winery that touches the must needs to be surgically clean and sterile, to prevent the growth of toxic bacteria. And each tank and barrel needs to be checked once every few days to make sure it’s the right temperature and hasn’t been infected.

One of the best vineyards in Napa outside St. Helena

Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards in Napa Valley, near downtown St. Helena, is one of the best vineyards in the Napa Valley area. Their Cabernet Sauvignon and Bordeaux blends are regarded as among the best wines in Napa. It holds tastings in its barrel caves, where current releases and library wines may be sampled and visitors can learn all about the process of making and storing the wine. Cave tastings are $65, but one tasting fee can be waived by joining their wine club or making a $100 purchase.

A wine you might find at an Anderson’s Conn Valley wine club wine tasting is the 2009 Estate Reserve Cabernet. Coming from an excellent year with a long hang time for the grapes, the ’09 Estate Reserve is a dense purple wine with a reddish-purple edge. Its aroma is of red and black cassis, violets and loamy earth. It has a medium to full-bodied mouthfeel and the flavor of dark berries and red fruits with earth and leather notes. Join their wine club today and try a more recent Estate Reserve.

The fun of joining a wine club

Exclusive wine clubs

In a wine club, you buy a certain number of bottles a year, and the club delivers them to your door. You get discounts on these wines (especially if this club is affiliated with a winery) and other benefits. A wine club should offer information on the wine and suggestions on what to serve with it. Famous wine clubs include the Gold Medal Wine Club, the Original Wine of the Month Club and Uncorked Ventures. At tours and tastings, you’ll meet the winemakers and talk with other wine lovers. If you join a wine club that belongs to a winery, you know they’ll have the wine when you order it.

A great wine club at a St. Helena winery

Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards in Napa Valley, a 10-minute drive from downtown St. Helena, has its own wine club. By agreeing to buy six bottles a year in groups of three, you can get Level I membership with discounts on their wines, tickets to parties and invitations to a complimentary tasting. Once you’ve chosen a membership level, buying additional bottles won’t count toward your annual allocation.

An example of a library wine that might be available at an Anderson’s Conn Valley wine tasting is the 2010 Éloge. This polished yet powerful wine, born from a cool wet spring and a blazing hot summer and fall, has a powerful aroma of cedar and crème de cassis, with hints of red currant, spice and the oak lending it some toasty notes. Its flavor is similar, with a long and satisfying finish. This wine is worthy to save for thirty years or more. Club members save $25 on the ’12 Éloge. Join the Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards Wine Club today.

Napa Valley history and viticulture

A short history of Napa Valley wine

Wine grapes have been grown in California since before the eighteenth century. The first grapes in Napa Valley were Mission grapes, which were descended from Spanish grapes. Better known for their hardiness and adaptability than for the quality of their wine, they may have grown wild. In the 19^th century, finding the climate and soil of Napa Valley perfect for winemaking, immigrants to California planted other vines to improve the quality and variety. Today, Napa Valley wines are famous all over the world.

Napa Valley wines from a winery near St. Helena

Some of the best California wines come from Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards in Napa Valley. An example of what this winery has to offer is the Éloge, an exclusive blend. The 2008 Éloge comes from a year notable for storms followed by a prolonged frost in spring, a cool spring and early summer followed by sweltering heat later. All this led to a vintage of low yield but high quality — a dark ruby red wine with extraordinary aroms of black cherries, cedar, leather and crushed rocks with a distant hint of smoked meats. It tastes of chocolate-dipped black cherries, currants and plums with toffee, mocha and spices.

Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards has been owned and operated by the Anderson family since 1983. Anderson’s wines are sold online and in five locations in Napa Valley, and many other locations nationwide. By ordering six bottles or more per year, you can join their wine club, giving you discounts on many of their finest wines.

Knowing the source of the aromas

Wine club wine tasting

One thing they might be talking about at a wine tasting held by a wine club is the aroma wheel developed by winefolly.com, which classifies aromas (and flavors) according to the point in the winemaking process they come from. Primary aromas come from the variety and terroir of the grape. Most of the possibilities come from this. The categories include citrus, tropical fruit (for some reason, bubblegum is classified here as a tropical fruit), black fruit, spice, earth and a category called “noble rot” which includes beeswax, ginger and honey.

Secondary aromas come from the fermentation process. The secondary, microbial aromas/flavors include mushroom, lager and cream. Tertiary aromas come from the aging process. The categories are general aging and oak aging, and include such classic aromas as cigar box and leather.

Finally, there are the faults. While some wines are considered to be the better for having a touch of farmyard about them, usually these smells diminish the experience — especially the notorious cork taint.

Wine tasting at a vineyard just outside St. Helena

Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards in Napa Valley, a 10-minute drive from downtown St. Helena, holds tastings in its barrel caves, where visitors can sample current releases and library wines and learn about the process of making and storing the wine. Cave tastings are $65, but one tasting fee can be waived by joining their wine club or making a $100 purchase.

Anderson’s wines are sold online and in five locations in Napa Valley, and many other locations nationwide. Join their wine club today and schedule a wine tasting.

Cabernet Sauvignon great for celebrations

Cabernet Sauvignon a famous California wine

The California Cabernet Sauvignon is a wine fit to be served with a celebratory meal. Cabs are blessed with an aroma and palate rich with cassis (blackcurrant), black cherry and blackberry, and often hints of black pepper, licorice and violets. They’re often paired with red meat, such as venison, lamb or rich beef. Try serving the wine at 57 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit to get the full flavor, and cut back on the seasonings with the meat. A Cab also goes well with wild fowl, aged cheeses or truffles.

Wine club

Cabernet Sauvignon usually matures nine to eighteen months. Some of the most famous Cabs come from many rootstocks and vineyards, combined for the perfect balance. The Cabernet Sauvignon grape has long been prized for its ability to survive in a variety of climates without sacrificing quality. In 1976, a California Cab was preferred over French Bordeaux wines in the famous “Judgment of Paris” blind taste test in France. Join a wine club to learn more about the Cab.

Some very good Cabs near St. Helena, CA

Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards in Napa Valley, a short drive from downtown St. Helena, produces world-class wines at affordable prices, including a famous Cabernet Sauvignon with distinct licorice notes. The Conn Valley Cabernet has been rated one of the top Cabernets in the world since the inaugural vintage of 1987. Wine club members save $25 buying the 2013 Signature Cabernet Sauvignon online. If you’re looking for a good wine to serve at a special occasion, order a bottle today.