This is how your favorite wine gets made: Forget Uber – tech pioneers are chasing the perfect Cab

SALON | BY Alex French | ARTICLE LINK

A group of visionary vintners in Napa Valley have uncorked a technological revolution that’s changing winemaking

IN 2000, WHEN START-UP GURU CHUCK MCMINN ARRIVED IN NAPA VALLEY to embark on a second career as a vigneron, the man who once worked at Intel and later as CEO of early DSL provider Covad Communications encountered a community of humble farmers so focused on the minutiae of growing, harvesting and fermenting grape juice that the world had passed them by.

TIME TRAVEL

THE TASTING PANEL | BY DEBORAH PARKER WONG | ARTICLE LINK

FROM A RARE VERTICAL TASTING spanning 30-plus years of Spottswoode Napa Valley Cabernet to a constellation of real-time data projected on the domed ceiling of a futuristic winery, it’s possible to witness the past and future of winemaking without leaving the 30-mile stretch of Napa Valley.

Palmaz Vineyards

Napa sonoma | Article Link

ALTHOUGH IT’S LOCATED ON THE RUGGED SLOPES of Mount George east of Napa, Palmaz Vineyards is just a short drive from downtown.  Before Prohibition, the site was home to the Cedar Knoll Vineyard and Winery started by Napa Valley pioneer Henry Hagen in 1881.  During Prohibition, the winery was abandoned until Julio Palmaz and his wife, Amalia, purchased the property in the late 1990s.

Passion & Technology

Gentry Magazine | BY brian douglas | ARTICLE LINK

PALMAZ VINEYARDS has made quite a statement in a relatively stoic industry.  Gentry takes a look inside Napa’s Mt. George.

A Riesling and a Cookbook

PAlm Beach Illustrated | BY Mark Spivak | ARTICLE LINK

ANY SURVEY OF THE WORLD of Riesling (including the recent one by yours truly) would logically focus on Germany and Alsace, with a nod to upstart regions such as Washington State, New York’s Finger Lakes and Australia’s Eden Valley. California would rarely be on the radar screen, due to a warmer climate and widespread consumer apathy. And the Napa Valley? As they say in Brooklyn, forget about it.

Against this backdrop, the Louise Riesling from Palmaz Vineyards is a delightful surprise. Prior to Prohibition, the property was known as Cedar Knoll; it was purchased in the late 1990s by Julio Palmaz, a physician who invented the Palmaz Coronary Stent (possibly one of the few things better for the heart than wine). The winery focuses on producing Cabernet Sauvignon from estate vineyards. Their 2012 Cabernet ($125, reviewed here) is sumptuous and structured, a seamless match with steak, lamb, stews and game dishes.

By Christian Palmaz

OK I HAVE TO CONFESS I was a little nervous when my sister mentioned that a car manufacturer wanted to film us in a promo piece for a new car. Automobiles and alcohol should not be a perfect pairing, but she is the creative and I am the technical so I rolled with it…

WEDNESDAYS WITH WINEMAKERS – TINA MITCHELL

PALATE exposure | BY Ilona thompson | ARTICLE LINK

As with most winemakers, Tina Mitchell’s interest in wine developed early, while she was attending the University of California, Davis, as a premed student. During her third year, a friend from her hometown of Ukiah, California, opened a winery, which introduced Tina to wine. After taking a class in enology and viticulture and working a harvest in Paso Robles at Estrella River Winery, Tina knew she had found her new career path.

After marrying in 1981, Tina moved to Napa, where she worked a harvest at Rutherford Hill Winery. After harvest, she finished her last quarter at U.C. Davis and earned her degree. She then worked at Louis Martini and Niebaum Coppola, where she was able to make wine alongside celebrated winemaker André Tchelistcheff. “I feel I was very fortunate to work so closely with such a legend,” she says. “André taught me the importance of being a hands-on winemaker.”

A VINTAGE Enterprise

comcast business | contributed by wired Brand Lab | BY chris null | ARTICLE LINK

WINEMAKING HAS A REPUTATION as a sleepy, traditional, and almost boring industry – but in recent years, high-tech has hit the wine world, and hit it hard.

Want to know whether your grapes are thriving? Check out Halter Ranch, where networked vineyard sensors have helped it to reduce water usage by more than half while informing vineyard managers when it’s time to harvest. Chateau Lynch-Bages, one of the most noteworthy wineries in Bordeaux, is testing a technology to continuously monitor the conditions of wine aging inside its barrels. And vineyards of late are covered in flying drones, with California regulars like Hahn and Kunde deploying the autonomous aerial eyes to determine the right time to harvest.

Palmaz Wins Gold at the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards

THE HONOR OF BEING nominated for the IBPA Benjamin Franklin award was enough to send us into a state of bliss.  Christian and Florencia travelled to Salt Lake City on Friday to attend the 28th Annual Benjamin Franklin Awards knowing they were amongst the finest. The IBPA, or Independent Book Publishers Association, along with almost 200 book publishing professionals varying from publishers to bookstore owners, administer the Benjamin Franklin Awards.

NASA CONTROL ROOM OR NAPA WINERY?

THE MERCURY NEWS | BY Mary Orlin | Article Link

TO THE NAKED EYE, this 1,877-foot mountain along Napa Valley’s eastern edge seems like any other. But deep in the belly of Mt. George, there’s a five-level, high-tech winery, with a sophisticated computer system and display that rivals NASA’s Mission Control Center.