Return to Napa/Sonoma
In a matter of a couple of months I will return to my ol' stomping grounds on the left coast to enjoy time with my friends and another round through the vineyards of Napa/Sonoma. The long weekend, that will happen the first weekend following Labor Day Weekend, will be considered a get away guy's weekend. Being at home and raising a one and three year old during the day does not afford me the chance to get away alone with or without my wife. So, this will be only the fourth time travelling by myself in 3 1/2 years.
Staying at home with my children is definitely a labor of love but so is the little time that I have working at The Wine Cellars. Recently, we have brought on a babysitter twice a week to let me have more time at the store learning the ropes behind the retail wine industry. Come August it will be one year working at the store part-time. The transition from being a geologist in the Bay Area for ten years to a wine buyer at my local wine store has been a blessing. Best of all, I have been able to meet genuinely nice people and nurture friendships through a common thread of imbibing wine. And, I hope some of those friends will join me in saluting our local wine store here in Smyrna, GA by checking out my newest adventure which is trying to carry on a running conversation about wine in the TWC Blog. As a joke, I'm sure, it will be noted that I found a new outlet for my "gabbing" which I seem to do a lot of during our wine tastings!
Anyhoo, back to my return trip to Napa/Sonoma, I am really, really looking forward to it. Partly due to a visit I will be making to Ovid Vineyard. One of the 6 cult wines to covet by SF Gate:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/05/30/WI4G10U4F4.DTL
I spent a good amount of time this past winter researching wine that I thought I might have an interest in investing. As I build my home cellar I have come to realize that it takes quite a lot of money to purchase wine that can be stored for any good length of time and, especially so, if I plan on drinking it all. So, I wised up, if you will, and figured out that I might be able to store wine for a certain amount of time and hope the price will appreciate so I can realize a small fortune through some online auction sites. The good fortune would not so much be the money that I make back on selling a bottle but the lowered cost of one bottle, that I plan to drink, out of the three that I initially buy (ie. sell two bottles at double the cost and drink one bottle for free!). Spread this idea out through a few of my favorite vineyards and so begins my serious wine collecting adventure. It's a plan anyway! Everyone in wine collecting was a novice once, right?
Back to Ovid. This vineyard has a lot of momentum. 2008 is the first year they are releasing the wine to the public. And, I believe it is the first year they are having an Open House and inviting members of their wine list to the property. Hence, I should be able to drink the wine that I plan to store for a good length of time. In my blog, that is considered a win situation and I am sure as hell looking forward to it. In addition, I will be joining one of my closest friends in his annual rite of passage to Vincent Arroyo to pick up his Petite Sirah. I plan on posting more vineyards that I will be visiting soon as my trip is just now starting to materialize.
Any thoughts or comments is always greatly appreciated. Cheers, Micah