Ready, set Go! Off to the Wine Bloggers Conference!
San Francisco Bay – my road to Santa Rosa
Fresh from a 4-day intensive technical conference in San Francisco, off I headed to Santa Rosa to hang out with 333 of the best wine bloggers in the industry. 2017 was the 10th anniversary of the conference starting out in Santa Rosa so no better location than the gateway to the Northern California Wine industry. This was my 2nd year in attendance and as usual the conference lived up to my expectations for learning, networking and enjoying fine wine.
Some may wonder what is a wine bloggers’ conference? It is an opportunity for writers with various perspectives on presentation to learn how to better engage with our audiences, learn about new wines that we may not have had exposure to and to explore wine making regions, travel and lifestyle opportunities to enrich our day to day lives.
My conference started in earnest the evening before in a Wines of the World tasting opportunity. Winemakers and distributors lined a banquet room at the Hyatt Vineyard with offerings from Chile, France and California to name a few. The room was abuzz with participants reconnecting in our common love of wine. For reasons unknown, Thursday for me was about gravitating to the whites. Two favorites from the evening were Benjamin Laroche La Manufacture Chablis Premier Cru and Hubert Meyer Crémant D’ Alsace.
Benjamin Laroche is a 7th generation winemaker from Burgundy and part of the Naked Wines family (https://us.nakedwines.com/producers/benjamin-laroche). Naked Wines is a crowd funded group dedicated to promoting exceptional wines from smaller vineyards who may not have the resources for individual marketing and distribution. This Chablis offering has a crisp citrusy nose with a matching palette. There is a good balance of acidity and minerals in the taste. The balance makes the wine feel round in my mouth with a little chestnut and oak finishing it up. There is a hint of sweetness that really finishes this Chablis up on a great note. It is a wine that I will enjoy drinking on crisp fall days with poultry or pork dishes. The wine retails for $39.99 and if you join Naked Wines Angel program you can get it for $23 per bottle. This is a great wine to pair with your Thanksgiving meal.
Starting in the 17th century, the Hubert Meyer family has a long tradition of winemaking in the Alsace region of France (http://www.vins-hubert-meyer.fr/vins-cremant-alsace/cremant-alsace/). The Crémant D’Alsace The Pinot Blanc grapes are harvested first and are delicate grapes. The grapes are then made using the traditional methods of making a champagne – or a second fermentation.
In 1976, Crémant became an official classification for sparkling wines outside of Alsace. This sparkler features a nose of pears. The taste is crisp and bright with hints of pear and peaches. This would be a great sparkler to enjoy with light appetizers and can stand alone well. Evenings entertaining small groups of friends. At an average of $20 per bottle this is a great price point for a sparkling wine from Alsace.
Consider ordering a couple of bottles of each of these wines. On my Day 2 slide show (which I will make an annual tradition of the Wine Bloggers Conference), there will be pictures of all the wines that I sampled so that you can peek into the World of Wines with wine bloggers!
Remember to drink what it is that makes you truly happy and always think positively!
Drink Responsibly!
#wbc2017 #SantaRosaWines #NakedWinesCom