Winter Red Wine Release - 2012

I’ve been looking forward to the release of these wines for a long time. 2009 was a near perfect year in terms of the weather and growing season, near perfect that is in Southeastern Arizona grape growing terms. The fruit was not injured by any summer “weather events”, it was warm and dry at the end of the season and we could time the harvest around the ripeness of the fruit instead of a threatening hurricane from Mexico. We will be releasing the 2009 Estate Tempranillo, 2009 Sonoita Cabernet Sauvignon, 2009 Estate Finalé (an intense port style dessert wine), and 2009 Estate Scavenger’s Blend (a Syrah based blend). Also for the first time the 2008 Sangiovese Select will be available. It is comprised of the Brunello Clone of the Sangiovese grape and was barrel aged for 36 months. These are big wines with very limited production. We will have all of them available for tasting the weekend of February 10 – 12. It will be the only time all these fabulous wines will be on the tasting table at the same time. Come pay us a visit; you’ll be glad you did.

Harvest 2011

Bringing 2011 to a close was a labor. The season started with a series of frosts that greatly reduced the crop but after that the season was rather gentle on Canelo Hills Vineyard. No major weather or pest events threatened the fruit and as usual Joan's farming resulted in fabulous fruit. I suppose the fact that we got any crop at all in 2011 after the devastating August 2010 hail storm is a miracle and a tribute to Farmer Joan.









We ended up with very little of anything but for the Tempranillo. Perhaps a ton and a half of Tempranillo got harvested on September 19, about two weeks later than is typical. The fruit was beautiful. Joan and the picking crew scoured the rest of the vineyard and came up with a few hundred pounds of mixed Syrah, Zinfandel, Riesling and Malvasia. It all got tossed in with the Tempranillo so techincally the 2011 Vintage of Tempranillo is a bit of a field blend.




Last weekend I finished off the major tasks of Harvest and initial winemaking. It is always a mixture of sadness and relief when I clean up the press and push it back into the winery for the winter, awaiting 2012. Such is the cycle of winemaking.

Zinfandel - Yummy!

Arizona Zinfandel is fabulous, the problem is that it's a bugger to grow it in this state. Oddly for an arid part of the world, the summer rains (monsoons and hurricanes from Mexico) come at exactly the wrong time - harvest, when the thin skinned and tightly packed Zinfandel just plain old rots before it ripens. "Once in every 8 years", that's the local lore about Zinfandel Harvests. 2009 was a dry year and one of those once in 8 years. Peter Lechtenbohmer of what was then Sweet Sunrise Vineyards (now Sand Reckoner) delivered a load of Zinfandel that has become absolutely delicious. It got bottled this past weekend by one of our experienced bunch of volunteers.





Brian perfects the role of "Philip"- the bottle filler.




Laura and Amber are "Corkey" and "Topper" - operating the corking machine and the heat shrinker for the capsules respectively.



Amber steps in as "Topper" and Kaitlyn has mastered "Sticky" - applying labels at the new labeling machine.


Casey excels as "Crew Boss" and Joan loads the finished product.


It was a very successful day. A human bottling line rivaling the reputation of any respectable monoblock (the name of a fully automatic, industrial bottling line). The wine needs to rest for a bit and will ready around New Year 2012.

Summer Reigns

What we really need are summer rains, but until then the hot dry weather cries out for cool white wines and that's what brought all these folks to Elgin/Sonoita this weekend to try our beautiful and delicious White Wines.



Joan explains how to say Gewurztraminer.



The tasting room was lively.





Megan Haller of AZ Hops and Vines gets a sample of a dry Riesling.





Joel Blumenthal does a brisk business in hand crafted goods.




Rigley takes a break from greeting everyone.

Summer White Wines

Memorial Day Weekend 2011 will again mark the release date of CHV&W's new white wines. Just in time for summer I might add. HOT Arizona Summer and COOL Arizona White Wine. What an epic pairing.

I am excited about these wines, all from Arizona fruit, all fragrant and fruity and dry with no residual sugar. These wines explode in a tantalizing range aromas and flavors. Lychee? Got it. Lemon-lime? Got it. Fresh rose petals? Got it. Pineapple? Got it. Get the picture. Where in the world does this variety of tastes and flavors come from? Why is the wine grape so richly endowed? Come feast your senses. The official release dates will be Saturday and Sunday, May 28 and 29 when Joel Blumenthal will join us with her hand made personal and food items, but these four wines will also be available for tasting and purchase on Friday and Monday, Memorial Day.

2010 Gewurztraminer - I can't get an umlaut in this mail program. It doesn't matter because this is a special wine even without it. Compared to 2009 which was all apple pie spices, this one is roses, roses and more roses. Throw in some lilac, orange blossom and lychee fruit. The mouth feel is thirst quenching and bright with an acidic sweetness. No residual sugar here, just fruit.

2010 Riesling - The glass glows as the sun shines through this wine. Riesling is arguably the best white wine in the world and when made well can last many decades, evolving in fruit and complexity in the bottle. This Riesling is richer than the 2009 vintage, thicker in the mouth, more complex acids with smells and tastes of pineapple, lemon-lime, and baked Gravenstein apple complemented by a minerally-slate mouth feel and lingering sense of sweetness.

2010 Pinot Grigio - There is another version Pinot Grigio which is rather different from the light and easy drinking Italian expression of the Pinot Gris grape. A throw off clone of Pinot Noir, the Pinot Gris grape is grey or light blue in color. This wine is sparkling clear and throws off smells of honeysuckle, citrus and spice. The mouth is filled with a buttery, mango flinty-ness. Yum.

2010 Viognier - Way back when, Viognier was the first white wine I tasted that opened my mind to white wines other than the Chardonnay to which I had become accustomed. This very limited production wine comes from the second fruitful harvest of Sierra Vista Vineyards in Sasabe. It is tantalizing in its Viognier nose - apricot and Acacia blossom and very satisfying with a hint of spice in the finish. The mouthfeel is something I have only experienced with Viognier - a very light cream texture. This wine is a youthful expression of the great things that will come from this vineyard.

Wine Spectator - May 2011

The latest issue of Wine Spectator carries a nice travel article on Tucson, Arizona. Those of us who call this area home, know the geographic and climactic beauty of the area. We also love the southwestern cultural variety and the food and wine culture of our upscale cowboy town. Of course no trip to Tucson would be complete without a visit to the Sonoita/Elgin wine region. Wine Spectator reporter Tim Fish made a very quiet visit to the area a few months back. Subsequent rumors suggested that something might show up in the May 2011 issue. Would he would choose CHV&W as one of the featured wineries?

"Tim makes the wine from grapes grown by his wife, Joan" (p78).

Very cool and very exciting. Nice photo of the building too. If you are a member of winespectator.com you can read the entire article by following this link. Otherwise go fetch a copy from your favorite news stand.

Wine Barrels

"How long do those barrels last? . . . . So what do you do with those barrels when you are done with them? . . . . Could I get one?" These, among others, are commonly asked questions in the tasting room. For me the most curious thought is what will you do with it when you are done? Flower pot? Fire wood? Special fuel for some smoke cured meat? Brew a lambic beer in it (yes a real possibility)? Damian Hattrup applied his creative talents to one of the exhausted French Oak barrels and came up with a glass topped table. Originally destined for the back patio, it turned out so nicely that it now has a favored spot in his living room. Naturally it works best as a staging area for Canelo Hills Wine. Great job Damian!

2000 bottles of wine on the wall . . . .

For all of you whose minds were teased by the Fun Wine Facts item, here is the official answer. The largest stainless steel tank in our winery holds 1500 liters. A mere pittance compared to the commercial winery giants whose tanks measure in the 10's of thousands of gallons. (How many liters in a gallon? Wait this is the answer not another quiz.) A standard bottle of table wine holds 750 milliliters or 0.75 liters. 1500 liters per tank divided by 0.75 liters per bottle equals 2000 bottles. Rick Tagg (aka Cellar Rat) ventured a guess down to two decimal points of accuracy - 1998.15 bottles. That's close enough for me and for his efforts he is the proud winner of a tasting flight at CHV&W.

New Sprout

Amber and Casey Polivchak are regulars - tasters, visitors, bottlers, friends. A little less then a year ago when bottling the 2008 Sangiovese, Amber was conspicuously not sampling the wine. "Pregnant," she announced. These photos of 3 week old Lucy mark her first big outing and her first introduction to Canelo Hills. She feigned interest, but I sure she had her mind on other beverages and important pursuits. She is a cutie. Joan and I look forward to many more of her visits.

2010 White Line Up

This past weekend I racked the white wines from the 2010 harvest. The grapes are sourced from Dragoon Mountain Vineyards in Kansas Settlement and Sierra Vista Wineyards in Sasabe. Each batch is fairly small but very distinctive and true to variety. The Gewurztraminer is completely dry at this point and Joan and I like it. I was thinking of returning a little fresh juice to the wine to sweeten it but perhaps not this year. The Riesling was more ripe when harvested compared to last year and consequently is more complex - still piercingly dry and acidic but rounder and richer in the mouth. It's my first year working with Pinot Grigio and I was totally faked out when I saw the grapes. They are greyish red. How strange for such an ethereal light white wine. The Viognier comes from what must certainly be the most southern vineyard in Arizona - Melissa Owen's vineyard in Sasabe. It is the second harvest from the vines so the wine is consequently fresh and light and crisp, but true to Viognier. Look for them all to be released during our Memorial Day Weekend White Wine Release.

More barrel tasting photos

As promised yesterday, here are a few photos from our earlier barrel tasting on July 24. It was a great evening of wine, too.

Across the tasting room, guests taste and discuss our '09 reds

Right now we have a LOT of different tasty wines in the barrels

Tim uses a winemaker's tool, the wine thief, to extract wine from the barrels

Winemaker Tim shares his assessment of one of the new wines

Beautiful Sonoita skies over the vineyard as the evening comes to a close

Too bad we have to wait another year for our summer barrel tastings to return. If you missed them this year, be on the lookout for announcements next spring about our July and August 2011 (yes, 2011) barrel tasting evenings. We even have some new ideas for next year!

'09 Reds get a thumbs-up at summer barrel tastings

On Saturday evening we had our second summer Barrel Tasting event. It was a lot of fun, with many Canelo Hills regulars, and a few first-timers, pumping us with winemaking questions and giving us their feedback on our '09 red wines.


We sampled seven '09 wines plus our Yummy Zin dessert wine, and they were all pronounced delicious. Some guests asked if they could buy some that night right out of the barrel, but unfortunately we'll all have to be a bit patient. These wines will have anywhere from a few weeks to several months more barrel aging, and then they'll be bottled and need from 3 to 12 months of bottle aging to settle down from bottle shock and reach their full potential.

Stay tuned. Tomorrow I'll post photos from our July barrel tasting!

2010 Harvest

It has begun. Melissa and Todd brought over the 2010 Harvest's first fruits - Viognier from their vineyard in Sasabe, AZ - Sierra Vista Vineyard. This is the second time I'd had the opportunity to work with Melissa's fruit. She's a master gardener from the University of Arizona who not doubt tends to Arizona's southern most vineyard. The fruit isbeautifu, at the peak of ripeness and already along the way to wine. Today I destemmed the fruit which is now cold soaking at the winery to be gently pressed tomorrow. This should make a plush, rich wine with an "oily" mouthfeel in the way that only Viognier can be. It will be available on a limited basis in the winery and through the wine club.

In the Can

Actually in the stainless steel tank. I combined all the barrels of the 2008 Tempranillo into this tank to settle and to do a little bulk aging. The aging in the oak barrels had reached a lovely spot so it was time to think about bottling the wine. It will need 4-6 months of bottle aging to show it's magnificence. This is a fully concentrated and complex Tempranillo. Estimated release? - New Year's 2011.

CH V&W Wines in Phoenix

Here's your chance to taste Canelo Hills Wines. Jim Wiskerchen is hosting a series of wine tasting events where our wines will be available.

June 30 at Fired Up Grill
July 2 at Phoenix Public Market
July 3 at Sphinx Ranch
July 15 at Oakville Grocery Company

For further details log on to his website http://www.meetup.com/blue-tooth-wine-society

WMD @ FnB

That would be Winemaker's Dinner, a totally delightful affair this past Tuesday May 11 at FnB Restaurant in Scottsdale. I've blogged about this place before - the brainchild of Pavle Milic and Chef Charleen Badman, that features local Arizona grown produce and a totally Arizona wine list. Every Tuesday for the next several months an Arizona Winemaker is featured for a fix prix wine-food pairing. Joan and I (accompanied by Jim Wiskerchen of mywinehelper) kicked off the first event.








Sparkling Nebbiolo Rose started off the evening and prepared everyone's palate for the next three courses. 2008 Chardonnay was paired with goat cheese stuffed squash blossoms, lightly battered, quickly fried and placed in a puddle of lemon buerre blanc. Wow! That one worked. Fresh mixed sauteed mushrooms (I got morels and shitake and portobellos) on perfectly al dente garganelli with ramps and topped with lemon bread crumbs resonated with the 2007 Sangiovese Select. The profound earthiness of the mushrooms nailed the 22 month oak barrel aged wine.







The finale was quickly grilled squab dressed with zucchini, olive and almond relish for the carnivores and oven broasted halibut with toasted almonds in the same sauce for Joan and me. 2008 Estate Syrah was the wine match. Perfecto was the consensus. Chef Charleen tickled our palates with fresh peanut brittle and chocolate brownies as a finishing course. I can't wait until the next one.






And by the way be sure to check out the Arizona Republic news article that provides more of the back story of this unique restaurant and specifically mentions the 2008 Chardonnay.

Winemaker’s Dinner at FnB - May 11, 2010

Pavle Milic and chef Charleen Badman of FnB Restaurant in Scottsdale, Arizona, have created a stir in the restaurant world by building a wine list that is entirely devoted to Arizona wines. Pavle is committed to the concept of focusing on local products and tastes, similar to what is the case in most of Europe. To support this vision he is hosting a series of winemaker’s dinners at 6 pm on Tuesday nights.

On Tuesday, May 11, Canelo Hills will be the featured winery and Tim and Joan Mueller will be presenting the 2008 Chardonnay, 2007 Sangiovese Select and 2008 Estate Syrah, perfectly paired with courses that will reflect the creative genius of chef Badman. The menu has not yet been set, that will depend on what fresh products are available in the local markets. We have eaten at FnB. The cuisine is inspired. The wine-food pairings will certainly be exceptional.

The cost for food and wine is $48 plus tax and gratuity. Space is limited to the first 36 people who call. To reserve a spot call the restaurant directly at 480-425-9463.

AFGO at COSTCO

Well, for all you who eagerly awaited the debut of Canelo Hills wine at the Tucson COSTCO and then discovered I was nowhere to be found, I am sorry. I hope you did not inconvenience yourselves. If you did, the next time you are in the tasting room, mention the title of this blog and I'll pour you a free tasting. There was a problem with the necessary financial arrangements to be able to pay me for the wine ("product" in business-ese). As I stood in the receiving section of the store on Friday morning, product and fork lifts whizzing and beeping around me, I was overwhelmed by the scope of the operation. In spite of the well organized chaos Josh (manager of the day) and Skip (receiving manager) treated me well. "We really want to do this. We'll have to reschedule", said Lisa the manager of liquor purchasing of the San Diego region of COSTCO. Indeed. I'll keep you posted about the next opportunity to pick up our wine. I hope Canelo Hills is the first of many local 100% Arizona wines to be featured at COSTCO's in the state. (AFGO is a counseling term I learned from Joan - Another (insert favorite F word) Growth Opportunity). Oh yeah, Kathryn designed the poster and the little attached fly-sign says "Meet the Winemaker, March 19 & 20, 11am - 4pm".

COSTO - March 19 & 20

Canelo Hills Vineyard and Winery will be featured at COSTCO this Friday and Saturday. COSTCO has a wine program that periodically features local small production wineries as a way to interest their customers and highlight local products. "A Road Show" is what they call it. Shannon Reed from COSTCO wholesale in San Diego had done her homework by searching web sites, commented on the quality of ours (Thank you Kathryn) and was especially drawn to our mission to make wine from 100% Arizona grown grapes. Off I sent some wine samples and the wine tasters/buyers settled on the 2008 Chardonnay and 2008 Sunrise. This coming Friday and Saturday, March 19 and 20, I will be at the COSTCO in Tucson on Grant Avenue, talking about my wines to the wine crowd who will hopefully take some home. I think these two wines are especially good with Spring meals and Easter dinner in particular. If you are a member come on down between 11-4, say hi, and pick up some Canelo Hills Wine.

Cottonwood Arizona

Besides being the geographic hub of the Northern Arizona wine scene (I suppose Sedona is the cosmic hub), Cottonwood is a very funky, mostly run down mining and commercial town that has the authentic character of old Arizona. It hasn't exploded yet with California money and now that there isn't much of that around, hopefully it never will. Still the locals are loyally proud of the downtown and they have every right to their pride. Joan and I trekked up there to deliver some wines to Pinon Bistro (1075 Highway 260, 928.649.0234) and met Donna Fulton and Terri Clements. They introduced themselves as refugees from the Connecticut business world and they have a good thing going at their restaurant. It is small, as in seven tables. Terri does all the cooking and Donna runs the front. The place fills up each night, mostly with locals and does not rely on much more than word of mouth - for example no web site. The cuisine is inventive and local, with French country inn style attention to ingredients, preparation and presentation. An added plus is a nice selection of Arizona wines. Yowzer, gotta go back. If you are interested in their 10th Annual Valentines Day Special Celebration and want to see what they pared with our Malvasia Passito and Yummy Zin, give them a call.