December
2005
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
 Paulette
and I would like to wish you all a wonderful Christmas and
festive, but safe New Year’s! We have much to be thankful
for this year, especially our wonderful customers like you.
We look forward to sharing our wines and cottage with you
in 2006!
Now, speaking of Christmas, it is not too
late to buy your friends and family members a piece of wine
country! Adopt-a-Vine for your loved ones by December 19th
and we’ll make sure they receive an adoption certificate
by Christmas. Can you think of a better gift than a loved
one having a piece of the gorgeous Napa Valley Wine Country?
Harvest For the Ages
If you’re a true wine aficionado, then you have already
heard reports from Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast,
or even your local newspaper, on the spectacular harvest
we experienced this fall in California! But, just as wide
and diverse as California’s wine regions are from
one another, so are the harvests for each winery.
For us, this has been a harvest to remember.
As you may recall, we experienced our normal share of rain
in the winter months. This rain even continued into May
and June, quite different than our average rain fall each
year. But when the rain subdued, some high temperatures
emerged, followed by more moderate temperatures in the late
summer and early fall months. All of this combined led to
longer hang time and larger fruit.
Our first Cabernet Sauvignon fruit from
our estate Fleur de Vigne Vineyard came into our cellar
on October 2, from Block Number 1. It wasn’t long
before we realized that we were approaching the biggest
harvest of all time for St. Helena Winery! Our final grapes
came in from Block Number 4 on October 23rd, capping the
most tonnage we’ve brought in at around 24 tons. This
is double our typical tonnage total for most years, which
have averaged around 12 tons.
With this abundance of fruit came the reality
that we needed more barrels. We quickly contacted our barrel
suppliers and brought in an additional 40 barrels. This
increased our barrel total from about 40 barrels to 80.
(We’re still amazed that they fit comfortable in our
small boutique winery!)
And, as you might suspect -a larger tonnage
means more wine. We’re anticipating a total of about
1600 cases of wine for the 2005 vintage. These wines will
be a combination of Sympa and Scandale plus two new
family member additions. We’ll keep you updated as
to the progress of our son Kristian, and daughter Kimberly,
entering the business with their own wine projects.
Peter and Paulette Story
peter@sthelenawinery.com
www.sthelenawinery.com
1-877-245-6006 (toll free)
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We’re Almost
Sold Out!
Once again, our wines are almost gone. Our 2003 Scandale
is now sold out and we’re a matter of days away from
selling out of our 2003 Sympa, too! These wines were scheduled
to be released in March 2006, but our loyal customers insisted
on buying them as soon as they were bottled backing July.
This will be the fourth consecutive
year that we’ve sold out before their release to the
general public! Click here to place your 2003 Sympa order
today before it’s too late.
New Retailers Announced!
We’re excited to have the addition of three new retailers
now selling our wines. They are:
Florida Wine Club
1525 4th Street, Suite A
Sarasota, Florida 34236
Veritas Distributors, Inc.
32185 Hollingsworth
Warren, Michigan 48092
Duke of Bourbon
20908 Rosco Blvd.
Canoga Park, California 91304
Website Updates
We’ve made improvements and updates this past month
to our website. We hope they will be helpful when you’re
ordering wine, making a reservation to stay at our vineyard
guest cottage, or just trying to learn more about our winery
here in beautiful wine country! Please let us know what
you think!
Paulette’s Kitchen
As you may recall, Paulette studied this past spring at
the famous at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, France. We wanted
to share with you another wonderfully delicious dish she’s
created (with the guidance of the Chef Thivet).
MAGRET
DE CANARD SAUTE, POMMES ANNA ET CHAMPIGNONS
Sautéed duck breast, Anna potatoes and Mushrooms
Click
here to view the recipe.
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