We're getting ready for the Central Coast's first major storm of the winter season, which we expect to dump 2-3 inches of rain onto the vineyard on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. The cover crop has sprouted, and the hillsides are greening up by the day.
So far for the winter, we have received about 4 inches of rain, as usual about double what the town of Paso Robles has received just 10 miles east of us.
The last vineyard event of the year is typically our olive harvest. The mission olive trees that line our vineyard roads were planted primarily as decoration, but they produce olives that are good both for oil production and for curing and eating. We plan to do both this year.
Right now, it looks like we'll have about 1500 pounds of olive fruit... enough for about 60 gallons of oil.
We are thrilled that the 2003 Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc, our signature white Rhone blend, has been named #11 on the Wine Enthusiast's top 100 wines of 2005. The complete text:
"A fabulous white Rhône blend of enormous complexity and charm. Fills the mouth with butterscotch, Crème brûlée, pineapple, mineral, vanilla, impossibly ripe white peach and hazelnut flavors, and, as sweet as that sounds, the wine is dry and crisp. The greatest Esprit Blanc ever. Roussanne, Grenache Blanc and Viognier. 95 points.”
This is the second time the Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc has received such an honor; the 2001 Esprit Blanc was in the top 100 wines of the year in both the Wine Enthusiast and Wine & Spirits.
Winter in Paso Robles provides some of the most spectacular sunsets you'll see anywhere. Here's one from last night, looking west from the winery toward the Santa Lucia Mountains.
In early November, the troupe of Haases rented a house in Vaison la Romaine, in the Southern Rhone about 30 minutes north-east of Avignon and 20 minutes south of Nyons.
While there, we had the chance to introduce Eli (the newest Haas) to Beaucastel, including (of course) the famous galets that line the surface, and the largest bottle of Beaucastel any of us had ever seen.