Strickland Cellars
Last year, I spent several days outdoors with my
father Chuck, helping him convert a quarter-acre of
hillside across from his house into a small
vineyard. The amount of labor I contributed pales
beside the countless hours he spent working the
land, but I'm glad I had at least a small hand in
the project. Today, row upon row of vines covers
the small hillside. Nearly two hundred fledgling
shoots peek out of the ground, waiting to spring
forth and spill out bunches of grapes in a couple
of years.
Next to the "Del Cielo Vineyard," Chuck
constructed a small winery. Inside, the building
houses a workroom complete with wine press, deep
sink and bottle corker, as well as a cozy barrel
room where the magic happens. Though it'll be a
couple of years before the first wine made with Del
Cielo grapes will see the inside of a bottle, my
father has begun learning the art of winemaking by
buying some local grapes and making his first batch
of "Strickland Cellars" wine. The first press, in
fact, took place last fall on September 11,
2002—hence the name of this vintage, 2002
"Patriots" Viognier.
Yesterday, Chuck took me over to the winery and
gave me my first sampling of the "Patriots" wine.
He boasts that viognier will be the next big grape,
eventually outshining—and possibly
outselling—chardonnay. I don't know if that'll
happen, but it does indeed make an interesting
wine. Viognier is a white grape, fruity like
chardonnay, but very dry. The "Patriots" vintage
seems like a great representative to my layman's
palate. It has a robust bouquet of apricots, and it
explodes with fruitiness on your tongue. Yet, there
is only the barest hint of sugar, the fruitiness
well balanced by a very dry (but not bitter)
finish. And it's still very young; this one will
only get better with time.
We also did a blind taste test of his other
product, the first merlot vintage of Strickland
Cellars. Fifteen gallons age in a French oak
barrel, with another seven gallons in large glass
bottles. This wine isn't ready yet, but we blindly
tested three variations of blends to pick the best
combination of barrel- and non-barrel-aged merlot.
Frankly, this wine didn't meet the same level of
quality as the "Patriots" Viognier, but it also
needs more time to "grow." I'll reserve judgment
for a later taste.
I feel pretty lucky to have a father with such
exciting hobbies. As if my family wasn't fortunate
enough to have such wonderful parents living in
such a beautiful country retreat. Now we can add to
our list of fortunes a family winery, where we can
sample great wines crafted by the hand of a great
man.
Development note: I've
noticed that this site doesn't look like it should
in Netscape Navigator. Rather than waste time
jury-rigging it to look right in a
soon-to-be-obsolete browser, I'll just add the
cliché "This site best viewed with Internet
Explorer."
©2003 Michael
Strickland ALL RIGHTS
RESERVED
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Daily Chuckle:
I made wine from raisins, so I
wouldn't have to wait for it to
age.
What is "The Daily Strick"?
I have long called
myself a writer, but too often I don't do
what a writer must do daily: write. So
you, dear reader, are the beneficiary of
my resolution to make a positive change in
at least one area of my life. Every single
day of this new year, I will write
something, anything, and post it here. It
is my intention to use this daily exercise
to jump-start my too-long-dormant creative
energies, and perhaps generate some
worthwhile material this year. Hopefully
you will find at least an occasional
amusement or insight in my daily
musings.
Today's
Column
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Previously...
2/28:
Rancho
del Cielo
2/27:
It's
the "Fast" Lane, Stupid
2/26:
Killer
TV
2/25:
Please
Bend Over
2/24:
Morning
Glory
2/23:
Peacemongering
2/22:
"Home"
in the City of Angels
2/21:
Capri
Memories
2/20:
A
Man is a God in Ruins
2/19:
No
Man is an Island
2/18:
Iraq's
"Cooperation"
2/17:
Failure
to Communicate
2/16:
Cold
City
2/15:
Man-Eaters
of Tsavo
2/14:
Valentine
Gems
2/13:
Grab
Bag
2/12:
The
End is Near
2/11:
And
the Winner Is...
2/10:
Exploration
is Risky Business
2/9:
Staphylococcus
2/8:
Morning
Cup of Kofi
2/7:
Game
Over
2/6:
The
Eagle Never Landed
2/5:
Pope:
Potter No Problem
2/4:
Time
for Another Rewrite
2/3:
A
Matter of Opinions
2/2:
Suicidal
Bravado
2/1:
Godspeed,
Columbia
Archive: JANUARY
2003
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