Yes, it’s time once again for Gary Zucca’s Valentine presentation of Port and dessert wine pairings with chocolates and sweet treats at the February 9 Wines of the World event at Murphys Historic Hotel from 5:30 to 7 p.m. You are invited to start Valentine’s Day celebrations early as Gary takes you through the wonderful world of things that are sweet.

His fifth consecutive year for providing Sweets for your Sweet for CWA, Zucca will begin the evening with salty cheeses that go really well with dessert wine. “We’ll be pairing white, milk, semi-sweet and bittersweet chocolates with a number of local dessert wines and Ports,” he explained. “Everyone knows that chocolate and Port go really well together, but there is so much more you can do with sweet pairings.”

Carrie Nelson, CWA administrator adds, “Life is too short to eat dessert last. We invite folks to treat that someone special to an early Valentine event, eat dessert first, and end the evening with dinner at the hotel with a $5 discount off each entrée.”

Wines of the World is an integral part of CWA’s educational program. Attendance is open to the public with no reservations required.

Cost is $15 for CWA members and $25 for non-members. For more information, call 728-9467.

How saweeeeeeet it is!                 -Jan Hovey, CWA Blogger

It’s time to get out your new 2012 calendar and pen in Feb. 18 and 19 for CWA’s 16^th annual Presidents’ Wine Weekend, taking place at all member wineries from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Two full days of special tastings, signature cuisine and super discounts for just $10 per person, and it includes a commemorative wine glass!

We’re talking Hatcher’s infamous pulled pork sandwiches with house-made coleslaw, Stevenot Tasting Room’s  local home-made sausages on sourdough French bread along with assorted appetizers and cheese platter, all-American fare at Chatom Vineyards, Milliaire Winery’s savory meatballs, tapenades and chocolates, and home-made brownies at Broll Mountain Vineyards.

Keep checking back for more updates!

Cheers, Jan Hovey, CWA Blogger

Join the renowned wine expert (and most congenial host) Tom Bender on
January 12 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Murphys Historic Hotel where you'll be
transported to the many historic regions of Italy. From Lombardy, Veneto and
Piedmont in the north, to Puglia, Campania and Sicily in the south, this
will be a whirl-wind tour of Italy's wines. "We'll discuss stylistic changes
along with Italy's new and complicated wine labeling laws," said Tom.
This is a great opportunity to expand your wine knowledge, and it's a very
interactive and fun experience. Tom is a wine instructor with the Columbia
College Culinary Program, Winey Buyer and Tasting Room Manager of O'Brien's
Market in Modesto, and wine columnist for several regional publications and
newspapers. And he's a really great guy to boot.
Cost for the event, which includes light appetizers, is $15 for CWA members
and $25 for non-members. Anyone can attend and there's no need for
reservations! Easy schmeezy. Guests are also welcomed to dine in the hotel
afterward with a $5 discount on each entrée.
Ciao Baybeee, Jan Hovey, CWA Blogger

December Wines of the World featured the effervescent Steve Collum pouring
all sorts of Italian and French sparkling wines at the Murphys Historic
Hotel. It was hard work tasting and grading eight "not to blow your mind
wines, just fun wines," but somehow we all "managed" to get through it with
Steve's expertise and signature sense of humor. Just a few of Steve's
quotes:
"Pour the first big. I sound better when people drink."
"I'm here to butcher two languages: Italian and French."
While reading notes, "Damn that font size."
"You ain't nobody unless you're sitting by a paisan in Venice."
We discovered that the bubbles in a champagne glass actually come from
imperfections made in the bottom of the glass. Who knew? Steve did and now
we do. And the bubbles "implode instead of explode." We also learned there
are 49,000 bubbles estimated in a bottle of champagne. Who counted that and
where did they find the time?
Steve then poured a sparkling wine that still had the lees (yeast) plug in
the neck of the bottle (last photo). Steve asked guests to identify the
origin of the wine. Italy? France? No - Calaveras County - a joint venture
between Newsome-Harlow and Hatcher.
The staggering list of Calaveras creations continue to grow!
Cheers! -Jan Hovey, CWA Blogger

Guests of CWA's Dec. 3 Festival of Wines were treated to signature culinary
delights, festive holiday decorations, samplings of Calaveras' finest wines
and fantastic discounts. Tailing on the success of the Murphys Open House
the evening before, Festival-goers came a little later this year, but it
wasn't long before tasting rooms were packed and cases of wine were flying
out the door.
Happy, Happy Holidays from CWA!

Here are some added attractions to take place during CWA’s Festival of Wines Saturday, Dec. 3:

Milliaire – hot mulled wine, port meatballs (yum) and chocolate samples paired with great prices on wine and a nice selection of affordable library wines.

Allegorie – Viognier onion soup with croutons (can’t wait)

Val du Vino – Smoked turkey pastrami sliders with chocolate delights, and buy three bottles and the fourth is free!

Also, Frog’s Tooth will be open that evening so the party continues!

Party on…

Great news! This year’s Grape Stomp’s silent and live auctions brought in approximately $18,000 which will go back into the community in the form of donations to community organizations and four high school scholarships.

BUT... the paper showing all the bids on the Bear Valley Winter Getaway package was removed before the auction ended. As a result CWA is seeking the top bidders on the package or asking for new bidders to contact the office by Nov. 4.

The extensive getaway includes four lift tickets to Bear Valley Mountain Resort, two snowmobile rentals from Bear Valley Snowmobile, two nights lodging at Bear Valley Lodge (Thursday and Friday), two snow cat seats on a scheduled Saturday trip, a $25 gift certificate to Headwaters Café, and cross country or snowshoe rental and trail passes for two at Bear Valley Cross Country. The value of the package is $1,000 and minimum bid is $400.

Interested? Call Carrie at 728-9467.