Palmaz Wins Gold at the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards

THE HONOR OF BEING nominated for the IBPA Benjamin Franklin award was enough to send us into a state of bliss.  Christian and Florencia travelled to Salt Lake City on Friday to attend the 28th Annual Benjamin Franklin Awards knowing they were amongst the finest. The IBPA, or Independent Book Publishers Association, along with almost 200 book publishing professionals varying from publishers to bookstore owners, administer the Benjamin Franklin Awards.

NASA CONTROL ROOM OR NAPA WINERY?

THE MERCURY NEWS | BY Mary Orlin | Article Link

TO THE NAKED EYE, this 1,877-foot mountain along Napa Valley’s eastern edge seems like any other. But deep in the belly of Mt. George, there’s a five-level, high-tech winery, with a sophisticated computer system and display that rivals NASA’s Mission Control Center.

A Shared Table

trinity magazine winter 2016 | BY carlos anchondo | Full Issue (page 50)

FOR ALMOST NINE DECADES, the Henry Hagen House in Napa, Calif., lay in a state of neglect. Nestled at the foot of Mt. George, the old Victorian manor sat abandoned, presiding over an equally forsaken estate where the old Cedar Knoll Vineyard once operated. Turn-of-the-century farming equipment rusted away, lifeless in the middle of a field of vines. A time capsule of the Great American West, the estate’s future seemed bleak–until the Palmaz family discovered and unearthed its beauty.

SHIVANI VORA, a travel and lifestyle writer who is a regular contributor to the New York Times, included Palmaz Vineyards and winery’s tour and tasting in her most recent biweekly column, “Today’s Travel Hotel and Tour News.” Vora has also written for publications including the Wall Street Journal, National Geographic Traveler, T Magazine, Condé Nast Traveler and Departures.

In late January, Palmaz Vineyards had the distinct pleasure of participating in this year’s Naples Winter Wine Festival and auction — a gala event in Naples, Florida, that raised more than $11 million for children in need.

CERTAIN PLANTS HAVE PARTICULAR TALENTS THAT ADDRESS A VINEYARD’S NEEDS. Generally speaking, a single vineyard can support anywhere from three to six different seeds mixed between the rows, depending on that location’s needs. Here are a few of the more interesting characters we sow, and the talents they possess:

Next week, the tasting-room table will welcome a new addition: spittoons in the form of charming, quirky tumblers that will make you giggle when you hold one. Last year I had the pleasure to make the acquaintance of Justin Parr, a talented glass artist out of San Antonio, Texas. While enjoying a glass of wine at his studio, I fell in love with the small free-form tumbler he had casually handed me. Not long after, we began developing a line of colored glass containers to use as spittoons in the tasting room.

I ONCE HEARD A COMEDIAN SUGGEST that the perfect thing to say to sound like an expert while swirling a glass of wine is “The rains were good that year.…” It got a laugh from everyone in the club that night, but what makes me laugh is the idea that the rains are ever simply considered “good” in any year. In 2013, for instance, there wasn’t enough rain. The 2010 rains were poorly timed. Now, in the winter of 2015-’16, erosion is a concern. Good or bad, we don’t just roll over in the mud and throw our hands up. The committed winemaker plants seeds in the mud — and prays for good weather.

This Might Be the Most High-Tech Winery Ever

AFAR – the wayfarer 1.7.16 | BY larissa zimberoff | ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Despite its proximity to Silicon Valley, Napa Valley wineries are shockingly lacking in tech development. Not so for this one.

THIS VINEYARD USES SUBMARINE TECHNOLOGY TO FERMENT ITS WINE

Food and wine 1.15.16 | BY MIKE POMRANZ | PHOTO BY NICOLA MAJOCCHI | ORIGINAL ARTICLE

DESPITE THE IMPORTANCE of terroir and technique, at its core, winemaking is a relatively simple process. Take the juice of grapes and let it sit until it ferments. In its most basic form, alcohol production can involve doing nothing at all (I know all the people who spend their lives making spontaneously fermented beverages will probably quibble with the notion that they don’t do anything, which is not the point—I’m just saying you can get booze by letting nature do a lot of the heavy lifting). But if you want to make good wine, that’s when more advanced methods come into play, and though some winemakers stand by traditional methods, others constantly look for the latest technology to make each vintage perfect.