Come for the Private Events: Stay for the Conference
The Wine Bloggers Conference was awesome, but it’s hard for 300 plus people to have the kind of conversations that lead to the stories that I love to tell. Ironically, of the 39 pages of notes that I took during my time in Santa Barbara, only 12 of them came from my time at #wbc14. I had the same trend with my photos as well.
There were many highlights from #wbc14 including being able to catch up with many dear friends. For $95, this is the deal of the century. I think that there are a lot of bloggers like me that would pay more for some of the intimate experiences we were able to have by going off the beaten path.
Our keynote at #wbc was Corbett Barr of Fizzle, a site that helps people make their thing online (their words, not mine). Corbett had spot on advice for many of us who work to balance the content of our blog with what our readers find valuable. He had six tenants that he outlined. They were all basic, but a good reminder:
- Character trumps credentials. You guys know that all I try to do is tell my story of wine. I have never claimed to be an expert or the right credentials.
- Differentiate – does the world really need another wine review site? While I review the wines that I sample and enjoy, I don’t think you guys really want a Dallas Wine Chick rating of these wines.
- What if you work hard, but don’t get results? Then you need to re-evaluate what you are doing, get out of your comfort zone and solicit feedback. Kind of like what you should do when you find yourself in this situation in your life.
- What is my content is good, but no one is reading? Hope is not a marketing strategy, he said (love this). I remember in the early days of starting my blog, I felt like the only folks reading were related to me. But, I kept plugging and you guys came (thank you).
- Your blog is not a business. The goal of Dallas Wine Chick is not to make money, but to fuel my passion for wine. Check.
- 1+1=3. Meaning that you are the average of the people you spend time with – get engaged, make friends with other bloggers, brainstorm with them. Engage in a Mastermind 101 session where you talk about ideas, consort on great subjects and share your experiences. I have the QBP (queen bitches posse) that have done this informally for some time now. And, I loved my column with @NormalWine about the World Cup. More to come there.
This was followed by a panel of winemakers from Santa Barbara County moderated by one of my favorite winemakers, Larry Schaffer from Tercero Wines. The presentation wasn’t working so I have to rely on my notes. We had some of the stalwarts – Ken Brown from Ken Brown Wines, Richard Sanford of Alma Rosa Winery, Bob Lindquist of Qupe and Richard Longoria of Longoria Wines. They underscored their passion about the region and how their love of the region is answered in their wines. As Ken Brown said, “the best is yet to come here. We have a commitment to make quality wines and are lucky to do it in such a beautiful and special place.”
We did the usual speed tasting, which is something you either love or hate. I love getting to try wines that I would never be exposed to, but I truly wish we could strike Box (Bandit) and supermarket wine from the line-up. But, hanging with Larry from Tercero, I did laugh through the entire question session. For the whites, my favorites included the 2012 Consilence Viognier, 2012 Jordan Chardonnay, 2013 Buttonwood Zingy Sauvignon Blanc and the 2013 Grassini Sauvignon Blanc.The red favs included 2012 Labyrinth Pinot Noir, the 2012 Garnet Pinot Noir and the 2011 Vineyard 511 Cabernet. Delicious.
We moved to a breakout session from Winebow – When the Sum is Greater than its Parts: Wine Blends from Around the World. Sheri Sauter Morano, MW, who has taught other #wbc Winebow events, was great and underscored the importance of making sure blends only occur when the resulting wine is superior to each component. We tried seven blends that were somewhat obscure – I wish there was one that would have been easier to guess in the line-up, but I was happy to learn. I did okay guessing region, but some of the blending elements were unknown to me. We tried the following wines – the 2008 Juve Y Camps Reserva de la Familia, 2013 Tasca D’Almerita Regaleali Bianco Sicilia IGT, 2013 Weingut Wieninger Wiener Gemischter Satz, 2012 Fattoria Le Pupille Morelino di Scansano DOCG, 2011 Wine & Soul Quinta da Manoella Red, 2011 Bodega Renacer Enamore and 2010 Cousino-Macul Finis Terrae.
Then the madness began. The buses were leaving for the Santa Barbara blogger excursions. This is tough because you have large groups of friends who want to hang together, but the buses only take a certain number of people. I was lucky enough to get on a fun bus and with a great group of people. This was when I was able to observe Jeff Kralick in his native habitat – first pole dancing on the bus and then with a sabering incident. For the record, I did see him successfully saber a bottle at the Jordan afterparty.
We went to Zaca Mesa Vineyards as well as Andrew Murray Vineyards, where many of the winemakers we have gotten to know around the region poured wines that they couldn’t pour en masse. We had a bus that broke down (and was quickly replaced) by the region, great food, awesome wines and lots of laughs.
One of my favorite sessions the next day was the Ballard Canyon Grower Producer Wineries where we did a deep dive into the fabulous syrahs of the region. We started with a bevy of jokes about the misunderstood grape – what’s the difference between a case of syrah and a case of pneumonia? Much easier to get rid of pneumonia. People, wake up – these are fabulous wines.
We learned that Ballard County has “somewhereness” – meaning it has unique climate, chalk and limestone soil, great fruit and a sense of place. Patrick Comiskey from Wine & Spirits, along with a panel of eight winemakers, talked and tasted the group through the wines from Beckmen Vineyards, Larner Vineyard, Kimsey Vineyard, Jonata Wines, Harrison Clarke, Rusack and Stolpman Vineyards. Sarrloos and Sons also attended, but had sold out of its syrah. I was able to rectify getting my hands on some of their wines at an afterparty I’ll write about in the next post.
Mike Larner from Larner Vineyards talked about how there is clarity in the wines. Keith Saarloos talked about the soulfulness of syrah. They are both right – there is depth. And spice. And passion. And herbs. And flowers. And big berry flavors. And art. And just loveliness.
That theme continued with any wine that I tried from the region. I’m putting my theory to action in Dallas and trying any wine that I can find with a Santa Barbara delineation. So far, I’ve impressed my friends with a Grenache and Syrah that I ordered on a leap of faith.
