El Bloggo Torcido - Twisted Oak Winery

The Mighty T

Back again with an update of the Wine on the River trip down the Tuolumne. It was a private group that booked in advance and asked for a winery! So, there we were, on the river with a rowdy group of 40-somethings and 2 gallons of Mai tai. We had a very peaceful evening.......Sike!!
It was great fun. While the OARS crew cooked fillet; I split the group in two ~ right down the gender line! Males vs. females. The blending seminar had begun! Gave them a task of re-creating our Rhone Blend (*%#&@!)
They had to use the same three varietals of Mourvedre, Syrah and Grenache to make even more potty mouth wines! Among the blending activities, the task of creating a name and label for each concoction had to be completed in 20 minutes!
The outcome is not of PG content to share with all of you on the world wide web. However, if you are at the winery and would like to see some of the bottles that have been created over the last few years, just ask! You should also be incredibly twisted in thought, word and deed!
I leave you with a few pictures of the crew, the guest, Gilligan and the Skipper!
Ciao ~ Harlot

Above are four out of six guides (left to right) JD, Craig, Steve and John. Not pictured are
Ely and Roberto. I think they were swimming.

What's really going on?? That's Ted there, he's the Mai tai-group leader. Cool cat. Chiropractor. Modesto.

Here be the homey little beach we camped on. Right is the group of ladies brain storming and left is the group of men.....eating!

The clients and the Harlot!
Peace ~

Reno 411

Spent the middle of this week bopping around Reno with our local rep, the lovely Gabri. I apologize for no pictures - the camera got separated from me and it was more important to stay focused on the job. You know.

Anyway, I wanted to highlight a couple of the many fine joints for whom we poured Twisted Oak, all of whom are either bringing in our Damn Yummy hooch, or already have it and are bringing in more! Along the way, I made a couple of amazing discoveries that I suggest you take advantage of if you live around (or plan to visit) the greater Reno-Sparks area!

Here goes:

Rapscallion Seafood House and Bar (877-932-3700) in Reno is bringing in our 2005 Petite Sirah. I'm told that this is the best seafood place in town - and I'm thinking the PS will pair nicely with the Swordfish and the Monkfish.

At the Ben's Fine Wine and Spirits (775-337-2367) in Sparks, I was amazed to find 5 bottles of the 2004 Spaniard on the shelf. Apparently this is a new store and no one knows it is there yet, and it was stocked by drawing from their other locations. So if you are Jonesing for some Spaniard (2004 yet!) you may want to get over there!

Also with The Spaniard in stock (2005 in this case) is Fine Vines (775-787-6300) in Reno. If I recall correctly, Tom also stocks Tempranillo and the %@#$! White Rhone Blend (at least). And don't miss the chance to sample some of his excellent cheeses.

Matt over at The Cellar Wine Co. in Sparks has four Twisted Oak wines in stock (%@#$! White Rhone, Tempranillo, *%#&@! Red Rhone, and Calaveras Syrah), and is planning to bring in two more!

Vino 100 (775-851-8466) in Reno is considering bringing on the 2005 Petite Sirah. Please feel free to stop by and put in a good word! Also, the PF Chang's in Reno (775-825-9800) is looking at putting the 2006 Verdelho and the 2005 Petite Sirah on the list. (We've had a lot of fun pouring next to the Chang's bunch at tasting events in the Reno area.)

Please support these Twisted merchants in the Reno area!

B.O & T.O. ~ Together at last!

Games. People. Play. Wine!

That's Black Oak Casino in Tuolumne County. Located south east of Sonora on Tuolumne Road.
Seven Sisters  restaurant located on the top floor is a fine dining experience to be had! So we are proud to announce the first ever Twisted Seven Sisters Oak Winemaker Dinner!! (or something along those lines )
I had a meeting with one of the Sous chefs Bret Thomas and restaurant manager Kathy Ann on Friday. While tasting through the wines we'll be serving, they were throwing out delicious ideas of pairings. I heard something about tournados and medallions. All I know is that the menu will  be something spectacular. Five courses paired with the following wines:
2006 Verdelho
2006 Calaveras Viognier
2006 Calaveras Torcido
2005 Tanner Vineyard Syrah
2005 Pig Stai Pour't ~ special pre-release cameo!

Here are some particulars:

Thursday Night ~ June 12th, 2008
Seven Sisters Restaurant @ Black Oak Casino
(see website for driving directions, or directions by space craft.)
Appetizers at 6:30pm
Dinner seating at 7:00 pm

$85.00 per person ~ all inclusive
LIMITED space available ~ MUST make reservations by calling 209-928-9363!!

  See ya there! Harlot ~ Out
 

Wet Harlot!

You know that chaffing feeling you get from a wetsuit...................
( If not, you need to get out more! ) I can't wait to get that again!!
That's right, the Harlot, along with friend & roommate Stewart, is going down the river. The Tuolumne River to be exact! Leaving tomorrow morning, returning Wednesday night. The trip has booked @ 20 people.
Twisted Oak is pairing with O.A.R.S. once again to float the mighty "T" for a wine lover's trip. There will be no gourmet chef aboard this fun ship! No, No! Only fine wine and fine people. So put your big girl/boy pants on and let's hop in that cold *#$@% river together!

To elaborate a bit more, I recently took part in a River Guide School a.k.a "Whitewater Boot Camp" through fantastic Outdoor Adventure River Specialist. This school started in Coloma, Ca. where we rafted the American River for two days. From there we made our way to the fabulous Merced River just outside Yosemite National Park. After spending two days on the Merced,we were off to the mighty Tuolumne. What a sight!! If you have never rafted with this company to see some of the most spectacular rivers in northern California, I suggest you get on the horn right away! Or just follow a link. Continuing on, we made our way back to Coloma State Park  for two more days on the lovely American River. Seven days in a wet suit, on a river, rowing, paddling, getting to know some wonderful and strange people, I could not have asked for a better experience.  All the while sporting Teva Sandals
compliments of the Shoe Maker itself! We enjoyed the company and knowledge of the outdoors with two reps from Teva; Chris Hillyer and his colleague Ken Shao. They were a wonderful part of our week in the rivers, helping us learn about Teva and their mission to create the finest & most functional shoes for the outdoor/water lover.  I will now share a few pictures with all of you, enjoy!
Peace ~ Harlot


Above is an example of river "surfing", that's Craig Schlicht captaining a boat of guide hopefuls. Below, observe the act of surfing.
   

Wine Blogging Wednesday: "Riesling"

We've participated in "WBW" a couple times, but always with Twisted Oak wines somehow featured. This time, I'm tasting something that has absolutely nothing to do with Twisted Oak!

Was rummaging around in the bottom of the home wine storage (a converted laundry room cabinet - really!) the other day and found this interest looking German wine there. I vaguely recall buying this years ago on a trip to Solvang for some Santa Ynez Valley wine tasting. It's hazy, but I vaguely recall I had been reading about German wines and plucked this from the shelf of the small wine shoppe under the windmill.

So, I thought I saw Riesling on the label but closer inspection reveals it to be "Rieslaner", which I found out is a cross between Riesling and Sylvaner. I've had Sylvaner made by Rancho Sisquoc Winery down in Santa Ynez, but I've never had the combo before. Anyway, it's not Riesling, but it is halfway there, so I'm going with it.

Was happy to see that the cork was in excellent condition with a nice sparkly coat of Tartrate crystals on the base. The color is a pretty sort of orange-rust color, indicating perhaps a little oxidation, though in tasting I really didn't detect any.

The nose is very big, with orange blossoms and allspice leading the way. I also picked up a slight smell of something like botrytis, the fungus that makes Sauternes taste so yummy.

I'm pleased to report that this 9.5% alcohol wine has held up to my imperfect storage! The grape is apparently known for its acidity and this wine did not disappoint. The flavors ranged from orange to lychee, sweet but not at all cloying. In fact, it was so acidic that for a moment I feared it had gone over, but that was not the case.

This wine paired quite well with the rice crispy treats my lovely wife made last night. Deal with it.

Thanks to Tim over at Winecast for making me "open that bottle" and enjoy a delicious wine! (And look for El Bloggo Torcido to sponsor its own WBW later this year or early next year, Bwa Ha Ha!)

(Until I can get my camera and the bottle in the same room, you'll have to wait for a bottle photo - check back later!)

That's Like... 10 in Blog Years!

Two years ago today El Bloggo Torcido began with the obligatory welcome message, which I called the Obligatory Welcome Message. In that first month we had a report from Hospice du Rhone in Paso Robles, a whole bunch of admin crap, a video by Pimp Daddy, and a rip on the silly rules that keep me from calling a Port a Port. (Hey, but with a name like Pig Stai you know it has to be good!)

Since then we've had contests, mayhem, and most importantly - people sending in pictures showing us their Twisted! (The rate of pictures has fallen off lately - send me stuff!)

I just want to thank everybody for coming along for this amazing ride!

(photo by Christine Molinaro - thanks!)

And now... The Scores!

I'm pleased to report that we have a winner in the Score Whore Contest! But first, the geek in me wants to analyze the guesses...

First, thanks for the great response! You kept me busy keeping track of your entries. Most of you (72%!) correctly surmised that The Spaniard would receive the highest score, so it became a matter of correctly assigning 5 scores. I found it interesting that only 3 of you correctly guessed that the 2005 *%#&@! made "just" 87 points - the average guess was over 89 points!

Oh yeah, the winner... While we didn't have anyone make a perfect guess, Mike from NY got about as close as he could have. Here are the actual scores:

1. 2006 Calaveras County Viognier 88 points
2. 2006 Sierra Foothills %@#$! (White Rhone Blend) 90 points
3. 2005 Calaveras County *%#&@! (Red Rhone Blend) 87 points
4. 2005 Calaveras County Tempranillo 90 points
5. 2005 Calaveras County The Spaniard 92 points
6. 2004 Calaveras County Syrah 88 points

These results (we are told) are to be published in the July issue of Wine Enthusiast magazine. (And by the way, last night we learned that our 2005 Tempranillo also earned a Gold Medal at the 2008 Riverside International Wine Competition! w00t!)

Here Come De Judge...

Yesterday I got roped into being a judge for the home winemaker competition at the Calaveras County Fair (and Jumping Frog Jubilee). Twelve judges convened yesterday afternoon at the Frogeteria (I'm not making that up) in Frogtown (the fairgrounds, and I'm not making that up either!)

Our panel of judges consisted of a local grower, a cellar rat, a candidate for County Supervisor, and myself. We judged a flight of assorted blends, a flight of Syrah, and a flight of Cab. We gave out two Golds and a handful of Silvers and Bronzes. The rest of the wines, um, needed some work - but most were quite survivable. Only a few were of a quality that could cause great consternation at a family gathering....

In general, any flaws consisted of too much oak, picking too ripe, and not finishing fermentation (some residual sugar or even fermentation in the bottle.) However, many of the wines were quite clean and delicious!

(In case you were wondering, I did not run afoul of a recent California ABC ruling regarding home winemaking competitions. I tasted, but did not consume! Thanks to the local Ace Hardware for the excellent spit buckets! For some wines, I really needed it......)

We also judged the Best of Show Red, a 2006 Stone Mountain "Road Rash Red", a Cab/Merlot blend (and only 12% alcohol?!?) That's a picture of it above right. Overall I have to say I went from slight dread to really enjoying the experience and am actually ready to do it again next year! I have a few more photos for you, but first...

UPDATE: Still no winner! (But I do have one entry that is as close to perfect as you can get without being dead on - and that person will win if I don't get a perfect guess.) Enter the Score Whore Contest! I'm ending it tomorrow!

First, some of my fellow judges...

The wine....

And the actual judging...

Don't Be a Scurvy Dog! Arrrr!

Our Twisted Friends Ol' Chumbucket and Cap'n Slappy over at talklikeapirate.com want to remind everyone that today, May 2nd, is International Scurvy Awareness Day.

We'd like to be able to say that a glass of wine has all the vitamin C you need to prevent scurvy, but it taint so (though the are working on it!) You'll have to go suck a lime or melon instead.

And: Don't forget to make your reservations for A M*ther of a Twisted Dinner!

Update: Still no winner in the Score Whore Contest! If there is no clear winner by Sunday we'll have to award it to the closest guess - so enter now if you haven't already!

I Say Mother and You Say Mutha...

...or Mom or Mommie or Ethel or whatever. Call her what you want. The point being that hallmark of Spring, Mother's Day, is just around the corner - and being who we are, we've decided to have some fun with it.

So why not join us for A M*ther of a Twisted Dinner to be held on Saturday, May 10 in the garden at our Murphys Tasting Room? We're serving all sorts of yummy Mom food, like meatloaf, mac-n-cheese, even jello salad and something on a ritz cracker! You have to know that the food will be delicious and taken up a Twisted notch or three - and the wine pairings will be a-rockin' too!

Visit our web site for details, or just call 209-736-9080 and make your reservation now!

PS: Still no correct answer on the Score Whore Contest. Some pretty close, but no cigar - keep trying!