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The Latest
I always think there is a slow time of the year even in the midst of wintertime. Not so! For Pruning demonstration videos, click here.
Released! We have a new kid on the block: 2007 Ridge Ranch Syrah. We call it the wine with "altitude" because it comes from a family owned vineyard way up near Geyser Peak, overlooking Alexander Valley. When I say "way up" I refer to the 1800 feet of altitude the vineyard is planted at-you can see three valleys and three towns from there. John and Christine own the land, daughter Maureen and husband Brett Davison farm the 2-acre vineyard planted in 2003. We think it is delicious, rich, with concentrated flavor. PS: If you know Richard, then you know Ridge Ranch.
See our recipes for ideas of what to fix with this delicious Syrah.
In other judgings, our 2008 F. Johnson Vineyard Chardonnay took a Gold Medal from the Sommelier’s Challenge, our 2006 Petite Sirah picked up 88 points and Highly Recommended from Beverage
Check out all our awards here:
Do you love Petite Sirah? Have we got an event for you: Dark & Delicious sponsored by the folks at PS: I Love You a group dedicated to promoting Petite Sirah (if you couldn't tell by the initials PS). Jon Brown will be pouring our current release, we'll have a selection of PS to bid on at their auction and the piece d'resistance: Chef Brian Anderson of Bistro 29 will also be there side-by-side with Jon serving up some French bistro deliciousness. Click the link for the ticket information and join us: The first two weekends of March are traditionally set aside for the annual Russian River Wine Road Barrel Tasting. Join us for a fun and informative tasting in our barrel room. We'll be pouring our current release of 2006 Sangiovese side by side with our still-in-the-barrel 2008 Sangiovese. We call it Barrel vs Bottled: the Sangiovese Challenge. For ticket information for this great event click the photo: 
The Family – Three Generations~
The Archives: Giovanni's Corner Artifacts are easy to come by at Pedroncelli since we have been here for 82 years. When I was growing up in our home, which is now our offices, we found a number of things to play with or at least be curious about that my grandfather had accrued over the years. One of my favorite photos in our collection is a candid shot of my grandfather hosting some guests in the old, old tasting room—which was originally a corner of the bottling room in our cellar. He had carved out some precious space and put up shelves to carry the products he was so proud of and loved to pour. Even our friends.red is a tip of the hat to those days when he would take a bottle into the cellar and bring back “Giovanni’s Blend” in a gallon jug. We are proud to say we operated the first Tasting Room in Dry Creek Valley! Enjoy this look into our past and raise a glass to my grandfather’s memory. Click here for images of our history.
The Menu We all crave comfort food during the cold weather so this month rice dishes are my theme. They make great sides for chicken, beef or pork or can be a meal in themselves. Here are a couple of our favorites:
Mexican Rice My standard Mexican rice starts off by blending a 15-ounce can of tomatoes (I like the Muir Glen roasted tomatoes best) with 1/2 small onion and 2 cloves of garlic. In a small saucepan, I heat up 1 3/4 cups chicken broth just until it steams. While the broth is heating, I heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil or lard in a 3-quart saucepan with a tight-fitting lid; when hot, I add 1 1/2 cups rice and cook over medium heat, stirring, until the rice turns milky-looking and begins to brown. Then I add the tomato mixture and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring. Then I stir in the broth, cover, and cook over low for 15 to 20 minutes, until the grains are cooked through. If the rice isn't going to be served right away, I suggest scooping it out of the pot onto a baking sheet and letting it cool completely; reheat it in a steamer. I like to mix cooked carrots and peas into this rice, too.
Risotto Plain and Simple
1 cup Arborio rice Bring chicken stock to a simmer in a separate saucepan. In a heavy wide-bottom pan on medium heat add butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Once melted, add onion, sauté until soft, add rice and garlic, sauté until rice is slightly golden. Add Chardonnay and stir until absorbed. Add ½ cup of stock stirring constantly until absorbed (the heat should be adjusted to medium low once stock has been added). Continue adding stock as above until rice is tender and creamy (approximately 25 minutes-you may or may not use all of the stock but most of it will be absorbed). Once risotto is done, remove from heat and add Parmegiano cheese. Serve immediately. Pair with Pedroncelli Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc.
If you are planning to be in Sonoma County, please let us know and join us for one of our events! Click here to go to our events page
Need graphics, images, labels or bottle shots for an ad? Check out our Trade Media link. You'll find fact sheets for current and past releases, labels and logos. click the image above. Want cool wallpaper? Check out our photo galleries.
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The 2008 reds are being emptied out of the barrels, John and crew are putting the finishing touches on any blends, we’re tasting through the wines as they come to the office for “taste analysis and approval” (oh it is a hard life but someone has to do it) and we bottle the fruits of our labor. The clink-clink-clink of the bottles as they file onto the bottling line is music to our ears. Soon, the 2009 whites will begin their transfer from tank or barrel into bottle and, meanwhile, the red wines from the last harvest are resting quietly in barrel, American or French, dreaming little wine dreams of pairing with pastas (that’d be Mother Clone Zinfandel), pizza (friends.red!) or roast beef (Merlot’s got that covered).
All Things Red
While helping out with Winter Wineland a couple of weeks ago, I was struck by the fact that behind the tasting room bar stood three generations of Pedroncellis’: My mom Phyllis, me and my nephew Steve. When I looked around the tasting room at other Pedroncelli staffers, I saw my dad Jim, uncle John, cousin Richard, my brother-in-law Jon, sister Joanna (yes even the invisible one was there) and nephew Mitch. I guess it takes a lot of Pedroncellis to make one of these events successful. The greatest thing is that we all have our own way of talking about our wines. We have our individual experience we bring to the conversation just like you do when you sit down to enjoy a glass of wine. It makes those boundaries seem less defined when we know we are all working on the same thing and toward the same goal: enjoy life, enjoy it simply, take it all in with a glass of Pedroncelli. The next time you are in our tasting room, check the credentials of the person you are talking to—it just might be a second, third or fourth generation member!
Pedroncelli Winery*1220 Canyon Road*Geyserville*CA*95441*800-836-3894
service@pedroncelli.com * faceook.com/pedroncelli