To prove the point, reporter Ryan Flinn took a number of California Zinfandels to an Oakland Raiders pre-game tailgate party and paired them with BBQ and other football delicacies.  Among the wines in attendance was our 2009 Rocky Ridge Zinfandel.

The outcome?

“Among the collectors, opinions were split. Ravenswood’s 2008 Teldeschi Vineyard and the Bruliam 2009 Rocky Ridge scored the highest with one, while another preferred the William Talty Vineyards 2008 Estate Zinfandel.”

As a life-long San Diego Charger fan, it pains me to see our wine being consumed out of plastic cups by grown men dressed as post-apocalyptic pirates.  But all press is good press.

You can read the whole article by clicking here.

And view the related video below (look for the Bruliam bottle shots!).  If you can’t see the video below, you can click here.

Well not quite, but in just a few short weeks we’ll be bottling our summer wines.  Yes, you read that right – wines. 

In addition to our 2010 Rockpile Zinfandel, we’ll also be bottling a very small amount of Kerith’s first Rosé, a 2011 Rosé of Pinot Noir!  This wine won’t be available for sale, but we’ll be pouring it for our Brigade members at our summer Zin release events. 

So, while you schlep through the snow and rain this week, we thought you’d like a little peak into what summer holds for you – enjoy the pic below!

The winner of the poll gets $250 for the charity of their choice!!

To vote all you need to do is: (1) click on the bullet next to the person’s name and (2) click the big VOTE button at the bottom of the poll. The poll will instantly update the tally and show you the most current results. If the system works properly, you will only be able to vote once. But, you can forward the link or this e-mail to as many people as you want to get them to vote for you.

The poll will only be open for voting until 8am on Wednesday December 7th so get voting!

If you can’t see the poll or vote properly through the e-mail, please CLICK HERE and you can vote on the website.

If you have a Bruliam t-shirt, send us a picture for a chance to win some money for your favorite charity. And if you still don’t have a t-shirt, click here and register to become part of the Bruliam Brigade.

Finally – don’t forget to share this with your friends through the Facebook and Twitter sharing options on the top of the page!

Update 1/5/2011:  After a fierce battle between Lucy and Don for supremacy in the voting, Lucy came out on top.  She’s chosen to have the $250 donated to the La Jolla Country Day School Development Fund.  But, Don’s efforts were so impressive that we also decided to award him with $150 towards a charity of his choice.  He chose the Wounded Warrior Project.  Great job guys!

Take Our Poll

If you haven’t already registered for the big release party at Cucina Urbana on December 1th from 1pm to 3pm, please do so ASAP.  Tickets are selling fast and we don’t want you to miss out on your chance to attend.

To register, simply click here.

We look forward to seeing you on December 11th!

Our 2009 Rockpile Zinfandel is now being poured by the glass at Zin Restaurant and our 2009 Rockpile Zin and 2009 Doctor’s Vineyard Pinot Noir is now available by the bottle at Barn Diva.

Whenever in Healdsburg, make sure to support these great restaurants that support Bruliam!

Fortunately Kerith was able to channel her inner Seymour and implore the grapes to “Grow For Me”.  We’re not sure if she actually had to bleed into the soil to get them fully ripe, but whatever magic she conjured got us through this Little Shop of Harvest Horrors.  We’re happy to report that the 2011 vintage is through fermentation and safely into barrel.

We’re beggin’ you sweetly to check out our 2011 Anderson Valley harvest video below.  If you can’t see the video, please click here.

To register:  CLICK HERE

This is your chance to taste through our brand new line up of 2010 pinot noirs.  We’ll be
pouring the Soberanes Vineyard (Pisoni) from the Santa Lucia Highlands, the Deer Meadow Vineyard (Savoy) from Anderson Valley, and the Wildcat Mountain Vineyard
(MacRostie)  from Sonoma Coast.  If you loved our pinots from 2008 and 2009, we think you’ll be blown away by the work Kerith has put into these amazing wines.  And for you Rockpile fans, we’ll be sure to have a little of our delicious 2009 Zinfandel on hand.

Best of all, you’ll be able to try all of these great wines while enjoying the company of your fellow Bruliam Brigade members and snacking on yummy appetizers from our hosts at Cucina Urbana.

And thanks to a special arrangement with Cucina Urbana, you’ll be able to purchase and take home our 2010 pinot noirs at the party at special release pricing (and with no retail mark-up and no shipping costs).

Tickets are $25/person.  Payment must be made through PayPal when you register.  If you
don’t have a PayPal account, simply follow the directions for the option to pay with your credit card without a Paypal account.  Sorry, no kids.

Tickets are limited, so please RSVP early!

We can’t wait to see all of you (feels like waaay too long!) and share our new wines with
you.

-Kerith & Brian

If you can’t see the video below, you can view it by clicking here.

And read the article by clicking here.

http://www.pinotfestival.com/Oct2011Winery.htm

We look forward to seeing you on Sunday October 23rd!