A Month of Thankfulness

As Americans, we have much to be thankful for! Why limit it to just one day a year? Count your blessings daily, weekly, monthly! All year long. We're thankful for all of you! Your support and loyalty has helped us continue to grow beyond that one year mark! Our commitment to you is to keep producing quality wines, friendly service with integrity, and excellence in all we do! With our thoughts turning toward the holidays, we have some great ideas to help make your holiday entertaining and gift giving as simple as pumpkin pie! Turn to Orange Coast Winery for the perfect present. Even the hardest person to please will be delighted with our assortment of wines. Throw in a cute wine sign, flirty apron, or a one-of-a-kind wine rack and they'll thank you for a long time! Want to take the stress and hassle out of entertaining your co-workers, out-of-town relatives, or your BFF's?! Give Jo Anne a call at 949-645-0400 or send a fast email to joanne@orangecoastwinery and leave the planning to the professionals. Jo Anne is the ultimate party planner and will work within your budget to create the best holiday party ever! Read on for our expert advice on finding the perfect wine compliment for your own DIY holiday feasts that will leave your peeps thoroughly impressed!

Everyone has their tried and true favorite wines, so there are no hard and fast rules! (No matter what those wine snobs say!) It's all in the flavors that you add to your special dishes, which will help them meld with the meal! For example, if you have a guest roster filled with Sauvignon Blanc lovers, prepare your turkey simply in its own jus, and let the soft grassy undertones and crisp apply goodness of our 2011 Bronze Medal winning Sauvignon Blanc shine through. If you like a more complex red, look to our fruit-forward 2010 Temecula Zinfandel to lead the way for your savory turkey with all the trimmings. Are you stepping out of the traditional turkey zone? The Orange Coast Winery Silver Medal 2008 Reserve Beach Blend will have everyone raving when accompanied with your special prime rib or sumptuous rack of lamb (any of our Zins will also delight in these pairings!). Are you taking the sea food route? Then, the MUST-HAVE newly released Beach Bubbly is all you need to complete the party. Actually, for all the cheers and goodwill...you need to load up on this bubbly-iciousness to keep you toasting clear through the New Year! We'll be featuring recipes and more holiday food and wine pairings through the next two months!

 

 

Guess WHAT?! Orange Coast Winery is now available in your favorite wine shoppe! Stop by Total Wines at either location in Tustin or Huntington Beach where you'll find several of our wonderful wines featured! You've been asking for it (Thank YOU!) and you've got it! Now, on those dern days that we're closed and you've GASP! run out of your FAVS - just pop on by and grab a few or more emergency bottles of Temecula Zin, Sauvignon Blanc, and Beach Blend Red to get you through until Thursday at 4:00! Speaking of THURSDAYS! YeeeeHaw! Our Thursdays are catching on like a house a'fire! It's only been a month since we started our Thirsty Thursdays and we've had to add additional staff! Again, YOU SPOKE and we listened! Now. Who's ready for Wine Wednesdays?

Our Orange Coast Winery Club Members have frequently asked about reciprocal tastings at Wiens Family Cellars in Temecula as we've treated Wiens Club Members this past year to complimentary tastings with us in Newport Beach. Due to the fact that the two wineries have completely different owners and simply share the amazing winemaker, Doug Wiens; we've come to the difficult decision to separate the two entities entirely. If you'd like to visit Wiens Family Cellars, please talk to our super OCW staff and ask for a 2 for 1 tasting card to check out Wiens. We will offer these cards on a limited basis. Likewise, if you're a Wiens member and haven't taken the Orange Coast Winery plunge yet...we'll give you one last opportunity to visit us for a complimentary tasting. Over the course of this new year, we will be expanding our Orange Coast Winery line of wines and slowly (slowly) phasing out our Wiens inventory. We apologize for any inconvenience or confusion. Same last name. Different owners. Same incredible quality wines. Different labels and varietals. Same professional, friendly service. Different Staff.

Well, it's OFFICIAL! We are growing by leaps and bounds. Our Wine Club Pick Up Parties are bursting at the seams. Our special events are always filled to capacity. As the song in the Broadway Musical Wicked goes, "We're POP-ULAR!" So, when the chance to snag a premium space one building down from us (same free parking, same convenient area!) - we JUMPED! It will take us a couple of months to transform this area into the most spectacular working barrel room in Orange County, but oh MAN! The results will be unbelievable. Jo Anne has earned her stripes or Event Space as the case may be.

Orange Coast Winery

Let the Sun Shine In on Orange Coast Winery

My Winemaker and I have given birth.  NO!  Not to a real baby! (Big sigh of relief! At our age we'll just enjoy the grandchildren. Thanks!)  We've given birth to a bouncing, bubbly winery in Newport Beach, CA.  Orange Coast Winery was actually born in April of 2011.  Doug and I bought the dream in October and what a whirlwind it's been.  We really do feel like new parents all over again.  Late nights staying up with our baby, researching how to care for it and nurture it properly, sending out tons of announcements to our friends, family, and acquaintances...the analogies are endless.

We bought an existing inventory, the name, and the location.  All of which we didn't have to love, but certainly needed to feel comfortable enough to live with until we are able to change things once within our power.  The former owner enjoyed a softer, Italian style wine - very different from Doug's big, bold love affair with red wines.  Another immediate "To-Do" on our list was to round out our wine list with a few sweet wines for those novice wine fans. 

We are in love with the Beach Bubbly sparkling that we acquired and love the way it plays on the beach theme as well as panders to the more serious Champagne connoisseur.  Plans are in the works to bring back another popular white that we recently ran out of, the Beach Blend White.  In the meantime, a flirty, fruity Rose has nicely filled out our menu along with two new Chardonnays.  A stainless steel lovely that has everyone buzzing and an enticing Reserve Chardonnay with just the right amount of butter and oak.  Break out the clambake and lobster and serve up with any of the aforementioned wines.  As the inventory started to deplete, we got excited about Doug batching and blending the rest of the wines still in tanks and barrels that we'd purchased.   

California is our vineyard!

My wily winemaker  had a few other tricks up his sleeve, including one last batch of Malbec from my brother's vineyard in Paso Robles.  This deliciously spicy yet smooth Malbec is especially dear to our hearts since David and Sara Israel recently sold their Five Oaks Vineyard, thus the bittersweet end of a wine era for all of us.  This Malbec is a beauty and does its Swan Song exquisitely!  Ask me about the amazing Lamb recipe that will rock & roll with this little number!  Another surprise was a couple of Zins that Doug was able to snag - one Paso and one from Temecula.  Each Zinfandel is so complex and different it's as if they aren't even from the same grape family.  The Paso Zin is bold and jammy in the traditional "Zinse" that made Paso Zins famous.  The Temecula Zin is rich and fruity with a burst of pomegranate pelting your taste buds.

A mainstay on our original menu was an extremely popular Beach Blend Red.  This has been our work horse wine, the Chianti, the table wine, your every day go-to wine.  When we ran out of this around Christmas, I seriously thought that some of our wine club members needed sedation!  Needless to say, the release of a new batch, a Dougifide, Beach Blend Red has received a hearty welcome!  But, WAIT, there's MORE!  Riding on the coattails of the regular Beach Blend Red, this over achieving winemaker decided, what could be better than the Beach Blend Red, but a RESERVE Beach Blend Red.  Oh.  Can we talk?  This big, bold, bad boy goes in like a John Phillip Sousa March and continues with the rockets and fireworks all the way through the long, lingering finish.  Anyone care for a smoke after that description?!  Speaking of smoking, least I not forget, a lovely little Cab from Lodi (glad to not be stuck in Lodi again, surely!).  This supple Cab is unassuming and grand, all in one.  Pair it with dark chocolate, or a mouth watering steak...either one will thank you!

Oh, it's definitely a work in progress.  We strive to navigate the distance between our home in Temecula and the new business in Newport Beach.  We're working hard to network and immerse ourselves into our new community while maintaining our ties with our current home.  We have immediate plans to join the local Chamber and have already provided wine, wine tasting certificates, and donated our venues for a number of charitable causes.  As we quickly grow, we are not only busy planning exciting events in the next few month, we're looking for an Event Coordinator to help take us there!  We're juggling the bookkeeping, keeping up with the social media, constantly updating our website, all of the licenses and permits, hiring and training our employees, and, oh yeh, selling wine!

I wrote a blog awhile back about the romantic misconceptions that so many people have about the wine business.  It's like anything in life...you must be passionate about it as it is like a jealous lover.  It consumes your life, demands your constant attention, throws occasionally tantrums, and takes you on the thrill of a lifetime.  Definitely not for the faint of heart.

Doug and I extend our warmest invitation to all of you to visit us at Orange Coast Winery in Newport Beach.  We're open Friday and Saturday from 12-6 and on Sunday from 12-5.  We're also open on special holidays such as most recently on Valentine's Day and the upcoming President's Day.  Wine tasting includes six one ounce tastes of our premium wines and a chic logo glass for $10.00.  All of our wines are reasonably priced between $19 and $39.  Local.  Sustainable.  Warm.  Friendly.  Fun.  And, for this beach loving wench....less than a mile from the Pacific Ocean.  It doesn't get much better than that.

On warm days, (which is often in Newport!), we open up the warehouse garage door and let the sun shine in, the balmy breezes float by, and the enticing combination of wine and the ocean fill your senses.  Join our wine club and enjoy quarterly shipments of six wines or twelve.  As wine club members, you'll receive 20% off on all purchases including retail items, exclusive wine club only events, and YES! free wine tastings!

Catch the Wine Wave and make plans to visit us soon.

Orange Coast Winery
869 W. 16th St.
Newport Beach, CA  92663
949-645-0400
www.orangecoastwinery.com
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Dunning Done Good!

Once in a while, something so amazing comes along in life that makes you realize how lucky, blessed, fortunate you are to be a part of it!  Being a member of a cohesive group of wine loving ladies called The Women's Wine Council of Temecula, is one of those rare treats.  Sharing our passion for wine, food, travel, and writing with each other gives us the opportunity to blend friendship, encouragement, tips, and fun all rolled up in a few hours once a month.

Our last council meeting found us transported (metaphysically speaking) to Paso Robles as we sipped on wines from Dunning Vineyards.  We've come to a point where, at first glance, an outsider may wonder whether we're a wine or food council!  By the looks of our table overflowing with luscious goodies (all strategically created to enhance and pair with specific wine varietals), we embark on our journey to find the perfect wine with its perfect mate!

Ladies, start your engines!  Straight out of the gate comes the underdog champion of the day, a stunning & a stunner of a Chardonnay.  Thier 2009 Estate Chardonnay was laced with vanilla and pear.  Aged in my favorite, a new French Oak, it only had mild hints of oak to the palette.  It paired superbly with a lovely Sage/Apricot cracker and made my Cranberry Tarragon Wine Dip from our own Orange Coast Winery literally pop in your mouth.  The winning Chardonnay was a stunner since our group is primarily a Big Red's kinda group.  But, the appealing full-mouth feel of this Chardonnay was a sleeper delight that none of us could resist!  This is one Chardonnay that I wouldn't mind paying the retail price of $24.

Next we sampled a fun 2008 Estate Vin De Casa ($24) that boasted of 45% Cab France, 35% Zin, and 20% Syrah.  What's not to love in this amazing blend?!  This deep, earthy, liquid saddle paired with espresso chocolate cookies and persimmons with a prosciutto wrap drizzled with balsamic olive oil.  We also were excited to find that Edam cheese and Wasabi crackers were super with the bold taste of this blend.  I have to admit that even though I loved the Chard, I'm still a sucker for a wonderful, full-bodied blend.  The Vin De Casa was my personal, number one pick of our Dunning taste test!

As our tasting progressed, we were mesmerized with the Dunning 2009 Estate Zinfandel ($28) with its full-body and hints of raspberry.  Is it no wonder that the little darlings of the day, the espresso chocolate cookies, also paired with this one as well?!

Admitting that the Vin De Casa was my favorite and the Chardonnay was a force to be reckoned with, the 2009 Private Reserve Estate Zinfandel ($35) that we rounded out our council soiree with was not to be upstaged!  This Zin had a richness that balanced between bold, spicy flavors and the perfect amount of oak.  Definitely old world charm abounds in this wine.  You're probably not surprised that yes, once again, the espresso cookies found their way into favor with the Zin as well; but, not to be forgotten was the incredible roasted sage, pumpkin, fontina, pancetta, and pepita flat bread.  Forgo the turkey dinner for Thanksgiving and just serve this dish and Zin.  How Zinfully easy would THAT be?

Since my husband and I recently purchased a little winery in Newport Beach, I couldn't resist showing off our gold medal winner from the recent Orange County Fair.  The ladies were exceedingly pleased with this Sauvignon Blanc and its light, citrus appeal.  It was wonderful with a plethora of the foods presented that day and nabbed the spotlight as the most versatile food wine of the day.

It is always bittersweet when our Women's Wine Council realizes that we've tasted through our selection of wines and had our way with the delicacies that we've each lovingly prepared...we've laughed, shared stories, toasted, sipped, and supped.  As all good things come to an end and we say our last adieu's, we leave our compadres with the reassuring thought that we get to do this all over again next month!!!