Making Carneros Chardonnay

Well, that didn't take long...our latest video is up and running. You can view it here, or on iTunes. It may take a little while for the video to post on iTunes, so check back if it's not there yet.

Join Marc Cuneo and winemaker Mark Lyon as they take you on a tour of our winery and explain what went into producing our 2006 Carneros Chardonnay. This is our second video on the production of this wine; we're very excited about it because it marks the culmination of a nine year replanting program in our Wilson Ranch vineyard. We'll be releasing the wine later this spring. It's fascinating to watch Mark describe the technology used in ensuring the most gentle handling of the grapes and in reducing solids in the fermenting juice. That contrasts with his comments about his Chardonnay winemaking influences (hint: Burgundy...) and his relationship with the Francois Freres winemaking family in France. New World meets Old World indeed...

We're Podcasting on iTunes!

Now it's easier than ever to keep up with the goings on at Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery! Our video podcasts are being uploaded to Apple's iTunes so you can download them to your iPod or mp3 player with the click of a button. Just click here and the link will take you to our iTunes web page where you can subscribe, and download iTunes to your computer if you don't have it already. We're adding new videos all the time; our next one will be posted this week. Stay tuned!

A Short History of Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery

This little video takes you through some of the history of Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery, and explains how winemaking has changed here since the days of Samuele and August. Click on the link above to view the video here; click below to view the video on YouTube.

Wine Spectator Values

The cover story in the current issue of the Wine Spectator reviews wines and wineries that they consider to be great values-and Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery figures prominently in the story. No less than five of our wines are listed in the story by Jim Laube, which describes us as an "Outstanding Value Producer...The Best The Golden State Has To Offer".

The five wines reviewed are:

2004 Alexander Valley Merlot

2005 Alexander Valley Merlot

2005 Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon

2006 Sonoma County Chardonnay

2005 Sonoma County Zinfandel

Congratulations to winemaker Mark Lyon and his winemaking staff!

Champion Pruner

Congratulations to our very own Jose Arellano, who represented the Sonoma Valley in the 2008 Sonoma County Pruning Championship February 29th. Jose came in first in the Sonoma Valley Regional Pruning Contest, and while he didn't take first in the Sonoma County Championship, just making it to the finals is a great accomplishment. This years championship, covered in The New York Times , was the biggest in the event's history so there was plenty of competition! As one spectator who was quoted in the Times said, “I went out there for an hour, and I came back and my arms were sore, my back was sore, my shoulder blades were sore. And they do it eight hours a day.”

Spring is Coming

Although we're not out of the rainy season woods yet, we have experienced some wonderful warm weather in February and March and things have begun to pop around here. We're going to see some cooler weather and some more rain, and we'll just have to see what happens with bud break, but for now it's hard not to enjoy the weather-and the blossoms.

Carneros Chardonnay

Fourth generation family member Marc Cuneo explains our nine year Chardonnay planting program at our Wilson Ranch estate vineyard.

First Post

So today, we've dipped our toes in the blogosphere with this little blog page. We hope to make this a repository of all the goings on at Sebastiani, with the insights and points of view of the people that make it happen here. We look forward to hearing your comments and thoughts, and we hope you'll make us a regular stop on your web travels! Tell your friends!