90 Points! - Wine Review OnLine for J Vineyards 2008 Russian River Valley Chardonnay

Today's Featured Wine for November 15, 2010

J Vineyards, Russian River Valley (Sonoma County, California) Chardonnay 2008 ($28)

Winemaker George Bursick gave this Chardonnay a full-court treatment, including barrel fermentation, aging in Burgundy oak barrels and extended malolactic fermentation. The result is a delicately balanced wine with a brilliant light gold color and subtle scents of lemon rind and ripe nectarines. Brisk acidity supports the soft toasted oak and lemony flavors, while the wine finishes dry at 14.3% alcohol. I especially liked the texture and crisp acidity of this refreshing Chardonnay.

90 Points - Gerald D. Boyd, WRO 

Nov. 15, 2010

Good Taste with Tanji: "The Beautiful Bubble Room at J Winery, a Sonoma Tasting Treasure"

Tanji Patton of Good Taste with Tanji

The Beautiful Bubble Room at J Winery, a Sonoma Tasting Treasure

A special treat if you’re interested in exploring good food and wine pairings is the Bubble Room at J Winery. You’ll pay about $60 pp for the experience, but keep in mind, there are five courses of well paired dishes with J’s wonderful wines.

J Vineyards is a beautiful winery with a fabulous patio that overlooks the picturesque Sonoma valley. J also has a wonderful selection of gift items in its tasting room.

The corn chowder on our trip was spectacular and a great match with their sparkling wine!

J Rosé for Turkey Day - Get in on the Best Kept Secret in Wine!

J Rosé for Turkey Day!

Get in on the Best Kept Secret in Wine

Planning for the Thanksgiving Day feast is in full swing at most households. The food staples are well known and predictable: turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes and the obligatory yet inexplicable cranberry sauce.

Many times the wine selections are just as predictable: Pinot and Chardonnay with the traditional bottle of sparkling to kick things off. These are all fine wines that we have served many times and the reason we created our popular Thanksgiving Assortment (see details below), but many of us at J have found a new favorite for our Thanksgiving Day table.

We have recently embraced rosé as our new go-to wine. We love the light and elegant nature of the wine, its refreshing acidity and delicate strawberry and cherry notes. It's a fine complement to fowl or ham, is refreshing enough to serve as an aperitif and can even be paired with those crazy cranberries.

So if you are looking for something a little different to put on the table this year, consider serving our Vin Gris, a dry rosé of Pinot Noir, that many of us here at the winery consider one of our unsung heroes.

The 2009 J Vin Gris is regularly priced at $20 for a 750 ml bottle but to encourage you to try this wonderful wine on your Thanksgiving Day table, we are offering you the opportunity to buy this wine at 25 % off or only $15 per 750 ml bottle. Just enter the coupon code: RTD25 at checkout.

Avoid the crowded shops and last minute stress by ordering direct from us and having your Thanksgiving wine delivered to your door. To place an order for the Vin Gris, just go to our web site at www.jwine.com, send us an email at info@jwine.com (do not respond to this mail), or call us at 707-431-5479. If you are planning on coming to winery soon, you can order now and pick it up then by choosing "will-call" as the shipping option.

Please note, customers on the East Coast must place their orders by Thursday, November 11, 2010 in order to receive their wine by Thanksgiving.

2009 J Vin Gris, Russian River Valley

The 2009 J Vineyards Vin Gris is a dry rosé that displays a light ruby color reminiscent of Scarlett Johansson’s lips in the movie “Lost in Translation.” Lively aromas of strawberry and blueberries leap from the glass. The nose segues into mouthwatering flavors of ripe summer berries, strawberry, and tart cherry pie. There’s a nice acidity on the palate and the flavors follow the nose. This well-balanced wine starts with a crisp fruitiness, followed by a plush mid-palate and then opens to a dry and extremely refreshing finish. The wine has a balanced acidity that brightens and cleanses the palate.

Wine Spectator 88 & 89 Points: J Cuvee 20 Brut NV & J Brut Rose NV, Russian River Valley!

"Here’s a really enjoyable, balanced wine" - KCBS Food and Wine Editor Narsai David for J Vineyards 2008 RRV Chardonnay!

Narsai David Wine Review: J Vineyards

KCBS Food and Wine Editor Narsai David reviewed wines from Sonoma

2008 J Vineyards Chardonnay, Russian River Valley

The 2008 J Vineyards Chardonnay from the Russian River Valley is delicious even before you taste it.

“The aromas have such a perfect balance between the fruit and oak. The oak is just the subtlest touch. On the palate, that finesse continues. Mouth watering balance of citrus and lots of fruit with just the right amount of acid. Here’s a really enjoyable, balanced wine.”

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Full On-Line Article Link

Narsai David is the KCBS Food and Wine Editor. He has been a successful restaurateur, chef, TV host, and columnist in the Bay Area spanning four decades.

J Sparkles with Charles Olken of Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine!

Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine

November 2010 - Volume 35 Issue 1

by Charles Olken

J Vineyards & Winery

It seems that California makers of the bubbly take a step forward each and every year, and this newest crop of sparkling wines is no exception. When you add in the double incentives of equivalent Champagnes costing twice as much and being less fresh in the bargain and top that with the likelihood that you can find most of the non-vintaged Bruts, Blanc de Noirs and even Rosés at discounts during the Holiday Season, there is every reason to pay attention to this category. Perhaps the single most influential step in this scenario of increasing success is the move by several makers to cooler and cooler area grapes with longer hang times and higher natural acidities. But it is the areas of Blanc de Noirs and Rosé that California producers have their greatest natural advantage. If the idea of adding a bit of red wine to your top bubblies is to increase both richness and latter palate solidity, then California Pinot Noir with its tendencies to be fuller and richer than its peers in France has a big leg up. The success of lightly and moderately pink wines in this year’s tastings made that group the stars of the show (pun intended).

J VINEYARDS & WINERY 2010 HARVEST COMES TO A CLOSE!

HEALDSBURG, CALIFORNIA— (October 25, 2010) — J Vineyards & Winery concluded its 2010 wine harvest last Friday, and not a moment too soon. Early fall rains drenched most of Northern California over the weekend, bringing an end to a most unusual grape-growing season.

“We beat the rains,” said J Winemaker George Bursick. “The irony is that for all the anguish about a late season, we managed to end four days earlier than last year.”

A final load of grapes from Jewell Vineyard in Sebastopol, destined for J’s Russian River Valley Chardonnay, made its way into the winery just as the skies let loose.

“Although harvest started late, the long hang time during a mostly cool summer played an important role in building great acidity and delicious flavors,” said Bursick. “We had to pick around some ripening issues in the vineyard, and crop tonnage is lower than average, but 2010 is going to be another superb year for Russian River Valley Pinot Noir and Chardonnay producers.”

With J’s varietal Chardonnay settling into a slow winter-long “bâtonnage,” (a sur-lie barrel aging technique), and Pinot Noir wines still moving through barrel fermentation, a quick survey of pulled samples reveals a vintage packed with rich color, ripe flavors, and balanced acidity.

Martin Guzman, J Production Director, is happy about the pinot noir wine quality.

The grape harvest for J’s sparkling wines was completed three weeks ago as those grapes are picked at lower sugar and higher acidity levels.

J Vineyards & Winery, located on Old Redwood Highway south of Healdsburg, focuses on Brut and Brut Rosé sparkling wines, as well as Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Gris varietal wines, produced from grapes farmed primarily within Sonoma County’s Russian River Valley appellation.

Founded by Judy Jordan in 1986, J Vineyards & Winery is an independently-owned Sonoma County winery. J will begin celebrating its 25th Anniversary next year. To learn more, or to join the J Wine Club, please call (707) 431-3646, or go to www.jwine.com. 

Daenna Van Mulligan, aka The Wine Diva, Presents Favorable Reviews of J Wines from Vancouver, BC!

October 21, 2010

J Vineyards 

Healdsburg, Russian River Valley, California

A welcome addition to the wines from Sonoma currently available in the Canadian market, J Vineyards recently made its debut into BC and is already making a splash at private wine stores and select restaurants.

Making wines for more than 20 years, J Vineyards' focus is on traditionally made sparkling wines made from: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, as well as single varietal wines such as: Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir.

The J Vineyards project began in 1986 by Judy Jordan. Initially it was proposed as an outlet for making traditional method sparkling wines - a project that began at Judy Jordan's father's winery in Alexander Valley - Jordan.

Recently I tasted the entire line-up of wines that are now available in Canada and can safely say I was very pleased with them all. All present purity of fruit, they are generous and polished and extremely approachable.

J Cuvee 20 Brut NV is 49% Chardonnay with 49% Pinot Noir and 2% Pinot Meunier. This is an extremely fragrant sparkler floral, exotic citrus, Asian pear and star anise aromas that lead you to expect a sweeter palate. It is creamy and bright with a very dry, crisp finish. $30+

J Rose Brut NV is mostly Pinot Noir with 44 % Pinot Meunier. Vibrant berries, citrus and a suggestion of exotic spice. The palate is a bit firmer than the Cuvee 20, nice richness and finesse with a long creamy finish. $40.+

J California Pinot Gris, 2009 is made from grapes harvested in Clarksburg, Russian River Valley and Monterey. It is aromatic and very inviting with plenty of pear compote and citrus peel throughout. There is a hint of spiciness on the finish and a lingering mouthful of crisp citrus and creamy pear. Delicious. $25+

J Russian River Chardonnay, 2007 is a nice juxtaposition of creamy caramel oak and vibrant fruit. Buttery sweet caramel and citrus with melon aromas flow into a creamy spiced palate that lacks no fresh fruit. Very balanced, if you like oak in your Chard you'll like this one, if you don't like oak in your Chard you'll probably still like it. $45+

J Russian River Pinot Noir, 2007 the focus in making this Pinot Noir is a multi-step (triage) system to remove any unwanted unripe/overripe or stems before fermenting to ensure pure fruit flavours. And it has been achieved - the fruit is pristine, sweet berries and violets, hints of warm fruitcake spice and chocolate. It is velvety on the palate and far too quaffable to sit around for long. $50+

On Line Review:  http://www.winescores.ca/newsletters/Fall2010tastings.htm

- Daenna Van Mulligan, aka The Wine Diva

J VINEYARDS & WINERY DEBUTS ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN: “A LEGACY THAT SPARKLES”

J VINEYARDS & WINERY DEBUTS ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN:
“A LEGACY THAT SPARKLES”

HEALDSBURG, CALIFORNIA — October 14, 2010 — Russian River Valley wine producer J Vineyards & Winery is set to debut its first national education and awareness advertising campaign this fall. The ad campaign will appear in two November print issues of the Wine Spectator and on the publication’s website.

“A Legacy That Sparkles,” is a full-page ad that speaks to the winery’s 25 years of sparkling wine, and focuses on the winery’s official debut of its Russian River Valley estate chardonnay and pinot noir wines in their new package.

“We are two wineries under one roof,” says J Vineyards & Winery Founder and President Judy Jordan. “Our legacy is, and always will be, J sparkling wine. Our future, however, lies in the exquisite varietal wines produced from our ten estate vineyards.”

The Wine Spectator was chosen as the platform to launch the ad campaign because of the publication’s dominant demographics among savvy wine consumers, restaurant wine buyers, and influential wine trade readers. Accompanying the print advertising will be a month-long online presence at winespectator.com. The online ads have been designed to direct consumers to J’s website.

J Vineyards & Winery, located on Old Redwood Highway south of Healdsburg, focuses on Brut and Brut Rosé sparkling wines, as well as Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Gris varietal wines, produced from grapes farmed primarily within Sonoma County’s Russian River Valley appellation.

Founded by Judy Jordan in 1986, J Vineyards & Winery is an independently-owned Sonoma County winery. J will be celebrating its 25th Anniversary next year. To learn more, or to join the J Wine Club, please call (707) 431-3646, or go to jwine.com.

Year in the Life of J Vineyards

Check out this cool "Year in the Life of J Vineyards" video posted yesterday on YouTube!

Photography & Video created by George Rose, J Public Relations / Communications Director

Join J in Supporting National Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October!

To remind everyone that October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, J Vineyards & Winery is honored to support Susan G. Komen for the Cure by donating 10% of the proceeds with the J For the Cure Cycling Jersey.


Did you know that a diet that includes plenty of mushrooms could help slow down the development of certain cancers, such as breast cancer? They can, as Victoria Von Biel concludes in the Bon Appétit Blog "Conscious Cook" Mushrooms: The New Superfood.


Should you choose to add more mushrooms to your diet, here is a collection of mushroom recipes by J’s Executive Chef, Mark E. Caldwell:

CREAMY POLENTA WITH SAUTÉED CRIMINI MUSHROOMS

MUSHROOM BREAD PUDDING

WILD MUSHROOM & PISTACHIO PÂTÉ

WILD MUSHROOM DUXELLES

WINTER MUSHROOM SOUP 

J Vineyards & Winery Salutes Your Health!

Wine Spectator 90 & 91 Points: 2001 J Vintage Brut & 1999 J Vintage Brut Late Disgorged, Russian River Valley