A while back, I expressed my frustration at the lack of a Press & Trade portion of the Annual Pinot Days Celebration in San Francisco, coming up on June 28th. I am happy to be able to eat my words, sort of. Even thought they producers of the event were not willing to participate in an additional session, the event organizers were able to convince the some odd wineries pouring that the trade should be allowed to attend gratis.
Thankfully, I will be attending Pinot Days this year, cost or not cost – so I am happy to be able to feel good about announcement it again.
Pinot Days San Francisco Assembles Hundreds of Pinot Noir producers, and even more wine, for an exclusive wine tasting experience in
San Francisco. Over 600 pinot noirs will be poured at the 5th Annual Pinot Days, a four day event that takes place from June 25th to June 28th.
Kicking off the week of festivities will be a tasting at The Jug Shop, focusing on Sonoma and beyond. The Tour de California will showcases pinots from some of my favorite producers, including Eno Wines, Fort Ross, Kendric and Olsen Ogden. This tasting is $10, and is from 6-8 on Tuesday, June 23rd. The Jug Shop is also offering 10% off Pinot Days Grand Tasting tickets, which is a great deal if you can get it. Just enter promo code JUGSHOP for your discount when buying tickets.
On Wednesday, June 24th, Ed Kurtzman will be spotlighted in a producer tasting at Ft Mason from 7-9pm. The cost for this is $100.
Also on Wednesday, 16 16 Young Turks of the pinot world will show of their hard work at the Golden Gateway Room in Ft. Mason.
Come hear their stories and enjoy the fruits of their labor. You will taste 16 different pinots in flights of four, and you will taste them blind. This is a rare chance to discover the next great pinots, and to spend time with these winemakers as they ascend to great heights.
On Thursday, June 25th, there is a Winemakers Table Hop Dinner at Pres a Vi, where over 20 producers will be pouring Pinots paired with Chef Kelly Degala’s wine-friendly cuisine, infusing each dish he creates with flavors and from around the world, including Spanish, Filipino, French, Italian and Latin American influences. The table hop dinner is $150.
On Friday, June 26th, C. Donatiello Winery in Dry Creek Valley is hosting a Pinot Days Summer Concert at their winery. They specialize in premium single vineyard pinot noir, and you can enjoy a day of exquisite pinot along Westside Road, culminating in a concert, tasting and barbeque. Your bus tour will include special tastings at Arista, John Tyler, Gary Farrell, and the new Thomas George (at the spectacularly remodeled Davis Bynum Winery). You will then enjoy a special tour and tasting at C. Donatiello Winery, followed by a barbeque and concert. During the barbeque you will enjoy the wines of three additional Westside Road wineries: Black Kite Cellars, Hop Kiln and Matrix Winery. The concert is $110.
To purchase tickets for any of these events, or to see details, check out Pinot Days on line!
You bet I’ll be there John!
Hope to see you at the Jug Shop event on the 23rd. I will be pouring our wines (Olson Ogden). Should be a lot of fun!
Thanks for your comments Lisa!
I talked with Steve about this at Wine 2.0 and knew it wasn’t you guys that were voting out the separate trade tasting. I don’t envy you having to organize everyone that way
I can certainly understand why the producers went that way it’s just hard on those of us in the trade that value those things.
I’m really looking forward to the event and tasting, typing & tweeting some great new pinots!
See you soon.
Happy that you are coming! My husband Steve and I produce the event and have always offered complimentary passes to the wine buying trade. As a non-profit dedicated to promoting domestic pinot and its great producers, we survey our producers annually to ask what they want to change. In January they voted to combine the trade and public tasting rather than having an exclusive trade portion. We’ll see how it goes. They also asked, as usual, that we provide trade invitations to particular trade members whose names were compiled by the wineries themselves, and of course we did so once again this year! We are happy to include trade because that is what our producers want and need, so WELCOME, and we really hope you enjoy yourself!