BLOGSCHU

Harvest 2011: A day in the cellar

We are offically in the middle of harvest and GB Lead Associate Winemaker Anne Dempsey shows us what they are up to in the cellar.

Music Monday

Autumn Cardinal Silkscreen Print by strawberryluna

We're fully entrenched in autumn: post-season baseball (GO CARDS!), Halloween candy in the stores (alongside Christmas trimmings), and crisp days & changing leaves (although not so much here in Southern Cali). Actually, our usually idyllic weather here in LA has been pretty icky recently - we've been shrouded in cold fog for the past week. I know, I know, you're all playing tiny violins for me. But as much as I miss the sunshine, I like how the misty, chilly days remind me of past autumns in the more seasonal cities in which I've lived. Autumn on the east coast is downright breathtaking. It's a cozy time of year, and the calm before the storm of the holidays. I hope that you're enjoying it.

Before I launch into my playlist selections, here are some links to interesting music items that I came across this week:

• Do you ever watch a tv show and wonder, "What's that song? Tunefind will help you figure it out.
• Arcade Fire + Neil Young covered "Helpless" as part of the annual concert to benefit Bridge School. The Bridge School Concerts 25th Anniversary Edition is released today.
• 20-year-old female rapper Azealia Banks killed it at last week's CMJ Music Marathon in NYC. Classically trained at the Fame-like La Guardia High School of Performing Arts in NY, Banks has been garnering attention since she started releasing music at the ripe old age of 17. You can listen to a teaser, "212," from her upcoming debut album. Caution: explicit lyrics! 
• Here's a college course that I would not have slept through.
• The new Coldplay album is being released today.

Here are my picks for this week's Music Monday. You can access the playlist via Spotify here: GunBun Music Monday 2011

"Shake Me Down" - Cage The Elephant
I've had this song in my "possible" playlist for quite some time. Perhaps you know this band from the song "Ain't No Rest For The Wicked" released in 2009 off their self-titled debut album. Their newish album, Thank You Happy Birthday, was released in January of this year and it's been very well received. 

"Stranger" - Katie Costello
My friend Jen sent me an email last week telling me to watch this video of an artist that she had hired to play at a backyard party here in LA a few years ago. I was swept away by her beautiful voice and was pleased to see that her latest album is on Spotify. She also has a fun and quirky website. 

"Shadow" - Gringo Star
Gringo Star...ha ha, get it? I caught a listen to this track on NPR's All Songs Considered Fall Music Preview show. It's the first release from this Atlanta-based band's latest album, Count Yer Lucky Stars, which is due out this week.

"Keep You" - Class Actress
This Brooklyn electronic pop group performed this past weekend at CMJ. I like their sound. This track is from their first full-length album, Rapprocher, which was released last week.

"Decide" - Caveman
Here is yet another band from Brooklyn. I found Caveman through the "Bands We Like" section of the Oh My Rockness email that I get each week. If you live in NYC, LA or Chicago, I highly recommend signing up for their newsletter. It lists great live shows coming up in those areas along with band recommendations and a fabulous radio podcast.

Bonus Song: "Stoplight Roses" - Nick Lowe
I had to throw this bonus song in after listening to Nick Lowe's recent interview on Fresh Air. Lowe is a 62-year old English singer-songwriter and music producer who is best known for his song "Cruel To Be Kind" which was released in the late 70's. The interview with Terry Gross is refreshingly honest and insightful and I highly recommend it. This track is from his 13th studio album - he recently opened for Wilco on their latest tour.

Cheers, Lisa

Music Monday

Tip of the cap to my hometown team, the St. Louis Cardinals, for winning the National League Championship Series last night. I hope they pummel the Texans in the World Series. GO CARDS! 

Here are some tidbits that I came across this past week coalescing around my interests in music, technology and all things creative:

• I forgot to include this reflection in my Steve Jobs coverage last week. Tracking down a long-lost sister you never knew you had who is also a famous author, you can't make this stuff up!
• And while we're on the subject of Apple, how can I not mention Siri, the new voice-driven artificial intelligence system integrated into the new iPhone? Ladies and gentleman, we are witnessing the revolution. I absolutely love this website: "Shit That Siri Says."
• Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons made a rare appearance together to talk hip-hop. Rubin looks seriously crazy. At least he gave props to one of my all time favorite tunes: Fight The Power.
• Watch Thom York of Radiohead spin a great 30 minute mix at the Boiler Room in the UK. Check out the funny Brits dancing awkwardly behind him.
• If you live in NYC, you should try to catch the CMJ Music Marathon running from Oct 18-22. You can preview some of the featured bands on Spotify here: Spinner's Guide to CMJ 2011.
• NME in the UK created a Spotify list of the 150 best tracks of the past 15 years. 
• Take a behind-the-scenes look at Coldplay and their upcoming album courtesy of one of the best shows on television, CBS Sunday Morning.
• Here's a modern day take on reselling your records and CD's.
• A few weeks ago, our friends Fruit Bats and Vetiver performed a beautiful set on NPR's World Cafe.

Here are my picks for this week's Music Monday. You can access the playlist via Spotify here: GunBun Music Monday 2011

"Video Games" - Lana Del Rey
I posted the video for this song a few weeks ago. It's been viewed by over 2.5 million people so it's safe to say she has a hit on her hands. I find both the music and the visuals haunting. Lana is garnering a lot of buzz, and not all of it is positive. Some think she's getting all of the attention because of her "sexpot" looks vs. real talent. You can watch her tv debut to decide for yourself. 

"Days Are Forgotten" - Kasabian
A tarzan-like yell kicks off the hot new track from this perennial English rock band.

"The Sea" - Exitmusic
This husband and wife duo is opening on the road for one of my favorite bands, Phantogram. And after listening I can see why - they both share the same ethereal, electronic goodness. Fun fact: In addition to singing for Exitmusic, Aleska Palladino can be seen playing the character of Angela Darmody on HBO's Boardwalk Empire.

"Free" - Graffiti6
There's something about a love song - it strikes a cord in all of us. Even if you aren't "in love" at this very moment, you probably have been at some point in your life. A song like this one brings out those universal feelings with lines like, "It's hard to breath, when you're not near. But I can't lie here beside you, beside you, cuz' you steal my soul when you leave."

"Gold" - Delay Trees
I'm not sure what "Delay Trees" means, maybe it's lost in translation and it actually makes sense in the native language of this Finnish pop band. I came across this as a "Song of the Day" on NPR and I really enjoyed it. In fact, their entire album is worth a listen: Delay Trees.

"Boodbuzz Ohio" - Oh Land covering the National
An extra bonus song for you this week comes courtesy of SXSW darling Oh Land covering one of my favorite songs by The National. This song is not in the Spotify catalog but you can download it here and once it's on your computer, it will play in the playlist. Here's the original on Spotify: The National – Bloodbuzz Ohio. Who can't relate to the line, "I owe money, to the money, to the money I owe."?

Cheers, Lisa

Nobody Panic

The cool summer has delayed maturity of our grapes in Northern California. This year’s accumulated rainfall measures 3.72 inches halfway through October when normal year-to-date beginning July 1st is .37 inches. Headlines in Sonoma and Napa papers declare, “County’s grape crop threatened by unseasonable rains.” So the fervid emotions of growers and winemakers who wait all year for their harvest, only to see their success threatened by a force completely out of their control, are understandable.

At Gundlach Bundschu we have guided 153 previous consecutive harvests. We and those who have come before us have dealt with all that Mother Nature has presented, and with this experience has come a poetic sense of irony. For is it not true that part of the enjoyment of a good bottle of wine, upon reflection, is knowing that every year is not perfect and that every glass can not be legendary?

Our understanding of the wildness of wine, its unwillingness to become a cookie-cutter product, contributes to why we enjoy it so. We aim to produce the highest quality achievable for any vintage, and to appreciate it's individual uniqueness.

It takes effort in a year such as this. We have set our vineyard crew through the vines four extra times, anticipating back in July that harvest would be delayed due to the increasing threat of rain. From our long experience we know that we will sleep more soundly if we are proactive rather than just keeping our fingers crossed.

We pulled lower leaves of the northern side of the vines for more sunlight penetration and more air circulation shortly after bloom. This is a normal practice. But then in September we repeated the task, removing still more lower leaves. We then thinned out (translate— clip and throw on the ground) individual bunches which grew to touch other bunches. Just as leaves can block air circulation and enhance the threat of bunch rot, so too can one bunch of grapes block airflow and sunlight for another bunch, and the two growing together can act as a reservoir for raindrops, becoming Petri dishes for mold to grow.

The weather remained cool in early September so we again returned to the vines, this time to thin the crop again so each vine would be required to mature fewer bunches, again decreasing our yield per acre. Then in early October, when long range forecasters were predicting rain, we again turned out to yet again pull leaves, this time from the south side of each vine, something we rarely do because of the risk of sunburn to the berries. The risk of rain, however, far outweighed the risk of a heat wave this late in the growing season.

We are carefully sorting the fruit as it comes into the cellar under our winemaker's exacting eyes, and the Gewurztraminer, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are safely taking the next step in their journey towards your table.

We have yet to complete our 2011 harvest: we have yet to bring in Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Tempranillo. All are thicker-skinned varietals and less susceptible to bunch rot. To date, our extra efforts have assured us that when you finally receive your shipments of this challenging vintage, our wines will make all of us proud.

Salud amigos,
Jim

Music Monday

This is a picture of the birthday cake that my siblings and I gave to my dad for his 60th birthday. He has been an Apple disciple since the beginning and consequently, so have I. I can't remember a time in my life that didn't have some type of Apple product in it and I know that's true for most of you as well. That's why we all shared a collective sadness over the passing of Steve Jobs last week.

I have read a lot of the coverage on Steve Jobs' life and legacy and here are some of my favorite pieces:

• He wanted to get to know his kids before it was too late.
• He transformed not only the way we listen to music but the entire music industry itself. 
• Here's what Steve Jobs didn't do. 
• One reporter's regrets over the stolen iPhone controversy.
• As usual, The New Yorker cover captured it all perfectly.  

And this quote from his Stanford University Commencement address in 2005:

"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything -- all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart. ... Stay hungry. Stay foolish."

I hope that his spirit will live on in Apple and in all of us.

Here are my picks for this week's Music Monday (with a few extras thrown in since I couldn't post last week because I was sick with a horrible virus that came home with my daughter from school).

Access the playlist via Spotify here: GunBun Music Monday 2011

"Afternoon" - Youth Lagoon
It's hard to believe that all of this sound comes from just one person - Trevor Powers, a 22-year old from Boise, Idaho who records as Youth Lagoon.  

"Not Over You" - Gavin DeGraw
This song has a bit more "pop" to it than music that I'm usually drawn to but I like Gavin DeGraw. Or maybe I just feel bad for him because he recently endured an unprovoked severe beating on the street in NYC. I've actually been a fan of his since his debut album, Chariot.

"Cruel" - St. Vincent
St. Vincent's new album Strange Mercy was getting big buzz in the music blogosphere but when I listened to it, I originally felt sort of "meh" about it. Then I heard her perform live last week on our local radio station KCRW and it all changed for me. She is fabulous.

"Now That I'm Real (How Does It Feel?) - Chad Valley
I can't remember how I came across this track and there isn't a lot of info out there about the artist except that he's from the UK and his real name is Hugo Manuel and when he's not making electro-pop with the group Jonquil, he's doing it on his own as Chad Valley. 

"Bitter Heart" - Mason Jennings
I had never heard of Mason Jennings before coming across his latest album on Spotify but it turns out he's been making albums for almost fifteen years. His songs are simple but catchy.

"Ta Da" - Spank Rock
In the recent issue of Rolling Stone I noticed that the album Everything Is Boring and Everyone Is a Fucking Liar was big on the college radio station list. Intrigued by the album title, I checked it out and I really liked their sound. There are some other great tracks on the album including collaborations with Crystal Castles and Santigold.

"To Build A Home" - The Cinematic Orchestra
When I first listened to this track, I was taken with its sweeping, building melody and beautiful lyrics. And I was haunted by the song for some reason, I kept seeing flashes of images while I listened to it. A few days later it hit me; I had first heard it when I saw the movie Another Earth at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. The movie blew me away then and now the song brings me back to that feeling every time I listen to it.

"Stay Gone" - Tyler Ramsey
Mad props to Tyler Ramsey. I love this guy, he is an incredibly talented guitarist, songwriter and singer. I am used to hearing him play with Band of Horses but he has also released a few albums on his own. The Valley Wind is his latest solo effort and the entire album is worth a listen.

"Legend In My Own Mind" - The Stepkids
This group hails from Bridgeport, Connecticut and all three of the band members have toured individually with artists such as 50 Cent, Lauryn Hill and Alicia Keys. Their self titled debut album, The Stepkids, is a funky, groovy trip in a time machine.

"All Day" - Girl Talk
This track is NOT available on Spotify but you can download it for free here. It is, without a doubt, the most creative 71 minutes of music you'll hear in a long time. You should also watch the trailer for the video that is being created (with funds from Kickstarter) to accompany this genius mix. I'm telling you, the next time you have a party, all you have to do it cue it up and hit play. 

Until next week -Cheers, Lisa

2011 Heritage Pinot Noir in the Making

Jeff catches up with winemaker Keith Emerson as he received fruit from the oldest block of pinot noir on the property - the vines are older than Keith!

This fruit is destined to be made into our limited Heritage Selection Pinot Noir, available exclusively to members of our ROJo and CORCer lists.

New this year, the Heritage pinot grapes ferment in French oak puncheons. Check it out!