Foothill Wine Fest Awards

Foothill Wine Fest Awards

by | Mar 13, 2022 | Awards

Crystal Basin Cellars is pleased to announce that we have been recognized by the Foothill Wine Competition with 1 Double Gold and 6 Gold medals for the 2022 competition on the 2018 vintages of the following wines.

 

Double Gold Medal Winner

VICTORIE, “GRAND RESERVE”

VICTORIE

This mélange features the classic 3 Rhone varietals:

Grenache, Mourvedre and Syrah– all from El Dorado County vineyards.

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Gold Medal Winners

VICTORIE, “GRAND RESERVE”

TEMPRANILLO

Award winning Tempranillo wine from Crystal Basin Cellars is a plummy wine has depth, but is not over-extracted, making it great for dinners.

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VICTORIE, “GRAND RESERVE”

ZINFANDEL

Classic, bright Zinfandel with layers of berry and tobacco. Full Bodied with nice, long tannins and a lingering blackberry finish. Multiple Award Winner.

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VICTORIE, “GRAND RESERVE”

CABERNET SAUVIGNON

The tasty result is a wine more in a classic finished Napa style with oak elements that we typically don’t seek to accentuate in our Foothill Wine offerings.

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VICTORIE, “GRAND RESERVE”

SANGIOVESE

El Dorado ‘Reserve’ Sauber Vineyard presented Sangiovese. An Italian, Foothill favorite, featuring a spicy, round mouthfeel and soft tannins.

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VICTORIE, “GRAND RESERVE”

CAMPIONE

Campione is a Tuscan-style blend, with 80% Sangiovese, and 10% each of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Fruity, smooth, and velvety.

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VICTORIE, “GRAND RESERVE”

MALBEC

A brooding earthiness with soft tannins. Plum flavors and spice dominate a finish featuring a long and a mysterious spiciness. Perfect for steak dinner pairing.

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Foothill Wine Fest

Foothill Wine Fest

by | Mar 13, 2022 | The Road Show

The annual Foothill Wine Fest is returning on April 2, 2022. Join us at the Palladio in Folsom, CA from 5:00pm to 8:00pm for an evening of wine tasting and small bites. This large-scale tasting party features wines from over 50 wineries from the California foothills region. General admission ticket holders will receive a commemorative tasting glass, small bites, and free parking. Pricing for general admission is $65 per person or $110 for a couple.
Purchase Tickets Here

New in 2022 – VIP Experience

This year you can purchase a VIP experience for the Foothill Wine Fest. This includes a ticket to the festival, dinner at the Best of Show Winemakers Dinner on March 28th at Back Bistro, as well as early entrance to the festival to allow for ample time to converse directly with the winemakers.
Purchase Tickets Here
Foothill Wine Fest

Crystal Basin Cellars Awards from Foothill Wine Competition

The Foothill Wine Fest is just the afterparty. The main event took place in March 2022 at the Foothill Wine Competition where each of the wines were sampled, judged, and awards were given for the best wines. And guess what?? We won 6 Golds and 1 Double Gold, which will all be featured at the Foothill Wine Fest.
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International Karen Day

International Karen Day

by | Mar 11, 2022 | Cellar Events, Station Events

If there was EVER a day when you could talk to the District Manager – it would be
at Crystal Basin Cellars during International Karen Day. We’ve set aside a whole day for it.

Saturday
March 26, 2022

 

International Karen DayLook, we KNOW you have things to complain about. Bitterly. We do too. So, in our on-going efforts to provide important but underserved public services to our customers and fans, we are committed to providing guidance on this process. To help our customers comprehend the overall focus of Karen Day, we’ve created a handy-dandy flowchart. Don’t worry if it’s a bit detailed – our talented staff will be on hand to explain the steps to you to avoid complications.

International Karen Day

International Karen Day – March 26, 2022

As we said, we understand that you want to talk to our District Manager. AND we know your time is important. If you don’t want to have to wait to vent, we suggest you schedule your tasting below. That way we can ensure that they’re ready for you!
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Wine of the Month – Syrah

Wine of the Month – Syrah

by | Feb 28, 2022 | Wine of the Month

Syrah is an ancient grape variety that was naturally hybridized in the northern end of France’s Rhone Valley over 2,000 years ago from two obscure parent grapes. It’s the 7th most widely planted grape in the world – grown on all continents. It is regarded as one of the Noble Varieties*. A complex and flavorful wine with depth and power, Syrah was one of the two wine varieties that we wanted to explore when we founded Crystal Basin. Our best results were perhaps from our 2010 vintage, when we won Best of Class at the 2013 CA State Fair.

Our Syrah grapes come from two sites in El Dorado County – both at high altitude. Once is behind the Apple Mountain Golf Resort off Carson Road and the other is up Happy Valley Road in an especially remote location. We’ve also purchased a small amount of Syrah from Pleasant Valley since 1993 and there are times when that vineyard produces transcendent fruit. All these vineyards get ripe in mid-October and the pick point can be determined by how ‘slippery’ the grape skin is over the pulp and seeds of the grape.

Syrah Crystal Basin Cellars
Order Syrah

Wine of the Month

Every month we highlight one of our favorite wines. In March 2022, that’s our award winning Syrah. Join Mike Owens and Rex on the Radio McNeil as they demonstrate the wine of the month tastings you can expect this month.

Schedule Your
Wine of the Month
Syrah Vertical Tastings Below

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Syrah Blends

We use Syrah as a component of two of our Ascendance blends – our Victorie Rhone blend and our Xpealidocious SuperCalifornian. We also find a batch of Syrah from time to time that is worth of our Red Cap program, which is our Best of the Best. The process of blending these wines is like unwrapping presents under a Christmas tree! We hope you enjoy the results as much as we enjoy making our wines.

VICTORIE, “GRAND RESERVE”
Order Victorie
XPEALIDOCIOUS, “GRAND RESERVE”
Order Xpealidocious

Syrah Blends

Extra credit? Check this cool article about Noble Varieties and the range of wine flavors here: https://winefolly.com/lifestyle/the-18-noble-grapes-wine-challenge/
Meau-Fauxs in March

Meau-Fauxs in March

by | Feb 26, 2022 | Cellar Events, Station Events

Crystal Basin is always seeking to identify and honor innovative leadership. We’ve created a way for us all to recognize and celebrate truly unique folks on their respective birthdays. Each month, Crystal Basin will select three special Meau-Fauxs who have made an indelible mark on the world in their own way.

This moniker is not to be taken lightly. It takes a LOT to be a Meau-Faux. You have to get up early, stay up late, and in many specific cases, be able to party like a rockstar. We all know and recognize these personalities and what they stand for instantly. By calling our attention to these leaders, we hope you’ll be able to pull some essence of their spirit into you daily life. They are, quite simply, Meau-Fauxs.

 

For March –
We honor our third batch of amazing Meau-Fauxs for this year!

Neo – Thomas Anderson (from the Matrix)
March 11

As we celebrate Neo’s 60th birthday, we note the unfortunate fact that Neo was a frighteningly predictive Meau-Faux. He knew something was off. He wasn’t afraid to chase it down. He was willing to take a great personal risk to understand, challenge and ultimately best the horrifying Status Quo. He figured out how to beat the agents. He had a red pill – we have red wine. Pro Tip? Teach your kids to be like Neo.

Julio Gallo
March 21

Julio agreed to sell all of the wine his brother could make. His brother agreed to make all the wine Julio could sell. Julio turned this sibling rivalry into a Billion dollar company that dominates the wine market in the US. Perhaps even more remarkable is that he and his brother were able to arrange for the transfer of control of their business between generations to ensure its on-going success. He is a vinous Meau-Faux if one ever existed.

Vincent Van Gogh
March 30

Vincent van Gogh a famous Dutch painter who spent his creative years in Southern France, was a slightly crazy but talented Meau-Faux. He was able to describe his episodic fits on canvas visually and for all time. It proves that you don’t have to be popular or coherent to be a Meau-Faux. It shows that we all can aspire to be one! Pro Tip – Watch out for the Absinthe!

CBC Fans – It has been decreed, mandated and codified that on each of the birthdays of these storied Meau-Fauxs, CBC will be selling our Chateau Meau-Faux Red Blend and our Kougar Coolaid White Blend 1.5 liter pouch for $25. Phone in orders are acceptable, but we suggest that toasting one or more of these Meau-Fauxs at the winery on their birthdays may be just the ticket.

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Visit Us in Folsom