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With winery tasting rooms temporarily closed due to California’s statewide shelter-in-place order, wine drinkers may be looking for new ways to connect with their favorite wineries. The state’s winemakers have responded with a variety of virtual offerings that bring California wine country straight to consumers. These experiences include educational seminars, live tastings and cooking demos to help you pass the time until winery doors re-open.
You can find all 80+ virtual initiatives on the Discover California Wines events page. Search by date, keyword or your favorite region to find what interests you, or check out the selection of experiences below.
Virtual Tastings
Belden Barns is hosting weekly “Wine & Wishes” virtual tastings that feature bottlings from the Sonoma County winery’s portfolio. In a fun twist, the winemakers explore how the wines’ flavors change when paired with random items from their pantry, like beans, peanut butter and boxed mac and cheese. Register on Zoom for sessions occurring each Sunday at 5pm PDT through May 24.
Each Wednesday on Instagram Live, Tablas Creek Vineyard in Paso Robles is providing an inside look into the happenings at the producer’s vineyard and winery through interviews with staff members and celebrities.
El Dorado Wines has launched a new video series called El Dorado Edge that invites viewers to dive into the El Dorado wine region. Tune in Monday evenings at 7pm PDT on Facebook Live to learn about the styles and varietals that make up the different sub-regions within the area. El Dorado is also hosting a variety of other virtual tastings and events with local winemakers from the region.
On May 2, the Anderson Valley Winegrowers Association is organizing a free Zoom seminar on the region’s history, terroir and wines. The class will be moderated by local sommelier Corrina Strauss and will feature a panel of expert guests.
Cooking Demos
On April 23, Stacey Combs, executive chef at Sonoma’s Ram’s Gate Winery, will show you how to cook braised short ribs with creamy polenta. Naturally, there will be wine pairings. Register for the Zoom session here, and you’ll receive an advance list of wines and ingredients, should you like to cook the dish yourself.
On April 24, Kendall-Jackson Winemaster Randy Ullom and Executive Chef Justin Wangler are partnering with Wine.com to host an interactive virtual tasting and cooking demonstration. It will feature three recipes from the winery’s cookbook, plus a walkthrough of fan-favorite wines: the Kendall-Jackson Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, as well as the Grand Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.
Acclaimed chefs Charlie Palmer and Scott Romano are hosting the Pigs & Pinot Tutorial Series every Thursday at 1pm PDT on Instagram Live. The cooking demonstration includes wine pairings from a rotating lineup of Sonoma County winemakers. April 23 features a pork parmesan-rosemary waffle sandwich with the 2017 Bucher Vineyard Pinot Noir, while April 30 features coffee-charred pork tenderloin with the 2015 Gary Farrell Gap’s Crown Vineyard Pinot Noir.
Each Sunday at 3pm PDT, J Vineyards & Winery is hosting live cooking demonstrations on Instagram Live with the winery’s executive chef, Carl Shelton. Head over to their Instagram page to follow along.