What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Milwaukee Brewers themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Brewers fan? The Milwaukee Brewers are named for the industry that made their city famous – and it definitely wasn't winemaking. When new owner Bud Selig rescued the bankrupt Seattle Pilots and brought them to Milwaukee after their 1969 debut season, he deliberately named the team for the brewers that create the city's well-known beers. Milwaukee baseball fans were thrilled to have a team once again (the Milwaukee Braves had moved to Atlanta after the 1965 season), and were especially pleased when Selig added popular, talented players like Hank Aaron, Paul Molitor and Robin Yount to the Brewers' roster. The Brewers' first few seasons were, predictably, less than stellar, but by the late 1970s the team was winning consistently, thanks to the efforts of Yount, Molitor, Ben Ogilvie, Cecil Cooper and several other strong players. In the strike year of 1981, the Brewers made it to the shortened American League Division Series, but lost to the Yankees. The next year, the Brewers were back, ready to finish what they had begun the previous season. They made it all the way to the 1982 World Series before losing to the St. Louis Cardinals, despite the excellent work of players like Pete Vuckovich and Robin Young.

I keep my wine cabinet at home generously stocked with Cabernet Sauvignon. And not always, but probably more than 50% of the time, when a special occasion calls for a special bottle of wine, it’s cabernet that I’m reaching for. Now, lovers of other varietals, please don’t be offended. I too, love my pinots and barbaras, my chardonarys and sauvignon blancs, zins and merlots, malbecs and granach…but there is just something so decadent, so elegant, and frankly so delicious about a cabernet. Perhaps it’s the association that cabernet has with another of my favorite consumables…a finely cooked steak. Together, the two can perform miracles. Now, I have to admit that I initially paired the two out a sense of conformity…after all the old saying goes Red Wine with Red Meat. Growth in both food & wine experience has gotten me more than comfortable throwing that rule out the window, but perhaps at the extremes, there is some merit there. While there are many red/white combos what work splendidly, I have to admit that I’m not often pulling out a pinot grigio to drink with my ribeye, gratin potatoes, and creamed spinach. There are very legitimate reasons cabernet sauvignon and steak go so well together, for me, two are key:

Jerry Lohr is considered one of the pioneers of California Central Coast wines. In the late 1960s, he began investigating grape growing regions while searching for the ideal location for a vineyard. Raised on a South Dakota farm, his research led him to the Central Coast. He originally planted 280 acres in Monterey County in 1972 and unveiled his San Jose winery the following year. In 1987, he planted Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and other red varietals in San Luis Obispo County’s then little-known Paso Robles region. Today, in addition to over 1,300 acres in Monterey County, J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines farms 2,300 acres of estate vineyards in Paso Robles, and 35 acres in the Napa Valley, and has tasting rooms in Paso Robles and San Jose. J. Lohr wines are available throughout the United States and in over 30 countries globally. In 2007, U.C. Davis honored Jerry with its Award of Distinction, and in 2008 he was named Wine Industry Person of the Year by the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance. There are over 6,000 bonded wineries in the U.S. from every state in the nation (not to mention fierce competition from abroad). Is the U.S. wine business currently saturated? I am very supportive of evermore wineries. More wineries mean more locations where people can have a wine experience. People always take pride in their local wine. Wine tourism has the best multiplier effect of any agricultural product. Anyone having a good wine experience then passes it on to friends. Word of mouth is great.

With more than 30 years of winemaking experience behind him behind him, David Hopkins still visits vineyards and winegrowers every week to taste grapes and begin to formulate his blends, something he has become well known for. An avid surfer and scuba diver, Hopkins oversees the 105 acre estate at Bridlewood Winery crafting blends and wines from the California Central Coast with fruit from Santa Barbara to Monterey County. What prompted you to pursue winemaking as a career? If not winemaking, what path would you have chosen and where do you think you would be right now? I happened upon winemaking somewhat accidentally. One Friday afternoon at Fresno State, my microbiology class ended early and my lab partner asked me if I wanted to help him rack wine barrels at the student winery. Four hours later, I emerged from the winery completely enthralled with the experience I just had. Monday morning, I was standing in front of the Enology department’s chairman asking him how to get a job in the wine industry. I think it was the unique combination of agriculture, food science and the art of wine tasting that really drew me into the world of wine, and I haven’t looked back since. If I had not agreed to help my lab partner that day, I would have likely pursued a career in floriculture, specifically in studying tissue culture for orchid production.

Ash Hollow Estate Vineyards and Winery is a boutique winery focusing on producing ultra-premium quality wines. Located in the Walla Walla Washington Wine Country, they offer a fun take on wine during this Halloween season that can be enjoyed year round. IntoWine recently caught up with Spencer Siever, Winemaker and Jennifer Gregory, General Manager from Ash Hollow to discuss winemaking and current trends. Spencer Sievers, Winemaker: Ash Hollow Ash Hollow Estate Vineyards and Winery What prompted you to pursue winemaking as a career? I was working at an illegal restaurant in Lawrence, KS and was introduce to some of the great wines of the world. I'd always been a big fan of wine, but it was a bottle of Penfolds Grange that really blew my mind. After some traveling with my family, we decided to try living in Portland for a bit, where I bought half a ton of grapes to ferment on my apartment. I fell in love!

Chef William S. Bloxsom-Carter has worked as the Executive Chef, and Food and Beverage Director for the Playboy Mansion West for over two and half decades. A frequent wine judge he constantly looks for wines to pair with his foods for the multitude of foods he presents to guest at the Mansion; this can mean an intimate dinner party of 12, or upwards of 1,200 people. Complementing his responsibilities for Playboy Enterprises, Chef Carter has prepared winery dinners in Sonoma County, Napa Valley, Paso Robles and the Santa Ynez Valley as well as special events for high-profile clients throughout the United States, focusing on the importance of food and wine pairings and extraordinary hospitality service. Additionally, Chef Carter is a recurring featured guest on numerous radio shows syndicated nationwide describing and promoting California wines and foods. You routinely plan food from appetizers to entrees for up to thousands of guests at the Playboy Mansion. With so many people, is it ever difficult to pair wines with the diverse variety of foods you prepare? When I’m evaluating and selecting wines for events, I take copious notes based on flavor profile, nose, finish, integration/body, visual clarity and any perceptible flaws. Depending on the demographic for an event dictates the food and wine selections. Like with food, seasonality also plays an important role when selecting wines. At the Playboy Mansion, I have the liberty to create and select food and wine based on many variables. Some may look at it as a challenge; I look at it as a way to offer every guest an impeccable hospitality experience based on the bounties of the harvest.

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Tampa Bay Rays themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Rays fan? Florida's Tampa Bay Rays are one of Major League Baseball's youngest teams. They played their first season in 1998, as part of an expansion that also included the Arizona Diamondbacks. Originally named the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the team dropped the "Devil" from its name in 2008 and adopted a new logo with a yellow sunburst emanating from the word "Rays," which appears in blue. Interestingly, that very season, the team's fortunes began to improve drastically. In 2007, the Devil Rays finished last in their division. In 2008, the renamed Rays won their division and went all the way to the World Series, where they lost to the Philadelphia Phillies.

Wines to Go Buy This Week: A Carneros Pinot Noir by Truchard and a South African Bordeaux Style Red by the (barely pronounceable) MR Mvemve Raats. As frequent IntoWine readers know, in November we are launching our own wine club, The IntoWine Club , in partnership with the California Wine Club (more info on the club here if you are interested). While there are a lot of moving parts, how it works is that the folks at California Wine Club ship me wine samples that are being considered for future club shipments and then I provide feedback and such about the wines that will be included in those shipments. Recently I received my first batch of samples and, let me tell you, I am thrilled about the quality of the wines. I simply can not wait for our club to launch in November. With this in mind, I give you this week's installment of "Wines to Go Buy This Week": Truchard Pinot Noir 2006 - Was going to wait to recommend this until our IntoWine Club launch the first week of November but I'm gonna let the cat out of the bag early. This Truchard Pinot Noir is one of the wines being considered and I could not be more pleased to share the news that this wine is going to be in the inaugural IntoWine Club shipment. So what about the wine itself? For me a tell-tale sign of a good wine is that it is delicious and easy to drink from the first sip to the very last and always leaves you wanting more . The Truchard Pinot Noir passes that test with flying colors. From the Carneros region of Napa, Truchard Pinot Noir is an ideal wine for anyone curious about discovering Northern California Pinot Noir. It's also reasonably priced at approx $35 retail. "Reasonable" is relative of course as some might say $35 for a wine is outrageously expensive. For a quality Carneros Pinot though, this is priced more than fairly as you can certainly pay much more than this for a similar wine. As for the IntoWineClub, you can sign up here if you are interested.

What's an appropriate wine to serve at a Washington Nationals themed party? What wine would be a good gift for a hard core Nationals fan? The Washington Nationals may not be the newest team in Major League Baseball – that honor is shared by the Tampa Bay Rays and the Arizona Diamondbacks – but when Liván Hernández threw the Nationals' first pitch on April 5, 2005, the team left its past behind forever. The team first formed in 1969 as the Montreal Expos, but when the Expos moved to Washington, DC after the 2004 season ended, they quickly and wisely embraced their future in the U. S. capital, donning patriotic red, white and blue and displaying the signature "Curly W" everywhere. In return, Washingtonians enthusiastically embraced them, building a classy new ballpark and patiently waiting out the team's rebuilding efforts.

Wines to Go Buy This Week: An "Italian-fusion" California Red by Bargetto and Tahbilk Marsanne, a deliciously rare single varietal white. This past weekend we filmed the latest round of IntoWineTV videos (the first video will be live in about a week, we're moving away from wine reviews to wine discussions. Sort of a wine version of The View if you will). As is typical when we film IntoWineTV, the cast and crew had the luxury of indulging in many fantastic wines. Heck these shoots have almost become an excuse for everyone involved to share their latest wine faves. Over the course of the weekend I discovered two wines that made me do a double take and which are the basis for this week's "Wines to Go Buy This Week": La Vita, Bargetto Family Estate, Santa Cruz Mountains, 2006 - This wine arrived in a recent California Wine Club Signature Series shipment (and kudos to CWC as yet again they delivered a hit. I love the Signature Series.). La Vita is an unusual California red blend in that it is made from the traditionally Italian varietals of Dolcetto, Refosco, and Nebbiolo. Traditionalists may scoff at the notion of a California producer making its version of an Italian red -I'm just waiting for someone to complain that this wine has "no sense of place" - but the end result is a delicious wine that reflects qualities of both California and Italy. If this were a restaurant this wine would be labeled "Italian fusion". No it's not authentic or traditional but it is delicious, unique, and well worth a try (though at $60 a bottle, it's hardly a value buy). Buy Bargetto La Vita