Copyright - 2011 Cucamonga Valley Vintners Coop
Cucamonga Valley Vintners Cooperative - The "CoOp"
2011 Chardonnay Harvest - Weaver Vineyard - Temecula 08/26/2011
2011 Chardonnay Crush & Press
Event 08/27/2011
2011 Spring Bottling Fest
On Saturday, May 21st, the Cucamonga Valley Vintners Cooperative (aka, "the CoOp") celebrated the completion of its fifth year of winemaking fun! Our 2011 Bottling Fest was a huge success, in large part due to the great turnout of both members and guests. Over 60 adults and 15 kids filled the Walker Estate back yard. We bottled just a bit more than 350 gallons of wine; more than enough for each of our members to take home their individual share of 5 cases of our great 2010 vintages.
On Saturday, May 21st, the Cucamonga Valley Vintners Cooperative (aka, "the CoOp") celebrated the completion of its fifth year of winemaking fun! Our 2011 Bottling Fest was a huge success, in large part due to the great turnout of both members and guests. Over 60 adults and 15 kids filled the Walker Estate back yard. We bottled just a bit more than 350 gallons of wine; more than enough for each of our members to take home their individual share of 5 cases of our great 2010 vintages.
This year we bottled Cucamonga Cabernet Franc, Cucamonga Zinfandel, and Temecula Chardonnay. Wine-lovers and enthusiasts gathered around three bottling stations, processing upwards of 1500 bottles of wine!
The day began for a few committed members who showed up at 8a.m. to help with setup, cleaning, and prep. By 10a.m., we were nearly ready to go, just shy a few tweaks until the pumps were turned on and the wines started flowing to the bottle fillers. By that time, upwards of 40 folks were on hand for a welcome from yours truly, an overview, some preliminary instruction, and announcements. By 10:20a.m., we were bottling!
A wonderful Mexican-style catered lunch was prepared on site by "Tacos El Cowboy," coordinated by member Martha Armbruster. Beverages and ice were provided by members Angel and Chris Capalbo, while member Cathi Bibeau served as our event treasurer. Thanks to all those who came early to help set up and to those who stay later to ensure that everything was clean and put away. And thanks to all of you who participated...I hope you enjoyed the experience!
I could go on and on, but the pictures that you will see at the following link tell much of the story. Many thanks to Jeff, friend of members Paul and Elaine Carney, who provided them for us!
Click:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/slideShow/Main.jsp?sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
Click:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/creativeapps/slideShow/Main.jsp?sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee
If any of you has pictures you can share, please let me know. If you can't post them online, I can get a thumb drive to you for transferring them to me.
It was truly a fabulous day, with great weather, great friends, new friendships made, and others fostered! There was great food, fun, and a lot of tasting of our "nouveau" wines. I hope those of you who attended feel the same. For those of you who missed it, well, we hope you can attend the next event!