I have been living in Bordeaux studying for my Masters in Vineyard and Winery Management. While I'm here, I have had the opportunity to see a number of our former interns. Some of them are working in the wine industry, while others visit Bordeaux for vacation. I've enjoyed dinners with them, worked for one and even run into another on the streets. Alexander Valley can feel far away, but anytime I see one of them, I feel instantly at home. It's been very fun to continue the friendships with them - some for over two decades. 

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Before bottling any wine, we hold cork trials to determine which corks we will purchase. It's a time-consuming process. We request samples from a number of different cork manufacturers. Our goal is to decide which corks are the most neutral in aroma. It can be very difficult to differentiate between samples. This is why the cork trials are a group effort - Sarah, Ricardo and I each smell and rate the corks, hoping that we come to a similar consensus. Learn more about the process in my article. 

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The Holidays are busy here at Hafner Vineyard so Mary, my wife and co-founding partner, always planned a Holiday lunch for the winery team...in January. Carrying on her tradition, we gathered last Thursday to have a glass of wine (or two), enjoy a warm fire in the potbelly stove on a cold, wet Winter day and have lunch together. We always enjoy spending time together as the Hafner Vineyard Family and sharing stories of the Holiday excitement. It's a moment to take a breath and appreciate the hard work that we all accomplished throughout the year. 

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We also enjoy receiving photos from patrons. Typically those images capture a delicious dinner or a family gathering with Hafner wine on the table. Occasionally though, we hear from patrons who have enjoyed the wine and also have found a creative use for the left over packaging. From birdhouses and herb boxes to storage containers and cork boards, we love seeing our packaging have a second purpose. Here we share a few of our favorites, including one patron who converted our box into a pinhole camera to view the eclipse! As we strive to reduce our footprint, we are grateful that many of you have found another use for the boxes, corks and more. Thanks for sharing the photos! 

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The concept of food and wine pairing can be intimidating, but in reality it can be as complex or as simple as you want. I prefer to have it be simple. That is why I thought it would be fun to create a "Food and Wine Pairing" Cootie Catcher. It includes eight different pairings that we often enjoy in our home. In this article, you can download your own cootie catcher, cut it out and hopefully put it to good use. I thought it would be fun for Holiday gatherings or as a stocking stuffers. Enjoy!

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