Wine Tributaries
by Tim Hayes & John Koetzner

In our field of wine, technological breakthroughs in the production of fine wines has produced consistently better wines over the past couple decades. But from a personal standpoint, this century has provided us with a platform through "Wine Tributaries" and the Healdsburg Tribune to share our thoughts and ideas and receive thoughts and ideas from our readers.

Holidays such as Christmas and New Year's Day often remind us how fortunate we are to be surrounded by the ones we love and it is also when we catch up with telling our friends how precious they are to us. Even though we each have more than twenty years in the wine business, we continue to make friends with folks who have a common bond in agriculture and the wine industry.

Now that we have completed our second year doing "Wine Tributaries," we would like to thank some of the people who have helped us along in our wine education over the years.

So here we go. We need to thank Rich Thomas, who taught viticulture to us several decades ago at Santa Rosa Junior College and admitted us to the ranks of judges for the amateur division at the Sonoma County Harvest Fair. Another longtime influence who deserves our thanks is Joe Vercelli, who taught us not only how to evaluate wine, but to have a romance with it. Back when we were practically kids at Souverain Joe taught us that hard work, laughter, and perseverance would take you far in the wine industry and in life, one of our best-learned lessons.

Another important inspiration has been Millie Howie, for establishing herself with the Tribune for all the years that she wrote the wine column for which we now carry the torch. We also want to thank Bev and Tom Reeves at the Tribune for recognizing the need for ongoing wine coverage at a local level.

Our list could go on and on for people who have made it possible for us to keep you informed about our local wine industry. It includes winemakers we were able to interview and with whom we have had the opportunity to taste wines with over the past couple years. Some of these folks include Zelma Long, Dave Rafanelli, Shelly Rafanelli, Kristi Koford, Ed Killian, Dave Demostene, Steve Sommer, Forrest Tancer, Bill Myers, Julia Iantosca, David Coffaro, Ted Seghesio, Mike Loykasek, and a host of others.

Besides local winery folks there were also retailers such Root and Eastwood and Bassi Liquors that have provided us with quotes when we were covering a topic that went beyond the vineyards or wineries.

There have been also been growers like Tim Murphy and Ron Pourroy who have responded to our surveys. Or, there is our friend Jackie Wilferd of wines.com who continues to keep us posted with the latest wine news and reviews. She keeps us abreast of the Internet wine community around the world. There are really too many people to mention all of you, but you know who you are and please accept our sincere thanks for all your support.

Yet, we need to acknowledge numerous winery associations that have invited us to participate in events that have given us material that leads to columns also. The Sonoma County Wineries Association has been a tremendous source of information and has been a great supporter of our coverage for the annual Sonoma County Showcase of Food & Wine.

It was the proceeds from the first showcase and auction (started by the Healdsburg Kiwanis Club) that started the funding for our own Sonoma County Wine Library. It is located in the Healdsburg branch of our public library. Both the library and Wine Librarian Bo Simons are a local link to the pulse of the wine industry in Sonoma County.

If it were not for our local wineries, and especially the Russian River Wine Road Association, we would have little to talk about and less to review in our columns. A special thank you goes out to each of these wineries that have sent us wine samples to review and talk about. We are proud to tout and taste the quality of the world class wines that you produce.

Then, there are the smaller more localized associations such as the Alexander Valley Winegrowers, Winegrowers of Dry Creek Valley, and the Sonoma County Grape Growers Association that have also supported our efforts to keep you informed of winery events and issues.

We also need to thank a larger organization, the Wine Institute in San Francisco, which continues to lead the fight and to lobby for winery and vineyard interests in Washington while keeping all the media updated on the progress.

Most importantly, we want to thank the numerous readers who have read our column and taken the time out by phone or mail, or stopped us while shopping in Safeway or Big John's, just to say you enjoyed our articles. Such positive reinforcement from readers is a constant source of inspiration and pleasure for us. You remind us what is special about Sonoma County.

So as we usher in the new Millennia, we raise our glass in thanks to all the great people who contributed in enriching our lives. Have a safe and happy holiday season.

© 1999 by Tim Hayes & John Koetzner. All Rights Reserved. Wine Tributaries is hosted by Wines on the Internet.