Apr 2 – LODI!
My guest this week is Randy Caparoso, author of the newly released “LODI! – The definitive guide and history of America’s largest winegrowing region.”
Learn more about Randy
From the Foreword by Mike Dunne
(veteran wine journalist, Sacramento Bee and San Francisco Chronicle)
“Almost a fifth of California’s wine grapes are harvested at Lodi each fall, including more than a third of its Zinfandel and almost a third of its Cabernet Sauvignon. Yet, Lodi also is the country’s most underappreciated wine region as gauged by such standards as price, tourism and restaurant wine lists.
But this book will change that. Lodi! represents a rare and timely meeting of the right person in the right place at the right time. The author, Randy Caparoso, has lived in Lodi only a decade, marking him forever as a newcomer in an enclave where grape-growing and winemaking families often go back four or five generations.
But with a relentless curiosity, a knack for fluid and vibrant story-telling, and a talent for capturing photos worth twice the customary 1000 words, Randy has used his time wisely, drilling deep into Lodi’s wine culture — its history, challenges, personalities, pivotal place in California and accelerating evolution into the state’s most surprising and exciting grape-growing and winemaking territory. So eager was Randy to discover Lodi that when he moved there he lived his first five years in a cottage in the middle of a vineyard.
Lodi! is a logical outgrowth of Randy’s role as freelance blogger and social-media director for the Lodi Winegrape Commission. Over the past 10 years he has churned out a steady stream of enlightening and entertaining posts, photos, speeches and articles, all about Lodi’s vineyards and wines. With the speed and sharp eye of an owl patrolling a vineyard, he has used that perch for ready access to the sites, archives and key players that define Lodi as a fine-wine region, and now has assembled what he has gleaned into one smooth and authoritative narrative.” Follow Randy on Facebook & Twitter. Check out his photos on Instagram
This book is one of the finest wine region books ever! I have a bunch of wine books from all over the globe and for most every wine region of note. I can’t overemphasize the completeness of every aspect of this book. Beautiful photography, explicit graphics and in-depth history of this vast American Viticultural Area in addition to the people and grapes that made it famous! Order your copy, pick up a couple of Lodi wines at your local wine merchant and spend an evening with this book, you’ll be hooked and it will take you a week or three to digest all it has to offer.
Cheers,
Good Life Guy’s Wine of the Week:
2019 Michael David Winery “Freakshow Zinfandel – The Fire Mistress”
Adding a softer, sexier side to Michael David’s band of Freaks, this medium bodied Zin spotlights wild berry and coffee aromas while flirting with notes of peppery spice. Flavors of black cherry, dark chocolate and sweet tobacco amaze the tongue with a fruit-forward, tantalizing finish. ABV15.5% 17 months in mostly American oak.
Freakshow Zinfandel is the third installment in the Freakshow lineup, following a Cabernet Sauvignon and a Red Blend. The Dazzling Fire Mistress pays homage to the wineries roots in Lodi, a region known for exceptional Zinfandel. Typically known as a bold varietal, Freakshow Zin shows the softer, sexier side of Lodi Zin, focusing on the distinctive bright fruit and spice characteristics for which our heritage varietal is known. Learn more here 😉
Grab a bottle or two at Jacob Liquor Exchange and join us!
