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Rodney can't close out Rangers in ninth
Mariners allow pair of two-out runs as Felix misses out on fourth win
ARLINGTON -- Felix Hernandez's troubles in Texas continued on Wednesday in a 3-2 loss to the Rangers, but the Mariners ace can't kick himself for this one.
Hernandez hasn't beaten his American League West rivals in their own park since his final start in 2010, but that string was all but snapped until the Rangers rallied for two unearned runs off closer Fernando Rodney in the bottom of the ninth at Globe Life Park.
Hernandez outdueled Rangers star Yu Darvish for seven innings, coming out of the game with a 2-0 lead and a runner on third with no outs in the eighth. The Mariners still led 2-1 after that runner scored, but the wheels came off in the ninth when Rodney gave up a two-out single and a walk and shortstop Brad Miller booted a routine grounder that would have ended things.
Miller recovered, but his underhand lob to second for the force was high and the Rangers proceeded to pull out the win with a bases-loaded wild pitch by Rodney for the tying run and then a walk-off single to left by Leonys Martin.
"That sucks," Miller said in a quiet clubhouse. "Everybody did their part but me, so that's tough. I just have to make that play next time. Everybody played their butts off and it came down to me and I messed it up."
Hernandez allowed just one run on four hits with one walk and nine strikeouts in seven-plus frames, with the no-decision leaving him 3-0 with a 1.91 ERA.
"After he turns in that outing right there, you want to seal the deal for him," said catcher Mike Zunino. "He did everything in his power to get us to that spot and it's unfortunate we couldn't. Hopefully next time he has a start like that, we can turn it in for him."
Hernandez breezed through seven shutout innings before manager Lloyd McClendon pulled him following a leadoff triple in the eighth by Martin on his 96th pitch of the night.
Hernandez had retired 10 in a row to that point and hadn't given up a hit since the third, but McClendon said his ace told him he was wearing down before heading back out for the eighth.
"I had talked to him before he went out and he said he thought he had a little bit left in the tank," McClendon said. "But he got that fastball up and started to lose his location a little bit. And he said he was pretty much out of gas."
Hernandez acknowledged it's hard to come out of any game and he was fuming at himself after giving up the triple. But he said he and McClendon were on the same page.
"I just made one mistake in the game and it was that fastball to Leonys," Hernandez said.
Rangers pinch-hitter Michael Choice drove in that run with a sacrifice fly off Charlie Furbush before Texas won it in the ninth with the two unearned runs off Rodney. It was Rodney's first blown save in four chances for Seattle, but he's now lost three of his last five save opportunities against Texas.
This one came after he'd gotten what should have been the final out, however.
"Rodney did a great job for us," McClendon said. "It's unfortunate we made the error there, but that's baseball. Those things happen. Over the course of a 162-game schedule, you're going to win your share of those and lose your share of them. When you're on the losing end, it never feels good. But like I told my guys, turn the page and get ready for tomorrow."
The Rangers were just glad to get Hernandez out of the game and rally for their fourth walk-off win of the season as they improved to 8-7.
"Yu pitched well and Felix pitched really well," said Donnie Murphy, who reached base on Miller's critical miscue. "It was nice to be able to take advantage of Felix coming out of the game and stealing that one."
Wednesday's performance was significant for Hernandez, coming against a Rangers team that has troubled him in the past. Hernandez was 0-4 with a 7.57 ERA in five starts against Texas last year and 12-20 with a 4.18 ERA in 39 previous starts in his career.
"They've got my number, so I had to throw a good game," Hernandez said. "I was really concentrating on trying to make good pitches. I didn't change anything, I just attacked the strike zone. Against the Texas Rangers, you've got to be like that. You have to be on top. I'm facing a good pitcher so I've got to put zeros up, too."
Darvish hadn't allowed a run in 15 innings over his first two starts of the season, but the Mariners got him twice in the second inning.
Nick Franklin tripled to right center in his first at-bat at designated hitter after being recalled from Triple-A Tacoma earlier in the day. The 23-year-old then scored on Zunino's base hit to center and Abraham Almonte followed with an RBI single of his own.
That turned out to be the only damage done against Darvish, who went seven innings and allowed seven hits with two walks and eight strikeouts. The 27-year-old right-hander is 1-0 with a 0.82 ERA in three starts this season.
"That's pretty much what you expect when you have two guys like that on the hill," Zunino said of the low-scoring duel. "They both did their jobs and unfortunately we couldn't finish it off today."
The Mariners fell to 7-7 with the loss and have dropped two of three to the Rangers in a four-game set that wraps up Thursday afternoon.


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Real-world data reveal a diagnostic gap in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
BACKGROUND: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common cause of liver disease worldwide. It affects an estimated 20% of the general population, based on cohort studies of varying size and heterogeneous ...

subset: commoncrawl


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OCEAN CITY – After a few days spent in New Orleans last
week, city officials are now back in town putting to use the knowledge and
information they gathered at the 2007 National Hurricane Conference.
The five-day event began on the April 2 and plays host to
approximately 2,000 government officials, meteorologists, emergency personnel,
rescue workers and others. The purpose of the conference is to improve
hurricane preparedness, response, recovery and mitigation in order to save
lives and lessen property damage.
This includes the showcasing of state-of-the-art programs
currently used by municipalities, speeches from well-known individuals in the
field, such as hurricane guru William Gray, about new ideas currently being
tested, and seminars and workshops on a variety of assistance programs and
other essential tools.
By doing all of this in one place, the event becomes a
type of forum where officials from all levels of government are able to
exchange ideas and experiences that will help further the improvement of
managing serious disasters, something Ocean City takes very seriously being
that its location along the mid-Atlantic region makes it so susceptible to
mother nature.
For Councilwoman Mary Knight, this was her first time
attending the National Hurricane Conference, something she said was an
educational experience. Having been in New Orleans nine years ago on business,
Knight said it definitely was not the same place.
"Besides the devastation, what struck me was the different
energy," she said. "It just wasn't the same kind of town, the same kind of
Knight went on to say city officials took a three-hour
tour of some of the hardest hit areas such as the Ninth Ward and Saint
Bernard's Parish, places where FEMA trailers still litter the landscape,
allowing officials a moment of comfort knowing that Ocean City has achieved so
much in the past 30 years with its building codes that help ensure minimal
losses during a disaster.
The most valuable thing Knight said she took away from the
trip was the fact that a long-term plan is essential, not only for surviving a
disaster, but for recovering from one, because when it comes time for receiving
aid, those with the best laid plans will have a better chance to put those
plans to use.
"One thing is we are a fiscally responsible city and we
have money on hand where as some cities live check by check and don't have the
extra revenue when a storm hits," she explained. "Having that money, we get the
services and help we need because we are fiscally responsible and that is
absolutely crucial."
Councilman Jay Hancock, who attended for his third time,
said the conference provided lots of insight into what the town needs to be
aware of as it prepares for the potential of a hurricane or even the effects of
Nor'easters, something this region is familiar with as well.
"Some programs are not as strong as others but what you
get as a whole is really invaluable," he said.
Hancock said he also noticed how some of the energy seems
gone despite the fact that some places have already rebuilt and reopened, which
gave him a bit of insight into the aftereffects of a disaster.
"They are still in the process of rebuilding their tourist
trade which is something Ocean City can learn from," he said. "While you may be
in the recovery process, your recovery isn't going to be necessarily rapid."
With a weak tourist industry comes less revenues, and with
less revenues comes a lengthier recovery process, a cycle that accentuates the
importance of being a financially responsible town.
Hancock also said he took away a lot of other information
regarding establishing strong communications, taking care of essential
employees and service workers who will have to remain in the town to ensure the
safety of others, and other "food for thought that is crucial for gearing up
for a storm," such as all of the invaluable first-hand accounts provided by
those who have already experienced these types of situations.
Another important individual for the town attending the
conference was Joe Theobald, director of emergency services.
"It gives those who have never seen the devastation an
eyewitness account for what can take place and that helps reinforce the role of
the government," he said about having the conference in an area that is still
feeling the effects of Hurricane Katrina.
Theobald said he attended a few of the workshops but the
real information came from working with those with first-hand experience.
"That's what it's all about," he said. "Learning and
reinforcing what you learn and getting the information out to the public should
something take place."
Once he has the information he needs, Theobald said his
job is to then become the teacher.
"My biggest role is educating the public and keeping them
prepared," he said. "The sun can be shining and when we say it's time to leave,
heed our warning because we are doing it for a reason. I'd rather the sun be
shining and we make a mistake instead of not being prepared."
City Manager Dennis Dare, a seasoned veteran of the
National Hurricane Conference, said this year's conference was much more
valuable since officials were given the opportunity to hear from some of the
communities that were affected by hurricanes and it provides them with a lot of
things to plan and be prepared for.
"As one of the speakers said, eliminate the word 'if,' with 'when.' Don't say if you get hit, say when you get hit by a
hurricane," Dare explained. "I think that's a good attitude to have. You have
to be prepared to minimize the impact."
The event offered city officials a chance to speak
one-on-one with emergency response agencies and similar companies, Dare said,
something that's invaluable when it's the lives of your residents you are
trying to protect.
One example he reported was the chance to speak to two
different companies who specialize in warning residents by automatically
calling everyone in a specified area to advise them of a coming storm. Dare
said he was able to easily compare the two to decide which would work better in
Ocean City.
"During the summer, 90 percent of the people here are
nonresidents," he said. "It would be great if we had a way to communicate with
them better and that's what we are working toward."
The most important thing Dare said he learned was exactly
what Knight mentioned before, and that's having a long-term plan with funds on
reserve to put that plan into motion.
"We've historically tried to keep 10 percent of our
general fund in a savings account as an emergency fund, but I'm not sure that's
sufficient anymore," he said.
With all the information he gathered at the conference
this year, Dare said he plans on rethinking that fund by taking into account
everything from the payroll of emergency personnel operating during a crisis to
the private contractors that will have to be hired to help with any cleanup.
"What we didn't think about is that revenue won't be
coming in like it was before a storm," he said. "I intend to do some analyzing
to see if we should be looking at a larger fund balance for that response so
that it can be quicker and more complete."
When asked if Ocean City would be prepared for a potential
disaster, all agreed they believe the town is in a good place.
Hancock said he thinks the town is pretty well prepared despite
the variables that need to be considered in a resort town. It's during the peak
of the season, when so many fill the resort that things become complicated,
especially if the weather is pleasant just before a storm hits and people fail
to react to warnings.
"That's going to be the biggest challenge for us initially
is getting the people to respond," he said. "You can have the best planning and
people will turn a deaf ear to it and make the situation that much more
Theobald said education will be crucial but after every
year that passes, the town becomes more and more prepared.
"We've had a better opportunity to work with those
communities impacted and our plan is in place but it's an ongoing process," he
said. "Our goal this year is to get out and talk with the public to make sure
families have a plan in place as well."
Dare said it was the Mayor and City Councils of the past
that have helped prepare the town since the 1970s by establishing a building
limit line along the beach and requiring reinforced foundations for waterfront
"There is no other community on the east coast with a
building requirement like we have," he said.
Since these measures have been in place for so long, Dare
said the resort would suffer minimal property loss. However, property is only
one part of the equation, an insignificant part when compared with the lives of
lot of things people need to be prepared for themselves," he added.


text:
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text:
SKF receives 2013 Quality Gold award from Yamaha
2014 April 09, 14:00 CEST
Gothenburg, Sweden, 09 April, 2014: SKF has received Yamaha Motor Company's Quality Gold Award in recognition for outstanding performance in 2013 for quality, delivery, service and supplier response management
Harsha Kadam, Director Business Unit Two Wheelers, SKF Automotive says, "The team and I are very happy and proud to receive this prestigious award. SKF has been working with Yamaha for many years now. Our close cooperation and engineering partnership have been very rewarding. We have supported Yamaha by developing more efficient deep groove ball bearings to improve the performance in the engine, transmission and wheels of the motorcycles and scooters. This award is clear recognition of our focus on excellence to satisfy our customers' needs and requirements."
"SKF has been a key supplier for us in our development work for more efficient motorcycles and scooters. We want our customers to enjoy riding and owning their Yamaha. To fulfill their passion and dreams is our ambition. Working with SKF, as our engineering partner, is very satisfying. SKF helps contribute to our customers' satisfaction. We look forward to continued success working together," says Mr. Sanjeev Paul, Head of Materials, Yamaha
Yamaha is one of the world's leading motorcycle producers. SKF has been working with Yamaha Motor Corporation since 1997.
Aktiebolaget SKF
For further information, please contact:
Monique Turner, SKF Group Communications, +1 267 436 6836; +1 215 801 8722 email@example.com
SKF is a leading global supplier of bearings, seals, mechatronics, lubrication systems, and services which include technical support, maintenance and reliability services, engineering consulting and training. SKF is represented in more than 130 countries and has around 15,000 distributor locations worldwide. Annual sales in 2012 were SEK 64,575 million and the number of employees was 46,775. www.skf.com
® SKF is a registered trademark of the SKF Group.
™ BeyondZero is a trademark of the SKF Group.


text:
Posts Tagged 'lafayette gardens'
A day in Detroit
October 25th, 2013 Posted 8:56 pm
With my final few days of freedom last week before beginning work in Toronto, I decided to book a trip to the US on the Greyhound. My ultimate destination was Chicago but I was also very curious to stop over in the city of Detroit, Michigan, for one night. With 2,137 cases of violent crime reported per 100,000 people in 2012, Detroit is famous for being the second most dangerous city in the States – second only to the city of Flint, merely 70 miles north-east. Not only that, but the city filed for bankruptcy earlier this year with around $18 billion dollars in debt, making it the largest Chapter 9 bankruptcy filing in United States history. With these two statistics in mind, I wished to experience its seemingly bleak atmosphere for myself.
During the 20 hours I spent in town, I came to see first-hand how it maintained such a notorious reputation. Amongst the abandoned buildings, ramshackle neighbourhoods and suspicious-looking individuals I passed on the street, I couldn't begin to imagine how the recent economic woes have further affected a city that's already suffered so much hardship over the years. Yet despite its tribulations, I was surprised to witness many pockets of joy within its streets – from a beautiful community garden sponsored by the downtown Compuware headquarters, to an entire street in an eastern ghetto dedicated to community art and peace.
In all my years of travels I've never felt more uncomfortable than walking through the suburban streets of Detroit – but that ambience of constantly being on edge is what I loved so much about my visit. Here are a handful of stories telling of the crazy characters I met and the beautiful places I saw during my day in Detroit.
Read the rest of "A day in Detroit" »
Tags: customs, detroit, greyhound, heidelberg, heidelberg project, lafayette gardens, michigan, poverty
Posted in Blog, Travel, United States


text:
Avoid at All Costs
Fund: Morgenthaler Ventures
Posted by Anonymous on 2012-03-14
I was recently an executive for a company recently where Morgenthaler is an investor and board member. The company had significant growth, and where this would normally be considered a success, it caused fear and anxiety with Morgenthaler. During this process they unsuccessfully attempted to replace the CEO twice, both times failing. Unfortunately, these actions were value destroying and caused much dysfunction for the company and Founder/CEO.PRIVATE: Members Only (619 Characters)


text:
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are in the process of reviewing our recruitment activity and taking down some our current campaigns.
If you have applied for a job that has been closed and yet to be shortlisted your application will be retained and you will be notified as to whether you have been shortlisted when the recruitment campaign resumes. In the event we are unable to continue with the recruitment we will also notify you of this.
Please set up a job alert so you are notified when new relevant jobs are posted in future.
If you have any questions about a particular recruitment campaign please contact firstname.lastname@example.com
Please be aware that Google Chrome users may experience technical issues when submitting an application online and are recommended to use an alternative browser.
All of our job and internship opportunities are advertised on our website. Some roles are also advertised on specialist websites, as well as the Guardian and their diversity network.
Opportunities include:
- Paid employment in permanent and fixed term roles
- Freelance assignments
- Apprenticeships
- Paid internships.
To receive new BFI job opportunities as soon as they are posted, please sign up for a BFI job alert by completing your preferred search criteria and clicking on the 'Click here to save this search as a job alert' button at the bottom of the search results page.
Good luck with your application.
BFI permanent and Festival vacancies
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Diversity and inclusion in our people policies
Read about diversity and inclusion in our people policies.
BFI Privacy Notice: Workforce and Recruitment
The BFI is committed to protecting the privacy and security of your personal information.
Applicants should find our online application system easy to use. We regularly review our application system and we will approach a sample of applicants from time to time to seek feedback on their user experience (on a purely voluntary basis).
If you do experience any difficulties in submitting your application or experience any technical difficulties, please email email@example.com with your name, role you are interested in, plus your preferred contact details. A member of the Human Resources Team will contact you as soon as possible to help you with your query. Please be reassured that if you advise us prior to the closing time and date that you have been experiencing technical difficulties, we will log this as your intention (in time) to apply for the role.
We look forward to receiving your application.
Staff development
We take our responsibility to engage and develop staff seriously. We carry out a range of activities to facilitate this, including:
- All employees are appraised each year and agree objectives and a development plan with their line manager.
- Meetings are held regularly at directorate, department, team and individual levels with 'all staff' events from time to time.
- We conduct a staff engagement survey regularly to see how we are doing.
Diversity and inclusion
We welcome applicants from all backgrounds.
We want to make sure our workforce is diverse and representative of the communities we work with, and that our opportunities are open to all.
- We are Stonewall Champions. Stonewall works for acceptance without exception for all lesbian, gay, bi and trans individuals.
- We are a Disability Confident employer. Accredited by Jobcentre Plus, we encourage applications from disabled people and guarantee an interview if our minimum requirements criteria for a role are matched by the disabled applicant.
- We are members of the Employer's Network for Equality and Inclusion.
- We are members of the Southbank Employers Group, a partnership with a long-term commitment to improving the everyday experience of the area for employees, visitors and residents alike.
Employed staff benefits
We offer a range of benefits to members of staff, including:
- BFI Defined Contributions Pension Scheme
- 28-33 days annual leave
- Free tickets to BFI Southbank events and access to other BFI events
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- 35% staff discount at Benugo – Riverfront, and 20% staff discount at Benugo – Bar and Kitchen, at BFI Southbank
- 70% staff discount on BFI DVDs, 50% on books and merchandise plus 20% off other items in the BFI Shop
- 40% staff discount on all retail, including upstairs concessions, at BFI IMAX in partnership with ODEON
Certain conditions apply on some benefits – details are available from the Human Resources team. Some benefits are non-contractual and the BFI reserves the right to review benefits and withdraw them as appropriate.
Volunteer benefits
We provide travel costs within zones 1-6, plus a lunch allowance. There are also opportunities from time to time to access our film programme.


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The Erika: Cour de Cassation finds against Total, big time.
25 September 2012
Earlier today, 25 September 2012, (judgment here, in French) the Cour de Cassation in Paris ruled on the long-running question of whether Total is criminally and civily liable for the loss of the Erika on 12 December 1999 and the consequent spillage of some 20,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil, affecting some 400 km of the French coastline.
The case has see-sawed so far. The Criminal Court of First Instance, and the Court of Appeal in Paris had said that Total and others were responsible, though the Court of Appeal did not make this finding in respect of the civil claims. Next, the prosecutor, Advocate-General Boccon-Gibod, expressed his view to the Cour de Cassstion that Total was not liable at all. But his view was not shared by 80 parties who appeared before the court, including the affected communes Now, the court has finally ruled in favour of those polluted, both under the criminal and civil laws, as against Total and other responsible parties – all these issues have been decided in the same decision, in a way which may seem a bit odd to UK lawyers who generally put criminal and civil law in different boxes.
The judgment is pretty weighty, some 330 pages of legal French – as is standard, this is all written as one huge sentence – broken up by multitudinous semi-colons. it is not easy to digest, to say the least, but I shall try and give the bare bones of the decision.


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We get the job done. Whenever. Wherever. No matter the size or scope.
What our clients say
They've delivered what they promised, and that makes a difference to us.
…Thank you guys for the work that Nabholz did for us recently and over the years. In every case it was done in an extremely professional manner.
The people from Nabholz were very accommodating and very concerned that they would make this facility unique to us and meet the needs of our community. I felt that we were special and that they would make this facility special to us.
I'm looking forward to doing another job with Nabholz.
I would recommend Nabholz to anyone taking on this kind of project. We finished a very complex project on schedule, under budget. The issues that did come up were minor, but when they did, solutions were brought to the table—no excuses, just quick identification of issues and resolution of those issues.
Nabholz seems to have a stealth mode – they will identify themselves when first approaching the job, but once they start the work, they are hardly noticed. While they are on the site, they work very hard to be as little distraction as possible to the daily operations. Very professional.
The staff was very professional, prompt, knowledgeable, caring, loyal and dedicated to their jobs and [their] company's expectations. The professionalism was shown to us from top to bottom!
Hutchinson Regional Medical Center ICU Expansion & Remodel Nabholz
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Growing our people, serving our clients, building our communities…It's the Nabholz way.


text:
A word of caution on this Blog post -- It's not the traditional "how to use" Family Tree Maker blog post.
My friend Randy Seaver at Genea-Musings got me going yesterday. I search for a couple of hours, as I blogged about how I did the search, but ran into the same "brick wall" are he has. Randy has become a good friend, over the Internet and in person, I thought I would help him with this brick wall.
Also, the Knapp surname is not unfamiliar to me. They are all through my wife's family tree. She does quiet well on her own research. BUT, we have on a number of occasions taken a 'road trip' looking for Knapp's. I have many headstone pictures on Find-A-Grave and my Headstone Blog.
Also, Newton is 20 - 25 minutes north of me, and it was a very nice fall day, but my time was limited. I checked the Sussex County Historical Society for their hours and holding. They listed a Flat File for Knapp AND they were open today. Also, the cemetery where William Knapp is buried is "in town" (Newton, NJ).
I asked for the Flat File, the person getting the file paused and sheepishly handing be a folder with 3 small pieces of paper. How can this be? A Shoemaker in town, on only 3 pieces of paper?
There were a couple of other patrons in the genealogy section of the building and one gentleman working on a laptop. I had mentioned that I was working on a brick wall, the parents of, mentioned the name, as the folder was found. Then the voice behind the laptop said "you won't find them". (ouch, that brick wall hurt, ran right into that one)
The voice became a gold mine of information that was "good to know" but had nothing to do with that brick wall I just ran into. What he did say was the Death Certificate was in the Archives in Trenton but the parents weren't listed. I was only a Ledger Entry.
We compared notes on the Death information that I had, and the 1850 Census record I had found. So we were talking about the same person. It wouldn't surprise me if that gentleman hadn't provided some of the data I found last evening.
He had a bunch of information on his laptop. Don't know what, but then he started up a Desktop that was running Windows98. Oh, I am in trouble now.
What he showed me next was a transcription of the 1840 and the 1830 Census records that he had done for Newton Township, which includes the town of Newton. The 1840 Census showed 2 children and a worker. That's about what I had found in the 1850 Census. 1830 showed 8 children. That is getting closer to Randy's 11 children. But, I found some newspaper articles that should be able to explain the "missing children". I will share that newspaper information with Randy via Email.
What I didn't have, was the name of the Newpaper with the Obituary in it, so I can not go look for that specifically. It was the 6/21/1856 Sussex Register.
Besides transcribing Census Records, he specializes in Deeds. In his laptop he has a land transaction that included William Knapp and a property that was a couple of blocks from where I was. The deed was in 1833. I have an Image from the transcribed deed that I will also email to Randy.
My time was up. The folder guy asked if he helped me, of course I said yes, "that will be $15.00". No problem, I am now a member of the Sussex County Historical Society and will go back when I have some more time.
While talking to the group, I mentioned that my wife's Knapp's had been in Goshen, NY. In fact, I had found a William Knapp there before I went to Newton. Wrong person, but they did confirm that the Knapp's were in the area between Newton and Goshen. The both are very near State Route 94, which connects the two towns.
Before I went on my way, I checked out the cemetery. Small, old, CHAINED cemetery.
So, my next trip to Newton will do some more research but will also ask the Historical Society about the Chained Gate into the Cemetery. I would see the cemetery from the front door of the Historical Society.
Learned a new word today, but no one could explain it. It was on the Deed. "Messuage" In context "messuage on Spring Street, Newton where William Knapp currently lived". The Deeds book was Vol. S4 Page 594. (just recording that for future reference).
Copyright © 2011 by H R Worthington


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Although it is never too late to start saving and investing, the values of sound financial management can be taught early on. Teaching children to set goals and save money for things they want to buy is a wonderful learning opportunity. It's also a good time to teach them about the different types of investments that are available.
Step 1: Earning money
A first step is showing a child how to earn money. Children can't learn to manage money if they don't have any! It can be small to start with; for example, a dollar for each grade of school that the child is in, paid once a week. Encourage them to divide the money between spending, savings, and charitable giving. A new piggy bank can make getting started more fun; there are some you can buy that have separate compartments for different uses of the money.
Step 2: Goal setting
Then, help the child come up with a goal for savings. If a trip to the toy store hasn't given you any ideas, just ask what the child wants that costs more than the weekly allowance. Help the child figure out the best way to save. For example, all of the allowance for the number of weeks it would take? Half of the allowance for twice the number of weeks? The allowance plus birthday money? Providing a few different options shows children that they have some control over the best way to reach their goals.
Step 3: Savings account
Once a child understands how saving up money works, you can add another lesson about investing. You can show how compound interest allows money to accumulate faster than it would if left in a piggy bank. As a next step, help the child open a simple bank savings account. The child can contribute money from allowance, gifts, and jobs such as shoveling snow or babysitting.
Step 4: Investment account
As the child accumulates more money, it may be time to consider opening a mutual fund account. It will give you an opportunity to teach the child about the risks and potential return available in stocks and bonds. You can set it up as a custodial account under the Uniform Gift to Minors Act or the Uniform Transfer to Minors Act (UGMA/UTMA). To encourage the child to contribute to the account, you may want to consider matching any of the funds the child contributes. (You can demonstrate the benefits of a 401(k) and similar employer retirement plans that way, too.)
Step 5: Stay involved
You can help children follow these investments by reviewing account statements with them, showing them how to do financial research on the Internet, and answering their questions about money. If you get them interested early on, they'll have skills they can use for a lifetime.
Finally, show responsible financial behavior yourself. If you are careful with your finances, the child will learn from you.


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El Camino might have the best 1-2 scoring punch in the Central Coast Section. Michael Smith and Elijah White went into Tuesday's game against Westmoor combining for 44.7 points per game.
They outdid themselves against the visiting Rams, combining for 54 points as El Camino romped to a 71-51 victory in a key Peninsula Athletic League North Division game in South San Francisco.
"We've played together for nine years," Smith said. "All the way back we played AAU with his father as our coach."
The chemistry between the two is noticeable.
Smith, a 6-foot-3 forward who came in averaging 23.6 points per game, scored 28 Tuesday in a variety of ways, inside and out. He hit four 3-pointers and as the tallest player on the court had his way around the basket. He also had 10 rebounds.
Several of his baskets came off passes from White, the team's point guard, who was averaging 21.1 points per game before Tuesday, when he scored 26.
Westmoor (12-3, 1-2) never led. El Camino went on a 14-0 run late in the second quarter to blow the game open, going from a 22-18 lead to 36-18.
"I don't think we played as hard as we could've," Westmoor coach Herb Yaptinchay said. "Today it cost us. Smith and White are really talented. If you don't bring your 'A' game, you're in trouble. They wanted it more than we did."
Wai Min led Westmoor with 20 points.
El Camino (11-4, 3-0) can't enjoy the win for too long. The Colts host Half Moon Bay (14-2, 3-1) at 6 p.m. Wednesday.
Yerba Buena 58, Overfelt 56: Forwards Richard Dao and Marcus Tran scored 24 and 20 points, respectively, as the Aztec Warriors (3-12, 2-3 BVAL West Valley Division) edged the Royals (4-12, 2-3). Junior center Tyrus Hill netted 17 points for Overfelt.
The King's Academy 61, Crystal Springs Uplands 55: Stephen Butelo scored 20 points and Mason Loiacono had four 3-pointers among his 16 points for the Knights (10-4, 3-1 WBAL).
Girls basketball
Branham 58, Santa Teresa 48: Taylor Morway scored 28 points as the Bruins (13-3, 3-3 BVAL Mt. Hamilton) handed Santa Teresa its first league loss.
Menlo-Atherton 34, Sequoia 29: Sarah Howell scored 12 points and Emma Heath had 10 to help Menlo-Atherton (6-8, 2-0 PAL South). Alaina Woo scored 17 for Sequoia.
Girls soccer
Mountain View 3, Monta Vista 0: Sophomore forward Morgan Matthews scored two goals and assisted on another for the Spartans (9-2-1, 2-1-1 SCVAL De Anza Division).
Menlo 2, The King's Academy 1: Junior midfielder Sienna Stritter scored both goals as Menlo (5-2-4) improved to 3-0 in the West Bay Athletic League's Foothill Division.
Del Mar 4, Westmont 0: Katherine Schauer, Antonia Chijate, Jade Joiner and Adriana Diaz scored to help the Dons (10-0-1) improve to 5-0 in the BVAL's Santa Teresa Division.
Contact Glenn Reeves at 650-348-4345 or email@example.com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/GReeves23.


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Our Winner from our Blog Hop Challenge is Robyn Oliver #17 Her card is stunning and we are so happy she played along with us.
The top 5 challenge cards in numerical order:
#7 Gracielle
#8 Pat
#11 Papierelle
#16 Samra
#19 Katy D.
Now for the list of winners of blog hop prizes:
Eclectic Anthology: #5 Ela 17
Inspired By Stamping: #16 Paper Talk With Samra
Paper Sweeties: #15 Taunya Butler
STAMPlorations: #19 Katy D.
Stitchy Bear: #9 Jackie Durrant
If you see your name here, please email blog owner Mynette Kitchen at email@example.com to claim your prize. We really appreciate all your support and all the lovely comments you left on our blogs. Be on the lookout for our introduction of our new DT members as well as some changes. We wish all the departing DT members and especially former Co-owner Ruth all the best and thank them for all their hard work.


text: Artsy Seattle post-hardcore act These Arms Are Snakes mixes the urgency and aggressive vocal style of punk with the exploded song structures and technical complexity of the original wave of math rock bands. This fusion is a logical progression from the bandmembers' former projects: singer Steve Snere was formerly of the Minneapolis-to-Seattle emo transplants Kill Sadie, while bassist, singer, and keyboardist Brian Cook was formerly in long-running math rockers Botch. (Scene incest note: other former members of Botch and Kill Sadie, guitarist David Knudson and bassist Cory Murchy respectively, formed another Seattle post-hardcore act, Minus the Bear, whose drummer, Erin Tate, was in both Kill Sadie and one lineup of These Arms Are Snakes. A Pete Frame-style family tree among all these bands would probably induce a nagging headache.) Snere, Cook, guitarist Ryan Frederiksen, keyboardist Jesse Robertson, and drummer Joe Preston released their first EP, This Is Meant to Hurt You, on Jade Tree Records in August 2003. With Tate replacing Preston and with Robertson out of the band, These Arms Are Snakes released their debut full-length, Oxeneers or The Lion Sleeps When Its Antelope Go Home, in September 2004. Their second full-length album, Easter, followed in the fall of 2006, with new producer Chris Common also taking over the drum throne from Ben Verellen (of Roy and Harkonen fame). Over the next two years, the quartet toured with like-minded groups Pelican, Mastodon, Hot Water Music, and the Blood Brothers before releasing their third album Tail Swallower and Dove on Suicide Squeeze records in October of 2008. ~ Stewart Mason


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Apache Hadoop is a framework for running applications on large cluster built of commodity hardware. The Hadoop framework transparently provides applications both reliability and data motion. Hadoop implements a computational paradigm named Map/Reduce, where the application is divided into many small fragments of work, each of which may be executed or re-executed on any node in the cluster. In addition, it provides a distributed file system (HDFS) that stores data on the compute nodes, providing very high aggregate bandwidth across the cluster. Both MapReduce and the Hadoop Distributed File System are designed so that node failures are automatically handled by the framework.
Install the hadoopAUR package which is available in the Arch User Repository.
By default, hadoop is already configured for pseudo-distributed operation. Some environment variables are set in /etc/profile.d/hadoop.sh with different value than traditional hadoop.
Where configuration files are stored.
Where log files are stored.
|Read and Write
File naming remote slave hosts.
Where pid files are stored.
|Read and Write
You also should set up follow files correctly.
/etc/hosts /etc/hostname /etc/locale.conf
JAVA_HOME should be set automatically by [jdk7-openjdk] /etc/profile.d/jre.sh or [openjdk6] /etc/profile.d/openjdk6.sh. You could check JAVA_HOME:
$ echo $JAVA_HOME
If it does not print anything, maybe you should logout and login to make it right.
Single Node Setup
Standalone Operation
By default, Hadoop is configured to run in a non-distributed mode, as a single Java process. This is useful for debugging.
The following example copies the unpacked conf directory to use as input and then finds and displays every match of the given regular expression. Output is written to the given output directory.
$ export HADOOP_CONF_DIR=/usr/lib/hadoop/orig_conf $ mkdir input $ cp /etc/hadoop/*.xml input $ hadoop jar /usr/lib/hadoop/hadoop-examples-*.jar grep input output 'dfs[a-z.]+' $ cat output/*
Pseudo-Distributed Operation
Hadoop can also be run on a single-node in a pseudo-distributed mode where each Hadoop daemon runs in a separate Java process.
By default, Hadoop will run as the user root. If you use initscripts, you can change the user in /etc/conf.d/hadoop-all:
HADOOP_USERNAME="<your user name>"
Setup passphraseless ssh
Now check that you can ssh to the localhost without a passphrase:
$ ssh localhost
If you cannot ssh to localhost without a passphrase, execute the following commands:
$ ssh-keygen -t dsa -P "" -f ~/.ssh/id_dsa $ cat ~/.ssh/id_dsa.pub >> ~/.ssh/authorized_keys
Format a new distributed-filesystem:
$ hadoop namenode -format
Start the hadoop daemons:
$ sudo systemctl start hadoop-datanode $ sudo systemctl start hadoop-jobtracker $ sudo systemctl start hadoop-namenode $ sudo systemctl start hadoop-secondarynamenode $ sudo systemctl start hadoop-tasktracker
The hadoop daemon log output is written to the ${HADOOP_LOG_DIR} directory (defaults to /var/log/hadoop).
Browse the web interface for the NameNode and the JobTracker; by default they are available at:
- NameNode - http://localhost:50070/
- JobTracker - http://localhost:50030/
Copy the input files into the distributed filesystem:
$ hadoop fs -put /etc/hadoop input
Run some of the examples provided:
$ hadoop jar /usr/lib/hadoop/hadoop-examples-*.jar grep input output 'dfs[a-z.]+'
Examine the output files:
Copy the output files from the distributed filesystem to the local filesytem and examine them:
$ hadoop fs -get output output $ cat output/*
View the output files on the distributed filesystem:
$ hadoop fs -cat output/*
When you're done, stop the daemons with:
$ sudo systemctl stop hadoop-datanode $ sudo systemctl stop hadoop-jobtracker $ sudo systemctl stop hadoop-namenode $ sudo systemctl stop hadoop-secondarynamenode $ sudo systemctl stop hadoop-tasktracker


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Top 100 wines 2011: Cheers to thinking small
As I approached the finish line for this year's Top 100 Wines, it became clear that 2011 would build on a welcome trend from last year: the triumph of the little guy.
Certainly we have great bottles here from bigger names. But once again, many of the best wines to be found on the West Coast are from wineries that work on a small scale.
This shift in scope makes perfect sense. There is always the opportunity to make great wine on a big scale; the beauty of the Louis Martini Sonoma County Cabernet or Domaine Chandon's Brut Classic are perfect evidence. But the attention to detail you get on a small scale is an engine for greatness.
More often than not, greatness is a matter of one or two people meticulously keeping an eye on every step of farming and every step in the cellar, whether you're Bob Betz making a few hundred cases of single-vineyard Syrah, or Bob and Jim Varner extending their Chardonnay talents to thousands of cases of Foxglove.
This attentiveness from vintners mirrors a desire by more wine lovers to look beyond scores and dive into the particulars of the wines they enjoy. That knowledge-is-power approach also helps explain one big change you'll notice in this year's list: the inclusion of alcohol levels for each wine.
Prompted by longtime reader interest in the topic, The Chronicle in April began printing alcohol content for each wine we recommend. Alcohol levels shouldn't be a final barometer of quality - I found top wines below 12 percent and well above 14 percent - but they are useful to consider when shopping. Now as you browse the Top 100 list, you can compare my selections by one more data point.
It also is clear that the best West Coast winemaking is acquiring an ever lighter touch, helped in part by generally milder conditions in the 2009 and 2010 vintages. We began to see shifts in wine styles in last year's Top 100; that trend is clearly continuing, which is good news for those who prefer subtlety over raw power.
Witness the new self-assuredness of domestic Chardonnay, which is rebounding from its era of excess and showing the distinctive side of what can be an easily abused grape. New labels like Cartha and Sandhi are unveiling impressive bottles that embrace the best traditions of Chardonnay not just from California, but from anywhere in the world.
For that matter, there's the beauty of Pinot Noir in 2009. Here's a grape that's still struggling with fame, and yet for all the overwrought and overprocessed versions, there are more vintners than ever seeking to express its purity.
Whether it's interpretations of sites like the Demuth or Suacci vineyards, Gavin Chanin's sublime take on Bien Nacido or Anam Cara's contemplative expression from Oregon's Chehalem Mountains, there is a widespread interest in making wines that do more than pay lip service to a true sense of place. The transparency of winemaking in Pinot Noir is better than ever, and the result is that the best of American Pinot can now rightfully sit next to the finest specimens from anywhere in the world.
Great winemaking can appear in more unexpected forms. The innovative work in white wine is changing the playing field. We've been acknowledging the quality of unique blends for a couple years, and this year such bottles as Arbe Garbe's Pinot Grigio-driven effort are not simply intriguing; they're paving a path to the future. Add in the rise of great Grenache Blanc and Albarino and even impressive Colombard, and you have a diversity of white wine that hasn't been witnessed on these shores since the carefree early years of California's modern wine era.
It is a great time to be a winemaker who is willing to take risks. A new generation of West Coast wines is finding a welcome reception much farther afield; you're as likely to run into a wine lover in New York rhapsodizing about La Clarine Farm or Ryme Cellars as you are in San Francisco. These wines often find an audience without a marketing budget or a big-dollar distributor, and they prove the power of American craft.
It is also a great time to be a devotee of wines from this coast. So let's pay tribute to those who think small - and their exceptional work to keep our glasses filled with something wonderful.
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The American sparkling wine industry is clearly being pulled in two directions. One school of thought sees a need for sweeter, easy-to-please bottles. The other is holding true to the vision of pioneers like Schramsberg, trying to create crisp, food-loving alternatives to French Champagne.
That latter style is proliferating in regular nonvintage brut as well as vintage and rosé bottlings. Top houses are hunting colder vineyard sites and reducing the amount of added sugar used to finesse the wines. The result is more sublime and affordable bottles that can be enjoyed year-round.
NV Domaine Carneros Cuvee de la Pompadour Carneros Brut Rosé ($36, 12% alcohol): There's some finesse at work on Duhig Road, seeing as the pink version of Carneros' brut shows a remarkable focus and distinction, with depth from added Pinot Noir. Accents of rose hip, damp stone and bread dough provide depth to this tight-knit, raspberry-inflected effort.
NV Domaine Chandon Brut Classic California Sparkling ($22, 13%): Winemaker Tom Tiburzi has been fine-tuning Chandon's trademark bottle, with less added sweetness and more focus on the fruit. It's paying off beautifully, with rich pear-tart aromas and a bounty of fruit and pastry flavors. The bright lemon-oil and sea-foam accents signal a wine with serious intent.
2000 Gloria Ferrer Carneros Cuvee Carneros Sparkling ($50, 12.5%): This long-aged reserve bottle from Ferrer shows its commitment to the potential of Carneros. After a full decade on its lees, this is simultaneously opulent and precise. Aromas of citrus pith, thyme, pear skin and yeast underscore remarkable youth for a 10-year-old wine.
NV J Vineyards Russian River Valley Brut Rosé ($28, 12.5%): There's a return to form at this Healdsburg house, with its pink brut offering a sweet yeasty note that underscores raspberry and rose petal, and vibrant citrus tying it all together in a mouthwatering way. Think of it for the holiday table.
NV Roederer Estate Anderson Valley Brut Rosé ($27, 12%): Roederer's rosé in particular remains a standout, a sign of winemaker Arnaud Weyrich's talents. Subtle notes of rose, copper and peach, with a warm vanilla-bean accent and cool berry ice flavors.
NV Scharffenberger Mendocino County Brut ($19, 12%): Now affiliated with its neighbor, Roederer Estate, this longtime local fave (just renamed Brut Excellence) has found a new level of precision for its quintessentially California style of sparkling. There's just a hint of a soft side to an otherwise steely texture, with green apple, poppy seed and morning bun flavors underscored by a perfect mineral bite. The best hidden value in American fizz.
NV Schramsberg Mirabelle North Coast Brut ($25, 12.8%): Schramsberg's nonvintage second bottling is stellar right now. A Chardonnay-dominant blend is fresh with tree fruit, freesia and chalk accents, and a wonderful strawberry edge from its Pinot Noir. Just enough bready opulence without losing its playfulness.
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Earlier this year I prognosticated that American Chardonnay had snapped back from its baroque years (go to: sfg.ly/vxCOuI) and was again ready to shine.
With one major exception, our tastings this year proved this theory beautifully, aided by the subtlety of the 2009 vintage.
There are serious winemakers making Chardonnay that speaks of its origins and potential, without having to resort to excess. It is, frankly, the best time in years to be drinking Chardonnay from these shores.
2010 Arnot-Roberts Watson Ranch Napa Valley Chardonnay ($30, 13.2% alcohol): Duncan Meyers and Nathan Roberts have turned out another stellar lineup this year for their micro-label, but this bottling from a vineyard in the very south end of Napa is more proof that Napa Chardonnay can thrive when handled with care. While their effort from nearby Green Island had more salinity, this is stony and steely, with ripe apple and an exotic pineapple-skin aspect, plus marjoram and lemon zest accents.
2009 Bergstrom Old Stones Willamette Valley Chardonnay ($30, 13.9%): Josh Bergstrom insists that Old Stones is for early drinking, but there's extraordinary depth here. Ripe and intense, this adds deep, creamy tones to bright apple, Meyer lemon and apricot flavors, with a wild-mushroom accent. A quintessence of Oregon Chardonnay.
2009 Kongsgaard Napa Valley Chardonnay ($75, 14.1%): Many consider John Kongsgaard to be California's Chardonnay master, but this 2009 arguably is the finest Chardonnay he has made yet, and perhaps the one with the most nimble step. From the nonpareil Hudson and Hyde vineyards, it has a racier, tighter profile than usual, with a crazy level of focus; this wine stares you down and won't blink. Peach skin and lime pith, with a white-stone minerality, are just the start of the many seamless layers of flavor within.
2009 Hirsch Vineyards Sonoma Coast Chardonnay ($50, 14%): Hirsch's rare white bottling, fine-tuned by new winemaker Ross Cobb, harnesses dramatically powerful fruit from 3.9 acres planted on its coastal ridgetop in 1994 and 2006. Once again, a unique mix of aging in oak, steel and small glass vessels brings a fullness to the saline, mouthwatering presence of stone fruit edged with thyme, green apple and quince. Layered and pure, an expression of Chardonnay's true potential.
2009 Cartha Sonoma Coast Chardonnay ($27, 13.5%): A new value-minded project (the name means "those who do the work" in Sanskrit) from winemaker John Raytek (Ceritas) and vineyard manager Glenn Alexander. The Petaluma Gap is its geographic heart, and there's a cool mint aspect to dried peach, sandalwood and hay. The sort of refined effort that usually commands twice the price.
2009 Evening Land Vineyards La Source Seven Springs Vineyard Eola-Amity Hills Chardonnay ($60, 13%): Hollywood producer Mark Tarlov's new project has attracted a star roster of talent, including Larry Stone (Rubicon) and consultant Dominique Lafon. But his Oregon winemaker, Isabelle Meunier, deserves credit for evoking the best of a lauded Willamette Valley property. There is a laser focus to the flavors in this filigreed effort, as Meunier has found a nervy power to the fruit. It unfolds slowly, picking up flesh from beautiful flavors of lemon peel, dried honeycomb and green apple. Without an ounce of fat, this is Chardonnay expressed as pure sinew.
2009 Failla Estate Vineyard Sonoma Coast Chardonnay ($44, 14.2%): From Ehren Jordan's dry-farmed estate parcel near Cazadero comes a glorious, muscular specimen of California Chardonnay. A gorgeous 2010 bottling is almost on shelves, and yet this is still at least two years from being ready. Heathery wood aromas harmonize its taut accents of granite and marjoram and kaffir lime with powerful, dense lemon and pear skin flavors. A great mineral intensity signals that this is Chardonnay for the ages.
2010 Fess Parker Ashley's Sta. Rita Hills Chardonnay ($35, 14.1%): The vineyard formerly known as Ashley's is now owned by Bill Foley (and called Rancho Las Hermanas), but the Fess Parker label found a gorgeous, outgoing expression in this cooler year. Great saline intensity balances out ripe fig, Cavaillon melon and lime flavors, and a barrel-driven richness. Proof that a full-bore style can work when done right.
2009 Foxglove Central Coast Chardonnay ($14, 13.9%): While their single-vineyard efforts from 2009 impress on their own, there's something to be said for the gorgeous quality that Bob and Jim Varner harness in their larger-production Central Coast wine. Made in steel, brimming with quince and ripe pear and all the pretty tree-fruit flavors of Chardonnay, this is an example of the winemaking elite wanting to work with fruit that over-delivers. That two of the state's top talents are on a mission to make an everyday wine is an example that far more winemakers should emulate.
2009 Hanzell Sonoma County Chardonnay ($60, 14.5%): Under winemaker Michael McNeill, Hanzell has found a solid return to its best attributes: a powerful expression of a famous Sonoma site. The '09 is marked by a welcome subtlety - quiet oak appearing more as a welcome roast-peanut accent (think of it like being at a favorite baseball game) to profound lemon and fig fruit, with pastry cream and heather accents. Its evident mineral power and pure fruit portend a long life ahead.
2009 Sandhi Santa Barbara County Chardonnay ($28, 13.3%): This new label from a star lineup of Rajat Parr (Mina Group), investor Charles Banks and winemaker Sashi Moorman is upending the conventional wisdom about the Sta. Rita Hills. Not to dismiss the extraordinary quality of its Sanford & Benedict bottling, but this more modest effort - basically declassified S&B made in neutral oak - shows tremendous stony depth. Lots of lemon pith, tangerine, green olive and salt, with winter melon and a true minerality that's matched by subtle lees presence. Focused, pure and a stunning example of the new California Chardonnay.
2009 Stoller Vineyards SV Estate Dundee Hills Chardonnay ($28, 14%): Bill Stoller's site, at the hands of winemaker Melissa Burr, remains a top spot for not only Pinot but Chardonnay, too. This latest is concentrated and stylish, with lots of pastry cream and nuanced oak giving richness to the energetic lemon pulp, peach and Anjou pear.
2009 Tor Kenward Wente Clone Napa Valley Chardonnay ($54, 14.6%): Industry veteran Tor Kenward and winemaker Jeff Ames have taken the template of blockbuster Chardonnay, applied it to a rocky portion of the Hudson vineyard, and devised a savvy tribute to the Wente vine clone. Hefty and polished, with evident oak and roasted lemon aromas balanced by the Wente nuance: lemongrass, caramel and a pear-drop sweetness. A gorgeously layered effort for this heavy-hitting style.
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Once again, Sauvignon Blanc's dual personality is on display. While the wine can serve as an also-ran among whites - we ignored those - it has become a playground for winemakers to do some of their most daring, most interesting work.
Each one of these wines shows a distinct personality, reflecting not only their home turf but also talented work in the cellar. These winemakers may have other great Sauvignon Blanc on the brain, whether from Pouilly-Fumé or Italy, but their work is uniquely American in scope.
2010 Benziger Signaterra Shone Farm Vineyard Russian River Valley Sauvignon Blanc ($24, 14.1% alcohol): Once again, Benziger's Shone Farm effort provides a benchmark for California Sauvignon Blanc. This time the cooler year retained intense acidity that bolsters wet grass and jalapeno aromas, with deep apricot, saline and citrus peel, and a brilliant textural depth.
2010 Bernardus Griva Vineyard Arroyo Seco Sauvignon Blanc ($20, 13.5%): This Carmel Valley label looked to Arroyo Seco for a compelling expression, with some Sauvignon Musqué clone and Semillon blended in. Think of it as a greyhound, capturing the best of the variety's lean, green side: Padron pepper, bay laurel and verbena all play a role amid the racy fruit.
2010 Brander Au Naturel Santa Ynez Valley Sauvignon Blanc ($32, 13.9%): Brander's ode to the Loire-focused greatness of this grape delivers brilliantly. A full day of soaking on the grape skins brings an opulent mouthfeel to this lavish, fig-scented bottle. The grassy notes are subtle, amid lots of ripe tangerine. A perfect framework for the complexity of great fruit.
2010 Grgich Hills Estate Napa Valley Fumé Blanc ($30, 14.3%): Mike Grgich's Napa legacy is in spectacular form right now, with this dramatic verbena-accented bottle from biodynamically farmed estate parcels in American Canyon and Carneros. Racy but deep flavored, it's a style that - for all the quaintness of the name - is very much a sign of the new Napa.
2009 The Ojai Vineyard McGinley Vineyard Santa Ynez Valley Sauvignon Blanc ($28, 14%): Adam Tolmach remains one of California's defining Pinot names, but his Sauvignon Blanc shows another side of his talent. Organically grown on a mix of shale and serpentine subsoils, and aged in neutral oak barrels without lees stirring, this finds a balance of richness and deep acidity, accented by aromas of Anaheim pepper and bay leaf. Keeps pace with the best Sauvignon from anywhere.
2010 Spottswoode Napa-Sonoma Counties Sauvignon Blanc ($36, 14.1%): It might seem unusual to choose the white wine from this legendary Cabernet house, but Sauvignon Blanc is owner Mary Novak's preferred wine, and Spottswoode has turned it into an art form. A mix of six vineyards in two counties, fermented in a variety of vessels, brings world-class density to flavors of lemon, vanilla and apricot tart, with pitch-perfect acidity from a racy vintage.
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Last year, there were ample signs that "other" was where the most interesting work was being done in white wine. As detailed earlier this year (go to: sfg.ly/rpJL81), this interest in life beyond Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio has reached critical mass, giving ever more winemakers an opportunity to do some of their best, most rewarding work.
Whether it's the emergence of great Rhone-style whites, the revisiting of long-dismissed grapes or masterful work with nontraditional blends, there are more reasons than ever to be a white-wine drinker on the West Coast.
There are great reasons to be a rosé fan, too: More winemakers are getting serious about pink wine as something to be perfected for drinking throughout the year.
2010 Arbe Garbe Russian River Valley White ($28, 14.3% alcohol): Friulian natives Enrico Bertoz and Letizia Pauletto pay tribute to their native and adopted homes with this brilliant blend, a mix of Pinot Grigio, Malvasia Bianca and Ribolla Gialla from Saralee's Vineyard in Windsor and George Vare's site in Napa. A phenolic power defines it - it's almost chewy with citrus pith and apricot leather, plus a searing acidity and dramatic snap pea, saline and fresh white-flower accents. It's a testament to the greatness of white wine blending.
2010 Birichino Monterey Malvasia Bianca ($15, 13%): This new effort from Bonny Doon veterans John Locke and Alex Krause hit the ground running, with a batch of this aromatic Italian variety found near the Santa Lucia range. Savvy winemaking brings a dense texture to rich orange and pear fruit, just the thing to give depth to Malvasia's heady floral and nutmeg aromas, which burst from the glass.
2010 Donkey & Goat Coupe d'Or El Dorado Roussanne-Marsanne ($32, 13%): Berkeley's Tracey and Jared Brandt, among our most recent Winemakers to Watch, keep tapping the high-elevation granite soils of the Fenaughty Vineyard for this profound white blend. Some textural depth from grape skins, with a tremendous herbal and mineral freshness: hay, lavender, lime zest, chalk and pear. It can be austere and almost polarizing at times, but the ripeness and tremendous acidity make for an energetic, unique take on Rhone-style blends.
2010 Forlorn Hope Que Saudade DeWitt Vineyard Amador County Verdelho ($24, 14.1%): Matthew Rorick's label devoted to "rare creatures" can veer into esoterica, but there's nothing odd about his take on this Portuguese grape and its clear adaptation to the Sierra foothills. Scents of nori and pear add complexity to ripe tangerine and apricot fruit and a beautiful lime-rickey tartness that's the very essence of Verdelho.
2010 Horse & Plow North Coast Rosé ($15, 13.9%): This label from Suzanne Hagins (Lutea) and her husband, Chris Condos (Vinum Cellars), dabbles widely. But their rosé, a mostly barrel-fermented mix of Carignane, Syrah and Grenache sourced mostly from an old organically farmed vineyard north of Ukiah, is in fantastic form with its spicy bite: black pepper and celery seed give a kick to orange peel and apricot flavors.
2010 Kinero Alice Paso Robles Grenache Blanc ($22, 13.1%): Denner winemaker Anthony Yount's own Paso label is focused on Rhone-style whites, and this effort from Luna Matta and Blackseth vineyards on Paso's west side shows how well Grenache Blanc is adapted to the area. Yount's use of stainless-steel barrels provides depth to deep citrus and green-herb notes, with peach and white raspberry rounding out a brilliant effort that finds the right pitch between rich and edgy.
2010 Massican Annia Napa Valley White Wine ($26, 12.1%): Dan Petroski's personal project (by day he's making wine at Larkmead) would be interesting just for its unusual blends, but the Annia has come into its own as a serious wine. A mix of Tocai Friulano, Ribolla Gialla and Chardonnay, it's nearly electric with alpine flowers, ripe almond and Meyer lemon. This time there's notably dense flavor and extract, matched by dramatic acidity from the cool vintage.
2010 Matthiasson Napa Valley White Wine ($35, 12.5%): When not doing some of the best vineyard work in Napa, Steve Matthiasson keeps fine-tuning his brilliant white blend, this time a co-fermented mix of Sauvignon Blanc, Ribolla Gialla, Semillon and Tocai Friulano. It's more subtle and focused than ever, and time in bottle has given flesh to steely chive, key lime and orange notes. It'll be even better in a year - no surprise considering its inspiration in the long-aging whites of Italy and Bordeaux.
2010 Qupé Santa Ynez Valley Marsanne ($18, 13%): Syrah may be his calling card, but Qupé's Bob Lindquist has faithfully been making this world-class white since 1987. He evokes the rich almondy tones that define the great white grape of the northern Rhone, and brings out a crucial edge to its lemon and apricot flavors. His Marsanne can routinely improve for more than a decade in the cellar (for more, go to: sfg.ly/lq1N55), making it one of California's best values in white wine.
2010 Pacific Rim Columbia Valley Riesling ($10, 10.5%): Under the eye of winemaker Nicolas Quillé, this Randall Grahm-founded label is proving the potential of Washington Riesling. Don't let the faux-exotic package and price deceive you; this blend from top Columbia Valley sites puts Pacific Rim fully back in the groove. Full of wet river stone, deep nectarine and green apple, it shows the magnitude of both fruit and acid that most Rieslings at this price lack.
2010 Ryme Cellars His/Hers Las Brisas Vineyard Carneros Vermentino ($32, 14.2%/13.8%): Technically these are two wines, but instead let's consider it two interpretations of the same fruit - specifically Vermentino made by the husband-wife team of Megan and Ryan Glaab. He wanted a tribute to skin-fermented Italian whites; she had the freshness of Liguria and Sardinia in mind. His is resinous and powerful, with pine pitch, dried apricot and pear skin - a textural masterpiece. Hers is subtle and fresh, with sea salt, hay, peach and ripe guava - and a limpid, but leaner, texture. Both are extraordinary, a successful exploration of winemaking style.
2010 Skinner Stoney Creek Vineyard Fair Play Grenache Blanc ($22, 13.3%): Winemaker Chris Pittenger is bringing impressive finesse to this new label from the Sierra foothills. This varietal Grenache Blanc, from the Skinner family's estate parcel and the Swansboro vineyard farmed by Ron Mansfield is a pitch-perfect example of that grape, with a ripe almond, pear and lemon-zest profile, plus orange and chalky stone highlights. A great mix of flesh and focus, with a chervil edge to the finish.
2010 Tablas Creek Patelin de Tablas Blanc Paso Robles White ($20, 13.5%): After years of struggling with how to make an affordable table wine, Tablas' Jason Haas released his solution, sourced from vineyards near his family's west-side Paso Robles estate. As a younger sibling of the Esprit de Beaucastel white wines, it's got wonderful depth from Grenache Blanc, Viognier, Roussanne and Marsanne - with subtle mineral and honeysuckle accents to its ripe tangerine fruit.
2010 Verdad Sawyer-Lindquist Vineyard Edna Valley Albarino ($22, 13.3%): Louisa Sawyer Lindquist has long been making a case for Spanish varieties on the Central Coast, but her biodynamic vineyard is now turning out perhaps the best Albarino in the state, no small feat for a rising-star variety. The lean vintage brought a racy, Riesling-like note to the nose - wet stones, ripe grapefruit, bay leaf and peach.
2010 Vaughn Duffy Sonoma County Rosé of Pinot Noir ($15, 13.2%): While the 2009 Pinot from Matt Duffy, who apprenticed at Siduri, was an amazing debut, the nuance in his subtle rosé, blended from three vineyards, is a real testament to his talent. It brims with the best of Pinot's expression in pink form: wintergreen, strawberry and moss in a refined, steely package.
2010 Y. Rousseau Old Vines Russian River Valley Colombard ($17, 13.2%): Here's a tribute to a California workhorse - Colombard, the state's second-most planted white grape - as Yannick Rousseau nods to his native Gascony with one of the friendliest table wines of the year. From 35-year-old vines, he applies deft winemaking to extract extra depth from the grape skins, for a bottle redolent with mandarin peel and ripe fruit, plus fern and honey accents. No surprise it has become its own little cult hit in Wine Country.
2010 Zocker Paragon Vineyard Edna Valley Gruner Veltliner ($19, 13.5%): The first couple vintages of this bold effort from the Central Coast's Niven family were fun curiosities. But with 2010, they've shown that this is more than a sideshow. There's quality here to make Austrians want to take a closer look at Edna Valley terroir, for a wine packed with snappy pea-shoot, quince, celery and vibrant stoniness.
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The American interpretation of French Rhone Valley wines keeps getting better - and more diverse.
Where we used to make Syrah a big component of this section, its fortunes have wobbled a bit in quality and in interest among wine drinkers. There's still great Syrah, often from colder spots like the remote Sonoma Coast, but there's all the reason in the world to embrace other pieces of the patchwork: juicy Grenache that deserves deep praise, nuanced blends, heady Mourvedre. These wines are beginning to emerge from Syrah's long shadow and shine on their own.
Whether you're a Syrah loyalist or just a red wine lover, here's to wonderful diversity inherited from the Rhone - and proudly claimed here.
2009 Amavi Walla Walla Valley Syrah ($29, 14.1% alcohol): Jean-Francois Pellet's value-minded label again tapped into the best of Walla Walla, with fruit from Seven Hills, Pepper Bridge and Les Collines in this prime example of Washington's cellar-worthy bounty. Steely and pepper riven, with a classic tarry hint, dried thyme and pretty plum fruit. A lot of chew to the structure, so give it a couple of years to truly blossom.
2009 Barnwood Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard Santa Barbara County Grenache ($22, 14.3%): From a high-elevation site near Ventucopa, on the edge of Santa Barbara and Kern counties, comes some of the country's best Grenache - including this affordable, delicious bottle from Laetitia's other label. Compelling scents of conifer, lavender and berries give an edge to dark berry fruit.
2009 Betz Family La Cote Patriarche Yakima Valley Syrah ($55, 14.7%): It was hard to choose between Bob Betz's stupendous 2008 Cabernet and this Syrah, but ultimately it's this wine that's a dual tribute to Washington greatness: the talents of Betz, a master of wine, and Mike Sauer, whose Red Willow vineyard was the state's defining Syrah site and the source for Patriarche. Volcanic stone and roasted peppercorn scents provide a brooding prelude to a savory mix of plum and soy, with astoundingly refined tannins. That texture is the true signature of two Northwest masters at work - one in the vineyard, one in the cellar.
2008 Bokisch Terra Alta Vineyard Clements Hills-Lodi Garnacha ($18, 14.5%): The Bokisch mission - to highlight Lodi's potential with Spanish varieties - takes a brilliant turn with this eminently drinkable Grenache, featuring juicy strawberry fruit, energetic minerality and cinnamon accents.
2010 La Clarine Farm Cedarville Sierra Foothills Mourvedre ($22, 14.2%): Hank Beckmeyer and Caroline Hoel are quietly rewriting the rules in the Sierra with their tiny label, and this brilliantly heady bottle aged in neutral oak may be their best effort yet. Whole grape clusters provide a burst of thyme and dried sage in the glass, accented by tart red berry and a chalk minerality. Grippy and lean, with a hint of balsam, this is Mourvedre reinterpreted.
2009 Leojami Pierce Ranch Vineyard San Antonio Valley Grenache ($20, 13.9%): For his recently launched label, Ben Spencer turned to a lesser-known part of Monterey County for a pure, heady expression that shows Grenache's best side. Aged in older oak, it's transparent in the best way, packed with buoyant fruit and a warm kirsch note, plus sage, wild strawberry and mace.
2009 Minassian Young Cuvee de Paso Paso Robles Red ($24, 14.8%): David and Amparo Young show a subtle side of Paso from their dry-farmed vineyards in the area's west side. This mix of Mourvedre, Counoise, Syrah and Grenache Blanc lithely combines white pepper, dried fern and a raft of berry flavors with a tangy-salty edge.
2008 Wind Gap Sonoma Coast Syrah ($36, 12.1%): Pax Mahle made his name on Syrah, and for all his success with more unusual options (Trousseau Gris, Blaufrankisch) under his Wind Gap label, his Syrah remains stellar. From a mix of sites including Clary Ranch and Majik, this is packed with gorgeous pepper, lilac and cinnamon amid wild blueberry and bramble. The knotted tannins give it the guts that Syrah needs without relying on sheer power. When you get to the final hints of green olive and roasted thyme, you realize the aromatic brilliance at work.
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After last year's Pinot list, it seemed we had entered a game of brinksmanship. With 28 wines, Pinot Noir occupied the biggest share of the Top 100. How much more attention could be paid?
We've shrunk the number slightly this year, although Pinot still accounts for nearly one-quarter of the Top 100 roster. In no way does that signal a dip in quality.
The 2009 vintage that dominates here was a benchmark for California (for Oregon too, but differently). It was the best chance in perhaps a decade to make finessed, aromatically powerful Pinot Noir that showed the full potential of great terroir. Pay attention to the vineyard names below. If they're not familiar already, they are worth remembering.
As for winemakers? More Pinot devotees seemed to be driven to perfect a lighter touch, even as defenders of what one vintner termed a "flamboyant" style maintained their heavy-hitting ways. Thus 2009, and the two subsequent vintages, mark the core of a stylistic battle for Pinot's soul.
What you see here is a sampling of the finest results from that showdown. There may be quick reward in crafting a bottle built around sweet flavors and immediate gratification, but Pinot's most serious West Coast practitioners are making wine to remember.
2009 Alta Maria Vineyards Santa Maria Valley Pinot Noir ($28, 13.9% alcohol): Paul Wilkins and James Ontiveros, two past Winemakers to Watch, are again fine-tuning this affordable blend using their detailed knowledge of Santa Maria vineyards. Aged in mostly neutral oak, it opens to show cranberry and ponzu amid a warm loamy earth tone. Juicy red fruit defines the core of its impressive flavors.
2009 Anam Cara Nicholas Estate Chehalem Mountains Pinot Noir ($32, 13.6%): For yet another vintage, Sheila and Nick Nicholas show the best of Oregon's small-scale charms with their Newberg estate bottling, aged mostly in older oak. There's a classic minty, cool profile here, with camphor, bayberry and a wonderful floral accent. Almost ethereal in its flavors, but with plenty of tannic stuffing.
2009 Anthill Farms Demuth Vineyard Anderson Valley Pinot Noir ($42, 13.3%): The Anthill trio turned out a stellar line in 2009, but this vineyard designate is likely something to watch, seeing as Anthill's Anthony Filiberti now works for Demuth's new owner (see below). Steely and cool on the nose, this is like raspberry ice with a balsamic edge. The chewy berry fruit shows a chalky mineral aspect that's the very essence of Anderson Valley's tension-filled style.
2009 Arterberry Maresh Dundee Hills Pinot Noir ($25, 13%): A stunning value from Oregon as Jim Arterberry Maresh shows off the best of both his family's vineyard and the red soils of Dundee Hills in a basic bottling that over-delivers. There's gorgeous polish and delicacy that reveals '09's subtler side, with a spicy accent leading to soy and tangerine, and rewarding cherry flavors.
2008 Calera Reed Vineyard Mt. Harlan Pinot Noir ($50, 14.9%): Quite simply, one of the best wines Josh Jensen has made - and that's a big statement. From this low-yielding harvest (0.37 tons/acre) off one of his oldest parcels atop Mt. Harlan come the dramatic heights of Pinot Noir: The intensity of the dried forest floor and soy aromas practically smack you, and there's a tremendous red-fruit power and mineral-edged tannin that gives this wine energy even with its prodigious size. Ready to cellar at least a decade.
2009 Chanin Bien Nacido Vineyard Santa Maria Valley Pinot Noir ($50, 13.8%): Gavin Chanin's work at Au Bon Climat, in the heart of Bien Nacido, has more than paid off. He's probably making the most intricate, nuanced wine off this famous Santa Barbara parcel right now. The radiant quality of the nose hits you first: tons of subtle soy and moist earth, with a quiet sachet note, plus tense fruit flavors of cranberry, lemon oil and wild strawberry. Amazing refinement; a wine full of life and savory energy for the future.
2009 Copain Tous Ensemble Anderson Valley Pinot Noir ($28, 12.9%): While it's hard to dispute the profundities of his 2009 Kiser 'en Haut,' Wells Guthrie's affordable entry-level bottle shows how much work he puts into every tier of his winery. A tremendous amount of Pinot for the dollar. For its lean structure it shows a ton of ripe raspberry fruit, heady tangerine and soy nuances.
2009 Drew Morning Dew Vineyard Anderson Valley Pinot Noir ($47, 13.4%): Another stupendous Mendocino matchup, with the talented Jason Drew tapping fruit from this Philo vineyard farmed by Williams Selyem founder Burt Williams. It needs time, as Drew wines often do, but it's constantly unfolding - musky in one moment, a bolt of blue fruit and wet stone in the next. A serious, cellar-worthy interpretation of Anderson Valley.
2009 Freeman Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($44, 14.1%): Ken and Akiko Freeman and winemaker Ed Kurtzman turned out an impressive lineup in the 2009 vintage, but this blend from around the appellation - including the Rayhill and Sexton Road sites near Sebastopol's Bodega Highway, plus Occidental and Petaluma - is cool and no nonsense, full of saline edge. Aromas of damp forest - think redwoods after a rain - mix with bright raspberry and duskier bayberry. Finessed and beautifully subtle.
2009 Freestone Pastorale Vineyard Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($75, 14.1%): Joseph Phelps' Pinot project takes a heavier bent at times, but winemaker Theresa Heredia got free rein with this forthcoming, rare single-vineyard blockbuster, sourced from two Calera-selection blocks on Freestone's estate. With a heavy dose of whole grape clusters, it bursts with forest floor and matsutake mushroom aromas. Supple huckleberry and watermelon rind mark a fruit presence that's ethereal, marked by heady spice and weightlessness. This is Pinot mastery of the highest order.
2009 Ghostwriter Woodruff Family Vineyard Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir ($45, 13.5%): Kenny Likitprakong (Hobo Wine) returns to his Santa Cruz winemaking roots with his use of this newly revived old-vine site near Corralitos, with a supple, spicy huckleberry-filled effort. Aromas of coriander, forest floor and lemon rind round out a bottle that shows the great potential of this largely undiscovered area just east of Santa Cruz.
2009 J.K. Carriere Provocateur Willamette Valley Pinot Noir ($24, 13.5%): There's something to be said for affordable, early drinking Pinot, and Oregon native Jim Prosser has delivered a beauty, full of tension and freshness. A coppery mineral accent gives depth to chewy plum skin and watermelon. It's proof that immediate-gratification Pinot can still be rewarding when made with care.
2009 Knez Winery Cerise Vineyard Anderson Valley Pinot Noir ($39, 13.4%): It might taste like old-time Anderson Valley, but here's a sign of the area going back to the future. From Peter Knez, who purchased the stellar Cerise and Demuth sites a few years ago, and made by Anthill Farms' Anthony Filiberti, this meshes subtle oak perfume with a tightly wound package of cardamom, carnation and cherry blossom, and coppery berry fruit.
2009 Kutch Falstaff Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($39, 13.1%): Jamie Kutch's shift to a lighter winemaking style has seriously paid off. The Falstaff, from a cold parcel of rich Goldridge soils in the Petaluma Gap, is deft and ethereal. It's also still oak-laced and stylish, but the hearty cherry fruit is wonderfully accented with hints of menthol, matcha and oyster mushroom.
2009 Lioco Hirsch Vineyard Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($60, 13.5%): The minimalist Lioco label found one of the best Hirsch expressions of the vintage. Beautiful but atypically light-footed for this powerful coastal site, there's crazy mineral tension and a heady side, perhaps thanks to the inclusion of some old Mount Eden and Pommard vine selections. Dramatic and full of savory spice and pine-forest depth, with vibrant red fruit and wild blueberry.
2009 Littorai The Haven Vineyard Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($75, 13.4%): Ted Lemon's first estate parcel, above the Willow Creek watershed outside Occidental just a few miles from the coast, shows an astounding polish - of the sort that makes it an undoubted source for some of the best Pinot Noir on this continent. From a nuanced vintage, this shows a refinement that launches it to the ranks of top Pinot anywhere. A perfect balance of savory - spice from whole grape clusters and dry bark scents - and intense boysenberry and blue fruit. Already completely fulfilling and yet built for 15 years.
2009 Peay Scallop Shelf Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($54, 13.8%): Even as the Peays have expanded their Pinot roster, this 2009 bottling that highlights the savory, mineral side of their Annapolis estate is resplendent. Black tea, moss and perfumed berry notes have a notable delicacy, and the typically deep structure that's a signature of winemaker Vanessa Wong is well-cloaked behind a wall of aromas. Speaking in a quieter voice, this is alluring Pinot for the ages.
2009 Rhys Family Horseshoe Vineyard Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir ($59, 13.3%): It seems almost academic to discuss Kevin Harvey's transcendent wines, seeing as they vanish immediately upon release. But his 17 1/2-acre site near Skyline Boulevard due west of Cupertino, planted on thin shale-dominant soils, is an astounding mix of 13 selections of Pinot Noir, and in the fine 2009 vintage it made one of the best California Pinots I've ever tasted. A clear grape-stem spice is matched by sandalwood, fig, carob and the most elegant interpretation of forest floor - aromas that seem endless. The texture - silken tannin and a perfect integration of warm berry fruit - is the other half of a magnificent equation.
2009 Sequana Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir ($32; 13.9%) After three vintages, James MacPhail has found a happy marriage with the Hess Collection, which purchased his namesake label this year. The Sequana wines keep getting more nuanced, including this blend that shows the best of the Salinas Valley's prime Pinot site. A hint of bacon and tobacco leaf aromas mesh with strawberry, cherry and tart rhubarb for an oak-tinged but sinewy style. Though based in Sonoma, MacPhail is setting a benchmark for Santa Lucia.
2008 Skewis Salzgeber-Chan Vineyard Russian River Valley Pinot Noir ($45, 14.5%): Hank and Maggie Skewis have found a beautiful energy in this north-facing Russian River site. The rich oak character thrums, highlighting taut red and black fruit - raspberry, blackcurrant and earth, with warm spice and a mineral edge. It has those Russian River bass tones, but with a great tension that makes it shine.
2009 Soter North Valley Willamette Valley Pinot Noir ($30, 13.8%): Tony Soter made his name farther south, with his Carneros-based Etude. But his Oregon project is coming into its own. He and winemaker James Cahill finessed a tricky vintage with a mouthwatering, darker-hued release. Think of black cherry juice tinged with fenugreek and burnt sage.
2009 Von Holt Suacci Vineyard Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($42, 13.3%): This new San Francisco label founded by former Secret Service agent Chris Von Holt tapped the fine Suacci vineyard for this densely knit effort. Leathery berry fruit, cassis, celery seed and transparent red fruit flavors make it a taut specimen that could use a couple years to unfurl and integrate its oak. A final pine-mushroom note brings all the pieces together.
2009 Winderlea Dundee Hills Vineyards Dundee Hills Pinot Noir ($38, 14.5%): The parcel once known as the Goldschmidt vineyard, planted in 1974 and owned by an Oregon governor, has come into the hands of Bill Sweat and Donna Morris. Their new label is bringing a polished yet still subtle side to the Willamette, and this blend meshes a creaminess with loam-edged cherry fruit and dried thyme aromas. It's a textural masterpiece, with age-worthy structure that never tastes too tannic.
2009 Zepaltas Suacci Vineyard Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($45, 13.4%): Though his Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast appellation bottlings were stellar, Ryan Zepaltas' expression of this top Sebastopol site (for which he also makes wine) was a triumph of aromatic power. A clear spicy note from grape stems mixes with classic pine needle, truffle and dark earth to give profundity to lively black cherry. The structure here is well-robed but ready to give at least a decade of potential.
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At their best, the 2008 Cabernets from up and down the coast found the quality often lost with that grape: a true sense of place.
While Cab is still subject more than most grapes to the whims of size and ripeness, there's evidently a growing interest in wines that speak just a bit more softly, and can be affordably enjoyed without a special occasion. There's still that drive to make Cabernet into an important, top-dollar wine, but more of those wines are being made with a lighter touch.
While Merlot solo is still in a tough spot, it is finding its way into gorgeous blends that burst with character. For that matter, so is Cabernet Franc, a polarizing grape if ever there was one. It is finding a welcome home in places like Yakima Valley and the Sierra foothills.
2008 Andrew Will Two Blondes Vineyard Yakima Valley Red Wine ($55, 14.5% alcohol): For all we know about Chris Camarda's access to top Washington vineyards, his younger-vine blend from this site outside Yakima, built around Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, remains dramatically brilliant. The Two Blondes signature is so clear: sanguine and pimenton-edged, full of cherry fruit, blueberry, leather and bark.
2009 Barnard Griffin Columbia Valley Merlot ($17, 13.7%): Rob Griffin carries a banner for small, affordable labels, and if Merlot is struggling, he's making a solid case from the Northwest. Hailing from top-notch vineyards like Lonesome Spring Ranch and Conner Lee Vineyard, this offers black tea and plum to accent robust oak, with a pretty lilt to the fruit and raspberry highlights. It's real, honest Merlot.
2008 Buehler Vineyards Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($25, 14.5%): Buehler remains that rare Napa exception - determined to bring a fulfilling wine to the table for under $40. This $25 wonder again hails from a mix of 30 percent St. Helena estate fruit and a mix of valley floor offerings. With a burnt-herb complexity, sagebrush and cassis, and a durable, tobacco-edged profile, this has more long-term potential than you'd expect.
2009 Buty Columbia Valley Merlot-Cabernet Franc ($40, 14.1%): Caleb and Nina Foster give these two polarizing varieties a great name together. Their primary source here is the Conner Lee vineyard along the balmy Wahluke Slope, where Merlot thrives. Packed with fragrant berry and graphite, and paprika and fennel around the edges, this is a seamless and heady expression of what Washington does best.
2008 Cadence Ciel du Cheval Vineyard Red Mountain Red Wine ($45, 14.4%): Ben Smith and Gaye McNutt continue their run of brilliant Bordeaux-inspired efforts from their tiny Seattle label. Jim Holmes' Ciel du Cheval site always reveals silky tannins, and the high dose of Cabernet Franc in the blend meshes that with a fresh sea-foam note and smokier cumin spice. Warm and packed with bright red and blue fruit, and a deep root-like accent, this will keep getting better over the next decade.
2008 Chappellet Pritchard Hill Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($135, 14.9%): Chappellet's $48 Signature is again one of Napa's standards, but the profound bottling from the Pritchard Hill estate is one for the ages. This is unapologetically huge, a heady package of dried rose, dust, nutmeg and vibrant, robust black fruit, with a ton of guts, refined sandalwood and eau de vie accents to round it out. One of Napa's finest back in extraordinary form.
2008 Corison Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($70, 13.8%): In a tricky vintage, Cathy Corison's less-is-more approach is a pleasure to behold. As always, her harvest dates are several weeks before her neighbors', in this case in early September. The classic graphite, sandalwood, green olive and lively cherry and plum fruit keep evolving and deepening, so keep this bottle for a decade or more. Stunningly firm and aromatic.
2008 Dominus Napanook Napa Valley Red Wine ($59, 14.1%): Dominus has raised the price on its Napanook this year, and maybe that's fair, considering that what had been the Yountville estate's second label is soaring in quality, enough to be considered on its own stellar merits. Impressively fine in its structure, with dark mineral, burnt sage and cassia accents to the savory, rich cassis fruit. There's a maturity to the style of the '08, a sign that it has grown up to be an impressive value as one of Napa's top wines.
2009 Easton Monarch Mine Vineyard Sierra Foothills Cabernet Franc ($20, 13.5%): If Terre Rouge's Bill Easton is usually more focused on Rhone efforts and Zinfandel, he has tapped into the brilliant potential of Cabernet Franc in the Sierra. This top-notch source in Placer County turns out a wonderfully aromatic bottle that nods to Loire reds but has its own mountainous distinction. Packed with juicy, beetroot-edged blueberry flavors.
2008 Gramercy Cellars Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($45, 13.9%): Not to dismiss his Rhone-inspired efforts, but Master Sommelier Greg Harrington has nailed the quintessence of Washington Cabernet from a variety of vineyard sources. Polished, oak-tinged and masterful, this is a gorgeous dose of vibrant blue fruit, edged with a bright mineral accent and refined tannins that give it aging power.
2008 Januik Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($30, 14.4%): Longtime Northwest icon Mike Januik taps some of the top spots in Columbia Valley, including Champoux and Klipsun, for a Cabernet that's stunning for the price. Alluring and graphite-edged, with tea, clove, black olive and heady ripe cherry fruit.
2008 Kapcsandy Family State Lane Vineyard Estate Cuvee Yountville Red ($150, 14.5%): After a successful career in the Seattle construction business, Lou Kapcsandy happened onto a chance to buy Beringer's noted State Lane vineyard. With help from winemaker Dennis Malbec, he has turned his namesake estate into one of Napa's brightest lights. This Cabernet-dominant blend, with Merlot, Cab Franc and Petit Verdot, is marked by an absolute harmony - deep tobacco and dark mineral notes, rich cassis and a brighter berry edge, subtle dried-chile accents, coffee and licorice. No shortage of ripeness, but the headily aromatic profile is a new California benchmark. The more Merlot-heavy Endre ($80, 14.1%) isn't far behind.
2008 Laurel Glen Vineyard Counterpoint Sonoma Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon ($30, 14.3%): Patrick Campbell's storied Sonoma label traded hands earlier this year, and its younger-drinking Counterpoint is a worthy reminder of what this mountainside Glen Ellen site, with its mix of marine and volcanic soils, has to offer. Robust cinnamon spice and tree bark aromas, with dense, luscious fruit and a firm minerality. The quintessence of Sonoma Cabernet.
2009 Louis Martini Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon ($18, 13.8% alcohol): The Martini label, now owned by Gallo, has maintained stewardship not only of its famous Monte Rosso site but of a great history of Cabernet. This widely produced bottle is again a tribute to large-scale winemaking talent. To find this much Cabernet for the price, with robust cassis and plum fruit, a savory sandalwood accent and firm tannins, is a rarity. Here's a proper nod to California Cabernet's legacy.
2008 Round Pond Estate Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon ($50, 14.5%): Winemaker Brian Brown is coming into his own, shining with the potential of this sleeper of a Rutherford property. Restraint isn't in order here; 70 percent new oak is seamlessly eaten by the dense fruit, giving off a dusty, spicy essence of espresso, fresh plum and sweet cassis pervades. The hefty tannic grip gives it a good decade to improve and gain nuance. Muscular Rutherford at its best.
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If you wanted to reignite a love affair with Zinfandel, the nuanced 2009 vintage is the year to do it. The popular sweet style certainly didn't vanish, but this year proved a benchmark in finding Zin with all the hearty fruit and winning savory tones that make the grape a treasure.
Clearly there's a movement under way to allow Zin to once again be both rustic and elegant without heavy-handed winemaking, or an excess of sweetness or oak.
Beyond Zin, the virtues of field blends are once again holding sway as vintners again believe in the old charms of uniquely Californian reds.
The most unlikely matchups of grape and place are bearing fruit. Gamay in the Sierra foothills? This is the new red reality.
2009 Brown Estate Napa Valley Zinfandel ($36, 15.4% alcohol): The Brown family is setting a standard for elegant Zinfandel in Napa, specifically from their Chiles Valley property. This latest is again seamless and charming: Cocoa, citrus zest and tree bark accents frame balsam and juicy, deep huckleberry fruit that show full ripeness amid a distinct nuance.
2009 Broc Cellars Vine Starr California Red ($25, 13.5%): Chris Brockway's version of California table wine is a tribute to the lighter step of Sonoma Zinfandel, with a small dose of Bennett Valley Syrah. Intensely spiced and vivacious, with cardamom, black mustard and black pepper, and fresh raspberry fruit. Nuanced, compelling and a perfect template for great, straightforward table wine.
2009 Bucklin Bambino Old Hill Ranch Sonoma Valley Zinfandel ($24, 15.2%): The Bucklin family controls Kenwood's Old Hill, arguably Sonoma's oldest vineyard, and this younger-vine (1998) bottle uses the same field-blend principle (Petite Sirah, Alicante Bouschet, Grenache and so on) for a pitch-perfect Zin combo of bramble fruit and dark pepper spice, with raspberry jam, licorice and bay leaf. If not showing the full age of old vines, the Bambino still frames the beauty of a great site.
2008 Dashe Cellars Florence Vineyard Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel ($32): Mike Dashe favors this riverbed site for a softer, pure expression of Dry Creek's valley floor. Hearty plum, cinnamon, cherry skin and a mineral cut form a juicy, full expression with potential to improve over the next five years.
2009 Edmunds St. John Bone-Jolly El Dorado County Gamay Noir ($17 12.3%): Berkeley's Steve Edmunds has long been the defender of California Gamay, and after many years his work is paying off as new plantings appear in the Sierra. Primarily from the Witters vineyard near Camino, this is a tribute to the nuance that comes with altitude. Pleasingly rooty and huckleberry-powered, with lots of loamy spice.
NV Marietta Cellars Old Vine Red ($11): Geyserville-based Chris Bilbro and his sons uphold a simple, if rare, prospect - that wine should be good, simple and affordable without being bland. Their Zinfandel-based blend, usually from Sonoma and Mendocino sources, is always released in nonvintage lot numbers (currently No. 56), with a dark berry profile accented by dry herb and dust. With some Italian varieties typically in the blend, it brims with friendly, soft fruit. If it's not built for the long term, its honest, ripe flavors should be a template for California affordability.
2008 McCay Cellars Paisley Lodi Red ($24, 14.8%): Michael McCay is bringing nuance back to Lodi reds with this blend of Zin and Petite Sirah. The great bramble and dust of Zin, with a bit of balsam to enliven the dense black fruit. Robust and powerful but still retaining a subtlety that reminds you of what Lodi can do so well.
2009 Ridge Lytton Springs Dry Creek Valley Red ($35, 14.5%): Under the hand of winemaker John Olney, the latest Lytton Springs is a gorgeous high-wire act, the best in years. Heady and full of dried flowers, dusty plum and India ink, it brings a stunning freshness to its berry fruit, with a firm tannic backbone thanks to 23 percent Petite Sirah.
2010 Rock Wall Super Alamedan California Red ($20, 13.5%): You can take Kent Rosenblum out of his old winery, but you can't take him out of Alameda. He's expanded beyond Zin for a blend that also includes Sangiovese and Montepulciano from Contra Costa vines, plus a bit of Cabernet. The result diverges from his hammerhead Zins with a gorgeously deft profile, showing spicy berry, dried tomato leaf, black pepper and plum skin in a buoyant, grippy package just made for the table. As fine a tribute to the Island City as you could want.
2008 Tres Sabores Rutherford Zinfandel ($35, 13.8%): Julie Johnson has staked a claim for subtle, lower-impact Zin from her Rutherford vineyard. Its clean lines are defined by a raft of boysenberry and bright cherry fruit, plus candied-violet aromas, a hint of musk and a savory mineral edge.
The top vintners not at top dollar
Because some of our Top 100 Wines are in limited supply, here's a list of other bottles made by some of our Top 100 producers, all $40 or less:
2010 The Beast (Buty) Wallula Vineyard Columbia Valley Riesling ($25)
2010 Bokisch Terra Alta Clements Hills Albarino ($16)
2010 Buty Columbia Valley Semillon-Sauvignon-Muscadelle ($25)
2009 Cadence Coda Columbia Valley Red ($25)
2010 Calera Central Coast Chardonnay ($18)
2010 Dashe Les Enfants Terribles Dry Creek Valley Grenache ($24)
2010 Donkey & Goat El Dorado Grenache Noir ($27)
2009 Evening Land Vineyards Blue Label Oregon Pinot Noir ($24)
NV Gloria Ferrer Blanc de Noirs ($20)
2009 Hanzell Sebella Sonoma Valley Chardonnay ($36)
2009 Hirsch Bohan-Dillon Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($30)
2010 Lioco Sonoma County Chardonnay ($20)
2010 Littorai Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($35)
2009 Ridge Three Valleys Sonoma County Red ($24)
NV Roederer Estate Anderson Valley Brut ($26)
2009 Round Pond Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($30)
2009 Stoller JV Estate Dundee Hills Pinot Noir ($25)
2010 Tablas Creek Patelin de Tablas Paso Robles Red ($20)
2010 Wind Gap Fannuchi-Wood Road Vineyard Russian River Valley Trousseau Gris ($21)
2009 Zepaltas Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($29)
Find Jon Bonné at email@example.com or @jbonne on Twitter.