The Toad Hollow Gazette
Since 1983
"All the News That's Hoppinin' in The Hollow"
March 1999, Issue 10
In case you haven't heard, 1998 turned out to be a rather strange year for those in
agriculture (that would be us!). Our summer was cooler than the norm -- other than
those periods of time when it was way too hot. Then there were the periodic rains.
Why, I remember when rain was basically unheard of in our area from May through the
summer. Well, not any more. Seems these days there are absolutely no
absolutes. And of course September and October are usually two of our very nicest
and warmest months -- but not in 1998. We had just about given up on salvaging any
kind of crop when the end of October finally came through for us. The end result was
that unlike the huge production experienced in 1997, 1998 produced a much smaller crop.
The quality is very good, but production is definitely down. We usually
release our new Chardonnay each year in April, but due to the extremely late harvest, we
will release the 1998 Chardonnay in May or June.
Luckily
for us (and you), the1997 vintage will take us up through the release of the 1998.
Remember those times when you had to go months without being able to enjoy a glass (or
bottle) of Toad Hollow wine? Hopefully, those days are a thing of the past.
In addition to the Chardonnay, we hope you have discovered and are continuing to enjoy
the Eye of the Toad, our Sonoma County Dry Pinot Noir
Rose. Seems more and more people are realizing the joys of a true Rose -- a dry,
delightful wine to be enjoyed on its own or with a myriad of dishes (especially hot, spicy
food). Rose -- a wine for those in the know. And by now most of you must know
about our wonderful 1997 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir.
This wine won a gold medal in the San Francisco International Wine Competition only weeks
after being bottled. This is a great bottle of wine. We are very excited to
have received an invitation to participate in the extremely prestigious International
Pinot Noir Celebration in McMinnville, Oregon (July/August). You can bet we
accepted. If you haven't tried the Pinot yet, do it!
And more exciting news -- by the time you read this newsletter, our 1997 Cacophony Zinfandel should finally be available in
your neighborhood. We've been promising this wine for months now, but it is proof
that good things come to those who wait. Don't be confused by the name -- Todd just
likes the sound of this word. As we've explained on the back label, the word does
not describe the wine, which is wonderful and elegant and very harmonious -- the word
describes Dr. Toad -- and I guess that's why he is partial to it. Toad Hollow
Vineyards still dances to a different tune! And as if having these two new wonderful
red wines in our collection isn't exciting enough, we will be releasing a 1997 Reserve Merlot on April 1!
Yea for all of us!
Another possibility we are looking into is having a Toad Hollow
sparkling wine available for the 1999 holidays and the Y2K celebration -- and for
weddings -- and for whatever! What do you think?
And so it goes. Thanks for helping to make the Toad Hollow dream a reality.
We're working very hard (growing pains at our advanced ages are kind of tough) but
we love what we do and feel blessed for all the wonderful people we have met because of
the wine. Viva la Toad! Now go out and spread the word!
P.S. We're pleased to have a new part-time employee, Martha Mintun.
Martha
helps out with lots of different chores, but we're all especially pleased to be able to
dump our least favorite jobs on the new low person on the totem pole.
Raise a glass in memory of our dear friend and talented artist,
Brenda Eno.
Her artistry will live on in our hearts and on our labels.
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