In Farmington, New York, where I’m from, July and August see highs in the eighties and nineties, but when September hits, temperatures drop precipitously, bottoming out in January and February when the mercury hovers between fifteen and thirty-five. I distinctly remember the odd feeling of stiffly freezing nose-hairs with each inhale as I waited for the schoolbus in winter. The change is predictable, but constant and extreme, and you can be sure these changes affect one’s life, including your mood, diet, and wardrobe, which ranges from flip flops to snow boots, and singlets to parkas.

“Do you miss the seasons?” New Englanders ask, but I never got the chance. After the first few years of not missing the freeze, I started to notice other seasons in Northern California. They are different - more subtle - and there are many more than four. Fall and winter together are the season of the reaching sun, when its lowered arc throws light more deeply into Oakland Yard, and we must keep watch that our bottles nearest the windows are properly shaded. December through March is elephant seal season in Point Reyes National Seashore, when we picnic on Drake’s beach alongside snorting, blubbery, four-thousand pound phocids. Tomato season in California goes from April to November, a length that never fails to amaze New Yorkers. Some California seasons are less predictable: fluctuations in nature and the Pacific Fishery Management Council together determine the salmon and crab season. And of course, there is the dreaded fire season, which grows longer and more formidable by the year. Currently, we are in the middle of wine grape harvest season, which can range from August to October, depending on winter, spring, and summer weather, as well as differences in climate and grape variety.

In celebration of this special time, we’ll be pouring California wine tasting flights all week at Oakland Yard, including this Saturday, when Cary Quintana will pour flights of her Cary Q Wines. With a low-intervention philosophy that also focuses on working with organic or sustainably farmed vineyards, Cary is all about capturing pure and vibrant varietal expressions. A minimalist at heart, and sensorily vigilant, her wines see native fermentations and a light hand in the cellar, and her aim is “to highlight a distinction between time, place, and the diversity of what our micro-climates offer in our beautiful part of the world.” Come meet Cary this Saturday and celebrate the season!

But first...TONIGHT - THURSDAY NIGHT FLIGHTS: California reds and whites made with fruit from the Central Coast, Clements Hills, Lodi, Lake County, Mendocino, and Green Valley 2023 Monte Rio Sauvignon Blanc
2023 Terah Wine Co. Vermentino
2021 Phantômé Cellars Gruner Veltliner
2023 Las Jaras Glou Glou
2022 Tessier Day Dreaming Red
2021 Ultraviolet Cabernet Sauvignon
Tasting flights $15 from 5-9 and wines by the glass until 9pm

SATURDAY 9/14: CARY Q WINEMAKER TASTING - Special guest Cary Quintana pours flights of four of her small-production wines spanning the past three vintages.
2023 Vibes! Picpoul Blanc
2023 Crazy/Perfect Cinsault
2021 Cosmic Dance Grenache & Syrah
2022 Hollis Mourvedre
Tasting flights $20 from 2-6pm and wines by the glass until 9pm

Cheers,

Max