I’m very excited to bring you the first-ever Cellar Contest!

On Saturday, March 26th and Sunday, March 27th, the Rhône Rangers are holding their massive Rhône Rangers Weekend at Fort Mason in San Francisco, California! There are a ridiculous number of events over the course of two days, and if you’re a fan of the Rhône varieties (syrah, grenache, mourvèdre, viognier, marsanne, rousanne, to name just a very small handful) you won’t want to miss this event.

So what’s on tap? Seminars, a Winemaker Dinner, and of course the Grand Tasting.

Seminars

Three seminars over the course of the weekend.

• Seminar #1: “Green Rangers” — Saturday, 1pm. Moderated by Jon Bonné, Wine Editor, San Francisco Chronicle. A discussion of sustainability in California-grown Rhône varieties.
• Seminar #2: “Mourvèdre on the Move” — Saturday, 2:45pm. Also moderated by Jon Bonné, a discussion of the rising popularity of mourvèdre in California winemaking.
• Seminar #3: “Wild Wines and the Stories of How They Came to Be” — Sunday, 11am. Moderated by Patrick Comiskey, Senior Editor, Wine & Spirits Magazine. A spirited discussion of some of the wild stories behind some of California’s most exciting winemaking.

Winemaker Dinner

Eighteen wineries, including personal favorites of yours truly like Bonny Doon, Tablas Creek, Ridge, and Quivira, will participate in (and pour wines at!) this exquisite dinner. The dinner is a benefit for the Rhône Rangers Scholarship Fund. Lots of wine from the participating wineries, and dinner catered by The Girl & The Fig.

The Grand Tasting

From 2pm-5pm on Sunday, the doors of Fort Mason’s Festival Pavilion will open to the public for the 14th Annual Rhône Rangers Grand Tasting. You are simply not going to want to miss this event! Over 500 different wines will be poured by the more than 100 participating wineries. Killer!

Now, how do you get to one, some, or all of these great events? Tickets to the seminars, Winemaker Dinner, and Grand Tasting are all available at the Rhône Rangers website. I suggest you go a.s.a.p. to get in on the seminars and dinner!

However, there is another way to attend the Grand Tasting. And it’s your lucky day, because I’m going to tell you how right now.

Until 11:59pm pacific time, this Thursday, March 10th I will be accepting submissions right here in the comment section of this post. What kind of submissions? A personal favorite kind… Haiku. I love haiku. It’s something I thoroughly enjoy, and I’m going to make you write one if you want to go.

So here’s the deal: write a haiku (and yes, I will be counting your syllables! 5-7-5!) about your favorite Rhône varietal wine. Anything about it. Here’s one for example:

Que syrah, syrah,
What can I say of syrah?
Love it. Wanna drink.

That’s mine. Doesn’t count if you copy it.

On Friday, I will select, randomly, from all qualified entrants. The winner will win two tickets to the Grand Tasting on Sunday, March 27th. This is a $90 value! It’s huge!

So snap to it, folks! Lets' see some haiku!