OCWS Newsletter JUNE2024 : simplebooklet.com

2 ocws.org June 20242024 Board of Directors Carolyn ChristianPresidentCarolyn@ocws.orgFran GitshamVice PresidentFran@ocws.orgRich SkoczylasSecretaryRich@ocws.orgMel JayTreasurerMel@ocws.orgGeorge CravensDirectorGeorge@ocws.orgSue EnglandDirectorSue@ocws.orgLinda FleminsDirectorLindaF@ocws.orgFred HeineckeDirectorFred@ocws.orgJohn LaneDirectorJohn@ocws.orgPresident’s Message By Carolyn ChristianHere we are in June and it is dif-cult to believe that 2024 is nearly halfway over. This means that we are in the throes of our busy season! WINE COMPETITIONSOur unique relationship with the OC Fair and Event Center provides us the opportunity to host two amazing wine competitions – the OC Fair Com-mercial Wine Competition and the OC Fair Home Wine Competition. These events helped launch our organization back in the mid-1970s and they are what make us the organization we are today. This year marks the 48th annual event for both! We could not possibly put on these events without the amaz-ing volunteers that form the member-ship and foundation of our organiza-tion. It makes me incredibly proud to see the level of commitment from so many people. What takes months and thousands of hours to put together has become a well-oiled machine. My personal thanks to Fran Gitsh-am and Kevin Donnelly for leading the incredible teams that are making these events happen this year.OC FAIROn the heels of the competitions, The Courtyard is ramping up for an-other amazing season of wine tasting, wine by the glass, featured wineries and seminars at the OC Fair. This is another instance of hundreds of people coming together to make something so vast seem effortless. The Courtyard is an event that many mark as their anniversary as members of the OCWS, having joined from “the other side of the counter” after a wonderful experience tasting wine and realizing that the OCWS seemed like a great group to join. The OC Fair is our main recruit-ing time and last year we brought in over 250 new members. These new members are already getting involved in events and committees. I would be remiss in not mentioning that Fred Heinecke and Fran Gitsham head the team that makes The Courtyard happen.KIT WINE CLASSAs part of our educational mission, we provide events to help those who want to learn to make wine. Don’t miss the Kit Wine Class this month. Along with our traditions, we are trying to add new events as the oppor-tunities arise. Don’t miss this month’s new events – the Wine Defect Iden-tication Workshop and the OCWS Outing with Vinos Unidos (see this issue for more details).50TH ANNIVERSARYWe are approaching our 50th Anni-versary in 2026. In preparation for this momentous occasion, we are putting together articles on the history of the OCWS (see Hank Bruce’s article in this issue) and gathering historical information to assemble a comprehen-sive history of the organization. The OCWS History Committee will be hosting a series of luncheons for our “Vintage Members” to gather histori-cal information. Each meeting will include mem-bers, starting with the longest standing members and moving forward in time. Our rst luncheon was a huge success and included original members like Judi Brady and Jane Goodnight. With such a rich history, we have much see PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE, page 3

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June 2024 ocws.org 3The Wine PressStaff BoxThe Wine Press is the ofcial newsletter of the Orange County Wine Society, Inc. The newsletter is published monthly. The Wine Press welcomes input from the OCWS membership. Please forward comments, questions and suggestions to Editor@ocws.orgExecutive EditorsCathy RislingGreg RislingContributing WritersOCWS Board of DirectorsJim BurkDamian ChristianScott HarralAlice PolserRochelle RandelEd ReyesWebsite AdministratorWendy TaylorOCWS PhotographerJim BurkCopyright (c)2024 Orange County Wine Society, Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved.The Orange County Wine Society is a non-prot 501(c)(3) educational organization incorporated under the laws of the State of California with its principal place of business in Costa Mesa, California.Orange County Wine SocietyP.O. Box 11059Costa Mesa, CA 92627Phone: (714) 708-1636Fax: (714) 546-5002Website: OCWS.orgOCWS Email: Ofce@ocws.org 2023 Wine Competition Results:WineCompetition.comThe Orange County Wine Society extends a warm welcome to its new-est members! Membership for the following members was approved by the Board of Directors at the May 2024 meeting: Mike Chen, Susan Edmonds, Julie Ezaki and Christo-pher Goffredo, Antoinette Gaglione, Roger and Juanita Johnson, Michael Kwiatkowski, Mandy Levine, John Prager, Dennis and Sandra Priest, Bob Rosales, Paulette Smith and Stefanie Williamson.As of May 1, the OCWS has 1,028 total members with 619 mem-berships.New Members: For new mem-bers trying to log on to our website, and who have not already created their own password, go to OCWS.org. Your default login is the pri-mary member’s email address. The default password is the primary member’s zip code. Both of these may be changed under the tab “My Account” once you log on. How-ever, there may be only one login/password per membership.—Rochelle Randel, OCWS Business AdministratorNew Members CORNERwork ahead of us to gather the untold stories of our organization. In addition to the luncheons, we will have sever-al ways in which you can share your stories with us.As we move into the summer and our busiest time of the year, let me just Did you know the Orange County Wine Society was ofcially incorporated on June 8, 1976, through the efforts of Brant Horton and 18 other local wine enthusiasts? It all started in May 1976 when Horton, an Orange County wine retailer in Tustin, formulated a plan to host a professional competition of California wines. Each year, only certain varietals would be judged. Those varietals were organized into three price categories. All wines would have to be commercially available in Orange County and all wines within the OCWS HISTORY & FUN FACTSsay how truly lucky we are to have such great volunteers that help make this organization what it is – a vibrant and resilient group of over 1,000 members, all at a different stage in their wine enthusiast journey, working together to make things happen. We have truly been “Pairing Wine Educa-tion and Fun Since 1976!” Cheers to you all!see HISTORY, page 11selected varietal would be judged, whether they were donated or purchased. The judges would either be commercial winemakers or winery principals. The rst annual Commercial Wine Competition was held on July 10, 1977, at the South Coast Plaza Hotel in Costa Mesa, with the support of the Orange County Fair and hosted by the OCWS. A total of 82 individual wines (59 Chenin Blancs and 23 Gamay Beaujolais) were rated by 18 judges. In 1986, the Renown judges, thousands of volunteers launch commercial wine competitionPRESIDENT'S MESSAGEFrom page 2

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4 ocws.org June 2024 Mini-TastingThe Results ARE IN1st Place2021 Cuvaison EstateCuvaisonCaneros, CA$38.99Effusive cherry and raspberry aromas are followed by warm, broad straw-berry and cinnamon avors in this full-bodied, smooth and generous wineAccolades: 92 points Wine Enthusiast2nd Place2016 Kite’s Rest VineyardBlack KiteMendocino, CA$49.99Good balance and a plethora of juicy, ripe fruit avors highlight this full-bod-ied wine. It has generous black cherry and light baking-spice aromas, plenty of cherry and sour cherry in the avors and a moderately tannic texture livened by good acidity.Accolades: 94 points Wine Enthusiast3rd Place2021 Amici CellarsRussian River Valley, CA$39.99Rich aromas of cranberry, black cherry and baking spice meld with avors of lively red fruits and hints of cherry cola. This polished Pinot Noir offers silky tannins and precise acidity that add complexity to the long nish.Accolades: 93 points James SucklingThe April Mini-Tasting was held at seven sites throughout the county, with 113 people enjoying 10 wines in a blind tasting. The attendees each contributed a dish, each site voted for their favorite dish and the chef was awarded a bottle of wine as Chef of the Evening.The wines were served in ve blind ights of two wines each and the attendees judged each wine, voted for their favorites and tried to determine the region of California where the grapes were raised. Each of the 10 wines placed in the top three or four at one or more sites and the top two wines did very well at ve of the seven sites. All 10 of the wines nished in the top four at one or more of the sites, with the top two wines nish-ing in the top four at six of the seven sites. The top three were all California wines, but the fourth and fth favorites were from Italy and Spain.The overall winner was Cuvaison Estate’s Cu-vaison Pinot Noir from Carneros. It got rst place at two sites and second place at three more sites. Second place overall was Black Kite from Kite’s Rest Vineyard in Mendocino. It got rst place at three sites and fourth place at two more. Third overall was Amici Pinot Noir from Amici Cellars in the Russian River Valley.

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Mini-TastingJune 2024 ocws.org 5Attendees brought a delicious dish to share and then voted on a Chef of the Evening. The results of the Chef of the Evening at each host site are:Hosts: Chris & Hank BruceChef: Pam Carter — Beef EnchiladasHosts: Carolyn & Damian ChristianChefs: Mary Ann & Don Mayer — Death by ChocolateHosts: Mike Del MedicoChef: Rich Skoczylas — Seafood PaellaHost: Julie GoodChef: Jim Kerins — Cherrywood Smoked Salmon Hosts: Christy & Robert HallChef: Greg Brett — NeapolitanHosts: Steve & Kim RizzutoChef: George Cravens — Pork Loin with Cherry ChutneyHosts: Pat & Frank Solis (TIE) Chefs: Eric & Carmen Kaines — Filipino Pork Adobo Chef: Jim Burk — Kumquat CheesecakeCongratulations to all the winners and a big thank you to the Mini-Tasting hosts! You can look for recipes posted at OCWS.org.—George Cravens, OCWS Director Chefs of the EVENINGIngredients Brownies:1 (18.4 ounce) package brownie mix (such as Betty Crocker)2 large eggs½ cup vegetable oil3 tablespoons waterChocolate Pudding:4 cups milk2 (3.9 oz.) packages instant chocolate pudding mixTo Assemble:3 (1.4 ounce) bars chocolate- covered English toffee1 (16 oz.) package frozen whipped topping, thawedInstructions PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). GREASE 9x13-inch baking pan.Make the brownies: COMBINE brownie mix, eggs, vegetable oil, and water in a large bowl. MIX with a wooden spoon until well blended. Spread into the prepared baking pan.BAKE in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted 2 inches from the side of the pan comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely.Prepare the pudding: WHISK milk and pudding mix together in a large bowl until smooth; set aside.To assemble: CRUMBLE 1/2 of the brownies on the bottom of a glass punch bowl; spoon 1/2 of the pudding on top. CRUSH 1 toffee bar over pudding and top with 1/2 of the whipped topping. REPEAT layers in the same order, then refrigerate until ready to serve, saving the last toffee bar to crumble and sprinkle on top before serving.Death by Chocolate Trie

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Events6 ocws.org June 2024 1In what decade did Chardonnay suffer criticism leading to the ABC acronym, Anything But Chardonnay?A. 1970sB. 1980sC. 1990s2 Chardonnay has suffered criticism as a consequence of winemakers:A. using new oak and malolactic fermentation (MLF)B. using charred barrels for agingC. using malolactic fermentation (MLF)3 The use of malolactic fermentation (MLF) to produce Chardonnay results in:A. A creamy avorB. A buttery avorC. Both a creamy and buttery avor4 Chardonnay wine can be a wine for all white wine lovers because this ubiquitous grape can provide any style of wine from dry still wines to sparkling wines to sweet late harvest wines.A. TrueB. False5 The Chardonnay grape is a vitis vinifera cross of Pinot Noir and a Croatian grape that was brought to France by the Romans. The two grapes were planted in close proximity and subsequently interbred. What was the name of this Croatian grape?A. Gouais BlancB. GleraC. Garganega6 Grown in France, where did Chardonnay originate?A. ChablisB. BurgundyC. Champagne7 A favorite with winemakers, the Chardonnay grape is easily cultivated, adapts to different environments and takes on the characteristics of its vineyard, making the grape easy to demonstrate and express the terroir and the winemaker’s style.A. TrueB. False8 One of the best-known uses of the Chardonnay grape is:A. Serving it to a rst dateB. Using it in the making of sparkling wineC. Eating it to provide digestive ber9 In Italy, Chardonnay is used to make a sparkling wine called Franciacorta in which Italian Region?A. TuscanyB. LombardyC. Veneto10 In Italy, the Chardonnay grape is allowed in the making of Prosecco in what region?A. TuscanyB. VenetoC. Umbria11 Chardonnay’s acidity accompanied by its other moderate, neutral characteristics seem to make it a favorite for sparkling wines. In Spain, Chardonnay is allowed to be blended in:A. RojaB. CavaC. SherryChardonnay—it's dry, it’s sweet, it’s oaky, it’s buttery, it’s fruity, it’s complex, it’s acidic, it’s minerally, it’s sparkling. It gives a whole new meaning to anything but Chardonnay because it is anything BUT Chardonnay! So, ignore the alphabet, if you have the wine, enjoy it! —CL Keedy, Linda Flemins and the Wine Education CommitteeAnswers: 1: C; 2: A; 3: C; 4: A; 5: A; 6: B; 7: A; 8: B; 9: B; 10: B; 11: BWine WISDOMDeciphering the ABCs of ChardonnayOCWS funds scholarships for eight California colleges and Universities, including the culinary arts program at Orange Coast College. OCC is one of the few programs not focused on enology or viticulture but on culinary arts. Students at OCC can obtain an associate’s degree in culinary arts and various occupational certicates. The school typically has several hundred students enrolled in the various programs. Just recently, OCC added a wine component to their culinary arts program.In May, I had the good fortune to attend the 66th annual OCC Honors Night Scholarship Ceremony and award OCWS scholarships to seven very deserving students. Over 300 scholarships were given to nearly 500 students. —Damian Christian, Scholarship ChairOCWS Scholarship PROGRAMSpotlight: Orange Coast College • Khoa M. To • Man-in Chao • Jasmine Tre Dagley • Morgan E. Downie• Blanca Michelle Granados• Shannon Michelle White• Madeline X. Ngyuen

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EventsJune 2024 ocws.org 7As wine afcionados, we have all carefully chosen and ordered a bottle of wine at a restaurant. The waiter returns, opens it and pours us that rst taste. Something about it doesn’t seem quite right but we indicate our approval anyway. Then as soon as the waiter walks away, we begin to second guess our decision. Is this how this wine is supposed to taste? Is that zzy attribute supposed to be there? Is that musty odor a problem or not?If you’ve ever been in that situation, you know that uncomfortable feeling and the self-doubt about speaking up. Should we call the waiter over and send it back? Is the wine really all that bad? Do you suffer through the evening with something you don’t enjoy?To educate and train our members, the OCWS is offering a new workshop to help you identify wine defects. It will be held 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 15, at the home of OCWS member Don Mayer in Yorba Linda.This class will give you the knowledge to determine the quality of a wine you are served. With that knowledge, you will also gain the condence to question a wine that doesn’t meet the quality standard.Industry experts acknowledge that with corked bottles up to 5 percent of wine has attributes dened as a defect. However, restaurant returns do not match those numbers. The reason is that many wine consumers are not condent or adequately trained in recognizing a wine defect. In 2022, the expert judges at the OCWS Commercial Competition’s rejected 55 bottles. In 2023, 34 bottles were rejected. These numbers are in line with the industry averages, which suggest that we, including competition judges, will encounter a bad bottle from time to time.This new OCWS workshop is designed to take advantage of our competition judges’ expertise. You will get the opportunity to sample the faulty wine rejected by judges and compare it to the fault-free version actually judged. The workshop will be structured to provide a comparison between a “good” and “bad” bottle of the same wine. From this, you will learn to identify the same attributes that prompt competition judges to reject a bottle of wine. Multiple examples of the same fault will be used so you can condently identify them.The workshop will be organized into groups so participants can identify the differences between the “good” and “bad” wines and describe the attributes of the defect. If possible, a variety of wines with different faults will be used, giving you more examples of faulty wines. With the knowledge gained from this workshop you’ll be able to identify a defective wine and be more condent in calling over that waiter to get a fresh bottle. Signups for this workshop are now open on the OCWS website. Light snacks will be served. Specic address information and other details will be sent to attendees approximately one week prior to the event.—Don Mayer, Event ChairNEW EVENT:OCWS OutingOCWS members are invited to a special tasting of Vinos Unidos wines 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday, June 30, at a private residence in Orange (exact location TBA). Cost is $40 and includes a tasting of four wines poured by Vintner Bob Jauregui, winner of six medals at the OC Fair Commercial Wine Competition. Light snacks/charcuterie will be included. Signups are available online at OCWS.org. SIGN-UP DEADLINE: Tuesday, June 25New Workshop: Wine Defect IdenticationSAVE THE DATE1 to 4 p.m.Saturday, June 15Home of Don MayerYorba Linda, CA

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Events8 ocws.org June 2024 WINERIES, from page 1OC FAIR 2024: Featured Wineries July 19 Macchia Winery July 20 Graveyard Vineyards July 21 Double Bond Winery July 26 Riboli Family Wines July 27 Sycamore Ranch Vineyard & Winery July 28 Cordon of Santa Barbara Aug. 2 Fallbrook Winery Aug. 3 Bella Grace Vineyards Aug. 4 Cypher Winery Aug. 9 San Antonio Winery Aug. 10 915 Lincoln Aug. 11 Eberle Winery Aug. 16 Boisset Collection Aug. 17 Dark Star Cellars Aug. 18 San Pasqual Wineryto The Courtyard. Every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, from 3 to 8 p.m., winemakers are providing some of their very best vintages while giving the public an opportunity to learn more about their winery and a chance to join their wine club or get discounts if they visit their tasting rooms.The idea behind the program was simple – to give OCWS another outlet to contribute to its robust scholarship program. All the proceeds go toward the scholarship program and by last count that amount swelled to more than $16,000 in 2023 alone.“We wanted to give the wineries – especially the smaller ones with no marketing budget – a means of meeting the public and an opportunity for the public to meet the winemakers,” Liz said. “This establishes a personal bond and an opportunity to learn more about the history of the winemakers, his/her successes and challenges and so much more.”This year’s lineup (see the list at left) boasts some recognizable names and some boutique wineries that are sure to intrigue those who are keen to learn about a winery they may never have heard about. The opening weekend has a stellar lineup with Macchia Winery, Graveyard Vineyards and Double Bond Winery. The program rounds out the last weekend with Boisset Collection, Dark Star Cellars and San Pasqual Winer y.So if you are volunteering at The Courtyard on the weekend, make sure to stop by the Featured Winery station and enjoy some of California’s nest offerings while contributing to a good cause. “We get such a huge feeling of satisfaction when we see the interaction,” Liz added. “We enjoy being part of the OCWS and contributing to its ongoing success.”Lloyd and Liz Corbett are heading up the program that invites wineries to participate in this year's Featured Winery lineup.

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June 2024 ocws.org 9EventsQuarterly meeting, potluck slated July 6The next winemakers’ quarterly meeting and potluck will be 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, July 6. Signups are now open on the OCWS website. The South County beach location will be announced one week prior to the event. Cost is $5 per person to cover supplies. All OCWS members are welcome, you don’t have to be a winemaker to attend.Each attendee, or couple, is asked to bring a potluck dish (appetizer, salad, side dish, or dessert) ready to serve a small portion to eight people. Please bring any serving utensils necessary for your dish and a bottle of wine per person (homemade or commercial) to share. Plates, napkins and tableware will be furnished. We’re hoping to taste many of the award-winning wines from the OC Fair Home Wine Competition. Many of our talented winemakers earned double gold and other awards. For new and aspiring winemakers, this is your chance to meet, mingle and learn from our experienced winemakers. We will also have a short meeting to review the Home Wine Competition and announce upcoming events.Winemakers, did you get grapes last autumn or are you processing wines from earlier vintages? Make sure they stay protected from wine-damaging organisms. Our SO2 testing team led by Mike Paz will be conducting tests for your wines 10 a.m. to noon on the same day and location prior to the potluck meeting.Please email Mike by July 1 at Michael.winemaker@icloud.com with the number of tests you will need. It is important we know ahead of time how many tests will be done so we can purchase supplies prior and have them on hand. The testing fee is $5 per sample. Bring a 100ml sample of each wine, enough to test twice in case the test needs to be repeated.Attendance at this event is extremely limited so sign up now! Volunteers are needed to help set up prior and help clean up after the event. You can sign up to help when you register to attend the event. Contact Ed Reyes, at ed@OCWS.org if you have questions.—Ed Reyes, ed@OCWS.orgWine education & funIf you’ve ever wanted to learn winemaking, here’s your chance. John Lane from our Winemakers Group will be conducting a Kit Winemaking Class on Saturday, June 29, at the OC Fair and Event Center. This is a great beginner’s class. All OCWS members are welcome to attend.A wine kit contains most everything you need to make a batch of wine: grape concentrate, additives, oak, basic equipment and instructions. It’s like following a recipe and having all the ingredients, only you’ll make wine instead of a meal. A kit can produce two to three cases of wine, ready to enjoy in about two months. It’s a fun and easy way to get started. You only need an area about the size of a coat closet to make it happen.For aspiring winemakers, this class will teach you the basic skills you’ll need to make wine. Kits are a great springboard to making wine from grapes. Not sure if winemaking is for you? This class will give you an understanding of the winemaking process to better appreciate what it takes to produce a glass of wine.Since our rst kit winemaking class over 10 years ago, approximately 200 OCWS members have taken part. Over half of our new winemakers started from these introductory classes. Using kits, many members have produced medal winning wines at the OC Fair Home Wine Competition. In this class you will learn: kit selection, equipment needed, space requirements, step-by-step kit instructions, monitoring your wine throughout the process, racking/clarifying, storage/aging and bottling. This is a “hands-on” class. John will take you through the process using two separate kits. You’ll start a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc wine kit in the rst half of the class. In the second half, you’ll nish and bottle a French Bordeaux-style wine, which you’ll get to take home. Cost to attend is $25 and attendance is extremely limited. The class will last roughly four hours. Coffee and breakfast mufns will be served before the class. We will have a lunch break around the halfway point. Lunch will be catered by Bill Forsch from our Winemakers Group, who will be serving his homemade sausage sandwiches. Wines from our Winemakers Group will be served with lunch.Don’t miss this educational opportunity! Sign up now on the OCWS website to attend. Who knows, maybe next year you’ll be entering your wines in the 2025 OC Fair Home Wine Competition.—Ed Reyes, ed@OCWS.org

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10 ocws.org June 2024 If you haven’t heard of our Varietal Hours by now, here is your chance!First of all, they are FREE. Sure, you say, nothing is free, and if it is then it’s not worth my time. Au contraire, my friends! What started as a way of gathering during the Covid quarantines has blossomed into quality time with friends, both old and new. And the things we have learned and been taught by this group are priceless!So here is our challenge to all of you: If you haven’t already attended one of these Varietal Hours, please attend one. Yes, just one. We promise you three things. 1) You will have fun. 2) You might just learn something, OR you might teach us something! 3) You won’t regret spending that hour of your life! And you won’t even have to drive home!So picture this… Your own com-fortable furniture. A glass of wine in your hand. Chatting with fun friends, some you know, some you may not. Right there in your own house with friends, old and new. And here’s the best part! You don’t even have to clean up everyone’s mess! We’re always hap-py to have new members join the fun and meet some people who enjoy wine.Each event has a theme, but we never “kick anyone off the island,” so it never matters if you follow the theme. The setting is very casual, with stories told about each of the wines we’re drinking, what we do (or don’t) like about them, where we got them, and more.Regardless of your knowledge of wine, the Varietal Hours have some-thing for everyone. Varietal Hours are held every other Monday from 7 to 8 p.m.All you need is a computer (or phone) and internet connection. If you are new to the Varietal Hours or to Zoom, please feel free to contact Don Phillips at don@OCWS.org or George Cravens at george@OCWS.org for help and information, even if it means contacting us days before the event, and we will walk you through the process and even do a short Zoom meeting, just for you, to get you comfortable with the process.The event is open to all OCWS members, but sign-ups are required. Please log on to the OCWS website to register for the event no later than 10 p.m., the Sunday night before the event. Couples only need to sign up for one person since this event is via Zoom. A link for the Zoom meeting will be emailed to you on the day of the event.We are also looking for hosts for upcoming Varietal Hours. It’s fun and easy to do. Please contact Don or George at the above emails if you wish to host, or with any questions or suggestions.We look forward to Zooming with you soon at one of the future Varietal Hours. Bottoms up!—Don Phillips, OCWS Varietal Hour Co-ChairVarietal HOUROCWS Varietal Hours...The Fun Never Stops! DATE TIME VARIETAL HOSTS June 24 7 p.m. Favorite California Region Lee & Cathy Painter June 10 7 p.m. Rhone Wines Scott & Manuela Harral July 8 7 p.m. Spanish Varietals David Price July 22 Dark During the OC FairEvents Sept. 16 7 p.m. Sweet Wines (or as sweet as you can handle) YOUR NAME HERE Sept. 30 7 p.m. Veteran-Owned Wineries David Price

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June 2024 ocws.org 11Events10th anniversary of the Commercial Wine Competition, Jerry Mead, founding member and syndicated wine columnist in more than a dozen newspapers, headed the expected panel of 76 judges, who evaluated over 2,600 wines at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim.The initial three-day Commercial Wine Competition was reduced to two days in 1990 and entries stabilized at 2,400 with about 50 varietals and styles of wine. The host hotel has changed several times through the years to include the Disneyland Hotel, the Anaheim Marriott and the Red Lion (now called the Costa Mesa Hilton), where it has been held for the past 30-plus years, except for 2020, when due to the pandemic, the 44th Commercial Competition was not held.The Commercial Competition is a nine-month major effort requiring about 6,000 volunteer hours and about 200 volunteers. The volunteers make invitation phone calls; physically receive, catalog and input wine entries into a database; steward wines; run a commercial dishwasher; dry glasses; direct trafc; verify scores; input data entries; compile results; and coordinate judges’ food.Our Commercial Wine Compe-tition is the largest of its kind in the world and the second largest wine competition overall in California. In the 47 years of competition, there have been over 460 judges for a combined total of 3,326 years of experience. A renowned list of judges and their associated wineries have kept the competition at the top of its game and made the competition one of the most widely revered competitions of California wines anywhere. Let us not forget, it is our volunteers who keep this huge event running (pun intended).—Hank Bruce, OCWS History CommitteeHISTORYfrom page 3Every year, one of the BEST locations to meet and greet at the OC Fair is at The Courtyard, an attractive place to enjoy award-winning wines while generating the largest source of OCWS scholarship funds. Our crew helps make sure the OCWS passes various OC Fair & Event Center requirements and other inspections the week before the OC Fair starts. We need your help to set up. You will be volunteering alongside others who are very fond of transforming The Courtyard for this year’s fair.It takes a crew of volunteers over several days to make The Courtyard look so nice, not only during the fair but also keeping it ready after the fair ends for our OCWS events. Our set-up crew is not the same as volunteering for server shifts during the fair and RBS server training is not required.Set-up dates are scheduled for Tuesday, July 9, Wednesday, July 10 and Thursday, July 11 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tear down is set for Monday, Aug. 19 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Lunch and parking will be provided all four days and you will earn volunteer recognition points too. The Courtyard is a special place for our organization. Members can sign up now on any or all dates, or if Join the 2024 OC Fair Courtyard Set-Up CrewJULY Courtyard Set Up Courtyard Set Up Courtyard Set Up & Decorate AUGUST Courtyard Tear Down19 SAVE THE DATES: 202411910you have questions, please contact Les@ocws.org. Thank you, crew!—Leslie “Les” Hodowanec, 2024 Courtyard Set-Up/Tear-Down Coordinator

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12 ocws.org June 2024 Photo of the MonthThe OCWS sponsors a photography contest and you are invited to partici-pate! As you might have guessed, the subject is “wine,” but this can mean many things to many people.Do you have a great shot of the sun ltering through the vines just before picking? Or an action shot of wine being poured with some great swirls in the glass? Perhaps a romantic shot of a couple toasting each other?These are a few ideas and I’m sure you have many more of that great shot involving wine in some way.Each month the photography committee will select a Photo of the Month for publication in the up-coming newsletter as well as on the OCWS website. The winner also will receive a bottle of wine from the OCWS wine cellar. The ultimate goal is to publish an OCWS calendar consisting of the 12 best photos of the year. These may or may not be the 12 monthly winners.If you have any questions, email Photo@OCWS.org. THE RULESEntrants must be OCWS members in good standing and the submitted photo must have been photographed by the OCWS member when he/she was an active member.The photo must be somehow wine oriented. It may be of a winery, vineyard, the winemak-ing process, the nished product or simply the consumption. But don’t limit yourself just to these ideas!The photo or photos may be submitted to the OCWS photography committee anytime but will be considered only for the month it was submitted. There is a limit of ve (5) submissions per month. Upon submission, rights to the photo are given to the OCWS for marketing purposes, so before you submit it make sure it is your property. Please get permission from any people in the photo.The photo must be submitted in one of the following formats: JPEG, RAW, TIFF or Photo-shop. Any size is acceptable, but it is preferred to be at least 3000x2400 pixels, which is an 8”x10” shot at 300 dpi for printing. In the event that insucient entries are en-tered in a month, the committee reserves the right to move any contributed photos to the next month.To submit a picture, attach it in an email to Photo@OCWS.org. Be sure to include your name, phone number, picture location and picture title. Photos are due by the last day of the month to be considered for that month’s winner. 1245Calling all OCWS photographersROLL OUTTHE BARRELThe Photo of the Month winner is Orange County Wine Society member Mike Iglesias. The picture of the wine cave was taken at Helwig Win-ery in Amador County, California. 36

OCWS Newsletter JUNE2024

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