The state Senate Select Committee on California Wine, chaired by Sen. Patricia Wiggins, conducts a hearing on the state of retailer direct-to-consumer shipping Thursday, 1:30 - 4 p.m. in room 3191 of the Capitol in Sacramento.

Among the speakers will be representatives of the Specialty Wine Retailers Association, Wine Institute, State Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, and retailers who ship directly to consumers. A representative of the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America, which has opposed direct shipping by wineries, also will speak, along with a wholesaler.

Pat Burke has joined Judd’s Hill Winery as tasting room manager. Before this, he managed winery operations from hospitality to production at Calistoga Cellars and was tasting room supervisor at Beaulieu Vineyard. Past president of the Silverado Trail Wineries Association, he serves on the board of directors of Leadership Napa Valley and the advisory committee for the Napa Valley College Hospitality Program. He also served a two-year term as a City of Napa Commissioner on the board of the Napa Valley Conference and Visitors Bureau.

Burke is also a well-known barbecue chef and a member of the Barnyard Roasters barbecue team, based in Columbus, Miss., which has been ranked as a top 10 barbecue team in the country for many years — in 2006 they were ranked No. 3. Burke is captain of the West Coast team, the Vineyard Roasters, who finished in first place in the 2006 West Coast championships in the pork rib category and second place for the Sauce category.

Competing professionally since 2001, Burke has attended a long list of national competitions, including Memphis in May, the National Barbecue Battle in Washington, D.C., and the Richmond Barbecue Battle in Virginia.

Judd’s Hill, at 2332 Silverado Trail in Napa, is open seven days a week by appointment only.

Ed Hogan, who has served as general manager and director of sales and marketing for Pahlmeyer Winery since 1999, has been named president of the winery. During Hogan’s tenure at Pahlmeyer, the winery acquired and developed the Waters Ranch in the Atlas Peak appellation and Wayfarer Farm on the Sonoma coast. This spring the winery released its first pinot noir (2005 Jayson) from Wayfarer; the 2005 Pahlmeyer pinot noir will be released this fall.

Hogan directs all operations of the winery, including sales, marketing, vineyard activities and planning. He previously directed marketing at the Henry Wine Group. His career began at John Walker & Co. in San Francisco. Hogan lives in Sonoma County with his wife, four children and three dogs.

Pahlmeyer Winery, founded in 1980, owns and farms 110 acres of vineyards in its Napa and Sonoma estates.

Charles Krug Winery in St. Helena uncorks four new release wines for tasting this Memorial Day weekend, all of them limited release bottlings.

Charles Krug Winery creates these limited release wines only during optimal vintages and in small case quantities. In this case it’s the 2004 Napa Valley Voltz Vineyard Red Wine, from grapes grown at the base of the Mayacamas mountains; the 2004 Napa Valley Lincoln Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon made from the winery’s oldest cabernet sauvignon vines; the 2004 Napa Valley X Clones Cabernet Sauvignon, and the 2005 Russian River Pinot Noir from the Dr. Maurice Galante Vineyard.

This tasting takes place Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Winemaker Adolfo Alarcon will be behind the tasting bar, sharing his wines and answering questions Friday, 1-5 p.m.

The tasting cost is $10, complimentary for Wine Club members. Reservations are not required.

Charles Krug Winery, 2800 Main St., St. Helena, was founded in 1861 and acquired by Cesare and Rosa Mondavi in 1943. Info, www.charleskrug.com or 967-2200.

Raymond Vineyards looks forward to summer June 2 with a tasting of warm weather favorites sauvignon blanc and chardonnay, along with 2003 St. Helena and Rutherford cabernet sauvignons and the limited edition 2003 Generations Cabernet Sauvignon. The wines will be paired with local cheeses, breads, finger foods and chocolates while the Adrian Gormley Ensemble provides entertainment. The event is 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and costs $20 for wine club members and $25 for non-members. Guests must be 21 years of age to attend.

The tasting takes place at Raymond Vineyards’ Rutherford estate winery, 849 Zinfandel Lane, St. Helena. Info, (800) 525-2659 ext. 653 or e-mail wineclub@raymondvineyards.com.

The wineries of Appellation St. Helena are planning a tasting with a difference for June 16 at Flora Springs Winery and Vineyards. Traditional wine tasting is included, but guests may also participate in a blind tasting by identifying wines camouflaged in brown paper bags. There will be prizes for the correct answers, and each participant is entered in a drawing to win an Appellation St. Helena cellar comprising three cases of wines valued at more than $1,700.

The organizers promise to destroy all entries so no one will ever know who identified a 100 percent zinfandel as a cabernet-merlot blend. Delicious food and wine pairing stations require no mental strain whatsoever. The prize here is just enjoyment. A portion of the ticket price will be donated to the nonprofit Work Connection.

The tasting is 2-5 p.m. Flora Springs Winery and Vineyard is at 1978 West Zinfandel Lane in St. Helena. Tickets are $40 ($25 for associate members of Appellation St. Helena), and are available online at www.appellationsthelena.com. Info, 963-6045.

Women for WineSense hosts a day of educational programs, followed by a grand tasting of the winners of the first National Women’s Wine Competition held in Santa Rosa last March. The competition identified the best wines in six categories as judged by an all-women panel of wine writers, educators, winemakers, executives and consumers.

The event takes place June 23 at the Four Seasons Hotel in San Francisco. The programs focus on women’s role in the wine industry and wine appreciation. The tasting of “wines women want” opens at 2 p.m.

Tickets for all-day admission, including the education programs, lunch, silent auction and the grand tasting is $100 for members of Women For WineSense, and $125 for non-members purchasing online or $150 at the door. Tickets for the lunch and tasting are $85 for members, $95 for non-members online and $110 at the door. Admission to the grand tasting is $40 for members, $50 for non-members online or $60 at the door. Tickets are available at www.wineswomenwant.com. Proceeds underwrite the educational programs and activities of Women for WineSense and fund two scholarships for women in viticulture and winemaking and women wine educators.

The Niven family, owners of Tangent, has planted 55 acres of albariño in their Paragon Vineyard in the Edna Valley, making it the largest vineyard planted to the varietal in the U.S. Eight acres of grüner veltliner and six acres of grenache blanc are being planted simultaneously. These varietals will join the line-up of white wines grown or produced by Tangent, which include viognier, riesling, pinot blanc, pinot gris and sauvignon blanc.

John H. Niven, who along with his cousin Michael Blaney, represents the grower family’s third generation, said, “Our research showed that America was ready for a brand dedicated to cool-climate alternative white wines. … What we didn’t realize was how receptive the market would be to the more esoteric varietals like albariño; it took off like a shot and sold out in just a few months. We have decided to commit in a big way to albariño and a few other alternative whites. Some think we’re crazy; we think America’s ready so we’re taking the leap.”

Albariño’s native land, the Rías Baixas region of Galicia in Spain, has a similar climate to the Edna Valley.

Submit items for Toast of the Valley to Wine Page editor Sasha Paulsen, spaulsen@napanews.com.