Flora Springs joins ReCork

Flora Springs Winery has joined the ReCork America wine cork recycling program.

“Flora Springs is an ideal partner,” says Roger Archey, ReCork’s program manager. “Their sustainability program dubbed ‘Flora Power,’ fits nicely with our goal to find ways to extend the lifecycle of natural cork wine closures through recycling and reuse. We can add from 20 to 50 years to a wine cork’s usefulness, while retaining the cork’s original CO2 absorption as a forest product. It’s really quite exciting to have an option other than landfill for some of the estimated 13 billion corks produced worldwide each year.”

Flora Springs is collecting corks during business hours at its tasting room at 677 St. Helena Highway. For more information visit the Web site at www.florasprings.com.

With the addition of Flora Springs, ReCork America now has more than 60 restaurants, 50 wineries and dozens of retail and hospitality locations in California and the Pacific Northwest as part of a growing group of recycling partners. For a current list of participating partners and collection centers or for information on how to become a cork recycler, visit the ReCorck America Web site at  www.recorkamerica or call 256-0522.

New releases from Silver Oak

Silver Oak celebrates the release of its new wines twice a year at both the Oakville and Geyserville wineries.  Saturday, Aug. 2 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. is an opportunity to taste the newest Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon among other vintages.   

Thomas Arvid will display his wine paintings and begin work on a new piece inspired by the 2004 vintage. Winemaker Daniel Baron will be on hand to sign bottles and guests will enjoy wine friendly fare box lunches.  Tickets are $20 per person, which includes a complimentary Silver Oak glass. For details, please call (800) 273-8809.

Varietal seminar

The 18th Varietal Seminar “White Winemaking — Techniques and Trends,” offered by the Napa Valley Wine Library,  takes place Saturday, Aug. 23 at CIA, Greystone in St. Helena.

Principals and winemakers from Charles Krug, Louis M. Martini, Saintsbury, Spencer-Roloson, Stony Hill and Swanson discuss their work and wines in this all-day seminar chaired by Bob Pecota. Presentations and panel discussions include wine tastings throughout the day. Holly Peterson will lead a session on food and wine pairing, and David Graves is the keynote speaker at lunch.

The seminar is $150 per person and includes a wine reception and lunch on the Herb Terrace at Greystone. While only Wine Library members may attend, they may join the organization at any time but must register for the seminar by Aug. 11. For more information e-mail info@napawinelibrary.org or write Napa Valley Wine Library, P.O. Box 328, St. Helena, CA 94574.

NEWS fundraiser

Napa Emergency Women’s Services (NEWS) holds its 21st Annual Chocolate and Wine Tasting event Sept. 14. This year’s event includes a “Salute to the Arts.”

For 20 years this event has celebrated the pairing of fine wines and chocolates while providing much needed support of women and children in the community.

To make a donation or for more information call NEWS, 252-3687.

Wine Library’s annual tasting

The Napa Valley Wine Library’s annual tasting will be held Sunday, Aug. 24 at Silverado Resort in Napa.

Wineries pouring at the event, called “Napa Valley’s Other Treasures: White Varietals by Appellation” will be grouped by appellations. About 80 Napa Valley wineries are expected to pour. The tasting is only for members of the Wine Library, but there is no charge beyond the cost to join the Wine Library for the tasting.

A Napa Valley Wine Library membership is $60 ($85 at the tasting) and is required for the seminar. For more information e-mail info@napawinelibrary.org or write Napa Valley Wine Library, P.O. Box 328, St. Helena, CA 94574.

Staglins’ music festival

The Pointer Sisters will perform at the 14th Annual Staglin Family Music Festival for Mental Health Saturday, Sept. 13 at Staglin Family Vineyard in Rutherford.

The keynote speaker is Trevor Robbins, Ph.D. of Cambridge University. The event is a campaign to support the research and treatment of physiological brain disorders.

The event also includes a cult wine tasting with hors d’oeuvres. This year, celebrated chefs Todd Humphries of Martini House and Mark Dommen of One Market Restaurant will prepare their culinary creations.

Robbins’ lecture is at noon, the wine and hors d’oeuvres tasting is at 2 p.m., the Pointer Sisters concert is at 3:30 p.m. and, afterwards, Dommen will serve his hors d’oeuvres at 5:30 p.m. Master of ceremonies for the concert is comedian Bob Sarlatte.

Tickets for the lecture, reception and concert are $750. Tickets for the lecture, reception, concert and exclusive dinner are $5,000 with table sponsorships beginning at $50,000.

All revenues will go to mental health research projects throughout the nation. For more information, call 944-0477 or e-mail cindy@music-festival.org or visit www.music-festival.org.

Viticultural Fair

The Napa Valley Grapegrowers present the Napa Valley Viticultural Fair from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 5 at the Napa Valley Expo Fairgrounds. The “Vit Fair” is held in alternating years and is the premier North Coast venue for Northern California grapegrowers to learn about the latest industry products, attend seminars, view field demonstrations, and visit with friends and colleagues.

More than 125 key industry suppliers will exhibit products and services at the show, representing everything from farm equipment to vineyard software programs.

Seminars are in both English and Spanish, eligible for continuing education credits are offered. Seminar topics will be announced in next month. At day’s end, attendees and exhibitors gather for the wildly popular Wine Bar, hosted by premier sponsor Wine Business Monthly.

More information on the Vit Fair can be found at www.napagrowers.org.