Wine, women and a good book–sounds like fun, doesn’t it.

The Wine Sisterhood is pleased to be a part of the Girlfriendology Book Club, this month featuring The Elegant Gathering of White Snows by Kris Radish. It’s a story about enduring friendships and women connecting–at times, apparently, over a glass or two of wine! This is the second meeting of the book club–you can participate in the discussion live or go back to the forum and add your comments at your leisure. You can even do it in your p.j.’s and you can’t do that with most book clubs!

The book club meets on Girlfriendology on Monday, March 1 from 7-9pm EST. Know it’s not a whole bunch of time, but this might be the perfect rainy/snowy weekend to download it to your Kindle, curl up in front of a fire, pour yourself a glass of your favorite wine and have a little read-in.

At any rate, you’ll want to check out the Girlfriendology site. It’s a wonderful digital community celebrating women’s friendships and connection and it’s packed with both information and inspiration.  Thanks to founder (and friend) Debba Hauppert for bringing the Wine Sisterhood into her circle of friends.

Meet our girl in the valley. Natalie is Director, Sales and Marketing for Canopy Management wines and a founding member of the Wine Sisterhood. A graduate of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a degree in Wine Business, Natalie began her career in the research department of Sutter Home/Trinchero Family Estates, and managed marketing projects for the National Accounts team before joining Canopy Management.

Among her many talents, we especially appreciate Natalie’s passion for food, wine and friends and how she mashes them all up in her own signature style. This makes Natalie our go-to girl whenever we want the scoop on the hot new dinner spot, a soon-to-be-famous winery, or the event to be at on a Saturday night. We joke that Natalie knows “everybody” in the Napa Valley, but that’s not far off the mark.  Need the perfect spot to propose—Natalie will ring up her friend the concierge at Napa’s most romantic inn. Want a private tasting at an appointment-only winery—Natalie will make a call. You get the picture.

Natalie is an avid bocce player on a team called “Joanie Loves Bocce” and as an accomplished home chef, is a member of an active and ambitious St. Helena cookbook club. Every so often she leaves the clubhouse a bit early to whip up paella or something else with way more steps than are necessary on a Wednesday night. Natalie and our friend Helen Jane Hearn also founded Cheese Whizzes, a Napa Valley social group devoted to the enjoyment of cheese and wine. No less than Food and Wine Magazine fell in love with the concept, and featured Natalie, Helen Jane and the Cheese Whizzes in their December 2009 entertaining issue.

Natalie’s network of friends and influencers goes beyond the Napa Valley. She recently attended the kick-off event of New York Fashion Week—the Red Dress Show—as a guest of the show’s creative director, and has provided us with Facebook updates from the East Village and McSorley’s “Wonderful” Saloon.

Natalie has been part of the Tough Enough To Wear Pink? breast cancer awareness project from its inception, and is our point person for Dress for Success and Wine, Women and Shoes, female-focused charities that the Wine Sisterhood and our portfolio of wine proudly support.

Look for Natalie and her black pug Minky, on the bocce courts at Crane Park, St, Helena. Minky is the pug with her tongue hanging out the side of her mouth. Or send Natalie an email if you and your sisters are coming to the Valley. We’re sure she’ll have some ideas on how to make your visit both memorable and delicious.

Know somebody who would be perfect for a Successful Sister profile? Or maybe it’s you!  Submit your stories!

We’re thrilled to be sponsoring their famous Foodies Night-In twitter party on Monday, February 22 from 4-7pm EST.

Our friend Aliza met the Cooking with Caitlin ladies recently at Blissdom and introduced them to the Wine Sisterhood and some of our wines. Click on the link for all the details and to RSVP.  We’ll be talking food, wine and…? So all you opinionated sisters out there is the Twitterverse, grab a glass and join us!

We are happy to announce the results of our January survey and present to the winning label for our newest wine, Haute Red. We’re happy to report that the label entitled “Black Shoe” received the most votes and will be gracing bottles of this new release to be launched later this Spring!

Haute Red is an alluring Pinot Noir for all you many fans of that finicky but fabulous grape. Pinot Noir has a reputation as the “heartbreak” grape because it can be difficult to grow. But it’s certainly rewarding in the glass. Pinot Noir pairs so effortlessly with such a wide range of foods–vegetarian, salmon, chicken, burgers.   

Along with the launch of Haute Red we are also releasing White Haute, a fresh, delicate Riesling. This wine is crisp and fresh–a good choice for lighter springtime fare and spicier Asian and Latin cuisine. Both wines are sourced from cool-climate California appellations. 

Hope you’ve had a chance to vote in the February survey and help us name the next  Middle Sister wine! If you haven’t already registered to join the Sisterhood and voice your opinion, just click on the link at the top left of the page…the one that says “Ready to Join?”…only takes a moment.

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner! Toast your special valentine with Monogamy (and save the PromisQous for later!). To help you celebrate with your sweetie, we’ve put together a romantic and racy sampler of our popular California bottlings.

 

The Valentine’s Sampler includes:

• One bottle of Monogamy Chardonnay (California; Sonoma/Napa)
  
• One bottle of Monogamy Cabernet Sauvignon (North Coast California)
  
• One bottle of PromisQous White (California; a light and sassy mingling of Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc and Gewurztraminer)
  
• One bottle of PromisQous Red (California; a dark, dashing blend of Zinfandel, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah)

Treat yourself! Our Monogamy Chardonnay just won the gold medal at the San Francisco Wine Competition, and our Monogamy Cabernet and both the PromisQous white and red all won silver medals at the event.

Click here to purchase, and and put a smile on the face of your Special Valentine.

Four bottles total. Special price of $44.95 (plus shipping).

Tell us what you – or your sweetie – thinks if you try this!

You may have noticed that in addition to this blog, we’re also on Ning as well as Facebook and Twitter. So what are we doing in social networks?

Well, I’m sure you’d agree that picking out wines and drinking wines are social activities. And with the advent of blogs, Facebook and Twitter, we can all tell the world what we’re drinking and what we think of the wine we drink. Add in all those wine apps on our mobile devices, and we can have wine information, recommendations and communities literally at our fingertips.

So it follows that Wine Sisterhood would want to be where the action is and where we can form a unique community of women who not only talk about wine and share wine articles, reviews and recommendations, but who can also provide input on the creation of new wine brands. Yes, you heard us right. As a member of Wine Sisterhood, you can provide your opinions on everything from new wine names to wine label designs and hopefully soon to the wine itself. And the best thing? Membership to Wine Sisterhood is totally free.

The key to participating is to sign up to our Ning community because that is where the official surveys are posted. With women like you, we’ve picked the name and label design for our next wine: Red Haute. And starting today, we’re looking for your opinions on the name of a new Middle Sister for Middle Sister Wines. And starting today, we’re looking for your opinions on the name of a new Middle Sister for Middle Sister Wines.

When was the last time you really had a say in how a product was made? Think about it: Before the end of this year, you will see several wines on the shelves of your favorite wine sellers that YOU had a hand in developing. We hope you’ll invite your girlfriends to join us!

How is social media changing the way you think about the products you buy?

Help us select a name for the newest Middle Sister wine…to be introduced later this spring. Join the Wine Sisterhood community and follow the link to the survey and cast your vote! We’ll pick one lucky sister from the voters to receive a fabulous Wine Sisterhood basket of wine-y treats.