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| Blood of the Vine: Vampire Vineyards |
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| Written by Angela Ann |
| Thursday, 23 October 2008 06:59 |
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Let me start out my saying, I’m a fool for marketing, especially when it comes to wine. When you let the label do the talking, sometimes you are pleasantly surprised, sometimes… not so much. So for Halloween, how could I not try Vampire Vineyards wine, especially since I planned to throw a vampire themed HalloWine party? Click here for more about my Vampire HalloWine Soiree.
Let me start out by saying that Vampire Vineyards sells wine and other products all year round, not just in October. So I ordered a “Vampire Case with free shipping” ($122.88), which allows you to mix and match a variety of Vampire Wines. This is a pretty good deal. When the wine arrived at my house, I thought I needed to at least try one bottle before my party to make sure I wasn’t serving my guests swill. I opened the Vampire Vineyards 2006 Pinot Noir ($9.99). I was VERY pleasantly surprised! I really liked this wine. It was from their Vin De Pays D’Oc vineyard (France). Vampires Exposed Ok, so what’s the story behind this mysterious Vampire label? For answers, I went straight to the source of the blood letting, the head vampire himself. Michael Machat called me from his Los Angeles area office, during the day, no less. He claims to be an entertainment attorney, as well as a wine entrepreneur. Yeah, right. Machat started Vampire Vineyards 20 years ago and tells me that he couldn’t believe that no one else was already doing it. He sold his first 500 bottles to rock star, Alice Cooper, who is also perhaps one of the undead. In the early 1990’s after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Machat decided to get the blood of the vine straight from its native soil in Transylvania. Believe it or not, Romania is the tenth largest wine producing nation in the world. During the cold war, Romania provided wine to the entire Soviet Bloc. “Romania was truly other-worldly,” said Machat. “Dark lighting, drab clothing and a feeling of impending doom engulfed the place. The people were afraid to talk to foreigners. It has since become a much brighter place.” As sales of Vampire Vineyards grew and as Machat’s palate evolved, he decided he needed to move his night-walker operation to California’s Central Coast/Paso Robles wine region. “They make large quantities of wine in Romania, but quality is hard to find, said Machat. “The good wines are few and far between. I guess when they were shut off from the rest of the world; they really didn’t have access to the knowledge and resources to make a good product.” Machat was lucky enough to find a good Merlot Rose’ ($9.99) in his Recas Vineyard in Transylvania. I’m not much of a Rose’ fan, but have to admit this one was pretty good.
My mother is not much of a drinker. When I give her a glass of wine to taste, she usually makes a face and hands it back to me. Mom actually liked the Vampire Merlot Rose’. It’s a miracle… from the undead. There’s a hitch here. You have to buy the 2004 Merlot Rose’ by the case. The vampires won’t sell it by the bottle. But it is their only wine from Transylvania. Today, all of Vampire Vineyards wines are from Paso Robles with the exception of the Pinot Noir from France and the Merlot Rose’ from Transylvania. Party Tested, Mother Approved At my vampire themed HalloWine party, the reds went fast. We drank the Vampire Vineyards 2006 Pinot Noir, the 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon and the 2005 Merlot. All are priced at $9.99. My friends were evenly split preferring both the 2006 Pinot Noir and the 2005 Merlot. My favorite is the Pinot Noir. [To find out more about my Vampire HalloWine Soiree, click here.] This was a red wine crowd and no one even popped a cork on the whites. So the next night I had a Chardonnay lover over for dinner. He definitely liked the 2007 Chardonnay ($9.99) and so did I. I haven’t tried the 2007 Pinot Grigio ($9.99), but plan to take it to another Halloween party as a gift. This wine is award winning and promises to be good. The vampires also sell a Syrah and a Zinfandel under their “Dracula” label. They sell a Bordeaux style Cabernet blend under their “Chateau Du Vampire” label. I have not tasted these wines. They are priced between $17.99 and $19.99. Vampires Plan to Come Out of Hiding Head vampire, Machat tells me the blood suckers have identified a piece of land in the Paso Robles area and are planning to build a tasting room and storage facility. I guess one has to ask, what or who will the vampires be tasting and what or whose bodies will they be storing? The tasting room will be open to the public (I’m sure it will be). I guess if you’re brave enough visit, be sure to bring your crucifix and some garlic. Until then, you can buy Vampire Vineyards Wines at selected retailers. Or you can go to their website at "http://www.vampirevineyards.com" for more information or to order wine and other products.
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Comments (7)
  written by AlbertaBarnett, June 13, 2011
I received 1 st credit loans when I was 32 and it supported my business a lot. Nevertheless, I need the term loan also.
 written by best SGPG bags, May 31, 2011
Wow, Your blog is great and interesting , I need to learn to catch up!
written by best SGPG bags, May 31, 2011
Wow, Your blog is great and interesting , I need to learn to catch up!
 written by Bubu, November 19, 2009
This wine is actually produced in the Banat province of Romania not in Transilvania...Nothing wrong with the wine, Recas is one of the best Cabernet Sauvignon producers in the region.
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