May is National Vinegar Month

A Special Deal on 375ml Wine Vinegars!

Did you know that May is National Vinegar Month? Vinegar has been around for millennia. The ancients stumbled upon the versatility of vinegar probably 10,000 years ago. The Babylonians used it as medicine, and also mixed it with herbs to flavor their meals. The Romans drank it as a beverage. Cleopatra dissolved pearls in it to prove she could devour a fortune in a single meal. Today we cherish vinegar for its use in the culinary world.

This month we are highlighting our B.R. Cohn wine-inspired vinegars with a special 20% discount when you mix & match 3 or more 375ml sized wine vinegars. Now is your chance to get these larger sized bottles before they are gone. We are switching to smaller 200ml bottles.

Visit or Call our Gourmet Shop to Order (800) 330-4064 ext 117

Discount only applies to the following 375ml sized vinegar flavors : Cabernet, Champagne, Raspberry Champagne, Chardonnay, and Pear Chardonnay

Participate in the Croquet Workshops every hour from 11am-4pm in the Olive Grove. Workshop will explain the rules the game and etiquette on the court!

Dress in White and receive 10% off wine purchases!

History about Croquet

The origins of croquet are a little cloudy. Some believe that it developed from the French game of Pall Mall but arguments link Pall Mall more to golf than croquet. What is known is that the game traveled from Ireland to England around 1851. A Miss MacNaghten observed peasants in France playing a game with hoops made of willow rods and mallets of broomsticks inserted into pieces of wood and introduced it in Ireland. Sometime around 1850, she passed the idea to a Mr. Spratt and is evidenced by a copy of Spratt’s rules in 1851. Spratt then passed the game on to John Jacques which Jacques disputed claiming he made equipment from patterns he bought in Ireland and had published rules before Spratt introduced the subject to him. Whatever the case, Jacques was the first to make equipment as a regular business and in 1864 published his first comprehensive code of laws. Since then, the manufacturing of equipment by Jacques has been passed down through generations.

At first, croquet was most popular among women, It was a new experience for them to be able to play a game outdoors in the company of men. Early games of croquet were carefully chaperoned. Tight croquet, which was the practice of putting a foot on the ball and sending the opponent far away into the bushes, allowed the young men to go into the bushes with the young women to search for the ball. The game’s popularity grew in the 1860′s where garden parties began to be called croquet parties.

Walter Jones Whitmore was a man who loved to play games and create inventions and in 1860 took up the game of croquet. He soon realized that there were no tactics or standard rules so in 1866 he began a series of three articles on tactics in “The Field” which were later published in 1868 in book form with hand colored diagrams. In that publication he also discussed different types of strokes. He is considered the father of modern croquet.

Join us for fun and instructional Basket Building Workshops as B.R. Cohn welcomes Spring! Workshops to take place on the lawn under our beautiful olive trees on the weekends of April 7th & 8th and April 21st & 22nd. Drop in anytime between 11:00am and 4:00pm. A $20 workshop fee includes all materials and a glass of either our new release Pinot Gris or Rosé (or a water).

After building your beautiful picnic basket, take it to the Gourmet Shop and fill it with our delicious meats, tapenades, breads, oils and gourmet essentials for a fantastic impromptu picnic right under our intimate Olive grove orchard; nestled just behind the Gourmet Shop. You can redeem your basket workshop fee with a $20 or more purchase in the Gourmet Shop to make your picnic an affair to remember (wine purchase excluded).

For questions or reservations contact Vallerie (707) 938-4064 ext 136 or vallerie@brcohn.com

Did you know that grapes are the largest fruit crop on earth? And did you know that reaching the highest level of quality in wine is only possible by starting with the highest quality fruit? It all begins with vines and their care. What is loved most about grapevines has been their ability to adapt and grow in a wide variety of soil types, running the gamut from light sandy loam to solid clay and volcanic mountaintops.

In our winter months, it’s all about vineyard cleaning and pruning. We prune the vines because better-quality fruit will grow on vines that are pruned back to distribute the bearing wood evenly over the vines. In January and February we watch as the leaves drop and notice that the vines are empty of sap, and know that Tom Montgomery, our winemaker, has made the call to our talented vineyard crews to begin the meticulous pruning of vines almost back to their main stems. Pruning is an art and I often think of Michelangelo when pruning is being done, because if these artists do too much, it will cause small, uneconomical crops; if too little is done it will cause over-cropping and low-quality fruit – it is all in the balance. Pruning of the vines also facilitates cultivation, disease control and harvesting, especially when the vines are trained to grow in a particular shape. Our vineyard crews have skills that require experience and judgment and they do this job knowing that it cannot be done to perfection by machine. At B.R. Cohn we use two basic pruning methods, “cane-pruning” and “spur-pruning” (also known as head-pruning), with a tool referred to as a secateur or vine clipper. Spur-pruned vines are usually found in older vineyards. Spurs are the canes (or branches) trimmed back to only a pair of buds. Each bud will become a shoot which grows to a cane that bears the crop.

Walking through Olive Hill Estate’s various vineyard blocks, it is easy to identify vines with cane-pruning methods applied. You’ll see that one to four, one-year-old canes, each with six to fourteen fruit buds are trained along the trellis wires. This style is referred to as “cordon pruning”, since the vine looks like outstretched arms (cordon is French for arm). The task for the cane-pruners is to train the current fruiting canes and at the same time consider which spurs to train for next season’s fruiting canes. With the pruning finished and warm weather slipping in, the vines are awakening from their dormant state. Nature has signaled its time for sap to rise and brown sheaths which cover the buds to break away, shoots start to emerge, flowering follows and then the blossoms are replaced by minuscule berries and the birth of Vintage 2012 is ready for nurturing.

March 13,2012 — Sonoma CA—Longtime Doobie Brothers drummer Mike Hossack passed away peacefully yesterday March 12 at his home in Dubois, Wyoming after a long battle with cancer he was 65. Doobie Brothers manager Bruce Cohn made the announcement.

“Mike was a one-of-a kind guy and a long-time member of the Doobie Brothers,” remembers Cohn. “He was a fighter and fought the big battle with cancer and he was a close personal friend of mine and I speak for Mike’s family and the entire band when I say he will be greatly missed.”

The Doobie Brothers Tom Johnston remembered Hossack, “Mike has always been a part of my musical life and the life of the Doobie Brothers; from our earliest singles, like China Grove and Blackwater to our most recent single Brighter Day. He was an incredible musician, a studio quality drummer. The last few years, he was brave and determined to keep on playing in the face of ill health, and I will always admire him for that. He was a terrific dad and family man, and we will all miss him.”

The Doobie’s Pat Simmons, who was a close friend of Hossack’s, said, “When my kids were little, they used to call him Big Mike, because to them he was such a big guy. But to me and those who knew him, he had an even a bigger heart. We were friends for 43 years and we shared some wonderful adventures together, times I will never forget. Thanks for all those wonderful memories Mike, and all the great music. We love you.”

Michael Hossack was born in Paterson, New Jersey on October 17, 1946 (a real baby boomer). At age twelve Mike started playing drums in the Little Falls Cadets, a Boy Scout Drum and Bugle Corp. He credits his drum instructors, Joe Whelan (Little Falls Cadets), Bob Peterson (Our Lady of Lourdes Cadets), and George Tuttle (Fair Lawn Cadets) for teaching him the disciplines of playing with other drummers.

“People always ask me of it’s hard to play with another drummer. I tell them that after playing along with up to twelve other drummers at once in the drum corps, this is a snap!”

After serving in the Navy during the Vietnam era, Mike returned to New Jersey in January of 1969 and was about to embark on a career in law enforcement. Fortunately, a friend convinced him to audition for a California band called Mourning Reign, who were playing at a local resort. After a long winter of starvation and deprivation playing upstate New York, the band longed for the gentle breezes of the San Francisco Bay area they called home.

Soon after arriving on the west coast, the band signed a production contract with the same company as a new bay area band, The Doobie Brothers. Unfortunately for Mourning Reign, tough financial times hastened the demise of the band. Fortunately for Mike, the Doobie Brothers had heard of his abilities and invited him to jam with the band. What Mike didn’t know is that the “jam” turned out to be a real gig and audition at Bimbo’s in San Francisco. After his trial by fire, the band decided that the two drummer concept was just what they needed for that extra percussive punch. Mike was invited to join the band and soon after found himself in the studio laying down tracks for the bands’ second album for Warner Brothers called “Toulouse Street”, soon to be followed by “The Captain and Me” and “What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits.”

Mike’s unique drumming style can be heard on every song containing drums on these early albums which included hits such as “Listen to The Music”, “Rockin’ Down The Highway”, “Jesus Is Just Alright”, “China Grove”, “Long Train Runnin”, and the band’s first #1 hit single “Blackwater”.

Along with success also came the pressures of continual touring and after a particularly grueling ten months on the road in 1973, Mike left the band. After a short hiatus he helped found a new band called Bonaroo, which recorded one album for Warner Brothers before disbanding in 1975. In 1976 he did a short stint for another two drummer band called DFK, (Les Dudek, Mike Finnigan and Jim Kreiger). Then in 1977, Mike became a partner in Chateau Recorders, a recording studio in North Hollywood and divided his time between working and raising his children.

In 1987, the Doobie Brothers called Mike and asked if he would like to join them in a series of benefit concerts for Veterans of The Vietnam War. Being a vet himself, Mike was more than happy to be included and rejoin his old buddies. The success of these concerts inspired the band to reform and soon they received an offer from Capitol Records to begin recording again, and have been going strong ever since, adding to Mike’s credits with the albums, “Cycles”, “Brotherhood”, “Sibling Rivalry” “Rockin’ Down the Highway-The Wildlife Concerts” and “World Gone Crazy”.

Mike is survived by his son Mike Jr. of Dallas Tx. and daughter Erica Oliver of Denver, CO. He was preceded in death by his mother Aida Hossack.

Arrangements pending check www.doobiebros.com for future memorial details.

Friday through Monday @ 1pm

Join us for our Wine & Cheese Trail Pairing, showcasing a variety of specialty cheeses from small production, local artisan cheesemakers. Each cheese has been hand selected for their unique qualities and pairing ability with our exquisite wines.

Famous for our fine wine, Sonoma is also an epicurean haven for artisan cheesemakers. In fact, Bruce Cohn himself grew up on his family’s grade-A goat dairy farm. Our Wine & Cheese Trail Pairing will taste you through Sonoma without all the driving. Learn the mechanics of cheese pairing and walk away with a better understanding of the agricultural magic of Sonoma.

$20 for Wine Club Members and $25 for general public includes four wines paired with four different cheeses served on Verterra eco-friendly dishes. Held weekly, Friday through Monday.

Call (800) 330-4064 ext. 124 to reserve a spot during your next visit.

While March is king for college basketball fans, Magnums are king for serious wine lovers! For the entire month of March Magnum Madness we will be pouring a limited selection of Olive Hill Estate Cabernet Magnums ranging from the esteemed 1997 vintage through the 2008 vintage. Multiple visits will offer guests the opportunity to try them all as the featured vintages rotate throughout the month. Follow us on Facebook daily to find out which vintage is being poured.

Fun Facts: Magnum means ‘great’ or ‘extra-large’ in Latin. A Magnum is 1.5 liters of wine, equaling two regular bottles of wine. Wine experts agree that magnum bottles allow the wine to age more gracefully, due to its larger size. Great for special dinners & events. Quantities are limited!

Visit or Call to Order (800) 330-4064 ext. 124