RustRidge Adventures

And the work goes on

2012-02-01T21:03:00.000-08:00

So much to tell you, so little time...
Lets start with Chris, this guy loves to make wine and is helping Susan in the eellar
and he wants to know everything about the vineyard so Jim is showing him how to prune vines.

Here is Chris with George (the cat)

Jim is explaining the finer points of pruning

Getting down to business

Good cuts, Chris!

More technique

Doing good, Chris!

What do we do after supervising the pruning crew, soak in a few rays of course!

But it is not all about vineyards, there are horses here after all.

"Angry horses", this photo is not appropriate for the RustRidge website. But it is so funny I had to include it here.

Lost in the Fog (A famous racehorse had that name) can you spot the horse?

Angry horses can become excited horses

Writing a blog can be exhausting

Between storms

2012-01-22T19:44:00.000-08:00

We are happy that the rains have finally arrived and surprisingly, we had a beautiful Saturday after over an inch of rain during the night. On Sunday the rains came back but we are enjoying the change in weather. After all, we need to fill our reservoirs so we can go swimming and all the plants and trees need a good drink so yes we are glad that winter weather has finally arrived. Bring on the rain!

The best part about going out in the vineyard during pruning season

2012-01-04T14:52:00.000-08:00

is laying in the grass and soaking up the rays

or digging for gophers and chasing rabbits

Thanks for a great year!

2011-12-31T16:42:00.000-08:00

Well here we are on the eve of another year at the ranch. It was a great year with all of the wonderful friends we made at the B&B, the wine tasters who came to the winery and all of the old friends who came back this year. Plus several of our children came back to visit this year. We would love the rest to come by and see us too. So from Charlie, Holly and me (Rusty of course, I am hiding under the toolbox) Have a Happy, Happy New Year! we look forward to more walks, hikes and swims in the pond with our wonderful friends!

Lost in the Fog ~ at the end of 2011

2011-12-29T15:48:00.000-08:00

Scenes from a warm winter morning

2011-12-17T12:39:00.000-08:00

Fall Colors

2011-11-08T07:44:00.000-08:00

Fall colors around the B&B

Back deck of B&B

End of Harvest

2011-11-04T22:00:00.000-07:00

The grapes are all picked and it is time to enjoy the fruits of our labor.

Oscar & Miguel bringing in the last of the Cabernet Sauvignon.

Scenes from a Day of Harvest

2011-10-09T10:18:00.000-07:00

Tex, overseeing harvest

The crush is a spectator sport!

What an exhausting day of harvest.

Time to bottle, but wait isn't it harvest time?

2011-09-26T23:22:00.000-07:00

Our high tech filtering process
This week is all about getting ready to bottle, bottling and then preparing for harvest which is imminent.

The Changing Landscape

2011-08-21T22:12:00.000-07:00

Topper grazing with Sippling and Kool

Working in the office

2011-08-18T11:38:00.000-07:00

We are under Susan's desk, there's lots of work to do in this office.

Working on the ranch

2011-08-08T11:43:00.000-07:00

Summer on the ranch

2011-07-20T19:27:00.000-07:00

Charlie, Holly & Rusty enjoying this beautiful Summer evening.

Stacy's Ridge grazing in his pasture on this peaceful evening.

Father's Day at the Ruidoso Downs

2011-06-19T19:30:00.000-07:00

The winning ticket?

The horses warming up before the race

Jim, Beth and Gary watching intently, will it be the exacta or the trifecta?

Enjoying Racehorse Red in Arabela, NM

2011-06-18T16:29:00.000-07:00

Jim enjoying wine at a winery in Albuquerque

Enjoying Rustridge Racehorse Red on our vacation in Arabela, NM.
Frank, Susan and Donna

Our thoughts are with you Budge

2011-05-20T12:27:00.000-07:00

Our friend, neighbor and fellow vintner Budge Brown

Jim and I have known Budge Brown over 10 years. We shared the good times and the bad times. We had serious conversations and a lot of laughs. He overcame every obstacle put in his way to build the winery he dedicated to his wife and to the cure for breast cancer. Celebrate his life and legacy by supporting Cleavage Creek and Budge Brown wines. www.cleavagecreek.com

After the rain

2011-05-18T18:29:00.000-07:00

The bed & breakfast after an unusually late spring rain storm

Charlie checking out the area around the B&B

RustRidge is in full bloom

2011-05-13T15:22:00.000-07:00

It's a great time to visit and picnic!

Time for Spring Planting

2011-05-04T17:29:00.000-07:00

Miles in the strawberry patch.

Matthew planting beans and peas.

It's definitely Spring!

2011-03-31T13:24:00.000-07:00

81 degrees, yeah, it's spring!

So do you think winter is over yet?

2011-03-26T21:47:00.000-07:00

Rocky, Soda Pop, Blade, Commander and Stacy's Ridge having a discussion about the weather.

George and Holly

2011-03-04T21:08:00.000-08:00

Keeping warm on chilly winter nights at the ranch

My Brother is an actor

2011-02-14T20:44:00.000-08:00

Watch Ridge perform on this video. He is a rising star:)

What Happened to Winter

2011-02-06T17:28:00.000-08:00

Another amazing day...we have been running all over the hills chasing rabbits and ground squirrels as well as digging up the vineyard in search of gophers. We are just taking a break and sunning ourselves.

Commander spent the whole day in the vineyard eating among the mustard plants.

Jim has pruned the entire section of Zinfandel around the tasting room. Commander is now mowing it.

George, the cat who thinks he is a dog

2010-12-31T20:19:00.000-08:00

George with Charlie

George with Rusty

PEACE ON EARTH......HAPPY NEW YEAR..... THANK-YOU FOR BEING PART OF RUSTRIDGE

A Matthew Inspired Christmas

2010-12-22T18:23:00.000-08:00

Matthew and Susan eating the wild mushrooms that he gathered around the ranch.

Merry Christmas from all of us at RustRidge. The mushrooms on display are growing all over the ranch.

The Brilliant Colors of Fall

2010-11-22T14:07:00.000-08:00

Fall is so beautiful in Chiles Valley.

Looking northwest

Looking southeast

End of the Harvest

2010-11-10T10:58:00.000-08:00

The last grapes of the season are cabernet sauvignon.

Out in the vineyard picking the grapes

The final load of cabernet grapes.

Zenyatta, a very special racehorse

2010-11-03T22:39:00.000-07:00

Zenyatta, a very special horse, click to see the 60 Minutes segment on this undefeated mare and watch her in the Breeder's Cup Classic this weekend!

Topper pulls it off and everyone is a winner!

2010-10-23T10:43:00.000-07:00

Christopher, Jim, Peter, Corey & Bill fanning their hundreds, yes, hundreds. Topper's odds were 27 to 1! They also won the daily double.

Topper leading the pack on Golden Gate Fields. The finish line is next to the red & white pole.

Topper's endurance training on the ranch hills paid off.

The Last of the Zinfandel

2010-10-21T18:15:00.000-07:00

Miguel supervises the harvest of the Zinfandel.

Oscar helps bring in the grapes.

The colors of the season are most pronounced on the Zinfandel vines.

Holly enjoys a foggy fall morning before heading out to the vineyard.

Zinfandel Harvest

2010-10-19T20:11:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow we will harvest the last of the Zinfandel grapes. They are my favorite because they are soooo sweet. After that we will pick the Cabernet Sauvignon and hopefully we will be done by the end of the week!

Eye on the Bay: Oct 12 & 13 Napa Valley Backroads

2010-10-09T14:15:00.000-07:00

Hello, just wanted to let you know the “Eye on the Bay” episode featuring our road trip from St. Helena to Lake Berryessa will be airing on Tuesday 10/12 and Wed 10/13 at 7pm on Channel 5 (CBS) San Francisco.

Here’s a list of the places featured each night:

Part 1 (airs Tue 10/12)

Napa Valley Olive Oil Mfg

Pope Valley Garage

Aetna Springs

Hubcap Ranch

RustRidge

Part 2 (airs Wed 10/13)

Rustridge cont’d

Turtle rock

Peter Kilkus & Lake Berryessa

Monticello museum

Cucina Italiana

Zodiac history

Lake Berryessa Boat & Jetski

Winemaking: From Bottling to Harvest

2010-10-06T22:39:00.000-07:00

Wow! It sure is hot, how can they stand it?

It sure has been busy around here. It started with Jim and Susan's 20th anniversary party on September 18. Then we got ready for bottling. On Saturday September 25th we got the wine filtered. Then we bottled it on September 27, which felt like the hottest day of the year. Great people came to help: Scott, our neighbor brought his friend Eric, who is just back from a tour in Iraq; Mona, Yoga instructor and massage therapist extraordinaire; Tim our good friend, Fritz, our new friend, Isabelle, Chris and Claudia, Oscar, Julio, Jim and Susan were all there. After all of that, you would think we'd have a chance to rest, but no, Jim decided that we needed to start the harvest the following day. So we picked our Sauvignon Blanc before we had even cleaned up our crush equipment and checked it out. Well there is nothing like trial by fire, we got the crusher destemmer and must pump going just fine. It was the press that wouldn't work because the bladder was stuck in full press mode. After trying every button numeous times, Jim finally called the technician, who helped him discover that the evacuation pump was seized. Once Jim was able to free up the motor, we were able to start pressing the juice and get it into the tank.

I thought Jim needed a bit of encouragement.

It seemed like endless cases of wine kept going into the bottling truck...1709 to be exact.

The next day we set up the crush equipment and started harvest.

Miguel with the Sauvignon Blanc grapes

After two long days we had our classic "RustRidge Evening" with the hills aglow in the reflection of the sun.

Training Topper in the vines

2010-09-10T09:22:00.000-07:00

In the early morning, Jim trains his racehorse Topper's Smiling in the vineyards.

Evolution of a vineyard

2010-09-06T16:31:00.000-07:00

Getting the soil ready for the new vineyard

Staking the vineyard

Planting the vineyard

The new vineyard in the morning light

Sauvignon Blanc

2010-08-23T17:34:00.000-07:00

The grape harvest is approaching and finally the weather is warming up so perhaps we won't have to pick in November. Last year was my first harvest and it was a blast. I am eagerly waiting to taste the Sauvignon Blanc which is our first grape to ripen each year. Sure hope the wild turkeys save us a few grapes....

What lives in the vine

2010-08-09T21:46:00.000-07:00

When Catherine pulled the leaves away from the vine she found a bird's nest with newborn chicks living inside. This is a Zinfandel vine that is starting veraison (the onset of ripening, when the green color changes to red and the berry begins to soften)

Catherine and Soda Pop have a disagreement

2010-08-09T15:24:00.000-07:00

He starts out lunging okay but then...

he decides that Catherine should be lunging as well so he decides to follow her lead...

Caroline and Charlie

2010-08-08T16:22:00.000-07:00

Catherine wins the Trifecta

2010-08-07T10:36:00.000-07:00

At 5:30 AM on Thursday, Jim and Catherine went to Golden Gate Fields to take care of our racehorse Topper's Smiling.
Later they went to Santa Rosa to the Sonoma County Fair, to go to the races. In the third race, Catherine went down to the paddock with Jim to look at the horses being saddled and she observed each one carefully then chose the horse to win, place and show. This is what Catherine told me: ""Saw Perfection" was the tallest horse with a broad chest for big lungs, large hind quarters and shoulders and his odds were 3-1. Jim chose "Preach the Gospel", because the jockey is Topper's rider. "Jaunty" was my second choice, because of his physique, although he was smaller than Saw Perfection." Jim placed their trifecta bet at the window then they went up to the stands to watch the race. Catherine then heard the announcer say "they're off."
As the horses headed to the turn "we felt that Preach the Gospel was going to win but Saw Perfection pulled in front and then Jaunty pulled ahead of three horses to come in third." Catherine and Jim screamed with excitement while the other spectators looked on with amused curiosity!

Catherine is back!

2010-07-31T11:19:00.000-07:00

Catherine is taking good care of us! She is also taking care of the other kids that are staying here!

Catherine spends a quiet moment with Charlie.

We had great playmates on the weekend

2010-07-18T18:49:00.000-07:00

The Gable family came to stay at the ranch on the weekend. The last time they stayed at the ranch, Ben and Elizabeth didn't have children and it was the spring of 1994. I wasn't born either, but my grandfather Buster and great grandfather Bo were here and Susan and Jim were here too. At the time, Buster was in a cast because Bo had broken his leg by playing too rough with his young pup.

Anyway, now the Gables have three children, and they played with us all weekend. Catherine is crazy about horses, Caroline loves to swim and Robert loves to sing. They bought all of us (horses and cats included) yummy treats. They tried to train us to fetch and to walk on a leash and they groomed us too. Thank-you Catherine, Caroline and Robert for a wonderful weekend!

Summer is great

2010-07-15T17:40:00.000-07:00

Come play with us!

The Vineyard in Summer

2010-07-07T20:30:00.000-07:00

The vineyard in the early morning with the fog lifting

The vineyard view from the tasting room during the day.

Visitors to the tasting room

2010-06-01T11:51:00.000-07:00

Not all visitors to the tasting room are people.

Soda Pop frequently pokes his head in the door.

The Greatest Picnic Ever

2010-05-19T16:37:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday Whit and Colleen took us on the big hike to the highest hills above RustRidge where we had a picnic which included milk bones! Colleen takes all the pictures, so that's why she's not in them.

The view was stunning.

Racehorse White is the ultimate picnic wine!

Spending Mother's day with mom at the pond

2010-05-17T17:21:00.000-07:00

Cali came to visit our mom for Mother's Day weekend. We had a great time with mom and dad!

Making friends at RustRidge

2010-05-07T17:05:00.000-07:00

Just Another Day in the Tasting Room

2010-05-06T10:24:00.000-07:00

In Memory of Starlight

2010-04-29T15:34:00.000-07:00

Starlight visiting Jim while he was pruning vines this year

Our petite midnight kitty, born in 1992 passed away this week. For most of her life she was a barn cat with very little interest in humans. But as she aged and outlived her sisters she became more friendly and social. She enjoyed being held and pet and was unbelievably sweet. She also needed a bit more care in these last few years and we tried to bring her home, but she preferred the outdoors so she always found her way back to the barn. Finally this Winter she agreed to sleep in the winery office where we could feed her special food and keep her warm. She enjoyed hanging around the winery but every morning when we let her out, she made a quick exit to the vineyard where she drank water from the puddles and laid out in the sun. Her tiny body became more frail and unsteady but she refused to change her schedule and she spent her last day enjoying the ranch.

Matthew's visit

2010-04-15T11:56:00.000-07:00

When a thirteen year old botanist came to spend a week at RustRidge this is what he discovered:

Matthew found may varieties of wild mushrooms. This is a pumpkin mushroom that is safe to eat but doesn't taste very good.

This is a place on the ranch that very few people have ever seen.

This is one of our reservoirs that is tucked away in the hills and where I like to swim.

Spring Happenings

2010-04-04T18:12:00.000-07:00

This is what Jim and I found in the hollow of a gnarly grape vine, a tree frog!

Out in the vineyard on the grassy hillsides these big yellow flower bushes bloom in spring. They are known as Mule Ears and are part of the sunflower family.

The ranch in spring is a wonderful place to have a picnic, and you may have a surprise visitor,
Soda Pop our resident Palomino has decided he likes to hang out with people!

Mom and Dad want to wish all of us a Happy 1st Birthday!

2010-03-24T10:13:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Ambur, Annie, Bella, Bishop, Cali, Scout, Gracie, Ridge and Rusty,
Love, Mom & Dad

Okay, now it's really Spring!

2010-03-19T14:20:00.000-07:00

It's 75 degrees, that's warm!

We are anxiously anticipating Spring

2010-03-12T18:07:00.000-08:00

Another rainy day at the ranch. The forecast is for sunny and warm days next week. Can't wait.
Come visit us!

What a big dog

2010-03-10T15:01:00.000-08:00

Jim is letting Commander roam free on the ranch so he can eat the tall grass that is growing everywhere but inside the corrals. I never realized just how big he is.

A great hike

2010-02-28T13:31:00.000-08:00

Swimming in the ponds

Hiking in the hills of the ranch

Oh, the pleasures of running thru the grass on a sunny day after a night of rain.

Signs of Spring

2010-02-09T16:25:00.000-08:00

I have been enjoying running through the muddy vineyards, chasing rabbits, digging for gophers and playing with my mom and dad in the mustard, and each day I can see the grass is growing higher and new flowers are coming out and I know the season is changing. Maybe we are in for an early spring.

A visit from my brother Ridge

2010-01-31T18:42:00.000-08:00

Earlier this month, Ridge and his family stayed in our dog friendly cottage. Blake, Garrett and Matthew are Ridge's brothers. They live in Reno with their mom Monica. Monica came to visit last May while participating in a triathlon at nearby Lake Berryessa, that's when she fell in love with my brother Ridge. Anyway, its kind of funny to be together since our names are Rusty and Ridge.

Winter on the Ranch

2010-01-31T12:20:00.000-08:00

Today I finally feel like writing again. The sun is out, the mustard is in full bloom and there is activity again on the ranch. Right now a crew is pruning the Cabernet vines. Jim is doing select pruning on Zinfandel vines and Susan is working in the winery. I am enjoying nature in the vineyard. The gophers are abundant and quite delicious.

Family Reunion

2009-11-30T17:32:00.000-08:00

Two weekends ago we had an open house at our winery. Two of my sisters, Cali and Bella, and one of my brothers, Bishop, attended. Here we are running through the vineyard.

Horsing around

2009-11-30T17:07:00.000-08:00

This is Topper and me. She is our racehorse that runs at all the California race tracks. Jim has created a track for her right through the vineyard where he exercises her everyday. You can see it through the tasting room windows.

When harvest ends the real work begins

2009-11-08T20:12:00.000-08:00

I found out that harvest isn't just fun and games out in the vineyards. Every day we've had to stay at the winery and process the grapes that were picked. Sometimes this went on till late at night. Even after the grapes were processed we had to pump over then press them later on. The work continues and I think I overheard Susan say that we will finish sometime in December. It's starting to get cold at night, I would rather be on the couch at home with a blazing fire going.

My Dad is Back!

2009-10-28T10:43:00.000-07:00

After a long 10 days of searching for my dad, and posting signs and contacting all of the neighbors and our local restaurant Cucina Italiana, our local bar Turtle Rock, The Pope Valley Store, all the vet clinics, the animal shelters in two counties and placing an ad in the Napa Valley Register, we got a call yesterday from a neighbor on Pritchard Hill. Gwen had found Charlie wandering on the road and because he had no collar she assumed he was abandoned so she opened her car door and he jumped in. For the next week he lived in luxury on a beautiful estate overlooking Lake Hennessey. Gwen had been preoccupied with other matters in her life, and because Charlie was such a pleasant and polite house guest, she let him stay until she realized that he was missing his family and that he must have a home somewhere. She looked in the lost and found section of the paper and knew she had the lost dog described in the ad. She called our home and my mom Holly, Bean, Susan and Melissa and I raced to the car, drove down the canyon and up the mountain to fetch him. He was so happy to see us and yet sad to leave his new friends. Before coming home he gave us the grand tour around his vacation home and as I jumped up over the stone wall to join the tour I realized that I had just shown Susan and Melissa that I do know how to jump, oops!

We all have collars and id tags now, thanks to Nanci our best friend in the world!

My Dad is Missing

2009-10-22T12:42:00.000-07:00

It has been too busy at the ranch to sit down and update my blog. Between harvesting, crushing, pressing, filling barrels, barrel fermenting and organizing the winery so all of these events can run smoothly, I am too exhausted at night. Now, we are faced with the disappearance of my dad, Charlie who was last seen on the ranch about 4 pm last Sunday. Here is the information, please pray for his safe return.

A Week of Harvesting, Crushing & Pressing

2009-10-04T15:00:00.000-07:00

Wow what a week it was. On Tuesday we picked Zinfandel, on Wednesday we picked Zinfandel. On Thursday we picked Chardonnay and on Friday and Saturday we picked Zinfandel. We started out with very small crews because everyone in the valley was picking grapes after our big heat wave last week. Later each morning more people came to help. The grapes are really yummy. Yesterday, I didn't feel very well after eating those really sweet Zinfandel grapes. I went home in the afternoon and stayed there all evening. I felt better when it was time to go to bed.

Things are starting to happen around here

2009-09-28T20:23:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is harvest. I have to go to bed early so that I can be ready to help pick the Zinfandel. I will tell you more about it tomorrow or the next day.

My weekend

2009-09-27T17:59:00.000-07:00

Another great weekend at the ranch. Lots of people stayed at the B&B including my sister Cali and her parents Susan & Per. It was really hot so we played in the water and had fun running through the floppy plants and cool grass. Then Per gave us treats which we all enjoyed.

My best friend

2009-09-23T10:17:00.000-07:00

While we are waiting for harvest, I thought I would tell you about other things going on at the ranch. We've had some hot weather, but I stay cool in the office during the day. At night I go home and get to spend time with my best friend George. He lets me chew on him and even after he screams and attacks me with his claws he always comes back for more. At night he purrs loudly as he cuddles with me.

Time to test the grapes

2009-09-21T18:31:00.000-07:00

At the ranch we are anticipating the harvest of the Chardonnay and Zinfandel. We must go out frequently and test the sugar of the grapes in the vineyard. My dad Charlie is an expert at this, it is his 10th harvest.

A visiting prince

2009-09-18T10:21:00.000-07:00

I don't know what all the hoopla was over. An African prince came to visit the winery on Wednesday evening. He came with an entourage of fancy cars and serious looking men. Those men stood guard around the prince as Jim gave him and his girlfriend a wine tasting. Then they all drove off. Well, Susan thinks I'm the prince of RustRidge and I have my own entourage of family, cats and horses.

My first harvest

2009-09-15T16:59:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning was quite different from my usual carefree days. Everybody got up early and went to the vineyard. There was a crew of guys and a tractor driver and they were picking the grapes that they call Sauvignon Blanc. Wow, were they sweet! Bean (Melissa's dog) my mom (Holly) and my dad (Charlie) all went with me to be part of the harvest. It had rained a little bit in the night so all of the dust had settled and there was a bit of rain and lightning early in the day. Very cool. Then the grapes came in and they started all the crush equipment and the grapes were dropped into the press. I was exhausted by then and decided to lay down in a flower bed. My mom chose to snooze on the crush pad.