Decanting (pouring the wine from the bottle into another vessel, typically a decanter) is a simple, but careful process. It can be intimidating knowing when to decant a wine and when not to. Here I share three reasons for decanting a wine and hopefully they help shed some light on any confusion. Everyone's tastes and opinions are different, so my goal is to share with you what I know about decanting and aerating wines as well as the science behind it. Then it's up to you to have fun and do some experiments tasting the wine as it aerates in a decanter. 

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Hi there! We are the four Hafner Vineyard dogs, and we thought that while everyone is “sheltering in place” it is time you officially meet us. We hope you enjoy a little levity in your day. And if you have a dog (or cat or any pet) toss them an extra biscuit for us! We know it can be tough sheltering in place for you humans, but think about us! Now we have to share our homebase with you all.

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As winemakers, tasting is our number 1 job and in these days of “shelter in place”, tastings are the perfect diversion. While technically we are “working” when we taste, we thought it would be fun to share a tasting game with you. We’ve named it the “Somm Game”. We don’t take it very seriously. It's a way to add a little lightheartedness to your evening and practice learning what you like in a wine. Essentially, it is a blind tasting where you try to guess the wine. Normally, we play the game with our adult children, but with the current situation of coronavirus, we are doing it virtually. 

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One of my roles at Hafner Vineyard is photographer and that means taking photos of the team. Whether it's for our website, team bios, email campaigns or social media, there are always many pictures to take. We enjoy highlighting the people who make Hafner Vineyard possible and find that our patrons appreciate seeing the faces behind their wine. Over the years, I have created a nice relationship with the vineyard team. At first, many were camera shy but not anymore! Even though we have a bit of a language barrier, they are all willing participants with wonderful smiles. When they see me coming, they joke with each other that "Hollywood" is calling. That gets the laughter going. 

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During the Holiday Season, it is “all hands on deck”! We are grateful to our patrons who are so generous with their Hafner wine. Thank YOU! To have some fun, Kate made a short film of our various roles during the Holiday Season. You will see that many hands are involved in getting your gifts from our small family winery here in Alexander Valley to the dinner tables of your friends, family or colleagues across the United States. Happy Holidays from all of us at Hafner Vineyard!

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