Happy 2012! We have grown tired of pouring our beautiful wines down the sink on Monday afternoons before we close. Since we are closed on Tuesday and Wednesday. we need to empty all our bottles. So we’ve introduced our revolutionary “Drink the Dregs” program. Stop by anytime after 4:30 PM on Monday and enjoy a glass of any our wines that are open for just $1. That includes any one of our incredible wines – from our light and pleasing award-winning Vermentino to our robust award-winning Cabernet Sauvignon. The only requirements are that 1) the wine bottle has already been opened for our tasting room and 2) you arrive between 4:30 and 5:30. We are looking forward to sharing a great glass of our wine.

Of course, we’d love to see you anytime – $10/tasting or wine by the glass $11 and up — check out our wonderful new wines including our 2009 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, 2008 Lodi Syrah, 2009 Lodi Zinfandel, 2010 Carneros Chardonnay. Each wine is limited production and from prime estate vineyards.

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Come join us for a delightfully alternative holiday shopping destination. Barterra Winery, situated in downtown Half Moon Bay, is a great place to begin and end your holiday shopping. We’ve noticed that Black Friday came to Half Moon Bay this year, with many visitors who chose to avoid the crowded shopping malls and standard gifts.

Our hours are 12:30-5:30 Thursdays through Monday, and Friday December 2, 2011 — we’ll be open till 8:30 to celebrate Night of Lights with other local merchants – music, light snacks and wine by the glass ($10 for your choice of our 2005 Russian River Pinot Noir or our 2009 Carneros Chardonnay).

At Barterra, you can enjoy a tasting or glass of wine while shopping for your loved ones. Our infused olive oils are a favorite for gift-givers — the new cruet bottles at $14 join our $21 wax-stamped and beautiful bottles. Top sellers are the basil, lemon, and jalapeno, but every one of these infused oils is fantastic! And of course our wines are rare gifts that can’t be picked up in the chain supermarkets and beverage stores – priced from $25-$85 – each and every wine is hand selected from a top northern California vineyard and crafted by a personally selected winemaker and available in limited quantities. Our newest release, the Barterra Syrah ($35), comes from a small vineyard in Lodi, and is absolutely stunning. With less than 35 cases remaining, it won’t last. Showcase your holiday prime rib with this beautiful wine.

Meet your friends, enjoy our wine and Tuscan courtyard, and avoid the holiday crowds. Our family-friendly winery is your sanctuary and a stress-free,unique source of holiday gift solutions.

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The fall season is spectacular in Half Moon Bay, and it’s a great time to enjoy fine wine with friends and family.  As we count down to Thanksgiving, here is Barterra’s top ten for Fall 2011.

1.  Pinot Noir!  We love Barterra’s Russian River Pinot Noirs with fall dishes – our 2005 earthy Pinot pairs beautifully with mushrooms, root vegetables and pork or game.  And our 2006 works equally well with hearty fish dishes — tuna right from our deep waters off the coast of Half Moon Bay.  And just in time to celebrate the season, these world class Pinots from Sonoma’s top appellation are just $25 per bottle

2.  Orange olive oil.  Barterra’s infused olive oils are wonderful.  We’re a big fan of the orange olive oil with a fall salad — golden beets or fennel.    And we’ve just recently introduced our beautifully bottled olive oils in a smaller cruet size at $14 – fabulous hostess gifts!

3.  Moonstruck Chocolates — Mint Tingles.  Imagine the best chocolate malt balls you ever had with a hint of mint.  And package this up in fall colors — brown and orange — and it’s another great hostess gift, if you don’t give in to temptation and open the package on the way to dinner.

4.  Farro.  You’ll never go back to rice after you’ve experienced farro — an heirloom grain from Italy.  Served in salad or as a side dish (we love it with kale and pork),  farro is versatile and delicious.  Barterra carries a number of specialty items from Italy we like with our wines, and farro is our top pick.

5.  White truffle oil – not far behind farro!  Just recently, we tossed fresh popcorn with white truffle oil.  What a pre-holiday treat!  And this little snack paired beautifully with Barterra’s 2006 Carneros Blanc de Noir Sparkling wine and our Carneros 2008 and 2009 Chardonnays.

6.  Glass pumpkins.  While those of us in Half Moon Bay may have grown a bit weary of pumpkins following our annual Pumpkin Festival, the Half Moon Bay Art Glass Pumpkins are beautiful year-round.  We carry a selection in many sizes and colors, ranging from whimsical to realistic.

7.  Enjoying a glass of wine with friends in our Tuscan courtyard.  The fall season brings out the warm sun in Half Moon Bay, and our guests enjoy our wines – by the bottle or glass — out in our courtyard.

8.  Barterra new releases — hearty reds for the season!  Our 2008 Syrah is already earning rave reviews from our guests and won’t last long as it’s available in very limited quantities.  And our 2009 new release Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is sure to be another international award winner.

9.  Holiday shopping early.  What better way to kick off the holiday season than having gifts taken care of.  These days, consumables have become much more appealing to the people on your gift list who have everything — our olive oils, chocolates, wines and gift certificates make great gifts.  Or how about treating your special someone to the gift of a Barterra Wine Club membership – so he or she can enjoy our fine wines year-round?

10.  Your company.  There’s nothing we like better than enjoying the company of guests in our tasting room.  We’ve met interesting people from all over the world — but even if you’re as close as San Mateo, Barterra Winery feels like a bit of Italy – and Mary and Bart Colucci will greet you like family – in the Old World style.

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We’re reinvigorating our gallery along with our expanded tasting room and selection of new wines. And to toast our new focus, we’ll be featuring artist Nilou Hoveyda the weekend of September 16 — with a special reception on September 18 from 1- 6 PM.
Nilou will feature her colorful acrylic and water color paintings with mixed media on canvas & paper.

In the artist’s words, “My works are inspired by the mystery of the Middle Eastern culture. I believe that reality and dreams coexist. I search for light in total darkness and unfold my dreams through vibrant colors, using brush and canvas.”

The reception and social gathering will be held on Sunday Sept 18TH from 1:00pm to 6:00pm featuring a live performance by Faranak Shahroozi on piano.

A special selection of Barterra wines will be available by the glass for $10, with wine and olive oil tasting available as usual. And if you haven’t noticed our art lately, you’ll see we’re featuring more wine and chef-inspired artwork — notably Christopher M, the “Painter of Chefs,” whose art will be highlighted on our special artists’ series release of our Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.

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This coming weekend, June 11 and 12, marks the 140th annual Portuguese Pentecost Festival – one of the longest running in the United States. Main Street will be abuzz with activities and we have our own special event planned for Sunday June 12 with a book signing at the tasting room by Valentina Cirasola from 1-3 PM (tasting room open as always till 5:30). Her new book is Sins of a Queen: Italian Appetizers and Desserts. We’ll be offering complimentary appetizers (focaccia) and dessert (biscotti) from La Biscotteria. And we’ll offer our complimentary olive oil tasting — learn how to best use our oils to finish your antipasti and pasta! And of course, our world class wines are available by the glass or a wine tasting flight of 4 ($10).

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In keeping with Barterra’s Italian roots and traditions, we’re adding more foods to our tasting room. Join us on the weekend for spectacular focaccia from La Biscotteria in Redwood City. And pick up their fabulous biscotti any time we’re open — my favorite is the traditional anise but the white chocolate dipped lemon is pretty tasty too! We can design a gift basket for you filled with delicious Italian specialties such as the farro — a grain that goes back to the ancient Romans — olives, chocolate, and of course a bottle or two of Barterra’s finest wines. Our wines are meant to be enjoyed with great food and company. And we love your company in the tasting room. We’re always happy to share our favorite recipes and food pairing ideas.

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Our beautiful courtyard has long been a popular area for our guests to relax and enjoy a glass of wine with us. But it’s March in Northern California and the weather doesn’t always cooperate. We’ve opened a new room dedicated to your enjoyment and respite from the storm. Stop by and enjoy a glass of our world class wine with a cheese plate, or plan your next event with us. We’ve had some great parties for groups of 20-30 — from a local Mothers Club to engagement parties. Don’t hesitate to contact us at the winery, 650-712-1635, or email to plan your next function. Or just stop in your next rainy day in Half Moon Bay to seek shelter from the rain!

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Here in Half Moon Bay we’re at the peak of our rainy winter season — but in between the rain we have absolutely glorious sunny days and spectacular sunsets. It’s also Dungeness Crab season, which brings us to our subject of winter whites. We hear from lots of people that they stick with red wine in winter and save the whites for picnic weather. It’s our recommendation to do something different — enjoy a great winter white! Our new release Vermentino (very limited production) is perfect paired with crab or smoked fish. It’s crisp but with lots of pear and citrus. This wine won a double gold at the California State Fair in 2010 and it won’t last! Read more.

We also love our Chardonnays in the winter — our award-winning 2008 Chardonnay is rich and just coming in to its peak. It’s great for sipping by the fire or with a meal. Read more.

Stop by our tasting room and mention this blog post — we’ll provide a complimentary tasting of the Vermentino and Chardonnay. Or shop online right here and now!

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We’ve received a new shipment of Moonstruck Chocolates especially for Valentine’s Day.  You won’t find better chocolate than this anywhere! Might we suggest a bottle of our 2006 Carneros Blanc de Noirs ($38) and a beautiful red heart box with three perfect truffles nestled inside ($12). Mention our blog and we’ll also provide a complimentary Barterra Winery tasting card ($10 value) with your sparkling wine and chocolate purchase.  Your loved one will enjoy a return trip to our peaceful courtyard with great wines and company!

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