Windsor Oaks’ Artisanal Winemaker Tunes In As She Fine-Tunes The Wine

Winemaker Julie Hagler Lumgair leads with her nose.
“I do 95 percent of my work with my nose,” she says. “It’s very hands-on.”

That method has served Lumgair well as the creator of artisan wines for Windsor Oaks Vineyards & Winery in California’s Sonoma County. Since 2006, Windsor Oak’s wines have been garnering awards at competitions in California, Texas, Florida and Colorado. For the past two years, Lumgair has claimed the National Women’s Wine Competition “Women Winemaker’s Challenge, Judges’ Choice Award” for her Chalk Hill Super Tuscan, a blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah.

“The best way to make an exceptional wine is to be in tune with it,” she says. “Every wine in its barrel is in its own world.”

Lumgair will be using all of her sensory talents this month as she plans wine pairings for the Local Chefs Showcase at Inside Columbia’s Wine & Food Festival. The winemaker will team up with four Columbia chefs for a five-course wine dinner on May 18.

She approaches the wine pairing with an appreciation of local foods, born of a life spent growing up on the family farm.

“I come from a fifth-generation family farm in eastern Tennessee,” Lumgair says. “Using local foods and local produce — what that really says is ‘top of the line.’ Diners are in for a big treat that night.”

Lumgair plans to offer a wide range of Windsor Oaks varietals at the Local Chefs Showcase, matching wines to the chefs’ choices. The evening’s wine list will include a Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and late-harvest Zinfandel.

All Windsor Oaks wines are produced on the 700-acre estate near Windsor, California. Lumgair lives on the estate with her husband Douglas, general manager of Windsor Oaks Vineyards. The vineyards produce 17 grape varietals on 230 acres in the Russian River Valley and Chalk Hill appellations. Windsor Oaks sells 95 percent of its 700-ton crop to more than 35 other artisanal wineries, reserving the top 5 percent for the 2,000 cases of wine Lumgair crafts at the winery. The wines sell directly from the cellar door and through its wine club at www.windsoroakvineyards.com.

Douglas Lumgair has been managing the vineyards since 1991 when general partner Bob Stein acquired the property. Lumgair set out to transform the estate, replanting the vines in more than 50 distinct blocks to take advantage of the varying microclimates within the vineyard terroir. The redesign includes a 350-acre nature preserve.

Julie Lumgair, who married Douglas six years ago, has been winemaker for Windsor Oaks since 2005.

A former executive in brand management for Proctor & Gamble, Bush Brothers and Del Monte, Lumgair moved to California when her work with Del Monte led her to the Golden State.

“I moved into food mergers and then became more interested in the culinary side of the business,” she says.

Training with the winemakers who bought the vineyard’s grapes, Lumgair became a Certified Specialist of Wine and is an active member of the Society of Wine Educators and a professional wine judge.

“My goal is to make something that makes people say ‘Wow! I got my money’s worth,’ ” she says.     “I want people smiling.”

As for the wines that make her smile, “It all depends on what’s for dinner,” she says. “In winter, I favor the big reds, and when it’s hot I reach for whites, a dry Rosé or Pinot Noir. My preferences move with the seasons.”

She just follows her nose.

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Holiday Inn Executive Center
2200 I-70 Drive, SW
Columbia, MO 65203
$89.95/night
(573) 445-8531
Ask for: Heidi Bonnes
Mention Promo Code When Booking: GGW

Friday, May 20, 5 to 8 p.m. & Saturday, May 21, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Tickets: $40 Per Person* ( Valued at $85!)
TICKETS ON SALE NOW!

*Must be 21 to participate.

Friday Evening: The Grand Tasting, 5 to 8 p.m. | $50 Value
• More than 200 wineries on hand with samples of more than 400 wines from all over the world.
• Enjoy live music and delicacies created by the area’s finest chefs.
• Receive your complimentary Riedel Magnum Overture Wine Glass, a $5 Value

Saturday: Sip & Shop, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. | $20 Value
• Combine two of America’s favorite pastimes – shopping and wine! This is your chance to sample great wines from around the world while you shop at Columbia’s finest merchants.
• Passports provide discounts up to 50% off any item and sometimes even a FREE gift!

Saturday: Chocolate Symposium, 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. | $5 Value
This year’s Sip & Shop Passport includes admission to the Chocolate Symposium! This 30-minute seminar at The Candy Factory will focus on chocolate and wine pairings. Reservations are required and seating is limited to 30 per session on a first-come, first-served basis. Make sure you look out for a registration e-mail when you purchase your passport!

Saturday Evening: Free Time
• Dining on your own at your choice of more than 220 restaurants.
• Take in a comedy show, dueling pianos, line dancing or an indie film.

Sunday Morning/Afternoon: Free Time
• Enjoy brunch or a refreshing bike ride on the Katy Trail.
• Indulge in a massage or spa treatment at one of 30 locally owned spas.

Click here for special hotel packages and to get our special rate!
*You must live outside a 30 mile radius of Columbia, MO. Tickets must be purchased in advance. Must be 21 to attend.

JC was ask to participate in a fundraiser with 100% of the proceeds going to Sol House, a shelter for homeless teenagers in Columbia operated by Columbia’s Rainbow House.

They gave me a still life photograph and ask me to paint it. I was also supposed to put something significant to me in the upper left-hand corner. I was joined by a handful of my fellow Columbians, who also painted the same image in their specific interpretation …

To read more on JC’s website CLICK HERE!

Tuesday, May 17, 7 p.m.
Tickets: $75 Per Person*
SAVE THE DATE: The 2012 Wine & Food Festival Will Be The Week of May 14–19, 2012!
*Tickets must be purchased in advance. Must be 21 to attend. Ticket price does not include gratuity.

WINE DINNERS FOR TUESDAY, MAY 17 at 7 p.m.

Chef Mike Odette

Sycamore

800 E. Broadway

Mike Odette dropped out of college, abandoning his chemical engineering studies, to begin a chef career at Café Europa and Europa Bakery in 1988. He worked at Trattoria Strada Nova and Booche’s before opening Sycamore in 2005. In 2009, Odette was a semifinalist for the James Beard Foundation Award in the “Best Chef: Midwest” category.
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THE MENU

Course 1: Two Duck Pâtés
Buttermilk crackers, sour cherry mostarda and marcona almonds

Course 2: Arugula Salad
Asparagus, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, pickled mushrooms and truffle vinaigrette

Course 3: Beef Short Ribs
Braised in red wine with sweet spring peas, baby carrots and fava beans

Course 4: Goatsbeard Cheeses
A sampling of artisanal farmstead cheeses

Course 5: Ricotta Cheesecake
Strawberry and rose compote

Chef Daniel Pliska

University Club

107 Reynolds Alumni Center
704 Conley Ave.

University Club Executive Chef Daniel Pliska arrived in Columbia a dozen years ago with a wealth of experience from first-class restaurants in Washington, D.C., Dusseldorf, Germany, and New Orleans. Locally, Pliska won the 2004 Iron Chef Final Showdown and was a finalist in the AgriMissouri Culinary Competition and the Parade of Taste in Kansas City. In 2009, the American Culinary Federation named him Regional Chef of the Year.

THE MENU

Course 1: Stuffed Chicken
Campo Lindo Farms chicken stuffed with Burger’s attic ham and Goatsbeard Farm Taum Sauk cheese, presented on creamy Eagle Mills white cornmeal polenta with Ozark Farms wild mushrooms

Course 2: Smoked Troutdale Farms Trout Cake
Served on an apple, fennel and endive with salad

Course 3: Lemon Chardonel Granite
Topped with strawberry sorbet

Course 4: Sliced Roasted Legacy Beef Eye Of Rib Eye
Garlic, herb, horseradish crust served in an ox tail consommé with gnocchi Parisienne, Missouri new crop asparagus and baby spring vegetables

Course 5: Patric Chocolate And Missouri Pecan Tart
Maker’s Mark bourbon ice cream

• All tickets for the Wine & Food Festival will be e-mailed when you purchase. You must print your ticket and bring with you to the event for entrance.

• Must be 21 years of age to attend events.

• Times, events, details, prices and availabilities are subject to change without notice.

• All tickets and passports are non-refundable and sold on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets and passports are non-transferable and are expected to sell out quickly.

• Due to the complexity and volume of our Wine Dinners we are unable to accommodate changes to the menus for food allergies or for other special dietary requests.

• Please remember GRATUITY IS NOT INCLUDED in the Wine Dinner ticket price.

• NO REFUNDS on tickets after May 1, 2011.

Here’s a quick look at the ad:

Your Weekend Agenda:

Friday Evening: The Grand Tasting, 5 to 8 p.m.
• More than 200 wineries on hand with samples of more than 400 wines from all over the world.
• Enjoy live music and delicacies created by the area’s finest chefs.

Saturday: Sip & Shop, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Combine two of America’s favorite pastimes – shopping and wine! This is your chance to sample great wines from around the world while you shop at Columbia’s finest merchants.
• Passports provide discounts up to 50% off any item and sometimes even a FREE gift!

Saturday: Chocolate Symposium, 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
This year’s Sip & Shop Passport includes admission to the Chocolate Symposium! This 30-minute seminar at The Candy Factory will focus on chocolate and wine pairings. Reservations are required and seating is limited to 30 per session on a first-come, first-served basis. Make sure you look out for a registration e-mail when you purchase your passport!

Saturday Evening: Free Time
• Dining on your own at your choice of more than 220 restaurants.
• Take in a comedy show, dueling pianos, line dancing or an indie film.

Sunday Morning/Afternoon Free Time
• Enjoy brunch or a refreshing bike ride on the Katy Trail.
• Indulge in a massage or spa treatment at one of 30 locally owned spas.

Click here for special hotel packages and to get the Girlfriend Getaway Rate!

Friday, May 20 through Sunday, May 22
Tickets: $40 Per Person*
SAVE THE DATE: The 2012 Wine & Food Festival Will Be The Week of May 14–19, 2012!
*You must live outside a 30 mile radius of Columbia, MO. Tickets must be purchased in advance. Must be 21 to attend.