email this morning:

Coming Soon!

Kosta Browne Winery’s Spring Offering:• 2004 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
• 2004 Russian River Pinot Noir
• 2005 Russian River Pinot Noir Rosé

Details and ordering instructions will be sent to you via USPS and email the week of February 27th.
We look forward to contacting you soon!

There will be allocations, but they will be very favorable. Basically, your '04 allocations will be the same as your '03 purchases. So if you bought big in '03, then you won't get cut. If you are new to the list, then you will be allocated 2 of each Pinot. If you are on the LOD and you didn't order last year (or, ordered less than 5 bottles of each), you will be allocated 5 bottles of each pinot and 2 bottles of the Rose. Allocations will be guaranteed and they will have on-line ordering.

The Wine Depot has this neat feature where they allow producers to post on their own blogs. My info is from that source.

And what did we learn from the ordering process last year?

You'd better be quick on the trigger!

I thought that there would be plenty to go around, enough left over to fill order requests later in the year, so my spring order was a little thin. My mistake. All gone, right away. Dang! Not gonna do that again....

only x2 bottles per pinot for newbies? well, at least i got in after only 8 months...

Allocations will be held until March 22nd

so you won't be penalized if you are waiting for the snail mail mailer or are on vacation that week.

It didn't help me, but allowing people to buy at least as many bottles as they bought in '03 is a brilliant move. That would have eliminated all of my complaints about Radio Coteau. It wouldn't make sense for a winery that has been in business for a long time, but it makes perfect sense when only 1 or 2 years separates the senior members from the newbies.

If I get an offer - it will be a newbie allocation. Hmm, looks like I'm gonna have to pass on the Roar mailer to check these out.

WD

I've been looking forward to this one. While the word is out on K-B's pinots, don't pass on the rose if you're allocated any. Everyone loved it at the K-B wine dinner last year in NOLA.

Wineaux - how was the Rose compared to the bottle of Sonocino (Radio-Coteau) Rose that I gave you? curious as to the style.. thanks

Winetex, how/where did you get the R-C Rose? And, how is it? Thanks!

I ordered it from Eric Sussman via Jones' recommendation. It was a email, a fax and done deal. We drank all of them, good stuff.

Winetex, I tried to do the same (Jones' recom), no deal. It was all gone. Ohh well, may be next time then...

Bummer, it was a great summer wine.

While it's hard for me now to go back and compare the two (I didn't formally rate either), my recollection is that they were similar in style. I can say for both wines, however, that I would've purchased more if they were available.

From a post on ebob by Tony Velebil:

Sonoma Coast - $32
RRV - $38

Great job on pricing!!

The rose (for LOD members only) will be in the $16-$18 range.

got the email, looking forward to a nice size allotment, hopefully more than the case I bought last year

We got the e-mail and will be purchasing. How did these compare to the vineyard designates in the 2003 vintage?

Auto, it will be interesting how this works. Did you order equal amounts of all three wines? Are you a List of Designates member? If yes to both, your allocation will be no less than 5/5/2. If you are not on the LOD, I wonder if your allocation will be 4/4 (i.e., will they sell you the same number of bottles of Sonoma and RRV as you ordered last year) or whether it will be 6/6 (i..e, will they give your credit for your Santa Lucia purchase even though they aren't selling that this year.)? Such complicated stuff.

Only 3 more days to go!