Well, I was supposed to be pouring for this portion of the event, but the wine I was supposed to pour seems to be MIA.

So, instead, I'm taking part in the Live Blogging portion of the event, starting with Small Vines Wines 2006 Sonoma Central Coast Pinot Noir, which retails for $65. They only made 144 cases, so this is my kinda maker. Ripe fruit, cherry, vanilla and spice…nicely intergrated oak and silky. (3:48 p.m)

Next up is Cupcake Vineyards 2007 Chardonnay ($12). VERY fruity, apple, citrus and pineapple. Oak is actually pretty soft here on the fore palate, but comes back on the finish with toasty, charcoal-like notes. (3:52 p.m.)

Kantzler Cellars 2007 Pinot Noir (Barrel Sample). Spring of 2009 release. 420 or so cases. Big extraction, getting lots of strawberry, cherry and cocoa powder, toasty, pencil lead…I REALLY like this one. (3:57 p.m.) Will retail for $48.

Bink 2005 Weir Vineyard Pinot Noir. More cherry, but this time more confection/candy. Reminds me a bit of cherry cough drop. Some heat on the finish for sure. Not my favorite of the first few. (4:03 p.m.)

Lionheart Wines 2007 McGinley Vineyard Roussanne. Sweet lemon preserves. Some florality. Nice and creamy-pineapple mid-palate and flowers and citrus on the finish. Really nice. Made at crushpad. (4:06 p.m.)

Sean Minor Four Bears Winery 2006 Napa Cab Sauv ($17).  Dark fruit, oak, vanilla some tannins. Sort of what you'd expect from a Napa cab in this price range.   (4:11 p.m.)

Yellow + Blue 2007 Mendoza Malbec. In tetrapak. Organic. $10 or so. Too cold. Dark fruit. Spice. Okay. Not great. (4:14 p.m.)

Bonterra 2004 The McNab (red blend) ($45). Really nice. Organic. Biodynamic. Good fruit, with a little Brussels sprout (not that I mind that actually). Plummy and blackberry. A little grip on the tannins. (4:23 p.m.)

Dark Horse 2006 Dry Creek Zinfandel. Smoked meat, savory….really interesting. A little hot, but not your typical. Black pepper, fruit. Too hot though. (4:29 p.m.)

Clos LaChance 2005 Estate Cab Sauv. Inky extraction. Soft, big fruit. Simple, but nice. Retails for $30.

Okay. I'm taking a break from trying to type while I taste these… more later.

James David Cellars 2007 Muscat Blanc. Really fruity and floral-honeysuckle nose. LOVE the nose. You'd almost expect it to be sweet, but it's dry and nicely balanced even at 14.5% abv. $18