State Fair Announces the Best California Wines

Winners to be Honored at the State`s Premier Wine & Food Event
SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(Business Wire)--
The California State Fair will honor the best winemakers, vineyards and wineries
in the state at the 14th annual California`s Grape & Gourmet, the state`s
premier California wine event.

The California`s Grape & Gourmet was created to celebrate and acknowledge
excellence in the California wine industry, as determined by the 2009 State Fair
Commercial Wine Competition, the oldest and most prestigiously judged wine
competition in North America.

A VIP awards ceremony will be held at the Grape & Gourmet event to honor top
winners from the Wine Competition, including dozens of wineries and industry
leaders. Specialty awards include the Wine Lifetime Achievement Awards, the
Winery of the Year, the Vineyard of the Year and the Best of Show Wines.

The Grape & Gourmet is scheduled for Thursday, July 9 from 3:30 to 9:00 p.m. at
the Sacramento Convention Center. Starting at 5:30 p.m. the public will have the
opportunity to taste from more than 800 award-winning wines and 90 restaurants,
caterers, breweries and cheeses. Admission to California`s Grape & Gourmet
includes unlimited wine and food tasting, as well as a free commemorative
wineglass, wine tote and plate. Wines will also be available for purchase by the
case or bottle, and all proceeds from those sales will benefit the Friends of
the California State Fair Scholarship Fund.

Wine Competition Results

At this year`s Wine Competition, more than 2,600 wine entries were received from
more than 600 participating wineries. Sixty-eight professional wine judges
awarded 1,895 medals, including 43 Double Gold, 220 Gold, 1,028 Silver and 604
Bronze awards. Award winners include:

GOLDEN STATE WINERY
South Coast Winery

BEST OF SHOW- RED
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Jeff Runquist Wines
2007 Amador County Barbera

BEST OF SHOW- WHITE
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards
2005 Sonoma County Rosé Brut

BEST OF SHOW- DESSERT
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Quady Winery
2007 California Elysium Black Muscat

BEST VALUE
GOLD 94
ForestVille Vineyard
2006 California Zinfandel

BEST MICROWINERY- RED
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Muscardini Cellars
2007 Ukiah Valley Mendocino Sangiovese

BEST MICROWINERY- WHITE
GOLD 94
Sierra Star Vineyard & Winery
2008 Nevada County Sauvignon Blanc Solstice

VINEYARD OF THE YEAR
Monte Bello

BEST OF REGION AWARDS

BEST OF NORTH COAST RED
DOUBLE GOLD 98
V. Sattui Winery
2008 North Coast Dry Rosato

BEST OF NORTH COAST WHITE
GOLD 94
R&B Cellars
2007 North Coast Serenade in Blanc

BEST OF SONOMA RED
GOLD 94
Armida Winery
2007 Dry Creek Valley Il Campo, Estate Field Blend

BEST OF SONOMA WHITE
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards
2005 Carneros (Sonoma) Brut Rose

BEST OF NAPA RED
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Used Automobile Parts
2005 Bordeaux Blend

BEST OF NAPA WHITE
GOLD 94
V. Sattui Winery
2008 Napa Valley Semillon

BEST OF GREATER BAY RED
GOLD 94
Mitchell Katz Winery
2007 Livermore Valley Sangiovese

BEST OF GREATER BAY WHITE
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Bloomfield Vineyards
2008 Contra Costa County Viognier

BEST OF NORTH-CENTRAL COAST RED
GOLD 95
Kenneth Volk Vineyards
2006 Lime Kiln Valley Mourvedre

BEST OF NORTH-CENTRAL COAST WHITE
GOLD 94
Fallbrook Winery
2007 Monterey Chardonnay Special Selection

BEST OF SOUTH-CENTRAL COAST RED
GOLD 95
Peloton Cellars
2006 Arroyo Grande Valley Syrah

BEST OF SOUTH-CENTRAL COAST WHITE
GOLD 95
Tangent Winery
2008 Edna Valley Riesling

BEST OF SOUTH COAST RED
GOLD 94
Rosenthal-The Malibu Estate
2005 Malibu-Newton Canyon Surfrider Red Wine

BEST OF SOUTH COAST WHITE
GOLD 95
South Coast Winery
2007 Temecula Valley Roussane

BEST OF SIERRA FOOTHILLS RED
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Jeff Runquist Wines
2007 Amador County Barbera

BEST OF SIERRA FOOTHILLS WHITE
GOLD 94
Wilderotter Winery
2008 Sierra Foothills Sauvignon Blanc

BEST OF LODI RED
DOUBLE GOLD 97
Michael-David Winery
2007 Lodi Petite Sirah Petite Petit

BEST OF OTHER CALIFORNIA RED
GOLD 94
Jeff Runquist Wines
2007 Clarksburg Petite Sirah

BEST OF CALIFORNIA STATE RED
GOLD 94
McManis Family Vineyards
2007 California Petite Sirah

BEST OF CALIFORNIA STATE WHITE
GOLD 94
Dancing Bull
2008 California Sauvignon Blanc Winemaker`s Reserve

BEST OF CALIFORNIA

BEST BARBERA
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Nevada City Winery
2007 Sierra Foothills Barbera

BEST BARBERA
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Jeff Runquist Wines
2007 Amador County Barbera

BEST BORDEAUX VARIETAL BLEND
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Oakstone Winery
2006 Fair Play Meritage

BEST CABERNET FRANC
GOLD 94
Irish Vineyards
2006 Calaveras County Cabernet Franc De Ireys

BEST CABERNET SAUVIGNON
GOLD 95
Bloomfield Vineyards
2007 San Francisco Bay Cabernet Sauvignon

BEST CHARDONNAY
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Buena Vista
2006 Los Carneros (Sonoma) Chardonnay

BEST MERLOT
GOLD 95
Bargetto Winery
2006 Santa Cruz Mountains Reserve Merlot

BEST MUSCAT
GOLD 95
Barefoot Cellars
NV California Moscato

BEST OTHER WHITE VARIETAL
GOLD 94
Solis Winery
2008 Santa Clara Valley Fiano

BEST OTHER RED VARIETAL
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Terra Savia
2005 Mendocino Petit Verdot Reserve

BEST PETITE SIRAH
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Busby Cellars
2006 Fair Play Petite Sirah

BEST PINOT GRIGIO
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Big House
2008 Central Coast (North) Birdman Pinot Grigio

BEST PINOT NOIR
GOLD 95
Armida Winery
2007 Sonoma Valley Pinot Noir

BEST RED GENERIC
GOLD 94
Bixler Vineyards
2007 California Delta Union Island Red

BEST RIESLING
GOLD 95
Falkner Winery
2007 Temecula Valley Riesling

BEST RHONE VARIETAL BLEND
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Vina Robles
2006 Paso Robles Syreé

BEST SANGIOVESE
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Obscurity Cellars
2007 Amador County Sangiovese

BEST SAUVIGNON BLANC
GOLD 95
Saucelito Canyon Vineyard
2008 Central Coast (South) Sauvignon Blanc

BEST SPARKLING WINE
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards
NV Carneros (Sonoma) Brut Blanc de Noirs

BEST SPARKLING WINE
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards
2005 Carneros (Sonoma) Brut Rosé

BEST SPECIALTY RED VARIETAL BLEND
GOLD 94
Trenza Winery
2007 San Luis Obispo County Tiuto

BEST SPECIALTY WHITE VARIETAL BLEND
GOLD 94
Folie `a Deux Winery
2008 California Ménage `a Trois

BEST SYRAH
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Volante Vineyards
2005 Sonoma County Syrah View of the Bay

BEST TEMPRANILLO
GOLD 95
St. Amant Winery
2006 Amador County Tempranillo The Road Less Traveled

BEST VIOGNIER
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Bloomfield Vineyards
2008 Contra Costa County Viognier

BEST WHITE ZINFANDEL
DOUBLE GOLD 97
Carlo Rossi
NV California White Zinfandel Reserve

BEST ZINFANDEL
DOUBLE GOLD 98
Wildhurst Vineyards
2007 Lake County Zinfandel

The VIP awards ceremony honoring these wineries will take place at the Grape &
Gourmet at 3:30 p.m. In addition to the Best of Region and Best of California
awards, the State Fair will also honor three Lifetime Achievement recipients, a
Vineyard of the Year and a Golden State Winery of the Year.

The 2009 Wine Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Zelma Long, Peter
Mondavi, Sr. and Vince Petrucci. The award recognizes individuals who have
contributed extensively over a number of years to the promotion, advancement and
growth of the wine industry.

All award-winners and complete results of the 2009 California State Fair
commercial Wine Competition are available online at
www.thebestcaliforniawine.com. Results will also be available in the 2009
edition of California Wine, the State Fair`s annual wine publication. Copies of
the magazine will be available at the California State Fair Wine Garden, or can
be ordered from the State Fair`s Wine competition web site
www.thebestcaliforniawine.com.

The 2009 California State Fair will be held
from August 21 to September 7 at Cal Expo in Sacramento, CA.

California State Fair Media Center
Corey Egel, 916-416-0796
media@calexpo.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009