Magnificent Natural Beauty of Yosemite Worth Celebrating

BostonHerald.com:

“The sun was up, but the ghost of a moon clung stubbornly to the flawless blue sky.

     Out of the stillness of the valley floor suddenly rose a chorus of coyotes’ cries. The sounds echoed off the canyon walls of Yosemite National Park, rising and falling in complex layers.

     Downstairs in the Great Lounge of the elegant Ahwahnee hotel, master winemaker Randy Ullom of Kendall-Jackson Estates was explaining the virtues of cool climate merlots, three of which sat in long-stemmed glasses before each of the 200 or so wine enthusiasts gathered for the hotel’s celebrated Vintners’ Holidays held annually in November and December. “These wines won’t be introduced,” Ullom said, “until March of 2005.”

     With that, glasses were raised to the fuzzy winter light streaming through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows.

     The wine was twirled, sniffed, studied and finally sipped. Anyone who has seen the movie “Sideways” will appreciate the scene: murmured appreciations; quiet exclamations; notes taken and questions asked. ”