On September 24, in keeping with tradition, Father Nelson Van Gundy blessed this year's wine grapes with snow saved from last winter. This blessing marks the beginning of harvest when grapes arrive at the “Big Red Barn,” otherwise known as the Truckee River Winery.

The grapes were hauled over the Sierras from Lodi, Nevada County, and the Santa Lucia Highlands. They will be used to start the current production of merlot, zinfandel and award-winning pinot noir wines.

Russ Jones selects his pinot grapes from the coveted Garys' Vineyard in Santa Lucia. That vineyard is cultivated by Gary Pisoni and Gary Franscioni. It is celebrated as one of the top five American pinot noir vineyards according to The Wine Enthusiast. The Truckee River Winery’s '02 Pinot won a silver medal at the San Francisco Chronicle wine competition, and the '01 Pinot was awarded a Gold metal at the Grand Harvest Awards.

At the recent '03 bottling of Jones’ pinot, wine lover Jim Dill remarked, "Russ is very keen on detail; he gets good grapes and through a process of careful winemaking, he makes very good wine."

More information about the Truckee River Winery can be found at www.truckeeriverwinery.com. Russ's wines are also available for sale in Truckee at Earthly Delights, the Pour House, and Florians Fine Wines. In San Francisco they are available at the Napa Valley Winery Exchange. You can also find Truckee River Winery wines on the menu at Truckee's Dragonfly, Moody's Bistro, and Zanos Family Italian and Pizza.

Russ Jones and his wife, Joan, invite visitors to stop by and say, hello. But visitors should call first at 530-587-4626. The winery is located at 10061 South River Street.