[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 125 (Friday, August 19, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1525]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       HONORING J VINEYARDS AND WINERY OF HEALDSBURG, CALIFORNIA

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MIKE THOMPSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, August 19, 2011

  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today, along with my 
colleague, Lynn Woolsey, to recognize and honor J Vineyards and Winery 
of Healdsburg, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.
  J was conceived and developed by Judy Jordan, an exuberant, fiercely 
independent 25-year-old who saw an opening in Sonoma County's wine 
landscape for a high quality, all-American sparkling wine brand. It was 
a lofty goal for a product that was first made in an old, ramshackle 
prune processing barn that routinely flooded when the nearby Russian 
River overflowed.
  From those humble beginnings, J sparkling wines have become some of 
the finest in the world. The winery's J Vintage Brut is a fixture on 
high profile wine lists and top hotels around the world. Queen 
Elizabeth sipped J at the White House. Mikhail Gorbachev spoke of world 
peace with a glass of J in his hand, and J sparkling wines were the 
official celebratory bubbles of the Academy Awards Governors Ball for 4 
consecutive years.
  To produce this remarkable wine, Ms. Jordan and her team rely on ten 
distinctive vineyard estate properties located throughout the Russian 
River Valley Appellation. These vineyards have at least 20 different 
soil profiles, with each vineyard displaying a different soil type and 
distinctive microclimate. This diversity allows J winemakers to coax 
the best flavor characteristics from each vineyard.
  Ms. Jordan also came to the realization that her vineyards would also 
be ideal for producing site-specific, cool-climate Russian River Valley 
varietal wines such as Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Gris in 
addition to her sparkling wines. These wines were added to the 
portfolio and have become immensely popular products.
  J's ten estate wines will be ``Certified Sustainable'' in 2012 by the 
California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance. After a number of energy 
savings initiatives were implemented throughout the winery, J was named 
a ``Green Winery'' in 2010.
  One of the first wineries to offer food and wine pairings to visitors 
in the ``Bubble Room,'' J was also named ``Best Winery Tasting Room'' 
by Sunset Magazine in 2009.
  Mr. Speaker, from its humble beginnings, J Vineyards and Winery has 
become an international success story and one of the linchpins of the 
Sonoma County wine industry. It is therefore appropriate that we honor 
them today on their Silver Anniversary.

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