Our friends at Cava Wine Bar in Capitola, California, recently conducted a blind tasting in which they pitted their own WinePod®-made Cabernet Sauvignon against several top-flight Cabs from their own inventory. And much to their surprise (and our delight), customers overwhelmingly preferred the WinePod® Cab!

If you’d like to hear more about this remarkable story, watch the NBC “In Wine Country” episode below.  The award-winning wine country series featured Cava owners Cliff Livingston and Zach Worthington and their WinePod® adventures.

Episode Segment: TAKE YOUR WINEMAKING SKILLS TO THE NEXT LEVEL

If you’d like to hear more about this remarkable story, be sure to watch NBC’s In Wine Country this weekend.  The award-winning wine country series will feature Cava owners Cliff Livingston and Zach Worthington in an entertaining segment about their WinePod® adventures.

Check your local NBC station for show times. The title of the episode is “Wine Country Gems,” and the WinePod segment is “Take Your Wine Making Skills to the Next Level.”

HERE’S THE LAST EPISODE OF IN WINE COUNTRY

Want to see a WinePod® under the Christmas tree this year? Now, you can purchase the WinePod® through the Wine Enthusiast catalog and make no payments until April 2009.

WineEnthusiast.com and the Wine Enthusiast catalog now offer the WinePod Classic® ($4,449) as well as the WinePod Complete Personal Winery System® ($6,349), which comes with everything you need to make up to four cases of premium wine, including accessories, grapes, consumables, bottles and oak barrel. Just select BillMeLater® and you can delay payments until April 2009, and even pay in installments if you choose. Click here to learn more.

For guaranteed Christmas delivery deadlines, click here.

Maybe you haven’t yet found a truly unique gift for the wine enthusiast in your life? (Click here for our last blog post on ‘three ways to give’).  We’ve got a great gift idea this week: How about giving them the chance to participate in a four-week winemaking course that teaches how to make your own hand-crafted wine with a professional winemaker? Way too expensive you say? Not really. Check out our WinePod Online School of Winemaking, a $99 interactive custom crush class that’s conducted online, so you can take it from anywhere in the world (as long as you have an internet connection).

The class will be hosted by award-winning author and sommelier Courtney Cochran and taught by WinePod’s professional winemakers who will take participants through the key steps of the winemaking process, using a batch of premium Napa Valley grapes.

The wine lover in your life can learn how the world’s top wines go from grape to glass and come away with a deeper appreciation and knowledge of winemaking—plus their own personal bottle of wine (where allowed by law).

If you’re interested in learning more or want to purchase the WinePod Online School of Winemaking, click here.

Bonus! The $99 cost includes a custom crush bottle of your favorite varietal, 24/7 access to the online collaboration dashboard and curriculum including an overview of the winemaking process and common terminology.

That’s it. If you’re truly looking for that unusual gift, then get ready to stomp on some grapes . . . virtually of course.

In Club Ferment, we bring together WinePod® winemakers on a monthly basis with our wine experts and the WinePod® team to take you through a synchronized, guided wine fermentation.  Club Ferment provides the platform for a stress free, enjoyable winemaking process. It’s perfect for all levels of experience!

This month we are introducing white wine in our popular WinePod® Club Ferment! Participants can make a wonderful California chardonnay from famed Sangiaomo Home Ranch Vineyards. This is a world class vineyard—try Rombauer, Macrostie, Acacia to sample this vineyard’s capabilities.

If you own a WinePod® or would like to purchase our grapes, sign up for our December Club Ferment. Space is limited, so reserve early. Email clubferment@winepod.net.

For more WinePod® Events, click here.

NBC’s award–winning In Wine Country, will be featuring a segment on the WinePod® to air the weekend of December 13th and 14th. Check your local NBC station for times. Or, go directly to the In Wine Country web site where you can view past episodes. Click here.

Cat Swartz, a.k.a the High Tech Mommy will feature the WinePod® on NBC’s The Today Show in a high tech holiday gift guide segment to air on December 23rd. Check your local listings for program times and channels or go directly to The Today Show web site.

Here are some other places where you may be reading or hearing about the WinePod®.

• En Route Magazine
• KCBS Radio
• Napa Valley Life
• Pittsburgh Post Gazette
• San Jose Magazine
• Wine Enthusiast

GIVE THE GIFT OF WINEMAKING FOR THE WINE ENTHUSIAST

The WinePod® School of Winemaking, $99. This is an unparalleled opportunity to learn about winemaking and collaborate with a world renowned wine expert. Hosted by master sommelier and author, Courtney Cochran, the online custom crush class creates an artisan wine and provides expertise from professional winemakers about the exact process of making your favorite varietal. The class includes one (1) bottle of your very own custom crush wine!  Choose from these outstanding varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Sangiovese, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon Blanc. This is the perfect gift for the wine enthusiast who wants to deepen their knowledge of wine.  For more details, click here.

GIVE THE GIFT OF PERSONALIZED WINE

Custom Crush Club, starting from $499 a case. Give the gift of a case (12 bottles) or up to 4 cases (48 bottles) of private label wine handcrafted in the WinePod®.

How the Crush Club works. All wines are crafted by hand in the Napa Valley in the WinePod®, a state-of-the-art winemaking system ideal for small-lot artisan winemaking. You’ll collaborate with our winemakers to create a Personalized Wine Plan that acts as a roadmap for the creation of your wine.

You’ll then follow your wine throughout the process—from crush through fermentation and barrel aging—via live chat and video updates from our winemakers in Napa. When the wine is near completion, you’ll work with our design team to create a custom label, which is applied to bottles of the finished wine and shipped right to your door. To learn more about our Custom Crush Club, click here.

The $1,872 package features four (4) cases of private label wine made in the WinePod®  in partnership with Gustavo Thrace Winery in Napa Valley.

GIVE THE GIFT OF PREMIUM WINEMAKING

Garagiste by WinePod®, $1,999. The Garagiste version of WinePod® is great for those who want the simplicity of natural winemaking and the convenience of modern equipment. For more information on this newly released winemaking system, click here.

The WinePod®, $4,499. The original, complete personal winemaking unit makes the perfect gift for those who are looking for a fully–loaded high–tech winemaking system. For more information, click here.

The WinePod® with (1) Lot of Premium Grapes, $6,349. Get the original WinePod® personal winemaking system with all accessories, including a French Oak barrel,  consumables, and premium grapes (your choice) for one fermentation. For more information, click here.

The WinePod®  Platinum with (3) Lots of Premium Grapes, $8,999. Get the original WinePod® personal winemaking system with all accessories, including three French Oak barrels, consumables and premium grapes (your choice) for three fermentations. For more information, click here.

The Garagiste version of WinePod® is great for those who want the simplicity of natural winemaking, but still want the convenience of modern equipment. With Garagiste®, budding winemakers can make the highest quality wines using natural fermentation temperatures while minimizing the hassles of traditional winemaking equipment.

Combined with our WineCoach™ software, our premium grapes and the  WinePod® networked community, the Garagiste (like our original model) empowers wine enthusiasts to become winemakers at home absolutely with no experience required.

Both the original WinePod® model and Garagiste by WinePod® make four cases of world-class wine per fermentation using premium grapes including cabernet sauvignon from Rancho Sarco and Napa River Ranch in Napa Valley, pinot noir and chardonnay from Sangiacomo Vineyard in Sonoma Valley, and syrah from Annadel Vineyard in Sonoma Valley.

And, both come with the WineCoach™ software and step-by-step instructions for winemaking, including advice from professional winemakers and online support from a worldwide social network of WinePod® winemakers. Garagiste by WinePod® sells for $1,999.  The WinePod sells for $4,499.

Where the models differ is in their level of automated controls and USB connectivity.