#PinotNoir Hashtag Decoder Ring free in Every Box!

Ah, it seemed so simple at first. Let's get everyone on Twitter and drink some Pinot Noir. Ed Thralls suggested California's Russian River Valley vs. Oregon's Willamette Valley...a nice little border war, if you will. Me, being one to overcomplicate things, said, "well, don't forget about Carneros. Their wines can be pretty solid. And I just got back from Santa Barbara. I wasn't pissed off with their efforts, either..."

Such is the pleasant madness that is having a conversation via Twitter. Not a moment after I whispered "Carneros" did Jenn of Thomson Vineyards come barreling into the discussion, primed for fisticuffs. The rest, as they say, is history (in fact, the origins of Thursday's event have become the stuff of legends, sort of like grandpa's fish story. The 8 oz. bass has become a 1200 lb. marlin). So, with Ed (our Doug Flutie) at the helm, we created the #PinotNoir Twitter Tasting Smackdown.

Ed and I (along with the help of West Coast organizer Tamara of Sip With Me!), settled on eight, relatively general Pinot-producing regions of some notoriety: Willamette Valley, Russian River Valley, Sonoma Coast, Mendocino County, Los Carneros, Santa Barbara County, Burgundy, and New Zealand. As the word spread, I was bowled over by the response and the passion for everyone's favorite growing areas. Or, more accurately, the fierce defense of terroir, of which Pinot is particularly adept at expressing in the final wine.

So, as folks (with good reason) insisted that their regions be included in the vote, the list of potential hashtags grew (for a crash course in how to vote during this tasting, see Ed's blog, Wine Tonite!). In an effort to maintain consistency during the 2-hour voting period, I've compiled a list of all the regions I can muster. This should be pretty comprehensive, and any of these hashtags will count.

While the list may appear daunting, please remember that this is all for fun, and if the process seems complicated, there is- at the end of the night- still delicous wine in your glass.

Now where's that Michael Buffer character? I need a "let's get ready to rumble", stat!

All eligible tweets for the voting should include the #PinotNoir hashtag, plus one of the following. The list is indented if the region is within a larger region. I've also included some countries and states that make #PinotNoir, but are lesser known by most folks. They are more general, but at least they've been recognized. Please don't hesitate to comment if I've made any glaring mistakes:

#CA (California)
>#NC (North Coast)
>>#MN (Mendocino County)
>>>#AV (Anderson Valley)
>>#SO (Sonoma County)
>>>#RR (Russian River Valley)
>>>>#GV (Green Valley of Russian River)
>>>#SN (Sonoma Coast)
>>#NV (Napa Valley)
>>>#CN (Los Carneros...yes, I know it's Sonoma AND Napa. Work with me here!)
>#CC (Central Coast)
>>#SC (Santa Cruz Mountains)
>>#MO (Monterey)
>>>#SLH (Santa Lucia Highlands)
>>#SLO (San Luis Obispo County)
>>#SB (Santa Barbara County)
>>>#SM (Santa Maria Valley)
>>>#SY (Santa Ynez Valley)
>>>>#SRH (Sta. Rita Hills)
#OR (Oregon)
>#RV (Rogue Valley)
>#UV (Umpqua Valley)
>#WV (Willamette- rhymes with "dammit"- Valley)
>>#CM (Chehelam Mountains)
>>#DH (Dundee Hills)
>>#EA (Eola-Amity Hills)
>>#MC (McMinnville)
>>#RB (Ribbon Ridge)
>>#YC (Yamhill-Carlton)
#WA (Washington State)
#NY (New York)
>#FLX (Finger Lakes)
#VA (Virginia)
#FR (France)
>#BU (Burgundy)
>>#CDN (Côtes de Nuits)
>>#CDB (Côtes de Beaune...not to be confused with the "Charlie Daniels Band")
>>#CCH (Côtes Chalonnaise)
#NZ (New Zealand)
>#CO (Central Otago)
>#MT (Martinborough)
>#ML (Marlborough)
>#NL (Nelson)
>#WP (Waipara/Canterbury)
#BC (British Columbia)
#ARG (Argentina)
#CL (Chile)
#SA (South Africa)
#GM (Germany)
#IT (Italy)

Got it! Good. If not, just have fun and don't worry about it. Enjoying wine should never be work!