It was electric at the winery on Wednesday night – literally – with the Northern California Power Agency (NCPA) hosting their annual dinner at the winery.

In my ‘other life’ as a director for the City of Lodi, my wingman at department head meetings was Police Chief Larry Hansen.  He retired/I retired and then Larry was elected to the Lodi City Council and found himself as the chairman of NCPA.

Larry called for the dinner and tour – and how could I refuse?  It was a golden opportunity to brag about our sustainable efforts.  The NCPA members and their spouses were good sports to climb through the winery – Phil Pennino, a former City of Lodi Mayor and long time PG&E employee joined Randy as a narrator for the tour.

Phil has been the point person for his company’s “Saving by Design” program that has gleaned over $900,000 in energy rebates for the winery.

Also a Lodi native son is NCPA General Manager James Pope, who graduated from Lodi High School just a few years before the Twins.

It was a great reunion – good opportunity to share our story as well as to glean some tips from the out of area NCPA members.  And the wines?  Well, let’s just say that dinner was spectacular, but perhaps it was the 2007 Generations Petit-Petite served with s’mores under a warm summer sky that made the night perfect.