tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46724535971954503482024-03-27T12:24:34.930-06:00Culinary Wine & Food AdventuresThis is the (occasional) blog of a career restaurant wine professional who used to write newspaper wine columns on the side for fun, but who is now a full-time wine journalist doing restaurant consulting for fun. "Culinary wine," to me, means I believe in the quaint old notion that wine is actually a food, and that it should be balanced like ingredients in a well made dish. If you like the idea, you might find some delicious new insights into wine in this blog. - Randy CaparosoRandy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-65411432990846193112024-03-26T13:44:00.024-06:002024-03-27T12:24:01.120-06:00The "Golden Rule" for communicating Old Vine benefits during the Old Vine Hero Awards presentation<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ6ohyphenhyphengTo617KQ-L1fzUXqNIMstOfUKbovc8jE8ZotDKsHvhct9AFc799FpiSewOLyiVbc_0oNWAB4dj_EBjWIdzFYdI4jlW5SIYdym5aMESCkstcB2Z4zHmqt7RcCi2F2gzont6_SJ28LPKpm1XSjAnnBCxjjPNUI__JxCA2od7-KLh9DZTu7TYvkMa4/s1080/Old%20Vine%20Hero%20-%202024%20Winners.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ6ohyphenhyphengTo617KQ-L1fzUXqNIMstOfUKbovc8jE8ZotDKsHvhct9AFc799FpiSewOLyiVbc_0oNWAB4dj_EBjWIdzFYdI4jlW5SIYdym5aMESCkstcB2Z4zHmqt7RcCi2F2gzont6_SJ28LPKpm1XSjAnnBCxjjPNUI__JxCA2od7-KLh9DZTu7TYvkMa4/w640-h640/Old%20Vine%20Hero%20-%202024%20Winners.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Old Vine Conference's 2024 Old Vine Hero recipients.</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Just minutes before the virtual awards webinar showcasing the <a href="https://www.oldvines.org/2024-campaign">2024 Old Vine Hero Awards</a> presented by the London-based <a href="https://www.oldvines.org">The Old Vine Conference</a> on March 25, 2024, distinguished journalist and <a href="http://JancisRobinson.com">JancisRobinson.com</a>'s Sustainability and Senior Editor <b><a href="https://www.jancisrobinson.com/author/tamlyn-currin">Tamlyn Currin</a></b> conducted a speedy email "interview" with me. <div><br /></div><div>Currin peppered me with questions in preparation for her on-air introduction. I was presented to the international online audience by Currin as the winner of the Old Vine Hero Award for Communication, alongside five other recipients recognized for their old vine research, viticulture, winemaking, overall impact and commercial impact. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpBWvHfg8PaPDX8kk0chl8D0SgPxNbQo1rLWY5Lo08OMaZNi457wjUapux5LruLvpyELf3f9QOFToWBCXKrc997KRCQDzCLzyUXjxb_MT1dtLAcETAN7sEHclXcfC9JtymeND4jyw7AtRXv83Wia8g_2Q-0-m4yudVHTiIqxGN3ikf2eB4lcAQVT5qzvY/s591/Old%20Vine%20Hero%20-%202024%20Communication%20logo.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="588" data-original-width="591" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpBWvHfg8PaPDX8kk0chl8D0SgPxNbQo1rLWY5Lo08OMaZNi457wjUapux5LruLvpyELf3f9QOFToWBCXKrc997KRCQDzCLzyUXjxb_MT1dtLAcETAN7sEHclXcfC9JtymeND4jyw7AtRXv83Wia8g_2Q-0-m4yudVHTiIqxGN3ikf2eB4lcAQVT5qzvY/w320-h318/Old%20Vine%20Hero%20-%202024%20Communication%20logo.png" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>During the webinar itself, of course, there was no time to cover all the material previously discussed with Currin. But I think it is worthwhile going over them, as they address the challenge of communicating the importance and benefits of old vines around the world—a phenomenon that is steadily shrinking (as opposed to growing, as we'd like it to be) as we speak. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><div><br /></div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6vfQLI5VQUga4_gmQjhdW4Oiq9tG5eQl-D4fBAkLqDHWbg9rq63v3lA_ekt0GzRliMpl1PWhPN0EgPE_l_rmfyZvVHVYwCfoyCkw-uWEOSFfa6Ri_mb5Ly1sAEJWOw07OqDfQAvxwVPX32kDAuNPf07jwlIIW6D7gAdUGSGR5ZxX2SNB3cyG_OFnGazo/s1089/OVH%20video.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="https://youtu.be/Xc1xM7_OAlU" border="0" data-original-height="627" data-original-width="1089" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6vfQLI5VQUga4_gmQjhdW4Oiq9tG5eQl-D4fBAkLqDHWbg9rq63v3lA_ekt0GzRliMpl1PWhPN0EgPE_l_rmfyZvVHVYwCfoyCkw-uWEOSFfa6Ri_mb5Ly1sAEJWOw07OqDfQAvxwVPX32kDAuNPf07jwlIIW6D7gAdUGSGR5ZxX2SNB3cyG_OFnGazo/w640-h368/OVH%20video.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View the entire <a href="https://youtu.be/Xc1xM7_OAlU">2024 Old Vine Hero awards webinar here.</a></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>Our exchange:</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Currin:</b> Randy, can you tell us how you became obsessed with old vines, and then, in particular, the old vines of Lodi? </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Caparoso:</b> When I first visited Lodi 22 years ago [in 2002] I was struck by its <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean_climate">Mediterranean climate</a> and deep sandy soils, which reminded me of vineyards I'd seen in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_West_France_(wine_region)">South-West France</a>, a perfect environment for long-lived, healthy grapevines, especially Mediterranean varieties. I was not surprised to immediately learn that there are far more acres of old vines (in California, defined as vineyards planted between the 1800s and 1960s) in Lodi than anywhere else in the country. In 2010, I moved into a cottage in the middle of a 60-year-old vineyard of Zinfandel, growing on its own roots, and have been "stuck in Lodi" ever since.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfvHB3NbZQUdeZWbDAfWUem7nQ_FyE7SBEcXkrYiQuGrO9LEGS7Poy2RkpP2WXpQg-Yr9pL_mdrI_tL6Cab6xwHRM-rtRflLq3YIc_Q_ex35c4brx8RxM0wXTZn0DRzW5fNcOfKVbKTeWFqBV7N2weEmnYlsaPv4gNyiTCs5xQYjdsBcL6JbvaBksf84M/s1480/RC%20-%20Old%20Vine%20Hero%20Communication%20logo.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1184" data-original-width="1480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfvHB3NbZQUdeZWbDAfWUem7nQ_FyE7SBEcXkrYiQuGrO9LEGS7Poy2RkpP2WXpQg-Yr9pL_mdrI_tL6Cab6xwHRM-rtRflLq3YIc_Q_ex35c4brx8RxM0wXTZn0DRzW5fNcOfKVbKTeWFqBV7N2weEmnYlsaPv4gNyiTCs5xQYjdsBcL6JbvaBksf84M/w400-h320/RC%20-%20Old%20Vine%20Hero%20Communication%20logo.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><b>Currin:</b> What are the different powers and impacts of the many different media you use: paper (books, magazine), digital writing (blogs, online columns), audio (face-to-face speaking, podcasts) and visual (photography)? </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Caparoso:</b> It is necessary to keep speaking about old vine viticulture in public forums precisely because old vine wines still have a minority appeal among consumers; although slowly but surely, interest in the topic of "old vines" has been growing. Photography, in fact, is another key to journalism focused on old vines, which is mostly digital these days, although I have published a successful book [re <i><a href="https://kitchencincopress.com/?v=7516fd43adaa">Lodi!</a></i>] touching on the subject. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPjRRQVEfbR78q__CXbBkgsy7RmHBRsYOi25QT1D_jmJSfx0JetWrzlqNdV5Z3IckPVtJZijGf6Qrb0gF-mjD2hHRVjzfWEuVflSgmJaDTMFwqemCjseliSU-paPS7OTc6w87PFwh3B29pAI9ggzP_Nmt0YtKEgfCY01M7H_v1P1af780_-OySdhFioqs/s800/Currin%20(1).jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="691" data-original-width="800" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPjRRQVEfbR78q__CXbBkgsy7RmHBRsYOi25QT1D_jmJSfx0JetWrzlqNdV5Z3IckPVtJZijGf6Qrb0gF-mjD2hHRVjzfWEuVflSgmJaDTMFwqemCjseliSU-paPS7OTc6w87PFwh3B29pAI9ggzP_Nmt0YtKEgfCY01M7H_v1P1af780_-OySdhFioqs/w320-h276/Currin%20(1).jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tamlyn Currin of JancisRobinson.com.</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>The crux of old vine plantings is that they have history. Wine lovers are naturally captivated by their stories as well as endless images of old vines, which seem to have the wisdom of age etched into their large, twisting trunks and spurs. It is the very robust physiology of old vines, which has a strong visual appeal, that gives them advantage in terms of long term grapevine health and enhanced ability to produce wines with stronger than average <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroir</a> </i>expression. Generally speaking, the older the vine, the stronger their "sense of place" on a sensory level, which turns on wine lovers.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2zvykrhuFT5WcgzZabFTmA28Bdp_r8HcG8QdN7wusD-ubTF6j8Y8lph7tKCmcfH1hIxFAl81aT9vpZt7vXzz-IRJd8ED6wsEm0vNHmr6Rv9DTiz4DZtSMJp-GVryBOsT5jQl_fZIxiPBCRh-oipXFDEEny4RPeF30T0og_9upVbI6pdomnauDs_6FVqc/s1882/Kirschenmann%20-%20inside-cover.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1505" data-original-width="1882" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2zvykrhuFT5WcgzZabFTmA28Bdp_r8HcG8QdN7wusD-ubTF6j8Y8lph7tKCmcfH1hIxFAl81aT9vpZt7vXzz-IRJd8ED6wsEm0vNHmr6Rv9DTiz4DZtSMJp-GVryBOsT5jQl_fZIxiPBCRh-oipXFDEEny4RPeF30T0og_9upVbI6pdomnauDs_6FVqc/w640-h512/Kirschenmann%20-%20inside-cover.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Classic ancient vine Mokelumne River-Lodi Zinfandel, planted on its own roots in 1915.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><b>Currin:</b> Do you have a favourite medium? Is one easier to use than another? Is one more rewarding than another? </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Caparoso:</b> Books and print magazines are still important, but no question we are more easily able to reach more consumers, as well as more trade and media, through online articles, relayed through social media. Make no mistake, we are in a losing battle right now insofar as communicating the reasons why old vine wines should be appreciated, and old vine plantings better appreciated. We are losing thousands of acres as we speak. Therefore, any kind of medium that reaches wine lovers and the rest of the wine industry is a "best way" to celebrate old vines.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi2c2OS8RWDCwvHQvG5SNcECGTtLwQ6Kri516mT0IZozOXxs8nFqF_k-hF7iMfkNX-qyypln2qUoowVfZT-K2o1GoWSMnrFzg7EjxuT6qstNH20EMRdISdoiAwwk-zTDgUTykSB7o5vbtNyWnHJmftxx30kTd51EFa9DoDEqSjFo3m7_9yBEMrYUKQ1jc/s1200/Lodi!%20-%20cover%20(7).jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="984" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi2c2OS8RWDCwvHQvG5SNcECGTtLwQ6Kri516mT0IZozOXxs8nFqF_k-hF7iMfkNX-qyypln2qUoowVfZT-K2o1GoWSMnrFzg7EjxuT6qstNH20EMRdISdoiAwwk-zTDgUTykSB7o5vbtNyWnHJmftxx30kTd51EFa9DoDEqSjFo3m7_9yBEMrYUKQ1jc/w328-h400/Lodi!%20-%20cover%20(7).jpeg" width="328" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cover of <i>Lodi!</i>, depicting a downright ancient grapevine planted in 1889.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><b>Currin:</b> Should we be weaving these platforms into each other? </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Caparoso:</b> Absolutely! I do traditional journalism and photography distributed primarily through online sites and blogs, but videos are another key to getting out the message. The people I work for, the grape growers belonging to the <a href="https://www.lodiwine.com/Lodi-Winegrape-Commission">Lodi Winegrape Commission</a>, have also been creating high production value videos telling the stories of old vineyards and the families who have been caring for them. In Lodi, families who have been doing this, for the most part, over 100 years. We are still losing more and more old vine blocks as we speak, but the more we can increase appreciation of them, the better. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Currin:</b> What, for you, is the "golden rule" or "‘basic tenet" of communication–or rather, communication that drives change? </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Caparoso:</b> The "rule," if anything, is "tell the truth." Old vineyards and old vine wines speak for themselves. They do not need hype and should not require "high scores" to appeal to the consumers and industry. They go against the grain of how the wine industry largely operates today because they are real, they have historical significance, and represent the authenticity of <i>terroir</i> and appellations, which are still the base values of all the finest wines of the world. Old vines are an essence of why great wines have always had an enduring appeal. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLkyhl5aFcmQ5NsVkRYBJs2aTIE_JqEvCSMBre7GKY2wskFAuf62EE8PPZIBhum2xI-Nol3eN2zTGO5G9x3MFAuPcLo58hsiLj5ZJjGVlJRmMwgEddMDcP_ENlWG7l3lA1hsT0PGKoTNQa5CN9qbL2eRR48AjRRJPD_norEDa4Aygx8E_l0wbMPrL1CQ/s2108/Steacy%20Ranch%20-%20Zinfandel%20picker.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1687" data-original-width="2108" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLkyhl5aFcmQ5NsVkRYBJs2aTIE_JqEvCSMBre7GKY2wskFAuf62EE8PPZIBhum2xI-Nol3eN2zTGO5G9x3MFAuPcLo58hsiLj5ZJjGVlJRmMwgEddMDcP_ENlWG7l3lA1hsT0PGKoTNQa5CN9qbL2eRR48AjRRJPD_norEDa4Aygx8E_l0wbMPrL1CQ/w640-h512/Steacy%20Ranch%20-%20Zinfandel%20picker.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The arduous task of picking old vine Lodi Zinfandel well over 100 years old.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><b>Currin:</b> What will it take, do you think, to set unstoppable change in motion? </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Caparoso:</b> Keep fighting, organize locally, organize nationally, and organize internationally. It's really hard for small regional groups to even get started on this because it takes the energy, time and dedication of a few inspired individuals and, in most cases, a big budget. You're also fighting against convention because most wines sold today follow commercial constructs and marketing plans which don't require placing value on older vineyards. </div><div><br /></div><div>Not to be critical, but the media, while captivated by old vines, is also not as cooperative as they could be. They'd rather publicize top brands, high scoring wines, and glamorize vintners and lifestyles, not so much creaky old vineyards. As my old friend <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kermit_Lynch">Kermit Lynch</a> once put it, it's all about "pop"—popular styles, popular tastes, wines that go "pop" or "bang-bang" in the mouth. Wines expressing old vine <i>terroir</i> end up being way down on the priority list of most media outlets. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCVCA2tvf7f3oBw4sAOh2-2hn_BRXiGRf63HapH1afS0d09uetAn5P_rvYFabUUbBwSr5uLyaBmQZEpT_f_RgzEgg1atu3IZ8pttUm58zPUqR3QkdPT4Wmogg8OsQ0XHiUIab6olvRcqeDyEKyGvkGTAVBH35nO3K6IwXPDs6A5hBdSNUWNg3bIehgpPc/s3033/Stampede%20Zinfandel%20cluster%20.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3033" data-original-width="3033" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCVCA2tvf7f3oBw4sAOh2-2hn_BRXiGRf63HapH1afS0d09uetAn5P_rvYFabUUbBwSr5uLyaBmQZEpT_f_RgzEgg1atu3IZ8pttUm58zPUqR3QkdPT4Wmogg8OsQ0XHiUIab6olvRcqeDyEKyGvkGTAVBH35nO3K6IwXPDs6A5hBdSNUWNg3bIehgpPc/w400-h400/Stampede%20Zinfandel%20cluster%20.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hand farmed and picked old vine Lodi Zinfandel, which needs to be appreciated for a specialness of each site in order to survive current market trends and rising costs of farming.</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">In Lodi, we are continuously losing old vine plantings because of the steady drop in demand for those grapes for value priced wines such as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Zinfandel">White Zinfandel</a> or $8 to $10 <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varietal">varietal</a> reds and red wine blends. The older vineyards are just as susceptible to market trends as any other. The key to reversing that is to promote old vineyards as sources of premium priced wines, made by more handcraft vintners and appreciated for their sense of place—the specialness of each individual site. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">But that doesn't happen overnight, although it can happen because most old vine plantings are quite capable of producing distinctive wines. Meanwhile, the cost of farming old vines, which has to be done by hand, is steadily rising; something very much part of the current crisis.</div><p style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJFTk1kKqCDi0ZC19KbTUW8hJkDrFCyRyBTHgkl_U-44xL4pXWkv69uQ1RD2jNkA-wmnR7PqAYFAHHyz7YwIlvNJP9h_3qzED-W5zomuYYueGDYi74JJeJwyyhjOLs7H3XczDTK4yHVBnF4Ve9EsU9EgNlwWWuMMf9kS1iEmr4Eo56TbsENl5LPTxsRcQ/s1576/RC,%20Kermit%20-%20pale.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1575" data-original-width="1576" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJFTk1kKqCDi0ZC19KbTUW8hJkDrFCyRyBTHgkl_U-44xL4pXWkv69uQ1RD2jNkA-wmnR7PqAYFAHHyz7YwIlvNJP9h_3qzED-W5zomuYYueGDYi74JJeJwyyhjOLs7H3XczDTK4yHVBnF4Ve9EsU9EgNlwWWuMMf9kS1iEmr4Eo56TbsENl5LPTxsRcQ/w400-h400/RC,%20Kermit%20-%20pale.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The author with Kermit Lynch, once upon a time in Ber-serkley,</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>In any case, the world owes resounding gratitude to The Old Vine Conference for taking the initiative of tackling the issue of vanishing old vine viticulture on an international scale. But it will also take every country, every region, maybe every sub-region or community to make a concerted effort to bring attention to their own treasure trove of old vine plantings. </div><div><br /></div><div>Old vines are disappearing because, simply, they are not appreciated enough. Communication will be a key to breaking this pattern!</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBwjO6uyrt-_EgoAUAxqyvOFz19-HD47QrfeH7YZUmqMaWyImjn4Xk4tQPKANFC3kxeVmmYHkbu7R8UF_vaM-Bi93WA5drXrKu3tbYUcgGOl1qTjb2GGT9PbE_FLKSYFIMOc89rCnRWZ12KCsIOsxVcNynjzwmbXbciuM83yVY94fJQTZPF3X6vi2Wb30/s927/Old%20Vine%20Hero%20blurb.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="278" data-original-width="927" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBwjO6uyrt-_EgoAUAxqyvOFz19-HD47QrfeH7YZUmqMaWyImjn4Xk4tQPKANFC3kxeVmmYHkbu7R8UF_vaM-Bi93WA5drXrKu3tbYUcgGOl1qTjb2GGT9PbE_FLKSYFIMOc89rCnRWZ12KCsIOsxVcNynjzwmbXbciuM83yVY94fJQTZPF3X6vi2Wb30/w640-h192/Old%20Vine%20Hero%20blurb.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-53178833455871308942024-01-26T11:00:00.001-07:002024-01-26T11:03:25.894-07:00Dear sommeliers: It's now okay to like Zinfandel<p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmCsZWW3PF-7FhNkcJ3NiUeSvVTjgQ-f_GLLlfS38VXraz13iy_8mqLOSWSJY2tZzcIdHUjICSAOm1JfBv5GEWJD2ArHzVUsraKY6088kiFLHyYjuJESHkMKH2Lc5ibuo5l6RXQgbhQWY0zlb0ZoPsEa_Lz8Ter8O-JGCgJHt59Xla9mFr1NRjuKyL7qs/s3641/TruLux%20Zinfandel%20-%20cluster.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2912" data-original-width="3641" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmCsZWW3PF-7FhNkcJ3NiUeSvVTjgQ-f_GLLlfS38VXraz13iy_8mqLOSWSJY2tZzcIdHUjICSAOm1JfBv5GEWJD2ArHzVUsraKY6088kiFLHyYjuJESHkMKH2Lc5ibuo5l6RXQgbhQWY0zlb0ZoPsEa_Lz8Ter8O-JGCgJHt59Xla9mFr1NRjuKyL7qs/w640-h512/TruLux%20Zinfandel%20-%20cluster.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Typically small cluster of Zinfandel grown in old vine growths (in the Lodi appellation, vineyards planted between the 1880s and 1960s).</i></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 11px;">This op is written from a sommelier's pespective. I know a lot of them because I was a sommelier, working in restaurants for over 28 years, and through one of my current affiliations (particularly </span><i style="font-size: 11px;">The SOMM Journal</i><span style="font-size: 11px;">).</span></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And this I can say about sommeliers: Most of them <i>hate</i> Zinfandel.</p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Or putting it more gently: Of all the popular varietal categories, Zinfandel is the one for which sommeliers have the hardest time drumming up enthusiasm. Sure, the cultivar has historic connotations as "America's" grape, even though we now know it originated in Croatia. It's historical because, in the 1800s, Californians found that it was the easiest of all grapes to grow in the state's Mediterranean climate, and produced the most consistently good wine. That's a <i>terroir</i>-based relationship, isn't it? Aren't sommeliers into<i> terroir</i>?</p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Somewhere between the 1970s and 1980s, however, the varietal became a caricature of itself. "Big" styles, made from ultra-ripe grapes, became the most popular. "No wimpy wine" became a mantra, and varietal character was identified as "jammy." If grape sugars were too high to get wines lower than 17% ABV, no problem. Winemakers simply added water, adjusted acidity, and tacked on a ton of oak flavor—preferably American oak, adding sweetly vanillin, charred, dill-like, and often furniture polish-like qualities—and that was the formula for "America's wine."</p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF5VNPq1fEPga_cMipels15Ma2wp9kVgAmcLK5MNsV5tXgxNqrmLZgipm0gjvy0aGDpez-96Z89q1OyttT_kJmEE_unlIKCjb0ua7rtvvDYOOfT8owSj0EBoANI_RUu71kA9OcFwV7PliqsI7i5mnWXyvng2oxywc95x7x_TCHHXFKCkBWf0lZzD9SMsw/s5331/Tegan%20Passaclacqua%20-%20Turley's%20Steacy%20Ranch%20Zinfandel%20(planted%201907,%20Lodi)%20harvest%20-%20winemaker%20Tegan%20Passalacqua%20(right)%20(1).jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3554" data-original-width="5331" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF5VNPq1fEPga_cMipels15Ma2wp9kVgAmcLK5MNsV5tXgxNqrmLZgipm0gjvy0aGDpez-96Z89q1OyttT_kJmEE_unlIKCjb0ua7rtvvDYOOfT8owSj0EBoANI_RUu71kA9OcFwV7PliqsI7i5mnWXyvng2oxywc95x7x_TCHHXFKCkBWf0lZzD9SMsw/w640-h426/Tegan%20Passaclacqua%20-%20Turley's%20Steacy%20Ranch%20Zinfandel%20(planted%201907,%20Lodi)%20harvest%20-%20winemaker%20Tegan%20Passalacqua%20(right)%20(1).jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Turley/Sandlands winemaker Tegan Passalacqua (right) harvesting Zinfandel in Steacy Vineyard (Mokelumne River-Lodi block first planted in 1907).</i></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Then there's the common practice of blending Petite Sirah, anywhere from 10% to over 20% for most commercial Zinfandels, which adds color, tannin, blacker fruit and spice qualities, but has as little to do with the pure taste of Zinfandel as oak barrels. Petite Sirah is an embellishment, nothing more, but somewhere along the line it became the expected thing, along with jammy fruit and chunky wood.</p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Most Zinfandel is still made this way. The good news is that more and more of them aren't. Just over ten years ago, for instance, Turley Wine Cellars—once the poster child for huge, jammy Zinfandels—began taking control of their own vineyard sources. Once they were able to grow grapes with more ideal sugar/acid levels, their vineyard-designate wines became fresher, more floral—pure Zinfandel is more flowery than jammy—and delineated in terms of vineyard-related qualities. As <i>terroir</i>-distinctive, in fact, as any American Pinot noir, and more so than most Cabernet Sauvignons.</p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Turley, like Ridge Vineyards, still employs a little new oak (20-25%) in its cooperage program, but at least their Zinfandels now taste like, well, "Zinfandel," and not something pumped up by vinous equivalents to steroids. There are now numerous other handcraft brands that age strictly in neutral wood, and pick grapes earlier in order to stick to native yeast fermentation (as Turley and Ridge have always done) and to retain a more natural acid-driven edginess. Progress.</p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWfmQPXwTaOYlKaY7K6M1ozLlyeArovJVxkJ13LeSBON1TXGLDgFZaZEBdK1yE4o-mJ5E1IkQiSrWNP2SKuhuOH3vqH8OD7v5jnpR6k386VjPouJDdujM4bqe5YczWXwZYyXdPT-lGFreTnLPtV2Q52CY2wQ45wXMZcN9dfHaI-VbAwayqIhvDf6FRoow/s4453/66%20-%20Sommelier%20tasting%20wine%20in%20vineyard%20-%20Marian's%20Vineyard.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3562" data-original-width="4453" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWfmQPXwTaOYlKaY7K6M1ozLlyeArovJVxkJ13LeSBON1TXGLDgFZaZEBdK1yE4o-mJ5E1IkQiSrWNP2SKuhuOH3vqH8OD7v5jnpR6k386VjPouJDdujM4bqe5YczWXwZYyXdPT-lGFreTnLPtV2Q52CY2wQ45wXMZcN9dfHaI-VbAwayqIhvDf6FRoow/w640-h512/66%20-%20Sommelier%20tasting%20wine%20in%20vineyard%20-%20Marian's%20Vineyard.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Visiting Texas sommelier experiencing naturally fermented, neutral French oak aged Zinfandel in the place of its origin, Marian's Vineyard (own-rooted Mokelumne River-Lodi growth planted in 1901).</i></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Zinfandels need no longer be fat, sweetly fruited and oaky—the things sommeliers hate most. While many of the popular brands are still made that way, there are now lots of choices that are the opposite: Zinfandels as zesty, balanced and food-versatile as any Pinot noir. In fact, in my experience as a restaurateur, <i>more</i> food-versatile than most Pinot noirs.</p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Napa and Sonoma-grown Zinfandels are still the sturdiest in tannin, and can be quite big and ripe; but these qualities are dictated by their hillside or clay soil origins, not winemaker decisions or brand styles. You can now buy single-vineyard bottlings grown in Lodi or Contra Costa County that are soft yet zesty, red fruited and earthy—qualities that are byproducts of sandy soils. Paso Robles Zinfandels tend to be very ripe but minerally, with surprising acidity—reflections of their own unique <i>terroir</i>, often couched on high-pH, calcareous slopes. </p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Point being, many of the contemporary style Zinfandels crafted in serious styles—meant to express a place or artistry, not a stock image of what constitutes "Zinfandel"—are more than worthy of the attention of the most persnickety sommeliers. The big challenge now, of course, is to finally convince them.</p><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGsDVtqLOCkkIfiIz0qXNKS15U4nJOweES7eRcWZFiCh5xGgnZ4hSTk3QkZkztlA5jM5SH2JwOp4dl4kRdjVheXO4a8zFiwmoTUDNV4UjWMv0P1O0_1tKmNcICb37P-jF2H87p7qPWMuBPuOo0BAdQpFhS8oU4RkgCbQgT7s7YrphG_r2JMFVLbdOSUiE/s2400/Zin%20Alley%20-%20Willow%20Creek%20District,%20March%202020.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="2400" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGsDVtqLOCkkIfiIz0qXNKS15U4nJOweES7eRcWZFiCh5xGgnZ4hSTk3QkZkztlA5jM5SH2JwOp4dl4kRdjVheXO4a8zFiwmoTUDNV4UjWMv0P1O0_1tKmNcICb37P-jF2H87p7qPWMuBPuOo0BAdQpFhS8oU4RkgCbQgT7s7YrphG_r2JMFVLbdOSUiE/w640-h426/Zin%20Alley%20-%20Willow%20Creek%20District,%20March%202020.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Zin Alley in Paso Robles, old vine Zinfandel growing in high pH calcareous slopes predisposed to elevated acidity despite the region's warm Mediterranean climate and extreme diurnal temperature swings.</span></i></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-emoji: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><br /></p>Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-91053467337592165602019-03-17T20:49:00.001-06:002019-03-20T22:22:07.839-06:00High on acid and real sense of purpose at 2019 World of Pinot Noir<div style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-element: para-border-div; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwKdymQnVujRA3afXKmF-WEgZ8oTzA9xNcW7-wG7xeFPT8hM8Ww5Tyw-CqyX6IBW7dECfxQujqi5kr0A7mNSViY3PNbi0qUByxGW-REmBadrlTo_HzdITZeFfyNF5kPCmq6TiU4jICzJw/s1600/Westside+Rd.+barn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwKdymQnVujRA3afXKmF-WEgZ8oTzA9xNcW7-wG7xeFPT8hM8Ww5Tyw-CqyX6IBW7dECfxQujqi5kr0A7mNSViY3PNbi0qUByxGW-REmBadrlTo_HzdITZeFfyNF5kPCmq6TiU4jICzJw/s640/Westside+Rd.+barn.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Landmark Westside Rd. barn passed by many a visitor to Russian River Valley's Middle Reach neighborhood</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">My
general impression of the 120 or so <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinot_noir">Pinot noirs</a> that I managed to taste at the
<b><a href="https://www.worldofpinotnoir.com/">2019 World of Pinot Noir</a></b> – taking place at Santa Barbara’s <a href="http://www.ritzcarlton.com/en/hotels/california/santa-barbara">The Ritz-Carlton Bacara</a> this past March 1-2, 2019 – was: Still lots of full bodied wines, with
alcohol levels typically in the 14.0%-14.5% range (with “outliers” at
13.0%-13.5%), despite the predominance of 2016s, a vintage that saw a return to
more or less “normal” (whatever that is) conditions, after four consecutive years
of drought.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When
elevated alcohol is a negative, of course, wines came across as harsh or hot,
often with sweet, ripe cola-like or raisiny aromas, with little or no
delineation or sense of delicacy one would hope to find in the varietal – and I
tasted more than of few of them over the weekend. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But
at their finest, many of the fuller scaled Pinot noirs came across as plush and
impeccably balanced, lively with acidity, and pungent with as much varietal
perfume as non-fruit (i.e. earth related) nuances. The best of them took me
back to the vineyards themselves, almost as if I were standing in among the
rows and surrounding terrain, rather than in a room with a glass, rubbing
elbows with the usual WOPN <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">haut monde</i>.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Now
that’s what I call <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pinot noir</i>, or at least <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">American</i> style Pinot noir, combining
body and intensity with some tangible semblance of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroir</a></i>
related identity, and showing a maturation of viticulture and winemaking mastery
that, just 30 or 40 years ago, even the most positive thinkers thought the
industry would take another hundred years to achieve (I remember because I was there).<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkER1iTsWaWC_2p09VWpkwByrh2zk9crdlH6wEFMvpFIVFl5QuKM09gR5UCshkYg89XBsh8G9C4L5FeTOaRwNyG0ZUjvjNvetvXvojBAbsj2YfILld9sR07ZL9RVdgeoYm4okoNoSHPkk/s1600/Pinot+noir%252C+Santa+Catalina+Island.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkER1iTsWaWC_2p09VWpkwByrh2zk9crdlH6wEFMvpFIVFl5QuKM09gR5UCshkYg89XBsh8G9C4L5FeTOaRwNyG0ZUjvjNvetvXvojBAbsj2YfILld9sR07ZL9RVdgeoYm4okoNoSHPkk/s400/Pinot+noir%252C+Santa+Catalina+Island.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pinot noir cluster grown in the stingy, windswept <i>terroir</i> of Santa Catalina Island</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As
documented by IMHP comments in past post-WOPN reports, my beef has always been
that it’s impossible, and therefore unconscionable, to “rate” well made Pinot
noirs. Yes, artistry and skill can be scored or ranked to some extent. That’s
the fun, human element of a wine category like American Pinot noir – we love
our favored brands, and can grow to practically idolize talented winemakers – although
even that practice ultimately comes down to personal preference, like Stones
vs. Beatles or Picasso vs. Matisse (in other words, meaningless).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But
what can’t be compared are largely <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_Nature">Nature</a> determined factors, like <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musigny_AOC">Musigny</a> vs.
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chambertin">Chambertin</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dundee_Hills_AVA">Dundee Hills</a> vs. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McMinnville_AVA">McMinnville</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Valley_of_Russian_River_Valley_AVA">Green Valley of Russian River Valley</a> vs.
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_River_Valley_AVA">Russian River Valley</a>’s classic <a href="https://russianrivervalley.org/discover/neighborhoods">Middle Reach “neighborhood,”</a> or <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Maria_Valley_AVA">Santa MariaValley</a>’s Presqu’ile Vineyard vs. Santa Maria Valley’s Bien Nacido Vineyard. I
simply can’t because I have different expectations of Pinot noirs from each place.
Pinot noirs of genuinely interesting provenance are supposed to be as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">different</i> from each other as Fat and
Skinny, Goofus and Gallant, and yes, the Stones/Beatles and Musigny/Chambertin analogies.
There are no ideal definitions of Pinot noir fruit, “balance,” </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">ABV, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acids_in_wine">TA or pH</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenolic_content_in_wine">tannin</a> or
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthocyanin">color</a>. Objectivity is delusional.</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_kZYPydwuR6DaCzM30afFhC0qqLaxuKMcPMPplmwck1to4vCyvYNJ4vZmxy80Pk9lsbf6ET6yimS8B7CjGY0ZdbJ2AQFh4t2wq5GU18dWYZxTmBtz7RuiDybEdz-RHtq5-XFwF3HikAg/s1600/Hyde+Vineyard%252C+old+house.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1143" data-original-width="1600" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_kZYPydwuR6DaCzM30afFhC0qqLaxuKMcPMPplmwck1to4vCyvYNJ4vZmxy80Pk9lsbf6ET6yimS8B7CjGY0ZdbJ2AQFh4t2wq5GU18dWYZxTmBtz7RuiDybEdz-RHtq5-XFwF3HikAg/s640/Hyde+Vineyard%252C+old+house.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hyde Vineyard in Los Carneros-Napa Valley</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Hence,
the 21 Pinot noirs that impressed me the most over the 2019 WOPN weekend were those that seemed to <i>scream </i>their
differentiations, and real sense of purpose, out the most. To help me understand what it was that I found
appealing, I took the trouble of contacting and querying each of the 21 wines’ winemakers,
asking them to<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">1. Remark on the source of
their wines, and how they define the sensory qualities unique to each vineyard
or appellation. <br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2. Shed some light on their
winemaking choices (yeast selection, whole cluster, oak regime, etc.) they have
been doing in conscious “pursuit” of as much <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i> expression as “balance.” <br />
<br />
3. Share some thoughts or philosophy on how they achieve their goals while addressing concerns (such as alcohol or fruit ripeness) that are still hot topics of discussion among the trade, media and consumers.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWG0XeaHPnLNeSZ5rqu-t3sC_Gmd5aqIy0kX9ND1GfxmsFHb2PRtDHy0YvxaEyavzuLxk5kNQSqfTm9zO7kwXrwMu_KSM_fwH4PsNnUOh__SVuJ1YCCXzRdvDBnzlyxxu3_rwyreNdhBo/s1600/WOPN+glasses+%2528Tenley+Fohl+Photography%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="939" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWG0XeaHPnLNeSZ5rqu-t3sC_Gmd5aqIy0kX9ND1GfxmsFHb2PRtDHy0YvxaEyavzuLxk5kNQSqfTm9zO7kwXrwMu_KSM_fwH4PsNnUOh__SVuJ1YCCXzRdvDBnzlyxxu3_rwyreNdhBo/s400/WOPN+glasses+%2528Tenley+Fohl+Photography%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">World of Pinot Noir tasting (photo courtesy of <a href="https://www.tenleyfohlphotography.com/home">Tenley Fohl Photography</a>)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">My
report on these Pinot noirs, in alphabetical order:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2016 Adelaida Vineyards, HMR
Vineyard, Adelaida District-Paso Robles</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – Right or wrong, I’ll fess up to a
predisposition towards this vineyard. I recently, for instance, enjoyed a
20-year-old bottling of HMR Pinot that was in pure and pristine shape,
attesting to the integrity of the fruit from this vineyard, originally planted
in 1964 by Dr. Stanley Hoffmann (founder of Hoffman Mountain Ranch) with the
guidance of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_Tchelistcheff">Andr</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_Tchelistcheff">é Tchelistcheff</a>. The
mid-‘70s HMRs were among the American grown Pinot noirs (along with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chalone_Vineyard">Chalone</a>,
<a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/sanford-benedict-story-of_n_3350715">Sanford & Benedict</a>, <a href="https://www.winespectator.com/webfeature/show/id/Michael-Mondavi-Buys-Carneros-Creek-Winery_3179">Carneros Creek</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Eyrie_Vineyards">Eyrie</a> or <a href="http://www.oregonwinehistory.com/EarlyWineries/WillametteValley/KnudsenErath.html">Knudsen Erath</a>) we’d
occasionally put into blind tastings with Burgundies (often including at least
one by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domaine_de_la_Roman%C3%A9e-Conti">Domaine de la Romanée-Conti</a>, which were affordable luxuries back in the
late ‘70s). We did wrong things to learn the right things.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">The 2016 lives up
to the vineyard’s heritage with its pretty, finely chiseled, flowery perfume,
and fine, silky, zesty length – the site’s kitchen spice/cherry pie/rosehip-tea-like
character coming across with delicacy and an almost ineffable intricacy<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(it’s “there,” even if not seemingly
there) on the palate.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhash2kSBK3XbY04_Art3-BN-c-Zfp8BzcDfqeKF_ZXIdptb86CooetKkDpUps6MDL1jldv0qgZanVtbeFSrEJ5rioGervMXpPKPr3fMnMNBFtVCInMH3I83uRMPw2gqKpT2G9vN5lknsg/s1600/Adelaida+HMR+-+bottle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1280" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhash2kSBK3XbY04_Art3-BN-c-Zfp8BzcDfqeKF_ZXIdptb86CooetKkDpUps6MDL1jldv0qgZanVtbeFSrEJ5rioGervMXpPKPr3fMnMNBFtVCInMH3I83uRMPw2gqKpT2G9vN5lknsg/s400/Adelaida+HMR+-+bottle.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">I asked <a href="http://www.adelaida.com/">Adelaida</a> winemaker
Jeremy Weintraub to share his own thoughts on the site’s sensory profile. His
response: “One of the threads running through the vintages back to the oldest
bottle that we have on property, from 1976, is an aromatic blend of red dried
herbs, floral tea, cranberry. The wine is somewhere on the light-body end of
the spectrum, with more weight than Santa Maria Valley but far less than
something from Russian River Valley.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Weintraub attributes much of
the 33-acre block’s consistency to the work of ranch manager Mike Whitener, “who
planted HMR as a teenager in 1964, so he’s seen it all.” The current trellising
(“a pretty rudimentary VSP”) was installed in 1996, and use of shade cloths on
the south-facing sides (vines are planted east-west, on 8’x12’ spacing) since
2013 has minimized sun damage. Irrigation is largely unnecessary in the
water-retentive clay-limestone soil plus, of course, the old vines’ deep root
systems; and because of multiple aspects in this rolling hillside site, Weintraub
will pick the HMR as many as 21 times (as was the case in 2016).”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6-ygW6aSf2FJg1yAY-0tziLwCJAv0AvRqxmpESb1Zo6JhLVUp45VGv4B9ZoQlnRC9gmr5jLiu_W2XS6mTLhXb7LWOdhESPx4570JR3R1J4mk1jJfiGdxF0SXa85NzudqSaM6Y8h2nF88/s1600/HMR+Vineyard%252C+Adelaida+Vineyards%252C+Paso+Robles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6-ygW6aSf2FJg1yAY-0tziLwCJAv0AvRqxmpESb1Zo6JhLVUp45VGv4B9ZoQlnRC9gmr5jLiu_W2XS6mTLhXb7LWOdhESPx4570JR3R1J4mk1jJfiGdxF0SXa85NzudqSaM6Y8h2nF88/s640/HMR+Vineyard%252C+Adelaida+Vineyards%252C+Paso+Robles.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adelaida's limestone replete, old vine HMR Vineyard Pinot noir block</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">A vineyard like HMR, says
Weintraub, requires “removing the ego from the winemaking,” and so the wine is
not so much made as “farmed.” Adds Weintraub: “Certain blocks, we’ll ferment
without destemming, but I want the wine to smell like fruit, not a bowl of
vegetables. I don’t follow recipes (ask my daughter!), but in 2016 we did about
15% whole cluster because my impression of 2016 was that we’d get nice fruit
aromas while allowing for some stem inclusion. Fermentation in concrete tanks
(manufactured by <a href="http://vinovessel.com/the-vino-vessel-advantages/">Vino Vessel</a>) really helps maintain freshness of the fruit. We
don’t inoculate with yeast, and we use about 30% new French oak to enhance complexity.”
<br />
<br />
The knee-jerk impression of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paso_Robles_AVA">Paso Robles</a>, of course, is that it’s too hot to
grow Pinot noir, and therefore overripe or big alcohol wines are inevitable. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calcareous">Calcareous</a>
soils, however, are predisposed towards higher grape acidity, which give wines an
intrinsic balance. Besides, says Weintraub, “I don’t need to worry about alcoholic Pinot
noirs from HMR, especially since at this point in the life of the vineyard, the
vines are self-regulating and the older blocks simply won’t make that much
sugar... The important thing is not a number but the impression that the wine
is leaving as you drink it and in your memory.”</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNqTwlgdxBDDyKw_ci5oSPhXMFLCRJAo1mPdORM1Pxfjp18aYct9FIN6PJwCXGc915rty764o4E-dJmYgINaTue_lsVmsiLNLv1j5veYTHqEbD-zmj5cdhUH-OJtL1rwJATTqfhYXZQj0/s1600/Anthony+Beckman%252C+Balletto+Vineyards%252C+Sexton+Hill%252C+Sebastopol+Hills.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1281" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNqTwlgdxBDDyKw_ci5oSPhXMFLCRJAo1mPdORM1Pxfjp18aYct9FIN6PJwCXGc915rty764o4E-dJmYgINaTue_lsVmsiLNLv1j5veYTHqEbD-zmj5cdhUH-OJtL1rwJATTqfhYXZQj0/s400/Anthony+Beckman%252C+Balletto+Vineyards%252C+Sexton+Hill%252C+Sebastopol+Hills.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Balletto winemaker Anthony Beckman in Sexton Hill Vineyard, Russian River Valley's Sebastopol Hills</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2016 Balletto Vineyards, 18
Barrel, Sonoma Coast</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – While <a href="https://russianrivervalley.org/discover/neighborhoods">Sebastopol Hills</a> – the southernmost corner of Russian River River
Valley closest to the wind, fog and cold air coursing through from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodega_Bay">Bodega Bay</a>
and the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petaluma_Gap">Petaluma Gap</a> – is not a recognized <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Viticultural_Area">AVA,</a> it is the most distinctive
(IMHO) of the Russian River Valley’s so-called “five neighborhoods” in terms of
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i>/sensory dynamics. 18 Barrel
is a 100% Sebastopol Hills selection blended on the basis of these dynamics as
much as pure quality: ultra-bright cherry/licorice perfume, zingy, ringing
qualities on the palate, and a woodsy sensation (to me, something of a mix of
redwood and Madrone) blowing through the nose and all the way into the finish,
like breath of cool California coastal air. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #212121; font-size: 11.0pt;">Don’t take my word for it. I asked <a href="https://www.ballettovineyards.com/">Balletto</a> winemaker Anthony
Beckman, whose observations are based upon his experience working with the
Balletto family’s extensive acreage in 16 separate Russian River Valley
vineyards, including the neighborhoods of <a href="https://russianrivervalley.org/discover/neighborhoods">Santa Rosa Plains</a> and <a href="https://russianrivervalley.org/discover/neighborhoods">Laguna Ridge</a>.
Says Beckman: “Sebastopol Hills produces Pinot that is more spice and earth
driven, and where red fruits take a back seat to these savory elements. This makes
the wine difficult to pin down aromatically, especially in the 2016 18-Barrel, where
the spice, earth and bright fruit all hit at the same time. It’s a big,
aromatic nose, but not in a fruit-bomb way, and that’s what makes it so
alluring and interesting.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #212121; font-size: 11.0pt;">Structurally, I’ve always found Sebastopol Hills Pinots to be
edgier than those of most of Russian River Valley. Not quite <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendocino_Ridge_AVA">Mendocino Ridge</a> or
McMinnville-Willamette Valley-edgy, but certainly built more on an acid/tannin
backbone, which Beckman calls “scaffold-like,” than most parts of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma_Coast_AVA">Sonoma Coast</a>.
“Instead of a weighty mid-palate based on viscosity,” says Beckman, it is this
acid/tannin core that gives the “volume and persistence... without a lot of
weight” to Sebastopol Hills Pinots. Beckman tries to parse it with descriptors
like “volume over density,” and “tannins over lushness.” <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN5C6KaueAlP221Mz5uqvt9QJzpdgkOMw-vBmNlplNfXEsCet3zeMF8vFAdcNdaExcZ6B7E2yTUQVFihImOLe8-f0aCBjtF6Icnv2l_7CcGQWViGfMYSBdRmE8rfQ9tIAHpmBUeTa__ao/s1600/Pinot+noir%252C+Balletto%2527s+Sexton+Hill+Vineyard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN5C6KaueAlP221Mz5uqvt9QJzpdgkOMw-vBmNlplNfXEsCet3zeMF8vFAdcNdaExcZ6B7E2yTUQVFihImOLe8-f0aCBjtF6Icnv2l_7CcGQWViGfMYSBdRmE8rfQ9tIAHpmBUeTa__ao/s400/Pinot+noir%252C+Balletto%2527s+Sexton+Hill+Vineyard.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pinot noir in Balletto's Sexton Hill Vineyard (Russian River Valley's Sebastopol Hills)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Maximization
of this profile, of course, starts with farming (“we can write a book about
this,” says Beckman) and extends to conscious decisions to pick multiple times,
from 22.5</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> to 24</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brix">Brix</a> (Beckman considers anything higher than 25</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> to be “a mistake for these vineyards”). This
precludes the need to add tartaric acid and is much more conducive to the 100%
native yeast protocols Beckman established more than ten years ago. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Explains
Beckman, “Native yeast<span style="color: #212121;"> lengthens the amount of time
it takes to ferment (some ferments won’t even begin fermenting for 10 to 12
days) and allows for a little more extraction time when the grapes are cold and
there is limited alcohol (both of which work as solvents and change the
extraction level)... I’m really pushing for ‘good’ tannin extraction from the
skins and trying to avoid ‘bad’ tannin extraction from the seeds, especially
since these are earlier picked vineyards at lower sugar/higher acids, so the
seeds are never brown and crispy and their extraction needs to be limited by
being extremely gentle to ensure the seeds stay inside their little purse-like
berry skin.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #212121; font-size: 11.0pt;">Beckman pushes the envelope further by exacting 60% to 100% whole
cluster fermentation in choice lots, which he finds “contributes to both a
lifted aromatic profile and adds a good portion of tannins and structure to the
finished wine.” This is a “scary” proposition, but extra barrel time and bottle
age (at least a year for the latter) helps “shed the overt whole-cluster
profile and move toward something with both aromatic depth and balanced
texture.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #212121;">Beckman speaks frankly about the pressure to
produce “overripe wines” to kowtow to prevailing tastes: “I feel that ripe
Pinots begin to lose their sense of place and start to taste all the same,
regardless of where they’re from. Still, I’ll spend an entire </span></span><a href="https://www.winespectator.com/glossary/index/word/elevage"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #212121; font-size: 11.0pt;">é</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #212121; font-size: 11.0pt;">levage</span></i></a><span style="color: #212121; font-size: 11.0pt;"> worried that the wines will be thin,
tart and tannic. But what keeps me going year after year is the lifted
aromatics that you get, and how time in barrel and bottle changes them into
complete wines with depth, structure and, hopefully, ageability and
uniqueness.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbyvrOD-XLUIEnxBJBAcNhz-UDKX5PXL0caY7SmCsQk-uBw91Ju2XW10C9Gvcqc7mVzFpeUtRu_hyphenhyphen0p8s68j0a6I3963qb8oSQ0jDVom9RpKHSP91ayBNygHXDbI7sp9VVMk4f3MMhd-o/s1600/Bradley+Brown+2%252C+Rattlesnake+Rock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbyvrOD-XLUIEnxBJBAcNhz-UDKX5PXL0caY7SmCsQk-uBw91Ju2XW10C9Gvcqc7mVzFpeUtRu_hyphenhyphen0p8s68j0a6I3963qb8oSQ0jDVom9RpKHSP91ayBNygHXDbI7sp9VVMk4f3MMhd-o/s400/Bradley+Brown+2%252C+Rattlesnake+Rock.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Big Basin Vineyards winemaker/owner Bradley Brown</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">2016
Big Basin Vineyards, Alfaro Family Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">
– Red cherry laced with sweet herb (wild mint/pennyroyal) fragrances, with the
faintest ocean air brininess lingering in the backdrop; tart edged, somewhat
lean and wiry, yet very fresh and palate ringing in its light (13.3% alcohol),
laser sharp yet ultimately gentle (verging on delicacy), effusively fruited
feel. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">While <a href="https://www.bigbasinvineyards.com/">Big Basin</a> winemaker/owner Bradley Brown
loves a high elevation grown Pinot noir (I was also impressed by a
scintillatingly spiced 2016 Big Basin Coastview Vineyard, sourced from a
2,400-ft. elevation <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabilan_Range">Gabilan Mountains</a> site), the Alfaro Family is one of the
winery’s four vineyard-designates coming from the south end of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Cruz_Mountains_AVA">Santa CruzMountains AVA</a> in the <a href="http://corralitoswinetrail.com/Home_Page.php">Corralitos</a>/Pleasant Valley area, largely consisting of
hilly sand dunes sitting at 400-650-ft., a scant 3-4 miles from the deep, cold air <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monterey_Bay">Monterey Bay</a>.
While there are sensory variants, most of these plantings end up sharing
commonalities, which I identify as feminine structures and sweet herby/floral
qualties. Brown singles out the Alfaro Family site’s “fully lignified stems,”
allowing for whole cluster fermentation giving <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“body and fine, dense tannin to the structure, without harsh tannin
or astringency.”<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-vmnucpEqZHT1ZyxRi9KlmO3jxvVQyuLYQzN7S7xmnHJjJsAyJwDTEeRuC72iXk8zp8fKdVcfUSEHZb6pTuFg6N95lcN29J3_mwLCljjU2USLxLhqV8AtpJlmdhV7EE520hRf1f7pTdk/s1600/Alfaro+Family+Vineyards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="851" data-original-width="1280" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-vmnucpEqZHT1ZyxRi9KlmO3jxvVQyuLYQzN7S7xmnHJjJsAyJwDTEeRuC72iXk8zp8fKdVcfUSEHZb6pTuFg6N95lcN29J3_mwLCljjU2USLxLhqV8AtpJlmdhV7EE520hRf1f7pTdk/s640/Alfaro+Family+Vineyards.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alfaro Family Vineyards in Santa Cruz Mountains' Corralitos/Pleasant Valley area</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">For Brown, the ability to do 100% whole
cluster (minus nutrients and even sulfur, which is added only post-ML in the
barrel) is also advantageous to achieving transparency; and accordingly, barrel
choices (about 25% new) is relegated to coopers employing “long, gentle, light
toasts,” which also helps to “amplify site.” Working with vineyards so close to
the cooling fog influences of the ocean also allows Brown to <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“pick when we see the physiological ripeness...
this results in wines that always finish under 14%, and often 13% alcohol.”
Brown also says that he could “choose to pick at riper levels that produce
14.5% wines,” but he has a Burgundy influenced “ethos” – and clearly, this is
working just fine for followers of Big Basin Vineyards who have developed a taste for leaner, higher acid styles of Pinot noir.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">2015 Brewer-Clifton, Sta. Rita Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> – Not to minimize the three decades of experience and
meticulous work going into their estate grown wine, but in recent years this
winery has made the crafting of world class Pinot noir look almost easy. An
electric-bright and extravagant nose of strawberry pur</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">e with whiffs of
wintergreen and pine is solidified by a seriously firm and sharply etched
palate-feel, the tannin/acid structure coming across like steel girders, giving
a savory sense of concentration to the vivid, high toned and precision-cut fruit.</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
<br /><a href="https://www.brewerclifton.com/">Brewer-Clifton</a> founder/winemaker Greg Brewer concurs on the ebullience and savory nature of
this bottling, describing it as very much “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sta._Rita_Hills_AVA">Sta. Rita Hills</a>.” Reflecting the
Asian influence in his thought process, Brewer writes: “I typically see the
pure fruit ushered in by a spicy aromatic followed by a tea-like/soy-reminiscent
mouth-feel – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umeboshi">umeboshi</a></i> (i.e. Japanese
salt plums) comes to mind.” In respect to winemaking choices applied to vintage
variations within the appellation, which he describes as “incredibly stable
within the context of an environment,” Brewer remarks, “Our pursuit is sincere
transmission of our estate with as much lucidity and vulnerability as possible.”
Hence, “overwhelmingly, whole cluster fermentation and strictly neutral
cooperage (with no racking) are both appropriate for us to arrive at that
aesthetic.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2016 Day Wines, Momtazi Vineyard,
McMinnville-Willamette Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – There
was a larger than usual contingent of Oregon wineries at 2019 WOPN; and for me,
this bottling stood out among the numerous outstanding Oregonians for its star-bright
bluish dark red color and intense, compact, black cherry/sweet woodsy (bark and
needles) nose with a sense of immensity and concentration, notwithstanding a
zesty/edgy, compact and focused feel to a medium weight body, finishing with a
notable tweak of coffee roast/burnt leaf savoriness that seemed to be more
fruit than oak/toast related.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">While winemaker/partner
Brianne Day generally finds McMinnville AVA Pinot noirs to be “darker and
bigger in style than other areas of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willamette_Valley">Willamette Valley</a>,” she tends to find “a
common thread of pretty, sweet herb aromatics and a dark, savage fruit
component” in those of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodynamic_agriculture">biodynamically</a> farmed <a href="https://maysara.com/momtazi-vineyard/">Momtazi</a> Vineyard. Hence, says
Day, “I am especially light handed when handling the fruit – I think this
accentuates the aromatics, which I find quite compelling.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguU_liu4oI0TR8H4v02BPOg6lS3qUEdKlorMjiY39HjhcxZF5x9efNKwcdVbsl3VoNW7WpRmHeuuzgpV_92dzAHxBG1Fxz6pK1qFmapbJfdnxC0FG6LEzc89V3E0kZGKBcRkzewYnxmhg/s1600/Momtazi+Vineyard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguU_liu4oI0TR8H4v02BPOg6lS3qUEdKlorMjiY39HjhcxZF5x9efNKwcdVbsl3VoNW7WpRmHeuuzgpV_92dzAHxBG1Fxz6pK1qFmapbJfdnxC0FG6LEzc89V3E0kZGKBcRkzewYnxmhg/s640/Momtazi+Vineyard.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Momtazi Vineyard in Willamette Valley's McMinnville AVA</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">
Pinot noir, contends Day, “can be balanced at 12% alcohol or 14% alcohol.”
Accordingly, partial whole cluster (30% in the 2016 Momtazi), gentle cap
management (“to avoid over-extracting”), and relative cool fermentation
temperatures (“to retain aromatics”) are part of her approach, although “no two
wines are made identically.” For Day, “native yeast is a number one thing a
winemaker can do to make a site-expressive wine,” and cooperage (20% new oak at
the most) generally involves 4-10-year-old barrels (“I want the majority of the
barrels that I use to be a breathing </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">levage</span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> vessel
without inputting wood flavor or tannin”). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Day picks on acids and
ripeness levels, telling us: “I don't believe that hang time is a good thing –
it gives time for the fruit's acids to diminish and for the fruit to become
overripe... fruit is ripe, literally, when birds will eat it, since the
function of the grape is to propagate a vine, and the acid sack that surrounds
the seed has to be present for the seed to pass through a bird's digestive
track... This is far more important and relevant to me than walking through a
vineyard and seeing if fruit tastes good.”</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Norm Yost with Flying Goat partner Kate Griffith</td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015 Flying Goat Cellars,
Dierberg Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – From a deceptively brick-red robe, a billowing,
luxuriously floral nose encapsulating a spiced strawberry perfume; the high
toned qualities following through in a zesty, finely etched palate feel,
combining sensations of generosity with lightness and delicacy <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-size: 14.666666984558105px;">defying a full scaled (14.8% alcohol) body.</span></div>
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<!--EndFragment--><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://www.flyinggoatcellars.com/">Flying Goat</a> owner/winemaker Norm Yost
cites distinctive qualities of <a href="https://dierbergvineyard.com/our-story/dierberg-vineyard">Dierberg</a>, which stands out in comparison to
other Santa Maria Valley vineyards, most of which Yost has been working with
for some 20 years. </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">“A Dierberg’s primary aromas are black cherry and raspberry,
but you also often find some leather, clove and allspice; and on the palate,
this can come out in layers of jammy fruit, spice and plums.” </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">For Yost, the big
concern in 2015 was dehydration and overripeness from a dry winter and warm
season, which was mitigated by timely irrigation. “Typically, I look at seed
maturity as a ripening parameter,” says Yost, “but in 2015 I decided to
overlook this parameter due to the extreme heat conditions. Although our 2015
Dierberg hit 14.8% alcohol, I believe it’s balanced and has a beautiful
expression of </span><i style="font-size: 11pt;">terroir</i><span style="font-size: 11pt;">.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yost typically
“cold-macerates” for up to 3 days in 1.5-ton fermenters, and he inoculates with
<a href="https://scottlab.com/rc212-yeast-rc212">RC212</a>, “known for producing bright fruit, berry and spice characteristics with
good tannin structure.” He prefers Rousseau and Cadus barrels (25% new) “because
both of these cooperages fit my winemaking style by not overpowering the wines,
allowing me to leave it on the gross lees for as long possible – I feel this
preserves the flavors of the site and gives the wine more texture.”</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gary Farrell winemaker Theresa Heredia in Rochioli Vineyard (Russian River Valley's Middle Reach)</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2016 Gary Farrell Winery, Rochioli Vineyard, Russian River Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – Huge doses of black
pepper/peppermint spice – definitely the spiciest Pinot noir bottling
experienced over the weekend – inundate a red fruit perfume (raspberry veering
towards cherry/strawberry) with both floral (rose petal) and woodsy (forest
floor) facets, followed up by just as much layering on the palate – pinpoint-sharp,
lively, fine, silky sensations, intense, long, titillating.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">While
Rochioli stands as one of the titular growths of Russian River Valley’s long
venerated Middle Reach, this “neighborhood,” as <a href="https://www.garyfarrellwinery.com/">Gary Farrell</a> winemaker Theresa
Heredia reminds us, “is not all the same... the cobbly, riverbed soil of
Rochioli, for instance, gives beautifully pure, red fruit scented Pinot noir,
whereas the finer, silty <a href="https://soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/Y/YOLO.html">Yolo</a> series soil in Allen Vineyard just across the
road gives more savory, earthier, often exotically spiced Pinot noirs”
(explaining why the winery also combines the contrasting profiles by producing
a Rochioli-Allen Vineyard Pinot noir). But when a pure expression of Rochioli
is executed to such perfection – heightened by the laudably disciplined focus and restraint Heredia appears to have brought to this vaunted brand –
one cannot help but being wowed by this single vineyard rendering as one of the
purest expression of Russian River Valley Pinot noir to be found.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hilliard Bruce estate in Santa Barbara's Sta. Rita Hills</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2016 Hilliard Bruce, SKY,
Sta. Rita Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – The week after the 2019 WOPN, owner/grower John Hilliard informed me
that he had just put his 21-acre <a href="https://www.hilliardbruce.com/">Hilliard Bruce</a> estate up for sale. In his
usual (and refreshing) blunt fashion, he said, “</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Sadly, I never could sell enough wine and I’m just not that good a
salesman... wine does not sell itself.” What Mr. Hilliard is, however, is one
of the most detailed, quality driven and conscientiously <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_agriculture">sustainable</a> grower/vintners
in the state, which has been borne out in the exquisite Hilliard Bruce grown Pinot
noirs produced by both other wineries and under Hilliard’s own label.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The
2016 SKY – grown on the property’s windiest and rockiest slope and planted
exclusively to a Calera selection – is a quintessential Sta. Rita Hills Pinot:
soaring, penetrating perfume, intensely rich and floral, manifested in dense,
thickly woven (savory acid/tannin/texturing) yet astoundingly fine and delicate
sensations, almost floating over the palate with bombs bursting in air.
Ethereal. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Winemaker
</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Sonja Magdevski – who has 14 vintages of
crafting Santa Barbara wine under her belt (and is also the proprietor of her
own <a href="https://casadumetzwines.com/">Casa Dumetz</a> brand) – sheds light on this bottling: “In 2016 Greg
Brewer (of Brewer-Clifton) became Wine Director for Hilliard Bruce, which he
held until August 2018. Under his guidance, he sought to highlight the
unique aspects of the property by showcasing each individual clone as they
corresponded to the natural curvature of the estate. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hilliard Bruce's John Hilliard</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">“The majority of the <a href="http://www.sipcertified.org/">SIPCertified </a>("Sustainability In Practice"), 21-acre Hilliard Bruce vineyard is planted in sand,
although the Calera section has the added bump of loam mixed into the earth.
One unique aspect of the property is that extremes are mitigated by natural
tendencies of the land... The Calera clone is a winemaker’s clone that is
notoriously low yielding with small berries. The small amount of clay in the
soil adds an element of flavorful weight to the grapes. We also added a kicker
cane to boost yield, thereby elongating the already tannic clone among more
clusters.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">According
to Magdevski, the 2016 SKY was inoculated with RC212; there was no whole cluster,
and cooperage was 100% neutral. Yet the wine’s balance and intensity finishes with an utter sense of luxuriousness. Adds Magdevski, “'balance,’ whatever your
meaning may be, speaks for itself if someone is paying close attention to the
farming and journey of each vintage... it comes from flavor and pleasure, not a
scientific measurement... If fruit is not balanced in the vineyard it won’t be
balanced as a wine... In my experience I have found that vineyard designated
wines made sincerely always express their<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">
terroir</i> regardless of ripeness levels.” <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy9ql7n_g-PveCjbT0QPyQQ6mJAvspHQZiuN1rIT8auK0jnpgd3a7_er-ysWwvGDuxTG_Khah3I6T28pFUljY5URg2M0oXYRoL92yXITMFTeLcrg3y5tp6R14x8WlC68C-kOgVJWSsfxA/s1600/Chris+%2526+Larry+Hyde.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1409" data-original-width="940" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy9ql7n_g-PveCjbT0QPyQQ6mJAvspHQZiuN1rIT8auK0jnpgd3a7_er-ysWwvGDuxTG_Khah3I6T28pFUljY5URg2M0oXYRoL92yXITMFTeLcrg3y5tp6R14x8WlC68C-kOgVJWSsfxA/s400/Chris+%2526+Larry+Hyde.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hyde Vineyards' Larry (seated) and Chris Hyde</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">2015
Hyde Vineyards, Carneros-Napa Valley Estate </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">– Somewhere
between the 2000s and the 1950s and ‘60s – the start of the groundbreaking work
done by <a href="https://www.louismartini.com/">Louis M. Martini</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaulieu_Vineyard">Beaulieu</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Mondavi">Robert Mondavi</a>, <a href="https://www.carneros.com/appelation/history3">Winery Lake</a> and others – <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Carneros_AVA">LosCarneros</a> somehow lost its luster in the world of Pinot noir (or as <a href="http://www.saintsbury.com/">Saintsbury</a>
used to put it, “Beaune in the U.S.A.”). The recent extraordinary estate bottlings
by <a href="https://www.hydewines.com/">Larry Hyde</a> and his son Chris are bound to restore some order. The 2015
screams “Carneros” with its pure, ripe, aromatic black cherry concentration,
but then it takes things further by lavishing layer upon layer of plush, curvy,
velvet textures punctuated by bright acidity. Non-fruit delineations may be
negligible, but who needs that when a wine is so damned, well, ravishing?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Nonetheless, Chris
Hyde finds a strong “sense of place” in the family’s eponymous label. “I think
its our winds, and earthiness or minerality that stand out in our Pinot noir,”
reflecting the appellation’s shallow clay soils and fog chilled mornings and
nights, largely influenced by the Petaluma Gap. Whatever the case, sour black cherry has always been associated with Los Carneros grown Pinot noir profile, and the 2015 Hyde has that in spades.<br />
<br />
According to Hyde, “minimal amounts of new oak (20%), whole cluster (usually
around 5%) and forgoing of “adjustments” or filtration help hone the wine in on
its intrinsic character – especially in 2015, another drought year, “when rain
during bloom already provided a small crop and great concentration in the
wines.... Our focus is on creating wines that are balanced, and expressive of
the site.”</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_AlH5B1xwE-3n4CIvD_pjIKtQPWlc3DOoJ19XjM9JtnafUluenF_Q2ekHVSk3cm_td2ou9mplgpKORoGl_sfrjbGpjbqv2wTh23N_Ia-jKvy9mYq0Wd4JvsKoA1ak9rBYOsuj3mZ4z8E/s1600/Lombardi%252C+Hill+Justice+-+bottle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1281" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_AlH5B1xwE-3n4CIvD_pjIKtQPWlc3DOoJ19XjM9JtnafUluenF_Q2ekHVSk3cm_td2ou9mplgpKORoGl_sfrjbGpjbqv2wTh23N_Ia-jKvy9mYq0Wd4JvsKoA1ak9rBYOsuj3mZ4z8E/s400/Lombardi%252C+Hill+Justice+-+bottle.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2017 Lombardi Wines, Hill
Justice, Petaluma Gap </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">– Gobs of strawberry veering towards black fruit, lush and
concentrated, fill out the nose and a concentrated presence on the palate, strengthened
by some young, muscular tannin, fashioning a compact, dense, meaty yet
seamless, moderately weighted feel.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Commenting on this, his first single vineyard-designate wine
(<a href="https://www.lombardiwines.com/">Lombardi</a>’s Sonoma Coast bottling is sourced from an all-star selection of sites,
including Griffin’s Lair, Sonoma Stage and Spring Hill), winemaker/owner Tony
Lombardi tells us: “The fruit off</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> Hill Justice is a
product of more extreme conditions –</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;"> a steep mountain slope
off Morelli Lane... rocky, red soil of higher clay content, on the west side of
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma_Mountain">Sonoma Mountain</a> at nearly 1,100-ft. The 9-acre site is planted to Swan and
Pommard selections, which thrive in this extreme environment. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">“</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Bunches are smaller,
almost like hand grenades, and skins are a bit thicker than my other sites. I think
this gives a finer tannin structure to the wine, along with deeper color and
darker fruit characteristics.” While young and boisterous, adds Lombardi, “the
alcohol (14.5%) is in balance with the fruit intensity, healthy acidity (3.54
pH/6.34 TA) and tannin... showing some nice, silky texture and expansive
mouth-feel.” Can’t argue with that.</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghNf4weVkiad5vdRxxSQX578-WOktE3pswO12AW9XKe7QQ5l-wHhoJohsyLzXCrbrGJNRV_6rSuKVRg8KDiGPE31zJ_9v3p2-kJ2OsTPlrhaxWyyW182sHMkzJnzfr97ZmQmZ6YqacNL0/s1600/Soberanes+%2526+Garys%2527+Vineyards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghNf4weVkiad5vdRxxSQX578-WOktE3pswO12AW9XKe7QQ5l-wHhoJohsyLzXCrbrGJNRV_6rSuKVRg8KDiGPE31zJ_9v3p2-kJ2OsTPlrhaxWyyW182sHMkzJnzfr97ZmQmZ6YqacNL0/s640/Soberanes+%2526+Garys%2527+Vineyards.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the center of Santa Lucia Highlands, Soberness and Garys' (right) Vineyards</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2016 Lucia Vineyards, Garys’
Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">True
confession: It took me years to grasp, let alone appreciate, the extravagant,
often “big” qualities of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Lucia_Highlands_AVA">Santa Lucia Highlands</a> Pinots. Why? #1, fuller bodied
Pinot noirs are never my first choice; and #2, I hadn’t been to Santa Lucia
Highlands. But when I finally did, and felt the combination of chill air,
bright sun, almost blinding winds, and smells of kicked up dusty sand and pungent
pervasiveness of wild <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaparral">chapparal </a>pushing up into the nostrils, I finally understood</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">, particularly in respect to
the thickened skins and high acidity of grapes ripening under meager
circumstances. This is a place where harvests are called on acids dropping to
palatable levels rather than sugars reaching a certain point – hence, the
“bigger” styles, which come naturally to the place. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">At
14.2% alcohol, this iteration of Garys’ is actually extremely restrained for
the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appellation">appellation</a>. What’s amazing is its decadent intensity – if this was a
100-point score magazine, I’d probably use words like “hedonistic” and
“opulent.” But it’s just me, and so I scribbled: lush, vibrant strawberry pur</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">e, and packaging in fresh, lively, svelte and electrifying
medium weight body (and that’s as “hedonistic’ as my vocabulary goes). There is
something of a singularity to this fruit expression, but this is something to
be expected from the 50-acre Garys’ block which, unlike the Pisoni and
Franscioni families’ surrounding vineyards, is planted to just one selection
(the famously “secret” Pisoni clone), as opposed to the usual half-dozen or
more hedged by most vineyards on this bench. Bottom line: a Garys’ should taste
like <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Garys’</i>, not so much like the varietal or even other Pinot noirs grown in Santa Lucia Highlands.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkCcYwwqRJDtRgUlmqWOWnPecXIs_6fzv3utk0KKqmhdtw4elRSv_6x6MrAlpIYCzLVpHvMrRHTIaXU0FixqKUMkRtcnA-rcoxh-JiwJT0GaS-658TTBmGTKkQ2F3aPlaLk3DgXSBDa0Y/s1600/Mark+Pisoni%252C+Garys%2527+Vineyard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkCcYwwqRJDtRgUlmqWOWnPecXIs_6fzv3utk0KKqmhdtw4elRSv_6x6MrAlpIYCzLVpHvMrRHTIaXU0FixqKUMkRtcnA-rcoxh-JiwJT0GaS-658TTBmGTKkQ2F3aPlaLk3DgXSBDa0Y/s400/Mark+Pisoni%252C+Garys%2527+Vineyard.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vineyard manager Mark Pisoni in Garys' Vineyard</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jeff
Pisoni, the winemaker for his family’s <a href="https://www.pisonivineyards.com/">Pisoni</a> and <a href="https://luciavineyards.com/">Lucia</a> labels, cites the
circumstances of the 2016 vintage, contrasting it with the prior, grueling drought
years that “</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">brought concentration of
tannins and acid... muscular wines (from) stressed vines working hard.” 2016’s
“earlier harvest dates also easily retained acidity.” Crafty growers and
winemakers like the Pisoni family are quick to adapt to higher tannin/acid
years like 2016, telling us: “We backed off on whole cluster and frequency of
punch-downs, although we still did a cold soak because the phenolics extracted
during that stage are different and more gentle than those extracted during
fermentation.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Par for the course for
Pisoni, fermentations are native, and cooperage has been whittled down to
coopers and barrels lending “subtle wood that doesn’t overwhelm, because I do
not want it to detract from the site expression.” While the family has adjusted
to recent vintage challenges through vineyard practices (leafing, canopy
management, crop level, irrigation, etc.) and a goal of achieving “ripeness at
moderate alcohols,” Pisoni warns that “trying to target a finished alcohol
without knowing how the farming is done can lead to a disaster because a given
sugar level can deliver phenolics/tannins that are way overripe or way underripe,
if not farmed correctly.” As it were, the Pisonis are hitting it on the head.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1zdE5YSbgRS7wFadT0iKPSkpHBoV1EV095TZqaF_8hZJ1liqj34uiZB__-I6tduQUpmyosRWBUI3i_5nz0chrdtqD9EP2d4wgSZ1Uv_gVKLKF2Hes3Rc2bVZtz9r_K849piH3-uF6YVE/s1600/Lumen+-+bottle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1281" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1zdE5YSbgRS7wFadT0iKPSkpHBoV1EV095TZqaF_8hZJ1liqj34uiZB__-I6tduQUpmyosRWBUI3i_5nz0chrdtqD9EP2d4wgSZ1Uv_gVKLKF2Hes3Rc2bVZtz9r_K849piH3-uF6YVE/s400/Lumen+-+bottle.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2016 Lumen Wines, Presqu’ile Vineyard, Santa Maria
Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – Beautifully pristine, fresh,
airy red fruit fragrance (cherry/strawberry) with floral/rose petal/faintly
green leafiness; the flowery qualities consummated in a light, lithe, silky
notably slender and long, zesty mouth-feel. All told, very “Presqu’ile.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Will Henry, who crafts <a href="https://www.lumenwines.com/">LumenWines</a> with old hand Lane Tanner, describes the quintessential Santa Maria
Valley qualities expressed by Presqu’ile as “</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">a distinct fresh-herb quality as well as a
spiciness that is unlike any other Pinot region. I often pick up tarragon and
mountain sage, as well as white pepper, cardamom, and other exotic spices.” Lumen’s
first shot at Presqu’ile fruit was in 2015, which “was so crazy good that it
shocked us... the fruit at Presqu’ile is certainly unique... berry size is very
small, and the yields are typically quite low – both of which lead to a natural
concentration of flavor and complexity in the finished wine.” Their 2016 was
slower to mature, thus picked about 1.0</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;"> Brix
higher than normal for Henry and Tanner (at 24.2</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">), but
the result was still the feathery, feminine, zesty acid style of Pinot typical
of the site.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">Otherwise,
Lumen’s winemaking is very contemporary; meaning “‘hands-off’... we don’t mess
with it too much,” picking “as early as possible so that there is no need to
adjust acidity or add anything to the wine to bring it into balance.” They also
eschew stems or whole cluster, preferring to let “pure fruit expression shine
through.” They inoculate with a Burgundian yeast selection used by Tanner
before the dawn of time, and oak is relegated to “a small percentage of new
Hungarian, and the rest neutral... for that reason, the variation you taste
between our Pinot noirs are very pure expressions of place.”<br />
<br />
Reflecting on the evolution of American Pinot noirs, Henry shares interesting food for thought: “The challenge
two decades back in France, and even in Santa Barbara, was getting fruit ripe
enough before the vines started to go dormant for the winter. Wine writers
tended to rate the warmest vintages the highest, because vineyard practices
were still rather primitive, and the world was also a bit cooler – and the
wines from warmer vintages were preferred by most palates. Vineyard practices
have come a long way, and the world is warmer, which has allowed winemakers to
ripen fruit to levels never before possible, even in places like Burgundy or
Germany. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">“Now
winemakers are able to make stylistic decisions not possible before. Some
winemakers still want the ripest fruit possible, and then adjust for it in the
winemaking process. Some base their decision solely on sugar content or pH of sampled
fruit; some, like us, base it on flavor maturity. Pick too early and the wine
tends to be too vegetal; too late, it tends towards pruniness and lower acid.
We try to time our pick perfectly, just when the vegetal flavors go into the
background and the fruit begins to show its full complexity, and still has firm
acidity and a good, low pH allowing for greater stability and aging. Most of
our 2018s, for instance, came in under 13% alcohol, but then that was just what
the vintage gave us.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mindego Ridge Vineyard and surrounding redwoods and Madrones</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Mindego Ridge Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – This vineyard has been qualifying for my proverbial
pantheon of top American <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cru_(wine)">crus</a></i> by dint
of its pervasive transparency: super-bright, high toned raspberry fragrance
permeated with airy, woodsy notes; both savory and brightly fruit in a long,
lanky, lingering and finesseful palate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><a href="https://www.fogartywinery.com/">Thomas Fogarty</a> winemaker
Nathan Kandler – who has been crafting a <a href="https://www.mindegoridge.com/">Mindego Ridge</a> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuv%C3%A9e">cuv</a></i></span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuv%C3%A9e"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">e</span></i></a><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> since
2013, and is able to compare it with the winery’s seven other Santa Cruz
Mountains vineyard-designate bottlings (<a href="https://www.faillawines.com/">Failla</a>’s Ehren Jordan crafts the Mindego
Ridge estate bottlings for owner/growers David and Stacey Gollnick) – contrasts
the densely forested, 950-ft. elevation Mindego Ridge site as a “perfectly
positioned south-facing hillside that has warm days and pretty chilly nights...
It is the highest acid Pinot noir I have worked with, which allows, or rather
forces, you to push the ripeness out farther than other sites in Santa Cruz
Mountains. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">“The climatic factors help to
yield a wine rich in supple tannin and dark fruit flavors. As the vineyard
matures we have been increasing the whole cluster component, further adding layers
of texture and the full range of aromatics we usually find in Mindego Ridge,
such as pomegranate, blackberry, black fruits, baking spices, black tea, clove,
and citrus peel.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peay Vineyards' Andy Peay and Vanessa Wong</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2016 Peay Vineyards, Ama Estate, Sonoma Coast</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – <a href="https://peayvineyards.com/">Peay</a> was one of the <a href="https://www.sfchronicle.com/wine/article/In-Pursuit-of-Balance-wine-group-calls-it-quits-10616178.php">In Pursuit of Balance</a>
movement’s original poster childs, which stands to reason – you couldn’t make a
“big” wine from Peay’s estate at the extreme, and most frigid, end of <a href="http://www.everyvine.com/wine-regions/region/West_Sonoma_Coast/">WestSonoma Coast</a> near <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annapolis,_California">Annapolis</a> if you tried. I found all of their bottlings (a
good half-dozen) shown at 2019 WOPN to be exhilarating, but their 2016 Ama
seemed to rise above the rest, figuratively and literally: at least in terms of
purity of fruit – floral, dark cherry, woodland/forest floor notes – billowing
from the glass, and then charging through the palate’s light, tingly, extended,
live-wire feel before ending with savory/toothsome, cherry skin, leafy/earth
and spiced cobbler sensations.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Andy Peay confirmed my own findings
by acknowledging the Ama’s typical “fruits on the red spectrum... red apple and
cherry skin with spice and minerality... oftentimes earthy, tea and dried pine
needle qualities.” Peay attributes these sensory qualities to the vineyard’s
location “in a cold climate maritime zone... 3 miles from the Pacific... air
temperatures rarely exceeding the low 70s at the warmest time of day.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peay Vineyards at the extreme edge of West Sonoma Coast</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">
Winemaker Vanessa Wong digs down deeper, explaining her somewhat <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yin_and_yang">Yin/Yang</a> approach
when assembling the different blocks (varying clones, rootstocks, exposures,
slopes, etc.) to produce an Ama from their 33-acre estate: “Scallop Shelf Estate
Pinot noir, for example, comes from barrel lots that have floral and black tea
aromas as base notes... Barrel lots with more foresty, spice and strawberry
aromas tend to go into Pomarium, while those with darker berry and with savory
notes go into Ama... Ama, in particular, is like a study in opposites of
our vineyard, containing both one of the earliest blocks to ripen and the
latest blocks of Pinot noir to ripen... the most forwardly fruit driven blocks
which would be too much by itself if it weren’t married and tamed by its
earthy/savory polar opposite.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">“The goal from Day 1,” says
Peay, “was to grow our own grapes and make a wine that was transparent to where
it was grown... Some people like power and that is fine. For me, Pinot noir is
about elegance, complexity and nuance. You can make Pinot noir with great depth
of flavor and persistence on the palate without pushing ripeness to an extreme.
But that takes the right site and the right farming.... We didn’t want to
struggle against the joyful California sun and the monochromatic fruit
expression and high sugar it promised. We want florality, fruit expression and
earthiness in a harmonious balance. That’s why we deal with the challenges of
farming and low yields on the Coast. You don’t need to reach into the toolbox
to adjust a wine to a model in your head of what you want the wine to be. We
chose the location so the fruit would fit that model.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Presqu'ile winemaker Dieter Cronje in the Presquile estate</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">2016 Presqu’ile Winery, Bien
Nacido Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">– The winery’s own, estate grown 2016 Presq’uile
Vineyard came across as typically ultra-fine, almost ethereal, yet notably
forest-floorish in its flowery perfume; but I couldn’t help being even more compelled
by the lavish, multi-faceted yet even keeled qualities of their 2016 Bien
Nacido bottling. It seemed to epitomize what so many other vintners love about
this venerated vineyard – the layering of both red and black fruit, the earthy,
almost Mexican spice notes, the pervasive, love-it-or-leave-it herbiness, and
the faint sensations of meat and loam in the mouth, all arranged within the
context of <a href="https://www.presquilewine.com/">Presqu’ile Winery</a>’s own customary feathery touch.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">So
I asked Presqu'ile winemaker Dieter Cronje how he contrasts the Presqu’ile estate (owned
by the Murphy family) with the Miller family’s <a href="https://thornhillcompanies.com/bien-nacido-estates/">Bien Nacido Vineyard</a>, located
just a few miles apart. Says Cronje: “I always think of Santa Maria Valley as
having a imaginary border that separates the North (where Bien Nacido
is located) and South (Presqu’ile) sides. The South is dominated by sandy soils
and the North has more structured continental deposits. Generally, the North is
also a little warmer than the South, and these conditions typically result in
wines from Bien Nacido to the North being more robust with thicker skins and a
blacker fruit profile, compared to Presqu’ile on the South side.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bien Nacido Vineyard looking westward into Santa Maria Valley</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">Over
the years Cronje has learned to adjust winemaking aesthetics to sites,
particularly in respect to whole cluster fermentation: “On the sandy soils
stems tends to be more ‘green,’ whereas on the heavier, more structured soil at
Bien Nacido the wine tends to produce enough fruit character to balance a whole
cluster profile. 2016 at Bien Nacido was on the warm side, so we felt confident
we could push our whole cluster percentage.” In regards to yeast selection, says
Cronje, “I think that if you want to make true <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i> driven wines, wild yeasts from the vineyard or your winery
is the way to go.” In further pursuit of “interpretation of vineyard,” Cronje
adds, “We have been moving away from new oak little by little and have noticed
that we prefer our wines without much of it.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">In
regards to the “alcohol” and “balance” debates, Cronje comments that he is “lucky
in the sense that how our vineyard ripens and how we like to drink and make our
wines are all on the same road, and not coincidentally this leads to lower
alcohol wines.” Cronje’s instinct to pick sooner for “as much natural acidity
as possible” is also a case of site aligning with preference. “We do not like
to manipulate wines if we don't have to, and the wines that take the least
‘work’ are those that are harvested at slightly lower potential alcohol levels.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPNicoEVwgozdiq3XPr1yPKlQ_257d5Yv95dnEP-0Sy7Yw2lVcg9_uLNm2nii6r35kUGuLG_Crb0DGAilNblsFTHIdUcxbSeu1YFCkjccX4nla54I3pmYmmx4IZRTmri0lK-W1MfVbO8k/s1600/Red+Car%252C+Fort+Ross-Seaview+-+label.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1280" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPNicoEVwgozdiq3XPr1yPKlQ_257d5Yv95dnEP-0Sy7Yw2lVcg9_uLNm2nii6r35kUGuLG_Crb0DGAilNblsFTHIdUcxbSeu1YFCkjccX4nla54I3pmYmmx4IZRTmri0lK-W1MfVbO8k/s400/Red+Car%252C+Fort+Ross-Seaview+-+label.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Red Car Wine Co., Fort Ross-Seaview Estate</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – This wine delivers almost everything you could hope
from a vineyard located at the extreme edge of West Sonoma Coast – average
elevation 1,100-ft., less than 4 miles from the Pacific – which is a seemingly
effortless sense of finesse, or what Aussies describe as “integrated” (I’ve
never figured out why they use that word more often than anyone). The red nose
– red cherry, red licorice, red briary berries – is intense, laser sharp, and
tinged with sweet spice. On the palate, these sensations are revved up by
energetic acidity, watering and titillating the palate, in a sleekly textured
body (just 13.1% alcohol) that feels airy light, nearly ethereal, and not in
any way weak, bony or undernourished.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://redcarwine.com/">Red Car </a>winemaker Tanner Scheer sheds further light by explaining: “2016
is our sixth vintage from this site, and is laden with characteristics we’ve
come to know as hallmarks of the region... perennially aromatic, energetic,
even electric with bright, fresh, tart wild berry fruit and integrated
tannins.” Mind you, I did not share my notes (“energetic,” “integrated,” “wild" or "briary” berry) with Mr. Scheer. Let’s just say the words are an accurate coincidence.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">The extremely dry 2015
vintage, adds Scheer, “was a dismal year for farmers, but absolutely stellar
for winemakers... offering us a level of complexity and depth we had not seen
from our vineyard... a bit darker in color, and more layered, yet entirely
indicative of the region and site.” Accordingly, winemaking at Red Car is
“non-invasive... wines are truly made in the vineyard... we don’t make
‘adjustments’ (pH, TA, alcohol, etc.),” and practices like whole cluster and
oak are applied sparingly as “tools," not rules. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Above all, says Scheer, “we
set out every year to produce wines that scream<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> Western Sonoma County</i> at the top of their lungs, year in and year
out,” rendering concerns over alcohol or ripe fruit levels neither here nor
there. “Not to sound cavalier,” says Scheer, “but we have simply found that the
wines we like to drink, and of course to make, are typically in the lower alcohol
range. Given that we do not adjust acid values, it is imperative for us to pick
at corresponding times, prior to acid degradation in the vineyard. Naturally,
this lends to lower alcohol percentages.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rusack Vineyards' Santa Catalina Island Vineyard</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">2016 Rusack Vineyards, Santa
Catalina Island Vineyard, California</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;"> - It was probably questionable to plant (in 2007)
Pinot noir, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chardonnay">Chardonnay</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinfandel">Zinfandel</a> on the 74-square-mile <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Catalina_Island_(California)">Santa Catalina Island </a>26 miles off
the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_California">Southern California</a> coast, replete with salt crusted sand and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schist">schist</a>, daily
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaufort_scale">gale force</a> winds and a stingy <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winkler_index">Region I/II</a> climate. Nonethess, <a href="https://www.rusack.com/">Rusack</a>’s
irresistibly pretty 2016 is indicative of a positive maturation. The nose is
floral and laser-like in its red fruit (cherry/pomegranate) profile, and the
palate is finished with the winery’s customary sleek, linear, citrus skin
touch.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Shedding some light on the
vineyard’s evolution, winemaker Steven Gerbac tells us: “In 2016 we saw a
decent amount of fog during the growing season, leading to a lighter color and
feel than previous vintages, yet a good balance of weight and acid.” Lower
color called for “longer maceration time to build body and tannins,” and use of
slightly more than normal new French oak (35% in 2016). “The Catalina fruit
doesn’t usually see as much sun as its mainland counterparts,” adds Gerbac, “so
it tends to come off a little more earthy... because of this we haven’t found
the need to do any whole cluster fermentation, as those flavors come from the
actual fruit.” A sense of lightness, however, is perennial, as “Catalina is
definitely a vineyard that does better picked at lower Brix, which also goes
for the Chardonnay and Zinfandel each year.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuZrjlzlOyssDvFiSHmXuGc79rDAnGFi_5gVhjKYKRv-ZfKopFJ8iOnKGJWc14DAmsCu6lDChN5rdYl8NcTX_s0I0auYSG_nqTuxhHnOOoQ49mCq-Lj8xNwaflsy0sthfM0a42bpO03BA/s1600/James+MacPhail%252C+Steve+%2526+Connie+Sangiacomo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuZrjlzlOyssDvFiSHmXuGc79rDAnGFi_5gVhjKYKRv-ZfKopFJ8iOnKGJWc14DAmsCu6lDChN5rdYl8NcTX_s0I0auYSG_nqTuxhHnOOoQ49mCq-Lj8xNwaflsy0sthfM0a42bpO03BA/s400/James+MacPhail%252C+Steve+%2526+Connie+Sangiacomo.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Winemaker James MacPhail (left) with Sangiacomo Family Vineyards' Steve and Connie Sangiacomo</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2016 Sangiacomo Family
Vineyards, Vi Maria, Sonoma Coast</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">An
inaugural release by the <a href="https://www.sangiacomo-vineyards.com/">Sangiacomo Family</a>, who have long farmed over 1,600 acres in the
Petaluma Gap and Sonoma Coast AVAs, and crafted by James MacPhail (formerly of
<a href="https://www.macphailwine.com/">MacPhail Wines</a>, and now winemaker/co-owner of <a href="https://tonguedancerwines.com/">Tongue Dancer Wines</a>). While
making a “power” statement in terms of its pungent, violet tinged black cherry
aroma, with suggestions of rose petal and sweet kitchen spice, the pervasive
character of this wine is its absolute seamlessness; the zippy flavors coming
at you in silken, sumptuous layers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">MacPhail posits his approach
to Pinot in terms of “game time audibles,” telling us: “I am <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> a winemaker by formula... nothing is
set in stone. So when harvesting comes, I look at a number of factors – Brix,
pH, TA, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malic_acid">malic</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeast_assimilable_nitrogen">YAN</a> (i.e. yeast assimilable nitrogen), taste, seeds, skins,
impending weather forecast, harvesting and crew availability, etc. By staying true
to this approach, harvesting becomes more about the vintage and its natural
expression.” Like many experienced Pinot specialists, MacPhail has preferred
protocols, like cold soaks, starting with native yeast ferments, avoiding <a href="https://morewinemaking.com/products/yeast-nutrient-diammonium-phosphate-dap.html">DAP</a>
(diammonium phosphate) or “helpers,” but things like whole cluster depend on
factors such as lignified stems. Says MacPhail, “I have never and will never
add whole cluster just to add whole cluster.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Tackling the “balance”
question, MacPhail errs on the side of “Nature,” telling us: “I have always
argued that you can make very balanced, <i>terroir </i>driven, beautiful wines at
14.5% alcohol. I have never and will never make a wine at 12.5% alcohol <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">just</i> to make a wine at 12.5% alcohol. I
have made a 12.50% alcohol wine (his 2011 MacPhail from Oregon), and it is
still one of my all time favorites to this day – a lot of that because it was
made true to the vintage. I believe in what Mother Nature here in California gives
us, and I want to stay true to that. I enjoy lower alcohol styles just as much
as the next guy, and I too was trained and educated with Old World wines. But I
don’t make them that way just to make them that way because it’s not <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">natural</i> to what we get here in the New
World” – especially if they end up being, as MacPhail puts it, “not be fun to
drink – too green or stemmy.”</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2017 Sante Arcangeli Family
Wines, Split Rail Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – There is a sun-splashed
brightness to a lavish red berry perfume, tinged by woodsy/evergreen notes and
fleshed out in a grippy, zesty acid, medium-full body, clinging to the palate
like a nimble, rippled rock climber.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Although
Split Rail Vineyard is another Corralitos/Pleasant Valley site, it sits further
up a mountain slope, looking down at Monterey Bay, a good thousand feet (1,500
to 1,700-ft. elevation) higher than Lester, Alfaro Family, Christie, Savaria and
other well known vineyards in the south end of Santa Cruz Mountains. The
vineyard’s sandstone and clay soils are vigorous enough to support mammoth
sized redwoods and Madrones surrounding the vineyard, and was originally
planted for <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bruce_Winery">David Bruce</a> to a “David Bruce Selection” (mix of Mt. Eden, Martini, W</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ä</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">denswil and Pommard).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Split Rail Vineyard on a Corralitos/Pleasant Valley mountaintop</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="http://www.santewinery.com/">SanteArcangeli Family</a> winemaker/owner John Benedetti writes: “</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;">If I had to
summarize the ‘Corralitos character,’ in general I’d say red fruit, but with a
clear maritime and redwood forest character. Subtle ‘briny’ notes could be a
good descriptor, but fog is really what I think of when I use that word – the
smell of the fog in a redwood forest.” Benedetti also contrasts Corralitos with
other parts of Santa Cruz Mountains by its ocean influenced, temperate climate:
“Split Rail is kind of on an island of its own, actually above the fog but only 5 miles
from the ocean, and it has a more floral character, with a real mineral backbone.
You tend to see thinner-skinned grapes here. As a result we’re not growing
dark, brooding wines, but rather clean, red berry characteristics— raspberry,
cranberry, and just generally a bright fruit profile.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;">Benedetti employs whole cluster (typically 20% to 30%), but is not
a slave to it. In fact, 2017’s fuller crop and a Labor Day heat spike (hitting 106</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;">°</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;">, extremely unusual for the area) called
for 100% destemming because “sugars (picked between 22.1</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;">°</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;"> and 23.5</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;">°)</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;"> came up faster than usual, before stems showed much
lignification.” The vineyard’s multiple selections – fermented with either <a href="https://morewinemaking.com/products/amh-assmanshaussen-dry-wine-yeast.html">AMH</a>(Assmanhausen) or native yeasts – contribute structural and aromatic nuances,
and although there is plenty of sun and typically a moderate enough climate to
get to 26</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;">°</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;"> Brix and fuller
bodied 15% alcohol wines, says Benedetti, “Corralitos vineyards tend to show
best when shown as fresh, lively wines, and that means lower alcohol (a
relatively restrained 13.5% in the 2017 Split Rail, despite the heat spike)... But
hey, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t absolutely love some Sonoma Coast and
Russian River Pinots that clock in at 14.5%, where more ripeness – and
therefore higher alcohol – tends to showcase the best qualities of that fruit,
in many cases.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvfeITwkCzQBSulVFTp_a9Gp1CYom-mw37FNkqAbs0kBQ4jk2gWzNAcsVW12IIvTzpTWUD67L8gEkqQGcvb1z4ieOTQfIzBT_EeflAULDsLXqQBMyIPOAL3qqrWXSSYXVJ9FXABkyCaxc/s1600/Thomas+Fogarty%252C+La+Vida+Bella+-+bottle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvfeITwkCzQBSulVFTp_a9Gp1CYom-mw37FNkqAbs0kBQ4jk2gWzNAcsVW12IIvTzpTWUD67L8gEkqQGcvb1z4ieOTQfIzBT_EeflAULDsLXqQBMyIPOAL3qqrWXSSYXVJ9FXABkyCaxc/s400/Thomas+Fogarty%252C+La+Vida+Bella+-+bottle.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2016 Thomas Fogarty Winery,
La Vida Bella Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – From another low-lying (about 450-ft.
elevation) vineyard in the appellation’s Corralitos/Pleasant Valley area, a
Pinot marked by an airy, high toned nose punctuated by a cranberry/strawberry/tart
bramble perfume, a whiff of crushed green leaves and flower petals mixed with
brine – these distinctive sensations prickling the palate in a lean, zesty yet
long and silky textured medium body. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://www.fogartywinery.com/">Thomas Fogarty</a> winemaker
Nathan Kandler calls this ocean influenced corner of the appellation “</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">a fascinating piece of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i> puzzle that is Santa Cruz Mountains... It’s a cool region,
but one with relatively small diurnal swings, although truly hot days are
pretty rare. Soils are very deep sandy loam – nearly beach sand in some places
– and well drained, varying in vigor from fertile and strong to barren and
weak... La Vida Bella (located near Lester, Saveria, Christie, Alfaro and other
well known vineyards) is among the best in the area because of its balance of nutrient
holding capacity, which allows it to really display its site specific
characteristics.”<br />
<br />
Adds Kandler, “I often find really pure aromatics and fine grained tannin in wines
grown on sand, and the 2016 La Vida Bella has that in spades. Structurally
the wines from Corralitos are usually a bit lower in acid and tannin that the
fruit we work with up in the mountains, and so we look for a touch more extraction
to compensate. Corralitos fruit has a good amount of hang time due to the long
season, so the tannin is ripe at pretty low maturity.”<br />
<br />
“In the winery we mostly try and do as little as possible since wines from
Corralitos are pretty transparent, and show any winemaker monkey business
pretty easily. Stems can be green and weedy, but as the health of the vineyard
has improved we have gone up to about 35% whole cluster on average. Our
ferments are all native and we use about 20-25% new oak. <br />
<br />
“If you do things right in the vineyard you usually don't have to wait forever
for things to come around, and you can pick at relatively low Brix and make beautifully
pure and intense wines around 12.5-13.5% alcohol. You can certainly make great
Pinot at higher levels of ripeness here, though it isn't easy to maintain that
elusive fresh and lively character. Subsequently, I’ll often have a big range
of ripeness in the varying lots coming into the winery, depending on the clone
and site.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw5AI22c3ru-YR66SbjkXhotPIGI2o4xq_dSarIJCGw8P-JhS_8ioLGeAgTF_k2KQHArTyt2E0bS_1eyZKorzxogNYYiwmVbfbHAFf0RQQSMPuw7Tl05tGyu0w7y9mZCOeaTbaauPzuHE/s1600/Westside+Farms.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw5AI22c3ru-YR66SbjkXhotPIGI2o4xq_dSarIJCGw8P-JhS_8ioLGeAgTF_k2KQHArTyt2E0bS_1eyZKorzxogNYYiwmVbfbHAFf0RQQSMPuw7Tl05tGyu0w7y9mZCOeaTbaauPzuHE/s400/Westside+Farms.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Westside Farms in Russian River Valley's Middle Reach</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2014 Thomas George Estates, Baker Ridge, Russian River
Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – The hearts of Pinot noir
aficionados undoubtedly skip a beat as they drive down Russian River Valley’s
Westside Rd. and see the iconic names (<a href="http://www.rochioliwinery.com/">J. Rochioli</a>, <a href="https://www.williamsselyem.com/">Williams Selyem</a>, Gary
Farrell, <a href="https://bacigalupivineyards.com/">Bacigalupi</a>, etc.) associated with the appellation’s Middle Reach – the
warmest of Russian River Valley’s five “neighborhoods,” but also the source of
the lush, round, full flavored style that originally catapulted the region’s
reputation for the varietal. A blessing as much a curse – at least for regions
like Willamette Valley and <a href="https://www.sbcountywines.com/">Santa Barbara</a>, which took another decade or two to
polish up their own positive perceptions, at least among consumers (as well as
trade and media) who, for the longest time, were more accustomed to the expansive, generous styles of this
Middle Reach.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">In 2008 Tom Baker acquired
the original, venerated <a href="https://www.winespectator.com/webfeature/show/id/Sonoma-Wine-Legend-Davis-Bynum-Dies">Davis Bynum Vineyard</a> in the middle of the neighborhood and immediately
commenced to replanting; and in 2014 the estate (its name changed to Baker
Ridge) seems to be coming into its own: effusive in floral/rose petal and the
cherry/red fruit qualities associated with the neighborhood, mingling with
sweet pine/foresty notes; the lavish fruit character firmly grounded in a firm,
notably zesty, medium-full and layered palate-feel. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><a href="https://www.thomasgeorgeestates.com/">Thomas George</a> winemaker
Nicolas Cantacuzene embraces the “rich texture and fruit expression” that has
become “the essence of Russian River,” but he also believes that “the best
expression of the Baker vineyard is captured when it retains its acidity... We
don’t believe overripe fruit or underripe fruit captures the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i>... the art is finding the sweet
spot between each.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Vineyard maturation has
enhanced those opportunities immensely. Adds Cantacuzene: “Because we have some
fractured shale rocks and gravel soil profile, this provides an interface for
the roots to explore. The more the vines are encouraged to exploit the
soil/rock interface the more resilient they have become, and the more
expressive Baker Ridge has become. Primary fruit characters give way to more
complex flavors, and slow, gentle, long native yeast fermentations help
optimize that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i> in the bottle.”</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wrath winemaker Sabrine Rodems on a typical wind whipped afternoon in San Saba Vineyard</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2016 Wrath Wines, San Saba Vineyard, Monterey County</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – San Saba is <a href="http://www.wrathwines.com/">Wrath</a>’s estate vineyard located inches
outside the eastern edge of the lower bench of Santa Lucia Highlands. The 2016
reflects the growth’s penchant for bringing out primal qualities of the grape –
pungent with spice and red licorice fruit, notably meaty and bristling with the savory and spiced fruit, yet outwardly textured with ultra-fine, lacy layering.<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Remarks Wrath’s cerebral
winemaker, Sabrine Rodems: </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">San Saba Vineyard carries a Monterey AVA, but the soil type and water
are all products of the Santa Lucia benchland above. us with Arroyo Seco sandy
loam and Arroyo Seco gravelly loam being the two primary soil types. The San
Saba Vineyard <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cuv</i></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">e</span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">
comes from older plantings higher on the hill, closest to the bench, which tend
to get richer flavors in the grapes without longer hang times.”<br />
</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">On the
winemaking, Rodems adds: “The San Saba Vineyard represents our first selection
of barrels – the 2016 ended up being 30% Swan, 20% 667, 20% Pommard 4, and 30%
(<a href="http://fps.ucdavis.edu/fgrdetails.cfm?varietyid=1184">FPS</a>/<a href="http://ucanr.edu/sites/intvit/files/24389.pdf">ENTAV-INRA</a>) 828. Because of the dynamics of a barrel selection, this wine
tends to be higher in new French oak (50%), and 20% whole cluster.” Rodems
keeps clones separate, which undergo different trials and experiments
(percentage of whole cluster, early pick, late pick, whole berry, etc), but the goal is fo find "a style that we like that is the best
expression of our vineyard.” That said, Rodems says, “We are a fan of about 20%
whole cluster for added tannin and structure; and when you get big flavors like
we do in our area, the wine can take it.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiDutvx943LLJKrm40o7ZAzxGgK0F8ex7pZrH6KpVizEYwdSiO1LVAxd2I72P4gzocmlOeoIrantWM4lCvulYCNZR46MfbdmqAaVz1yBKubjv9WtllKrg2cU4UxjYwRdSp6hIWpF9QJX4/s1600/San+Saba+Vineyard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiDutvx943LLJKrm40o7ZAzxGgK0F8ex7pZrH6KpVizEYwdSiO1LVAxd2I72P4gzocmlOeoIrantWM4lCvulYCNZR46MfbdmqAaVz1yBKubjv9WtllKrg2cU4UxjYwRdSp6hIWpF9QJX4/s640/San+Saba+Vineyard.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wrath's San Saba Vineyard estate, falling just east of Santa Lucia Highlands in Monterey County</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">
On the question of “balance,” Rodems speaks frankly: “We all talk about
balance – winemakers, consumers, sommeliers – yet I taste so many unbalanced
wines, it is surprising to me. Pinot noirs are often over-oaked, or too much
residual sugar, or too acidic, or overripe. I want a wine that tastes like
fresh fruit with the additional complexities that the stem and oak can support
and work synergistically with the fruit. </span><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">“The
2016 San Saba is 14.3% alcohol, but I think when you are pursuing a
balanced wine that has a depth of flavor, we want to pick in a reasonable Brix
range and get maximum extraction from that fruit instead of relying on long
hang-time and dehydration for density of flavor. After 16 years of making wine
(good lord I feel old!) I rely on my intuition and mouth and use numbers as a
guideline. Ultimately, I want a beginning, a middle and an end in a Pinot noir,
just like a great story!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIumtPMXrfO7x6tL_XU3FRlhoJe-dyGW8ttcper7eaSXcQ8pQJp1cy-RFbASIRlh8LzGXwMAmlv1ApsX1Qx9HuL90vxDHJvgkhA8-0drmiXO7MYhK0e1w5rtYYJfBbPXhQ62ejoGgYuus/s1600/Pinot+noir%252C+Bien+Nacido+Vineyard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1143" data-original-width="1600" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIumtPMXrfO7x6tL_XU3FRlhoJe-dyGW8ttcper7eaSXcQ8pQJp1cy-RFbASIRlh8LzGXwMAmlv1ApsX1Qx9HuL90vxDHJvgkhA8-0drmiXO7MYhK0e1w5rtYYJfBbPXhQ62ejoGgYuus/s400/Pinot+noir%252C+Bien+Nacido+Vineyard.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pinot noir in Santa Maria Valley's Bien Nacido Vineyard</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-53631065268399629152018-03-23T18:13:00.001-06:002018-03-24T06:27:23.456-06:00At the 2018 Petite Masters Panel - Going to a World Wrestling match, ending up at a Bolshoi Ballet<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVa0jrTPql6Nfxi9nHMfCWCgJTYa-oaRvN8tSleo6cfAFZbNoucG8TNvyAUPau5qCB1QBobTLqA9d2NTGQ5IRPub8yQwqoxoYWTtuv8k522LLDV8xgmTrv9YMlodHk5Z_EU2Q0ZSrOezQ/s1600/Petite+Sirah+-+Mettler+Family+-+09-16+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVa0jrTPql6Nfxi9nHMfCWCgJTYa-oaRvN8tSleo6cfAFZbNoucG8TNvyAUPau5qCB1QBobTLqA9d2NTGQ5IRPub8yQwqoxoYWTtuv8k522LLDV8xgmTrv9YMlodHk5Z_EU2Q0ZSrOezQ/s640/Petite+Sirah+-+Mettler+Family+-+09-16+copy.jpg" width="638" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Classic broad shouldered, cylindrical cluster morphology of Petite Sirah</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">California grown <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durif">Petite Sirah (a.k.a. </a></span><span style="font-size: 14.666666984558105px;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durif">Durif)</a></span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> has never
been counted among the world’s “great” red wines; despite an evidently
fanatical fan base, driving steadily growing production (there are now over 1,000
brands of California Petite Sirah, which is well over 10 times more than there
were just 15 years ago).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Yet this also-ran image might change. I
caught at least a glimmer of that at an event called <b>Petite Masters Panel and Walk
Around Tasting</b>, put on by <a href="http://www.psiloveyou.org/">P.S. I Love You </a>– that indefatigable “Petite Sirah
Advocacy Organization” – at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Culinary_Institute_of_America_at_Copia">Culinary Institute of America’s Copia</a> Classroom
this past March 18, 2018.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">But I don’t think even the Petite Sirah
fanatics who attended this sold-out event expected this to happen. When you put
together a winemaker panel/tasting called “Masters,” you expect a presentation
by a group of skilled practitioners of said varietal. As has become the custom
of modern-day California wine culture, it’s all about winemakers, and what they
can do with a grape. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">By the same token, it’s all about a
grape, or its varietal expression. If it sounds like I’m stating the obvious,
it’s probably because you don’t look at wine the exact same way that I do. I
think the grape is important, but just not the most important factor when it
comes to what makes wines interesting. Winemakers, even less so.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjle00rT0l4wyCbqOhpNb762jj3AZZLchQHUj6jG0CX900oYLuxQqAidx-msWyIwDO6iEwYzB18c4grmgjDgP6fnVxTFL7E_ueLpDYdb4_q5PvNdgswpuSwXtmBnqrbklSfaPBEchOAUAg/s1600/Petite+Masters+classroom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjle00rT0l4wyCbqOhpNb762jj3AZZLchQHUj6jG0CX900oYLuxQqAidx-msWyIwDO6iEwYzB18c4grmgjDgP6fnVxTFL7E_ueLpDYdb4_q5PvNdgswpuSwXtmBnqrbklSfaPBEchOAUAg/s400/Petite+Masters+classroom.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Copia Classroom set for Petite Masters Panel (image courtesy of P.S. I Love You)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">True, I was weaned on California wine
as a burgeoning wine professional back in the 1970s. But I was also taught that
it’s all about <i>vineyards</i>, or regions or sub-regions. You know – that quaint old
French (and German, because in the ‘70s German wines were a big deal) notion
that the most defining element of a fine wine is where it’s grown, and the
invariable “sense of place” that the best wines show. Which is why, as a
20-something sommelier, I went through the usual young sommelier motions of
memorizing entire lists of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bordeaux_wine">Bordeaux</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burgundy_wine">Burgundy</a> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cru_(wine)">crus</a></i>, and all the top villages and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_wine_classification#Geographic_classification">einzellage</a></i> in and around the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rheingau_(wine_region)">Rhine</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moselle_wine">Moselle</a>, the same way that I
memorized every word and motion of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_Mass">Latin mass</a> as an altar boy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">When you think of Petite Sirah – even
the best or most bodacious Petite Sirahs – the last thing you think about is
“sense of place.” You don’t whisper the names of top Petite Sirah vineyards
with awe or reverence. Instead, you think of the pleasures of Petite Sirah’s
“varietal character” when stuffed into a bottle: large, densely textured
flavors, and heady aromas of blueberry-ish fruit laced with peppery spice,
preferably with some “smoke-of-oak” – the more oak the better for many Petite
Sirah lovers (my apologies to P.S. I Love You members who may have jumped off
the oak-train some time ago).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">But at the Petite Masters Panel
discussion and tasting, lo and behold all of the sudden there was talk about
the importance of vineyard sources. Maybe it was because the discussion started
off with Tegan Passalacqua of <a href="http://www.turleywinecellars.com/">Turley Wine Cellars</a> – once (granted, 15 to 25
years ago) the paragon of grotesquely oversized Zinfandel, but now the poster
child for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroir</a></i> obsessed <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinfandel">Zinfandel</a> –
who spoke for 10 minutes straight about the history and topography of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napa_Valley_AVA">Napa Valley</a>’s
Hayne Vineyard without once mentioning winemaking techniques, barrel
choices, blending tricks, or any of the usual <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">yada
yada</i> expected out of winemakers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwLZo-ZpkNTSLNlgvqvZ1aIQ10sShvh5fuf8_BBPm0Nie9T69VieHWrSGG4LYhHMlG4ttIUjcD8R-FM3ycU6gUYlWmmZlp4BdgpEHnLhMUIPS5ESSQmAkR413RXcMU53zjdeY2Yk6YnK8/s1600/Petite+Masters+panel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwLZo-ZpkNTSLNlgvqvZ1aIQ10sShvh5fuf8_BBPm0Nie9T69VieHWrSGG4LYhHMlG4ttIUjcD8R-FM3ycU6gUYlWmmZlp4BdgpEHnLhMUIPS5ESSQmAkR413RXcMU53zjdeY2Yk6YnK8/s640/Petite+Masters+panel.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Petite Masters Panel: Tegan Passlacqua, Russell Bevan, Aaron Pott, Tres Goetting and Michael Hirby (image courtesy of P.S. I Love You)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Talk of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i> at a Petite Sirah seminar? That would be like going to a
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWE">World Wrestling</a> match and seeing a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolshoi_Ballet">Bolshoi Ballet</a> instead.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Later, during the question-and-answer
phase of the presentation, Passalacqua came out and explicated exactly what he had
been trying to infer during his previous talk: That Petite Sirah is most
interesting when it expresses “place not process.” And in a not-so-subtle crack
at winemakers with a mania for pushing wines into permutations beyond what
comes natural to a given vineyard for the sake of their craft or art, Passalacqua added: “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Twain">Mark Twain</a> once said '<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">be yourself' is about the worse advice you
can give to some people</i>.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">All the same, the Petite Masters panel
was a harmonious one – a teary lovefest of vintners professing mutual respect, cheered on by sommelier/moderator <a href="http://sawyersomm.com/consulting/about-the-somm">Chris Sawyer</a>.
In fact, Passalacqua’s emotion was largely (not entirely) seconded by the four speakers
who came after him – Russell Bevan (<a href="http://www.chasecellars.com/">CHASE Cellars</a>), Aaron Pott (</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><a href="https://www.comonowines.com/">¿</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;"><a href="https://www.comonowines.com/">ComoNo?</a>), Tres Goetting (<a href="http://biale.com/">Robert Biale Vineyards</a>), and Mike Hirby (<a href="http://www.relicwines.com/">Relic WineCellars</a>) – as well as reinforced by the five different Petite Sirah bottlings
presented as evidence: Each wine (all Napa Valley grown) showing nuanced
distinctions that we just might not have identified as vineyard related
qualities without Passalacqua’s “place-not-process” suggestion.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4PTm-jHM00vvYyXfEwaX9eTFNOBoUAE4jI8t7szWOD-U_OBdsGmhsCbZNdfsFplRw8fQXVZ4mKioutDCCiLEV10VUa5n18JhUY51oSOgLx8zIk46OqZtEGNhJGyGps-8h7qc0d4VXiwE/s1600/2017+Phillips+Farms+Petite+Sirah+harvest+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4PTm-jHM00vvYyXfEwaX9eTFNOBoUAE4jI8t7szWOD-U_OBdsGmhsCbZNdfsFplRw8fQXVZ4mKioutDCCiLEV10VUa5n18JhUY51oSOgLx8zIk46OqZtEGNhJGyGps-8h7qc0d4VXiwE/s640/2017+Phillips+Farms+Petite+Sirah+harvest+copy.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Petite Sirah harvest</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">The five Petite Masters panelists’
wines, in the order presented:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">2014
Turley Wine Cellars, Hayne Vineyard, Napa Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">
– Generously perfumed blueberry nose. On the palate, full body with a sense of
moderation; dense, firm, meaty and rounded tannin pushing the blueberry-focused
profile (virtually oak-free) forward in the front, middle and finish. Commented
Passalacqua, “These Petite Sirah vines were planted by Otty Hayne in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Helena_AVA">St. Helena</a> in 1953 – all
head trained, dry farmed on 10’ by 8’ spacing – and happen to sit in historically
the best soils of Napa Valley, close to <a href="http://www.spottswoode.com/">Spottswoode</a>, <a href="https://www.guildsomm.com/public_content/features/articles/b/stamp/posts/the-true-story-of-to-kalon-vineyard">To Kalon</a> and <a href="https://www.inglenook.com/Story/History">Inglenook</a>
nearby... Petite Sirah ages like a World War II vet – someone who is rough when
he’s young and becomes a delicate old soul as he grows older, when you wouldn't believe he has a tattoo that says ‘killer’ on his arm.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">2016
CHASE Cellars, Barberis Vineyard, Napa Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;"> – Black-purplish
color and aromas of black and blue berries, tinged with smoky coffee spice,
brambly and lavender-like notes – of the five panel wines, the most pronounced
in underlying <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaparral">chaparral</a> sensations. On the palate, big and brawny with
typically “tough” tannin, monolithic feel of the grape, yet sufficiently rounded to give a
chocolaty rich texturing. Bevan added: “This wine is grown in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calistoga_AVA">Calistoga</a>, on
heavy clay... Our goal was to produce a wine that is balanced and seductive...
the CHASE is the only wine that doesn’t use new oak, although I thought all the
wines presented by the panel have a femininity, and high level of execution of
winemaking by winemakers who stand out of the way to allow real site
expression... as a winemaker, your job is to remove your narcissism, and let
the site be the queen, the rock star.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">2013
</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">¿</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Como No?, Napa Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">
– A little more sweetly ripened blueberry nose with smoky oak tones; somewhat
lean, lanky, svelte feel to its otherwise burly body, with both a tart edge and
customary “wall of tannin” bolstering the varietal profile. In his remarks,
Pott affectionately described owner/grower Carl Doumani (former owner of <a href="https://www.stagsleap.com/">Stags' Leap Winery</a>, where he kept the varietal home fires burning with his
still-legendary “Petite Syrah” bottliings) as a “sneaky Lebanese” and “<i>bon
vivant</i>.” The 2-acre <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stags_Leap_District_AVA">Stags Leap District</a> </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">¿</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Como
No? vineyard – just adjacent to <a href="http://shafervineyards.com/">Shafer</a>’s Hillside Select Vineyards – is
described as sitting on “very unusual volcanic hillsides, with rocks ranging in
size from boulders to pea size stones... it can get very cold and very hot,
with great diurnal shifts.” In the winery, Pott says:</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> “We add no sulfur dioxide or yeast and only use a
small cocktail of organic nutrients to assist the fermentation... Wines are
left on skins for up to 80 days.... drained directly to barrels warm, 33% new,
all French.”</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">2015
Robert Biale Vineyards, Royal Punishers, Napa Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">
– Properly black-purplish color, and sweet berry aroma marked by a tight
minerally/stony quality. Full, firm, tight and zesty sensations on the palate;
the meaty fruit qualities finishing with unruly, youthful stinginess. Asserts
Goetting, “I believe in ‘process,’ but process as a way to best show a
‘place’... </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The Royal Punishers is grown in the Carpy Conolly Ranch in
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutherford_AVA">Rutherford</a>; in deep, rich, heavy, fertile soils – we get strong tannins, which
are also soft, like a ‘kitten’... </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Because
the soils are so heavy and deep at this site, the vines are vigorous, so I drop
the shoulders off of each cluster just before bunch closure, do a little fruit
thinning of any excessive clusters, plus some morning-side leafing and a final
drop of green or lagging clusters after <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veraison">veraison</a></i>... This really helps balance
fruit load and concentrate flavors.” In the winery, Goetting says, “I will
co-ferment with as many as 8 different varieties,” although he did not clarify with any specifics in this particular Royal Punishers. He adds, “I use a
commercial yeast strain that is conducive to slower and cooler fermentations,
and do cap punch-downs three times per day at peak of ferment... I then go to
35% new French Burgundy barrels.” Goetting opines, “Winemakers need to be aware
and sensitive to the characters of a vineyard and not get in the way of these
characters by fermenting at too high of a temperature, using aggressive yeast
strains, over-extracting tannin, using too much new oak, etc.,” while
describing the “soft and plush mouth-feel and lovely minerality” of Royal
Punishers as the results of allowing the “wine to speak of where it was grown.”</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Relic Wine Cellars, Old Vine, Napa Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – Vivid purplish color and sweet toned fruit tinged
with toasted almond/walnut notes, distinct from any other Petite Sirah tasted that
day. Youthfully tight, dense, sweet toned, with muscular tannin and good acid
balance (also the zestiest of the day). Hirby’s comments: “The vineyard is
located in the Calistoga region, at the end of Pickett Rd., adjacent to the <a href="http://eiselevineyard.com/">Eisele</a>
and <a href="http://vinous.com/articles/old-vines-deep-roots-calistoga-s-frediani-family-mar-2016">Alfred Frediani</a> vineyards... The old vines were planted by the family in
1939 as a mix of Petite Sirah along with some <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamay">Gamay</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carignan">Carignan</a> and other
grapes... The soils are some of the youngest in Napa Valley, consisting of
decomposed volcanic rocks and stones, and so the vines, though 75 years old,
still look ‘young,’ with smaller trunks... We do ‘nothing’ to the vineyard
except for good pruning, and my ‘process’ is very simple – f</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">ermentation with a native,
complex yeast community (half in French oak <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_wine_cask_units#puncheon">puncheons</a>), no acid or water
additions, native <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malolactic_fermentation">ML</a> in barrel (50% new), bottling unfiltered... If anything, wines
from this site have a regional typicity that supercedes varietal character to a
certain extent... I think of it like warm-sand-oak trees-on-a-hot-day kind of
aroma.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO61Bv7rzdmPYswgvghtnBpfZ2EfZyUO4oPO9bX1TmOqZhOPXUQuaajsXMmBHOn1OTKorKH92IpRhvEA-A5c2Wrhpr6GVwyM2Yjov6UhviTYw9hsRDyMuD1tvKc39_aGgJlibRfEIMBMs/s1600/Tegan+Passalacqua.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="367" data-original-width="550" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO61Bv7rzdmPYswgvghtnBpfZ2EfZyUO4oPO9bX1TmOqZhOPXUQuaajsXMmBHOn1OTKorKH92IpRhvEA-A5c2Wrhpr6GVwyM2Yjov6UhviTYw9hsRDyMuD1tvKc39_aGgJlibRfEIMBMs/s640/Tegan+Passalacqua.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tegan Passalacqua</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Additional
notes on some of my favorite Petite Sirahs tasted during the walk-around
tasting following the panel discussion at Copia (in alphabetical order):<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2012 Arat</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">á</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">s, Napa Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – Kudos to this winery for daring to specialize exclusively in Petite
Sirah, and to Founder Stephanie Douglas for being the primary organizer of this
Petite Masters panel and tasting. This bottling, coming from Douglas’ <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oak_Knoll_District_of_Napa_Valley_AVA">Oak Knoll District</a> estate, is a focused, balanced rendering of the varietal; zesty with acidity
and moderate (for Petite Sirah, at 14.5% alcohol) in weight; native
yeast/unfiltered protocols playing up a floral, perfumey profile.<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2015 Robert Biale Vineyards, Palisades
Vineyard, Calistoga, Napa Valley </b>- Sweet, plummy, almost <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoisin">hoisin</a>-like exotic, ripe
fruit aroma with dusty earth and a smack of old leather; rich sensations
nothwithstanding dense tannin thickening the meaty, plummy fruit qualities. Additional thanks to Robert Biale Vineyards co-owner Dave Pramuk for his hand in organizing the Petite Masters Panel.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(image courtesy of P.S. I Love You)</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014 Stags' Leap Winery, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ne Cede Malis</i>, Napa Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – From the<a href="https://www.stagsleap.com/"> Stags' Leap</a> estate’s 5-acre
old vine (planted 1929) block in the Stags Leap District; a field crush consisting of 85% Petite Sirah
with Carignan, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mourv%C3%A8dre">Mourv</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mourv%C3%A8dre">èdre</a>,
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grenache">Grenache</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peloursin">Peloursin</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrah">Syrah</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viognier">Viognier</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauvignon_blanc">Sauvignon Blanc</a>, a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscat">Muscat</a> variant, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marsanne">Marsanne</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roussanne">Roussanne</a>, and possibly more. Focused, concentrated nose of black and blue fruits with a touch of
violet and twist of pepper and oak spice; densely textured, savory feel, big
yet laudably even keeled from start to finish.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Tres Sabores, Guarino Vineyard, Calistoga, Napa
Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"> – Super-cracked peppercorn nose (easily wins "Most Peppery Petite Sirah of the Day" award) infused in ripe black and blue varietal fruit qualities;
medium-full, firming (not excessive) tannin, and a zesty feel giving a good
lift to the bright, jumpy, ultra-spiced fruit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(image courtesy of P.S. I Love You)</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">2015 Turley Wine Cellars, Pesenti Vineyard, Paso
Robles</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> – Purplish black
color; extremely spicy (nostril tingling peppercorn), smoky, flowery laser beam nose;
full, meaty, tightly woven and layered; firm tannins carrying, rather than
overwhelming, the velvety, spiced/floral sensations.</span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">2015
Turley Wine Cellars, Rattlesnake Ridge, Howell Mountain, Napa Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;">
– Black fruit also falling on the more floral/violet side of the varietal
profile, tinged by distinctly scrubby forest floor/wild chaparral-like notes.
Thick, juicy, compact, layered feel to earth toned, floral fruit sensations.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Turley Wine Cellars' Pesenti Vineyard, Paso Robles</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-87993434381585123712018-03-13T19:00:00.001-06:002018-05-09T11:49:32.144-06:00Getting down to seeds and stems at 2018 World of Pinot Noir<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adelaida's original HMR Pinot noir block planted in 1964 (now part of Adelaida District-Paso Robles)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It was not surprising to find, at the <b>2018 <a href="http://www.worldofpinotnoir.com/event/">World of Pinot Noir</a> </b>in Santa
Barbara this past March 2-3, that American Pinot noirs are more impressive than
ever. 15, 20 years ago, I would attend a 2-day event like this (such as the
<a href="https://ipnc.org/">IPNC</a> in McMinnville, OR), taste about 100 wines (about as much as I can before
my tongue goes numb), and find maybe a dozen Pinot noirs that would knock my
sox off. This year I found over 40 of them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Knock your sox off,” of course, is open to interpretation. Personally,
I look for expression of place; which is why I was just as wowed by a lacy,
mildly herby 2015 Presqu’ile estate bottling and a twiggy and reticent 2015
Adelaida HMR as I was by a lavishly aromatic 2015 Brewer-Clifton Machado and a deep, dark, brazenly “powerhouse” style 2015 Merry Edwards Meredith
Estate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We are all seduced by intensity (myself included). For many of our
better Pinot noirs, intensity certainly does not preclude balance and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroir</a></i> related integrity. But the glass-half-full
side of me likes to think that sheer intensity is no longer the overriding
means of measuring our “best” wines. When you think of it, Pinot noirs are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">supposed</i> to be fine and delicate – not
“bigger” than thou. Yet the concept that the more aromatic and flavorful Pinot
noir is not necessarily the better one still runs counter-intuitive in most
critics’ minds (and that’s the sour, tulip-half-filled side of me). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8I-BkZLjiT8qdyVlXkNBon_pkqbjz_Ju-sIxtIRG4TLyJbcS5H5bZnv34BeSX0jC2tVyAlrAU1BT8TkgC21AOgSiy-mcHO_d2yuaTjZb6GeTQpBkVuKEdr5JtIrwM70sjpq4_1MC3zFU/s1600/Pinot+clusters%252C+Russian+River+Vineyards%2527+Appian+Way+Vineyard%252C+Middle+Reach+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1281" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8I-BkZLjiT8qdyVlXkNBon_pkqbjz_Ju-sIxtIRG4TLyJbcS5H5bZnv34BeSX0jC2tVyAlrAU1BT8TkgC21AOgSiy-mcHO_d2yuaTjZb6GeTQpBkVuKEdr5JtIrwM70sjpq4_1MC3zFU/s400/Pinot+clusters%252C+Russian+River+Vineyards%2527+Appian+Way+Vineyard%252C+Middle+Reach+copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pinot noir in Russian River Valley's Middle Reach neighborhood</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The difficulty is that a preference for Pinots that prioritize
fidelity to regions, sub-regions, vineyards or individual blocks of vineyards over intensity requires a democratic attitude towards regions and vineyards. Put it this way:
Is La T</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">â</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">che always better than
Musigny, or a Clos de B</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">è</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">ze or Bonnes Mares? Of
course not. La T</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">â</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">che is La T</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">â</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">che, and the same for Musigny, Clos de B</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">è</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">ze and Bonnes Mares; which also goes for Bien Nacido
in Santa Maria Valley, Fiddlestix in Sta. Rita Hills, Pisoni in Santa Lucia
Highlands, Valenti in Mendocino Ridge, or Shea in Yamhill-Carlton. If we can
make that jump in logic for <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burgundy_wine">Burgundy</a>, we can damn well make it for California and
Oregon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Looking back to when I started my wine career (in 1978), I can say that
there has never been a lack of intensity in fruit, not to mention oak, in post-Mondavi
era American Pinot noirs – particularly those grown in California. I remember
sitting down to a blind tasting around 1980 and being bowled over by ‘76s and ‘77s
by producers like Chalone, Sanford & Benedict and Hoffman Mountain Ranch
(a.k.a. HMR); finding them every bit as intense as ‘76s by DRC’s La T</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">â</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">che and Joseph Drouhin’s Charmes-Chambertin, also in
that tasting. The issue, of course, was that we were evaluating a La T</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">â</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">che and Charmes-Chambertin in the context of a blind
tasting, which led to the tendency to evaluate them in terms of “varietal”
rather than <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i> expression. It
was a great learning experience, but also a stupid way to evaluate wines at that level.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Although it’s never fair to compare wines that now exist in memory (it
would be like asking how a prime-time Oscar Robertson would stack up against a Michael
Jordan or Steph Curry in a game), I would still venture to say that, by today’s
standards, those mid-‘70s Chalones, Sanford & Benedicts and HMRs – however
phenomenal they may have been at the time – would probably come across as
relatively coarse and overly oaked if compared to the plethora of our finer
Pinot noirs today (although I distinctly remember most Burgundian<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> grand</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">premier crus</i> as also being over-oaked during the ‘70s – clearly a
fashion of the times).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAeI2LPXB8TA62mGfoZgTap0Vy8eZaaAXw4NjS0O3Jp68P5F5QDQVY_dfSXORKblGxZZomDZUtnxmsI6hNEdA5ldAdjsVSHEZE8FTWTpsfqtDEWhZ6zOlW_ueiyxxTZIb-jbOQNlx-qZs/s1600/Sanford+%2526+Benedict+label.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1252" data-original-width="1600" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAeI2LPXB8TA62mGfoZgTap0Vy8eZaaAXw4NjS0O3Jp68P5F5QDQVY_dfSXORKblGxZZomDZUtnxmsI6hNEdA5ldAdjsVSHEZE8FTWTpsfqtDEWhZ6zOlW_ueiyxxTZIb-jbOQNlx-qZs/s400/Sanford+%2526+Benedict+label.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From the author's late '70s label collection</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">These
days, we are long past the late, great Andre Tchelistcheff’s conjecture, during
the early ‘70s, that </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Pinot noir is scrawny and broods
about the slightest offense... all the challenge is getting the surly child to
smile." I was just rereading, for the nth time, the chapter in Robert Benson’s
1977 book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Great-Winemakers-California-Conversations-Interviews/dp/0884961079">Great Winemakers of California</a>, where Tchelistcheff is quoted to say
that California possesses the climate but probably not the requisite soil to
grow “great” Pinot noir. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Tchelistcheff, in fact, seemed to think
that most of the “acceptable” American Pinot noirs up until that time occurred
almost as a byproduct of vintage related “accident.” Nonetheless, he was
finding a glimmer of hope in a few patches in Paso Robles (the HMR site, as it
were), Santa Ynez Valley (at that time Tchelistcheff was consulting with
Firestone, whose plantings were located in the warmer hills east of present-day
Sta. Rita Hills), near Forestville (specifically Joseph Swan's orginal Pinot noir plantings, now called Trenton Estate), atop Chalone, and of all places, in Dry Creek
Valley.</span><br />
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPp_fs36NbgMTvf0A1-dtHJLBGukqEn1NRF-JHKlvQTu1tTEj3yJOqpvCkq-EQbq_VTqNO6Ov-rUYqmm-ApLaslKUa4BbXdi78DDfeiZr3wnQzs57WXhx9WcnXTbBtMewSG38Hml-IUXU/s1600/1982+-+RC%252C+Andre+Tchelistcheff+1982.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="651" data-original-width="813" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPp_fs36NbgMTvf0A1-dtHJLBGukqEn1NRF-JHKlvQTu1tTEj3yJOqpvCkq-EQbq_VTqNO6Ov-rUYqmm-ApLaslKUa4BbXdi78DDfeiZr3wnQzs57WXhx9WcnXTbBtMewSG38Hml-IUXU/s400/1982+-+RC%252C+Andre+Tchelistcheff+1982.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The author in 1982 with mentor Andre Tchelistcheff</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Frankly, 40 to 50 years ago even the
most prescient American <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">vignerons</i>
could not conceive of Pinot noir grown in more extreme <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroirs</i>; such as the Sebastopol Hills, Fort Ross-Seaview or the
Petaluma Gap, let alone McMinnville, the Deep End of Anderson Valley, Monterey’s
Santa Lucia Highlands, Santa Maria Valley’s Solomon Hills, or in clearings
carved out of forests in Mendocino Ridge or Santa Cruz Mountains – although
there was definitely pioneering work going on in these areas between the mid-‘70s
and mid-‘80s.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What has dramatically transformed
American Pinot noir is precisely that: There are now established growing regions even colder than what Tchelistcheff anticipated (evolution of viticultural technique having a lot to
do with making that possible); suitable to the grape in a good variety of soils
and topographies, rendering the importance of Burgundian type soil obsolete
(having had the privilege of conversing with Tchelistcheff on several occasions,
I can almost feel his hand slapping me across the face for suggesting that).</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia4knkUNlMJMXRT3ZXTvjE7OTjE_7Y8jD7-0P7XHATcrpELQ8MiUIUrc0C9Fo2Gz8AxdxkFeAYVx2y70M9lc5uubgiViNWaIK6fj9t9Qrfk-vdENLGaFZOgm3QvtKjzYL3ENZeqcLI1AE/s1600/Garys%2527%252C+Pinot+cluster%252C+veraison.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia4knkUNlMJMXRT3ZXTvjE7OTjE_7Y8jD7-0P7XHATcrpELQ8MiUIUrc0C9Fo2Gz8AxdxkFeAYVx2y70M9lc5uubgiViNWaIK6fj9t9Qrfk-vdENLGaFZOgm3QvtKjzYL3ENZeqcLI1AE/s400/Garys%2527%252C+Pinot+cluster%252C+veraison.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pinot Noir during veraison in Garys' Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands</td></tr>
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<h2>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Stems and Stylistic Juncture</span></b></h2>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Two things that stuck out for me in terms of overall impressions of the
wines at the 2018 World of Pinot Noir:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: .25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">A modest movement towards more phenolic structuring; somewhat more
apparent as Pinot specialists as a whole continue their recent movement away
from obvious oak, less sweet fruit ripeness, fresher acidity, and avoidance of
excess alcohol (no mean feat, considering the recent spate of warm, drought
influenced vintages).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">More individual vineyard expression, notwithstanding the usual
commercial pressure to produce wines meeting broader regional or varietal
expectations.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">How
much of this is related to vintage factors (mostly 2015s shown at the 2018
WOPN, although some wineries were showing 2016s or vintages as far back as
2013) and how much to winemaker or grower choices, I don’t know. For
perspective, I asked a few vintners – beginning with Merry Edwards, for the
obvious reason that her Pinots tend to be markedly deeper in color (although
few winemakers achieve as much <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">round</i> tannin
qualities as Edwards) than the vast majority of wines shown at recent WOPNs. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKuTyk195GF-KBWe8KMEuWD4qQRo8u1xLqLztnFBs1D6Bj6NnYyqLCJd6mAtVe1FkUZrJJJ0HTAtdS8rXuSYiIGtDZ5SrYzrc3cJEoYpyXA-6CH7AtqOyib6vHNLZluggYkzS5U1cEvCU/s1600/Merry+Edwards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="889" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKuTyk195GF-KBWe8KMEuWD4qQRo8u1xLqLztnFBs1D6Bj6NnYyqLCJd6mAtVe1FkUZrJJJ0HTAtdS8rXuSYiIGtDZ5SrYzrc3cJEoYpyXA-6CH7AtqOyib6vHNLZluggYkzS5U1cEvCU/s400/Merry+Edwards.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Merry Edwards (photo courtesy of Merry Edwards Winery)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">According to Edwards:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">Once
I planted Meredith Estate (her estate grown vineyard in Russian River Valley’s
Sebastopol Hills), I realized that there was no way I could make the kind of
Pinots I wanted to create without growing my own fruit... the best wines in the
world are grown, not made...The number of passes we make in order to achieve
this is about 10 each year – an expensive process... Water deficit irrigation
is another necessary component of this.</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">The
goal in all of this careful farming is to increase the amount of phenolic
material (tannins and color) at harvest. Not only is Pinot Noir genetically
deficient in phenolic material compared to other red grape varietals, but it
tends to shed tannin during the winemaking process. Holding onto the phenolic
material in the harvested fruit is what gives us the color and tannin to create
textural depth. We have developed our own in-house phenolic lab so that we can
track and maximize this material in the field and throughout winemaking and
aging.</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">For
a wine like Olivet Lane – at 45 years, one of the oldest blocks in Russian River
Valley – I also use whole stems in the fermentor to augment the tannin, along
with 80% new French oak... I have been making wines from this vineyard since
the mid-1980s, and so I have had lots of time to figure out how bring out the
best qualities of this site.</span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAJyDVHOYWUOvKCSg9GshWhyXobCR-x1dYbWdWyPLZ-WvajUGvnpEa9RSbYfa_aOAUkYtaiRWDiChDzaEw47_mGXIM9SYWQskoXnEKtwc8TTJU3gHZXyTvJiZ27Ss-Du1Ghrgf_hPh8wM/s1600/Gary%2527s+Vineyard+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAJyDVHOYWUOvKCSg9GshWhyXobCR-x1dYbWdWyPLZ-WvajUGvnpEa9RSbYfa_aOAUkYtaiRWDiChDzaEw47_mGXIM9SYWQskoXnEKtwc8TTJU3gHZXyTvJiZ27Ss-Du1Ghrgf_hPh8wM/s640/Gary%2527s+Vineyard+.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Garys' Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yet Edwards seems to be among a shrinking minority in her willingness
to push the envelope with high percentages of whole cluster fermentation and
new French oak. I asked Jeff Pisoni, for instance, about his 2015 Lucia Garys’
Vineyard – which seemed so deep, concentrated, and compact in its black cherry
profile, it could have almost passed for a more feminine style of Merlot (an
analogy, not an insult) – and he responded:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I love the use of stems in
whole cluster, or at least controlled amounts of it, but we didn’t use any in
2016 – it was a drought year, which brought out a lot more tannin in the fruit...
In the 2015 Garys’, there was only around 5% whole cluster... Of all our wines,
Garys’ usually receives the least amount of whole cluster, since the vineyard
itself is higher in clay and less rocky, and the wines are </span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">usually
richer, more fruit-dominated and juicier, as it is.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In recent years it has been almost par for Thomas Fogarty Winery &
Vineyards to produce some of the most aromatically sumptuous yet savory, lip
smacking Pinot noirs in the state; and over the 2018 WOPN weekend, this Santa
Cruz Mountains producer’s 2016 Windy Hill and 2016 Rapley Trail bottlings were
true to form. According to winemaker Nathan Kandler:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We used 50% whole cluster in
the 2016 Windy Hill, and 40% in the Rapley Trail. Why? Because stems enhance
character and site expression, which is our objective. We </span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">want<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> our wines to taste as much like the vineyard as possible. And besides,
the soil in Windy Hill is so rocky, the tannin can sometimes be deficient, and
so you want a little more stem inclusion. Rapley, on the other hand, has the
most tannic structure, and so we’ll hold off a little bit on the stem
inclusion.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikH4KKDtgTe6MqAoC24XLrvh1cmsjAn4DzprJGJV1mOcF8J72pNYPhH0jWthy4ULUpRZF-zuonVsrXUjVbPtX1Os0rZErtqwe47xpcqgM7aefCNktAXxkkw_n_73T54YqcGQid3jQnpgQ/s1600/Nathan+Kandler%252C+barrels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1023" data-original-width="1280" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikH4KKDtgTe6MqAoC24XLrvh1cmsjAn4DzprJGJV1mOcF8J72pNYPhH0jWthy4ULUpRZF-zuonVsrXUjVbPtX1Os0rZErtqwe47xpcqgM7aefCNktAXxkkw_n_73T54YqcGQid3jQnpgQ/s400/Nathan+Kandler%252C+barrels.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thomas Fogarty Winery's Nathan Kandler</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Ancien Wines
winemaker/owner Ken Bernards has been known to produce some of the state’s more
deeply extracted Pinot noirs; although his 2014 Red Dog Vineyard, beautifully
articulate of Sonoma Mountain, was definitely on the leaner, lighter, acid
driven style. According to Bernards: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Whole cluster in the 10% range is all that’s necessary
to achieve a subtle layer of structure/spice, since the fruit supplies the
aromatics so well... I really am not looking for aromatic lift or layering from
the stem addition.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Rusack Vineyards
winemaker Steven Gerbac – who is among those who eschew stem inclusion these
days (without being a missionary about it) – speculates, on good rationale:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-add-space: auto;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">I’m not exactly
sure what is driving the trend towards whole cluster fermentation, but my guess
is that it may also related to the trend of picking earlier. I know some
winemakers have been picking really early, and I can see how some whole cluster
would help to add some complexity to the wines. </span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiabsPE_dZdt_V4z1FTBcudW0edy66Qk-KSvF4jrv8LIdSYF12j92ggYzW6Inoop7VIadqf0-QoY3v3_OYil0tiSc0NnNzb2lvTvOYKMwFukLLd9xrSPSp030wMoDzGNaa_s6tGT4iHz3E/s1600/Pinot+Noir+clusters%252C+Tondre+Grapefield.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiabsPE_dZdt_V4z1FTBcudW0edy66Qk-KSvF4jrv8LIdSYF12j92ggYzW6Inoop7VIadqf0-QoY3v3_OYil0tiSc0NnNzb2lvTvOYKMwFukLLd9xrSPSp030wMoDzGNaa_s6tGT4iHz3E/s400/Pinot+Noir+clusters%252C+Tondre+Grapefield.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pinot noir clusters in Tondre Grapefield, Santa Lucia Highlands</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">To Gerbac’s point, relating the trend towards stem inclusion to earlier
picking in order to achieve more transparency and fewer winery adjustments: According
to Big Basin Vineyards owner/winemaker Bradley Brown – producing some of the
more structurally lower key Pinots in the state – this is definitely a favorable
movement. As Brown sees it:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-add-space: auto;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I am always amazed at the dominance of the “riper” style of California
Pinot noir at WOPN. Beyond a handful of producers (and not necessarily from
Oregon either, these days), and those from Burgundy, it was always hard for me
to find wines in the old world ethos of Pinot making. I feel strongly that </span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">terroir <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is more emphatically expressed in Pinot when the fruit is picked at the
peak of aromatic complexity, </i>and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">made
without substantial manipulation in the winery.</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-add-space: auto;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As you know, picking late necessitates manipulation in that water is
usually added and acid almost always added to bring the wine back into balance.
I had an interesting conversation with Nico Cueva (winemaker at Kosta Browne
Winery) about his evolution in winemaking, and his feeling is that the older
style of winemaking produced wines that are hard to differentiate, while the shift to earlier picking and hands-off winemaking are producing wines with far
more character and nuance.</span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-add-space: auto;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As for whole cluster (used in proportions of 50% to 100% by Brown)...
the bottom line on stems is that they add dense, fine tannin, which adds body
and structure to the wine, especially at it ages. Over time, it becomes fully
integrated into the wine, and identifiable stem phenolics disappear.</span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></i></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinIgLJtDbd9qqQp-kSg-khNbO9oAgiv3rP7OhJls6LJipnV_ys95ToQuGSeZQFSL83n1boa6xJWH72wBec_OY1OT20TrJz8kIaMPf-BTYP2f88lzjOXs_CCK5V1ZIWxA0eJGWPHuC6vXU/s1600/Bradley+Brown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1280" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinIgLJtDbd9qqQp-kSg-khNbO9oAgiv3rP7OhJls6LJipnV_ys95ToQuGSeZQFSL83n1boa6xJWH72wBec_OY1OT20TrJz8kIaMPf-BTYP2f88lzjOXs_CCK5V1ZIWxA0eJGWPHuC6vXU/s400/Bradley+Brown.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Big Basin Vineyards' Bradley Brown</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For the same reason that Bradley gives, Fiddlehead Cellars’ Kathy
Joseph – certainly one of our contemporary icons – has gone the opposite
direction; telling us:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">At the 2018 WOPN you could see the trend towards very
lean wines where the use more stems was pretty obvious and pretty powerful. I
always like to ask, why do you do whole cluster and why do you add stems? Stems
can help retain color, and can add body. If your color is shy, perhaps the
anthocyanins are not yet ripe (picking too early?). I think, in moderation,
stems are smart if they add a supplemental nuance and more importantly balance
to a wine. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Yet </span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">t</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">erroir<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> is most
obvious when there is the least amount of intervention; and everything we do
should result in a delicious, well-balanced wine. The joy of Fiddlestix
Vineyard is the intensity of character in the wine by doing very little to the
wine. So I ask myself, why add stems when I need no color stability and
when the textural balance ages so gracefully? I am a big believer in
testing an idea to determine if it’s a good one... (but) with the advent of
tank presses and more gentle destemmers, we have had an opportunity to challenge the need for stems... Over the past 20 years, I have systematically seen
stem aromatics over-shadow appellation aromatics, and mask </i>terroir<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">, so I have opted out of their usage, although
this is not a universal statement about stems.</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">While 30% to 40%
whole cluster fermentation has been just about par for recent releases of C</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ô</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">ti</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">è</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">re Pinot Noirs – consistently
among the most understated in the industry – C</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ô</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">ti</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">è</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">re’s
Kevin Law tells us: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">I have personally backed off of it in all my wines (Pinot
noir as well as Grenache and Syrah) the past two vintages (2017 and 2017)... I
guess that, recently, I have been trying to rediscover the vineyards I work
with... It is nice enjoying the pure interpretation of a vineyard through 100%
destemmed fruit.”</span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-add-space: auto;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsATkCoi7t4YAe0mVHmhZ2ZcBIWjjDuHGXHozKVS7n7O_qISTWJ5jmdMLf74d86z5x5Plogx9vT1KQjqVhNhPJ4SF5StbFks7QUwRHkaMjfKl17bQFdZ3sW0TiiyMHyDH7uA3i48kwlpo/s1600/Apex+Vineyard+-+view+of+Salinas+Valley+%2526+Gabilan+Mts.+in+backdrop_preview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsATkCoi7t4YAe0mVHmhZ2ZcBIWjjDuHGXHozKVS7n7O_qISTWJ5jmdMLf74d86z5x5Plogx9vT1KQjqVhNhPJ4SF5StbFks7QUwRHkaMjfKl17bQFdZ3sW0TiiyMHyDH7uA3i48kwlpo/s640/Apex+Vineyard+-+view+of+Salinas+Valley+%2526+Gabilan+Mts.+in+backdrop_preview.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of Salinas Valley and the Pinnacles, looking eastward from Santa Lucia Highlands</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Still, among the most impressive wines of the weekend were the 2015s of Wrath Wines – particularly the single-vineyard bottlings from the Boekenoogen, McIntyre and <span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11pt;">Tondr</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11pt;">é</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11pt;"> Grapefield vineyards</span> in Santa Lucia Highlands, and from their San Saba estate in Monterey – each bottling, in its own way, extravagantly scented, with a high toned tension of tannin and acid without sacrificing one iota of classic Pinot delicacy. </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">According to Wrath winemaker Sabrine Rodems:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; mso-add-space: auto;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">I tasted some high tannin wines at WOPN, but I am not sure if the ones
that were extreme anomalies to me were due to whole cluster. I’m more inclined
to think they were site driven... Most of the winemakers I know using whole
cluster are doing it because their fruit does not tend to be tannic at all. We
are pumping over all our reds, and we still cannot get any great perceptible
levels of tannin in our Pinots, which is why we started adding whole cluster.
Our baseline for all our reds is 20%, and then we also do some experimental
lots at higher whole cluster as well; as in Wrath Ex Vite, which is 100% whole
cluster, yet doesn’t show tannin as a singular component, but as more of an
integrated structural component. <br />
<br />But without sounding pedestrian or like an ass, it really is </span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">all<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> about balance.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><br /></i></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhujcBRBxPEQ9oZ40KbiiFV3I1DaXt_8aAiUXcf0tG_ihJu5sk9t66GkMMEtlFnlznK7r8TgtN7yvjYSZA5gffc8DrMPeAxJeBvCUiwxKP_fPUfezuSGmx1n_pGJ8Jj6rx_cA-rSrbQx5I/s1600/Pisoni+Estate+-+Pinot+Playland+sign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhujcBRBxPEQ9oZ40KbiiFV3I1DaXt_8aAiUXcf0tG_ihJu5sk9t66GkMMEtlFnlznK7r8TgtN7yvjYSZA5gffc8DrMPeAxJeBvCUiwxKP_fPUfezuSGmx1n_pGJ8Jj6rx_cA-rSrbQx5I/s400/Pisoni+Estate+-+Pinot+Playland+sign.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playful sign in Pisoni Vineyard</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><br /></i></span></div>
<h2>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Notes from 2018 World of Pinot Noir</b></h2>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">That said, my favorite wines (in alphabetical order) from the 2018
World of Pinot Noir, along with whatever comments I have been able to gather from
the respective producers:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Adelaida Vineyards &
Winery, HMR Estate, Adelaida District-Paso Robles </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">– This wine’s sensory
interest lies in its pretty, flowery, white pepper/cooking spiced, long,
feminine, fine and silken qualities. The intellectual wow is the fact that 22
of the HMR Estate’s 34 acres of Pinot noir (most likely a Martini selection)
were planted in 1964 – making it one of the oldest continuously farmed
plantings in the U.S. (for the record: Hanzell still cultivates a small block
of Pinot noir planted in 1953; Van Der Kamp Vineyard’s oldest vines on Sonoma
Mountain are vaguely given as “early ‘60s”; The Eyrie Vineyards still produces
an “Original Vines” Pinot noir from vines planted in 1965; whereas the original
blocks at Chalone and Martin Ray’s Mount Eden Vineyard have been replanted over
the past 21 years). Although Pinot noir has never been Paso Robles’ calling
card (before Rh</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ô</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">ne and Bordeaux varieties
came into play, Zinfandel was the regional specialty), calcareous slopes – in
the HMR, at 1,600-1,750-ft. elevations – have made production of consistently
floral, lithe, intrinsically balanced Pinot noir very possible. Adelaida
winemaker Jeremy Weintraub cites “high free lime concentration” (i.e.
limestone) as the site’s dominant factor... This prohibits the plant from
taking up potassium, which keeps the wine pH low, while the high calcium and
clay combination (the base material is volcanic) keeps the plant well hydrated
without having wet feet... Aromatically it’s always hard to describe, but it
always offers spices, earth, leaves and a suggestion rather than punctuation of
fruit, while in the mouth it’s mid-weight and structured.” Lest you think that
Paso Robles’ fabled diurnal expanse (average summer highs hitting the upper 90</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">s, and lows falling precipitously into the 40</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">s) explodes sugar readings, Weintraub points out:
“HMR’s berries max out at 23</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">, 24</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">° Brix</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">, in some sections 22</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°... So I never have to pick ‘early’ to retain acid or keep alcohol
potential reasonable.”</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> Hence, year after
year, this wine’s inordinate (even by Oregon standards) grace and moderation. If
this isn’t sense of place, I don’t know what is. </span><span style="font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alma Rosa's Rancho el Jabali in Sta. Rita Hills</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015 Alma Rosa, El Jabali –
Mt. Eden Clone, Sta. Rita Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – I cannot even remember the specialty wine shop in
California where I found my first bottles of Alma Rosa founder Richard
Sanford’s earliest vintages of Sanford & Benedict Pinot Noirs (a ’76 and
’77), but I’m pretty sure I wasn’t totally appreciative of my dumb luck. Three
years ago I tasted a ’77 at a party in Napa, and was amazed by its freshness.
Yet sentiment has nothing to do with the plain fact that Sanford can still
bring it – his single clone 2015 bottling caressing the nose and palate with
beautifully pure, sweet red berry perfume, fine, zesty and lacy on the palate.
Sanford told me, “Remember, this is the clone (Mt. Eden) Theckla (Sanford) and I
planted at the El Jabali Ranch in 1983 from my original plantings at Sanford
& Benedict” – first planted, as another reminder, in 1971, a good chunk of
time before the appellations of Santa Ynez Valley (1983) and Sta. Rita Hills
(2001) were established. The “Rosa” in the winery’s names refers to the
gravelly clay based loam of the south side of the AVA. Adds Sanford, “</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">In its youth, the vineyard provided a ‘cherry-like’
brightness and flavor, and with age it has become more savory and brambly... In
the early years the vineyard was the source of our Vin Gris, but has since
developed has bigger ‘shoulders’... The long persistence of the wine shows an
elegant velvety structure rather than the angular structure of the younger
wine.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2014 Alta Maria Vineyards, Rancho Vi</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ñ</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">edo Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – In the past, wines from this ranch – a Martini
selection originally planted on their own roots in 1973, close to Bien Nacido
Vineyard – typified the “canned tomato” herbiness and animal-like/mulchy funk
once associated with Santa Maria Valley Pinot noir. Guess what – it’s all still
there, albeit in more subtle doses, amplified by mouth-watering acidity, plush
texturing and the gripping tannin of the uncompromising 100% whole
cluster/native yeast/unfiltered/un-nothinged style advocated by partner/grower
James Ontiveros. It’s “old school,” but strikes a mesmerizing chord, like the
opening riff of a classic, favorite rock song.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2014 Ancien, Red Dog Vineyard, Sonoma Mountain</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – This lean, almost meagerly scented, acid zinging wine goes
against the grain in comparison to the sultry, full-throated style of most of
today’s Pinot noirs; although it doesn’t lack for red berry concentration, and
a compelling dose of deep, spicy, smoked/meaty aromas. Winemaker/owner Ken Bernards confirmed my notes; telling me, “I agree with you that Red Dog has a strong
personality, different from all my other sites... this vineyard was custom
planted for me in 2000, and is 100% Swan selection... It falls on the northwest
side of Sonoma Mountain, with shale/marine sedimentary soil that are some of
the most ancient in Sonoma County... very leached of nutrients and poor in
fertility.... It faces the Petaluma Gap, with an elevation just under 1000 ft,
often above the fog line but fully exposed to cool westerlies coming off the
Pacific... Ultimately, these features manifest themselves in the wine with
heightened aromatics, very exotic in nature, racy acidity and slowly developing
tannins that have nudged me to give this wine more barrel time (17 months
average) and more bottle age prior to release.” <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2014 Angela Estate, Angela Vineyard, Yamhill-Carlton</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> – Since all wine evaluation is contextual, Oregon
Pinot noirs are invariably most impressive when tasted in Oregon, and
California Pinot noirs when tasted in California; yet the ringing,
penetratingly flowery and fragrant qualities of this wine seemed to assert
itself in as dominant a fashion as any of the California wines tasted over the
weekend. Not that it tasted “Californian” (who’d want that?) – the wine’s fine,
zesty, sleek, demure yet persistent structuring is decidedly Oregonian, as are
the whiffs of evergreen laced with a dried leafiness suggesting rose hip tea
(at least to me). There is also pedigree to this wine – the winemaker of note
is Ken Wright, and the estate plantings are farmed by Wright’s vineyard manager
Mark Gould. I asked Angela’s GM Jessica Endsworth what contributes to the
wine’s saturation of flowery fruit, and she responded, “Shallow, 30 to 36-inch
marine sedimentary soil (Wellsdale series), and lots of Wadenswil (clone),
which seems to add most of the floral aromas, whereas the Dijon 777 and 115
lend blacker fruit and pepper spice.”</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015 Balletto Vineyards, 18 Barrel, Sonoma Coast</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – Intense yet taut, medium
weight (13.5% alcohol) wine lively with acidity, notwithstanding slightly
grippy tannin, pushing up strawberry fruit tinged with high toned foresty/dried
herb spice. According to winemaker Anthony Beckman, these spice and acid driven
sensations reflect this <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cuv</i></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">e</span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">’s
three estate owned vineyard sources (Sexton Hill, Burnside Road and Cedar
Ridge), located entirely in Sebastopol Hills, the southernmost pocket of
Russian River Valley. Says Beckman, these are “steep hillsides or totally
exposed, high-elevation hilltops about 10 miles from the Pacific,” where it is “several
degrees colder (than elsewhere in Russian River Valley), and the wind and fog
blow in cold from the ocean... soils are the light and dusty-fine Goldridge
series with a sandstone hardpan as little as 16 inches down... as a result,
vine leaf area and canopies are diminished, and the clusters are generally
smaller with a slower ripening time.”</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015 Balletto Vineyards,
BCD, Russian River Valley </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">– In contrast, Beckman tells us, “BCD is dramatically different,”
coming off the flatter, predominantly clay (Huicha series), east side of
Russian River Valley commonly referred to as Santa Rosa Plains. The nose is
brightly scented, plummy and black cherry-ish, and the fruit’s plump, luscious
qualities have the velvet texture often associated with Russian River Valley
Pinot, albeit with ample balancing acidity. “Walking these vineyards,” adds
Beckman, “it becomes obvious why BCD is so different from 18 Barrel, with its
rolling hills, rich soils, healthy canopy and growing climate that is dependent
on cold nights to offset warmer daytime temperatures... this gives a classic,
top-tier Russian River Valley profile.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSzgokjG0TjdbiB7i-oqYQaoow-OOw4bFzkIsuBVs5-wn99iI4kI-dcuN5JholesPU8AddqdcFq9Yw8zXehZZ87XuWpHqyxgu1TkUOAHsHzNRlsbaWs7Tlq9CwZS-nptiJ0fSvCMXIXVI/s1600/Anthony+Beckman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSzgokjG0TjdbiB7i-oqYQaoow-OOw4bFzkIsuBVs5-wn99iI4kI-dcuN5JholesPU8AddqdcFq9Yw8zXehZZ87XuWpHqyxgu1TkUOAHsHzNRlsbaWs7Tlq9CwZS-nptiJ0fSvCMXIXVI/s400/Anthony+Beckman.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Balletto's Anthony Beckman in Sexton Hill Vineyard, Russian River Valley's Sebastopol Hills</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015 Big Basin Vineyards,
Coastview Vineyard, Monterey</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – Big Basin’s Bradley Brown deserves full credit for convincing
Coastview owner John Allen in 2008 to bud over existing Syrah to just over an
acre of Pinot noir in his 2,200-ft. elevation property, located in the Gabilan
Mountains on the east side of Salinas Valley. The fruit is extravagantly expressive
of this fully exposed ridgetop, growing in thin limestone/decomposed granite
soils: like fields of strawberry, wild leafy herbs, a faint feel of leather and
sense of mineral and restraint (13.7% alcohol) in its perky, vibrant, tightly
woven length.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015 Big Basin Vineyards,
Lester Family Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">– An even prettier Pinot – super-cherry and
pepper-laced “soup of fruits” aroma laced with dried herby, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">garrigue</i>-like earthiness – juxtaposing
supple and crisp, fresh sensations in a moderately weighted (13.5%) body. Says
Brown, “Lester and Coastview make a case in point for transparency and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i>... Each year these wines are
clearly identifiable as coming from these vineyards... The higher elevation,
intense sun, granitic and limestone soils of Coastview produce a more
structured and tannic wine, while a fruit character as well as earthiness is
more pronounced in Lester.” Incidentally, adds Brown, “This has nothing to do
with stem inclusion... The Coastview had about 50% stem inclusion and the
Lester 70%, yet the Coastview is certainly more tannic.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2013 Blair Estate, Delfina’s
Vineyard - The Reserve, Arroyo Seco</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – Owner/grower Jeff was showing an equally
seductive, straight 2013 “Delfina’s Vineyard” over the weekend; but if I had to
make a Sophie’s Choice, I’d go with The Reserve's ultra-lush, curvy, sexy yet tensely
tart and edgy expression of red cherry and leafy rose petal. Says Mr. Blair,
“’The Reserve’ is a winemaker’s selection, and ‘Delfina’s’ more of an
expression of the entire vineyard.” The unique aspect of the entire vineyard
(named after his grandmother, who apparently civilized Blair when he was an
unruly boy, growing up on this same Hwy. 101 property), is that it sits at the
very center of the narrowest section between the coastal mountains forming
Salinas Valley. Consequently, there is no windier spot in the entire county. If
you’ve ever been in the area (between Soledad and Greenfield) and felt its 35+
MPH winds on a July or August afternoon, or sometimes raging for 48 hours straight,
you have felt the direct impact on the vines: the roar (and face slapping grit)
is deafening. Grape vine stomata, of course, shut down in excessively windy
conditions, and there is severe water stress (although the valley sits on a
gigantic, generous aquifier). But it all adds up to a unique matrix of acid
build-up and unusually long hang time (there are similar circumstances in Santa
Lucia Highlands just to the west, although the wind is even more brutal on the
valley floor); resulting in more of a flowery (as opposed to fruit and spice)
focus, perhaps a little less depth and layering than what you might find in
Sta. Rita Hills or Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot, but with a tautly silken
texturing all its own. The important thing, of course, is that it tastes like
“Arroyo Seco,” and Blair’s Delfina’s bottlings are as Arroyo Seco-ish as they
come.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blair's Delfina's Vineyard, at the center of Salinas Valley in the Arroyo Seco AVA</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015 Brewer-Clifton, Sta.
Rita Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
– I love the consistency in which this winery has been able to harness the
ultra-fragrant perfume, blasting off from the glass, found in the best of Sta.
Rita Hills grown Pinots. The strawberry/cherry fruit is pure, zesty, and
electric with acidity, feeling light and lacy despite generous alcohol (14%)
and savory tannin.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015 Brewer-Clifton, Machado,
Sta. Rita Hills </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">– There is slightly more tannin grip in this equally high toned,
bright, flowery scented yet finesseful single-vineyard, estate grown bottling.
When asked to define the Sta. Rita Hills distinctions so apparent in the glass,
winemaker/partner Greg Brewer shared: “</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">I agree
that Sta. Rita Hills exhibits a uniform element that differentiates the area
from many others... On a collective level, I find something very carnal,
authentic, pure and raw to the fruit profile... this is where I really see the
spiced fruit characteristic that you reference.” The root, adds Brewer, is in “cool
environment.” Then again, there are a number of equally cool climate regions on
the West Coast. Brewer contends, “We rely on fruit generous clones such as 37,
459 and 667, which harmonize our objective with whole cluster fermentation,”
achieving “a lush curvature of flavor which is corseted by the role played by
stem inclusion... For us, this gives a brambly component reminiscent of running
through wild berry bushes... Frequently when I work in Japan, clients mention
components like <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">umeboshi</i> and other
salted raspberry and plum preparations.”</span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2015 Cordant Winery,
Kessler-Haak Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> – This niggardly yielding (1.5 to 2 tons) vineyard
– planted in 2005 near the appellation’s cooler, foggier northwest edge, just
east of Lompoc – has been forging a rep for quintessentially multi-spiced Sta.
Rita Hills style Pinot; in this bottling, lusciously bright, perfumey fruit
tinged with suggestions of lavender/sagebrushy chapparel and smoked peppercorn/tobacco;
tightly wound, zesty, pinpoint. Cordant winemaker/co-owner Tyler Russell
attributes the wine’s dramatic profile to the site’s<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“hang time” and “cool coastal influence.... which increases
physiological ripeness, making bigger, darker, more concentrated, mouth-feel
driven wines... a special place to grow Pinot, and Syrah for that matter.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2015 C</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ô</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">ti</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">è</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">re, Hilliard Bruce Vineyard,
Sta. Rita Hills </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">–“2015,” says C</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ô</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">ti</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">è</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">re owner/winemaker Kevin Law, “was a bizarre year... I picked
all my Pinot Noir before September 1<sup>st</sup>” – although Law definitely
falls among the growing vanguard of Pinot specialists who pick earlier (closer to
22</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> Brix) to achieve more vineyard transparency,
without fear of herbiness or under-fruiting (made-up term, so bite me). No matter,
there is plenty of beckoning cherry cola and complexing chapparel/sagebrushiness
in this wine; the pretty fruit embedded in a lithe, airy medium body
underpinned by very positive zippy acid/tannin. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2015 C</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ô</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">ti</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">è</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">re, Presqu’ile Vineyard,
Santa Maria Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> – Here is an interesting contrast of Santa Barbara <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroirs</i>: While like Hilliard Bruce (on
the north end of the east-west running Sta. Rita Hills AVA), Presqu’ile is
planted in sandy soil, there is both a more flowery red fruit profile
(strawberry/cherry/raspberry) and faintly leafy green herbiness in the Presqu’ile,
but less of a dried scrub earthiness. Otherwise, says Law (with my
observations), “what both wines </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">have in
common is a similar weight (very airy and light), mouth-feel (silken fine), and
tannin profile (on the rounded side).”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqpOWb-Rbk8BU1Bp4PEEPptGyfVgScWcV5ol3-VUjiM5dyArlc0yHiXlRm6CIeKVjvyZ4fnW9K_QZ81Tb35UYUkpfc7BCejUj_Yd-zmE-Fwh8-0Lmwy8H3Sx8EeZw4jThiteIppjDQjE4/s1600/Jason+Drew.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqpOWb-Rbk8BU1Bp4PEEPptGyfVgScWcV5ol3-VUjiM5dyArlc0yHiXlRm6CIeKVjvyZ4fnW9K_QZ81Tb35UYUkpfc7BCejUj_Yd-zmE-Fwh8-0Lmwy8H3Sx8EeZw4jThiteIppjDQjE4/s400/Jason+Drew.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jason Drew in his Mendocino Ridge home estate</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Drew Wines, Fog Eater, Anderson Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – Beautiful fragrance of high toned cherry/cranberry
fruit filtered through a veil of dewy wildwood-ish scents (owner/winemaker
Jason Drew talks about “petrichor” – the first forest rain after a dry spell);
razor-sharp, medium weight body channeling penetrating, perky fruit and foresty
sensations. To achieve this tight harmony of elements, Mr. Drew blends fruit
from five vineyards (Valenti, Balo, Fashauer, Perli and Joshua’s) from the
higher elevation Mendocino Ridge, and from benchland and hillside sites in the
middle and Deep End of Anderson Valley – all producing wines “that are complex at
lower sugars as well as transparent with mineral driven, savory, persistent
flavors... (suggesting) classic red fruits, forest mushroom, red floral tones
and wild herbs.” Restrained oak, native fermentations, and organic or
sustainable farming, in Drew’s opinion, also help to “not blur the lines of
this fruit expression... which I believe helps orchestrate a sense of native <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i>.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2013 Fiddlehead Cellars, Seven Twenty Eight –
Fiddlestix Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">–
In recent years Fiddlehead releases have evolved towards more disciplined, tightly
wound profiles; a deliberate move away from the voluminous, perfumed styles of
today, and even from what Fiddleheads were known for just 10, 15 years ago. In this
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cuv</i></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">e</span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">, the feel
is still broad and full-ish, yet compact, fluid, zippy, layered; ripe toned red
berry/cherry cola fruit superimposed in faintly mineral tones, quiet as opposed
to chirpy. The more she has come to know her renowned vineyard (85% of which is
sold to other vintners), the less owner/grower Kathy Joseph seems willing to
resort to cellar manipulation that possibly “overshadows the taste of place...
(and) living on the property, the insight into short window ripening trends is
a huge benefit... We want our layered spices and black cherry cola to
project... allowing the wine to self-extract... Basically no stems, minimal
punch-downs, no filtering since this wine settles clean – and no fining,
because we really try to pick ‘on point.’”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipoTjyVl0g7oGgEGGqX6vqwUH7tdFVgeYBlCjXnDm1InZpUOjUtqg90dv1g0HdONOveCLqMPNBWG6nmtr3GEkwr46-36lu7WcXdLNqhbgEWq3qoahsETp2Fp5fpYW3MO7_HNSE8LWqcKk/s1600/Melissa+Burr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1143" data-original-width="1600" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipoTjyVl0g7oGgEGGqX6vqwUH7tdFVgeYBlCjXnDm1InZpUOjUtqg90dv1g0HdONOveCLqMPNBWG6nmtr3GEkwr46-36lu7WcXdLNqhbgEWq3qoahsETp2Fp5fpYW3MO7_HNSE8LWqcKk/s400/Melissa+Burr.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stoller Family Estate's Melissa Burr</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2013 Flying Goat Cellars,
Rio Vista Vineyard – Dijon, Sta. Rita Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> – Perky, perfumed fragrance of acidulous red
fruit (raspberry/pomegranate/cranberry), translating into fine, silken,
pinpoint sensations finishing with the proverbial Pinot finesse and grace.
According to owner/winemaker Norm Yost, “Rio Vista’s location at the far
eastern end of Sta. Rita Hills is subject to a little more</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> heat influence... It has tendency to ripen sooner but
gives distinct herb spice and chaparral aromas along with expressions of dark
cherry and raspberry... After harvesting fruit from this vineyard for more than
15 years, it has been fascinating to observe the changes in aromas, flavor and
tannins in the wines as the vines mature.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Foxen Winery, Block 43 – Bien Nacido Vineyard,
Santa Maria Valley </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">– Ultra-rich
raspberry/cherry perfume inundated with almost sweet baking spices; the almost
exhilarating, pure fruit qualities filling a zesty light-medium body with an
ethereal feel. </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Foxen winemaker
David Whitehair tells us, “The 2.5-acre Block 43 sits a</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">top
a steep (15%-30% slopes) northeast/southwest site that perfectly captures long
sun exposure each day... Clones 667 and 777 contribute the bright bing cherry,
raspberry and cola, and that combination with the site and planting density (3’
by 8’) are what sets this Pinot noir apart.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
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<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLctByNlrpGfAbQGZugBG878OfcpbEbSJDDnkjf16_WNby7pIA63ed3dbKb5jUFmo0BB4hLNItzQtS9m0-z9G2PSlh1ydEtxZ_iRIlXdCHwYG1JfWiS8N5CwyCn7Llzxg7N87Tj4Ec_Rw/s1600/Fiddlestix.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1197" data-original-width="1600" height="476" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLctByNlrpGfAbQGZugBG878OfcpbEbSJDDnkjf16_WNby7pIA63ed3dbKb5jUFmo0BB4hLNItzQtS9m0-z9G2PSlh1ydEtxZ_iRIlXdCHwYG1JfWiS8N5CwyCn7Llzxg7N87Tj4Ec_Rw/s640/Fiddlestix.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kathy Joseph's Fiddlestix Vineyard, on the south end of Sta. Rita Hills</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015
Freeman Vineyard & Winery, Gloria Estate, Green Valley of Russian River
Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – Lavish varietal rendering of red cherry,
almost sweet in it intensity; tucked into a fine yet firm, zippy palate-feel.
Gloria is Ken and Akiko Freeman’s 8-acre vineyard at their winery site, just
outside Sebastopol at the westernmost edge of the appellation, just 10 miles from
the Pacific. Say Mr. Freeman, “</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Clearly the sandy loam soil (Goldridge
series), and the fog which results in 50-degree temperature swings on a daily
basis, combine to give Gloria’s acidity and complexity, and our five clones –
especially the Swan and Calera selections –help emphasize a very floral
quality.</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">“<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2015 Gran Moraine Winery,
Dropstone, Yamhill-Carlton</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> – I loved the purity and focused, finesseful feel of this wine; the
bright, upbeat red and blue fruited Pinot qualities humming along with great clarity
through a silken middle and prolonged, lip smacking finish. Gran Moraine
winemaker Shane Moore tells us, “The Dropstone was blended from our two different
estate vineyards to combine elegance and power, which I think is what
Yamhill-Carlton is all about.... The 777 on our winery block usually drips with
intense red fruit and driving acidity, and the Pommard Clone 4 at our Gran
Moraine Vineyard faces due south, bringing barely ripe yet ethereal blue fruit,
more elegance and spice...</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> I try to coax
the spice and intense fruit out of these wines without pulling out too much
extraction (long cold soaks, cool ferments, relatively little cap manipulation,
only once-filled oak, picking on the earlier side, and no extended maceration
or whole cluster).”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin0Wuy_rrry3Z9EnXV8qfablBZSn0v_A5Od6OOBVQL8ZBUDJYyQDjAauaBHNb-tMSI6fBgwfvyIdaoQAAn4MTWTITHS_i1LBz8BoO9MBL3E0a6uVhkCt8dUkJ_GcToacO_jFuXsirjZgM/s1600/Freestone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="792" data-original-width="1107" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin0Wuy_rrry3Z9EnXV8qfablBZSn0v_A5Od6OOBVQL8ZBUDJYyQDjAauaBHNb-tMSI6fBgwfvyIdaoQAAn4MTWTITHS_i1LBz8BoO9MBL3E0a6uVhkCt8dUkJ_GcToacO_jFuXsirjZgM/s400/Freestone.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the steeper blocks in Joseph Phelps' Freestone property</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Joseph Phelps, Freestone Vineyards, Sonoma Coast</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – Barely 6 miles from the Pacific coast, these steep
hillside vineyards now produce spectacularly aromatic, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i> driven Pinot noirs on a dependable basis. The nose is
saturated in cherry/strawberry wrapped around with almost sweetly earthen,
foresty notes, more than intense enough to absorb toasted oak accents; while
long, sticking, medium-full fruit sensations ride upon the animating acidity
natural to this extreme, cold climate sub-region. Freestone winemaker Justin
Ennis tells us the 2015 is a blend of the winery’s sites, Pastorale (58%) and
Quarter Moon (42%). “</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">Pastorale is a little more exposed, and is
known for being more forward in red and black fruit, with nice acidity and
minerality... The Quarter Moon – a little more protected by surrounding
forests, yet windier due to closer proximity to the Petaluma Gap – consistently
brings earthy, forest floor, rustic spice flavors to the wine.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015
Larry Hyde Estate, Carneros-Napa Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – The distinctive
quality of this wine is its unerring focus and concentration on pure black
cherry in the nose – while more muted in terms of the spices or more filigreed perfumes of the
varietal personality – which take on a fleshy, velvety, immaculately composed,
strawberry compote-like exuberance on the palate. The wine, in other words,
screams “Carneros” – or at least the purity of red fruit that once made this
region a preeminent source for California Pinot (one neighbor’s mantra: “Beaune
in the U.S.A.”), which is more than enough reason to celebrate.</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAUXo6WoQcn7Q7kDI0dcvYDbvrNfRSH1A9Qa26zgGzVjsGb6MhFNDac2Mvqfd0LRd9ZRGQh1uVpblBZ1q_gmmqXkNfkwmjemXZ3TSewvM3rqkn_KBOGAxBa8haBAAH2wEA86jnD8yQan8/s1600/Larry+Hyde.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1281" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAUXo6WoQcn7Q7kDI0dcvYDbvrNfRSH1A9Qa26zgGzVjsGb6MhFNDac2Mvqfd0LRd9ZRGQh1uVpblBZ1q_gmmqXkNfkwmjemXZ3TSewvM3rqkn_KBOGAxBa8haBAAH2wEA86jnD8yQan8/s400/Larry+Hyde.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Larry Hyde in his acclaimed Carneros estate</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2016 Lingua Franca, Eola-Amity Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – While a spare, lanky, nearly skeletal expression of
the grape, there is a lot to be said for a wine that achieves exactly
what it set out to achieve: a more spare, skeletal, decidedly lankier expression of
Willamette Valley Pinot noir. For all its restraint, it still compels with a
pretty, flowery/rose petal/cherry fragrance enhanced by a mildly herby, rose
petal leafiness; and the lively acidity tugs and nudges the gentle fruit
sensations along. I am reminded of the ros</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">-like scrawniness of The Eyrie Pinots from the ‘70s,
although the Lingua Franca is more nuanced than what I remember The Eyries ever
having. Says co-owner/grower Larry Stone MS, “Choosing this spot in Eola-Amity
Hills was based on personal preference for the fruit from these
eastern-oriented slopes near Hopewell... the wines have a savory, mineral
quality with the brilliant red fruits and spices that I prefer over the
fruitier and richer flavored sites of Willamette Valley.” The way I see it:
Lingua Franca (2016 is its first estate bottling) has the bones, and probably
the room, to grow – particularly given the promise already fulfilled by the
neighboring Seven Springs Vineyard, couched in similar <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i>. Undoubtedly, the guidance of partner Dominque Lafon, plus
the talent of French-born winemaker Thomas Savre, will also give this estate a
leg up in the future.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Lucia, Garys’ Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – The 2015 is classic “Garys’” in terms of its rich,
compact, deeply focused and concentrated black cherry nose; rounded, fluid,
fleshy and flashy – or putting it another way, more of a sultry, velvety,
curvaceous sexiness. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4MDeN66uhiwMQ5TSCm2xXI286H3OJVeiMiipYl11H4O8d6hfLe_m45JrOnch4raqqULr3UWmcpoFNNhfDiIlW35QGQnxe5toAF_6ErQXebgmHqYNjXuQhGNhsGA0_CzLqweBFhBWavus/s1600/R.C.+-+Gary+Franscioni%252C+Gary+Pisoni+%2528Garys%2527+Vineyard%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4MDeN66uhiwMQ5TSCm2xXI286H3OJVeiMiipYl11H4O8d6hfLe_m45JrOnch4raqqULr3UWmcpoFNNhfDiIlW35QGQnxe5toAF_6ErQXebgmHqYNjXuQhGNhsGA0_CzLqweBFhBWavus/s400/R.C.+-+Gary+Franscioni%252C+Gary+Pisoni+%2528Garys%2527+Vineyard%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The author with the two Garys (Franscioni and Pison) on a more recent date</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Lucia, Soberones Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – While just across a dirt road from Garys’ Vineyard,
the Soberones is shyer – a more youthful demeanor in its tighter, floral nose,
as well as in its scrubby/chaparral-infused berry flavors; yet a deep, layered,
velvet texturing and richness push through the savory, meaty tannin, and
rattles and hums through the finish. Explained winemaker Jeff Pisoni, “Normally
Soberanes is more high-toned, vibrant, elegant, and has firmer tannins because
it is the rockier of the two sites... The Garys’, higher in clay and less
rocky, is usually richer, juicier, and more fruit-dominated.” Despite
differences in vine spacing, row direction and clonal selection, this has
always a dramatic comparison of two vineyards, side by side, farmed by the same
families, crafted by one winemaker.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Luli,
Highlands Ranch, Santa Lucia Highlands</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">
– Luli is a brand owned by the Pisoni family in partnership with Sara Floyd MS,
and is also crafted by Jeff Pisoni; as such, an interesting example of a
sommelier’s influence on a Pinot noir site predisposed towards some degree of
intensity. There is more emphasis on a pure cherry, perfumed quality in the
Luli, with nuances of mineral and loam filling in a backdrop; coming together
in a light yet fresh, ringing, long and bright mouth-feel. The positive,
according to Mr. Pisoni, is how the Highlands <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cuv</i></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">e</span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> expresses
“quintessential Santa Lucia Highlands... elegant and vibrant in the nose, while
rich and full with acidity on the palate.” The fruit source is a single block
on a lower slope, about a mile south from Garys’ Vineyard. The sensory qualities
are also influenced by the choice of strictly 100% free-run (no press fractions
included), which Pisoni says adds to “the purity of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i>,” and enhanced further by use of exclusively neutral
barrels so that “expression of character is very much coming from the site.”</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">2015
Melville Winery, Terraces - Estate, Sta. Rita Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">
– I can honestly say that I have never been predisposed to Sta. Rita Hills
grown Pinot noir, but at the 2018 WOPN the wines of this AVA were simply taking
the cake in terms of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i>
related integrity important to me. This bottling zaps the nose with super
spices – baking seasonings mixed with sweet black pepper – inundating flowery
fragrances (rose petal/pomegranate/sun dried cherry); the spiced fruit
qualities rendered in a silken fine, feminine, fresh and nimble length of
palate sensations. Melville grower Chad Melville attributes Terraces’ rare
combination of fruit focused intensity, sense of purity and delicacy to its </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Garamond; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">“really
interesting set of circumstances... loamy clay soil (Botella series), with lots
of calcareous chunks, and hard pan under about 18 inches under topsoil... The
vines are terraced, facing due west, which gets pounded by the cold ocean wind.”
The end result is “miniscule” clusters and berries; the transparency of which
Melville underlines with “everything in neutral French wood (10 to 20-year old
barrels).”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS7w0j6_tME88hJqrzWRsMOBMq1rUyBySgHg55J9CFqd78yWqOsqWT-Chyphenhyphenawbip8EmONj-Yw31oO1ayixCqaPsY8nVVBHcDkG9w19nM0UKk9-HSd7PTZiN4Ppa8Lt4WrxAIsX15w6iuV4/s1600/Halleck+Vineyard%252C+Sebastopol+Hills.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS7w0j6_tME88hJqrzWRsMOBMq1rUyBySgHg55J9CFqd78yWqOsqWT-Chyphenhyphenawbip8EmONj-Yw31oO1ayixCqaPsY8nVVBHcDkG9w19nM0UKk9-HSd7PTZiN4Ppa8Lt4WrxAIsX15w6iuV4/s640/Halleck+Vineyard%252C+Sebastopol+Hills.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Russian River Valley's Sebastopol Hills</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Merry Edwards, Meredith Estate, Russian River
Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – While Merry Edwards’ top <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cuv</i></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">es</span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> get
seemingly more “powerful” each year, they also seem to grow in sheer depth and
craftiness. That is, they clearly aren’t meant to just blow you away. For
instance, the way a woodsy, faintly decomposed, mushroomy scent seems to waft
through the concentrated dark berry/black cherry aroma of the 2015 Meredith,
and the succulent, cushiony, velvet textured fruit sensations that finish with a lip
smacking, savory edginess on the palate: This wild, almost unbridled feel to
this wine is pretty much the same sense you feel as you drive up the winding,
narrow roads of Sebastopol Hills – particularly during winter when vines and
dwindling apple orchards, and surrounding thickets of woods are shrouded like a
London fog – to this estate planting; and that edginess is a reflection of the
acidity natural to this neighborhood, the coldest in Russian River Valley. If
this has become a Merry Edwards “style,” there are tangible reasons why.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Merry Edwards, Olivet Lane, Russian River Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">– The round, fleshy, proportionate feel of this wine
is classic to this Santa Rosa Plains benchland growth; given the Merry Edwards
touch and decades of experience with this vineyard, its characteristic opulence and velvet texturing is all the more maximized,
along with the deep plummy/blueberry/baking cherry lushness. Edwards comments:
“At 45 years, this is one of the oldest Pinot noir blocks in the appellation,
and is planted to the Martini clone, one of our heritage selections... The
berries are bigger than some of the new generation clones, so the wines tend to
be more elegant... I use whole stems to augment the tannin, along with 80% new
French oak.”</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;"> <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3M5afsbBYleEKjJ7bUARjTyJaVu4jRxNPwSIx7XbliKucEMzSIjNDZ7hkF45fMRwMcBj0SIp3elkamxNQOmU53HOIb6OFv0dsmXEn316EWtaayh0Ow8-3UKySvF6IwNl22v4iMTtY1AA/s1600/Merry+Edwards%252C+Meredith+label.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1303" data-original-width="881" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3M5afsbBYleEKjJ7bUARjTyJaVu4jRxNPwSIx7XbliKucEMzSIjNDZ7hkF45fMRwMcBj0SIp3elkamxNQOmU53HOIb6OFv0dsmXEn316EWtaayh0Ow8-3UKySvF6IwNl22v4iMTtY1AA/s400/Merry+Edwards%252C+Meredith+label.jpg" width="270" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2014
Native9, Rancho Ontiveros Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – Hopefully there will always be a place in the Pinot
world for Native9 owner/grower James Ontiveros’ 100% whole cluster/native yeast
bottlings; his uncompromising approach always meant to extract a full (or
rawest possible) sensory experience of his vineyard located in silty/sandy
soils towards the west side of Santa Maria Valley, closest to the cool coastal
air and wind. The 2014 follows most previous vintages with its concentration of
darker toned fruit (with just snippets of the floral varietal character)
embedded in loamy/mushroomy humus-like notes; slightly jagged, yet meaty and
pithy, like burning sod, on the palate.</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"> The kind of Pinot that grow in the bottle, and perhaps in one’s heart
(although not for everyone).</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">2015
Patz & Hall, Pisoni Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">
– Focused intensity of black and red berry fruit; filling, meaty, typically
muscular (for the site), yet seamlessly textured and balanced. 2015 is
winemaker/partner James Hall’s nineteenth vintage of Pisoni, which, he says, is
always “the potential to make one of the world’s great wines.” To Hall, the
2015 is “typical... </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">flamboyant, complex,
extracted and rich, while also layered and intricate.” When asked how this epic
Santa Lucia Highlands growth differs from the North Coast sites that dominate
the Patz & Hall portfolio, Hall told us: “The North Coast’s Goldridge sandy
loam may be similar to the decomposed sandstone found at Pisoni, but we often thin
fruit to achieve optimum balance, and to get the spice/cherry notes and plusher
mouth-feel typical of the North Coast... (whereas) Pisoni typically yields
closer to 2.5 to 3 tons, requiring very little fruit thinning, giving more
brambly, darker fruits, and larger scaled Pinots that are broader in texture.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Patz & Hall's James Hall</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Papapietro Perry, Pommard Clones, Russian River
Valley </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">– This wine, blended from
three different Russian River Valley vineyards (Peters in a colder climate
region south of Sebastopol, Leras Family in the more moderate Laguna Ridge
area, and Bucher in the warmer Middle Reach neighborhood) is Papapietro Perry’s
ode to Pommard Clone 4, which co-owner/winemaker Ben Papapietro describes as “the
oldest clone grown in the Russian River Valley... truly the ‘work horse’ of the
Russian River Valley.” Mr. Papapietro favors Pommard’s “great color... depth,
complexity, spiciness to the mid-palate, and velvety character often described
by the French as “iron fist in a velvet glove.” Accordingly, this is a lush yet
poised, silky wine with a rich entry, snappy middle and long, gentle finish;
accentuated by a nostril tingling, exotic fragrance enhanced by smoky/toasty
spice. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Presqu’ile Winery, Presqu’ile Vineyard, Santa
Maria Valley </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">– Sweet peppercorn spice
and leafy green herbs punctuate flowery/rose petal/cherry/raspberry fruit
fragrances; the herbiness taking on an almost sandalwood-ish, brown spice
richness when combined with sweet oak (20% new French) on the palate; and the
spiced red fruit coming across as fine, sleek and intricate in an edgy yet
pliant, delicate palate feel. According to winemaker Dieter Cronje, the handling
of their estate vineyard – located in the more coastal influenced, west end of
the appellation (between Solomon Hills and Native9’s Rancho Ontiveros) – has
been an evolution of “around 10 years of trying different things.” For
instance, “We noticed that sandy soils and Dijon clones are not good choices
for high percentages of whole cluster on Pinot noir, so we have adjusted
by using less whole cluster and focusing more on the heritage clones (Mt. Eden,
Swan etc)... Progressively warmer and drier years leading up to 2015 influenced
our acidity levels, which have been on the lower side of what we typically see
in the Santa Maria Valley... (although) generally I think our wines have been
more approachable and fruit forward.”</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2014 Rusack
Vineyards, Solomon Hills, Santa Maria Valley </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">– One of the brightest, freshest, most upbeat style Pinot noirs of the
weekend; the varietal perfume veering towards high toned
cherry/cranberry/strawberry, with a delicate, flower petal touch; lifted by
zesty acidity on the palate. After working with a few top neighboring vineyards
such as Bien Nacido, Sierra Madre and Garey for a few years, the winery has
turned to Solomon Hills exclusively for its Santa Maria Valley fruit. According
to winemaker Steven Gerbac, “We always embraced the typical Santa Maria
spiciness (translation: intrinsic funk), but found it to be a bit overwhelming
in certain vintages.” Gerbac cites Solomon Hills’ “dry, fresh earth vs. wet
earth,” and the desire to get away from “tomato leaf aromas.” In Solomon Hills,
says Gerbac, “grapes hold on to their acid really well in this spot, lending
themselves to a more floral, delicate, red fruit styled wine... I think this is
related to the less fertile sandy soil and lower temperatures, due to its close
proximity to the ocean in relation to other Santa Maria Valley vineyards.”</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi34EFxLxZAX0463OTvlzKgH4tlrVjk2DosUxRFteFPWP0S5kQD_IsdmUzmF-91L81kO0e6A2Bi559LuaxAKX7xI-y_Paxxf1No4rLpp6LZQBqVBc5MzR9ep_cfqbXU4yZz0qrAIC0EY6o/s1600/Siduri+-+label.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi34EFxLxZAX0463OTvlzKgH4tlrVjk2DosUxRFteFPWP0S5kQD_IsdmUzmF-91L81kO0e6A2Bi559LuaxAKX7xI-y_Paxxf1No4rLpp6LZQBqVBc5MzR9ep_cfqbXU4yZz0qrAIC0EY6o/s400/Siduri+-+label.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015
Siduri Wines, John Sebastiano Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
– Pungent Pinot perfume with earthy underpinnings; sense of “opulence” and
weight on the palate – densely textured, meaty with tannin, yet zesty in its
high flying fruit qualities. According to Siduri’s Adam Lee, the wine’s
aggressive yet scented personality is totally in keeping with the site, which
he describes as “impossibly steep hills facing into the wind on the eastern (and
climatically warmest) edge of Sta. Rita Hills... this leads to small clusters
and tiny berries with thicker skins... (and) darker fruit flavors and more
tannin than many of our Pinot noirs.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015
Siduri Wines, Pisoni Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">–
In Pisoni grown fashion, a luxuriously rich and spicy Pinot aroma with high,
low, and middle notes filling the nose; full yet round and fleshy – high wire
balance (even at 14.8% alcohol), and very “complete” in its feel. “Years ago,”
says Lee, “I would have told you there are similarities between Pisoni and John
Sebastiano, since both produce a bigger, richer style of Pinot... </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">In recent years, as the vineyards at Pisoni have
gotten older, the wines from there have proven to be more complex, with a wider
range of flavors... part of that because Pisoni is actually a collection of
vineyards, and we source from three of them.</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Papyrus; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">.. </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">What is fascinating is that Pisoni tends to push later
– the southern end of Santa Lucia Highlands gets colder in the winter – but
ends up ripening sooner, so there is a bit less hang time... The positives are
that the soils are poorer, and thus the vines really have to struggle, which
gives you the vineyard’s concentrated character.”<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James Ontiveros in his Native 9 Rancho Ontiveros, on the west end of Santa Maria Valley</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Stephen Ross Wine Cellars, Stone Corral Vineyard,
Edna Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – Sitting in essentially
“a sand box,” as winemaker/owner/vineyard co-owner Steve Ross Dooley puts it, Stone
Corral has always been distinct from other Edna Valley sites, which are more
clay influenced.</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Narrow"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;"> The </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">vineyard’s
signature, true to form in 2015, is rich, plush, lavish Pinot fruit: finely
wrought, singing cherry/strawberry qualities; with gentle, pliant mouth-feels
typical of Edna Valley, yet a little more delineated in the case of Stone
Corral. It is the sand, adds Dooley, that grows “smaller vines, not particularly
vigorous, and fairly open canopies allowing for good sunlight exposure on the
clusters, resulting in high pigment development and polymerized tannins – finer
tannins... Another consequence of our not-so-fertile sandy site is lower yields,
translating to small berries and concentrated wines (the 2015 vintage, for
instance, yielded 1.9 tons per acre).”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2016 Stoller Family Estate,
Dundee Hills </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">–
If I had to choose one single favorite of the weekend, this might be it.
Tailor-made to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">my</i> taste: glimmering
red color; pure, unsullied cherry/berry Pinot nose; freshness, exuberance,
silkiness, and light, lively sensations, balletic across the palate. Stoller
winemaker Melissa Burr allows, “This wine is</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">
truly our flagship, all sourced from our estate vineyard which is now slightly
over 200 acres of vines, the majority planted to Pinot noir.” Insofar as approach,
it is “predominantly native yeast, focus on moderate extraction techniques to
provide graceful tannin, and use of discreet amount of new oak to add spice but
not overpower the fruit.” For Burr, 2016 was a warm, “generous” vintage, marked
by “clusters on the smaller side with lots of hen-and-chicks,” adding to
skin-to-juice ratios. But in the end, it is the volcanic slopes (almost
entirely Jory series) that speaks loudest in the Stoller; informing the classic
“red fruit, baking spice, cola and silky tannins” of Dundee Hills.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE2n-ROYTGL0m2ns1cxDH6ZUdB6wwT6UJtpHyHpCBYjVMzWxj4e8_TfTNUxfVorJNi2vHnFC3G02wHGSoMFbj1Vd35p01w3gG5N2fm83WqsbnUu8a-cJtlVJM3S6iA2xIs9Kq4OMIA-LI/s1600/Rapley+Trail+-+pine+needles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE2n-ROYTGL0m2ns1cxDH6ZUdB6wwT6UJtpHyHpCBYjVMzWxj4e8_TfTNUxfVorJNi2vHnFC3G02wHGSoMFbj1Vd35p01w3gG5N2fm83WqsbnUu8a-cJtlVJM3S6iA2xIs9Kq4OMIA-LI/s400/Rapley+Trail+-+pine+needles.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Piles of pine needles: very much a component of the <i>terroir</i> in Thomas Fogarty's Rapley Trail</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2016 Thomas Fogary Winery & Vineyards, Rapley
Trail, Santa Cruz Mountains </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">– This
winery continues its successful steak of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">terroir</i>-driven
style wines with this youthfully tight yet savory and delineated bottling;
flashing flowery rose petal, pickled plum and raspberry tinged fragrances with
whiffs of pine needled forest floor; lean yet zesty, long and savory on the
palate. Explains winemaker Nathan Kandler, “This vineyard, located down the
hill just behind the winery (on a ridge over 2,100-ft. high), is protected by towering
stands of Douglas fir, madrone and California bay, with coyote brush and the usual
mountainside chaparral in among giant piles of needles... You can't help
but ending up with the pitch and maple/sage-like smells of the forest along
with the strong tannin/acid structure we get from mountainside fruit.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2016 Thomas Fogarty Winery & Vineyards, Windy
Hill, Santa Cruz Mountains</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – More of
a laser beam Pinot nose – sumptuous dried cherry and plummy fragrance
punctuated by “old forest” scents of bark and sweetly resined greenery –
following through in rich, savory, racy/tart palate sensations. Comments
Kandler, “Here the character of this mountaintop vineyard has more of that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sauvage</i>, a little on the wild side,
because as the name implies, this is an exposed, windier site... The hills
around it are not as densely wooded as Rapley Trail’s, but wind rips through
trees, spreading its residue... As you know, we actually replanted the entire
vineyard in 2012, going with different clones, vine direction and trellising,
while increasing plant density from 720 to 2,500 vines per acre, but the wines
still end up tasting almost exactly the same as before... definitely a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">site</i> thing.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO6QdKx2wFnCwmUVpBe2_IheNE5KH0UAjqb2SVZneeilEM2XMxJ15WtOxc6O12ADu1MsGC3Xmaq6QSwZRuftVcnx83mOb7D4Kqg3bSnOLRllDqaS_DFZBE-alvm3s7dns39gP7LfHiM8k/s1600/Rapley+Trail%252C+Douglas+fir.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO6QdKx2wFnCwmUVpBe2_IheNE5KH0UAjqb2SVZneeilEM2XMxJ15WtOxc6O12ADu1MsGC3Xmaq6QSwZRuftVcnx83mOb7D4Kqg3bSnOLRllDqaS_DFZBE-alvm3s7dns39gP7LfHiM8k/s400/Rapley+Trail%252C+Douglas+fir.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Douglas fir surrounding Thomas Fogarty's Rapley Trail Vineyard</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2014
Wayfarer, Wayfarer Vineyard, Fort Ross-Seaview </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">– One of the more lavish, or ravishing, Pinot noirs of
the weekend; enthralling the senses with a billowing, multifaceted nose (violet
perfume/rose petal/kitchen spice/forest floor); these sensations coming
together with a rich, silky, juicy, almost ethereal sense of lightness. That
remarkable combination of intensity and balance is all about this remote site;
as owner Cleo Pahlmeyer summarizes it: “Less than 5 miles from the ocean, still
protected by two ridge lines... We get cool, wet fog descending in the evening
and lasting through mid-morning, cool ocean breezes throughout the day, yet all
the vines are situated above 1,100 feet... influenced by the hot California
sun... It is a warm spot in an otherwise cool area.”</span><b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">2015 Wrath Wines, Boekenoogen Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">– Translucent burgundy red
and multifaceted nose of floral/rose petal/spice infusion/black cherry/scrubby
chaparral and wild mint (or pennyroyal). Fresh, lively, silky and upbeat, with
a modestly weighted fullness, landing light on its feet. Sense of
“completeness.” Among the Wrath bottlings, their highest elevation site (close
to 800 feet, on about a 10% slope); producing wines winemaker Sabrine Rodems
describes as typically “big berry/cherry, tutti-fruity with high acid when
picked... like sucking on a popsicle stick... but reconciling into a really
sophisticated wine when finished.” Rodems notes that Boekenoogen’s location
towards the north end of Santa Lucia Highlands makes it the first of her
vineyards to be picked because of increased exposure to both morning sun and
more moderate afternoon winds (compared to the appellation’s windier southerly
slopes, which face a narrower Salinas Valley wind gap); and she also allows that
use of 20% whole cluster adds structural tannin as well enhances the wine’s
“light herbaceous notes.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghK8ukX7DN8DV7pozGMb7EEnwBhB0fj9hTH7NcTAi72nqwXYig_qCL10SH5w7HJvffyno0OwE5Zh2Dn339Tu07HDUmbx8aatgXhY0QmBukHn9Ixl1j2OeYgwKJMfeCTAbPn0CS_0bMWnA/s1600/Wayfarer+-+bottle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghK8ukX7DN8DV7pozGMb7EEnwBhB0fj9hTH7NcTAi72nqwXYig_qCL10SH5w7HJvffyno0OwE5Zh2Dn339Tu07HDUmbx8aatgXhY0QmBukHn9Ixl1j2OeYgwKJMfeCTAbPn0CS_0bMWnA/s400/Wayfarer+-+bottle.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Wrath
Wines, San Saba Vineyards, Monterey</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> –
Like Wrath’s 2015 Boekenoogen, fresh and lively sensations, with a sense of
airiness and unerring balance; only, the nose is more of exuberant, nostril
tingling fruit (a little less of the flowery varietal quality), with the
lightest touch of kitchen herb spice. While Wrath’s estate owned San Saba
is located on the lower slopes, just below the bench defining Santa Lucia
Highlands (hence the Monterey appellation), the vineyard shares a similar rocky/sandy soil with that of most of Santa Lucia Highlands,</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> and the increased wind
stress of the lower slopes tends to give “bigger” fruit flavors than the higher
elevation sites.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
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<!--StartFragment-->
<b><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Wrath Wines, Tondr</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;">é</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;"> Grapefield, Santa Lucia Highlands</span></b><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;"> –A rubier red than the
other 2015 Wraths; its lush nose having more of a sense of black cherry
concentration, spiked by a trace of peppermint/pepper spice; layered, velvety,
fleshy feel, while retaining a sense of purity and focus on the spiced cherry
flavor through a lingering, even keeled finish. Like Wrath’s San Saba block,
Tondr</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;">é</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;"> is on a lower slope, but a little further south (just across a gulch
from Garys’, which to some extent accounts for the similar singularity of fruit
focus, despite Tondr</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;">é</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;">s broader mix of clonal material). Rodems notes
“less rocky and more sandy loam” in the soil, giving higher pH wines that are
also their</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;"> “smoothest and least
acidic... (with) more <a href="http://culinarywineandfoodmatching.blogspot.com/2017/03/at-long-last-deconstructing-umami.html">umami </a>characteristics” – qualities enhanced by both
clonal choice (for Wrath, Pommard 4 and 777) and 20% whole cluster.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wrath's Sabrine Rodems</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-462021276733777062017-11-22T12:16:00.002-07:002020-02-21T11:43:54.304-07:00A "Life of Wine" (Looking Back 40 Years)<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCKA9hwjNG2uVLcCHcShaYK2Jm9_WWg8kD9aEgGwAIFrl4fg80SopWehR4oaIy05N9EH3Z3T3SrcLv6b2ahzUw0K5nHW5VslgBFhgW46k2K4qW2KKtc2wzm06e_9OlD8_Jrn5olg_BKqU/s1600/1977+-+RC%252C+HEC%252C+Kalihi+St..jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCKA9hwjNG2uVLcCHcShaYK2Jm9_WWg8kD9aEgGwAIFrl4fg80SopWehR4oaIy05N9EH3Z3T3SrcLv6b2ahzUw0K5nHW5VslgBFhgW46k2K4qW2KKtc2wzm06e_9OlD8_Jrn5olg_BKqU/s640/1977+-+RC%252C+HEC%252C+Kalihi+St..jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1977: Randy & Heather Caparoso</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">2017
marks my seventh year living in Lodi wine country. Although I am originally from the
Hawaiian Islands, Lodi has become my adopted home; and in many ways, this
residency represents a culmination of a career as a full-time wine professional
spanning 40 years.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Even
I wonder where the time goes. When I first landed a position as a working sommelier
back in 1978 – transitioning from waiting tables while working through college – I
truly did so with a simple thought: “What a cool job – tasting wines and
writing wine lists, opening bottles and talking wine all night with thirsty
customers... and getting paid for it!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Shirley,
I jest – partly. Yes, working as a restaurant sommelier was very cool;
especially for a 21-year-old. But I also took the job seriously because I had
just gotten married to a fellow University of Hawaii student (who loved cooking
for me, just as long as I brought the bottles!). In 1978 we were expecting the
first of (eventually) four fantastic children. I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">needed</i> a real paying job – preferably doing something I loved – especially
since I had spent the previous four years pursuing a less than useful degree
(philosophy).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD6e6WEdCEMIzmV_JOOgHKoPsI4TJXlhMihCs4dD0M29_DpbEdDIy70FasgDMEC5WY6YLzexH60r5RcuFP7kMjlyE5pxglOBirEpam1-qf1up-4z_CNCdLnRbHN5sX-mTrV76puHgd_kk/s1600/1979+-+Cavalier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD6e6WEdCEMIzmV_JOOgHKoPsI4TJXlhMihCs4dD0M29_DpbEdDIy70FasgDMEC5WY6YLzexH60r5RcuFP7kMjlyE5pxglOBirEpam1-qf1up-4z_CNCdLnRbHN5sX-mTrV76puHgd_kk/s640/1979+-+Cavalier.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1979: The young tastevined sommelier (Cavalier French Restaurant, Honolulu)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yet
wine, to me, was more than a living. It was an obsession. From the moment I first
fell into it (after attending a restaurant staff tasting at the age of 18) I
began planning trips to wineries and vineyards in California, then the
Northwest, later to Europe. In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s the wine industry around
the world was just a fraction of the size of what it is now, and not nearly as
many Americans even touched the stuff.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Therefore,
in those days, even the greatest wines were not in huge demand. We could buy the
Ch</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">â</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">teau Lafites and Moutons, P</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">trus and d’Yquems, and all the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">grand crus</i> of Domaine de la Roman</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">e-Conti
for under $40 or $50 – tasting, evaluating, and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">consuming </i>these wines to our hearts’ content. I remember buying
all-time classics like ’68 and ’70 Beaulieu Private Reserve for $12 each, and
’70 and ’74 Heitz Martha’s Vineyard for (gasp) $30.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Being
part of the burgeoning industry in the 1970s and ‘80s also meant being
privileged to personally meet and befriend many of the California pioneers –
Andr</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> Tchelistcheff, Robert Mondavi, Justin Meyer, Paul
Draper, Myron Nightingale, Dick Arrowood, and so many more – on a first-name
basis. People like Schramsberg’s Jack and Jamie Davies, Kermit
Lynch or Jess Jackson himself would call at your door or sit down at a table
with you; and at least once a year I would fly over and call on them. You could
ask questions, and they would take all the time needed to help you understand
what they do, and how they do it. You could talk to the industry giants, when
they walked the earth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvx-h3sVfzEMyhM588ffCI9r59jC1o9-aWPzSAbgHNswN9vejtTNtlAhmGKDAn6fcjGsv2l7lYPX7EnQrvI6kDGsReCQx1QRtMXWeb0FA9Tl7zaV_2rUO7ubfTPlwflu_CRoPeyFratT8/s1600/1982+-+RC%252C+Andre+Tchelistcheff+1982.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="651" data-original-width="813" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvx-h3sVfzEMyhM588ffCI9r59jC1o9-aWPzSAbgHNswN9vejtTNtlAhmGKDAn6fcjGsv2l7lYPX7EnQrvI6kDGsReCQx1QRtMXWeb0FA9Tl7zaV_2rUO7ubfTPlwflu_CRoPeyFratT8/s640/1982+-+RC%252C+Andre+Tchelistcheff+1982.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1982: With my wine competition tasting "buddy," (the immortal) Andre Tchelistcheff<span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></td></tr>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Mind
you, in this day and age, there are still advantages to being young and gifted
with opportunities. Today’s sommeliers, frankly, are required to be
significantly more knowledgeable than we were, 30 or 40 years ago. But hey,
there <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">are</i> advantages to reaching the
far side of the mountain, especially if you still carry a burning desire to
hone your craft. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
fact, a lot of people forget that being a young wine professional in Hawaii
was, and still is, a big deal in itself. The first two American Master Sommeliers,
for instance, lived and worked in Hawaii. The first combination Master
Sommelier/Master of Wine also lived in the Islands during the ‘70s and ‘80s.
This is the caliber of wine professionals with whom I worked, socialized, and
often tasted with.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When
the U.K.’s Court of Master Sommeliers decided, in 1988, to hold their first
examinations on American soil, I applied to be among the 20 American sommeliers
to undertake that challenge. Only one of us passed on that occasion, but more
than half of that first group went back to eventually achieve their MS titles.
In 1992 the Institute of Masters of Wine also held their first, invitation-only
examinations on American soil – which I actually passed, although it was just
to qualify for final exams held (in those days) only in London. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKaYhdmspDJZxja7Gfe-WEDyJ-PA4Q2g3jf03dloxfUcK75pLRet2iXLpXdGkUaFBKis8syF0CyP47aIs3cNQ-o6VagiNmTJhzxTnEShYekMgie2lYVRzVVz83w2bnbIU7PmzSnf8kK4Q/s1600/1990+-+RC%252C+Kermit+Lynch%252C+Gail+Skoff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="777" data-original-width="777" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKaYhdmspDJZxja7Gfe-WEDyJ-PA4Q2g3jf03dloxfUcK75pLRet2iXLpXdGkUaFBKis8syF0CyP47aIs3cNQ-o6VagiNmTJhzxTnEShYekMgie2lYVRzVVz83w2bnbIU7PmzSnf8kK4Q/s640/1990+-+RC%252C+Kermit+Lynch%252C+Gail+Skoff.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1989: <i>Mes amis</i> Kermit Lynch and Gail Skopf<span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I
never got the opportunity to actually sit for final MS or MW exams. Why? I was
busy being a husband and father – attending the games, playing in the park, enjoying the family meals, the things parents are supposed to do with
their kids – while working 60, 70 hours a week managing wine retail stores by
day and walking restaurant floors at night. At the same time, bolstering my
ability to do my job (and, frankly, my value and pay) by plotting never-ending
swings through the vineyards all along the West Coast, favorite parts of Europe,
and occasionally Down Under and in South America. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Do
I ever regret not taking the time to attain ultimate “Master” credentials?
Not one second. Today, my kids are all amazing adults, accumulating their own
life-experiences; and I am a grandfather of four (and counting!).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
1988 I was still working as a full-time sommelier when I met a nationally
acclaimed, James Beard Award winning chef named Roy Yamaguchi, who had moved to
the Islands to escape the craziness of West Hollywood. Chef Yamaguchi said he
planned to open a “few” restaurants, and invited me onboard as a founding partner,
manager and wine director for what promised to be another crazy ride. It was. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjawRo-HKms4l4a0-ij9WXKn8jdgEr53PXxg5Ofl63FkGkINTgiLbsptztttY8zato-QFyKO_YmBeEJI41XqMcU6hehn11ZnxcC6FPeZiQyK_lhW0FecOaUwYaTse0ujdVdY2_QtdBpgs/s1600/1994+-+R.C.%252C+Roy%2527s+5th+Anniversary+%2528Bradley+Ogden%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1204" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjawRo-HKms4l4a0-ij9WXKn8jdgEr53PXxg5Ofl63FkGkINTgiLbsptztttY8zato-QFyKO_YmBeEJI41XqMcU6hehn11ZnxcC6FPeZiQyK_lhW0FecOaUwYaTse0ujdVdY2_QtdBpgs/s640/1994+-+R.C.%252C+Roy%2527s+5th+Anniversary+%2528Bradley+Ogden%2529.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1994: With Roy Yamaguchi (front-left), alongside Bradley Ogden and <i>moi</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">By
2001 I had helped open no less than 28 of these “Roy’s” restaurants,
specializing in cutting-edge French-Asian cuisine and equally innovative wines,
which I traveled the globe to find. In doing so, I got the opportunity to spend
tons of time in markets from coast to coast – in multiple cities in California
and Florida, from Washington to Georgia, Chicago to Austin, Denver and Scottsdale
to New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and more – while working out of home
offices in Honolulu and Newport Beach, California.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Because
Roy’s was such a high profile group – and working for an amazing chef was also
a huge motivator – I earned my own personal accolades; highlighted by awards
such as Sant</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> Magazine’s first Wine &
Spirits Professional of the Year (1998), and Restaurant Wine’s Wine Marketer of
the Year (1992 and 1989). At one point, in the early ‘90s, our original Roy’s
Restaurant in Eastern Honolulu was rated among the country’s Top 40 (by <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Gault Millau </i>and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Forbes</i>); which, no matter how you slice it, is another big deal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Make
no mistake, our restaurant success grew out of plain ol’ elbow grease, not hype.
Sometimes I would pack a bag and not get back home for a month (so much for decent fathering); especially
when there were West or East Coast wine festivals to attend, and the need to personally
attend to bottlings (at least a dozen at a time) grown and custom-produced for
our cuisine by some of the best and brightest winemakers in California, Oregon,
Central Italy, Southern France, Germany’s Pfalz and Baden regions, and even
South Australia. Naturally, I qualified as a United 100K member. I could pack a
carry-on with the best of ‘em.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEjHOzS9_QutykdLiEW7EMr4wO7Dn3gI4edgzs9QOrGezTuAeoytgyMjqudY3apaFhYMRz1VfQIOFrlbzz7jROFs9MZ3l4SRAN5vZe-M3rEmYqPm4Iz6LFPP2qzvuvjchdT36C5E5YvH0/s1600/1998+-+RC%252C+Mondavis+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1068" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEjHOzS9_QutykdLiEW7EMr4wO7Dn3gI4edgzs9QOrGezTuAeoytgyMjqudY3apaFhYMRz1VfQIOFrlbzz7jROFs9MZ3l4SRAN5vZe-M3rEmYqPm4Iz6LFPP2qzvuvjchdT36C5E5YvH0/s640/1998+-+RC%252C+Mondavis+copy.jpg" width="425" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1998: At a Bacchanalia with Robert and Margrit Mondavi</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Eventually
our cozy, little “family” of Roy’s restaurants grew to become a cold,
calculating multi-unit corporation. My enthusiastic, and admittedly uncompromising, approach to wine programming was no longer appreciated. Uniformity and predictability were preferred over freshness and individuality. Something had to give. 9/11 (our New York
restaurant, where I had been just two days earlier, was located just one block
south of Ground Zero) left a bad taste in everyone's mouth; and I parted ways with the company I helped found, and shape, shortly thereafter.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
the early 2000s I found ways of working for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">myself</i>
in ways that could also keep me moving from coast to coast (having developed a
taste for that) – first as the proprietor of my own Caparoso Wines label
(terrific wines, and an even better way to lose money!), and then as a restaurant
consultant (spending extended time in cities like Denver, Memphis, St. Simons
Island in Georgia, and Winter Park, Florida). I was also able to spend more
time on the professional wine judging circuit (something I did only
occasionally during the ‘80s and ‘90s), and to speak at more wine festivals and
symposiums (including Lodi’s ZinFest!).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Ten
years ago, while living on Colorado’s Front Range, I met an entrepreneur who
had successfully published medical journals. He had it in mind to start the
first-ever professional journal (at least in the U.S.) written and published exclusively
for the sommelier trade. It just so happened that, while working in
restaurants, I had also accumulated over 20 years’ experience in the discipline
of writing biweekly newspaper wine columns (starting in 1981 for my hometown
newspaper, The Honolulu Advertiser), as well as numerous freelance articles for
restaurant and wine industry publications.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-6K8BaxmOEVsLC-vZdtKrB6d_Oolue0Z_V2wTTknesOqdpofw_WqsyvPD6_iy88LY0Vv3SjreHtOIOMf5pZyRVL3VDEKKKwNQ6he3p6Rmt7yuMHl75ZKLagNim7queh_-cMsP5DoxsJs/s1600/2001+-+RC%252C+Rob+Sinskey%252C+Carneros+Wine+Alliance+Pinot+Luauy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1085" data-original-width="1600" height="432" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-6K8BaxmOEVsLC-vZdtKrB6d_Oolue0Z_V2wTTknesOqdpofw_WqsyvPD6_iy88LY0Vv3SjreHtOIOMf5pZyRVL3VDEKKKwNQ6he3p6Rmt7yuMHl75ZKLagNim7queh_-cMsP5DoxsJs/s640/2001+-+RC%252C+Rob+Sinskey%252C+Carneros+Wine+Alliance+Pinot+Luauy.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2001: Leading an "aloha" at a Carneros Alliance luau with Rob Sinskey</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">This
Colorado connection led to the founding of Sommelier Journal (in 2007); which
eventually morphed into The SOMM Journal, for which I am currently the West
Coast Editor-at-Large – covering wine regions as a journalist, while leading
sommeliers on frequent 3-day, on-site studies from British Columbia all the way
down to Santa Barbara. I think of these sommelier “Camps” as a way of making it
possible for today’s on-premise professionals to learn the trade in the same
ways I was fortunate to experience in my 20s and 30s – in the field, not just
through books or surrounded by four walls. The SOMM Journal has over 50,000 subscribers
(mostly restaurant/hotel wine buyers), in every state of the union.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The
funny thing (at least to me!) is that for years I told people that I worked as
a restaurant wine professional, and wrote wine columns on the side for fun.
Today I earn my keep by writing wine columns (and blogs, particularly for
<a href="http://lodiwine.com/">lodiwine.com</a>), and I do a little restaurant consulting on the side for fun (I
still retain one multi-unit chef-client in Denver).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When
I started in the business, wine lovers and wine producers from all around the
world used to come to us, in the Hawaiian Islands, and that’s how we learned
what people loved, and how wine producers thought. Later in my career I was
given the means to get out into the world; meeting wine lovers in their own hometowns
across the country; while increasing my time up close and personal among vines;
tasting wines from barrels and bottles while picking the brains of many of our greatest
vintners.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaZoC471nKgmiE7SHVF5PILk12CboXe5UtOQo9mPf8K4PUtowXDO86jbBV8ud2DT-F40zeKaB0PP9QPU3F-sKtkPm5NWQrfUlRc0J1UJg3x8XPT0iiv5SxIVfqUEiUaVthf395Lc1IiCU/s1600/2000+-+RC%252C+Sante+cover%252C+2000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1220" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaZoC471nKgmiE7SHVF5PILk12CboXe5UtOQo9mPf8K4PUtowXDO86jbBV8ud2DT-F40zeKaB0PP9QPU3F-sKtkPm5NWQrfUlRc0J1UJg3x8XPT0iiv5SxIVfqUEiUaVthf395Lc1IiCU/s640/2000+-+RC%252C+Sante+cover%252C+2000.jpg" width="488" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2000: Cover of Sante Magazine with my "big Pinot"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But
here’s another funny (or not) thing: No matter where you go – and I’ve been most
everywhere – you find that<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> all</i>
consumers crave real, genuine wines, at their finest (no matter what the price
point) when they are expressive of the places they are grown; while growers and
producers of the world’s finest wines are cognizant of pretty much the same
things. It’s like the old Paul Simon song about “All Around the World or The Myth
of Fingerprints”: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">There’s no doubt about
it...</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I’ve seen them all and man
they’re all same</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
any case, I have been contented ever since the Lodi Winegrape Commission first
invited me to pitch my tent in Lodi in 2010. I am no longer obsessed with going
everywhere; not even places I haven’t set foot (like Austria or Argentina, New
Zealand or South Africa). I know a lot of this is something of a late Boomer’s rocking-chair
laziness, but I could give a hoot. Hideously long plane rides no longer enchant
me; although I<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> will</i> drive two days
just to watch my grandson play the piano, or hear my youngest granddaughter laugh.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I
am grateful that, in Lodi, I have found a community to whom I can devote my
nearly four full decades of hard wrought skills and insights. It is precisely
because of my previous experiences that I know Lodi – its vineyards and terroirs,
wines and people – is the real deal. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmQAoWpMSShjBzAzffdah6iKXG2xmG-WnTjl8N_EyLCDt_Ovf_aaPRaR56NqO-ADWdvtYmf1KwegnKKuxm2zokydhAXYsOnrftVT1WhNZ2ar28n7HPAkzk0i7-icjfGPZT6WlQoYtOzxo/s1600/2001+-+RC%252C+Oregon+%2522Gang+of+Seven%252C%2522+Tina%2527s%252C+Newberg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmQAoWpMSShjBzAzffdah6iKXG2xmG-WnTjl8N_EyLCDt_Ovf_aaPRaR56NqO-ADWdvtYmf1KwegnKKuxm2zokydhAXYsOnrftVT1WhNZ2ar28n7HPAkzk0i7-icjfGPZT6WlQoYtOzxo/s640/2001+-+RC%252C+Oregon+%2522Gang+of+Seven%252C%2522+Tina%2527s%252C+Newberg.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2000: With Oregon's "Gang of Six" (standing with Harry Peterson-Nedry and Ken Wright; and seated, Mike Etzel, Steve Doerner, Rob Stuart, Laurent Montalieu and Lynn Penner-Ash)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It
is also precisely because of my experiences that I know that wine consumers in
general are no idiots. They always thirst for “more,” and have as much capacity
to appreciate wines as professionals in the industry and trade. If they didn’t,
most of them would still be drinking wine coolers, Lancer’s Vin Ros</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é, or Riunite-on-ice. The stupidest thing anyone
can ever do is underestimate the consumers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">We can also
clearly see that some parts of the media and trade still underestimate Lodi.
Yet consumers are catching on to Lodi anyway. They don’t need “experts” to know
what’s real.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">All
</span><i style="font-size: 11pt;">I</i><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> know is that from the centralized
location of my recently adopted wine country home, I can now do what I have
always loved the most: revel in the endlessly fascinating beauty of wine regions; their topography, vines and history; the resourcefulness of growers; the
artistry and science of winemakers; and above all, the sheer joy and warmth of
everyone associated with the life of grapes and good, honest, decently made
wine.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXCRmB5WajgD8p9ZERC5_gxksYOeFErCHdGmpKMv3hvIuypyt1dTn2z5On0zYDgjCbTPxY3F5SORiFhT4QvutTqNiwyO_ekyRaU2KxHD-o7xSGGfIBsJXAax6BbmKWJkh69HMURPz47_I/s1600/2009+-+La+Follette%252C+Luke+Porter-Bass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="404" data-original-width="604" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXCRmB5WajgD8p9ZERC5_gxksYOeFErCHdGmpKMv3hvIuypyt1dTn2z5On0zYDgjCbTPxY3F5SORiFhT4QvutTqNiwyO_ekyRaU2KxHD-o7xSGGfIBsJXAax6BbmKWJkh69HMURPz47_I/s640/2009+-+La+Follette%252C+Luke+Porter-Bass.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2008: In-the-business-for-the-fun-of-it (with two favorite characters, Greg La Follette and Luke Porter-Bass)</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-83437782712091304642017-03-30T15:13:00.001-06:002019-05-12T14:45:49.468-06:00Questions of terroir and minerality<div class="MsoNormal">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.800000190734863px;">Luis Zabala in his singularly unique Arroyo Seco (dry riverbed) Chardonnay growth</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>This post is a combination of two "Bottom Line" columns previously published in The SOMM Journal and Sommelier Journal</i></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Is it okay to talk about terroir in terms of minerals?</span><o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">When you become a working <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sommelier">sommelier</a>, and are privy to tastings of wines from around the world, you invariably develop an increased appreciation for wines tasting distinctly of their “sense of place” – commonly known as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroir</a>. The current obsession with concepts like “balance” in lieu of sensations associated with oak, overripe fruit, alcohol or other excesses is, in one sense, really an expression of our longings for wines that taste more of vineyards or terroir, rather manipulations thereof through the heavy handed intervention of winemakers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">I have always thought of terroir as like a tree falling in the forest. Just because you can’t hear it, it doesn’t mean there is no sound. As subtle as terroir related sensory delineations can be, they often aren’t. A <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chablis_wine">Chablis</a>, for instance, is far less weighty than a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puligny-Montrachet_wine">Puligny-Montrachet</a>, even though both are grown in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burgundy_wine">Burgundy</a> and made from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chardonnay">Chardonnay</a>. The difference between a Chablis and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Carneros_AVA">Carneros</a> grown Chardonnay is even more graphic – more acid, less alcohol/body, and far less tropical fruit aromas. The impact of terroir – entailing everything defining a vineyard or region, from soil to climate, aspect to temperature, altitude to latitude, viticultural decisions to winemaking practices, et al. – can be so big, wines made from the same grapes often barely resemble each other.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.800000190734863px;">The Mittelmosel's ridiculously steep Wurzgarten</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">But what of wine aromas and flavors commonly associated with regions and vineyards, usually described as some kind of <i>minerality</i>? Chablis is commonly identified with sensations of chalkiness, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pouilly-Fum%C3%A9">Pouilly-Fumé</a> by a flintiness, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savenni%C3%A8res_wine">Savennières</a> by a somewhat loamier flintiness, and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosel_(wine_region)#Wines">Mosel-Saar-Ruwers</a> by an entire range of sensations suggesting slate or flint. In the past, these would all be examples of wines with characteristics traditionally attributed directly to components contained in the soils in which they are grown. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">“Bullshit,” I once heard Santa Barbara’s <a href="http://cargasacchi.com/">Peter Cargassachi</a> say, “vines do not have the capacity to uptake the taste of minerals through root systems... that’s been proven over and over again.” I cannot disagree with that. We all know, of course, that aromas and flavors of wines are not directly related to biological factors such as soil. When you describe a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riesling">Riesling</a> as flowery, a Chardonnay as tropical-fruity, or a Zinfandel as peppery, it doesn’t mean there are flowers, mango, papaya or peppercorns growing in the ground among the vines, directly effecting the taste of resulting wines. By the same token, mineral sensations in wines do not come from minerals in the ground. But if this is so, where <i>do</i> sensations of minerality come from?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">In a piece by Jordan Ross called <a href="https://locatas.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/minerality_reprint.pdf">“Minerality, Rigorous or Romantic?”</a> published in <i>Practical Winery & Vineyard Journal</i> (Winter 2012), scientists like Alex Maltman (University of Wales), Anna Katherine Mansfield (Cornell Department of Food Science) and Carole Meredith (U.C. Davis Department of Viticulture & Enology) are all quoted to say basically the same thing: tiny amounts of dissolved ions are typically absorbed by vine roots, but none of them are of sufficient enough efficacy to contribute to actual sensations of minerality in a wine’s aroma or flavor.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.800000190734863px;">Puligny-Montrachet</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">But it is no coincidence, Ross explains, that sensations of minerality also happen to correlate with wines grown in colder climates – wines, as such, retaining higher natural acidity. In his article, Ross cites Grégoire Pissot of <a href="https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.cave-lugny.com/&prev=search">Cave de Lugny in Mâcon</a> as saying, “’Mineral’ is, at times, used when ‘acid’ would be more appropriate.” The Mosel’s Nik Weis concurs, drawing attention to the fact that, although grown in similar gray slate, a higher acid Ockfener Bockstein will always taste more minerally than a lower acid Piesporter Goldtröpfchen, most likely because Goldtröpfchen is a warmer site. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Still, as sommeliers we know that minerality is not an abstraction – we can<i> taste</i> it. An <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Mosel_vineyards">Ockfener Bockstein</a>, for instance, retains mineral notes that are slightly different from that of nearby <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Mosel_vineyards">Üziger Würzgarten</a>. The question is, are the differences logically attributable to the high iron content of Würzgarten’s red slate slope, as opposed to Bockstein’s gray slate and sandstone? Würzgarten, after all, does not translate as “spice garden” for nothing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Whether or not the differences among Germany’s great Riesling growths are directly related to variations of aspect, slope, soil, or any number of topographic factors that influence grape expression, the fact remains: under similar cold climate conditions, the minerality of a Bockstein is different from the minerality of a Würzgarten; just as both taste different from a pungently minerally <a href="http://www.vonschubert.com/en/weingut/">Maximum Grunhauser Herrenberg</a>, and the oft-times dramatic, pervasive earthiness found in Rieslings grown in even <i>warmer</i> sites, such as the Rheinhessen’s <a href="http://www.jancisrobinson.com/articles/gunderlochs-nackenheimer-rothenbergs-rheinhessen">NackenheimerRothenberg</a> or the Pfalz’s <a href="https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forster_Ungeheuer&prev=search">Forster Ungeheuer</a>. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.800000190734863px;">Langley Hill block in Santa Cruz Mountains' Thomas Fogarty Vineyard</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Yet the connection between minerality and acidity make sense. A few years ago I spent a day studying Chardonnays grown on four different slopes in the immediate vicinity of <a href="http://www.fogartywinery.com/">Thomas Fogarty Winery & Vineyards</a>, 1700 to 2000 ft. up in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Cruz_Mountains_AVA">Santa Cruz Mountains</a>. All four vineyards were planted in the early 1980s on identical trellis systems, and all to <a href="http://iv.ucdavis.edu/files/24489.pdf">Clone 04 Chardonnay</a> (California’s most ubiquitous selection, known for its <i>tabula rasa</i> amenities). No question: across multiple vintages, Fogarty’s two coolest, slowest ripening sites (Portola Springs and Albutom Estate) consistently taste more minerally – like the common taste of “wet stones” – than the two warmer sites (Langley Hill and Damiana Vineyard). Higher acid sensations also correlated with increased minerality. Moreover, the more a Fogarty Chardonnay tastes of ripe, sweet toned peach, pear or apple-like fruit, the less minerally the flavor.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Then there is the consistent inverse relationship between <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soil_pH">high pH in soil</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acids_in_wine">lower pH in wine</a>, which is another reason why wines grown in more <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alkali_soil">alkaline</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calcareous">calcareous soils</a> are often associated with increased minerality. Nonetheless, warmer climate wine regions that have calcareous soils with off-the-charts alkalinity, such as much of California’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paso_Robles_AVA">Paso Robles AVA</a>, are not nearly as closely associated with wines replete with minerality as colder climate calcareous terroirs such as those found in France’s Burgundy and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loire_Valley_(wine)">Loire Valley</a>. Climate clearly trumps soil when it comes to higher acid wines with actual imprints of minerality.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Still, as difficult as it is to prove direct connections between minerality and soil composition, there will always be hard working <i>vignerons</i> who will vouch for it. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willamette_Valley_AVA">WillametteValley</a>’s <a href="http://www.kenwrightcellars.com/">Ken Wright</a>, for instance, is as respected as they come. He says that it is precisely because there is a “symbiotic relationship” between positive microorganisms in soils and healthy plants that there is a direct contribution to wine flavor from soil via root systems.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.800000190734863px;">Ken Wright Cellars image</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">“As someone who has planted many a vineyard over 35 years,” says Wright, “I can say that without question, when vines roots reach the mineral rich parent material something wonderful happens.” Wright’s conclusions are based upon his own lab reports tracking soil composition as a result of farming improvements documented over several decades: the higher the uptake of ionic minerals through enhanced root systems, the higher the clarity of resulting wines. “Wines from these vines go from being muddled and indistinct to having recognizable, crystal clear aromatic and flavor traits.” Wright, however, is not talking exclusively about sensations associated with minerality. He cites aroma-related flavors such as “chocolate, tobacco, anise, or cola,” on top of “increased profiles related to iron/stony qualities, which remain consistent from year to year.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Is <i>terroir</i> a crock?</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Yet lately I have been feeling a disturbance in the universe. The profession of sommelier has been under fire, which is not surprising. The number of working sommeliers has increased significantly in recent years, which leaves the trade all the more open to persistent stigmas: sommeliers are snobs, sommeliers are arrogant, sommeliers are the cause of ridiculous restaurant prices and, apparently, numerous other things “wrong” with the wine and restaurant industries.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Earlier this year I found myself taking flak for suggesting that a newly published book, entitled <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BNEF1Q4/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1">Terroir and Other Myths of Winegrowing</a> (University of California Press), is not entirely copacetic. According to the author, Mark A. Matthews (a Professor of Vit</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">iculture at U.C. Davis), terroir is a crock essentially because “</span><span style="color: #1d1e2f; font-size: 11pt;">minerals derived from rocks may represent a relatively small part of the soil’s impact on plants,” and “mineral nutrients have no established contribution to flavor” in wines. </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Because of that, Matthews concludes, terroir is nothing more than </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">a “shibboleth that establishes an in-group in a world unto itself... This isn’t wine appreciation… it is more like wine snobbery.”</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.800000190734863px;">Soil pit showing deep fine sandy loam in Lodi' Becthold Vineyard (Cinsaut planted in 1886)</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;">Aside from the professor’s value judgement, the idea that there is no direct correlation between flavors in wines and minerals in soil is nothing new. We concur. The SOMM Journal (and its previous incarnation, Sommelier </span><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 14.666666984558105px;">Journal) has published several</span><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;"> articles explicating this very issue. Matthews errs, however, in his interpretation of the <i>consequences</i> of this observation. Most of us (I can’t speak for everyone) who speak often of terroir are not talking about “flavor” uptake from soil. We are simply talking about the direct influence of physical attributes of a given vineyard or region on the sensory qualities of wines.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;">You know: The things that make, say, a classic Chablis taste lean, lemony and minerally, whereas a Carneros grown Chardonnay taste fuller, fleshier, and intense in floral tropical fruit. Terroir matters... a lot. By Matthews’ implication, we “terroirists” would have everyone believe that Chablis tastes minerally because of minerals in the calcareous soil of Chablis, and that Carneros Chardonnays taste tropical because there is papaya, mango and passionfruit growing under the ground. I’m no agronomist, but that doesn’t make me stupid. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;">Yet somehow, the myth of sommelier imprudence persists. One of many responses to my online objection to Matthews’ thesis, and I quote: “</span><span style="color: #1d1e2f; font-size: 11pt;">For every level headed article you write about ‘sense of place’ some jackass is writing an article about tasting dirt. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Court_of_Master_Sommeliers">Master Sommeliers</a> insist that the ‘blood’ note is the result of iron in the soil. Which is another problem; terroir is almost completely attributed to soil... I believe that the influence of the sun, when the grape sees it and doesn’t and the resulting temperature dynamics create a huge diversity in a small area. How many somms, writers and even winemakers are open to the idea that something other than soil can be the predominant factor in ‘place’?”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.800000190734863px;">Bandol's Domaine Tempier</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;">Ahem... <i>all</i> of us? Who among us are not cognizant of the impact of much more than soil, but also topography, aspect, elevation, latitude, climate, temperature, wind, and endless other natural factors – not to mention <i>typicit</i></span><i><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;">é</span></i><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;"> contributed by grower (choice of grapes, clones, rootstock, vine training, pruning, picking decisions, ad infinitum) and, of course, winemaker decisions – on our best and most interesting wines? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;">The simplest, and still most accurate, definition of terroir is “sense of place.” No one says “sense of dirt.” </span><span style="color: #1d1e2f; font-size: 11pt;">If some people think sommeliers do, then the trade really does need to work harder on its image.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #1d1e2f; font-size: 11pt;">I’m more concerned, however, about the concept of terroir driven wines. If there is an element that believes it is more important that wines express “varietal” character or winemaking technique instead of the special places they are grown, then we really are in trouble. The fact of the matter is y</span><span style="color: #131313; font-size: 11pt;">ou cannot conjure up a Chablis from Carneros, or a fruit driven Carneros style Chardonnay from Chablis. The reason is "terroir." It's that giant elephant in the room: you can't ignore it. It's what make special wines special.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #1d1e2f; font-size: 11pt;">Still, I cannot fathom the likes of a wine world in which a <a href="http://domainetempier.com/en">Tempier</a>, a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%C3%A2teau_Mouton_Rothschild">Mouton</a>, a <a href="http://www.bischoeflicheweingueter.de/en/wine-estate/vineyard-sites/saar/scharzhofberger.html">Scharzhofberger</a>, <a href="http://www.fiddleheadcellars.com/fiddlestix-in-sta-rita-hills.html">Fiddlestix</a>, <a href="http://www.duttongoldfield.com/our_vineyards/rued.html">Rued</a> or <a href="http://randycaparoso.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-original-grandpere-vineyard.html">Original Grandp</a></span><span style="color: #1d1e2f; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://randycaparoso.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-original-grandpere-vineyard.html">è</a></span><span style="color: #1d1e2f; font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://randycaparoso.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-original-grandpere-vineyard.html">re</a> goes the way of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minotaur">minotaurs</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unicorn">unicorns</a>, or <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tinker_Bell">Tinker Bell</a>. We probably need not worry about the exalted vineyards; but what could be worse is many of our lesser known yet still distinctively terroir driven and worthy wines disappearing into giant vats of branded botlings for sheer lack of love or respect - all in the name of a "new, improved" wine world. Let's not let that happen.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXLMgpw4hrt7RmYZ9qtwq6SOP32Yz6qWCKpEaZ2BFCWISAl_2L3QcAbcWR6wtE_yW3vm3l0Y8NbkrrN_b6F50ohR47kW8hQbD5ta7TgmmMtSccV-UBkLvss5pTxyCUbqQjOMX5o7PXgAo/s1600/Fiddlestix.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXLMgpw4hrt7RmYZ9qtwq6SOP32Yz6qWCKpEaZ2BFCWISAl_2L3QcAbcWR6wtE_yW3vm3l0Y8NbkrrN_b6F50ohR47kW8hQbD5ta7TgmmMtSccV-UBkLvss5pTxyCUbqQjOMX5o7PXgAo/s640/Fiddlestix.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="640" /></a></div>
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View from Fiddlestix Vineyard barn in Sta. Rita Hills</div>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-66064846605524641842017-03-22T17:07:00.000-06:002018-04-06T18:34:53.998-06:00Why this whole "balance" argument was always a crock<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwtF7_oPyV54e0VXX2bE5RXaZSnrjwQCmcsQ0EpBJc0Aef-PPA3430JXJrNWrjYfjcsr_IAbZe_GjkWDZi6EnsN4cITwwU_cWkUEg2MdjK1iQhbs3d_iVaW7TRBHBdAnb1K1wPEFbKj0A/s1600/R.C.%252C+Pinot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwtF7_oPyV54e0VXX2bE5RXaZSnrjwQCmcsQ0EpBJc0Aef-PPA3430JXJrNWrjYfjcsr_IAbZe_GjkWDZi6EnsN4cITwwU_cWkUEg2MdjK1iQhbs3d_iVaW7TRBHBdAnb1K1wPEFbKj0A/s640/R.C.%252C+Pinot.jpg" width="488" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The author, showing off his giant "Pinot" in 2000</td></tr>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">A revision of a column originally published in Sommelier Journal<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">For me it was always easy, when word started getting around eight, nine years ago, to
dismiss the notion that wines over 14% alcohol or picked “overripe” are
somehow inferior, or less “balanced,” than wines closer to 12% or 13% alcohol, which are leaner in fruitiness and higher in acidity.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Wine,
after all, has always been an aesthetic choice, like any other we make in our
lives. You might yearn for a man with a body like <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnold_Schwarzenegger">Arnold</a> and a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denzel_Washington">Denze</a>l face, but
no doubt the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stan_Laurel">Laurels</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Hardy">Hardys</a> of the world get their share of love, too. So
you prefer curling up to a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter">Harry Potter</a> rather <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Joyce">James Joyce</a>’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulysses_(novel)">Ulysses</a>
(obviously, far more do), or contemplating a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvel_Comics">Marvel</a> comic book rather than a classic <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claude_Monet">Monet</a> or <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89douard_Manet">Manet</a>? I suppose the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rolling_Stones">Stones</a> vs. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles">Beatles</a> argument still rages on, albeit in different manifestations (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beyonc%C3%A9">Beyonc</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beyonc%C3%A9">é</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> vs.
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adele">Adele</a>?).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
matters of taste, who really cares?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The
whole point of systems like France’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appellation_d%27origine_contr%C3%B4l%C3%A9e">AOC</a> is to recognize the best winegrowing
regions, which is why it is no more valid to say <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornas_AOC">Cornas</a> is superior to
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C%C3%B4te-R%C3%B4tie_AOC">Côte-Rôtie</a> than it is to say Côte-Rôtie is better than a <a href="https://www.mollydookerwines.com/">Mollydooker</a>’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Australian_wine">South Australia</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrah#Syrah_wines">Shiraz</a>, or that a Mollydooker out-dukes a <a href="http://www.stolpmanvineyards.com/">Stolpman</a> Santa Barbara
Syrah. It’s a silly argument because these are all red wines with a grape in
common but coming from different regions; and different regions produce wines
of different terroir related distinctions, often at extraordinary levels of
quality that transcend arbitrary conceptions like alcohol, perceptions of
“ripeness,” or even sense of “balance.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: right;">- New Yorker</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 14.666666984558105px;">One man's ceiling, as they say, is another man's floor.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Despite the absurdity, debates rising barely above matters of taste persist, like pesky fruit flies. Charles Olken, who
has been publishing <a href="http://www.cgcw.com/">Connoisseurs’ Guide to California Wine</a> since the days when
French judges regularly mistook wines like <a href="http://montelena.com/">Chateau Montelena</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chardonnay">Chardonnay</a> for
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montrachet">Montrachet</a> – thus, inadverdently making a case for California style fruitiness
(how were the French to know they actually preferred fruitier wine?) – once put
things in perspective for me by sharing this thought: “Every new generation of
wine commentators suddenly discovers that California wines are a little bit
riper than their European counterparts. A few of them genuinely like the pert,
tighter, high acids they find in Europe, but others simply adopt Europe as a
‘classic’ and thus dismiss all that is different.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It recently reached a point, Olken also opined, where “if someone points out that balanced
wines do, in fact, exist at levels above 14%, that person is branded as a ‘high
alcohol apologist’ by people who should know better, and who themselves often
recommend wines as high as 15% based upon their own blind tastings.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It
isn’t so much what happens in blind tastings. It’s more a case of people
walking around with blinders. Who can ever forget, as it were, the incident at
the 2011 <a href="http://www.worldofpinotnoir.com/">World of Pinot Noir</a>; when <a href="http://www.siduri.com/">Siduri</a> winemaker/owner Adam Lee <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/23/dining/23pour.html">switched a 15.2% alcohol Pinot with a 13.6% alcohol Pinot</a> – resulting in the higher
alcohol wine being described as “better balanced” by a well known proponent of
low alcohol. Blind tastings makes fools of us all. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFTXEFSUsmQ33CJ4g-w5mBB_inUThAAf6vyEO99kPPnPAb8aUzSyCe0cfNIVpjYVkPsstkkH1LBhNanPr_tmei1SvPzY5V2v7gtr_6m379FnHTDPU798n4F82aIL111eDhOfMvLWFp8zo/s1600/ps_2014_04_07___19_09_05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFTXEFSUsmQ33CJ4g-w5mBB_inUThAAf6vyEO99kPPnPAb8aUzSyCe0cfNIVpjYVkPsstkkH1LBhNanPr_tmei1SvPzY5V2v7gtr_6m379FnHTDPU798n4F82aIL111eDhOfMvLWFp8zo/s640/ps_2014_04_07___19_09_05.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The author as the bourgeoning sommelier and wine professional, circa 1978 (with Heather Caparoso)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What
is harder to understand is why even experienced wine professionals who should
know better cannot reconcile with this simple, incontrovertible fact: that
sensory perception is <i>always</i> altered by scale and context, no matter what your avowed preferences or intellectual persuasions. No one is immune.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I,
for instance, have always preferred a lighter, gentle, finesse style of Pinot
Noir. Line up any two, and I’ll pick the restrained, sharper, balanced wine
over a big, “opulent” or “hedonistic” one all the time. I’ll never forget
another World of Pinot Noir event, when I tasted a stunning wine that I thought
was one particular winemaker’s finest Pinot Noir ever. Afterwards I wrote to
him, enthusiastically reporting my finding. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">His
response? “This was probably our most difficult Pinot Noir to make... we
experienced a sudden late season heat spike, and grape sugars soared out of
control... the alcohol ended up around 15%.” Needless to say, I hadn’t checked
the alcohol content on the label. Does this make me a lousy judge of Pinot
Noir? No. It just means it’s a damned good Pinot Noir. A product of its vintage
(thanks be to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_Nature">Mother Nature</a>), and a credit to its source (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sta._Rita_Hills_AVA">Sta. Rita Hills</a>, if
you really wanna know).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Still,
I can’t help but think: All this is geek-speak; nick-picky, and embarrassingly
self-indulgent. No wonder so many folks wince at the sight of sommeliers.
Especially since what really matters is how a wine fits on a table, with food
and company. After all, that’s the real job of sommeliers – suggesting and serving
wines to go with dishes. There’s nothing like, for instance, classic <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermitage_AOC">Hermitage</a>,
Cornas or Côte-Rôtie with grilled meats; or, as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Olney">Richard Olney</a> once famously
prescribed, braises of <a href="http://www.sheldrakepress.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=21:richard-onleys-french-wine-and-food-aka-ten-vineyard-lunches&catid=7&Itemid=9">stuffed lamb shoulder</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgqkFbzDe9HD2oGcmoF6HVzlBcGIIudO0LPl8DU5CoaNk-YKKlKpT3iu1rdoUu9DXdjXBVMng_45Qr9w2u4epV0d2kSFZA7aSGxHwrBeywpM-O1nuPeW55bTguSGV1DBcAd-2ZkAWwLfo/s1600/R.C%252C+Kermit%252C+Feb.+2012+%25233.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgqkFbzDe9HD2oGcmoF6HVzlBcGIIudO0LPl8DU5CoaNk-YKKlKpT3iu1rdoUu9DXdjXBVMng_45Qr9w2u4epV0d2kSFZA7aSGxHwrBeywpM-O1nuPeW55bTguSGV1DBcAd-2ZkAWwLfo/s640/R.C%252C+Kermit%252C+Feb.+2012+%25233.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In Berkeley with longtime mentor Kermit Lynch (2012)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But
take those same grills or braises and finish them with reductions of fruit or
in a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_wine">Port</a> infused demi-glaze, plus beds of onion marmalade or caramelized root
vegetables, and I’d wager that a humongous, fatly fruited Mollydooker might
actually fare better than leaner, earthier wines of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rh%C3%B4ne_wine">Northern Rh</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rh%C3%B4ne_wine">ô</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rh%C3%B4ne_wine">ne</a>. Incorporate exotic ingredients like star anise,
hoisin, black beans or chocolate mole, and then lavish, sweet toned, decidedly
warmer climate California Syrahs by the likes of Stolpman, <a href="http://www.jaffurswine.com/">Jaffurs</a>, <a href="http://www.halterranch.com/">HalterRanch</a>, <a href="http://www.betzfamilywinery.com/">Betz Family</a> or <a href="http://www.kenwrightcellars.com/tyrusevan.shtml">Ken Wright’s Tyrus Evan</a> might make even more sense.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">If
some dishes prefer fruitier, higher alcohol, lower acid Syrahs, we should,
too!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">There’s
too much good winegrowing going on out there to dismiss any because of less
consequential things like alcohol content or varietal fruit profiling. It’s not
even a question of balance, because even those perceptions are debatable. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It is more a matter of appreciating the differences and
diversity of wines from different regions or terroirs, and enjoying them for
what they are, not what they’re “supposed” to be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiadx6NjNsgBgaIVWowqGCErWKoAGklce414jYKwTJTfxw_9sS8KQtqUDELLeD10xmuQGlD7Ae9HCNC357NNmAR8U8LPRTRWqvEu_CoXK3RWMfHWU_TBG8SchVdV_vgb68-AG_oy1oa7Go/s1600/Mr.+Larry%252C+New+Yorker.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiadx6NjNsgBgaIVWowqGCErWKoAGklce414jYKwTJTfxw_9sS8KQtqUDELLeD10xmuQGlD7Ae9HCNC357NNmAR8U8LPRTRWqvEu_CoXK3RWMfHWU_TBG8SchVdV_vgb68-AG_oy1oa7Go/s640/Mr.+Larry%252C+New+Yorker.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: right;">- New Yorker</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-91330097741893703762017-03-16T22:11:00.000-06:002017-04-17T14:49:07.010-06:00The state of American Pinot Noir is better than ever (but not for reasons you may expect)<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7iPlFIhVxGuCUWk49LHoACoE3yp3LW6TANwNPF5_KjRAg1LXeimNJaYej9NpMoFuUhyphenhyphenBM66HzUA86kfJ39r3VG3FSGEM08T9Mm826lIJA1jK_sp2V85EImP0Gk04InXJorlS6sg__ORk/s1600/Laetitia%252C+Pinot+Noir.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7iPlFIhVxGuCUWk49LHoACoE3yp3LW6TANwNPF5_KjRAg1LXeimNJaYej9NpMoFuUhyphenhyphenBM66HzUA86kfJ39r3VG3FSGEM08T9Mm826lIJA1jK_sp2V85EImP0Gk04InXJorlS6sg__ORk/s640/Laetitia%252C+Pinot+Noir.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pinot Noir on virused vines in Arroyo Grande Valley's Laetitia Vineyards</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It
was very easy to be impressed by the overall quality level of Pinot Noirs at
the 17<sup>th</sup> annual <b><a href="http://www.worldofpinotnoir.com/">World of Pinot Noir</a></b>, taking place at <a href="http://www.guestreservations.com/bacara-resort/booking">Bacara Resort</a> in Santa Barbara this past March 3-4, 2017.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As
in previous years, I took detailed notes on some 50 wines on each of the two
days (I know I’m maxed
out when the inside of my lips start to go numb), out of the ridiculous number you actually have the opportunity to taste (40
producers, pouring an estimated 700 different bottlings). I apologize for all
the ones I missed; but when I accepted the post of “god of wine” some 39 years
ago (my first sommelier job), they didn’t tell me that my actual powers would
be that of a somewhat mortal semi-demigod, and a minor one at that. Still, if anyone claims they have perfectly good notes on more than 100 wines tasted at World of Pinot Noir, I suspect they’re lying.</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxqTb2nfws9bxlqNNPmpYRoVakYsZCxcnTMs4N9TepemvSX-S97hTUP4_5yDfmponXWRNRhfjwpOfoxkCVdHpNrhpAluBEyZ7NC1DGhWk9eYHY_LzXXhb3PA9uc3uNTNYdcSoW1atEJjg/s1600/Michael+Maslin%252C+god+of+wiine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxqTb2nfws9bxlqNNPmpYRoVakYsZCxcnTMs4N9TepemvSX-S97hTUP4_5yDfmponXWRNRhfjwpOfoxkCVdHpNrhpAluBEyZ7NC1DGhWk9eYHY_LzXXhb3PA9uc3uNTNYdcSoW1atEJjg/s640/Michael+Maslin%252C+god+of+wiine.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: right;">- Michael Maslin, The New Yorker<span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I
know what I thought of the Pinot Noirs. Since I don’t have to convince myself,
after the proceedings I queried a few winemakers (those producing my
“favorites”) that I saw there to see if their impressions jibed with mine. For
the most part, they did. Perhaps that’s why I preferred their wines over that of
others. Hardly an unbiased poll, but still...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Nathan
Kandler – the winemaker who’s been doing such an outstanding job at Thomas
Fogarty Winery these past 10, 12 years – probably said the most interesting thing over sushi on the final night of WOPN. What Kandler noticed:
“Greater appreciation for what makes Pinot Noir regions great – unlike 10, 15
years ago, when everyone was trying to make some kind of wine emulating a
Platonic ideal of ‘Pinot Noir.’” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
other words, less obsession with a single varietal definition of Pinot Noir, less fidelity to house styles, and sharpened focus on sense of place. This industry-wide movement (at least in the
category of premium bottlings), of course, has been gradual; but in 2017, we
may have reached a critical juncture – at least one that is more noticeable
than what we saw just a year or two ago.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd4bHwJ2KTbUrbifDLsjRw8bKEE5A6mPraKH36pjOpbbwjp-Xh43nXDVDMCo5qkKS444sTodY_8Hp-0ZfrFnVBLyL4RKwy4I4Alh9pgQJk9voXGtuOQq9EwBgG9iwI1T2jtCni8ssR5Vg/s1600/Nathan+Kandler%252C+Rapley+Ridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd4bHwJ2KTbUrbifDLsjRw8bKEE5A6mPraKH36pjOpbbwjp-Xh43nXDVDMCo5qkKS444sTodY_8Hp-0ZfrFnVBLyL4RKwy4I4Alh9pgQJk9voXGtuOQq9EwBgG9iwI1T2jtCni8ssR5Vg/s640/Nathan+Kandler%252C+Rapley+Ridge.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nathan Kandler in Thomas Fogarty's Rapley Trail Vineyard (Santa Cruz Mountains)<span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I
do not take it as a complete coincidence that Kevin Law, owner/winemaker of C</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ô</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">ti</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">re Wines in Santa Maria,
happened to mention in passing Rhys Vineyards – one of Thomas Fogarty’s Skyline
Drive neighbors in Santa Cruz Mountains – in a discussion of more informed use
of whole cluster, new oak and extreme (i.e. low yielding/hillside) viticulture.
To begin with, Law told me, “American Pinot Noirs are in their infancy compared
to France... yet I am incredibly impressed and happy to see the direction of
the wines just over the past few years. As a winemaker, in my humble opinion,
it is best to not stylize or interfere – rather, to protect and encourage
vineyard expression. We’re starting to go beyond ripeness levels and winemaking
styles, where boundaries have recently been pushed. Trends and winemaking decisions
are starting to harmonize, allowing sites and terroir to become more
expressive.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Alma
Rosa Winery’s Richard Sanford – who labored (at his Sanford & Benedict
Vineyard) as the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">only</i> winegrower in
Santa Barbara’s Sta. Rita Hills for over 10 years, starting in 1970 – used
almost the same terminology as Mr. Law; saying, “I am delighted that, after my
45 years growing the grape, we are now witnessing California Pinot Noir
evolving into definable regional characteristics.” Sanford cites “pioneering of
new sites,” “new clones,” “inquisitive young winemakers,” and “maturation of
older plantings” (the “rustic, youthful edges” of these vineyards being “rounded
out by age”) as some of the major factors in this recent breakthrough.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJiMJjqQqeMYssdwWPYzWwe9j49WpYLEni7DCaC9g7-wTZPTOlGFLoEBdAop4-GQslppxSUwfmDSbgsuwhXY-8uf4ctZy4uOwLhOZ6y7XTWzyIww9-cq3GePME8l9XAXtFrK_GJJjZmTs/s1600/Richard+Sanford.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJiMJjqQqeMYssdwWPYzWwe9j49WpYLEni7DCaC9g7-wTZPTOlGFLoEBdAop4-GQslppxSUwfmDSbgsuwhXY-8uf4ctZy4uOwLhOZ6y7XTWzyIww9-cq3GePME8l9XAXtFrK_GJJjZmTs/s640/Richard+Sanford.jpg" width="512" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The legendary Richard Sanford of Alma Rosa Wines</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Steven
Gerbac – who has definitely instituted a new regime at Ballard Canyon’s Rusack
Vineyards over the past two, three years – spoke frankly about the “old
concept” of vineyard-designate wines: “In the past it was easy for some of us
to make and sell 15 different single vineyard bottlings; but honestly, I think
the only ones who could truly tell the difference in the wines were the
winemakers. The wines were, more often than not, very similar expressions of
cola and ripe fruit, rather than unique expressions of individual vineyards.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Gerbac
elaborates further on the steady movement away from domineering brand or
“house” styles: “I see a shift away from that program, where site is becoming
more important and is starting to drive stylistic choices in the winery. In
looking to accentuate individual vineyard characteristics, it has become
acceptable to have one Pinot that is, maybe, earthy and herbal, and another
that falls more in the fruit spectrum. I think this is definitely driven by
consumers who want to taste and embrace the diversity. They no longer expect,
nor desire, wines that taste the same.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRMnnKPhmcltiS8lDKuyjLscKlO836xGJnI3XAbkUfilqrl7i1g-Vn_W9wECS5HpHLRfeoMWAgFxGzim5_yP6pTijNNXSkC1Qt3ryh9lT64B3S5pPLpR0mwYDKYZwLBWu5T0su1dN56CY/s1600/Steven+Gerbac.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRMnnKPhmcltiS8lDKuyjLscKlO836xGJnI3XAbkUfilqrl7i1g-Vn_W9wECS5HpHLRfeoMWAgFxGzim5_yP6pTijNNXSkC1Qt3ryh9lT64B3S5pPLpR0mwYDKYZwLBWu5T0su1dN56CY/s640/Steven+Gerbac.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rusack Vineyards' Steven Gerbac</td></tr>
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</o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Hands-off”
winemaking has played a major part. For instance, one of the most intense, even
showiest, Pinot Noirs of the weekend was 2014 Brewer-Clifton Hapgood from Sta.
Rita Hills. Says Brewer-Clifton founding partner Greg Brewer, “Our approach,
after 20 years, has gone to an extreme, and use of Merry Edwards’ clone 37 in
our Hapgood Road planting is a perfect vehicle for our aesthetic of 100% whole
cluster fermentation, and raising of the wine in all-neutral cooperage without
racking.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
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<!--StartFragment--><!--EndFragment--><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11pt;">What Brewer and his
winemaking team have formulated over time is an approach to Pinot Noir that
optimizes qualities of one particular site, which may differ from the way other
sites are handled. </span>C</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">ô</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">t</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">rie’s Kevin Law has also been minimizing the influence
of first-year barrels to accentuate site; but says: “This does not mean I don’t
use new oak. We may ask, how much does new oak takes away and how much does new
oak enhance a wine? But really, it’s the wine that makes those decisions. The
same with whole cluster fermentation – whole cluster can help add longevity,
complex aromatics and tannin, but knowing your vineyard is key to knowing how
much is too much or too little.”</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk6Gpana-J9pd3vuMTG_rinhRuoejDlOKrwTsBIiOCSUsTM41AnpoRCWOxyPrTwo3fFFYeYmthqef2HQuAZmLbRqtX1Xe2xppe4adP6irLsLhvceflIHJwKLEu0HGg5fBdtjHgjmCuKIg/s1600/Kevin+Law.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk6Gpana-J9pd3vuMTG_rinhRuoejDlOKrwTsBIiOCSUsTM41AnpoRCWOxyPrTwo3fFFYeYmthqef2HQuAZmLbRqtX1Xe2xppe4adP6irLsLhvceflIHJwKLEu0HGg5fBdtjHgjmCuKIg/s640/Kevin+Law.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cotiere Wines winemaker/owner Kevin Law</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Counter-intuitively,
larger percentages of new oak do not necessarily make Pinot Noirs from a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">numero uno </i>vineyards taste oakier, and
increased whole cluster does not automatically equate to increased tannin and
aroma contributing phenolics. In fact, the result can be the opposte. Rhys
Vineyards has been demonstrating this with their single vineyard bottlings for years;
where certain sites (like their Skyline Vineyard) tend to be softer and more
opulent than other sites, despite 100% whole cluster fermentation and larger
percentages of new oak (which Rhys winemaker Jeff Brinkman says can have an
effect of polymerizing skin tannins, thus ameliorating sensations of tannin
while amplifying <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroir</a> related nuances). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">More
than ever, individual sites are informing the methodology of today’s better (in
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">my</i> humble opinion) producers. A lot
of this is because they have a better understanding of their sites; and a lot
of this is because they are (at long last) allowing sites to impose their will,
even at the expense of brand consistency, winemaking artistry, and the fading vestiges of
varietal tyranny. Hallelujah, and pass the beef <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">bourguignon</i>!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvccQ8MXnMmuicRX0kFueQDBlZ4W39Y1X-jNYgHbXYBlHIsArfz3UH3NRPyfarGLuh0Sj1YHkaFoo1now_cbam2WuKMV0w95AZvrWtGJ1yo4AXlVCPdcLsavuf7qlAycfY_l7fYtsRIGk/s1600/McIntyre+Pinot+Noir%252C+glass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvccQ8MXnMmuicRX0kFueQDBlZ4W39Y1X-jNYgHbXYBlHIsArfz3UH3NRPyfarGLuh0Sj1YHkaFoo1now_cbam2WuKMV0w95AZvrWtGJ1yo4AXlVCPdcLsavuf7qlAycfY_l7fYtsRIGk/s640/McIntyre+Pinot+Noir%252C+glass.jpg" width="512" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">McIntyre Pinot Noir in McIntyre Vineyard</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">That
said, my “Top 20” wines (in alphabetical order) from the 2017 World of Pinot
Noir weekend:</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015 Alma Rosa Wines, Rancho
La Vi</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ñ</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">a, Sta. Rita Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – Very contemporary in its
silken fine, light-medium body, with upfront acidity mobilizing a palpable
sense of purity and delicacy from the flowery, peppermint spiced cherry qualities in
the nose to the vibrant feel on the palate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014 Alta Maria Vineyards,
Bien Nacido Vineyard Block G, Santa Maria Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – If I had to choose a
single favorite from the weekend (personal preference, mind you), this would
probably be it. It was the electrical acidity and savory sensations that got me
– the wine just sticks like Elvis’ glue – beneath billowing, nostril tingling,
flowery fragrances. According Alta Maria owner/grower James Ontiveros, this
comes from a 44-year-old block of own-rooted Pommard selection, which he and
winemaker/partner Paul Wilkens optimized through 100% whole cluster
fermentation and just 8 months barrel age.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014 Brewer-Clifton,
Hapgood, Sta. Rita Hills</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – This is as vivid and electrifying as a Pinot Noir can be, while exemplifying the cooler climate, hillside environment of Santa Barbara's Sta. Rita Hills; cherry
liqueur-like perfumes beaming up from the glass, and linear yet silken textured, zesty, precisely
balanced flavors lighting up the palate. Exhilarating.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9R7WOf-EXWX_kNOV9TjV82q96qSUwVYi9YzKGqgbMn_JSrkS7zihUEpOtCvu-wCIWzuad1Vxf7XMdN_3RcSOZeYYxiInoknl4ryejBdSlxEW_x3OnG8Xf5mPPEkEUS_YYVIZrhw5BwxU/s1600/Hirsch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9R7WOf-EXWX_kNOV9TjV82q96qSUwVYi9YzKGqgbMn_JSrkS7zihUEpOtCvu-wCIWzuad1Vxf7XMdN_3RcSOZeYYxiInoknl4ryejBdSlxEW_x3OnG8Xf5mPPEkEUS_YYVIZrhw5BwxU/s640/Hirsch.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hirsch Vineyards' East Ridge block in Sonoma Coast's Fort Ross-Seaview AVA</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014 C</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ô</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">ti</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">re Wines, Laetitia Vineyard,
Arroyo Grande Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – This bottling, alas, is the last of this particular vineyard, as </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Laetitia ripped out almost all the blocks utilized by
C</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ô</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">ti</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">re (which were virused) after
the 2014 vintage. 30% whole cluster, 30% new oak, and bottling at just 11
months all amounted to billowing, bright red fruit perfumes (drippy
cherry/strawberry) tinged with spice; couched in firm, meaty<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>yet zesty, high toned sensations, with
a real feel of delicacy, finesse, femininity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2013 Fiddlehead Cellars, Oldsville Reserve, Oregon</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – Oregon is always underrepresented at WOPN, which is
a shame because small numbers obfuscate the comparisons with California Pinot
Noirs (when you attend the International Pinot Noir Conference in McMinnville,
on the other hand, the smaller number of California Pinot Noirs often seem clumsy or heavy handed in
comparison to Oregonians). While she leaves the info off the front label,
owner/winemaker Kathy Joseph says this is a single-vineyard bottling from
Willamette Valley’s Chehalem Mountains AVA. There were both pre-rain and
post-rain fruit in the 2013 picking, which probably accounts for the layering
of meaty and upbeat, dancing sensations that I like in the wine, as well as the
combination of wild berry and slightly damp forest floor aromatics; all
packaged in the medium bodied style, with that classic sense of restraint,
which give</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> the
best of Willamette Valley wines such an inviting, yet enigmatic, quality.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj96xHGz3-sLO2dxibUNiJGictdmgIFJaFM7ZGapJqOIH9uG6Fz_exVH-JLL8HfwPlrXvCNqW8BvmDNTYMq37w21zlCAxEc-XGYEtfleRNEA5cdKbcvylFW5PZS_P_XocakWUdlEL84V80/s1600/Steve+McIntyre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj96xHGz3-sLO2dxibUNiJGictdmgIFJaFM7ZGapJqOIH9uG6Fz_exVH-JLL8HfwPlrXvCNqW8BvmDNTYMq37w21zlCAxEc-XGYEtfleRNEA5cdKbcvylFW5PZS_P_XocakWUdlEL84V80/s640/Steve+McIntyre.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">McIntyre Vineyards owner/grower Steve McIntyre in his Santa Lucia Highlands planting</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2013 Hirsch Vineyards, East
Ridge, Sonoma Coast </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">– According to Jasmine Hirsch, this bottling comes from the warmest of
her family’s Fort Ross-Seaview/Sonoma Coast ridge-top sites, describing it as more “masculine” than other
Hirsch bottlings. Well, for a masculine wine, this sure is a refined and
composed Pinot – sleek, silky, bright, and strikingly light on its feet (12.8%
alcohol), while floral with rose petal, black cherry, and the faintest
woodsiness.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Kosta Browne Winery, Keefer Ranch, Green Valley
of Russian River Valley </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">– In a
promising vintage like 2015, Kosta Browne will kill; as it does in this laser
focused rendering of this site, located in one of the cooler climate pockets of
the Sonoma Coast. The cherry perfume is spicy, generous, make that extravagant, with a real sense of
power and concentration; yet on the palate, the wine takes a significant turn towards a
refined, silky, even delicate composure, remaining bright and perky, rather
than beefy or blustery.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Lombardi Wines, Sonoma Coast</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – Here’s a crystallization of what I’ve come to love about Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir: the lavish, high toned fragrances that suggest unabashed sweetness
and ripeness (in this wine, manifested as dried cherry, floral rose petal and spiced potpourri-like perfumes), yet a tautly wound balance, palate zinging acidity,
and pervasive sense of restraint on the palate. Kudos to owners Tony and
Christine Lombardi for their commitment to their homegrown grape sources.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi08oRddK-gtAybkqX0VDZYDy1Y5i-fv8RPDIP8x8_puPIhLPhB5zQ3mCx0F_1iIOQ_bvicESGGoBzDTVvp-xJGuWeon3_8AuJBXGVlNRX8UkWA12EGL_iu-rLPI8dDFwCrg95-ysV2kjE/s1600/Garys%2527+Vineyard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi08oRddK-gtAybkqX0VDZYDy1Y5i-fv8RPDIP8x8_puPIhLPhB5zQ3mCx0F_1iIOQ_bvicESGGoBzDTVvp-xJGuWeon3_8AuJBXGVlNRX8UkWA12EGL_iu-rLPI8dDFwCrg95-ysV2kjE/s640/Garys%2527+Vineyard.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In Santa Lucia Highlands' Garys' Vineyard: Gary Franscioni with Gary and Mark Pisoni</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2015 Lucia Vineyards, Soberanes Vineyard, Santa Lucia
Highlands </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">– Intellectually, I often find
myself wondering why Santa Lucia Highlands wins me over. This is a wind-whipped
appellation, where in most vintages optimal ripeness doesn’t usually arrive
until grapes are fairly high in sugar, and alcohols threaten to soar out of
control. Yet proof is always in the pudding: the wines have undeniable
intensity, but rarely at the expense of finesse and balance. Wines like the Pisoni
family’s Soberanes Pinot invariably come up smelling like a rose (pun
intended). The cherry/strawberry fruit is pure and pungent, tinged by intriguing
whiffs of resiny wild brush. There is flesh and body on the bone, forged by
savory phenolics and racy acidity. You can almost smell the slopes, and feel
the wind, of the appellation in the glass. It’s like, "why must I always be
Mango?"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">2014 Mindego Ridge Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"> – This young planting (est. 2009) seems to have all
the ingredients: 8.5 acres of mixed Dijon clones on south facing, 30-degree
slopes at a 700-950-ft. elevation, completely surrounded by old growth redwood,
madrone and buckeye. I know this because I was so enthralled by this bottling –
plus another from the same vineyard by Thomas Fogarty Winery – that I felt
compelled stop by to take a gander the Sunday after WOPN. What I love is the
airy, transparent qualities in the nose – lush red fruit with kitchen herb
undertones, tinged with a wild, sweet woodsiness – that came packaged in fine,
silky layers of the slinky, evocative fruit, neatly tied together by zesty
acidity, while unobscured by evident oak.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Neither was I surprised to also learn that this bottling was produced by
Failla Wines’ Ehren Jordan, another poster child for low intervention
winemaking.</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr2P5yq7TIv0HlR0D-thFSlBrHIv0XGH6sYIiAQeugMl9EJRHxtBGO-jTwBCpx9v6bfpGdAJTAXK6EcbLe8cwv3JX7oPX6uyfPNPK3C6sSBMvtkWj3XsW-SPLvNjTpqXYImIkoKqzmgwI/s1600/Dave+Gollnick%252C+Mindego+Ridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr2P5yq7TIv0HlR0D-thFSlBrHIv0XGH6sYIiAQeugMl9EJRHxtBGO-jTwBCpx9v6bfpGdAJTAXK6EcbLe8cwv3JX7oPX6uyfPNPK3C6sSBMvtkWj3XsW-SPLvNjTpqXYImIkoKqzmgwI/s640/Dave+Gollnick%252C+Mindego+Ridge.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mindego Ridge Vineyard owner/grower Dave Gollnick</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014 McIntyre Vineyards, Old
Vine, Santa Lucia Highlands</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – This bottling – which owner/grower Steve McIntyre says comes from
the oldest Pinot Noir block in the appellation (46-year-old own-rooted vines of
unknown clonal origin) – cannot help but differentiate itself even from the
proprietor’s adjoining blocks, all producing wines of pristine, penetrating
fruit in 2014. Thanks to a hands-off approach to vinification, the old vines
give earthy/woodsy/licorice notes (McIntyre suggests “sorel mushrooms and black
pepper”) unlike anything else tasted over the weekend; underscoring a flowery
perfume; coming across as refined, tightly grained and zesty/tart on the
palate, the tannins furnishing a gentle grip.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014 Merry Edwards Winery,
Flax Vineyard, Russian River Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – This winery submitted its usual stable of
impeccable, preeminently North Coast style of single-vineyard Pinot Noirs. This
year, if I had to choose one, I choose this Westside Rd. planting (located in
Russian Rive Valley’s warmer Middle Reach sub-area) because, well, it is so
darned Russian River-ish: lush and ripe (certain writers would say “opulent”),
effusive, downright flashy, yet not over-the-top, in its black cherry fruit
profile; meaty, dense, layered, supple and rich as get-out on the palate. I’m
glad we’re reaching a point where we don’t expect all American Pinot Noirs to
emulate this style; but am also glad that they’re still made, in accordance to
their terroir.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihcbj4ah0Vt5x-pvh-JTYXfhLd-FtNmzfFbv03bcPEZNFZKctdw7dkLAF7HNL2m8I6SqunxGsWW6jWF9bRHxmbnOq8ga-GnvEW0efu9KlX3OqE1Y4MqnMDoJ73C1y0jnekpW4xWJHVi0Y/s1600/Merry+Edwards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihcbj4ah0Vt5x-pvh-JTYXfhLd-FtNmzfFbv03bcPEZNFZKctdw7dkLAF7HNL2m8I6SqunxGsWW6jWF9bRHxmbnOq8ga-GnvEW0efu9KlX3OqE1Y4MqnMDoJ73C1y0jnekpW4xWJHVi0Y/s640/Merry+Edwards.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Russian River Valley icon Merry Edwards</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2013 Native9 Wines, Rancho
Ontiveros Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – I may have lied about liking James Ontiveros’
2014 Alta Mesa Bien Nacido Block G best at the 2017 WOPN. My notes show that I
was “wowed” even more by this bottling, from his 8-acre estate block located
closer to the coast and its moderating fog influence. The nose just leaps from
the glass like liquid ninja, but it’s not just of cherry toned Pinot Noir perfume; it’s also
crushed/brown-leafy, mushroomy, somewhat wild, organic; and the fleshy, earth
toned fruit sensations wrap around your palate in almost mesmerizing fashion.
Since I’ve experienced this before in previous (but not all) vintages of Rancho
Ontiveros, I can only surmise a site related commonality in the experiences. As
it were, 100% native yeast and whole cluster fermented (manifestations of such
being neither here nor there for me).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014 Niner Wine Estates,
Jespersen Ranch Reserve, Edna Valley </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">– I suspect that Edna Valley doesn’t always get its
just due because of a long-obsolete reputation for more monochromatic Pinots;
when in fact, in our own blind tastings (where truth invariably wins out) a
number of them consistently finish spectacularly. Not that it’s all about
“winning.” I’m singling out this bottling because I was particularly taken by a
pepper grinder spice livening up a pretty, cherry bomb perfume; while on the
palate, tingly acidity adds a persistent quality to the berried tea-leafy
fruit, with its spice perking up with a tinge of clove added to the pepper.
These are unique qualities, directly attributable to the windswept location of
this planting, located in far north-west corner of the appellation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx0ItNasJqeeaSytFOp1GNFcC8qMFu47KJrbqkKi77xmcfVImp0joFH3Ims3vywsB7Qf5_4BP4SGGOQanDY2c6YZ6XnJGLEvqDWQKIK-Q5e-vwruVALqV-H7ScWMZ-f67FtWwtlBlHZJQ/s1600/Dieter+Cronje%252C+Presqu%2527ile+Winery.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx0ItNasJqeeaSytFOp1GNFcC8qMFu47KJrbqkKi77xmcfVImp0joFH3Ims3vywsB7Qf5_4BP4SGGOQanDY2c6YZ6XnJGLEvqDWQKIK-Q5e-vwruVALqV-H7ScWMZ-f67FtWwtlBlHZJQ/s640/Dieter+Cronje%252C+Presqu%2527ile+Winery.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dieter Cronje, winemaker of Santa Maria Valley's Presqu'ile Winery</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014 Presqu’ile Winery,
Presqu’ile Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">– This producer has demonstrated a laudably
light touch (even with 50% new oak) in all its bottlings, although I’ve been
partial to their estate grown <i>cuv</i></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><i>é</i></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>e</i> for
its particularly flowery character – raspberry/cherry fruit tinged with the
slightest shake of sweet kitchen spice – and lithe, sleek, sheer and slender
feel, bristling with palate freshening acidity. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2015 ROAR Wines, Garys’
Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">– Pinots from this vineyard – a 50-acre
collaborative project by Gary Franscioni and Gary Pisoni – rarely disappoint,
and the 2015 ROAR is no different. The sheer intensity of Pinot-ness – wafting
pefumes of strawberry glac</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é – are
compelling enough, while a sense of completeness in the velvety, buoyant,
fluid, generous and pinpointedly balanced sensations on the palate fulfill
every promise.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjv9aSWSrLx-yw2Di3_pkUE3eZyiFI0U2Q945aMdd-rB2QfjOPw6_rb6PyNAM5RwDkvEzwc3SL4vpFC2-wOT6TH0iaO7FA2L-OR5M5Y2Mc_EzxY4ebRzxAgOP_FHJ0bSLg6P6NFle2pCM/s1600/Soberanes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjv9aSWSrLx-yw2Di3_pkUE3eZyiFI0U2Q945aMdd-rB2QfjOPw6_rb6PyNAM5RwDkvEzwc3SL4vpFC2-wOT6TH0iaO7FA2L-OR5M5Y2Mc_EzxY4ebRzxAgOP_FHJ0bSLg6P6NFle2pCM/s640/Soberanes.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rocky hillside soil in Soberanes Vineyard in Santa Lucia Highlands</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014 Rusack Vineyards,
Solomon Hills, Santa Barbara County</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – From a site that is now included within the far
western boundaries of Santa Maria Valley. According to Steven Gerbac, “I like
this vineyard because it is the closest to the ocean in the valley, but not
overpowered by the usual Santa Maria spice.” Deep sandy loam soil also tends to
consistently yield Pinot Noirs of high-toned, flowery character, and finely
delineated, acid driven palate sensations. The feel is always edgy yet fine
grained; vivid without being boisterous. Neither do I find the slightly herby,
tomato-leafy quality (which, of course, has its own intrigue) so often
associated with the appellation. My style of Pinot, so what of it?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014 Thomas Fogarty, Rapley
Trail, Santa Cruz Mountains </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">– The nose in this estate vineyard bottling is lush,
ripe, plummy, notably spicy (pepper veering towards sweet incense and, yes,
peppermint), and even more interestingly, replete with a magnetic, foresty, almost
greenish woodsiness. Winemaker Mike Martella says he is never surprised when he
hears these descriptors, given the daily mountaintop winds that flow through
the limbs and needles of the Douglas firs surrounding this sloping planting.
The idea is that Martella and Thomas Fogarty's current head winemaker, Nathan Kandler, are also smart
enough to leave well enough alone; allowing the wine to fill out itself with a
rounded, meaty feel on the palate, with a dense yet savory, ultimately balanced sense of natural grape
tannin phenols that, in other Pinot Noirs, might seem a little overwhelming,
yet totally appropriate for this growth.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJtS37POWtXesmKs3TzBuGs4wDKZx-V8pCVQSPM-yuB4sFHn_8uZUrZdJNzv9AEBFHtuGX65zi9r7h5IG9NF73gWdqHIeqiiXutYZ1QNwhZI_Xfg8e5xd6JO3TpS0ucbiVxWGg_TSKCeg/s1600/Pinot+Noir%252C+glasses%252C+Sebastopol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJtS37POWtXesmKs3TzBuGs4wDKZx-V8pCVQSPM-yuB4sFHn_8uZUrZdJNzv9AEBFHtuGX65zi9r7h5IG9NF73gWdqHIeqiiXutYZ1QNwhZI_Xfg8e5xd6JO3TpS0ucbiVxWGg_TSKCeg/s640/Pinot+Noir%252C+glasses%252C+Sebastopol.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pinot Noir tasting in Sonoma Coast's Sebastopol Hills</td></tr>
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</o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2013 Wayfarer, Golden Mean,
Fort Ross-Seaview, Sonoma Coast</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> – In the finest vein of this extreme coastal appellation,
a characteristically gentle, velvety wine expanded to voluminous, almost grand,
unblemished proportions; the nose floral and star-bright in cherry/cranberry
red fruit tones, and the palate even-keeled and uncommonly svelte, fluid.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2013 Witching Stick Wines,
Gianoli Vineyard, Mendocino Ridge</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> – Owner/winemaker Van Williamson and his
wife/partner Anne Williamson showed up with a foursome of impeccably sculpted,
acid driven Pinots – just about the lightest (in terms of body) in the room,
but also among the most nimble and compelling; with great clarity, especially
in rose petal nuanced delineations. I was partial to the Gianoli for its
woodsy/pine needle (veering towards forest floor) scent, mingling with the red
berry/cherry perfume; fine, prickly and energetic on the palate. According to
Williamson, Gianoli used to be just about the best Zinfandel site in Mendocino
Ridge (at least according to the late, great George Zeni), but these days Pinot
rules the roost. Mornings are warmer but overall day temperatures are cooler
than nearby Andeson Valley; hence the characteristic earth, spice and moderate
alcohol (13.8%).</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Witching Stick's Van and Anne Williamson at 2017 World of Pinot Noir</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-47095058506000056072016-08-01T21:25:00.007-06:002019-09-04T10:58:38.548-06:00Is it time to discuss Amador County as a world class wine region?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsf5hoMlS9P9fGXtq5KaJ_8H_Svp52Z59p49Dj3jK4vsisMFTQNeGPSUAwt1SnYKGs7n7B67FpYdKjJ2MGUi4Gl_8SvoBCg7awyMfHCcD0l-052YBDF-ccqnSagOQpz-wsZilR-WHH-zk/s1600/Shenandoah+Valley+vineyard%252C+tractor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsf5hoMlS9P9fGXtq5KaJ_8H_Svp52Z59p49Dj3jK4vsisMFTQNeGPSUAwt1SnYKGs7n7B67FpYdKjJ2MGUi4Gl_8SvoBCg7awyMfHCcD0l-052YBDF-ccqnSagOQpz-wsZilR-WHH-zk/s640/Shenandoah+Valley+vineyard%252C+tractor.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rolling hills of Amador's Shenandoah Valley</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">First things first: <a href="http://amadorwinegrapes.com/site/pages/home.cgi">Amador County</a> and its wines
are unique unto themselves. That’s the beauty of this <a href="http://sierrafoothillswine.com/avas.html">Sierra Foothills Viticultural Area</a> region.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Let us count the ways in which Amador County
wines are now distinguishing themselves among other wines of the world. I am
not talking about the recent renaissance of visitor-friendly attractions and
boutique lodging in nearby <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Gold_Rush">Gold Rush Country</a> towns, or the plethora of bright,
shiny, new tasting rooms and wedding sites springing up along Shenandoah Rd. I’m happy for all
that, but I’m a geeky wine journalist, not a travel or lifestyles writer; and so everything I talk and think about has to do with vineyards,
grapes and wines.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">And after over 30 years of visiting the region, I can say this: the vineyards, grapes and wines of Amador
County are getting serious. My thoughts, followed by tasting notes for 10 contemporary
classics coming out of the region; most of these wines tasted just recently at
the <a href="http://amadorcountyfair.com/">Amador County Fair</a> this past July 30, 2016...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmBmMgIgLCk_DsL8musTxGoJJbwsKxclqg4i1Lb8Yy0LdoGd8KUdG62zpvMpW-DBl1j7CrOy2-eUL1dSsQwFbNzhEhtZu4n3Ecsc7JjFixkOMhQT5Q7uZ3oDi8iozfom9CAgsGLPZ2VQI/s1600/Mission%252C+Deaver+Ranch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmBmMgIgLCk_DsL8musTxGoJJbwsKxclqg4i1Lb8Yy0LdoGd8KUdG62zpvMpW-DBl1j7CrOy2-eUL1dSsQwFbNzhEhtZu4n3Ecsc7JjFixkOMhQT5Q7uZ3oDi8iozfom9CAgsGLPZ2VQI/s640/Mission%252C+Deaver+Ranch.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Deaver Ranch Mission vines planted in 1853</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;">Small-scale,
handcrafted wines</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">To begin with, Amador County is tiny:
approximately 3,700 acres of planted wine grapes. There is a single vineyard in
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monterey_County,_California">Monterey County</a> that is more than twice that size. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Some more perspective: Amador County is a hillside
wine region; its vines perched on slopes at mostly 1,200 to 2,000-ft. elevations.
These are not the highest altitude vineyards in the state (vineyards in
adjacent </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Dorado_AVA" style="font-size: 11pt;">El Dorado</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> as well as in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Cruz_Mountains_AVA" style="font-size: 11pt;">Santa Cruz Mountains</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> and </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendocino_Ridge_AVA" style="font-size: 11pt;">Mendocino Ridge</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> climb up to 2,000-3,000-ft.), but the region is still defined by its location
along the western foot-slopes of the </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Nevada_(U.S.)" style="font-size: 11pt;">Sierra Nevada</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> mountains. Plantable space
is limited. Compare the acreage devoted to grapes in Amador to the 45,000
planted in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma_County_wine" style="font-size: 11pt;">Sonoma County</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;">, 43,000 in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napa_Valley_AVA" style="font-size: 11pt;">Napa Valley</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;">, 26,000 in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paso_Robles_AVA" style="font-size: 11pt;">Paso Robles</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;">, 21,000 in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Barbara_County,_California" style="font-size: 11pt;">Santa Barbara County</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;">, or the +110,000 acres in neighboring </span><a href="http://www.lodiwine.com/index.cfm?method=blog.blogdrilldown&blogEntryID=56E2A946-B24E-B86F-37D7-B0B639FAC358" style="font-size: 11pt;">Lodi</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;">. Amador is </span><span style="font-size: 15px;">minuscule</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> geographically, but getting big-time in terms of the </span><i style="font-size: 11pt;">seriousness</i><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> of what is produced.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">According to Mike Baldinelli, second
generation Amador farmer and president of the <a href="http://amadorwinegrapes.com/site/pages/home.cgi">Amador Wine Growers Association</a>, "Like all hillside regions, there is some soil and microclimate diversity, but one thing the vineyards have in common is that for the most
part they are small, 30 acres or less, farmed by passionate people who live on their properties. Things are done mostly by hand, without mechanization, and so this is a region farmed by people who know their grapes intimately." </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--EndFragment--><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;"><o:p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7I74eQ6rQHN8R9ikXB2R1e7vuCZvcoc9wEAzVEZDVNe_525h6gCeigGSwbujC_Nz-amkzF4A-W8iih_N0z9ehyphenhyphen4aKhVeQ36iW_M824obUVVYmmU6Svs6QTbehW90IHP1bY6C_YxRA82k/s1600/Zinfandel%252C+leafroll+virused+leaves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7I74eQ6rQHN8R9ikXB2R1e7vuCZvcoc9wEAzVEZDVNe_525h6gCeigGSwbujC_Nz-amkzF4A-W8iih_N0z9ehyphenhyphen4aKhVeQ36iW_M824obUVVYmmU6Svs6QTbehW90IHP1bY6C_YxRA82k/s640/Zinfandel%252C+leafroll+virused+leaves.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amador County Zinfandel on redleaf virused vine<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;">No
place like home in the Foothills</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">As small a region as it is, both the climate
and topography of Amador County are ideal for grapevines. Think about the
rolling hills of Italy, one of the cradles of the world’s wine culture. As you
drive into the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Foothills_AVA">Sierra Foothills AVA</a> from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Joaquin_Valley">San Joaquin Valley</a> in the spring, when the fine
sandy-clay loam has absorbed enough winter rain to carpet the hills with green
grass, you cannot help but think of the verdant, cinematic landscapes of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuscan_wine">Tuscany</a>
or <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sicily">Sicily</a>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">It is no coincidence that the climate ascribed
to the region between the historic Gold Rush towns of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plymouth,_California">Plymouth</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiddletown,_California">Fiddletown</a> and
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sutter_Creek,_California">Sutter Creek</a> is squarely <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean_climate">Mediterranean</a>; marked by moderately cool, wet winters
and dry, warm to hot summers. All the major varieties of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitis_vinifera">Vitis vinifera</a></i> – the family of European vines always known to produce the
world’s finest wines – originated in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean_Basin">Mediterranean Basin</a>; and so like other
California coastal regions (from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendocino_AVA">Mendocino</a> all the way down to Santa Barbara)
with climates classified as Mediterranean, fine wine grapes have naturally
acclimated to Amador County.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">To what extent? How about the fact that oldest,
continuously farmed commercial wine grape plantings in the United States
are in Amador County? The Deaver family cultivates several acres of majestic,
own-rooted Mission vines originally planted in 1853, barely three years after
the California Gold Rush. Across the road in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Shenandoah_Valley_AVA">Shenandoah Valley</a>, there are 10
acres of Zinfandel in the <a href="http://randycaparoso.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-original-grandpere-vineyard.html">Original Grandp</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><a href="http://randycaparoso.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-original-grandpere-vineyard.html">ère Vineyard</a> </span><span style="font-size: 15px;">– recently named the <a href="http://plantingseedsblog.cdfa.ca.gov/wordpress/?p=10630">2016 California State Fair Vineyard of the Year</a> </span><span style="font-size: 15px;">– </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">that have been traced back
to 1869. In the nearby </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiddletown_AVA" style="font-size: 11pt;">Fiddletown AVA</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;">, a few of the oldest Zinfandel vines in the
Rinaldi-Eschen Vineyard date back to 1865. Compare that to the oldest
continuously farmed vineyards in Lodi, Sonoma County, Santa Cruz Mountains,
Paso Robles or </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra_Costa_County,_California" style="font-size: 11pt;">Contra Costa County</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;">, which go back “only” as far as the
mid-1880s (which, of course, is still phenomenal).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Grapevines, mind you, are normally torn out and replanted after just
30 to 40 years because, simply, they are no longer healthy enough to produce
commercially sustainable crops. The fact that Amador’s oldest plantings are
still productive after over 140 years is staggering. It says a lot about how
much grapevines love the natural growing conditions of Amador County; and it
says a lot about how much these vineyards have been loved and fussed over by their owners all
those years, though thick and thin, deluges and droughts, feast or famine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4sZ6pePl7cOlWOwPgOstSfYwCr_BmLiyrxZugmUM8T2sfC1Da5nWT_rmAeO8MPqjdW8EG7Aj9DxsCKGXqheXkmnJeUKky9KRfOAbQxFjAW4VFb8J5soKmSCu26WR4KQnHovo_YF2C7RE/s1600/Barrels%252C+barbed+wire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4sZ6pePl7cOlWOwPgOstSfYwCr_BmLiyrxZugmUM8T2sfC1Da5nWT_rmAeO8MPqjdW8EG7Aj9DxsCKGXqheXkmnJeUKky9KRfOAbQxFjAW4VFb8J5soKmSCu26WR4KQnHovo_YF2C7RE/s640/Barrels%252C+barbed+wire.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;">Why
Amador County terroir is unlike any other</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">At the same time, Amador County is not Tuscany;
nor is it Napa Valley or <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walla_Walla_Valley_AVA">Walla Walla Valley</a>, Santa Barbara or <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santorini_(wine)">Santorini</a>,
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalan_wine">Catalonia</a> or <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casablanca,_Chile#Casablanca_Valley_wine_region">Casablanca</a>, or anywhere. For example, take <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinfandel">Zinfandel</a>, which makes
up close to a third of the grapes planted in Amador County. Amador Zinfandels
are not big, thick and irrepressibly jammy like those of Sonoma County’s best
vineyards. At least not naturally. When they are grown to be that way, the wines tend to get rough and awkward; which is why the finest Amador Zinfandels tend to be moderately scaled. Neither are they as comfortably black colored, and hard and structured with tannin as Napa
Valley Zinfandels. They are certainly not soft and flowery like Lodi’s, nor as ultra-ripe as those
of Paso Robles, or as rapier-like in acidity as Mendocino Ridge’s.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">One person who should know is Tegan
Passalacqua, the winemaker of <a href="http://www.turleywinecellars.com/">Turley Wine Cellars</a>, whose company organically farms over
200 acres of Zinfandel in no less than 7 major regions (from Mendocino down to Paso Robles). Turley’s
single-vineyard Zinfandels are crafted in a native yeast fermented, unfiltered,
“natural” style, and so what you taste in a bottle of Turley is pretty much
what is grown in the field. “Amador County Zinfandels reminds me of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barolo">Barolo</a>”
says Passalacqua, in reference to the long-lived <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebbiolo">Nebbiolo</a> based red of Northern
Italy’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piemonte_(wine)">Piedmont</a> region. “There is not a lot of color, which can be a good
thing, but they have good structure without a lot of weight.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Continues Passalacqua, “You also find bramble
and red fruit in the structure, plus a very fine grained, granitic tannin that you can taste, not
unlike what you find in Barolo. It is not tannin resulting from winemaking,
which comes from seeds, stems, jacks or use of invasive techniques like enzymes
to maximize extraction. It’s a distinct tannin that comes from the sites, which
is essentially a decomposed <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Granite">granite</a> with volcanics and, in some places,
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quartz">quartz</a>.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Zinfandel, which characteristically retains a
black peppery spice quality nearly everywhere it is grown, often veers off into dried, leafy green kitchen herb or baking spice notes suggesting cinnamon, clove,
allspice or anise when grown in Amador. Old-timers describe it as “Shenandoah
spice.” It’s not in every Amador Zinfandel – spice nuances tend to get lost in the
aromas of riper wines or wines from riper vintages – but it is often there. Especially
in Zinfandels crafted from clonal selections prone to <a href="http://articles.extension.org/pages/33567/grape-leafroll-disease">grapevine leafroll virus</a>,
which is more common in Sierra Foothills plantings (historically, by choice)
than elsewhere in California. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhssNz0VnMidEA3srRRbTIjy7YeHhyphenhyphenAdR9aQIMXdJ_Wu1rrx11vpCcvC3zXoQMAwcOpyj3hjEIhI9ZrkpSOtF4cX4YqC-AxXgKoBwzw58I3iook87SSHhTM3Bd93yU0_xHVPWCJ1gxLHpI/s1600/Original+Grandpere+vine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhssNz0VnMidEA3srRRbTIjy7YeHhyphenhyphenAdR9aQIMXdJ_Wu1rrx11vpCcvC3zXoQMAwcOpyj3hjEIhI9ZrkpSOtF4cX4YqC-AxXgKoBwzw58I3iook87SSHhTM3Bd93yU0_xHVPWCJ1gxLHpI/s640/Original+Grandpere+vine.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ancient Zinfandel in Original Grandpere Vineyard in sandy-clay loam Sierra Series soil</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Leafroll virus is a dysthemic disease that
turns leaves of black skinned cultivars prematurely red – making for beautiful
harvest photos, while stunting late season growth. Growers and winemakers are
leery of it, but in Amador it is embraced. The diminishment of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlorophyll">chlorophyll</a> in
leaves may inhibit plants’ ability to photosynthesize and accumulate grape
sugars, and lead to fruit shriveling. But it can also accentuate Zinfandel’s natural
tendency towards<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millerandage"> “hens-and-chicks” cluster morphology</a> (i.e. uneven sized
berries resulting from variant fruit set) and higher skin-to-juice ratios; not
to mention the lighter pigmentation, acid balance, mineral/granitic structure,
and to a certain extent, the moderate alcohol (14%-14.5%, as opposed to 16%
common in other regions) considered characteristic of Amador County grown Zinfandel.
Negatives can add up to positives!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">The operative term generally used in the wine
industry for qualities found in bottles that directly reflect intrinsic growing
conditions – whether natural or as part of longtime viticultural traditions – is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroir</a></i>, also loosely described as “sense of place.” Terroir, in other words, refers to both natural physical
attributes of regions or individual vineyards (including all aspects of climate and topography) as
well as sensory qualities that can be delineated in the taste of wines from
those growths. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">For Amador County, this comes down to higher
elevation slopes with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_vineyard_soil_types">volcanic soils</a> primarily falling in the <a href="https://soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/S/SIERRA.html">Sierra Series</a>; consisting of sandy-clay loam derived from decomposed granite. This is the kind of soil
that can hold moisture from winter rains through spring months, yet is
extremely well drained, which encourages the deeper root systems necessary for
vines to sustain through hot, dry summers. Therefore, vines are healthy, yet
not so well nourished that they produce an excess of foliage and forget to do
what fine wine varieties are supposed to do, which is focus on maturing fruit
to optimal levels of flavor and complexity, without sacrificing the acidity
needed for wine balance and freshness.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">What also makes Amador County unique is that
its Mediterranean climate is a higher elevation thermal belt. <a href="http://www.sunset.com/garden/climate-zones/climate-zones-intro-us-map">Sunset Magazine</a>,
which has been advising Western gardeners since 1898, classifies Amador County
as <a href="http://www.sunset.com/garden/climate-zones/sunset-climate-zone-northern-california">Zone 9</a> – different from other Mediterranean-type regions such as Lodi or the
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Coast_AVA">North</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Coast_AVA">Central Coasts</a> of California, which Sunset clumps together as as <a href="http://www.sunset.com/garden/climate-zones/sunset-climate-zone-northern-california">Zone 14</a>. Amador’s
Zone 9 is distinguished by hot summer temperatures and significant <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diurnal_temperature_variation">diurnal temperature</a> shifts (30 to 40 degrees) similar to Zone 14 regions, but with less
coastal fog influence and more constant sun exposure. It is Amador County’s lengthier
hours of unobstructed sunlight throughout the day and the entire growing season
that enhance plant photosynthesis and, ultimately, formation of sugar and
flavor in wine grapes. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-H6LTKMxncNLI8ybc822I0EN5ndjv9zz2GDGQ3Vu3sNbS42X-5Q_Q-moM3Z_BRx45cMgm-7y42Tp-QP2nFr1sL0tdL2rcWRXxynDZC84Hx0BoRtrKp0o2Ot8qkI1tvMCc_4RoQtVolCM/s1600/Deaver+Mission%252C+vine%252C+cluster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-H6LTKMxncNLI8ybc822I0EN5ndjv9zz2GDGQ3Vu3sNbS42X-5Q_Q-moM3Z_BRx45cMgm-7y42Tp-QP2nFr1sL0tdL2rcWRXxynDZC84Hx0BoRtrKp0o2Ot8qkI1tvMCc_4RoQtVolCM/s640/Deaver+Mission%252C+vine%252C+cluster.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mission cluster on 163-year-old Deaver Ranch vine</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Passalacqua has also pointed out the advantages
of Amador County’s elevated solar radiance – or what the French have called
</span><a href="http://amadorwine.com/vines-wines/climate/" style="font-size: 11pt;">luminosity</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> – particularly earlier in the growing season, when the grapes' usual response is to develop thicker skins in expectation of sunburn. Think of the way a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Islander">Pacific Islander</a>
is able to absorb more sun than, say, a </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caucasian_race" style="font-size: 11pt;">Caucasian</a><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> of European </span><span style="font-size: 15px;">ancestry</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> who
spends just occasional time in the sun. Thicker skins in grapes lead to increased skin
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenolic_content_in_wine">phenolics</a>, which elevate flavor and complexity in resulting wines. </span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">“In
this area we can have intense sun that can lead to overripe fruit,” says
Passalacqua, “but if you do proper canopy management early in the season, the
grapes can adapt as they develop.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Hence, the unique qualities of not just
Zinfandel grown in Amador County, but also a host of other grapes that are now
carving out their own unique, and critically acclaimed, niches among California
wines: including <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauvignon_blanc">Sauvignon blanc</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%A9millon">S</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%A9millon">é</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%A9millon">millon</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabernet_Sauvignon">Cabernet Sauvignon</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabernet_Franc">Cabernet Franc</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merlot">Merlot</a> among <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bordeaux_wine">Bordeaux</a> types; <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrah">Syrah</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carignan">Carignan</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grenache">Grenache</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viognier">Viognier</a> and
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roussanne">Roussanne</a> among <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rh%C3%B4ne_wine">Rh</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rh%C3%B4ne_wine">ô</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rh%C3%B4ne_wine">ne</a> varieties; <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbera">Barbera</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sangiovese">Sangiovese</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolcetto">Dolcetto</a>
among <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_wine">Italian</a> grapes; and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tempranillo">Tempanillo</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touriga_Nacional">Touriga Nacional</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verdelho">Verdelho</a> among
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iberian_Peninsula">Spanish/Portuguese</a> cultivars, plus at least another dozen and a half more.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>10 quintessentially <i>Amador</i> wines</b></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">2014 Andis, Bill Dillian Vineyard
Shenandoah Valley S</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">millon </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">($21) – While Amador is best known for red wines,
Bill Dillian’s 37-year-old, head trained S</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">millon planting showcases the beautifully tart,
lean, minerally yet silky and desert dry possibilities of white wine varieties
in the region. If you’re into untrendy grapes, S</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">millon is as unfashionable as it gets; chock-full of
the underappreciated white fig, Meyer lemon and creamy viscosity
characteristic of the varietal. Bravo to Mr. Dillian for sticking with a good thing,
and to Andis Wines for knowing a great planting when they see it. Double-Gold
winner at the most recent California State Fair Commercial Wine Competition.</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2013
Vino Noceto, OGP (The Original Grandp</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">è</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">re Vineyard) Shenandoah
Valley Zinfandel </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">($33) – While Vino Noceto is
known for its estate grown specialty, Sangiovese (their silky yet deep, sturdy
2013 Vino Noceto Dos Okies Sangiovese is another keeper), it is their yearly
bottling of The Original Grandp</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">è</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">re Vineyard (own-rooted
Zinfandel traced back to 1869) that has garnered fully deserved renown. Their
genius? Letting the vineyard, not a winemaker’s hand or brand of oak barrel, do
all the talking; as in their latest vintage, which is fragrant with bright
raspberry/blueberry, tinged with a faintly dusty minerality and autumnal pie
spices. The nose suggests a certain rusticity, but on the palate this Zinfandel
is, refreshingly, all about finesse: soft, quiet entry; moderately scaled
fullness; unobtrusively rounded tannin, perky natural acidity, and silky,
nimble sensations of the dusty, spicy, prettily scented fruit. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014
Story, Quartz Vineyard Shenandoah Valley Zinfandel</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
($24) – What is quintessential Amador County Zinfandel? You can point to bottlings
of classic +100-year-old plantings such as Original Grand</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">è</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">re
or Rinaldi’s Eschen; but in another sense, younger yet fully matured plantings
like Story’s Quartz Vineyard (planted in 1989) are even more expressive of the
exuberant – yet <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not </i>overripe or
“jammy” sweet – varietal fruit and spice that the region’s hilly, crushed
granite sites invariably yield. In this vintage, the Shenandoah spice and
cracked peppercorn varietal notes fill out flowery red berry aromas, while natural
acidity brightens the feel of soft tannin, moderate oak and upbeat fruit on the
palate. Not heavy, not overbearing, but just good, balanced, easy drinking and
food versatility (think marinated summer barbecues). What California Zinfandel
is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">supposed </i>to be </span><span style="font-size: 15px;">– useful</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">, delicious</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">!</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014
Sobon Estate, Fiddletown Zinfande</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;">l ($22) –
Amador is dominated so much by Shenandoah Valley, it is easy to forget that
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiddletown_AVA">Fiddletown</a> has been a separate <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Viticultural_Area">American Viticultural Area</a> for going on 33
years. This is Amador’s highest elevation AVA (up to 2,500-ft.), dotted with a
handful of ancient vine Zinfandel sites that take a little longer to ripen than vineyards in Shenandoah Valley; thus, building a reputation for darker berried Zinfandels (less red-towards-blue berry qualities), and more of a mountain tannin feel </span><span style="font-size: 15px;">compared to the granitic-type structures of Shenan</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">doah Valley Zinfandels. Still, Fiddletown Zinfandels are not always as big, brawny or jammy as you may think. Whether out of a
winemaker’s choice or a reflection of the 106-year-old, own-rooted Lubenko
Vineyard’s terroir, there are notes of dried herbs and a dusty minerality that
are as prominent as the floral, black fruit qualities in the nose; and
the sensations, while brambly and tingly on the palate, come across as
finesseful if full in body, with firm yet svelte tannin, and smartly
restrained sweet oak.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1hJJLWmvZw6IFvpsXQv9ChTtAY0EE261oRz5OXOIRQ3MCLqjcOsIT4qqDpw7j88d0LAYojfSZs8gm8q6qsYRE7qj_7DZqVsQ-zIcUaKEjVUI30x8URoAx2FpH8tE_2V_53Du0nIHSW7M/s1600/Dick+Cooper%252C+Barbera.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1hJJLWmvZw6IFvpsXQv9ChTtAY0EE261oRz5OXOIRQ3MCLqjcOsIT4qqDpw7j88d0LAYojfSZs8gm8q6qsYRE7qj_7DZqVsQ-zIcUaKEjVUI30x8URoAx2FpH8tE_2V_53Du0nIHSW7M/s640/Dick+Cooper%252C+Barbera.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dick Cooper in his Cooper Vineyards Barbera block</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2013
Cooper Vineyards, </span></b><b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">Amador County Barbera</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">
($29) – Grower/owner Dick Cooper is Amador County’s modern-day pioneer of
Barbera, a grape native to the rolling hills of Northern Italy’s Piedmont
region. Since Mr. Cooper’s first 5-acre planting of the grape went into the
ground in the late 1970s, the county’s acreage has grown to over 300; becoming
as closely identified with Amador as Cabernet Sauvignon is to Napa or Pinot
Noir is to Willamette (despite, obviously, the considerably smaller scale).
While Cooper remains the “king” of Amador County Barbera – his grapes going
into a number of other outstanding, award winning bottlings such as those of
<a href="http://www.jeffrunquistwines.com/">Jeff Runquist Wines</a> and <a href="http://www.prospectcellars.com/">Prospect Cellars</a> – his own bottling of the grape is
also a standard bearer. An unfettered harmony of blackberryish fruit sings from
the glass in Cooper’s 2013 Barbera; the sensations, sumptuous, viscous, fluid
and full, yet balanced by the grape’s typical zesty acidity. You can describe
it as Italianate, but it doesn’t have nearly the acid bite or dank, shoe
leather aroma or tannin typical of Italian Barberas. Its sun-soaked brightness
(<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> overripeness) of fruit is
indubitably, and thankfully, “Amador,” which is what makes it special compared to any other wine in the world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">2013
Wilderotter, Shenandoah Valley Barbera</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;"> ($30) –
Starting as a grower/supplier (80 acres planted), this family-owned estate has
morphed into a boutique sized producer also discovering the considerable ease
in which the Barbera grape has adapted to the Foothills. The Wilderotter
achieves genuinely intriguing violet and wild scrub (rosemary and sage)
perfumes – almost (or strangely) Syrah-like – to go along with the
blackberryish varietal intensity; zesty and silken textured on the palate;
full-bodied without being heavy or burdensome. Fully deserving of its
Double-Gold at the 2016 Amador County Fair.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">2014
Terra d’Oro, Amador County Teroldego </span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">($18) – The
suggested retail price of this wine is not the only thing that is outrageously
good about this wine, crafted from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teroldego">Teroldego</a>, a thick skinned grape of Alpine-Italian
lineage. It’s also its totality of black color (the winery describes it as
“obsidian”), pungent blackberry and pomegranate-like aroma and flavor, plus dense, broad, meaty, sinewy yet surprisingly svelte, fluid qualities in the feel. Yes, the
phenolics are generous enough to qualify this red as “big,” but it does not assault the palate in the usual (for California) alcoholic way (a fairly moderate
13.5%). Hence, a limber, as opposed to lumbering, feel – think slow roasted
beef or red game seasoned with peppercorns, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mirto</i>
(myrtle berries) or juniper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another varietal (even if still fairly obscure to the American market) proving natural to Amador’s hillside terroir!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">2013
Sobon, Amador County Syrah</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;"> ($18) – This year’s Amador
County Fair “Best of Class Red” shows off the unabashedly upbeat, exuberant,
lush and exotic side of the region's sun-soaked terroir. The violet/raspberry-towards-blueberry
fruit falls on the ripe side, amplified by sweet oak flourishes, adding smoke and
spice complexities. Full, firm yet eminently curvaceous on the palate. Yes, a
bit of a coquette (to put it politely); but hey, there’s room in this wine
world for drama queens, too.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jeff Runquist punching down fermenting vintage</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2014
Jeff Runquist, Shake Ridge Ranch Amador County Tempranillo</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
($32) – Shake Ridge Ranch – located southwards outside of Sutter Creek – stands
apart from Amador’s Shenandoah Valley and Fiddletown’s sandy-clay loamed
terroirs as a different kind of rocky hillside site; an almost magical
convergence of crushed granite, basalt, shale and quartz which seem to
contribute their own unique <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garrigue">garrigue</a></i>-like
earthiness to multiple varieties. In the “R” label Tempranillo, the nose is
teeming with roasted meats, sweet tea and maraschino cherry/berry perfumes;
deepening in tone and meatiness on the palate, which is velvety, bright with
acidity; the fruit and earth sensations understated, yet long, dreamily
languourous. No wonder Amador growers are just as high on Spanish varieties as
they are on anything from Italy or France.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2012
Andis, Amador County Painted Fields</span></b><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> (35%
Cabernet Sauvignon/28% Syrah/17% Merlot/10% Cabernet Franc/10% Petite Sirah;
$20) – There is no reason why a region like Amador County, steeped in its own
history of mixed cultural influences, should conform to traditional conceptions of “Bordeaux,” “Rh</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">ô</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Sans Unicode"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">ne,” or even new fangled
Spanish or Portuguese blends. Not when you can compose a multifaceted (and
amazingly well priced) red wine like this; pungent with dried-herby, red and
black berryish, cocoa nuanced fruit, couched in gripping yet supple, dense,
meaty, medium-full bodied sensations. Pass the hanger steak and chimichurri!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wintering Shenandoah Valley Zinfandel</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-15702406683476868162016-02-22T15:08:00.003-07:002018-04-18T13:14:39.494-06:00Zinfandel (and ZAP) at a crossroads<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" height="426" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/ZAP-Lot13.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; height: 383px; margin: 5px; width: 575px;" width="640" /></div>
<div class="blog-caption" style="text-align: center;">
<em>Wintering 100-year-old Zinfandel in McCay's Lot 13 on Lodi's east side</em></div>
<br />
This is the Big Week for <a href="http://www.zinfandel.org/">Zinfandel Advocates & Producers</a> (a.k.a. ZAP): their annual <a href="http://www.zinfandelexperience.com/">Experience</a> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_francisco">San Francisco</a>, self-billed as “the world’s largest single varietal wine tasting event.”<br />
<br />
This year, three days of seminars and parties are capped by a <a href="http://www.zinfandelexperience.com/#!grand-tasting/c1ir7">“Grand Tasting”</a> at <a href="http://sfport.com/index.aspx?page=2509">Pier 27</a> on the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embarcadero_(San_Francisco)">Embarcadero</a> on Saturday, February 27, 2016; when consumers may pick and sip among hundreds of wines, produced by California’s finest <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinfandel">Zinfandel</a> specialists. A literal <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacchanalia">Bacchanal.</a><br />
<br />
Though, these are funny times for Zinfandel. As a varietal, it is still an awkward, bratty, painfully hormonal adolescent. Yet in many ways, it is thanks to the founders of ZAP – classic producers like <a href="https://www.ridgewine.com/">Ridge</a>, <a href="http://www.ravenswoodwinery.com/">Ravenswood</a>, <a href="https://www.rosenblumcellars.com/age_gateway?&destination=home">Rosenblum</a>, and a meritocracy of a few others – that the Zinfandel grape avoided what looked like an inevitable demise as a major red wine varietal, back in the mid-1990s.<br />
<br />
Those were the days, many will recall, when most of what was being grown was being churned into the discernibly sweet, fruity pink wine we know as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Zinfandel">White Zinfandel</a>.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" height="512" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/ZAPbarrels.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; height: 360px; margin: 5px; width: 450px;" width="640" /></div>
<br />
Not that there’s anything wrong with White Zinfandel. Lovers of sweet, fruity pink wines deserve their desserts, too.<br />
<br />
But instead, the positively huge response to ZAP’s yearly events lit up renewed ardor for the grape in its true, black skinned guise: as a lush, generous, oft-times spicy red wine. Delicious with an endless variety of foods; delicious by itself, in all its big, bad, brazen badda-bing badda-boomness.<br />
<br />
The trend of “serious” producers dropping the varietal from their lines in favor of so-called “classic” varietals such as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabernet_Sauvignon">Cabernet Sauvignon</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merlot">Merlot</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinot_noir">Pinot Noir</a> was suddenly reversed. New fangled specialists, such as <a href="http://www.turleywinecellars.com/">Turley</a> and <a href="http://www.robertbialevineyards.com/">Robert Biale</a>, also popped up, creating almost cult-ish followings for pricey, single-vineyard bottlings. At a time when <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_Killed_the_Radio_Star">video had killed off the radio star</a>, Zinfandel was being saved!<br />
<br />
Or was it? Somewhere along the line, Zinfandel began to lose some of its luster. The latest <a href="http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/news/2015/its-all-in-the-mix-red-blends-are-stirring-up-uswine-sales.html">Nielsen</a> market reports are showing a slight decline in consumer interest in the grape as both a red and pink wine. You can chalk this up to the fact that almost all trends eventually putter out. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chardonnay">Chardonnay</a> sales, for instance, have been leveling off, and Merlot has never quite recovered from its post-<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sideways">Sideways</a> malaise. Yet, on the other hand, interest in Cabernet Sauvignon is still growing through the roof; and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauvignon_blanc">Sauvignon Blanc</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinot_gris">Pinot Grigio</a>, of all things, are more popular than ever.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" height="512" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/ZAP-newconsumer.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; height: 380px; margin: 5px; width: 475px;" width="640" /></div>
<div class="blog-caption" style="text-align: center;">
<em>Are today's consumers still amused by Zinfandel's big, bratty styles?</em></div>
<br />
So what’s the down-side of Zinfandel? For one, the very things that made Zinfandel such a favorite red varietal 10, 20 years ago. When ZAP began heating up the ‘90s, consumers were just “discovering” the joys of big, juicy, jammy and, frankly, sweetly oaked red wines, and Zinfandel fit the bill. <a href="http://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_1417700">“No wimpy wines!”</a> was a popular mantra, and the t-shirt is even enshrined in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smithsonian_Institution">Smithsonian</a>.<br />
<br />
Well, guess what: many wine lovers, especially younger ones, now seem to be gravitating to “wimpy.” They want their wines a good 2% or 3% lower in alcohol. Dryer and edgy with tartness rather than annoyingly fat or fruity. Many of them hate the taste of oak; and the smoky, sweet, pungent, caramelized, oft-times furniture polish-like taste of oak is practically a Zinfandel signature, even if barrels have nothing to do with the natural taste of the grape.<br />
<br />
Here in our second decade of the new <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennium">millennium</a>, we seem to be living in a wine world heavily influenced by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sommelier">sommeliers</a>. Everyone is studying to be a sommelier. Like <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spartacus">Spartacus</a>, everyone <em>is</em> a sommelier, whether or not they are working in a restaurant.<br />
<br />
But take a look at the long, seemingly all-encompassing wine lists being written by top sommeliers in the best American restaurants today. Find any Zinfandel on those lists? Maybe one or two, if not zero; but certainly nothing comparable to the long lists of Pinot Noirs, Cabernet Sauvignons, or even wines that many sommeliers <em>wish </em>people would drink more of (i.e. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riesling">Riesling</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ribolla_Gialla">Ribolla Gialla</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mencia">Mencía</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blaufr%C3%A4nkisch">Blaufränkisch</a>, etc.). Today’s Zinfandels, it seems, are not quite up to snuff in the sommeliers’ world.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" height="512" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/ZAP-LizzyJamesvine.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; height: 380px; margin: 5px; width: 475px;" width="640" /></div>
<div class="blog-caption" style="text-align: center;">
<em>115-year-old Zinfandel in Harney Lane's Lizzy James Vineyard</em></div>
<br />
In a post in his popular blog <a href="http://www.vinography.com/">Vinography</a> this past November, <a href="http://www.vinography.com/archives/2015/09/the_zinfandel_revolution_conti.html">Alder Yarrow fesses up to some of his own reasons why his enthusiasm for Zinfandel has waned</a> like a shrunken orange in recent decades:<br />
<em><img alt="" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/ZAPglass1.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; float: right; height: 344px; margin: 5px; width: 275px;" /></em><br />
<em>Let me begin with total honesty. I fell out of love with Zinfandel. When I first got into wine, I loved the carefree jubilation that spilled out of every bottle of Zinfandel I opened. Zinfandel is a wine that makes no apologies for its exuberant fruit.</em><br />
<em><br /></em>
<em>As authentic as this personality can be, Zinfandel all too easily strays into the realm of caricature. If its boisterous blackberry, black pepper, and blueberry essence is good, surely a bit more of that is even better, right?</em><br />
<em><br /></em>
<em>Wrong. As much criticism as California Cabernet receives for a shift towards bigger, better, richer, and riper in the last 20 years, in some ways Zinfandel's shift has been even more egregious.</em><br />
<em><br /></em>
<em>Zinfandel probably started off riper than Cabernet to begin with, as it easily strays into the high 14% and low 15% range while continuing to develop those rich flavors that so many seek from the grape. But in addition to being left longer and longer on the vine beginning in the late 1990s, winemakers in California began to apply increasingly higher levels of new oak to the wines, resulting in bigger, richer, jammier, and sweeter versions of the grape. After a while I just got tired of it.</em><br />
<em><br /></em>
<em>Apparently I do have a threshold for fruit overload, especially when that fruit is offered almost in singularity, with few other dimensions of interest. And this is precisely what became of California Zinfandel until recently. Many, many of these wines left behind nuance for power of fruit, and as a result, became less interesting to me.</em><br />
<em><br /></em>
<em>But then recently...</em><br />
<br />
And, <em>ta-da</em>! Yarrow goes on to describe a recent taste of an <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amador_County,_California">Amador County</a> grown Zinfandel plus, “around the same time... a box of six Zinfandels from Lodi, all bearing the same label, but from different producers.” It was Yarrow’a discovery of six 2012 <a href="http://www.lodinative.com/pages/about/">Lodi Native Zinfandels</a> – deliberately crafted in a lower key fashion to emphasize the taste of vineyards rather than the sweet, jammy, oaky taste typical of the varietal – that Yarrow found to be “transformative, not only for my vision of what California Zinfandel had become, but also for my opinion of what Lodi was all about. I was back in bed with Zinfandel.” And not only that, the Lodi Natives “also inspired my faith in the future of California wine.”<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" height="426" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/ZAP-LodiNatives1.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; height: 350px; margin: 5px; width: 525px;" width="640" /></div>
<div class="blog-caption" style="text-align: center;">
<em>Lodi Native winemaker/growers</em></div>
<br />
Here’s the thing: most Lodi grown Zinfandels, like most commercial Zinfandels from everywhere in California, are still produced primarily to appeal to consumers with a yen for the jammy, sweetly oaked taste commonly associated with the varietal category. But if you go to the ZAP Experience Grand Tasting this Saturday, you will be able to taste a small but growing number of Zinfandels made more in a style similar to the Lodi Native project.<br />
<br />
That is, more Zinfandels that<br />
<br />
1. Put more emphasis on earthy tastes associated with particular vineyards, not just exaggerated varietal fruit character.<br />
<br />
2. Veer away from the heavy-handed oakiness.<br />
<br />
3. Are mercifully lower in alcohol (closer to 13% rather than 16%).<br />
<br />
4. Have a lip smacking tartness, rather than fat fruitiness.<br />
<br />
As we said, these are funny times for Zinfandel. Grower and winemaker styles are transitioning, slowly but surely, in order to keep up with evolving consumer preferences, and the tastes of all those pesky, slow-to-buy-in sommeliers. We have the three Rs (Ridge, Ravenswood and Rosenblum) to thank for firing up the popularity of the grape, which still dominates the Lodi landscape. But the crafting of Zinfandel as more subtle expressions of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroir</a> (i.e. sensory sense of <em>place</em>), rather than brand or varietal caricatures, is still a long time coming.<br />
<br />
But you know, the darkest hours are still in the ‘80s or ‘90s. No one here in the Delta is really afraid that Zinfandel will go the way of radio, or video, stars. There are too many consumers in Europe and Asia now clamoring for varietal bottlings, even if consumption in the U.S. is in a slight funk. Now there’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuba">Cuba</a>, plus that giant continent down below that, <a href="http://www.lyricsfreak.com/r/randy+newman/political+science_20114159.html">as Randy Newman sang, stole our name</a> (South America). Things are looking good. We're going to be great again.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, we are also trying to take that next step: popularizing the grape as a more delicate, floral, earthy style of red wine, which Lodi seems to naturally engender.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" height="426" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/ZAP-tradetasting.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; height: 383px; margin: 5px; width: 575px;" width="640" /></div>
<div class="blog-caption" style="text-align: center;">
<em>2014 ZAP trade tasting</em></div>
Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-4902738498619039882016-02-05T15:46:00.000-07:002017-03-21T11:42:38.620-06:00Is there such a thing as "Zinfandel Grand Crus" in California?<div class="MsoNormal">
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<img alt="" height="426" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/ZAP-Flights.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; height: 383px; margin: 5px; width: 575px;" width="640" /></div>
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<em>Room set for ZAP's annual Flights!
tasting</em></div>
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Is there such a thing as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cru_(wine)">“Grand
Crus”</a> rankings of California wines? No, there
isn’t, and for good reason: the California wine industry is
continuously discovering “new” vineyards of undeniably
wonderful quality and interest. We’re not like places in France,
where they carry children around in baskets and <em>vignerons</em>
have had hundreds of years to figure out where the best wines are coming
from.</div>
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In a <a href="http://www.timatkin.com/articles?1610">recent blogpost on
Tim Atkin MW’s timatkin.com, Ron Washam made some devastating
comments</a> on one attempt to do so; citing James Laube, who
“wrote <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Californias-Great-Cabernets-Spectators-Collectors/dp/0918076714"><em>California’s
Great Cabernets</em>,</a> a book published by ‘Wine
Spectator Press’ in 1989.” Quoth Washam,</div>
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<em>You read that right —
“Wine Spectator Press.” Why does that bring the Special
Olympics of Publishing to mind? In </em>California’s Great
Cabernets<em>, Laube, in his adolescence as a wine critic, took it upon
himself to classify California Cabernet producers into Five Growths —
think Bordeaux’s 1855 classification... The book is a study in
hubris, as well as cheap paper.</em></div>
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The point is that as soon as you make a list of the
top 50 or 60 vineyards where the best <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabernet_Sauvignon">Cabernet
Sauvignons</a> are coming from, another 50 or 60 vineyards pop up that
seem to be just as good or better. It’s more like the book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Millions-Picture-Puffin-Books-Paperback/dp/0142407089/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1454455172&sr=1-1&keywords=millions+of+cats"><em>Millions
of Cats</em></a> – an exercise not so much in hubris as
futility. The California wine industry is growing too darned fast to make even
tentative choices.</div>
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<em>Lodi Zinfandel lover at ZAP</em></div>
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And so why, you may ask, is <a href="http://www.zinfandel.org/">Zinfandel Advocates &
Producers</a> (a.k.a. ZAP) putting on a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinfandel">Zinfandel</a>
tasting of bottlings that, in their words, “sets the stage to push
the conversation about California's own Great Growths”
representing what might be considered the top of the top of our old vine
Zinfandel plantings? This tasting takes place on February 26, 2016 in San
Francisco, as part of the <a href="http://www.zinfandelexperience.com/#!flights/c1mhp">“Flights!
Forum of Flavors”</a> segment of ZAP’s yearly,
three-day-long <a href="http://www.zinfandelexperience.com/">Zinfandel
Experience</a>.</div>
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On their Web site, ZAP goes on to say:</div>
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<em>The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bordeaux_Wine_Official_Classification_of_1855">Bordeaux
Wine Official Classification of 1855</a> ranked France's best
wines according to a château's reputation and trading price
and is still in use today. Ultimately 61 out of 5000 wine estates were given
the highest ranking and are sometimes referred to as Great Growths or </em>Grand
Crus Classés<em>... Is there a congruence between old vine
vineyards and European great growths? </em></div>
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The simplest answer to ZAP’s question,
even before this tasting takes place, is: <em>No</em>. It is an
exercise in futility, although we shan't say hubris (we
<em>love</em> ZAP, and <em>all</em> great Zinfandels).
Oh, it may be an amusing activity, but there are reasons why it can't
be much more than that:</div>
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First: old vine vineyards are not necessarily the
“grandest” sources of Zinfandel. Two of the highest rated
Zinfandels in recent blind tasting competitions, for instance, have come from
vines less than 10 years old (namely, Sam J. Sebastiani’s <a href="http://www.lachertosawines.com/">La Chertosa</a> from
Shake Ridge Ranch in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amador_County,_California">Amador
County</a>, and the <a href="http://mikamivineyards.com/">Mikami Vineyards</a>
Zinfandel from Lodi). Sure, no one goes around breathlessy proclaiming
“Young Vine” Zinfandel; but doggone it, Zinfandel from
young vines can be good, especially from fantastic sites cultivated by
top-notch growers and finished by crafty winemakers.</div>
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<img alt="" height="413" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/Thurburcartoon.gif" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; height: 323px; margin: 5px; width: 500px;" width="640" /></div>
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<em>One
of James Thurber's most famous cartoons (The Thurber Carnival,
1945)</em></div>
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Secondly: neither critics nor consumers can ever
agree on a criteria as to what constitutes the "best
Zinfandels." The ZAP organizers, for instance, plan to present
Zinfandels from seven vineyards to start their conversation about a possible
“Grand Crus.” Five of those vineyards are located in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma_County_wine">Sonoma
County</a> and two of them from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napa_Valley_AVA">Napa
Valley</a>; and they all produce the deeply colored, densely
textured, opulently fruited style of Zinfandel that many Zinfandel aficionados
have come to love.</div>
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Ah, but what of the far less opulent, lower
alcohol, decidedly more acid-driven styles of Zinfandels grown in, say, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendocino_Ridge_AVA">Mendocino
Ridge</a>? Or the more moderately structured yet suave, brightly balanced
styles of Zinfandel coming out <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Foothills_AVA">Sierra
Foothills</a> regions like Amador County, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Dorado_AVA">El
Dorado</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calaveras_County,_California">Calaveras</a>?
In both <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paso_Robles_AVA">Paso
Robles</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra_Costa_County,_California">Contra
Costa County</a> they grow full alcohol Zinfandels that often combine
opulence of ripe fruit with almost improbable acid balance. Here in <a href="http://www.lodiwine.com/index.cfm?method=blog.blogdrilldown&blogEntryID=56E2A946-B24E-B86F-37D7-B0B639FAC358">Lodi</a>,
we have recently come to appreciate a more delicate, perfumed, feminine (if you
will) and often earthier style of Zinfandel.</div>
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Hey, don't ask us. It has been critics like
Alder Yarrow, who in his widely followed <a href="http://www.vinography.com/archives/2015/09/the_zinfandel_revolution_conti.html">Vinography</a>
blog last year (re <a href="http://www.vinography.com/archives/2015/09/the_zinfandel_revolution_conti.html"><em>The
Lodi Zinfandel Revolution Continues</em></a>) said that wines like
the <a href="http://www.lodinative.com/pages/about/">Lodi
Native</a> project Zinfandels "not only significantly redeemed my
dissatisfaction with Lodi Zinfandel, it also inspired my faith in the future of
California wine," while talking about the "incredible
diversity and complexity" of Zinfandels from Lodi's better
growths. They like us, they really do - sometimes more than others.</div>
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<img alt="" height="512" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/ZAP-LodiNatives.jpg" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 2px; height: 360px; margin: 5px; width: 450px;" width="640" /></div>
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<em>Lodi Native Zinfandels poured at 2015
ZAP</em></div>
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Point being: not everyone believes that the best
Zinfandels are made in the big, black, thick and jammy fruited styles typical
of much of Sonoma County and Napa Valley. Some critics actually hate that;
preferring kinder, gentler, or more restrained, less obviously fruity styles.
So by what standards do we devise a Bordeaux style classification of
Zinfandels, sub-dividing “Grand Crus” growths into, say,
five levels of “grandness?”</div>
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We don’t. Not so long as there is
disagreement about such fundamental issues as: Is bigger better? Are the best
Zinfandels the ones with lean and edgy acid balance, or the ones that bounce
like a Sally Rand balloon? Do we give extra credit for earthy, non-fruit
complexities, or do we measure by sheer amount of classic
"jammy" fruitiness. Do we like Zinfandels so rich and dense
with tannin they can absorb tons of pungent, sweet oak, or Zinfandels so
delicate that the barest whiffs of wood will bruise it? Are not floral or more
subtle berry fragrances better?</div>
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Then again, that’s the great thing about
ZAP’s yearly <a href="http://www.zinfandelexperience.com/">Zinfandel Experience</a>.
There's no better place to be for a Zinfandel lover, which is why
Lodi's finest will be there. if you have the stamina or
wherewithal to sip and spit rather than swill everything in sight, you can
experience well over 100 different Zinfandels in myriad styles from
California’s fantastic multiplicity of regions – and then
decide for yourself what is best, maybe even
“Grand.”</div>
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Without any pesky list-makers telling you
what's what!</div>
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<img alt="" height="640" src="https://www.lodiwine.com/assets/client/Image/ZAP-oldmanvine.JPG" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 4px; height: 525px; margin: 5px; width: 525px;" width="640" /></div>
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<em>Unsung hero: 115-year-old vine in Lodi's
Marian's Vineyard</em></div>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-32799807966286137132015-05-30T19:54:00.000-06:002017-03-21T11:44:00.369-06:00Is California Grenache on a cusp?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkLd2gbz7_X2HKxVl4ZuGSv-U_ddZsfcVEWGcTLJ_xaHKXayieetQVO2UWAVlFZPJbXbbTk7fITMjSGvs5EclnSTtpkUZjyU60H85RlpysfS3Eg_JbqlovaHbxasNnURbAOt8YYzSFb-w/s1600/Grenache+-+Hunter%2527s+Oak+08-07-12+copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkLd2gbz7_X2HKxVl4ZuGSv-U_ddZsfcVEWGcTLJ_xaHKXayieetQVO2UWAVlFZPJbXbbTk7fITMjSGvs5EclnSTtpkUZjyU60H85RlpysfS3Eg_JbqlovaHbxasNnURbAOt8YYzSFb-w/s640/Grenache+-+Hunter%2527s+Oak+08-07-12+copy.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bokisch Vineyards Garnacha, lit up like Christmas during veraison</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;">Letting a grape finally sing</span></b><br />
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Earlier in the month (May 2015), I endeavored to take a
measure of California grown <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grenache">Grenache</a> in a tasting of the very best varietal bottling of said grape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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The tasting was a long time coming – I first thought
about doing it at least five years ago, after tasting a pair of pure Grenache
bottlings produced by <a href="http://www.harrisonclarkewine.com/">Harrison Clark Vineyards</a>, grown on a spectacular chalky hilltop estate in Santa Barbara’s
<a href="http://ballardcanyonava.com/">Ballard Canyon AVA</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These sensuous, scintillating,
ultra-spiced red wines were like a proverbial epiphany to me. Never knew a California Grenache can taste so "complete."<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs8J1uy17uWYlle5nY8a9IzOXM-qe3smH3sJxPwqEXMx0yos35oJ0Urb2of0N1Wh0swM8vZtUVzURL6DZfYc8yjLEHkgTazgJrogNVnYQ3bTZshBopWxaSWYvxAFCfyWfy5eRbvbPoDN8/s1600/Harrison+Clarke+Vineyards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs8J1uy17uWYlle5nY8a9IzOXM-qe3smH3sJxPwqEXMx0yos35oJ0Urb2of0N1Wh0swM8vZtUVzURL6DZfYc8yjLEHkgTazgJrogNVnYQ3bTZshBopWxaSWYvxAFCfyWfy5eRbvbPoDN8/s640/Harrison+Clarke+Vineyards.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Harrison Clarke's calcareous hilltop estate in Santa Barbara's Ballard Canyon AVA</td></tr>
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It took a while to put together something of a definitive tasting, but I’m glad it’s finally done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My thoughts on the matter...</div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">First, over the past four, five years we have been
hearing the rumblings; mostly out of the mouths of wine savvy friends and
colleagues in the wine industry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Grenache is now my favorite grape.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Nothing is better than a good Grenache.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“God, I love Grenache.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">I don’t know how much of this has been genuine, or just
attributable to a coolness factor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Certainly, we all occasionally do and say things just to be cool or
different (or at least to make ourselves think we’re different).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the point is:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not the only one who’s been
harboring a growing fondness for Grenache.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigjLGVP6cao3Ww3Q2w3_cHueELo9HFpiqMyOogIJyBzC39VMcIRbFJsGDD3-pkth80Q1SK22uermAu4fRqhaMC7zfVSosbr0Vzc2Q-_ASuC5i4mxwj0rBi7a9N0Nq3-dROnexwlGHEzFk/s1600/McCay%252C+Caparoso%252C+Bokisch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigjLGVP6cao3Ww3Q2w3_cHueELo9HFpiqMyOogIJyBzC39VMcIRbFJsGDD3-pkth80Q1SK22uermAu4fRqhaMC7zfVSosbr0Vzc2Q-_ASuC5i4mxwj0rBi7a9N0Nq3-dROnexwlGHEzFk/s640/McCay%252C+Caparoso%252C+Bokisch.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Michael McCay, Randy Caparoso & Markus Bokisch in Lodi Lake Park</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Not, mind you, the usual Grenache based blends with
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrah">Syrah</a>, </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mourv%C3%A8dre"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">Mourv</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">è</span></a><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mourv%C3%A8dre">dre</a>, </span><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carignan">Carignan</a>, or other grapes deliberately used to beef up Grenache in some way,
shape or form; based on the seemingly obvious assumption that Grenache makes too simple or feeble a red wine to stand on its own.</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">
</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"><a href="https://www.bonnydoonvineyard.com/">Bonny Doon Vineyard</a>, for instance, has been on a tremendous winning
streak with recent vintages of its Grenache driven </span><i style="color: #1a1a1a;">Clos de Gilroy</i><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"> – buoyant, bosomy, irrepressibly lush and delicious
red wines.</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"> </span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Clos
de Gilroy</span></i><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">, however, is rarely more than 65% or 75% Grenache.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grenache, as Randall Grahm contends, is
“really the star” in his<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>blends; but I
still feel like you’re not really getting the taste of the grape in pure,
unadulterated form.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What you’re
getting is something of an “improved” Grenache – like the wonderfully improved
versions of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_Bonds">Barry Bonds</a> (I was a big fan, and still am) in his latter years.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a;">To appreciate Grenache, I think you need to accept the fact that, ultimately, the grape produces a lighter style of red wine than even the most moderated “GSM.” It’s never going to soar as high as the finest Syrahs, and it’s never going to have the soulful, sonorous meatiness of Mourv</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">è</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a;">dre. So what?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG7pmwmaGvI-9NS8tCDiDOfKWgg4jtXAtVB42FGAtKRUxpVlWZlKd4bBypFOJl7TCbMpdkZlqE7r1qN7TfotMRHQyHTp8Y3uYykpfkdrsOj-DhPUoJy0OHWvqCazhxsV6D14K0eKDfkrs/s1600/McCay+%2526+Abba.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG7pmwmaGvI-9NS8tCDiDOfKWgg4jtXAtVB42FGAtKRUxpVlWZlKd4bBypFOJl7TCbMpdkZlqE7r1qN7TfotMRHQyHTp8Y3uYykpfkdrsOj-DhPUoJy0OHWvqCazhxsV6D14K0eKDfkrs/s640/McCay+%2526+Abba.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grower Phil Abba and winemaker Michael McCay in Abba Vineyards (Lodi's Mokelumne River AVA)</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">I submit that the recent surge in interest in 100% pure
Grenache as a varietal red is, more than anything, a sign that a growing
segment of the wine market is finally willing to perceive subtlety as a
quality, as much or even more so than sheer weight or intensity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A wine need </span>no longer be “big”
or “powerful” to be impressive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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It’s a mental thing, as much a shift in taste.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> It entails dishing out "points" for expressions of less, not more. </span>Pure styles of red Grenache definitely
fall within the softer, gentler, more floral spectrum of red wine styles; more
often than not with its own modest complexity of red berryish fruit (often suggesting
cherry, strawberry, raspberry or pomegranate), tinged with spice (black pepper
or brown kitchen spices).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if
you expect power in the nose, or phenolic muscle in the body, you will usually
be disappointed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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Bottom line – the more you appreciate delicacy in red wine,
the more you appreciate Grenache!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmjvBgEh-53L81_riVr3EsVA-Gxkp6rZBc5Ip-IkQt8lxnk5XVJGMUaiOKX3mwmCorUwarKHeiSURM9wyXLlXuj5u6ztXiBJbukcQOgryjvV8TnJ5ZGEd36OSI3exJSrhxJuOX4-pie8s/s1600/Chad+Joseph.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmjvBgEh-53L81_riVr3EsVA-Gxkp6rZBc5Ip-IkQt8lxnk5XVJGMUaiOKX3mwmCorUwarKHeiSURM9wyXLlXuj5u6ztXiBJbukcQOgryjvV8TnJ5ZGEd36OSI3exJSrhxJuOX4-pie8s/s640/Chad+Joseph.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of our tasters, noted Lodi winemaker Chad Joseph</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="http://www.mccaycellars.com/">McCay Cellars</a>’ Michael McCay has been fond of describing
Grenache as “Lodi’s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinot_noir">Pinot Noir</a>.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>McCay is alluding to the <a href="http://www.lodiwine.com/blog/the-origins-of-the-lodi-viticultural-area">Lodi AVA</a>’s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediterranean_climate">Mediterranean climate</a> – which is the
natural environment for Grenache (but not so much for Pinot Noir, which reaches heights in colder climate regions) – as well as to the finely perfumed, mildly
spiced, Pinot Noir-like qualities of the varietal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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But red Grenache, of course, is not Pinot Noir; nor is it
Carignan, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sangiovese">Sangiovese</a>, or any other variety with propensity towards red fruit
fragrances and softer tannin structures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It comes in its own package of attractive attributes; fairly defined only
on its own terms.</div>
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Last year the <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/wine/thirst/article/Grenache-its-moment-of-greatness-is-now-5298262.php">San Francisco Chronicle</a> headlined
a story on Grenache’s recent “star turn,” describing the varietal as “the
perfect Mediterranean grape” while proclaiming, “<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Now is the moment to embrace
one of California wine's great successes.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>20 years ago, there was no way anyone would use words like
“star” or “great” in the same sentence as Grenache.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There seems to be, borrowing <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars">Star Wars</a> lingo, a “strong
disturbance in the Force” – or rather, among those with say in the wine world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTQ8thVwfhKz3CDuFv0vnCUyuFR3PlBVmqf6uAY1Z9uERmhwGDKc3Kuc1Yz6kBFx3Y8vfGwifdgV2PC_WIdzgmwaENpT4jF4yIH8fPG5N0HqCkri39-Wudxv4ciF-DNOaSDv7CszoNGNo/s1600/Markus+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTQ8thVwfhKz3CDuFv0vnCUyuFR3PlBVmqf6uAY1Z9uERmhwGDKc3Kuc1Yz6kBFx3Y8vfGwifdgV2PC_WIdzgmwaENpT4jF4yIH8fPG5N0HqCkri39-Wudxv4ciF-DNOaSDv7CszoNGNo/s640/Markus+3.jpg" width="512" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bokisch Vineyards' Markus Bokisch</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a;"><span style="font-size: large;">Four of us, tasting from paper bags</span><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">For our blind tasting, I gathered</span> 15 examples by
producers who I believe are producing the finest pure styles of California
Grenache today. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, I may have
left out another two, three, or even four, five other producers of merit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But you have to start somewhere, and I
choose to start from my own tasting experiences (never believing what I’m told
or what’s being written).</div>
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Since it was easier to do this tasting in my own home in
Lodi, I invited three of Lodi’s most respected vintners to help evaluate the
wines along with me:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Markus
Bokisch of <a href="http://www.google.com/webhp?nord=1#nord=1&q=bokisch+vineyards">Bokisch Vineyards</a>, Chad Joseph of <a href="http://harneylane.com/">Harney Lane Winery</a> and <a href="https://www.oakfarmvineyards.com/">Oak FarmVineyards</a> (plus three more Lodi based wineries), and Michael McCay of McCay
Cellars.<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Among the line-up, as it were, were the 2012 Bokisch Terra
Alta Vineyard Clements Hills-Lodi Garnacha (Bokisch grows a clonal variant of
the Grenache grape from Rioja Baja in Spain) and the 2012 McCay Cellars Lodi
Grenache.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The various other
Grenaches represented growths in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma_Valley_AVA">Sonoma Valley</a>, Inland <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendocino_AVA">Mendocino</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paso_Robles_AVA">Paso Robles</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Clara_County,_California">Santa Clara</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Barbara_County,_California">Santa Barbara</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amador_County,_California">Amador County</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Dorado_AVA">El Dorado</a>. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs9GHLplJ7oRFozPzkyWLakrMxq-rVE6ncqt3azDGXqxQHoxHpI2-FqugO6EFwwG4H22rHol12_wB_ngQfn3mX6cumtHm1p2gO4w3U6ht7MR7GvlnDjOPY-PfYGXstNl9py_hEtV1bN9c/s1600/McCay+2014+Grenache.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs9GHLplJ7oRFozPzkyWLakrMxq-rVE6ncqt3azDGXqxQHoxHpI2-FqugO6EFwwG4H22rHol12_wB_ngQfn3mX6cumtHm1p2gO4w3U6ht7MR7GvlnDjOPY-PfYGXstNl9py_hEtV1bN9c/s640/McCay+2014+Grenache.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">McCay's 2014 Mokelumne River-Lodi Grenache harvest</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Lest you think otherwise, none of our Lodi winemakers
ended up recognizing their own wines in this blind tasting – not an uncommon
occurrence in my experience, tasting with even the sharpest winemakers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This means our Lodi guys were not
predisposed towards Lodi grown wines while proffering their opinions and, in
the end, picking out their favorite wines in the tasting.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Not only were <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">none
</i>of us able identify the Lodi Grenaches among the others, following our discussion
and voting of our favorite wines, we were actually shocked to discover that the
Grenache everyone lauded as being the most intense in terms of spiciness, earthiness and perfume was, in fact, the 2012 McCay Cellars Grenache grown in Lodi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Of course, we did not all agree that more was better, but <i>c</i></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">’est
la vie</i>.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Our "top 3" Grenache reds</span></b><br />
<br />
Between the four of us, we came up with a total of 7 wines singled out as our three “favorites.” We didn't "rate" the wines - all of them were damned good - but we jotted down our personal preferences, mostly for the sake of discussion.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgewDZ4O3HU2qKBGR7IaeOi-v3_6IlJsDPg8dpnrQWlMM0KKqF5yPuEjmJSNuT2I67UHPdbT82EKHVq88jwlS1OJJLeQeCPFAX-kJRyNK6Y_dpVsZ9-2LOuRbrV9x2V3AjyJayWl14amPg/s1600/Jordan+Fiorentini.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgewDZ4O3HU2qKBGR7IaeOi-v3_6IlJsDPg8dpnrQWlMM0KKqF5yPuEjmJSNuT2I67UHPdbT82EKHVq88jwlS1OJJLeQeCPFAX-kJRyNK6Y_dpVsZ9-2LOuRbrV9x2V3AjyJayWl14amPg/s640/Jordan+Fiorentini.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Winemaker Jordan Fiorentini in Epoch's calcareous Paderewski Vineyard (Paso Robles Willow Creek District)</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Full disclosure:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I picked the Lodi grown McCay and Bokisch Grenaches #1 and #2 – under
the mistaken notion that these wines were more likely from Santa Barbara.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The wines I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">thought </i>were from Lodi actually ended up being from Testa Ranch in Mendocino and the Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I’ve
grown a “Lodi palate,” evidently it’s been by accident.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">In any case, my #3 choice was <a href="http://www.epochwines.com/">Epoch Wines</a>' <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sensibility</i>, grown in the steep, white,
calcareous shale slopes (+1,200-ft. elevation) of Paso Robles’ newly
recognized <a href="https://www.pasowine.com/media-center/the-avas-of-paso-robles.php">Paso Robles Willow Creek District AVA</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Aside from the <a href="http://www.baiocchiwines.com/">Baiocchi</a> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_Play_AVA">Fair Play</a>/El Dorado) and <a href="http://www.neyersvineyards.com/">Neyers</a>
(Sonoma Valley), the Epoch was just about the most aggressive, full and densely
structured Grenache in the bunch, exuding a pervasive, ringing peppery spice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mr. Joseph, on the other hand, found
the Epoch to be a shade “clunky.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
well-made wine is like a mountain – everyone looks at its features from slightly
different angles.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Mr. Joseph, as it turned out, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">really</i> loved the two Ballard Canyon/Santa Barbara bottlings from
Harrison Clarke Vineyards, picking them as his #1 and #2.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All I can say is, he has very good
taste.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His #3 choice, for the
record, was the Lodi grown McCay.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Unbeknownst to each other, Mr. McCay and Mr. Bokisch
ended up picking the exact same wines as their 1, 2, and 3:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>first, the full bodied (by Grenache
standards), fleshy, richly layered Baiocchi from El Dorado’s Fair Play AVA;
followed by the more feminine, flowery, silky <a href="http://gracewinecompany.com/">A Tribute to Grace</a> from <a href="http://gracewinecompany.com/the-wine/">Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard</a>, and the 2011 Harrison Clarke (the slightly leaner, yet
somewhat brasher, of the two vintages of Harrison Clarke in the tasting).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6rRs2wIrLD2SpEfF1k9Tho8OmGJdD7IhXvjYNCb7qTcFW7zyAOHArfrW0rN0M4r3dnlv8Iwxl17nYS8vuaJ1xm_WwkChAMfwjl8ST0aqn4nJFLIsYdzD_aH6rtjqo-G-8I34HK7qvf_E/s1600/Angela+Osborne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6rRs2wIrLD2SpEfF1k9Tho8OmGJdD7IhXvjYNCb7qTcFW7zyAOHArfrW0rN0M4r3dnlv8Iwxl17nYS8vuaJ1xm_WwkChAMfwjl8ST0aqn4nJFLIsYdzD_aH6rtjqo-G-8I34HK7qvf_E/s640/Angela+Osborne.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Tribute to Grace winemaker/owner Angela Osborne in Amador County's Shake Ridge Ranch</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">In alphabetical order, more detailed notes on the seven
wines that ended up among our “top 3”:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2013
A Tribute to Grace, Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard Grenache</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> (about
$50) – From a remote, high elevation (3,500-ft.) vineyard located in an even
warmer site than anywhere in Lodi; furnishing more than enough proof that
perfectly refined, feminine, silky yet zesty, upbeat Grenache can be grown in a
place that is the opposite of “cold climate” (and is also why, when the French
and Spanish talk about Grenache, they gleefully proclaim the merits of “hot
climate” viticulture).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>McCay
described the finely wrought elegance of this bottling as “Sinatra-like,” and
Mr. Bokisch loved the way its low-key cedarbox-spice/oak melded with its
fragrant raspberry/cherryish fruit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2012
Baiocchi Wines, Sharon’s Vineyard Fair Play (El Dorado) Grenache</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> ($39)
– Focused strawberry/plummy aroma backed by a faint note of minerality,
mingling with a scrubby spice; firm, fairly full bodied style (relative to the
rest of the Grenaches, which were by and large moderate in weight), with
attractively round, fleshy, balanced qualities to the mineral-tinged fruit
intensity.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsRI2v-w0RvJGvxC-WjjkT5Crv5O6SdanbgragiooeUfjHzFN6b0atM0RemQ6JY1JGdepActZL34vvvnR5HFKpHS9cQMURXcn0usda5_LSrsz-6EdB9yjP7srHx_b5Jzy13Qp6eTUlaqo/s1600/Garnacha+Rioja+Baja%252C+Bokisch-Terra+Alta+090311+copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsRI2v-w0RvJGvxC-WjjkT5Crv5O6SdanbgragiooeUfjHzFN6b0atM0RemQ6JY1JGdepActZL34vvvnR5HFKpHS9cQMURXcn0usda5_LSrsz-6EdB9yjP7srHx_b5Jzy13Qp6eTUlaqo/s640/Garnacha+Rioja+Baja%252C+Bokisch-Terra+Alta+090311+copy.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bokisch Vineyards' Rioja Baja Garnacha clonal selection</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2012
Bokisch Vineyards, Terra Alta Vineyard Clements Hills-Lodi Garnacha</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> ($23)
– This planting – grown on the rocky, clay loam soils of Lodi’s Clements Hills
AVA – comes across as notably svelte, refined, yet zesty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The varietal qualities are properly
soft and strawberryish – described as “bright” and “lifted” by Chad Joseph –
augmented by a whiffs of leafy-greenery which added (for me) a nice complexity;
the medium-weight, fruit-focused sensations coming across as gentle yet
exuberant, stretching gracefully across the palate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2012
Epoch Estate Wines, Paso Robles <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sensibility</i></span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> (about
$50) – Although in the past this winery has blended small proportions of Syrah
in their <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sensibility</i> bottlings, their
2012 is 100% Grenache; evoking ultra-intense, almost heady strawberry/raspberry
fruit with a cracked peppercorn spiciness, leaping from the glass; with a
notably thick, full, bold yet typically soft (for the varietal), silken
textured feel on the palate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVnR23flFwJP267ipQ648Qw4gsUiKlBjcDlOvXfwxGMxXiV4w2dNMEJ-fmicop2UpPHqzrH_mSfxjSjOIIXvUMg77GTyZ6YaupmkpZ9zvEwHPTIiyE7XFdLiNCQHe90-p9rO-TFlDzFp8/s1600/Hilarie+Clarke.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVnR23flFwJP267ipQ648Qw4gsUiKlBjcDlOvXfwxGMxXiV4w2dNMEJ-fmicop2UpPHqzrH_mSfxjSjOIIXvUMg77GTyZ6YaupmkpZ9zvEwHPTIiyE7XFdLiNCQHe90-p9rO-TFlDzFp8/s640/Hilarie+Clarke.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Harrison Clarke co-owner/winemaker Hilarie Clarke</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2010
Harrison Clarke Vineyards, </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">Ballard
Canyon-Santa Ynez Valley (Santa Barbara) Grenache</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> ($32) – This estate planting – on
a dusty-white, calcareous limestone-replete hilltop in Santa Barbara’s Ballard
Canyon AVA (a sub-appellation of Santa Ynez Valley) – remains one of my
all-time favorite sources of Grenache.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The wines are unfailingly spicy and mobilized by zesty, fresh fruit
acidity (high pH soils being more favorable to lower pH wines).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this bottling, a fragrant,
flowery red berry perfume is infused with an aromatic minty/sweet herb
spiciness; tied together on the palate with still-youthful tannin, filling out
a firm, medium sized body.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2011
Harrison Clarke Vineyards, Ballard Canyon-Santa Ynez Valley (Santa Barbara) Grenache </span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">($32)
– This vintage produced a slightly leaner prickly, layered, silken Grenache</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">;
with a brazen, generous fruit dimension verging on blackcurrant-like berryishness, tinged with
fresh Bing cherry and mildly sweet oak flourishes; finishing fresh, sleek,
lissome, lively.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2012
McCay Cellars, Lodi Grenache</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> ($28) – From trellised vines in
<a href="http://www.lodiwine.com/blog/abba-vineyards-grows-grenache-comparable-to-pinot-noir">Phil Abba</a>’s meticulously farmed Abba Vineyard, located on the east side of
Lodi’s <a href="http://www.lodiwine.com/blog/the-mokelumne-river-viticultural-area-part-1">Mokelumne River AVA</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Notably
the most pungent, perfumed, sweet black peppercorn spiced, veering on
peppermint, Grenache in this tasting, with Old Worldish whiffs of organic
loaminess (also the earthiest wine in this tasting).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The feel is soft, round, fairly fleshy, with mouth-watering
zip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mr. Bokisch described its
nose as “Santa Rosa plum and strawberry,” while Mr. Joseph singled out its
“mineral texture” and “rich strawberry jam” qualities.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_saIHhyXu1ic3YN0Nj_gtInL-DiV6qX2O4lhnBK8Ro70KbGgFApRXRynDdALm8YlJ61QptYrV073kHZ__UVQC6TziIQQB7I66M9J96fzft0YFJ6RrhfbwxuhVooLQlGZArSFPruSBjOQ/s1600/Greg+Baiocchi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_saIHhyXu1ic3YN0Nj_gtInL-DiV6qX2O4lhnBK8Ro70KbGgFApRXRynDdALm8YlJ61QptYrV073kHZ__UVQC6TziIQQB7I66M9J96fzft0YFJ6RrhfbwxuhVooLQlGZArSFPruSBjOQ/s640/Greg+Baiocchi.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baiocchi Vineyards owner/grower/winemaker Greg Baiocchi</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;">The others – a litany of Grenache “stars”</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">I have done tastings, even entire judgings, where none
of entries are “second-rate” – every wine a winner in any given wine aficonado's book.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was one of those tastings, in spades. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We truly felt that the quality of each
of the following wines was first-rate – indicative of the high standard of red
varietal Grenache reached in California today.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">In alphabetical order:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2013
A Tribute to Grace, Shake Ridge Ranch Amador County Grenache</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> (about
$50) – With the huge respect we all have for grower Ann Kraemer’s amazing work
at <a href="http://www.sommelierjournal.com/articles/article.aspx?year=2012&month=02&articlenum=44">Shake Ridge Ranch</a>, the combination with A Tribute to Grace’s <a href="http://gracewinecompany.com/graces-story/">Angela Osborne</a>’s customary minimalist winemaking regime – strictly native yeast, partial (50% to 70%) foot
treading of whole clusters, neutral wood, et al. – seems like a hand-in-glove
fit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this bottling, Osborne
achieves an epitome of the varietal’s gentle, fragrant, medium bodied charms;
the strawberry/cherry fruit spruced up by a cocoa-ish, baking spice complexity;
some youthful tannins tightening the finish, which still projects a fine,
almost ethereal texturing.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiBU6wglInhRAlEJCMs5s1s-SdTnchR-dV3S2MXW_HyZDZCS4mqF9QI92vSopvXPtgWz5v0DjDU-MKuWl1g8gDVfgvLIkobygYEB5nsAkh0zSAgM7bW9DIIDLwS-4TVOxuVYI7kN_Pa2U/s1600/Shake+Ridge+Ranch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiBU6wglInhRAlEJCMs5s1s-SdTnchR-dV3S2MXW_HyZDZCS4mqF9QI92vSopvXPtgWz5v0DjDU-MKuWl1g8gDVfgvLIkobygYEB5nsAkh0zSAgM7bW9DIIDLwS-4TVOxuVYI7kN_Pa2U/s640/Shake+Ridge+Ranch.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shake Ridge Ranch, Amador County</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2013
A Tribute to Grace, Besson Vineyard Santa Clara Grenache</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> (about
$50) – Ms. Osborne informs us that this is sourced from ancient vines, planted
in 1910.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In comparison to her other
two <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cuv</i></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">é</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">es</span></i><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">
submitted in the tasting, this prettily scented wine seemed to register a
slightly lower key expression of the cherry/strawberry varietal perfume, while
remaining true to the pliant, feminine personality of the varietal; the nose exuding
a flowery note, transitioning into a soft, almost airy, yet appealingly
bright, snappy McIntosh apple-like crackle and pop on the palate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2013
Beckmen Vineyards, Purisima Mountain Vineyard-Block Eight Ballard Canyon-Santa Ynez Valley (Santa
Barbara) Grenache</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> ($52) – Few <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">vignerons</i>
lavish as much attention on Grenache as <a href="https://www.beckmenvineyards.com/our-story">Steve Beckmen</a>, and it shows in this
bottling from a <a href="http://www.demeter-usa.org/">Biodynamic</a></span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><a href="http://www.demeter-usa.org/">®</a></span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> farmed block of own-rooted, head
trained vines, planted on a sparse calcareous slope.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Vividly rich and compact cherry/strawberryish varietal aroma
touched up by a mild herbiness; fairly full, soft and fleshy, but seemingly
held back a little by a young, linear, tight tannin component.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBrrbDxvCvSUyp8MrfThtynznTxg-xJn6kRJMX1tSMpOcnLuTPbcDsGC8goD5mm-b1G_K4vgR_9cBXZ41ADL509BCNqdEmBAJmQ7BAaAUup2QK7zOcOGUR1z37dZeBKIt5nDsDQJc8HXY/s1600/Tadeo+Borchardt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBrrbDxvCvSUyp8MrfThtynznTxg-xJn6kRJMX1tSMpOcnLuTPbcDsGC8goD5mm-b1G_K4vgR_9cBXZ41ADL509BCNqdEmBAJmQ7BAaAUup2QK7zOcOGUR1z37dZeBKIt5nDsDQJc8HXY/s640/Tadeo+Borchardt.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Neyers Vineyards winemaker Tadeo Borchardt in Sonoma Valley's Rossi Ranch</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2012
Big Basin Vineyards, Coastview Vineyard Monterey County Grenache </span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">($44)
– <a href="https://www.bigbasinvineyards.com/vineyards/coastview-vineyard">Coastview</a> is as the name implies – a 2,200-ft. elevation planting located in
the Gabilan Mountains, overlooking Monterey Bay and Salinas Valley.</span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 15.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">This was also the only Grenache in
our tasting blended with a small dose of Syrah (5%).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nonetheless, the impression is very much, and thrillingly,
“Grenache” – juicy, bouncy, strawberry fruit qualities in the nose and mouth,
zipped up by notably bright acidity, a mild tug of tannin and just a smidgen of
leafy green herbiness.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2014
Neyers Vineyards, Rossi Ranch Sonoma Valley Grenache</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> ($35)
– This was the only barrel sample included in this tasting (owner <a href="http://www.neyersvineyards.com/about_us/">Bruce Neyers</a>
explaining that a bottle of their sold-out 2013 bottling was simply
unavailable).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I was determined
to have some kind representation from Neyers; whose formidably talented winemaker, Tadeo Borchardt, has had phenomenal success
with fruit from the Biodynamic</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">®</span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> farmed Rossi Ranch, tucked away on
hillsides not far from <a href="http://jacklondonpark.com/">Jack London State Historic Park</a> in Sonoma Valley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This came across as the Grenache with
the most intense expression of black-oriented fruit (plum, blackberry); and
also as the one wine that could most accurately be described as “opulent,” or
voluminous – zesty yet round, fleshy, layered sensations; tightly wound and
compact with unresolved tannin, while finishing with a surprisingly sleek sense
of grace and texturing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Winemaker Chris Pittenger in his high elevation Skinner estate (Fair Play, El Dorado)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2012
Skinner Vineyards, Estate Grown El Dorado Grenache</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> (about
$30) – The <a href="http://skinnervineyards.com/">Skinner</a> estate plantings sit on a sandy loam saddle, some 2,700-ft.
high in El Dorado’s Fair Play AVA.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This wine is effusive with bright, high-toned strawberry perfumes,
complimented by the slightest herbal underpinnings; its medium body buoyed by
fresh acidity, lending mouth-watering sensations.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">2013
Skinner Vineyards, El Dorado Grenache</span></b><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"> ($26) – In this blend of estate
and non-estate plantings, the nose projects more forward strawberryish
qualities with scrubby, sage-like earth notes; and on the palate, the softness
of the varietal, sweetened by restrained French oak, finishing soft, easy, ingratiatingly
fresh and savory.</span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"><b>2012
Testa Ranch, Mendocino County Grenache</b> </span></span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;">($30) – Grower/winemaker <a href="http://testaranch.com/our-story/">Maria Martison</a> tends to this hidden treasure of a vineyard that has been in her family since
1912.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Employing straightforward,
small batch, hand punched macro-bin fermentation, she exacts classically
fragrant, flowery red berry/cherry, almost pomegranate-like perfumes and
flavors in her Grenache; wrapped in a soft, elongated, easy-going medium body
that seem to caress the palate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Everything that we crave in pure (at long last) Grenache!</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv9fwhysJvTCZ-_V7HE_z9YD1OZhLeH97d2IhIcAD5mQwVVYEt3Js6kV7Nb2gTpU-fMKaOZWxg9Frb2BcmfAFzuvQFAXwcYehu46i9vjXXjk_38qas5QRc6g2zOVuty0c1ZHlAqpbOyWA/s1600/Maria+Testa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv9fwhysJvTCZ-_V7HE_z9YD1OZhLeH97d2IhIcAD5mQwVVYEt3Js6kV7Nb2gTpU-fMKaOZWxg9Frb2BcmfAFzuvQFAXwcYehu46i9vjXXjk_38qas5QRc6g2zOVuty0c1ZHlAqpbOyWA/s640/Maria+Testa.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Testa Ranch owner/winemaker Maria Martison<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1a1a1a; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;">Can we talk more?</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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By and large, all of these Grenache bottlings were sourced
from vines growing in moderately warm Mediterranean climates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do not pay attention to yabberings
about necessity of “cold climate.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grenache
loves sun, while basking in a fairly wide range of topographies.</div>
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Where the wines in our tasting differed was in elevation
(the Skinner, Baiocchi, Big Basin, Epoch, and A Tribute to Grace's Shake Ridge Ranch and Santa Barbara
Highlands Vineyard planted on the highest elevation sites), and soil (higher
pH/calcareous soils in the Epoch, Beckmen, Harrison Clarke and Big Basin
plantings). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These were nice, but
wines grown in less alkaline soil on sub-400-ft. sites (i.e. McCay, Bokisch, Testa, Neyers' Rossi Ranch, and A Tribute to Grace's Besson Vineyard) seemed no less
complex and attractive.</div>
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If anything, factors such as winemaking and picking
decisions were also significant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For instance, mildly green notes of pyrazine (which I love) indicative of earlier
picking – presumably to achieve moderated natural alcohol and crisper acidity –
were found in wines as varied as the Bokisch (grown on low-lying hillsides of
rocky sandy clay loam), the Skinners (sandy loams at mountain-high altitude), Big Basin (2,200-ft. hillsides with veins of limestone), the
Beckmen and Harrison Clarke bottlings (sparse, rocky limestone on hillsides
topping out at about 1,200-ft.).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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In terms of style, Bokisch, A Tribute to Grace, and Testa
Ranch all seemed to fall into the lighter, reddish berry perfumed spectrum of
the varietal by design – a winemaker’s sense of restraint – despite coming from widely varying regions (Lodi’s Clements Hills, Santa Barbara Highlands, Amador
County, Santa Clara, and Inland Mendocino).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Winemaking always has as much impact as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroir</a></i> on finished product.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWx6AGeOLooCUafb5KAVdGrbnpNXzI8G1jGLKY76RSUz4UAZ7-zfGRsQNXWGS5-8nHVMCmQMFUuhaIxUpIi_NOUDko4-h4UVuQhlGhWhycf39XXu58wi72sGS_ic5o6QG226mfFpBxKyA/s1600/Skinner+Vineyards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWx6AGeOLooCUafb5KAVdGrbnpNXzI8G1jGLKY76RSUz4UAZ7-zfGRsQNXWGS5-8nHVMCmQMFUuhaIxUpIi_NOUDko4-h4UVuQhlGhWhycf39XXu58wi72sGS_ic5o6QG226mfFpBxKyA/s640/Skinner+Vineyards.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Skinner Vineyards in El Dorado's Fair Play AVA, on elevations reaching 2,700-ft.</td></tr>
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It is interesting to note that with the exception of the
Bokisch and Testa, all the wines were crafted by vintners devoted to native
yeast fermentation and other methods associated with minimalist winemaking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was particularly telling in the
comparison of the two Lodi grown wines – the native yeast fermented McCay
showing rawer earth and spicy notes, and the inoculated Bokisch focusing on a
purer red fruit expression.</div>
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Yet the wines falling on the fuller bodied end of the scale
also varied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Baiocchi came
across as successfully well balanced, while achieving a classic red fruit
varietal fragrance, even in a riper, weightier style (alcohol hitting 14.9%).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Neyers was among the fuller bodied
wines, while hitting darker fruit notes – no doubt reflective of the classic
red volcanic soil of Sonoma Valley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The Epoch was downright thick, as opulent as the Neyers – you could almost feel the sweet kiss of sun on these shallow, rocky, calcareous slopes – and
even spicier than the Neyers and Baiocchi.</div>
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Speaking of which, the spice factor:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>we found the most intense peppery
qualities in the McCay, Harrison Clarkes and Epoch Grenaches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, these spice bombs come from a
wide range of regions:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>McCay grown
in Lodi’s zero-elevation sandy loam; Harrison Clarke on a gentle slope of
finely ground limestone hovering around 1,000-ft.; the Epoch on a
steeper, mountainous, craggy site climbing above 1,200-ft. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What they do have in common is native yeast fermentation and
squarely Mediterranean climate – chew on that.<br />
<br />
If you enjoy complexity, Grenache is as much your grape as
any other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the hands of crafty
winemakers such as the aforementioned, any wine lover with a penchant for
classic qualities like elegance and subtlety is bound to be thrilled. I know I am.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiApISuOydSGdr2AkOuGbdYuzIUyVdDPFl5v4ImnHfn2jdPL6L4tIv-dq3axQM1VBbS4xOWZfxvNc_IcyKi4fC6bEatahdO7nSNdqo1qi8gwlNd3CmJ8IdYrVTSgGTRQbW-1VFbLh5W-kE/s1600/Ann+Kraemer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiApISuOydSGdr2AkOuGbdYuzIUyVdDPFl5v4ImnHfn2jdPL6L4tIv-dq3axQM1VBbS4xOWZfxvNc_IcyKi4fC6bEatahdO7nSNdqo1qi8gwlNd3CmJ8IdYrVTSgGTRQbW-1VFbLh5W-kE/s640/Ann+Kraemer.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shake Ridge Ranch's owner/grower extraordinaire, Ann Kraemer</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-66113396915807278382015-04-19T17:05:00.000-06:002017-03-21T11:44:35.875-06:00Cooper Vineyards Barbera: The dollar that changed a region<div class="MsoNormal">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cooper Vineyards' Dick Cooper among his perfectly sculpted, head trained Barbera</td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
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<i><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Part
2 of my telling of Amador County’s heritage, in collaboration with the
organizers of the upcoming <a href="http://amadorfourfires.com/"><b>Amador Four Fires</b></a> (please see <b><a href="http://randycaparoso.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-original-grandpere-vineyard.html">Part 1 – The Original Grandp</a></b></span><a href="http://randycaparoso.blogspot.com/2015/04/the-original-grandpere-vineyard.html"><b>ère Vineyard: Powerful Women, Grapes and Wines</b></a><span style="font-size: 11pt;">)</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="http://www.ledger-dispatch.com/news/dick-cooper-an-amador-county-legend-2">DickCooper</a>, whose family originally arrived in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Foothills_AVA">Sierra Foothills</a> in 1919, is
generally considered <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amador_County,_California">Amador County</a>’s “Godfather of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbera">Barbera</a>.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinfandel">Zinfandel</a> might be Amador’s heritage grape,
but it is a grape that does well in other parts of California.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Barbera, on the other hand, makes a red
wine that many of today’s wine lovers believe grows better in Amador County
than just about anywhere else in the world – even as well as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piemonte_(wine)">Piedmont</a>
region in Italy, where the grape originated.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">That
makes Mr. Cooper’s story an important one indeed; and we’re fortunate that,
although he recently has had to slow down his storied career just a little bit,
he now has more time to tell his tale.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">According
to Mr. Cooper, “In the late 1970s we had an abundance of pasture land, 35 acres
of prunes, and walnuts trees on the family property where <a href="http://cooperwines.com/">Cooper Vineyards</a> is
now located.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wanted to put in a
vineyard, but my Dad (Henry “Hank” Cooper) didn’t want anything to do with
grapes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s because he’d been
burned a few years earlier, and he was especially done with Zinfandel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“He
and my Uncle Ken Deaver had gone together on a 40-acre planting of Zinfandel, which
the government was buying up during the war (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II">WW II</a>) to turn into medicinal
alcohol, and was used in hospitals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They were making good money then – $125 a ton – but after the war the
price dropped to $35 a ton.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
wasn’t anywhere else to take the grapes except to some brokers in Sacramento,
and down the road at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D'Agostini_Winery">D’Agostini Winery</a> – and they weren’t offering more than
$35 either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dad said, ‘I’ll help
you with 5 acres of grapes, but no more than that.’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He felt we were diversified enough, with the prunes, walnuts
and sheep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Now,
my parents loved to entertain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They always had great parties at the house, inviting the best people
from near and far.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Around that
time they had <a href="http://www.sactownmag.com/April-May-2012/The-Tastemaker/">Darrell Corti</a> over.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He was a wine merchant from Sacramento who had influenced a number of wineries
in the Foothills.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That fateful dollar bill</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Dad
asked Darrell, ‘If we get back into grapes, what varieties should we
plant?’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Darrell said, ‘Barbera and
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolcetto">Dolcetto</a>.’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Having never heard of
those grapes, Dad asked Darrell if he could write those down for him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because no one could rustle up a piece
a paper right away, Darrell just took a dollar bill from his wallet, wrote down
Barbera and Dolcetto, and handed it to Dad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Since
it was my project, I went out to find cuttings of those grapes to plant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn’t find any Dolcetto, but I
found Barbera from one of our neighbors, Gary Gott at <a href="http://www.montevina.com/">Montevina</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So that was how we started with our
first 5 acres of Barbera, in the late ‘70s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It grew pretty well, but in the beginning there was no
demand for it – it got to the point where it was being used primarily to blend,
mostly in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Zinfandel">White Zinfandel</a>, even though you’re not supposed to do that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“But
later, winemakers like <a href="http://www.scottharveywines.com/the-wine/history/">Scott Harvey</a>, <a href="http://www.jeffrunquistwines.com/page-332234/About-Us.html">Jeff Runquist</a>, Bill Easton at <a href="http://www.terrerougewines.com/">Terre Rouge</a>,
and a few more wineries in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Dorado_AVA">El Dorado</a> were taking the fruit and making some
pretty remarkable wines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The grape
sort of took on a life of its own, and the entire region has become known for
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From our first 5 acres we’ve
grown to about 100 acres – mostly Barbera, although we grow 16 other varieties
on our ranch.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The
excellence of Mr. Cooper’s Barbera, not to mention his renown as a grape
grower, took off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Besides
expanding his own vineyards, he has since designed, planted and managed at
least another dozen vineyards in Amador and El Dorado County.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Long
before Mr. Cooper’s forays, the Barbera grape had always been a favorite among
growers and winemakers of Italian descent in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Joaquin_Valley">San Joaquin Valley</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoma_County_wine">Sonoma County</a>;
regions that still account for most of the 7,000 or so acres planted in the
state.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Historically, Barbera was a
major component (along with Zinfandel and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carignan">Carignan</a>) in blends like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E_%26_J_Gallo_Winery">E. & J.Gallo</a>’s <a href="http://www.gallofamily.com/wine-blog/happy-50th-birthday-hearty-burgundy.html">Hearty Burgundy</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yet
the Sierra Foothills <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Viticultural_Area">Viticultural Region</a> has recently become the area most
closely identified with Barbera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Although plantings in these higher elevations hover around a more modest
300 acres, there are more producers of Barbera in the Sierra Foothills than
anywhere else outside of Italy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And since 2011, thousands of wine lovers have been attending the annual,
sold-out <a href="http://barberafestival.com/">Barbera Festival</a>, where over 80 producers from throughout California
(plus a few from Italy) gather in June for an all-Barbera/all-the-time
celebration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Shenandoah_Valley_AVA">Shenandoah Valley</a> has
become the New World epicenter of Barbera happenings.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dick Cooper tells his tale (over a glass of Cooper Vineyards Barbera)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">According
to <a href="http://amadorwinegrapes.com/site/pages/home.cgi">Amador County Wine Grape Growers Association</a> spokesman David Logan (whose own Logan's Rock Wall Vineyard in Shenandoah Valley was designed and planted by Dick Cooper – including some of that elusive
Dolcetto!), “Dick Cooper’s ranch has been the home of the Barbera Festival for
several years (in 2015 the festival takes place at <a href="http://terradorowinery.com/">Terra d’Oro/MontevinaWinery</a>). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cooper grown Barbera
produced by about a half-dozen wineries have been responsible for almost all the
top Gold or ‘Best of Show’ medals at <a href="http://www.fairplex.com/wos/wine_competition/">L.A. County Fair</a>, <a href="http://www.wine-searcher.com/awards-46-california+state+fair">California State Fair</a>,
the <a href="http://winejudging.com/">San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition</a>, and several other competitions in
recent years.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yet
the very best may very well be Mr. Cooper’s own bottling:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>his current release, the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2012 Cooper Vineyards Amador County Barbera</b>
is thick, layered, velvety and fluid – chiseled with every bit of the naturally
zesty, savory, mouth filling, blackberryish flavors you expect in the varietal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Truth
be told,” says Mr. Cooper, “the whole Barbera thing came almost as an accident
– a name of a grape jotted down on a dollar bill.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It took many more years to actually learn how to grow the
stuff – you can’t grow Barbera like Zinfandel or anything else.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">All
of Cooper’s Barbera plantings are head trained and vertically spur pruned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has tried trellised systems on his
sandy-clay loam hillsides – a perfect combination of porosity and water
retention, which vines love – but discarded the approach after learning that
the best quality still comes from the free-standing vines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mr. Cooper’s Barbera plants are primarily
<a href="http://iv.ucdavis.edu/files/134093.pdf">FPS Clone 06</a> (from U.C. Davis’ Foundation Plant Services) grafted onto <a href="http://iv.ucdavis.edu/Viticultural_Information/?uid=170&ds=351">St. George rootstock</a> – plant material sometimes called the “Cooper clone Barbera,” out of
respect for its “Godfather.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Still,
unlike Zinfandel, says Mr. Cooper, “You need to leave more spurs per vine on
Barbera to get a little more shade, and you learn to drop seconds (i.e. late
blooming clusters).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Barbera likes a little sun after <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veraison">veraison</a> (i.e. when berries turn from green to black),
but before veraison it’s a disaster.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s also susceptible to powdery mildew, so you have to be vigilant with
the sprays.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Recently planted Black St. Peter clone Zinfandel in Cooper Vineyards</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“We
go for Barbera that’s a little more fragrant and fruit-forward – it always has
more than enough acid and body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Not to be critical, but we feel this makes a better wine than the harsh,
under-ripe styles you often get from Italy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love it when Italian winemakers come and visit, walk
around the vineyard and ask us how we do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They may be the ones who started it, but now they learn from
us!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“If
anything, we’ve learned to be patient with the grape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It usually takes a while before its acids, which are
notoriously high, start to go down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If you have to wait until sugars climb to 28</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">°</span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brix">Brix</a>, which you have to balance out in a winery
(usually by adding a little water to lower alcohol levels to a more ideal 14%
range), this is preferable to making a wine that’s hard to drink or weak in
flavor.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“When
we decided to produce our own wine, we planned our winery and tasting room for
about 2,500 cases.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ve been so
successful, though, that it’s grown to 10,000 cases, and we’re now taking more
(about 45%) of our own fruit, and selling to fewer of those top winemakers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“But
I think we’ve reached capacity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I've had some recent health issues, so I can’t spend nearly as much time out on the
tractor as I’d like to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I have
vineyard foremen who have been with me for 12, 16 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The vineyard is in good hands – they
know what they’re doing, maybe even better than me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And my four daughters are all involved in the operations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Our
winemaker (Cooper Vineyards’ Michael Roser) is doing a great job, and he’d love
for me to plow up a little more of the landscape to make room for more tanks
and barrels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I think I like
the free space around the property looking the way it is.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“That
dollar bill Mr. Corti had written on – we misplaced for a little while, but my
daughter Chrissy recently went looking for it, and she found it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s now hanging up behind our tasting
room bar – a constant reminder of how it all got started!”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-14111064193222319172015-04-19T16:04:00.001-06:002017-03-21T11:45:18.959-06:00The Original Grandpère Vineyard: Powerful Women, Grapes and Wines<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwG5s31PnjnYgIZWgdsDhLHKCe_zrIEOVXRd6KJa1BEVRzJ_V6Pr7dO9bRPLJx7uHRLa7-9ZWMe-55v1W7P_A8MIAqec1n7P0V0M4ThRNoNYk-D70isO-1R-w4woZiV4wZSR6q8clVOQY/s1600/IMG_7059.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwG5s31PnjnYgIZWgdsDhLHKCe_zrIEOVXRd6KJa1BEVRzJ_V6Pr7dO9bRPLJx7uHRLa7-9ZWMe-55v1W7P_A8MIAqec1n7P0V0M4ThRNoNYk-D70isO-1R-w4woZiV4wZSR6q8clVOQY/s640/IMG_7059.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Terri Harvey among the ancient, revered Zinfandel in her Original Grandpere Vineyard</td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: 11pt;">This
is Part 1 of my telling of Amador County’s heritage done for the organizers of
the upcoming <a href="http://amadorfourfires.com/"><b>Amador Four Fires</b></a>; a culinary and wine celebration taking place in
Plymouth’s Amador County Fairgounds on May 2, 2015.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Amador County’s heritage is all about the fascinating
history of its vineyards and wines, woven with stories of the colorful,
hard-scrabble people who made it happen. </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">A few of the brighter threads:</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></i></div>
<h3>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Farmers, dreamers,
risk takers...</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Scrawled
on a chalkboard in the recently opened <a href="https://www.facebook.com/prospectcellars">Prospect Cellars</a> on <a href="http://www.cityofplymouth.org/">Plymouth</a>’s Main St.,
you can see an homage to the families, farmers, vets, county fairs, traditions,
sunsets, rain, FFA, 4H pigs, dance partners, dreamers, risk takers, and all the
other things that make <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amador_County,_California">Amador</a><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> Amador</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And
so naturally, in the small-town setting of Amador County, things that happened
over 150 years ago are as fresh in people’s minds as last week’s events.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prospect Cellars proprietor Jamie
Colburn-Lubenko, the former Executive Director of <a href="http://www.amadorwine.com/">Amador Vintners Association</a>,
calls herself a “Plymouth girl” through and through.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Ms.
Colburn-Lubenko can talk first-hand about <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Shenandoah_Valley_AVA">Shenandoah Valley</a>’s 10-acre Zinfandel
planting known as the <a href="http://www.scottharveywines.com/americas-oldest-documented-zinfandel-vineyard-vineyard-1869/">Original Grandp</a></span><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><a href="http://www.scottharveywines.com/americas-oldest-documented-zinfandel-vineyard-vineyard-1869/">ère Vineyard</a> – the oldest and most revered of California’s Old Vine
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinfandel">Zinfandels</a> – because, to her, it’s family history.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">“What everyone
knows is that there is a grant deed in Amador County records that shows a
vineyard planted there in 1869,” says Colburn-Lubenko, “and that the original
vines are still there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This makes
it the oldest documented Zinfandel vineyard in the state.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWxeb5-R9cFvwSpUv_RUKtbogQnLoNL_XIawgnESBbRu-CKgTwW3YLItvCzRGwqNvupThXkbsmwcbPBbdABNSyp7ujrWt7i-TF1E-xTvqyxWBFfTQdN7I3N1IRvLhI8ZLE-yWwJlYm7oE/s1600/IMG_7013.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWxeb5-R9cFvwSpUv_RUKtbogQnLoNL_XIawgnESBbRu-CKgTwW3YLItvCzRGwqNvupThXkbsmwcbPBbdABNSyp7ujrWt7i-TF1E-xTvqyxWBFfTQdN7I3N1IRvLhI8ZLE-yWwJlYm7oE/s640/IMG_7013.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plymouth girl: Prospect Cellars' Jamie Colburn-Lubenko</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">“What fewer people
know,” she continues, “is that it was a woman named <a href="http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=96444713">Mahala Teter Upton</a> – my
husband Ronn’s great-great-grandmother – who originally took care
of that vineyard, with the help of her 8-year old son
Rueben. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">“Mahala first came
to Shenandoah Valley with her husband John Dale in 1863 with seven children
in tow – all the way from Missouri in a slow, covered wagon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How they accomplished that, when I
could barely contain my kids for two hours in a car, I have no idea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I suppose if anyone got out of hand
they could say, ‘You can get out and walk.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">“Like most Amador County
settlers, Mahala’s family came to mine but stayed to farm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> According to family lore,</span> in 1870 John Dale just up and died, probably from a stroke, while changing a neighbor’s
wagon wheel. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By then they had a fairly
large homestead (600 acres, according to Sherry A. Monahan’s <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=kpQ-zEJqv6oC&pg=PA118&lpg=PA118&dq=mahala+upton,+california+vines,+wine+%26+pioneers,+monahan&source=bl&ots=GLS07cSy_l&sig=Fd7pYD_3r8F_RO1oVFbXZFvJrn4&hl=en&sa=X&ei=1Ro0VfDLGc64oQSDyYGADQ&ved=0CB4Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=mahala%20upton%2C%20california%20vines%2C%20wine%20%26%20pioneers%2C%20monahan&f=false">California Vines,Wines & Pioneers</a>), and Mahala had just given birth to their tenth child.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But work had to go on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Mahala </span>went ahead and took care of her vineyard, which was good enough to survive to this day.”</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
<h3>
<b>Woman under the influence of rickety old vines</b></h3>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">In the
aforementioned Original Grandpère Vineyard – that is, what remains of Mahala
Teter Upton’s original Zinfandel vines in Amador County’s Shenandoah Valley AVA
– you will see curving tracks of a tractor wheels between the rows of spindly,
gnarly limbed, head trained, spur pruned old plants; many with trunks split in
two, their cores long rotted away, standing 8 by 8-feet across along the site’s
sloping, northwards facing hill.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF68cOeNBoAPNQel9BAreiLqx3nXX9DN4hs1kbT1BsDaERNfFp2LHLojsx3r35fzOL4qap3WFCwba9DYuxQKlVFcKUeNhDdlDanhUdpoC-prfZ_NUQxRfGhB0ffUEpa3Ezc5o-cT5U20g/s1600/IMG_7076.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF68cOeNBoAPNQel9BAreiLqx3nXX9DN4hs1kbT1BsDaERNfFp2LHLojsx3r35fzOL4qap3WFCwba9DYuxQKlVFcKUeNhDdlDanhUdpoC-prfZ_NUQxRfGhB0ffUEpa3Ezc5o-cT5U20g/s640/IMG_7076.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Terri Harvey</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Here is where the
plot thickens, although we need to get down to the roux of the matter to give
it a decent accounting...<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">For over 70 years
Mahala Teter Upton’s original Zinfandel planting continued to serve her family
and numerous descendants well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Grapes were sold to locals and, after the start of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prohibition_in_the_United_States">Prohibition</a> (1920),
mostly to home winemakers in the Midwest or on the East Coast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During the 1930s the vineyard was sold
to the Steiner family, who held on to it until 1970, when Walt Steiner sold it
to its longtime caretaker, John Downing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">By then the
vineyard had dwindled from 16 to 10 acres.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 1979 a talented <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Foothills_AVA">Sierra Foothills</a> raised but Germany-trained winemaker named
<a href="http://www.scottharveywines.com/the-wine/history/">Scott Harvey</a> began to purchase Zinfandel from John and Virginia Downing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the time, the vineyard’s condition
had also hit a low poiint.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ready
to retire, the Downings offered to sell to Mr. Harvey – by then married to a
local farmer’s daughter, Terri Harvey – in 1982.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">The Harveys could
not afford to buy the vineyard outright.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So they signed a 5-year lease to revive the planting – taking a saw to all
the dead or gangly wood keeping the vineyard from producing top quality grapes –
while fixing up the old, raggedy home on-property (built during the 1880s).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were finally able to take full
possession of the property in 1988.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">The Harveys would
work together as a husband-wife team until their divorce in 1996.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Scott was the winemaker; but from the
very beginning, in 1982, most of the vineyard work fell to Terri Harvey, since
she was the one with the farmer’s hands and disposition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to Ms. Harvey, “I had been
working in Shenandoah Valley vineyards since I was 11 years old, getting
wealthy at $1.65 an hour.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNIWlEP33cpkK1fXQlMep9LZs2TOkvpEjkc0qXV_KMx5LalczooTltMQeaVmgl85l1KaHjyjy-YI-wLdnfIIIb6K3CnmBBhcFqwcKxPlUV6GWUHK8s1fReawkp9GVNEPMVyZ-YfREjc_c/s1600/IMG_7037.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNIWlEP33cpkK1fXQlMep9LZs2TOkvpEjkc0qXV_KMx5LalczooTltMQeaVmgl85l1KaHjyjy-YI-wLdnfIIIb6K3CnmBBhcFqwcKxPlUV6GWUHK8s1fReawkp9GVNEPMVyZ-YfREjc_c/s640/IMG_7037.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close-up of ancient Original Grandpere Vineyard Zinfandel</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">While surveying
her domain this past April 2015, Ms. Harvey told us, “This is not like most
vineyards, where you can run a tractor between the vines in a nice, straight
line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The vines were never big,
but the spurs will stick out into the rows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the old days the 8-ft. spacing probably wasn’t much of a
problem, because you did most things by hand or with a horse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It makes you sick when you accidentally
break off an arm; or sometimes, when you hit one, the whole vine comes
down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There aren’t enough of them
left as it is.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Yet all things
considered, at 146 years of age Ms. Harvey’s vineyard is in remarkable shape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just over 80% of the remaining vines
are the original ones planted by Mahala Teter Upton and her son Rueben.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In most California vineyards over 100
years old, retention of 50% to 70% of the original vines is considered a good
percentage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Over the years Ms.
Harvey has been replanting “dead” spots with new vines, utilizing cuttings from
the original vines to maintain a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propagation_of_grapevines#Terminology">clonal</a> purity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The new plantings are grafted onto <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phylloxera">phylloxera</a>-resistant
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rootstock">rootstock</a>, since the infamous root louse that devastated well over 99% of the
vineyards in California and around the world during the late nineteenth century still remains a threat to natural (i.e. “own-rooted”) vines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All of the 1869 vines in the Original
Grandpère Vineyard still grow on their own roots.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">“We have phylloxera
here, but it doesn’t get carried away because this vineyard happens to sit on
the sandiest soil in Amador County,” says Ms. Harvey, in reference to the
mixture of finely decomposed granite (i.e. sand) and loose clay loam on her
slopes. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To hedge her bets, Harvey
uses equipment exclusive to the vineyard, and rarely allows outsiders to tromp
through, to minimize the possibility of pests, microscopic or otherwise, carried
in from other vineyards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">“But it’s mostly
because we are in a sandier spot of the Foothills that these old vines have
been able to survive,” she tells us, “whereas plants in surrounding vineyards
have not.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are,
incidentally, a few old stands of own-rooted <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission_(grape)">Mission</a> – an even sturdier type of
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitis_vinifera">Vitis vinifera</a></i> – dating back from the
1850s and 1860s in Shenandoah Valley, although it was Zinfandel that the early
miners-turned-farmers preferred.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Despite the other ever-present
danger of “tractor blight,” the natural wild grasses that grow around Grandpère’s
vines need constant mowing and discing because the ancient plants are
low-yielding enough – in an average year, producing tiny, fist-sized clusters
(clusters on young Zinfandel vines are easily three times that), barely adding
up to 1 to 1.5-tons per acre – without having to compete with grasses for water
and nutrients on this 1,300-ft. elevation hillside.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5nyZRMjEQhLXDBO5OmAZFIl0O8bWrb0WVUSqG-ICDwXIwkeGOHRllagSnFmPAge9qWQWAgGrAJzo4QWOmwRdATB8GeM1U_AUDQUuD_GI5Ij6yW3Ei8sb-nNrIE3sipDpwpKSmpuUlld4/s1600/IMG_7019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5nyZRMjEQhLXDBO5OmAZFIl0O8bWrb0WVUSqG-ICDwXIwkeGOHRllagSnFmPAge9qWQWAgGrAJzo4QWOmwRdATB8GeM1U_AUDQUuD_GI5Ij6yW3Ei8sb-nNrIE3sipDpwpKSmpuUlld4/s640/IMG_7019.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chalkboard in Prospect Cellars</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Yet it is also
because these ancient vines have been dry land farmed all their lives (it is
only the young, new plantings that ever see irrigation) that they have been
able to survive nearly 150 years of cycles – periods of drought, excess rain,
cold vintages, hot vintages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sandy
soil forces deep rooting, and deep roots contribute to healthy, productive
plants – a symbiosis you see in other regions (such as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lodi_AVA">Lodi</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra_Costa_County,_California">Contra Costa</a>)
replete with sandy soils and ancient vines.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Says Kevin O’Neil,
the cellarmaster of <a href="http://www.noceto.com/">Vino Noceto</a>, which produces an “OGP” Zinfandel each year
from the vineyard: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“In the
hottest, dryest years, when all the surrounding vineyards look like they’re
shriveling up, Grandpère’s vines always looks fresh because their roots are so
well established.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wouldn’t be
surprised if some of them have roots stretched all the way over to Deaver’s
Pond across the road.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Ms. Harvey tells
us, “You’ve probably heard of vineyards where one person claims to know each
and every vine, like people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
actually do, mostly because I don’t trust anyone else to touch these
vines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I prune each plant myself –
I think you have to have a feel for how each one wants to grow, be thinned,
suckered or picked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I used to tell
everyone that working this vineyard myself keeps me out of the bars, which
would be true if not for the fact that I don’t go to bars.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">In the late 1960s
and 1970s, some of Amador County’s old vine Zinfandel growths began to attract
a lot of attention when wineries like <a href="http://www.sutterhome.com/">Sutter Home</a>, <a href="http://www.montevina.com/">Montevina</a> and <a href="http://carneroswinecompany.com/">Carneros Creek</a>
began to wow California wine lovers with the typically perfumed, finely etched
and spicy qualities of the fruit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Despite the ancient
eminence of Mahala Teter Upton’s planting, the vineyard had absolutely no
identity until the 1980s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
would not happen until Scott Harvey began to fashion wines from it under his
<a href="http://www.foothillwine.com/amador/renwood.html">Santino Winery</a> label; and then a little later, for a short time (1993-1995) with
a partner (Robert Smerling) at <a href="http://www.renwood.com/">Renwood Winery</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The latter relationship would end in a litigious fashion,
almost as bitterly as the divorce between the two Harveys around the same time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">It is Mr. Harvey,
however, who gets credit for naming the vineyard “Grandpère” (there were also
“Grandmère” Zinfandels, produced from younger neighboring vineyards).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today, the confusing thing for both
consumers and the wine trade is that there is also a Renwood Grandpère Vineyard
Zinfandel, made from a vineyard planted by Mr. Harvey for Renwood during the
early 1990s from cuttings taken from the original 1869 planting, grafted onto
phylloxera-resistant rootstocks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOMxpXdeo6sxX_HAp1ZFgatO3vlfDZVhRabCnZGTixsBHPdLmG1tHPDMfhPwHzcOyyvkQ1sMlZzm6AJwdz272KuBtADVggqMmEOwWUGxN1WSJDc9E2M-shSvDM0w9gUbeKo_Q04zqXcX0/s1600/IMG_7083.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOMxpXdeo6sxX_HAp1ZFgatO3vlfDZVhRabCnZGTixsBHPdLmG1tHPDMfhPwHzcOyyvkQ1sMlZzm6AJwdz272KuBtADVggqMmEOwWUGxN1WSJDc9E2M-shSvDM0w9gUbeKo_Q04zqXcX0/s640/IMG_7083.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vino Noceto winemaker Rusty Folena</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Although Mr.
Harvey was the one who put Grandpère on the map, his former partner at Renwood
was the one with the foresight – some say duplicitous, others say smart – to
trademark the name, and be able to exert said rights following Mr. Harvey’s
split with Renwood Winery.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">“We were stupid,”
says Terri Harvey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“We should have
trademarked the name years before, and then Scott and I were going through our
own problems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wanted to buy
Scott out and keep the vineyard – at the very least, to keep the girls (the
Harveys have three daughters, now grown and happily successful) in their own
home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">“Eventually
everyone came to a compromise,” she tells us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I kept the property.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Smerling kept the rights to the Grandpère name, but allowed us to sell
our grapes as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Original</i>
Grandpère.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And Scott – he was fed
up with everything; the suits, counter-suits, some pretty wild accusations.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mr. Harvey would move to Napa Valley, where
he would help to launch <a href="http://www.folieadeux.com/">Folie <span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 11.0pt;">à </span>Deux Winery</a> into national prominence.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />
Just to get it all straight:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Zinfandels from Mahala
Teter Upton’s own-rooted 1869 planting are currently bottled as Original Grandpère
Vineyard. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today, these wines are produced
by just four wineries – <a href="https://www.andiswines.com/">Andis Wines</a> (located nearby on Shenandoah Rd.), <a href="http://www.macchiawines.com/macchia">MacchiaWines</a> (based in Lodi), Vino Noceto (as OGV Zinfandel), and <a href="http://www.scottharveywines.com/">Scott Harvey Wines</a>
(who calls it Vineyard 1869).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Since Terri Harvey
refuses to sell grapes to Renwood Winery, the Renwood Grandpère Vineyard
Zinfandel is made from those younger grafted vines that went into the ground in
the 1990s with the use of cuttings from the original vineyard.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Because, as she
puts it, “You cannot make a living from an old 1-ton-an-acre vineyard,” Terri
Harvey and her business partner, grape grower Pat Rohan, now manage some 29 other
vineyards (totaling about 550 acres) in Amador County.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Most recently, Scott
Harvey has successfully developed two other brands, Scott Harvey Wines and <a href="http://winestore.scottharveywines.com/jana-wines-c9.aspx">Jana Wines</a>, in partnership with his second spouse Jana Littman, working out of Napa
Valley.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But after a 20-year
absence from the Foothills, Mr. Harvey has recently christened new tasting
rooms in both Sutter Creek and Plymouth (with signs on Shenandoah Rd. saying,
“Scott Harvey is back!”).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">That’s the history
– what about the wine?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From the
beginning, Zinfandels from the Original Grandpère Vineyard have never been
known for sheer size, power or strength; but rather, for a lanky, sometimes
even lean, sinewy length of flavors, mixing bright, floral fruit with mildly
earthy, loamy, occasionally crushed or green leafy notes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You don’t buy an Original Grandpère to
be bowled over – you buy it to be buoyed or enlightened.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoCdQ9cYSueN1LUiDR8_doqR0UxcICUESkIj7pFL61k-ArHSnGnk_9Bs8EtYQYk0TDSAUdgaPZrBFvjaBBK81y2446ZUP97Z3lsW-KXygSxiAFvIyO4V-Dssv0Zow8_Xxon2ka9gesMjQ/s1600/IMG_7031.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoCdQ9cYSueN1LUiDR8_doqR0UxcICUESkIj7pFL61k-ArHSnGnk_9Bs8EtYQYk0TDSAUdgaPZrBFvjaBBK81y2446ZUP97Z3lsW-KXygSxiAFvIyO4V-Dssv0Zow8_Xxon2ka9gesMjQ/s640/IMG_7031.JPG" width="510" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">The <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2011 Vino Noceto OGP (The Original
Grandpère Vineyard) Zinfandel </b>shows exactly that, but with a beautifully
fresh intensity of flowery perfume – wrapped around a bright core of
raspberry/blackberry fruit – and long silky, balanced, zesty qualities shoring
up its modestly weighted (14.1% alcohol), medium-full body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This wine is a limber lover, not a
lumbering fighter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Vino Noceto
winemaker Rusty Folena, who first began working with the vineyard as Scott
Harvey’s assistant at Santino in 1983, describes the Original Grandpère
Vineyard Zinfandels as “classic Amador... never over-the-top.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Through year after year of vintage
variation, according to Folena, the vineyard “always has a mind of its own...
clusters are tiny – they can fit in the palm of your hand – and the small size
gives the wines their distinct consistency of fruit and acid balance.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">Folena adds, “We
pick for ripe flavor, and so sugars can vary year to year, from 24° to 27°
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brix">Brix</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Complexity can come in
different ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We destem and
break berries without mashing them, and we do a submerged cap fermentation to
get a slow, low, gentle extraction, no punch-downs or pump-overs” – a gentle approach that further enhances the Original
Grandpère’s characteristic delicacy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">“The fact that the
vineyard faces mostly north has probably always contributed to its subtle character,
different than anything else in Shenandoah Valley,” says Folena.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Sometimes we’ll get a good second crop
(less ripe fruit from late flowering clusters), which we’ll pick for more
acidity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">“And like other
vineyards in the area, Grandpère does get a little bit of red leaf (leafroll
virus is typical of Zinfandel clonal material planted in Amador County), which
can give different degrees of ripeness in a single vine” – the latter issue,
something Ms. Harvey has been able to offset somewhat with usage of KDL® (a
foliar macronutrient) and other measures to extend photosynthesis and more
efficient fruit maturation longer into the season.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">According to Ms.
Harvey, living with rickety old vines like Original Grandpère Vineyard is like “making
peace with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy's_law">Murphy’s Law</a>... you expect things to go wrong at any time, but every
year it’s probably the age of the vines that ultimately pulls you through.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You cannot be broken when you’re
already almost dead!”</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Next, Part 2 - <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://randycaparoso.blogspot.com/2015/04/cooper-vineyards-barbera-dollar-that.html">Cooper Vineyards Barbera:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The dollar that changed a region</a><o:p></o:p></i></span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGN3u9nxqxdsgTotuKaWkzaehtPcCnZimrlnN9TqDxdYe-8CkdmhaYWRerVbfbrGeUoS6TnV5m7CGBtl0AOUNgrBisgiLq3Qf_Wo4NXIQ2bFfB2b6h7Yn81Bbq_uPwkKyzC00DFL25HIk/s1600/IMG_7046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGN3u9nxqxdsgTotuKaWkzaehtPcCnZimrlnN9TqDxdYe-8CkdmhaYWRerVbfbrGeUoS6TnV5m7CGBtl0AOUNgrBisgiLq3Qf_Wo4NXIQ2bFfB2b6h7Yn81Bbq_uPwkKyzC00DFL25HIk/s640/IMG_7046.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close-up of 146-year old Original Grandpere Zinfandel in sandy clay loam soil</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-41803205905788253892015-03-19T14:21:00.001-06:002018-01-01T09:54:33.491-07:00When it comes to top Pinot Noir, terroir trumps varietal valuation<div style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-element: para-border-div; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;">
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">I was contemplating a </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2013 Failla Pinot Noir</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> from </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">Occidental Ridge Vineyard</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> (Sonoma Coast) at the most recent </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;"><a href="http://www.worldofpinotnoir.com/">World of Pinot Noir</a></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> – a yearly two-day event
that took place in Santa Barbara this past March 2015.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The Failla’s color was a deep, vivid, almost blue-tinged
red, and the nose was gushy with strawberry-like varietal fruit, infused with whiffs
of woodsy forest floor.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Tannin and
flavors seem appropriately aggressive, considering the nose and the wine’s
youth, but seemed to plop like a dead weight on the palate, like an
over-floured gnocchi kneaded by a clumsy novice cook.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">As
Dylan once sang, I’ve been through this movie before... with this particular
wine tasted right out of the gate, which can come across as gawky,
one-dimensional, or slutty to an uncomfortable point of artificiality </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">– like a pretty girl in unnecessary
makeup.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The question was:</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Why can’t Failla’s Occidental be a
little finer, limber, more lifted and delineated in its woodsy, strawberry
perfumed intensity – qualities I found abundant in, for example, the </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2012
Baxter Pinot Noir</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> from Mendocino Ridge’s </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">Valenti Vineyard </b><span style="font-size: 11pt;">that I had tasted
moments before?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">The answer struck me – not then and there, but hours later after tasting nearly 100 more Pinot Noirs, as I was organizing my thoughts on the “best” wines tasted that day.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">A young Failla Occidental Ridge can’t be as “fine” as a Baxter Valenti because it’s grown in a deep, foggy pocket of Sonoma encircled by lush stand of evergreens; whereas the Valenti is high up on a Mendocino ridgetop, also surrounded by woods but well above the clouds.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Different strokes, different Pinots.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">No
matter what, a young Failla Occidental Ridge naturally comes out rambunctious,
whereas a Baxter Valenti is well heeled from the get-go. </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Heck, it’s not even so much a question
of age – it’s fundamentally ingrained, like DNA, in the wines themselves.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Of
course, we could, and should, trot out the T word – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroir</a> – to explain this
simple concept of Nature-compelled differentiation.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">So let’s just say it:</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">terroir should </span><i style="font-size: 11pt;">always</i><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> trump
varietal character (or, for that matter, elusive notions like “balance,” which many confuse with scale these days) when
evaluating top-flight Pinot Noir.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">For
many of us in the wine trade, the overwhelming compulsion, when tasting dozens
or over 100 wines in a day, is to evaluate wines in terms of varietal character
rather than terroir or origin.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">This Pinot Noir tastes fat, fruity and clumsy, whereas that Pinot Noir
is zestier, more delicate, and less obviously fruited.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We don’t do this so much when we
compare Burgundies or Bordeaux; because the French make it easier for us by
reminding us from the get-go that we’re tasting regions and vineyards, not
varietal categories, by putting place names (not "Pinot Noir") on their labels. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">I,
for one, still find myself wrestling with that compulsion, as cognizant as I am
of it.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">On the first day of this year’s
World of Pinot Noir I actually “marked down” (although I don’t do scores) a
<b>2012 Merry Edwards Meredith Estate</b>, thinking its strawberry/raspberry concentration
too blatant, ripe and preponderant; until I reminded myself that I’m tasting
Russian River Valley Pinot Noir, not one from McMinnville, Central Otago or
Mendocino Ridge.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">I
found that forcing an open mind even allowed me to better appreciate wines that
I previously found weak or wanting – like the </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2012 Adelaida</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> from Paso
Robles.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">On paper, the thought of Paso
Robles Pinot Noir seems ludicrous – it’s too darned hot there.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">But when you consider the fact that
Adelaida’s Pinot Noir is crafted from historic 50-year old vines (some of the
oldest in the state, originally part of the old Hoffman Mountain Ranch, where Andre Tchelistcheff famously consulted) on limestone slopes at about a 1,700-ft. elevation, then the
wine’s dull, faded nose suddenly turns into a gentle, subtle, intoxicating
bucket of wild cherries, and its scrawny frame suddenly tastes sleek, zesty,
sexy.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">It may be all in the mind,
but then again, pleasure is </span><i style="font-size: 11pt;">always</i><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> a
perception.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">No
doubt, an Adelaida Pinot Noir, or even an unevolved Failla Occidental Ridge,
might get “destroyed” in a competitive double-blind tasting (the whole idea of wine "competitions" suddenly sounds stupid), when we line them all up and
let the chips fall. What a shame. Because when you taste terroir driven
wines within their own context – like we do, in fact, when we taste French <i>crus</i> or <i>ch</i></span><i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria;">â</span></i><i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">teaux</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> – then it’s amazing how
bright and diverse the wine world turns out to be.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG7AabrNLselMpvCiAPTXFJwLApwImJyMV43caf5kekRc7U_Xc6mRiLnbqKZRED8xzpgqw025RRWVNIYKDzxuzPk0EV47emY-dXkX0fBPeqAVpbjUCrCCE_jIPzclKhN-MXLVInOxVHWo/s1600/Kevin+Law.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG7AabrNLselMpvCiAPTXFJwLApwImJyMV43caf5kekRc7U_Xc6mRiLnbqKZRED8xzpgqw025RRWVNIYKDzxuzPk0EV47emY-dXkX0fBPeqAVpbjUCrCCE_jIPzclKhN-MXLVInOxVHWo/s640/Kevin+Law.jpg" width="512" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cotiere winemaker Kevin Law</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">That
said, my favorite Pinot Noirs at the 2015 World of Pinot Noir were varied, in
the spirit of terroir-cracy; and as always, personal – anyone who can’t
acknowledge that whim, time of month or time of season, mood, atmospheric
pressure or even BD calendaring (whether we’re aware of it or not) has an
effect on choices is just kidding him- or herself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">I
was especially impressed by the latest set of wines by winemaker Kevin Law
under the </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Cotiere Winery</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> label (formerly called Luminesce – same outfit, just a name
change for legal purposes).</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">I’ve
never had a problem coming up with descriptors for any wine, but all I could
think of was “exquisite” to describe the seamless, silky texturing and
brilliant, fragrant perfumes emanating from the </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2012 Cotiere Pinot Noirs</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> from
</span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">Presqui’le Vineyard</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> (Santa Maria Valley) and </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">Laetitia Vineyard </b><span style="font-size: 11pt;">(Arroyo Grande
Valley).</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">I don’t know which I like
better – although coming from two different regions, both are fashioned in a more </span><i style="font-size: 11pt;">petite</i><span style="font-size: 11pt;">, feminine, finesseful style that I’ve always been sucker for.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Another
stand-out for me was the </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2012 MacPhail Family Mardikian Estate</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;">; from a vineyard
planted in one of the coldest corners of Sonoma Coast by owner/winemaker James
MacPhail with the help of crack viticulturists Jim Pratt and Sander Scheer.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The Mardikian Pinot Noir is deep, meaty
and full-structured in the MacPhail signature style, but amazingly fine, balanced, baby-bright and exuberant at
the same time.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> This winemaker/vineyard interaction r</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">eminds me of when
Lennon met McCartney – a brazen edginess collides with melodic sweetness, resulting in some phenomenal music.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBY_Lhyphenhyphenyrpos3VmhXVG4erfFQKHkSoJ6DIpGM7Gzj8XS5a81d7c5xw8W9inkPnV7Wxzq4YmX9DbyDi_Hs-ndF1-d5JDeccH0-Edk01W0wdGEwLteT70KFENXFzdJaEeX7_PXKr0Ktk65M/s1600/MacPhail+Mardikian.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBY_Lhyphenhyphenyrpos3VmhXVG4erfFQKHkSoJ6DIpGM7Gzj8XS5a81d7c5xw8W9inkPnV7Wxzq4YmX9DbyDi_Hs-ndF1-d5JDeccH0-Edk01W0wdGEwLteT70KFENXFzdJaEeX7_PXKr0Ktk65M/s400/MacPhail+Mardikian.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">MacPhail Family's Mardikian Estate</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Incidentally,
the </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2012 MacPhail Family Pinot Noirs</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> from </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">Sangiacomo Vineyard</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> (Sonoma Coast;
powerful organic earth qualities underlying exuberant, strawberryish varietal purity) and </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">Gap’s Crown</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> (also
Sonoma Coast; fleshy, sonorous sensations) – always a fascinating comparison of
Petaluma Gap plantings, one perched on the west facing slope of Sonoma Mountain, and the
other on a cobbled, ancient riverbed at the bottom of that same slope – were
also tasting as great as ever.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">It
was also gratifying to find the </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2013 Joseph Phelps Freestone Vineyards</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> (Sonoma
Coast) tasting so fantastic (how’s that for a descriptor... too plebeian?...
see if I care).</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">But when you taste
a 100 Pinot Noirs in a row, and find one in the middle that just seems to leap
from the glass with an hallelujah chorus of fragrances, and then caress you
with perky, prickly, silky, intoxicating sensations, what can you say?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">I
felt similar vinous unholiness when I tasted the </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2012 Wayfarer Vineyard</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> (Fort
Ross-Seaview).</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Unlike all the
other growths mentioned so far, I have never visited Wayfarer, and so I’m not
prejudiced by that personal familiarity – this is simply a fine, penetrating,
gracefully layered and elongated Pinot Noir, epitomizing what we used to call
the “true Sonoma Coast” style.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzsBj4Q7Z1BHhOjz-jwS3Oic2Ats3qQmCbXikwPj9dyy-BbpvtQpxVnZu5dvbfExRld9K6sIDX-vwYIP4xOvCXYm0Vg8YwSkqt-JInYTv4T9Zk69srlPCdhFlUjUkJgtuljI4ba_6gVaU/s1600/Phil+Baxter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzsBj4Q7Z1BHhOjz-jwS3Oic2Ats3qQmCbXikwPj9dyy-BbpvtQpxVnZu5dvbfExRld9K6sIDX-vwYIP4xOvCXYm0Vg8YwSkqt-JInYTv4T9Zk69srlPCdhFlUjUkJgtuljI4ba_6gVaU/s640/Phil+Baxter.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Phil Baxter at 2015 World of Pinot Noir</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">From Santa Barbara, I found two more epiphanies in the </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2011 Flying Goat Cellars Rancho Santa Rosa Vineyard</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> (Sta. Rita Hills) and </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2013 Gypsy Canyon</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> (Sta. Rita Hills).</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Again, I’m compelled by Pinots that exhibit longer-than-average length carried by pincushion acidity and meaty flavor/tannin phenolics – effusive varietal aroma really isn’t an issue with the majority of top Pinot Noirs these days – and these two bottlings had “it.”</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">You
don’t really go to World of Pinot Noir to catch up on all the latest Willamette
Valley bottlings, but there was some representation.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Out of those, I was most impressed by the gentle yet snappy,
brightly scented </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">2011 Ann Amie Vineyards</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> (Yamhill-Carlton). In a similar vein, the <b>2012 Witching Stick Dowser's </b></span><b><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Cuv</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">e </span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;">(Anderson Valley) blends two vineyards in Anderson Valley and two in Mendocino Ridge; turning out lighter weight, acid driven, full of the upbeat, floral raspberry/cherry character I've always associated more with Willamette Valley than anywhere in California. Not that a California Pinot should ever taste Oregonian, but to me it's a positive, and not entirely inappropriate for cooler climate pockets of Mendocino.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">I
could go on – every year Pinot Noir just seems to get better and better – but
I won’t.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Suffice to say, it was a
good weekend; not so much because of the plethora of fabulous wines as the joy
of seeing more and more of them tasting less like “winemaker’s art” and more
like the places from where they come.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">American Pinot Noir may finally be growing up!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHKCsi50vMV_5NfvjWWGqCBurLQSCfLulLj8ycoUzcEB8Vfh3w2hdumRuE51XgEcUlraNBlcGUpk5t4xZNxB7u7INbhGvom4enp8_eHKCmxW1pCCigKMtpa128fCqi52nQ3wRH68GZksk/s1600/James+MacPhail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHKCsi50vMV_5NfvjWWGqCBurLQSCfLulLj8ycoUzcEB8Vfh3w2hdumRuE51XgEcUlraNBlcGUpk5t4xZNxB7u7INbhGvom4enp8_eHKCmxW1pCCigKMtpa128fCqi52nQ3wRH68GZksk/s640/James+MacPhail.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">MacPhail Family's James and Kerry MacPhail</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-71996463976725621062015-02-17T17:55:00.002-07:002017-03-21T11:46:48.732-06:00What a wine lover really wants<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvodP9_S_UScWsEVe3Veduq20br7JEl9zflwiRPOmmkHeWJhFs-DCXZjG_8KNudYpEdwmLJjkGOmGycmqNEGMAuTcRkX7w7R0UGBo-XJ5Hj5Q46SOiyzdVHYSfyfcYWOi_NmMKu6F0zP4/s1600/RC,+Cavalier+1982.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvodP9_S_UScWsEVe3Veduq20br7JEl9zflwiRPOmmkHeWJhFs-DCXZjG_8KNudYpEdwmLJjkGOmGycmqNEGMAuTcRkX7w7R0UGBo-XJ5Hj5Q46SOiyzdVHYSfyfcYWOi_NmMKu6F0zP4/s640/RC,+Cavalier+1982.jpg" width="425" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Author as a burgeoning sommelier (1982)</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Is there a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">new American</i> wine?</span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">In an 2014 piece published in The
Washington Post, longtime industry observer Dave McIntyre projected the
evolution of what he calls “the new American wine,” strongly influenced by
steadily growing consumer interest in wines grown and produced in states other
than California (i.e. the “drink local” mantra), where the sun so easily
engenders such rich, full bodied wines. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Writes McIntyre:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">What
does the new American wine taste like? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because so much of it is coming from outside California
(although the Golden State still dominates every statistical analysis of U.S.
wine production), the wines are less ripe and alcoholic, combining a European
sense of balance with American flair. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They might use unusual grape varieties, such as Petit Manseng
or Chardonel, as vintners discover which vines grow best where. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Grape varieties could become less
important as winemakers focus more on expressing the voice of their vineyards,
often with blends that don’t follow traditional wine paradigms. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The new American wine is a wine of
place, proud of where it comes from and proud of its diversity.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">As for California wines, McIntyre adds:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">These
trends are happening inside California as well... we will hear more about
moderating alcohol levels as winemakers, such as those in In Pursuit of Balance
and other groups, redefine ripeness. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sledgehammer wines with 15% alcohol might not be extinct,
but their heyday has passed.</span></i><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvFqRgTIElF3Jn1pfuGMcU8ZMMM3MDThQ7u8IGrg51pyuutJCBeMYdSUpNcAcBJWOCk-qrn6nrTUBoUW2qim7bGy50k-4HeeD5PZqe1PBzx-MCmXccjp5Mwejwe-gWYL8Am63edcys8_k/s1600/Womack,+muertas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvFqRgTIElF3Jn1pfuGMcU8ZMMM3MDThQ7u8IGrg51pyuutJCBeMYdSUpNcAcBJWOCk-qrn6nrTUBoUW2qim7bGy50k-4HeeD5PZqe1PBzx-MCmXccjp5Mwejwe-gWYL8Am63edcys8_k/s640/Womack,+muertas.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Artist Kathy Womack's depiction of today's wine lovers</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Is the heyday of big alcohol wines –
like big hair, or big fins on cars – coming to pass, or is this simply another
case of a journalist closing his eyes and tapping his heels three times to wish
something along?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">When I started in the business in 1978,
almost all wines were finished at about 12% alcohol (or 13%, if you really
wanted to go wild).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anything near
14% was considered weird, a freak of nature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most California red wines were aged in tree-sized redwood
vats until their varietal fruit qualities were smoothed (or dried) out, and
virtually no white wines saw aging in small “center of France” oak
barrels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet this was just the
thing for grandpa and grandma, happily consuming these low-key wines by the
gallon-jug from stubby glasses, or that restaurants served by the 1-liter
“carafe” day and night.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The reason why Californians, in particular,
were producing less ripe, lower alcohol style wines prior to the 1980s was
because in those days they didn’t have better ways of doing it: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>trellising and viticultural
practices of the past made it difficult to grow grapes beyond 22° or 22.5° Brix
(sugar levels that convert to just 12% to 13% alcohol and, thus, diminished
fruit expression). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It wasn’t so
much a style choice as an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">only</i>
choice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Yet McIntyre makes a good point about
the increased exposure to European wines influencing contemporary Americans’ <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">taste</i> in wine. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The European model is generally lighter
and leaner – closer to the 12% alcohol and low emphasis on fruit that suited
grandma and grandpa just fine – which is why it’s always such a shock when you
find the occasional European imports made in softer, heavier, fruitier, woodier
styles just to please us dumb Americans.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO827uaFPSqt9tbgQ4nAUo-sg7r-Lf5438qHXKfuMSUFNSCS6Ov3vN0n7u5GVD6ArBs9E2opIgra7CodXNRMpeHMun6ylKfwuPf7bXFRYr27CFIQlKziezicstqR3pkwYu5-dMjOqjpgI/s1600/Face+of+consumers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO827uaFPSqt9tbgQ4nAUo-sg7r-Lf5438qHXKfuMSUFNSCS6Ov3vN0n7u5GVD6ArBs9E2opIgra7CodXNRMpeHMun6ylKfwuPf7bXFRYr27CFIQlKziezicstqR3pkwYu5-dMjOqjpgI/s640/Face+of+consumers.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Optimal consumer segment: female, early to mid-30s.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">But let’s face it: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the reason why 14% alcohol wines are
considered light by today’s standards, and why ultra-ripe, oaky styles have
became so popular in recent years, was not only because viticultural and
winemaking improvements made it possible, but also because consumers (not to
mention 100-point critics) have <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">liked </i>them
that way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wine drinkers are like
voters: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>we like our big mouthed, obnoxious, even dim witted politicians, and continuously complain once <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">we</i> put them in office.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Still, today’s producers are always
feeling the pressure to produce wines that fit the 100-point media’s criteria
for what constitutes “good wine,” since media response is very much a part of
the sales process. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this does
not keep consumer tastes from forever being in a state of flux. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Consumer tastes are constantly evolving,
with or without media input.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Change is inevitable – it’s just that
it’s never overnight, and there is always segments of the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>wine consuming public that have to be
dragged along kicking and screaming. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For years now, much of the public has been deriding the fat,
fruity styles of California Chardonnay, but it’s not as if the cougars enjoying
these wines will suddenly go extinct. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many of them will continue to demand their butterball
Chardonnays the same way that Aunt Gladys clings to her White Zinfandel, or the
way Uncle Bob is perpetually suckered into his over-priced, over-hyped Napa
Valley Cabernet Sauvignon that he does more looking at in his cellar rather
than actually drinking.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">But time is a bitch in that it never,
ever quits. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all need time to
gravitate to lower key sensations: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>to think of lightness as a quality rather than flaw; to
appreciate sharpness instead of softness, earth and minerals instead of
tropical fruitiness, and subtle, barely noticeable complexity rather than obvious,
brutal intensity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But eventually
we come around to that because moderation and subtlety <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is</i> closer to the style of more timeless classics – that is, wines
consumed in countries with a far longer history of appreciating wine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">A “new American wine” <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is</i> on its way. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s just a matter of waiting for it,
and...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVAsYfXC4f1Uf19YP2CKDFW5UDZKzJHVWMQH9Zh3dEk-0CxLgjdJWzxVqCd_6pcOmmU2RcvK9iEyAfRekyovMkstz1bqhcPjfkqy9xSo6_tc98zIrCOxAQi7aMFZEFD8CPsejKY5xNzf0/s1600/Lodi+ancient+vines.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVAsYfXC4f1Uf19YP2CKDFW5UDZKzJHVWMQH9Zh3dEk-0CxLgjdJWzxVqCd_6pcOmmU2RcvK9iEyAfRekyovMkstz1bqhcPjfkqy9xSo6_tc98zIrCOxAQi7aMFZEFD8CPsejKY5xNzf0/s640/Lodi+ancient+vines.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ancient Lodi vines: strong sense of place</td></tr>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The
final step:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>appreciation of wines’
sense of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">place</i></span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The best wines in the world have always
been defined primarily by how distinctly they taste of where they come from. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is why, after centuries of
winegrowing culture, all of the official quality classification systems in
Europe are based upon identification and regulation of regions, sub-regions,
and vineyards – not so much grapes, brands, producers, winemakers,
etc.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">How far along is the American wine
industry on this path? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Honestly, not
very far.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most consumers, as well
as industry movers and shakers, still define the quality of American wines
primarily in terms of “varietal character,” or sheer intensity of
fruitiness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Even self-described, presumably intelligent connoisseurs of wine remain suckers for "star" winemakers; big fans of what certain vintners are doing, no matter how good, bad, silly or pretentious. And w</span></span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">hen it comes to wines
like Cabernet Sauvignon, it is all too obvious that the more oak flavor in a
wine the better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Industry pundits
even use the expression “200% new oak” – use of new oak barrels <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">plus </i>extra oak amendments during
fermentation and </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">é</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">levage – to describe what is
necessary to score 95 points or higher.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">100-point score systems clearly exacerbate
this misappropriation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No matter
how you slice it, assigning numbers to wine is an infantile way of looking at
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no objectivity, but
in this world you voluntarily suspend rational disbelief.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If wine critics were beauty pageant
judges, they would be judging strictly on the size and perception of
breasts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s okay, because
most Americans (including media and trade) are still babies when it comes to
subtlety or sophistication. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
have to start somewhere; and besides, babies are cute, aren’t they?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Still, we’ve come a long ways:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>40, 50 years ago the vast majority of
American wine drinkers were consuming generic wines like “Burgundy,” “Chablis,”
and “Vin Rosé.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Appreciation of
varietal wines – at first, wines like Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling, Sauvignon
Blanc, then Chardonnay and White Zinfandel, progressing later to Merlot, Pinot Noir,
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">red</i> Zinfandel, Syrah/Shiraz, and most
recently, “new” (although ancient in Europe) varietals like Tempranillo,
Albariño, Verdelho, Sangiovese, and Grüner Veltliner – has really been a fairly
recent development for most American consumers, but still a major step in the
right direction.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnp7jjBS7qMwFRGJXdQaHJZ10P2s4Zj0jW86zZH9mhc4z0ymU_7gW_rMLzAgVWUMwN_Oy6DkpykO6S_NXEEBVXJsAu24Qbb7D4RWLqUPy25oiNFe6bTjUQ7zCNL8Rhj_v3rpdbY66cbdk/s1600/Barrels,+Halter+Ranch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnp7jjBS7qMwFRGJXdQaHJZ10P2s4Zj0jW86zZH9mhc4z0ymU_7gW_rMLzAgVWUMwN_Oy6DkpykO6S_NXEEBVXJsAu24Qbb7D4RWLqUPy25oiNFe6bTjUQ7zCNL8Rhj_v3rpdbY66cbdk/s640/Barrels,+Halter+Ranch.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Barrel topping in Halter Ranch Vineyard, Paso Robles<br />
<br /></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Appreciation
of brands, winery styles, and individual winemakers has also been
part of the evolution, but the next step is appreciation of wines in the way of
the oldest winegrowing regions in the world: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>in terms of sense of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">place</i>
first – how well and distinctly they express where they are grown in real,
tangible sensations – and only after that, appreciation of producers, and
arbitrary notions like “varietal character” or “brand” styles. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s the natural order of things.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The finest wines have always been,
basically, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">agricultural</i> products. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They may be manufactured to some degree,
since humans have a direct hand in the viticulture and science of the
winemaking process. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
ultimately, both quality and appreciation are determined by characteristics
derived from natural conditions within given regions and vineyards, down to
smaller blocks of vines and individual plants, on this particular pocket of
soil, exposure or climatic corner. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is when fine wine really gets interesting – when Nature
is given the final say on what you get in the bottle.</span><br />
<br />
There are already, of course, tons of
American wine lovers who are into that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are enjoying American wines the way classic European
wines have always been enjoyed (not, mind you, the modern day European wines
that also employ 200% new oak to kiss up to the critics).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s only a matter of time before
significant chunks of more wine lovers go for that, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And when that happens, most American
wine producers will feel less compelled to produce wines kowtowing to 100-point
critics. And maybe, just maybe, even the critics will become more sophisticated; putting aside their childish, score keeping ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Praise the
lord, and pass the bottle.</div>
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<br />
True-blue, crazy-about-wine consumers, after all, aren’t exactly stupid.
They’re just doing what they’re
supposed to be doing – continuously learning, and expanding their horizons –
along with our nation’s growers and producers. For me – after all these years in the business of tasting,
buying, selling, and writing about wine – the process is still an exciting one,
and gets better by the day!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUrCPxYx4sssc-dVPc1hD25KQw6ax6njBg0Y3VFBQ5eI1V38DWqYseLIVSaBscFU5SIzq1AxUohSLipi86RhxFvsAMXAOzPGKj0riI1o8VR5JTHkvA992NL0A1ropjdShkctFmJ_NBSRE/s1600/Millennials.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUrCPxYx4sssc-dVPc1hD25KQw6ax6njBg0Y3VFBQ5eI1V38DWqYseLIVSaBscFU5SIzq1AxUohSLipi86RhxFvsAMXAOzPGKj0riI1o8VR5JTHkvA992NL0A1ropjdShkctFmJ_NBSRE/s640/Millennials.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Millennials: the face of future and present-day wine consumers</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-30174290496602776962015-02-08T00:15:00.001-07:002017-03-21T11:52:16.127-06:00The 2015 ZAP Experience: Is Zinfandel the new noir?<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">ZAP Sommelier & Winemaker Workshop speakers: Matt Cline (Three Wine Company); Randy Caparoso (The SOMM Journal); Tegan Passalacqua (Turley Wine Cellars); Jamie Harding (Cavallo Point Lodge)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">This past January 28-31, <b><a href="http://www.zinfandel.org/">Zinfandel Advocates &Producers</a></b> (a.k.a. <b>ZAP</b>) held its 24th full-scale “Experience” in San Francisco’s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidio_of_San_Francisco">Presidio</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>ZAP 2015’s theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>Zinfandel is a rising star... reach out and grab it</i>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinfandel">Zinfandel</a>, of course, is not exactly a “rising” star.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has been a major varietal since producers such as <a href="http://www.ridgewine.com/">Ridge</a> in the sixties and seventies, <a href="http://www.ravenswoodwinery.com/">Ravenswood</a> and <a href="https://www.rosenblumcellars.com/age_gateway?&destination=home">Rosenblum</a> in the eighties, and <a href="http://www.robertbialevineyards.com/">Robert Biale</a> and <a href="http://www.turleywinecellars.com/">Turley</a> in the nineties began leading the way; fueling consumer mania for the grape’s more obvious features, such as big, lush, jammy fruitiness.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">At the same time, Zinfandel producers have always been acutely aware that Zinfandel has never really caught on with the on-premise trade – particularly sommeliers in high-end restaurants, hotels and resorts. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">In turn, much of the on-premise trade has never made any bones about its perception of the category’s shortcomings over the past twenty years:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>particularly the fact that most commercial Zinfandels almost seem to be crafted for lowest-common-denominator tastes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Measured by girth rather than balance, Zinfandel tends to be over-oaked, overripe, often annoyingly sweet and rarely capable of expressing subtleties of terroir or origin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Zinfandel, in other words, usually ends up tasting too much like “Zinfandel”:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>defined by trendish conceptions of “varietal character,” almost always at the expense of sense of place – a tragedy, considering the historical nature and complexity of field mixes common to so many ancient vine plantings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The entire premise of ZAP, after all, is that Zinfandel is America’s heritage grape – to be treasured, and preserved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m there, and not only that:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>from experience, I know that Zinfandel is probably the most food-versatile red wine in the world (take that, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbera">Barbera</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinot_noir">Pinot Noir</a>).</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">ZAP Media & Trade Panelists: Tim Fish (Wine Spectator); Lulu McAllister (NOPA); Wilfred Wong (wine.com); Randy Caproso (SOMM Journal)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">But if you’re still not understanding why I can be such a cheerleader and, at the same time, critical of the varietal, let me put it this way:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>how many big name Zinfandel producers do you know who bottle five, six, maybe ten or up to a dozen different single vineyard designated wines, which all taste pretty much the same, no matter where they come from?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Come on. Don't you think special vineyards, different appellations or unique <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir">terroirs</a>, deserve better treatment than that?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">That’s what drives me nuts about even the finest Zinfandels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All too many of them are crafted with an obsessive need to achieve a numbing uniformity of “varietal character,” usually with a heavy-handed dose of some kind of predictable “house style” (using the same <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeast_in_winemaking">yeasts</a>, the same enzymes, the same re-hydration formulas, the same alcohol, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acids_in_wine">pH and T.A.</a> levels, the same oak dust and barrel regimes, ad infinitum).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I don’t care what a super-duper, revered Zinfandel specialist may say:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a Zinfandel made from a 100-year old vineyard from one vineyard or region should not be barely distinguishable from a Zinfandel sourced from different 100-year old vineyard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Hey, I get the importance of branding; but it</span>’s a damned shame when “style” runs roughshod over terroir related distinctions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Hence, ZAP’s “rising star” mantra at the 2015 Experience in San Francisco may, in fact, be very apropos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As popular and as good as it can be, Zinfandel still has a ways to go towards “grabbing” the attention and respect of certain members of the trade.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Call fussbudgety sommeliers (or speaking for myself, sommeliers-turned-journalists) what you will, but I think we have a beef.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">But not with all Zinfandels, of course.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There has been a very positive, growing movement afoot during the past few years, which has really been turning sommeliers on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those sommeliers, that is to say, who haven’t remained stubbornly close-minded about Zinfandel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It will take a while before many of them become aware of what Christopher Sawyer – the former wine director of Sonoma’s <a href="http://www.carnerosbistro.com/">Carneros Bistro & Wine Bar</a> – shared with me following this year’s ZAP.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">According to Sawyer, “The 2015 ZAP may represent a huge awakening for people who thought all Zinfandels were big, sweet, and high in alcohol.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead, we’re starting to see a paradigm shift towards a new breed of young, adventurous winemakers who are putting more emphasis on elegance and food-friendliness – especially those working with ancient, heritage plantings from less familiar regions, such as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lodi_AVA">Lodi</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Dorado_AVA">El Dorado</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendocino_AVA">Mendocino</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_County,_California">Lake</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra_Costa_County,_California">Contra Costa</a> counties.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">In my capacity as <a href="http://www.sommjournal.com/">The SOMM Journal</a> Editor-at-Large, I participated at the 2015 ZAP as organizer and moderator of a panel discussion/tasting strictly for an audience of media and trade on Wednesday, January 28. Our panel, and the wines presented:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Randy Caparoso</b> (The SOMM Journal)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2013 Lodi Native, Stampede Vineyard Zinfandel, Clements Hills-Lodi (Fields Family Wines)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Lodi Native, TruLux Vineyard Zinfandel, Lodi (McCay Cellars)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Tim Fish</b> (<a href="http://www.winespectator.com/">Wine Spectator Magazine</a>) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Turley Wine Cellars, Pesenti Vineyard Zinfandel, Paso Robles</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Hartford Family Winery, Fanucchi-Wood Road Zinfandel, Russian River Valley</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Lulu McAllister</b> (<a href="http://www.nopasf.com/">NOPA San Francisco Restaurant</a>) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2013 Bedrock Wine Company, Evangelho Vineyard, Contra Costa (Zinfandel/Carignan/Mataro/Alicante Bouschet/Palomino)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Ridge Vineyards, Geyserville, Sonoma County (Zinfandel/Carignan/Petite Sirah/Mataro/Alicante Bouschet)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Wilfred Wong</b> (<a href="http://wine.com/">wine.com</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2013 Cline Cellars, <i>Ancient Vine</i> Zinfandel, Contra Costa</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Ravenswood Winery, Dickerson Vineyard Zinfandel, Napa Valley</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">ZAP Media & Trade Panel Zinfandels</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Then on Saturday, January 31, I hosted multiple sommelier/winemaker workshops, focused on terroir related qualities distinguishing Zinfandels from lesser known regions (namely Contra Costa, Lake County, the Lodi, Mendocino and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockpile_AVA">Rockpile AVA</a>s, and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Foothills_AVA">Sierra Foothills AVA</a>’s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calaveras_County,_California">Calaveras</a> and El Dorado regions).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our speakers and wines:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>LODI AVA - Randy Caparoso</b> (The SOMM Journal)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Tim Holdener</b> (<a href="http://www.lodinative.com/">Lodi Native</a> & <a href="http://www.macchiawines.com/macchia">Macchia Wines</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Lodi Native, Noma Ranch Lodi Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Macchia, <i>Outrageous</i> Noma Ranch Lodi Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Layne Montgomery</b> (Lodi Native & <a href="https://m2wines.com/">m2 Wines</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Lodi Native, Soucie Vineyard Lodi Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 m2, Soucie Vineyard Lodi Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 m2, <i>Select Block</i> Soucie Vineyard Lodi Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>CALAVERAS COUNTY & EL DORADO AVA - Tracey Berkner</b> (<a href="http://www.restauranttaste.com/newtaste/pages/index.cgi">Restaurant Taste</a>, Plymouth)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Scott Klann </b>(<a href="http://www.nhvino.com/">Newsome-Harlow Wines</a>) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Newsome-Harlow, Donner Party Calaveras Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Jonathan Lachs</b> (<a href="http://www.cedarvillevineyard.com/">Cedarville Vineyard</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Cedarville, Estate Bottled El Dorado Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Steve Milliere</b> (<a href="https://www.milliairewinery.com/">Milliaire Winery</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2011 Milliaire, Calaveras Zinfanndel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2011 Milliaire, Heritage Old Vine Ghirardelli Calaveras Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>CONTRA COSTA COUNTY - Jamie Harding </b>(<a href="http://www.cavallopoint.com/">Cavallo Point Lodge</a>, Sausalito)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Matt Cline</b> (<a href="http://www.threewinecompany.com/">Three Wine Company</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Three Wine Company, Live Oak Contra Costa Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Tegan Passalacqua</b> (Turley Wine Cellars)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Turley Wine Cellars, Salvador Vineyard Contra Costa Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>LAKE COUNTY & MENDOCINO AVA - Christopher Sawyer </b>(<a href="http://sawyersomm.com/consulting">Sawyer Sommelier Consulting</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Andy Pestoni </b>(<a href="http://jellyjarwines.com/">Jelly Jar Wines</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012, Jelly Jar, Lake County Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Rich Parducci </b>(<a href="http://www.mcnabridge.com/">McNab Ridge Winery</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 McNab Ridge, Cononiah Vineyard Mendocino Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 McNab Ridge, Family Reserve Mendocino Zinfandel<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>ROCKPILE AVA - David Glancy MS</b> (<a href="http://sanfranciscowineschool.com/">San Francisco WineSchool</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Jeff Cohn</b> (<a href="http://www.jeffcohncellars.com/">Jeff Cohn Cellars</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2011 Jeff Cohn, Botticelli Rockpile Vineyard Rockpile Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Jeff Cohn, Botticelli Rockpile vineyard Rockpile Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Clay Mauritson</b> (<a href="http://www.mauritsonwines.com/">Mauritson Family Winery</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2011 Mauritson, Rockpile Ridge Rockpile Zinfandel</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">2012 Mauritson, Rockpile Ridge Rockpile Zinfandel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The question that I dangled throughout the course of both events:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>how close is Zinfandel coming to being <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">simpatico </i>with, say, the needs of sommeliers, or any wine lover expecting more from the category than simple, brutal varietal character?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Lulu McAllister, wine director at San Francisco's cutting-edge NOPA restaurant, also addressed the trade and media with Wong, seconding his emotion regarding Zinfandel’s role on the table.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to McAllister, “I have Zinfandels on my list with the structure to handle pork chops and lightness to match fish and vegetable dishes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think it’s the fact that many of the best Zinfandels come from ancient, field crushed plantings – vineyards mixed with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carignan">Carignan</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durif">Petite Sirah</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mourv%C3%A8dre">Mataro</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alicante_Bouschet">Alicante Bouschet</a> and other grapes – that is giving us all the more reason to highlight it in the restaurant.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Wilfred Wong – a beloved San Francisco based retail merchandiser, now employed by <a href="http://wine.com/">wine.com</a> as “Chief Storyteller” – sat on the trade and media panel, and had this to say: “I happen to believe that Zinfandel is still on the rise, after four decades of tremendous growth. For the restaurant trade, it has always been one of the most food versatile varietals out there, and most recently producers have been finding a sweet spot between power and balance. Many of the wines tasted at this year’s ZAP events showed incredible finesse, proving that Zinfandel can appeal to more sophisticated tastes.”</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Sommelier/Winemaker Terroir Workshop: David Glancy MS (San Francisco Wine School), Jeff Cohn (Jeff Cohn Wines) and Clay Mauritson (Mauritson Family Winery) presenting Rockpile AVA Zinfandels</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">Inevitably there are sobering nays mixed in with optimistic yays.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ron Washam, well known in the blogosphere as the<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> <a href="http://hosemasterofwine.blogspot.com/">HoseMaster of Wine</a></i>, has worked with Zinfandel as a full-time sommelier for over thirty years in the L.A. area, before recently putting himself “out to pasture” in Sonoma County.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With his imitable phraseology, Washam tells us, “</span>Every six or seven years some writer has declared ‘Zinfandel is about to break out.' <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Zinfandel has seen so many outbreaks, it's the measles of wine varieties.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Adds Washam, “I did walk away from ZAP thinking that there are fewer Turley impersonators than there were a few years ago, including Turley. One of the prettiest Zinfandels I tasted was the 2013 Turley <i>Vineyard 101</i> – nothing resembling the brutish Turleys of yesteryears. Overall, I found a lot more Zinfandels that seemed focused on pretty varietal aromatics, and fewer that smelled like they should have that pretty Sun-Maid lady on the label. I think that will ultimately serve the varietal well.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Jamie Harding, the wine director at Sausalito’s Cavallo Point Lodge, cites experimental projects like <a href="http://www.lodinative.com/pages/about/">Lodi Native</a>, which focuses on native yeast fermented Zinfandels aged strictly in neutral oak in order to craft delicate, perfumed, almost Pinot Noir-like styles.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Says Harding, “projects like Lodi Native are only going to help producers find Zinfandel’s true expression – the grape seems capable of a lot more nuance and structure than what most people expect.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Robert Volz of Portland’s <a href="http://pourwinebar.com/">pour wine bar & bistro</a> tells us, “I traveled all the way from Oregon to attend ZAP because Zinfandel is my second-favorite grape, after Pinot Noir.” Like Harding, Volz was struck by the Lodi Native Zinfandels, in which he found “lower alcohol levels and higher organic elements, much like the earthy aspects of a Burgundian or Oregon Pinot Noir.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Full disclosure: yes, I live in Lodi and have advised on the Lodi Native project. But in every presentation to journalists, buyers or sommeliers, I have never suggested that they have to <i>like</i> the wines. Lords knows, wine professionals make up their own minds, and so far the <a href="http://www.lodinative.com/press/">reaction to the Lodi Native Zinfandels</a> has been overwhelmingly positive. They get the beauty of lighter, naked Zinfandels.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Still, when all is said and done, Mr. Washam remains skeptical:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Will the sommeliers of the world go retro and suddenly decide Zinfandel is the Next Big Deal?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have my doubts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Restraint may be the trend right now, but I have the feeling that the big fruit bombs of the past will make their inevitable comeback.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hey, I love Zinfandel, always have – I just don’t think it has to be the next Pinot Noir.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It should be fine being ‘good ol' Zin!’”</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Sommelier/Winemaker Workshop: Andy Pestoni (Jelly Jar Wines, Chris Sawyer (Sawyer Sommelier Consulting) and Rich McNab (McNab Ridge Winery) presenting Lake County and Mendocino AVA Zinfandels</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-47339138052299858772012-03-24T21:20:00.008-06:002017-03-21T11:49:45.280-06:00True luxe & flagellation at the 2012 World of Pinot Noir<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 16px;">What became crystal clear after two days of immersion in the grape at <b><a href="http://www.wopn.com/">The 12th Annual World of Pinot Noir</a></b> in Shell Beach, CA. this past March 2-3: American Pinot Noir has definitely grown up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">But have Pinot Noir <i>lovers</i> matured? The Pinot Noirs shown – generally from the 2009 and 2010 vintages – were impressive enough, despite more than a few hints and allegations heard amongst the crowd about concerns like “balance,” which I still think is a load of expletive (re <i><a href="http://isantemagazine.com/blog/why-whole-blance-issue-crock">Why this whole “balance” issue is a crock</a></i>). I stood next to one enthusiastic pinotphile – bless his heart – congratulating a vintner because, and I quote, “I like the way you believe in picking early and making wine less than 14% alcohol.” As if most winemakers – who have blown their wads or sold their soul to the devil to birth a gratifying pinot – are so clueless, they don’t know alcohol or balance from nothing. The irony, of course, is that it’s neither a <i>vigneron </i>nor pinotphile who has the last word on such matters. It’s Mother Nature.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">Case in point: in the press room I tasted the </span><b><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">2010 Clos Pepe Sta. Rita Hills Estate Pinot Noir </span></b><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">and immediately thought, wow... the best Clos Pepes I’ve tasted in years (at least since the inaugural World of Pinot Noir in 2000). Knowing owner/winemaker Wes Hagen’s almost religious devotion to restraint, vineyard over varietal fruit expression, and (hang on, here comes that word again) balance, I felt quite pleased with the maturity of my taste. Until I picked the bottle up and looked at the alcohol content: whoops, 14.5%. Maybe my pinot consciousness hasn’t progressed after all.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">So I wrote Mr. Hagen a few days later, and he promptly responded, saying that his 2010 was </span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">a product of “</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">a long, very cool year that was punctuated by a heat spike in October.” Grapes benefitted from “insane hang time,” but the heat wave “dehydrated the berries and added a layer of rich, sexy fruit not seen since 2002.” Although Hagen admits that “Oregon haters might suggest Syrah additions” in this richly pigmented, ultra-intense vintage, spreading across the palate like “b</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">lueberry and boysenberry jam, cherry compote, intense spice and insane depth and concentration of aromatics... plush, luxe, sexy, ultra-seductive.</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">"<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">In other words, good stuff; and no matter how you spin it, as pure, sharply etched, and refined as any Pinot Noir, damned the torpedoes. So even if only for this one time, 14.5% alcohol is good enough for Hagen, maybe we can’t define a wine by its numbers after all. Duh.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">Then again, the love and self-flagellation concerning American Pinot Noir goes back some time. In typical deference to the enduring, mystical superiority of red Burgundy, in 1896 (not a typo) a respected U.C. Davis professor submitted: "in some localities (of California) it is doubtless possible to make Pinot Noir wine of high quality and to age it, but only with a minute attention to detail and an elaborate care, which no price that is likely to be obtained at present would justify" (Muscatine, Amerine & Thompson, <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/University-California-Sotheby-Book-Wine/dp/0520050851">Book of California Wine</a></i>). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">In the late 1960s the late, great Andr</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">é</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;"> Tchelistcheff was famously quoted to say, "Pinot Noir is scrawny and broods about the slightest offense... all the challenge is getting the surly child to smile."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">I started my own search for America's elusive vinous love child even before taking my first official sommelier job, back in 1978; when anything resembling real Burgundy was considered a freak of nature. Those days, we could count the number of consistently successful pinot specialists on literally one hand: let me see... Joseph Swan, Sanford & Benedict, Chalone... but not much more, since it was only occasionally that producers like Beaulieu, Mondavi, Hanzell or Eyrie produced something that wasn’t amusingly naïve in its presumptuous domesticity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 16px;">Ah, but how the list of its dedicated, thoroughly accomplished practitioners has swelled. Producers who – standing on the storied shoulders of Tchelistcheff, Swan, Lett, and going even further back, Paul Masson and Martin Ray – seldom produce a discouraging pinot. That is why, personally, I am as appreciative of big, voluminous, even richly oaked styles as I am of lighter, prickly, more comely or demure styles of Pinot Noir: I vividly recall the days when you were happy to get <i>anything</i> that tasted decently of the grape.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">Those that know me know that I abhor ratings (how can you put numbers on matters of aesthetics that change with the moment and circumstances?), but I do have a list of favorites tasted at the 2012 World of Pinot Noir.</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNvna8WPTmpEwhAMg2JljJxhjkbsD81SpucI7M1K_RAq_tvQefGLWAAzn30hEJj3n_lhj_emnSRW838m617jLPsz-TFB0MI962LdwKtOdGARtz3iQbrpfIWCptsKGyk8Nzx7Vc6nNHyi4/s1600/IMG_8406.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNvna8WPTmpEwhAMg2JljJxhjkbsD81SpucI7M1K_RAq_tvQefGLWAAzn30hEJj3n_lhj_emnSRW838m617jLPsz-TFB0MI962LdwKtOdGARtz3iQbrpfIWCptsKGyk8Nzx7Vc6nNHyi4/s640/IMG_8406.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Larry Hyde's outstanding new vineyard in Cuttings Wharf, Carneros</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p>In rough order of personal preference, as circumstances would have it at that point in time:</o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">2010 Larry Hyde & Sons, Carneros</span></b><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;"> – It’s been a long time since I was as thoroughly impressed by a Carneros grown Pinot Noir as I was with this bottling; compelling in its brilliant violet-red color, ultra-rich strawberry perfume, and full, concentrated, richly knit, voluptuous, even sluttishly rounded, fruit focused qualities. Mr. Hyde, of course, has long been known for his viticultural prowess, supplying impeccable material (mostly Chardonnay) for the likes of Kistler, David Ramey, Patz & Hall, DuMOL, and his own HdV (in partinership with Aubert and Pamela de Villaine) for years. But here’s the kicker: the grapes for this spectacular pinot come from Hyde's most recent planting near Cuttings Wharf, south of Carneros Hwy. from Boon Fly Café, representing a <i>massal</i> selection (i.e. clonal mix) that went into the ground only in 2006. When I followed up with Mr. Hyde about this freakazoid of a pinot, he said: “yes, this is the case of young vines often producing superior wine... the problem will come up when the vines reach adolescence, and all our work will go into devigorating to recapture that quality” – adding, facetiously, “the ideal thing may be to sell the grapes to someone else when they reach that stage, and take them back when they are old and finally find their own balance.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">2010 Clos Pepe, Sta. Rita Hills Estate</span></b><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;"> – I really was quite taken by this wine, as indicated by notes that read “puristic, sharply defined, velvety, tightly wound yet resplendent (yeah, that word actually popped up) with popping cherries and strawberry preserves.” Question might be, does this particular pinot reflect more of a vintage and the grape itself, or, as the winery’s mission statement reads, “the complex and transparent character of the climate and soil here in Sta. Rita Hills?” Here’s a thought: who cares? I say, just enjoy...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">VML's Virginia Lambrix</td></tr>
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<b>2010 VML Boudreaux, Russian River Valley</b> – VML (by winemaker Virginia Marie Lambrix, a Biodynamic® specialist who also makes the Truett-Hurst wines) also showed a <b>2010 VML Winemaker’s Select</b> from Russian River Valley, and damned if I can tell you what I like better. The Boudreaux positively quivers with pliant, fleshy, black and red berry fruit, sheathed in silk with wisps of smoky tobacco; whereas the Winemaker’s Select puts out even more sumptuous, broader, more densely textured fruit with a sensual, almost primal wild berry fruit quality (think gorging yourself from thorny roadside bushes while biking through a wine country in a summer sweat). In a conversation with Ms. Lambrix the month before, she likened her Select to “Tchlistcheff’s fur coat... that animal smell combined with the perfumed scent of a woman,” but either VML will satisfy the most primitive longings of pinot lovers, pining for that base, licentious experience in finely laced garb. </div>
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<b>2010 Kosta Browne, Gap’s Crown Vineyard, Sonoma Coast</b> – This is more like one of those “whoa” pinots – somewhat full scaled, with as much muscle as flesh, or masculine, if you will – but its rich black cherry intensity seeps deep into the mouth, with that “Elvis on black velvet” quality that you just can’t keep your eyes off. And for all you protest kids, there is very much a <i>terroirist</i> wine, as you find pinots of pretty much the same ilk made by others (notably MacPhail, Patz & Hall, Sojourn, Wind Gap and Anaba) who source from this 800-850 ft. elevation hillside vineyard on the western flanks of Sonoma Mountain, bathed in the sun while belted by moderating, rambunctious winds whipping in through the Petaluma Gap.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha8yJiTHX73QxIDxL4I4ptpojG58Lw1uiuSj_GXGHfD0r0UThtwruzw7GfHSzcUae74g1xplExLv3Bb9dAjfZt0ocXRwbw5xR3i9SeC4WxeHK7q14nFekxD2BD34GCvUy5M01zPktVKMQ/s1600/IMG_7351.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha8yJiTHX73QxIDxL4I4ptpojG58Lw1uiuSj_GXGHfD0r0UThtwruzw7GfHSzcUae74g1xplExLv3Bb9dAjfZt0ocXRwbw5xR3i9SeC4WxeHK7q14nFekxD2BD34GCvUy5M01zPktVKMQ/s400/IMG_7351.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">2011 Chamisal, Stainless Steel/Unoaked, Edna Valley </span></b><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">– My enthusiasm for this pinot may very well be a plaintive cry for help: I’m such a wuss when it comes to shamelessly fruity styles, and this fruit driven <i>cuv</i></span><i><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">é</span></i><i><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">e</span></i><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;"> is like plasticine rock to a crack addict. But I can say this because I’m just as confident in my street creds; and because even <i>terroirists</i> enjoy a good quaff like this purplish ruby red, emanating floral, super-fresh raspberry aromas, becoming like drippy cherries in the mouth, contained in a fine, zesty, medium body unperturbed by mild tannin. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b>2010 Failla, Keefer Ranch, Russian River Valley</b> – Because Failla is a poster child for what is often associated with contemporary “natural” wine – cold climate viticulture, wild fermentation, minimalist<i> <i><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">é</span><span style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 12pt;">levage</span></i></i>, etc. – the assumption even among those who should know better is that a Failla Pinot Noir will also be minimalist in structure and fruit expression. Of all their <i>cuv</i><i>ées</i>, Failla’s Keefer Ranch regularly defies such pigeonholing: the 2010, a violet toned, lusciously fruity wine teeming with extravagant perfumes of strawberry, peppermint and baking spices, flowing out from a velvety, voluptuous body of almost unreal lushness. Winemaker/owner Ehren Jordan would tell you that fruit from Keefer Ranch is what it is – he doesn't fool with it - and so if you are looking for something taut, tart and taciturn, like a nice little pinot should be, you should probably look elsewhere, my friend. Just as exotic in its pinot sauciness - but in a tad more flowery, bony, Angelina Jolie sort of way - is the<b> 2010 Failla Sonoma Coast Pearlessence</b>.</div>
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<b>2010 Freeman, Keefer Ranch, Russian River Valley </b>– This vineyard – sitting pretty much dead-center in the Green Valley sub-AVA, sloping down to Green Valley Creek – invariably produces meaty yet fluid pinots for its prestigious clientele (besides Failla, Kosta Browne, Siduri, and the Keefers themselves). Freeman always seems to emphasize the foresty spice, enhanced by subtle smoky oak, of the <i>terroir</i>; and in 2010, couching that in black cherry and earth tones, its plush, fullsome body fluffed up by mild acidity. With even more emphasis on earthy, sweet pepper tinged spice, the <b>2010 Freeman Sonoma Coast Akiko’s Cuv</b><b>ée</b> coalesces with similar, plush qualities, battened down by a slightly edgier, mouth watering acidity.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS9jL_3UKMlDtHFsVB448Gv7qb7bX9WOyLqpIqyGidMMg9-P_DQcmwBsalpWFzhpAGvTDV9htsEqhcCs1Ygm3yM1KVyB0ToGVPQa9jWbxyHGicvuqLDRw7RXzrMucJrJD8YYqClaAGFVM/s1600/IMG_2771.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS9jL_3UKMlDtHFsVB448Gv7qb7bX9WOyLqpIqyGidMMg9-P_DQcmwBsalpWFzhpAGvTDV9htsEqhcCs1Ygm3yM1KVyB0ToGVPQa9jWbxyHGicvuqLDRw7RXzrMucJrJD8YYqClaAGFVM/s640/IMG_2771.JPG" width="512" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James MacPhail</td></tr>
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<b>2010 MacPhail, Pratt Vineyard, Sonoma Coast </b>– You gotta love James MacPhail’s aggressive style: you might notice his use of oak, but nearly always just to the point where varietal fruit qualities distinguishing his stable of top flight vineyard sources become all the more exhilarating. In the 2010 Pratt, a woodsy/spiced black cherry fruit concentration hits you with almost relentless, juicy intensity, supple and fleshy in the mouth, yet coiled and springy in the feel. After a brief hiatus, Mr. MacPhail’s return to this growth, farmed by Jim Pratt at the north end of Sebastopol Hills (as such, also falling within the Russian River Valley AVA), is something to write home about.</div>
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<b>2009 Talley, Rosemary’s Vineyard, Arroyo Grande Valley</b> – It’s the immediate east-west proximity to the Pacific that has always given Talley’s Arroyo Grande Valley plantings their sturdy, steely, often dark, savory, scrubby, almost iron-like, downright masculine qualities – confoundingly stingy in some years, generously sleek in others. Of all their single vineyard bottlings, Rosemary’s probably personifies that taut tension of sinew and berry jam concentration; in 2009, taunting you further with exotic notes of berry infused black tea spice, before knocking you to the floor with curvaceous, fleshed out, acid and stony sensations.</div>
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<b>2009 Bergstr</b><b>öm, The Bergstr</b><b>öm Vineyard, Dundee Hills</b> - Among the latest releases from Bergström Wines, there are three estate (also DEMETER certified Biodynamic©) grown bottlings from three different Willamette Valley AVAs, representing two vintages that owner/winemaker Josh Bergström says “could not be more different.” Bergström describes 2009 as a “warm, ripe year, producing wines of opulence, density, plush textures, and alcohols over 14%.” Hence, the meaty, almost explosive qualities of the ’09 Bergström Vineyard, couched in what Bergström describes as an "old world palate... meaning more earth, mineral and a complexity that does not revolve solely around fruit,” which he attributes to his signature estate’s rocky red soil, consistently giving “a ferrous-driven minerality reminiscent of blood or Breseola.”</div>
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On the other hand, Mr. Bergström describes 2010 as more of a “classic Oregon vintage... very late ripening into November, flavors developing before sugars, interplay of acid and tannin, and alcohols around 12.9%-13.2%.” Though still calling them “babies,” the <b>2010 Bergstr</b><b>öm de Lancellotti Vineyard Chehalem Mountains Pinot Noir</b> ($60) is already flowery and perfumed, and the<b> 2010 Bergstr</b><b>öm Gregory Ranch Yamhill-Carlton Pinot Noir</b> ($60) is silky, bright and effusive, despite the young, meaty tannin in both. Bergström notes that Gregory, the family’s newest site, is on one of Yamhill-Carlton’s cooler slopes, describing its emerging character as “urgent cherry and Marionberry, and a sweet earth character more akin to truffle than loam, on top of the classic sweet spice/potpourri of Willakenzie soil.”</div>
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Some briefer remarks on other noteworthy Pinot Noirs:</div>
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<b>2008 Solomon Hills, Santa Maria Valley</b> – One of the few ‘08s being shown during the weekend; red berry perfume tinged with smoky, peaty notes; slender, lean, but nicely filigreed qualities, energized by snappy acidity and harmonious tannin.</div>
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<b>2008 Bonaccorsi, Nielson Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley</b> – Another ’08; this one, a charmer with dollops of cherry fruit and strawberry purée; soft, delicate feel on the palate, with silk and zippy acid interplay.</div>
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<b>2009 Native9, Rancho Ontiveras Vineyards, Santa Maria Valley</b> – Fragrant cherry pie, cola, and smoked meat qualities in the nose and dense texturing; acidic snap, plus raw, pithy sense of immediacy from front to back.</div>
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<b>2009 Pali, Fiddlestix Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills</b> - Bull’s eye in the middle of the seductive perfume (red berry and rose petal) and earth tinged aspects of the grape; slinky body, draped in velvet and smoky spice.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3v-UtJZirShVykzyplLeg6uuXmy_hniKo9-Wv7UxxR544TBtOlme0ysSCJJqu0a8lbUIdNz6I7U2pGzQ6HiJKIGjrb26VfdYnPCR0cTcZ3gljKSCSjwnmQj0wLyvrcYg4B9BK4-DBa3g/s1600/IMG_7463.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3v-UtJZirShVykzyplLeg6uuXmy_hniKo9-Wv7UxxR544TBtOlme0ysSCJJqu0a8lbUIdNz6I7U2pGzQ6HiJKIGjrb26VfdYnPCR0cTcZ3gljKSCSjwnmQj0wLyvrcYg4B9BK4-DBa3g/s640/IMG_7463.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Greg La Follette with assistant winemaker Simone Sequeria</td></tr>
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<b>2009 La Follette, Du Nah Vineyard, Russian River Valley </b>– Head spinning intersection of wild berries, dead leaves, smoky spice, and even a smack of leather (organic rather than Brett related); silken textured, earth toned flavors punctuated by sharp acidity; youthful tightness in the finish.</div>
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<b>2010 ROAR, Sierra Mar, Santa Lucia Highlands </b>– First release from Gary Franscioni’s newest vineyard atop a 1,000 ft. elevation slope; lush bing cherry, super-high toned, tangy and deep.</div>
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<b>2010 Lucia, Gary’s Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands</b> – By Pisoni Vineyards; medium-full bodied wine saturated with black cherry fruitiness; firm tannin center, while lush and snappy on the palate. </div>
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<b>2009 Benovia, La Pommeraie, Russian River Valley</b> – Bright, broad, lavish Russian River Valley style; plump, juicy, velvet texturing.</div>
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<b>2009 Flying Goat, Garey Ranch, Santa Maria Valley</b> – Super-fragrant nose of strawberry and peppermint sprigs; bright, zesty, high toned, yet fine and delicate in the feel.</div>
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<b>2010 Thomas Fogarty, Rapley Trail Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains Estate</b> – Redolent of strawberries and underbrush, yet dense and youthfully bright, tart edged on the palate; finishing with a fluid feel of soft leather in its medium weight.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3zYkqeWb9UOavM_XilFHrKxNCCaA8CHUUxGb6rW195Gu4QGBT8MejDa6P-AhcG8mERZsCglR6D6suWeqefY3MTY6Z8mh1bGN3oe65bHbIZAybeYBVx5I09viAzGkVBYA8f6mLoU4tLzI/s1600/IMG_7665.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3zYkqeWb9UOavM_XilFHrKxNCCaA8CHUUxGb6rW195Gu4QGBT8MejDa6P-AhcG8mERZsCglR6D6suWeqefY3MTY6Z8mh1bGN3oe65bHbIZAybeYBVx5I09viAzGkVBYA8f6mLoU4tLzI/s640/IMG_7665.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Winemaker Nathan Kandler in Thomas Fogarty's mountaintop estate</td></tr>
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<b>2009 Fiddlehead, Oldsville Reserve, Chehalem Mountains</b> – Pale transluscent red color and fragrant perfume of dried flowers and berries; sense of delicacy in the nose and palate, finishing with a fine, zesty flourish.</div>
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<b>2009 Sokol Blosser, Dundee Hills </b>– Another Oregonian shown in almost stark contrast to the weightier California pinots: a lithe, medium bodied pinot, throwing out attractively floral notes of Christmas spiced berries; some tightening tannin in the mouth, but flowing into a long, zesty finish.</div>
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<b>2009 Freestone, Estate Grown, Sonoma Coast </b>– Nose dripping with sour-suggestive morello cherry fruitiness, tinged with an airy woodsy spice and strawberry sweetness; fairly full on the palate, revved up by good acid and sweet woodsiness of the spice and oak.</div>
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<b>2010 Luminesce, Presqu’ile Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley</b> – Luscious, sweet red berry nose; the promiscuous fruit qualities tucked into a nicely rounded, velvety medium body.</div>
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<b>2010 Belle Glos, Clark &Telephone Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley</b> - Billowingly sweet scented, somewhat fat yet luxurious, satisfying; from an own-rooted, Martini clone vineyard now in its fortieth leaf.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5At0edawFNm-Sz31BVhOmxlpVptVcZINRH9GwN6tiDR6jTz3jHStsqy-69CKPR7ihSQpdieHgveXl2NoLkxySlAF26V_clQSZq_olMPKpced2jiAjefY6CdFUxGpWql6cAl_I3D0SdJo/s1600/IMG_7474.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5At0edawFNm-Sz31BVhOmxlpVptVcZINRH9GwN6tiDR6jTz3jHStsqy-69CKPR7ihSQpdieHgveXl2NoLkxySlAF26V_clQSZq_olMPKpced2jiAjefY6CdFUxGpWql6cAl_I3D0SdJo/s640/IMG_7474.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ROAR's Gary Francscioni</td></tr>
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<b>2009 Lucienne, Doctor’s Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands</b> – Fairly lavish nose of red berries, smoke, and trail mix-like dried fruits and nuts; aggressive full body and tannin, but plumped up by lush flavors.</div>
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<b>2010 Hilliard Bruce, Hahn Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands</b> – Luscious, almost liqueur-like strawberry/cherry aroma; velvety, broad feel, brimming with luscious fruit, in similar, gushy, bouncy style to the solidly crafted<b> 2009 Hilliard Bruce Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir<i> Moon</i></b>.</div>
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<b>2009 Silver Pines, Sonoma Mountain</b> – Sweet berry and interestingly organic, forest floor aromatic notes; silky on the palate, finishing on the soft side.</div>
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<b>2010 Puma Road, Vigna Monte Nero, Santa Lucia Highlands</b> – By Ray Franscioni Wines (RFW); slightly sharp edged, almost lean in its classical structuring, yet teeming with strawberryish fruit. </div>
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<b>2010 Bu, Wildcat Mt. Vineyard, Sonoma County</b> – By Bruliam Wines; invitingly lush red berry perfumes; velvety entry leading to slightly fat but juicy, flavorful feel.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Native9's James Ontiveras</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-35502493500646975842011-12-04T21:36:00.035-07:002021-07-19T16:09:48.198-06:00La Follette's Strange Fruits<style>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><b>No winemaker is as widely known, and often misunderstood, as Greg La Follette</b></i></span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: small;">This profile and interview was originally composed for <a href="http://www.sommelierjournal.com/">Sommelier Journal</a> (Nov. 2011), where it appeared in abbreviated form as a winery profile. A version of this article has also appeared in <a href="https://www.practicalwinerylibrary.com">Practical Winery & Vineyard</a>.</span></i></div>
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We like our winemakers to be unique, but not odd. We like their wines to be intense and expressive of something, but not so different that we can't easily compare them to other wines within our points of reference. We even like to talk concepts like "natural" and<i> terroir</i>, as long as the ramifications of such are reasonably easy to sell -- at least for those of us in the restaurant or retail trade. <br />
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Greg La Follette has never been one to make things easy for us, despite the notoriety of being the first real winemaker at Flowers, during this extreme Sonoma Coast estate’s formative stage in the late nineties. When La Follette ventured off on his own, founding Tandem Winery in 2001, it was almost as if he wanted us to forget the glory years at Flowers, and even earlier milestones, such as the years when he led Hartford Court into the Pinot noir and Chardonnay Big Leagues.</div>
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For one, he’s been rarely seen: After starting Tandem, he turned into one of those flying winemakers, designing and consulting for more than a dozen wineries across the globe, at one point on five different continents (including at home in Sonoma, for it was La Follette that Jean-Charles Boisset first called upon to restore De Loach after taking it out of bankruptcy in 2003). Between raising kids (a total of six, between wife Mara La Follette and himself) and whispering to vines, there simply hasn’t been much time for public relations or even sales.</div>
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Second, when there were La Follette sightings, it was usually of a grizzled man in well worn overalls and an unfortunate haircut – not an image of the suave celebrity winemaker – while the twenty or so wines produced each year under the Tandem label became known more for their tendency to stick out in comparative tastings, challenging even the most adventurous palates with oft-times discomforting sensations of down-and-dirty earth, pungent meats, unidentifiable flowers, or strange fruits (love it or leave it!) despite their structural integrity and sleek, coiled intensity.</div>
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Still, La Follette’s energy quickly grew Tandem to over 9,000 cases a year; and although the winemaker’s legend also expanded, especially among geekier elements of the cognoscente, the wines were not exactly flying out the cellar door. Enter Peter Kight, owner of Wine Creek LLC, which also handles Barossa Valley’s Torbreck Wines and Dry Creek Valley’s Quivira Vineyards. In 2008 Kight began chatting with La Follette about taking Tandem off his hands, in a deal that would also retain his consumnate skills as a winemaker, and his uncanny eye for edgy vineyard sourcing. In January 2009 Tandem officially became part of Wine Creek. </div>
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Kight’s company immediately brought steadier management, sound marketing and broader distribution to Tandem; particularly by halving SKUs to less than ten, and bringing the products into more realistic price points (from $40-$70 to $30-$40). After a year into it, Kight came to La Follette with an even better idea – scrap the Tandem label altogether; establish a new name, and re-focus it on what it really is: La Follette Wines, which was launched in the summer of 2010.</div>
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Within the Wine Creek fold, La Follette himself enjoys more freedom than ever as a winegrower; his feet firmly set, so to speak, in the terroir: If anything, he has always been known for a single minded focus on vineyard expression, even at the expense of “varietal” or brand identification. To Kight’s credit, Wine Creek has rolled with it, and so far so good.</div>
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While fewer in number, the brand formerly known as Tandem still consists of single vineyard and Sonoma Coast bottlings from some of the finest, most prestigious vineyards on the North Coast: <br />
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<li>DuNah – in the fog and windswept Sebastopol Hills, at the southernmost end of the Russian River Valley AVA</li>
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<li>Sangiacomo’s Roberts Road – (not to be confused with the Sangiacomo family’s Carneros plantings), falling in the Sonoma Coast AVA on the eastern edge of Petaluma Gap, at the base of Sonoma Mountain</li>
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<li>Van der Kamp – a 1,400 ft. elevation Sonoma Mountain planting (highest in the AVA) dating back to the early sixties</li>
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<li>Lorenzo – an historic 36 year old Chardonnay vineyard on the floodplain south of Santa Rosa in the Russian River Valley AVA</li>
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<li>Hawk’s Roost – another late ripening Russian River Valley site located on the Santa Rosa floodplain</li>
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<li>Manchester Ridge – a newer site (planted 2002-2004) on a remote, dizzyingly high 2,200 ft. peak in Mendocino Ridge, barely 4 miles from the Pacific Ocean, and one that has only solidified La Follette’s reputation for edgy, iconoclastic winegrowing.</li>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lorenzo Vineyard</td></tr>
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This past spring La Follette sat down and talked about his 27 years of winegrowing, now crystallized in his eponymous new brand:<br />
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<b>RC:</b><b> </b> Although you’ve established a reputation for the unorthodox, I’ve heard you say that you attribute most of what you’ve learned to U.C. Davis.</div>
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<b>GL: </b>I originally thought of becoming a Catholic priest. Instead I ended up studying chemistry at U.C. San Francisco, earned my degree in plant biology and chemistry, and started doing research in the U.C. system. My specialty was infectious diseases, particularly AIDS, but it became difficult for me emotionally. Finally I said, life’s too short, and much to the chagrin of my parents I went back to school to study analytical chemistry at U.C. Davis, and got my degree in winegrowing. That was in 1987.</div>
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<b>RC: </b>What did they call that degree at that time?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> My diploma read, Food Science and Technology. I actually stayed an extra year at Davis, working on-staff as a chemist, while continuing to take as many viticultural courses as I could. In fact, three years earlier I had already started working at Simi Winery, where Zelma Long was winemaker, Paul Hobbes was assistant winemaker, and Diane Kenworthy was the viticulturist – all great people to learn from. While attending Davis and working at Simi, I was primarily looking into the role of pectins and their uses as a possible marker for ripeness. Then after taking my degree at Davis I started working at Chalone with Dick Graff, who actually gave me 67 barrels for my research. I recruited John Kongsgaard, who was at Newton, to help me out as well.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> Sounds like a lot places to be at one time.</div>
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<b>GL:</b> No kidding – I was going crazy, driving all over the place. But what I really wanted to look at was the effects of Burgundian winemaking techniques, which I was able to do in three different places. Right about that time, in 1991, I met André Tchelistcheff at Beaulieu, who became probably the single biggest influence in my winegrowing career.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> How so?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> André was huge – an amazing man, so focused on wine, holding so much knowledge in his hand, which he would sort of take out in little bits from his pocket, hold it forward in his hand for you to examine, or to pick up and put into your own pocket. He would never force anything down your throat – most of the time he was more interested in listening to what <i>I</i> had to say. André also taught me things like, “never let winemaking ruin your personal life,” and “pay attention to your children” – which I never forgot.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> Aside from Tchelistcheff, who were your other key influences?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> Ralph Kunkee, Roger Boulton and Ann Noble were my three thesis professors at U.C. Davis, and they were influential in the way that I thought. Not so much what they tried to teach me, but how to investigate, how to ask questions. They gave me tools, not answers – how to problem-solve. </div>
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It was an incredible stroke of luck that I was able to work for André Tchelistcheff because he gave me the opportunity to put that approach to problem-solving to work, all the while encouraging me to go off on other projects – like starting up Yarra Ridge in Australia, and Jarvis in Napa Valley. I took those jobs, but kept boomeranging back to Beaulieu for the privilege of working with André, and doing exhaustive research for him, like 24 Pinot Noir clonal trials. Finally, in 1994, a job offer came up with Kendall-Jackson – to start up a new brand called Hartford Court, and to help resuscitate La Crema. André thought that this was going to be the next big thing, the wave of the future, and he encouraged me to go. So I started with the K-J properties, where I ended up carving out my own position as an in-house consultant/problem-solver, viticulturist/winemaker.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> This was right before your move to Flowers?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> In 1996 I was out in the Sonoma Coast during the harvest, walking through the rows ahead of the picking crew and flagging vines, because there was some real variability in that field. I looked across the canyon and saw another picking crew really having a hard time, and so after I was done I got into my car and drove on over – we were on a different ridge, so the drive took 45 minutes – hopped out and introduced myself to Joan and Walt Flowers, who had just recently planted their first 18 acres, and just starting to build their winery.</div>
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Walt looked at me and said, “who are you?” I told him I was Greg La Follete, and Joan said, “Oh, you’re <i>Greg La Follette</i> – I just read your column last night about designing a winery for minimal cost and maximum quality output.” Long story short, they were looking for help. Their vineyard, frankly, wasn’t planted properly – in fact, a lot of their acreage had already slipped down the slope – and winery construction was running about a million dollars over budget. And so 5 weeks and about 10 interviews later, I started work for Joan and Walt, sat down with their winery design team to make the necessary changes, and got it completed by the following vintage. We came in several hundred thousand dollars under budget, and still improved the quality output.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> What was the appeal of Flowers to take you away from that plum job at Kendall-Jackson?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> There weren’t a lot of vineyards in the area at the time. Hirsch was established across the way, and the Bohans were the first to plant out there, although they had planted Merlot which ripened only about two out of every three years. There were no wineries other than Flowers. We were planting some very cutting-edge clones and rootstocks, and we did some really cool vineyard engineering to deal with the high elevation, heavy rainfall and steep slopes.</div>
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It was a great place to be a pioneer, and a great place to raise children. Nick Peay was my cellarer for about two years, Luke Porter Bass was my cellarmaster, and I hired Hugh Chappelle as a day-to-day winemaker and Ross Cobb as a harvest enologiest. I helped out Linda and Lester Schwartz, who were planting out Fort Ross Vineyard next door, and of course, Marcassin and people like Ehren Jordan were doing some big things in the region as well. I think Flowers was a nucleus for a lot of things that were starting to blossom on the coast at that time.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> How did your experience at Flowers change your outlook on winegrowing?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> It didn’t. I already had just about all my thoughts and ideas in place well before I got to Flowers. At Flowers, though, I was able to fully implement them. </div>
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<b>RC:</b> Such as?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> It was kind of like new viticulture, using every part of every day in vines’ processing of their surroundings to make the most effective wine possible. Employing a Carbohydrate Repartitioning Strategy, which involves <i>timing </i>of leafing, not just leafing, but in very specific places near clusters just after fruit set. Pruning strategy, appropriate modifications of the Guyot-Côte methods employed in Burgundy. Bringing that information into the winery and doing wild primary and secondary fermentations. Doing a lot of gentle nudging rather than bashing of wines. Open top fermenters, hand punching, going to barrel early and dirty, moderate use of oak rather than big, whacking heaps of oak. Letting yeast interact with barrel polyphenols to unleash flavor.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> Could you elaborate on your last point about yeasts?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> Yeasts are actually capable of bio-transforming barrel phenols and softening them. Prior research, at U.C. Davis, and during my time with André, had indicated that going to barrel early was very important for that. But of course, the work starts in the vineyard. One of the first things I did at Flowers was take the 18 acres they had planted – which was all cordon spur pruned, resulting in wines with very hard tannins – and do the Texas Chainsaw Massacre thing. We lopped off all the cordoned arms, and implemented a double Guyot modified cane system. Almost immediately tannin ripeness and fruit balance improved dramatically. In other parts of the property we went from meter x meter to 5 by 8 foot spacing, increased yields from 1 to over 3 tons per acre, and we improved quality significantly – something borne out by higher scores. </div>
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<b>RC:</b> So you were able to improve quality by <i>increasing</i> yields? That doesn’t sound right, especially for Pinot noir.</div>
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<b>GL:</b> There is an old adage that says “low yield makes better wine,” but this is horse-puppy. <i>Balanced</i> vines make better wines. Sometimes lower yields can make worse wine. The earliest vintages of Flowers Pinot noirs, for instance, were tannic monsters – their fruit is long gone. The key is putting the breaks on shoot tip growth and initiating carbohydrate repartitioning – encouraging vines to go from a vegetative stage to a reproductive stage, preferably at lower Brix. This is where you get earlier formation of color and flavor aromas. You get that by doing things like opening up canopies and getting earlier light penetration, not dropping leaves too early or too late, getting moderate leaf size, not too large and not too small.</div>
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At lower yields vines aren’t always interested in ripening tannins, so they make you wait for it – often at a higher Brix than what you want. Of course, for Pinot noir it depends entirely upon the clone and site. While many clones perform better at lower tonnage, there are clones grown on a fertile site that actually need to be picked at higher tonnage to come into better balance.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> When you talk about this – achieving ripeness at lower Brix – it also sounds like a good way to address the issue of high alcohol, which has recently become a big topic, or bone of contention, in the press.</div>
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<b>GL:</b> Whether a wine is below 14% alcohol or above 14% alcohol is really not my focus, but I will say this – I haven’t used a refractometer in over 30 years. I learned long ago, working with Zelma Long, the right way to taste grapes – how to excoriate the seeds in your mouth to ascertain ripeness, and why you always pick for flavor. In 2010 my lowest picking was probably about 20° Brix, and my highest maybe about 24°. Among our current releases, we have wines under 14% alcohol, and wines over 14% alcohol. </div>
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I realize that sommeliers really are the first line of defense – they’re tasting wines, and deciding which wines people will experience – and they can probably decide for themselves whether or not a wine is balanced, whether a wine is good for the food they’re serving, or whether a wine is better off served by the glass like a cocktail.</div>
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But for winemakers, our job is to make wines of balance and harmony. This argument about whether wines should be lower or higher than 14% alcohol reminds me of the argument between a married couples having troubles, especially those with children. You know who always suffers the most from those arguments? The children. You know what suffers the most from this argument about wines having too much alcohol? The <i>terroir</i>. We let <i>terroir </i>fall through the cracks when we go back and forth on alcohol, and it’s <i>terroir </i>that really matters – at least for the wines that matter most to me.</div><div class="MsoPlainText"><br /></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pinot Meunier in Van der Kamp Vineyard.</td></tr>
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<b>RC:</b> But doesn’t the high alcohol question call into question the wisdom of how California wine is grown?</div>
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<b>GL</b>: No question, with good farming practices you don’t have to wait forever – for higher sugars or dessication – in order to find balance. Regardless of where you’re growing or what you’re growing, intra-cellular machinery has to start well before veraison – you can actually start getting carbohydrate competition to effect berry cell division and berry cell expansion just after flowering. That's what I mean by Carbohydrate Repartitioning Strategy, involving deliberate leaf pulling in the fruit zone to redirect carbohydrate resources from vegetative strategy [growing canes, leaves, etc.] to reproductive strategy [ripening fruit]. </div><div class="MsoPlainText"><br /></div><div class="MsoPlainText">Less berry cell division means fewer cells per berry, which means smaller berries and more concentration. Less berry cell expansion means smaller berries and more surface to volume ratio, resulting in more concentration in the absence of excess sugar. If you’re not getting that, it probably means you need to re-examine what you’re doing in the vineyard. Or it may mean you planted the wrong grapes in the wrong site.</div>
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What I’m more interesting in learning is the language of wine, which is nothing more than the language of vine physiology and yeast cell biology, and the more you learn those particular speeches the better you can speak to those needs.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> At a conference in Santa Cruz, I once heard you talk about yeast cell biology in terms of wild fermentation and nutrient deprivation. How is that consistent with what you learned at U.C. Davis?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> One of the first things you learn at U.C. Davis is that <i>Saccharomyces</i> can produce aromatic molecules – for instance, one that produces the beautiful smell of rose petals. But the only way yeasts are able to do this is if they first exhaust their nitrogen sources. The first thing they eat is ammonia, and then they start on amino acids, preferentially. The first amino acid they eat is analine, and the last amino acid they eat is phenylanaline. And so yeasts chop off the phenyl group to get to the analine portion, and basically substitute the remaining benzene ring, or molecules, for 4-ethyl phenethanol – and <i>voila</i>, the smell of rose petals.</div>
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What you learn from this kind of winemaking is, “Wow, you <i>can</i> push the dragon’s tail and get some really cool aromas and flavors.” This is why it’s not such a good idea to add a bunch of yeast nutrients or to inoculate prophylactically. Wild ferments can take forever, and often require prayer and occasional interventions. But the advantage is their stress responders. Think of yeast cells as being like athletes – you train them by making them run, not by feeding them bonbons. When the yeasts start to tire, molecular walls start to crumble, and they begin to build macro-molecules that give wines more structure, like steel girders. You also get more attractive mouthfeels, and complex aromas, like the smell of rose petals or roasted meats.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> But isn’t it true that at U.C. Davis winemakers are discouraged from employing wild fermentation?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> Davis doesn’t really teach you answers – they teach tools of investigation. They tell you about the good and the bad stuff, wild ferments vs. inoculated ferments, where you can go wrong and where you can go right. Make no mistake – wild fermentation is not practicing safe winemaking, but it can produce more interesting and unusual wine. Wines I call enigmatic, which speak to a sense of place, rather than simple varietal character.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> When you say “sense of place,” aren’t you talking more about following the French, and specifically Burgundian, traditions, as opposed to the science of U.C. Davis?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> I certainly investigated Burgundian techniques very thoroughly, but my idea was to find out how these things work, not necessarily to follow them. Once you find out how, you can improve upon it. One of the things you discover is that some Burgundian techniques work, but for reasons that are the <i>opposite</i> of what they say. A good example is the practices of <i>sur lie</i> and<style>
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In my own research I’ve found that the absorption of tannin into proteins happens very quickly following primary fermentation, but if you sweep away the lees you’re sweeping away a big pool of tannins. If you allow lees to remain in contact, there is a slow re-release of tannins back into the wine, along with macro-molecules that are also enriching the wine and bathing over those tannins. The result is a taking away of the aggressiveness of those tannins. So instead of feeling those tannins like a big punch, you’re masking those tannins by grabbing them, and putting more fatness and richness into the mid-palate, and extending that feel into the late palate.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> Does this also explain the more consistent longevity of Burgundian wines, compared to most New World wines?</div>
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<b>GL:</b><b> </b> You got it. About a couple weeks after primary fermentation, yeasts always begin to prepare to go into a deep space. So what they do is jettison all their intra-cellular material, all the guts that they don’t need for anything but going into deep sleep survival mode outside the presence of sugar, and a lot of those compounds are great anti-oxidants. That’s why you stir, and you add oxygen, and even encourage brown juicing – because the lees are able to absorb these compounds, resulting in much more interesting, profound and longer lived wines.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lorenzo Vineyard, Spring 2011.</td></tr>
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<b>RC:</b> It seems to me, when I taste one of your Chardonnays or Pinot noirs, there is invariably some kind of odd fragrance or unusual perfume not found in Chardonnays and Pinots from other producers – even those who espouse natural fermentations and work with other cold climate sites in the North Coast. What’s up with that?</div>
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<b>GL</b>: It’s no accident because I’m never focused on just primary fruit – I’m always looking for complexity. I think, for instance, that if you can combine the smell of mushrooms, or forest floor, rose petals or roasted venison, by favoring a cold loving yeast during early stages of fermentation, and if you have that yeast as an indigenous part of a particular vineyard, then what you are doing is opening yourself up to form a closer partnership with the land. You are digging out all the possibilities of the land, and you’re letting a vineyard speak in a voice or language it wants to speak in. I’ve always felt that it’s my job, my mission, to bring that voice forward. I’m not going impose anything, I’m going to remain quiet and listen, and really try to form a partnership in the same way I might partner with someone I love and respect. To me, this is a wilder, more satisfying approach to wine.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> Even if those aromas and flavors come out “weird?”</div>
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<b>GL:</b> Especially. Complexities inherent in a vineyard’s yeast population can be like an exotic flower, a rose petal, or a forest floor. It can be feral, often <i>sauvage et animale</i>. If you can find that fine seam of tension that exists between the floral and the feral, and get it just right, I think you make a more transcendent wine – like the tension in the notes that build up in, say, Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> Yet in the past, you’ve often used the term “Euro-centric” to describe your wines.</div>
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<b>GL:</b> When I used that term, I meant relying less on oak and ultra-ripeness to make a meaningful wine. Relying on higher acidity, but a balanced acidity, and less focus on fruit, more focus on complexity. There was a time when it seemed like the highest scoring Chardonnays and Pinot noirs were bigger, higher in alcohol, oakier, and jammier or more opulent in fruit, but that never seemed to keep many of our wines from scoring very high, or even finishing on top.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> Was this also a way of saying that your wines are less “manipulated?”</div>
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<b>GL:</b> It’s mostly about practicing good vineyard husbandry, but I never felt that we were that good when it comes to handling in the winery. So we watch our wines very closely – giving them a little nudge here, a little nudge there. We ferment in shallow tubs so that we can do hand punch-downs, because that’s more intimate, and because that’s how you can feel the heat and aromas coming out of the musts. We sample lees in our mouth, to see if they’re nice and creamy, sweet or stinky. We monitor our wines barrel by barrel, handling each one like separate lot. It’s like little children – you have to be there early on to diaper them, then you watch them stumble and fall as they get older, and you’re still watching them closely when you’re handing them the keys as they walk out the door.<b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: 11pt;">RC:</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> Back up a little and tell me what makes your fermentors unusual?</span><b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: 11pt;">GL:</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> We use halved stainless steel milk tanks, which range from one ton to six tons. As they get bigger, they get longer and broader, insuring that the cap stays within the human strength-range of punchdown ability, including a 114 pound teenage boy. A very important consideration in my sons’ training as young men who have the wherewithal to work hard and know what it all means.</span><br />
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<b>RC:</b> Now for the million dollar question – is it pronounced “La-FAH-lette,” or “LAH-Fol-lette?”</div>
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<b>GL:</b> My name is “La-FAH-lette,” but the brand is “LAH-Fol-LETTE.” We figured it’s easier to identify with the French pronunciation.</div>
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<b>RC:</b> Final question – if you could shuck it all away tomorrow, what would you be doing?</div>
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<b>GL:</b> Growing grapes, of course, but in my own vineyard. But I think I’d like to try it with a horse and plow. When you plow the dirt yourself, you see everything, and every clod means even more. Then again, I always liked horsing around!</div>
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<b>LA FOLLETTE WINES’ CURRENT RELEASES</b></div>
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<b>2009 La Follette, Sangiacomo Vineyard, Sonoma Coast Chardonnay</b> ($30) – Cold, foggy coastal air funneled in a direct line through the Petaluma Gap to this cobbled, rocky, old riverbed site has consistently made for the nutrient starved wild yeast ferments favored by La Follette; engendering, in Chardonnays, flavor/aromas with as much minerality and toasted almond as intense apple, pineapple and lemon varietal fruit definitions, while slapping a viscous layer over snappy, sinewy, high acid texturing. Make no mistake, the profile is Californian, but definitely with an Old World raunch.</div>
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<b>2008 La Follette, Lorenzo Vineyard, Russian River Valley Chardonnay</b> ($38) – While not the coldest site in the La Follette book (that would be Du Nah in the nearby Sebastopol Hills, and Manchester Ridge on Mendocino Ridge), the clay soil, older vines and microbiology of the vineyard conspire to yield one of the slowest evolving Chardonnays grown in California. After three years, ‘the 08 remains tight, compact, steel rimmed – more like a wine coming right out of the shoot – although the viscous lemon and honey roasted nut qualities oozing out of a citrus center are clearly indicating a fleshing out into those lavish, creamy sensations for which Lorenzo is always known.</div>
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<b>2008 La Follette, Manchester Ridge Vineyard, Mendocino Ridge Chardonnay </b>($48) – La Follette is fond of calling this “the new paradigm” of California Chardonnay,” and he kids you not: Tthere are outward sensations of minerality that remind you of Chablis, although nothing in Chablis comes close to the flowery perfume – an almost Riesling-like exoticism – typifying Manchester Ridge. In fact, there is no Chardonnay based white in the world that has this; necessitating a rearranging of one’s comfort zone when addressing this particular animal. <i>Terroir</i> plays its part, and so does the Chardonnay clone 809 -- a sexy new variant of the Musqué clones, sans the<i> millerandage</i> (shot, or uneven sized, berries) – which composes a third of this bottling. The other two-thirds is vinified from Old Wente, a classic shot-berry Chardonnay Musqué favored up and down the coast. Ergo, it is clearly the high elevation, frigid yet sun soaked (i.e., well above the fog line), late ripening nature of the site itself that fashions the edgy, lean, tart edged yet ultra-fine, silken threaded qualities of this wine, bursting with the honeysuckle flower and citrus/lime driven fruit, just hinting at old fashioned butterscotch beneath the stony veneer.</div>
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<b>2009 La Follette, Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir</b> ($30) – Pretty much a classic, voluptuous, sumptuously fruited North Coast style of pinot, but with earthy, forest floor, almost soy-like nuances that whisper into the ear like a salacious, husky voiced harlot. The chubby, young fruit mixes red and black berries with a touch of cola, its lacy sweetness barely hiding sharp, bony tannin.</div>
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<b>2009 La Follette, Sangiacomo Vineyard, Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir</b> ($40) – In the Sangiacomo Pinot Noir, the feral aspects of this vineyard’s microbiology infuses the varietal’s fragrant raspberry and exotic tea spices with nuanced rose petal and sensations of roasting meat. Smoke of oak piles on to the complexity, and the feel is sensual in its silkiness, young tannins poking through like sharp elbows, thickening the wild, earth toned fruit.</div>
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<b>2009 La Follette, DuNah Vineyard, Russian River Valley Pinot Noir</b> ($40) – Here, luscious strawberry preserve perfumes are underlined by pungent organic notes consistent with this site, suggesting rubber boots trudging through crumbling leaves and damp earth. On the palate, the earth toned flavors is dense, meaty, yet sweet with the vibrant red berry qualities.</div>
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<b>2008 La Follette, Van der Kamp Vineyard, Sonoma Mountain Pinot Noir </b>($40) – The La Follette penchant for tertiary extraction – in this case, leather, mushrooms, forest floor – kicks up a notch in the Van der Kamps; the ‘08, girded by the site’s typical, muscular mountain tannin, and a varietal profile that is less floral, more fruit focused, tinged with a sweet peppermint, leafy herb spice. The feel is dense, savory, fullsome; tannins coming across with clove-like, almost malty thickness.</div>
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<b>2008 La Follette, Manchester Ridge Vineyard, Mendocino Ridge Pinot Noir</b> ($50) – Early studies of Manchester Ridge done by La Follette for U.C. Davis revealed the presence of more polymerizable phenols in its fruit than in any site he’s ever examined; a phenomenon certainly borne out in the ’08: By far, the most <i>animale</i> of the La Follette cuvées – the essence of the sweet, slightly soured scent of the inside of a woman’s leather glove that Tchelistcheff often spoke of – combined with the oak to give charred meat sensations, suffused by ultra-rich, ringing, berry liqueur quality of the varietal. On the palate, the luxuriousness takes on sensual textures, like chocolate melting on strawberries, all but making you forget what a unique, or strange, fruit of a pinot this really is.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rick DuNah in DuNah Vineyard.</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-33342872936136671122011-06-07T22:38:00.010-06:002017-03-21T11:51:48.738-06:00TAPAS wines defy convention...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>At the TAPAS Grand Tasting in the City by the Bay</b></div>
<i> </i><br />
<i>What's the buzz...</i><br />
<i>Tell me what's a-happening?</i><br />
- Rice & Webber<br />
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First, just the facts, ma’am: <br />
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Over 1,900 wine and food lovers attended the <a href="http://www.tapasociety.org/">TAPAS</a> (Tempranillo Advocates Producers & Amigos Society) Grand Wine Tasting in San Francisco’s Fort Mason this past Saturday, June 4; making this the third year in a row that attendance to this once modest affair has doubled.<br />
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Out of that 1,900+, some 75% of those attendees were clearly younger than 35, giving the organization’s wineries (about 80 of them), growers and card holding “amigos” (another 30+) a strong idea of where their <i>pan</i> is currently being buttered.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfASMAugf3RFReempcmGH3kZO6epAM3bEAI-BzCBEQZp68H4ZEV6HBejTUezAXnxzo2rLm12O2A9aiUMPko6oYsdPGUBt1NWe8yB_9oSAwcGM1XoQPG5eLuIfLbpGgYe8VdSWybsYJATY/s1600/IMG_6861.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfASMAugf3RFReempcmGH3kZO6epAM3bEAI-BzCBEQZp68H4ZEV6HBejTUezAXnxzo2rLm12O2A9aiUMPko6oYsdPGUBt1NWe8yB_9oSAwcGM1XoQPG5eLuIfLbpGgYe8VdSWybsYJATY/s400/IMG_6861.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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... and as we all know, when it comes to fashion, food and wine, very often the other consumer segments follow the younger crowd. It often takes the older folks a little longer to catch on to a good thing like this: the appreciation of wines and foods associated with grapes of Spanish and Portuguese traditions.</div>
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Second, your come-to-Jesus caveat: these wines do not lend themselves to the <i>same ol’</i> qualitative assessments to which mommy and daddy, gramps and granny used to subscribe, and blindly follow. You cannot put a number like “95” or “85” on, say, the <b>2007 Abacela Umpqua Valley Estate Tempranillo</b> – grown, as it were, by TAPAS founder <a href="http://www.abacela.com/Story/index.htm">Earl Jones</a> in the rolling hills of Southern Oregon – as dark, buoyant, concentrated, fraise-like, fleshy or wild beasty a red wine as you may perceive it to be.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUhnt8z6Fav_V67njTbGrStlE4YjZe60PSBP6F8_c4FiPMeTGP7uuBxNaDX3gWsOAfaLfC91Et7nC3b0yi-N9ZyUIep__rzLZc-FlEpCQib8D38LPt0gOKkRagj-LVo61qu09qAzm0-bg/s1600/IMG_6775.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUhnt8z6Fav_V67njTbGrStlE4YjZe60PSBP6F8_c4FiPMeTGP7uuBxNaDX3gWsOAfaLfC91Et7nC3b0yi-N9ZyUIep__rzLZc-FlEpCQib8D38LPt0gOKkRagj-LVo61qu09qAzm0-bg/s400/IMG_6775.jpg" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Abacela proprietors, Earl & Hilda Jones</td></tr>
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Fact of the matter is, an Abacela Tempranillo knows no stinking numbers when you actually drink it the right way, with something like herb roasted leg of lamb. a whole pig, or grilled, pungent portobellos or eggplant. It’s when you experience such wines in culinary context that meaty flavors and complexities your senses have no way of detecting when tasting the wine on its own suddenly emerge and knock you upside the chin, and then you are visited by this epiphany: wines crafted from Spanish and Portuguese grapes cannot, should not, and absolutely will not be pinned down by concepts as odiferous as 100 point scores, as well meaning as people who dole them out may be.<br />
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Judging from the crowd at the TAPAS tasting in San Francisco, we think this “new” way (actually an old way, since wine historically evolved within culinary cultures) of appreciating wine may finally be sinking in: people there for an <i>experience </i>of good wines, not to make judgements, or to rush home afterwards and tear out those dreary magazines or dive into online reviews droning mindlessly on with “ratings” as if good drinking wines were appliances awaiting their Good Housekeeping seals of approval...<br />
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That is... hey, teacher, leave those TAPAS producers alone!<br />
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This off our chests, let’s talk about a few things that went down in San Francisco, particularly in terms of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lodi_AVA">Lodi</a> grown grapes, since this <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Viticultural_Area">American Viticultural Area</a> has recently emerged as the largest and most serious source of these Iberian grapes, whether vinified by local producers like <a href="http://www.bokischvineyards.com/">Bokisch Vineyards</a> or <a href="http://www.bokischvineyards.com/">Alta Mesa Cellars</a>, or produced and bottled outside the region by wineries like <a href="http://www.fenestrawinery.com/">Fenestra Winery</a> in Livermore Valley, <a href="http://www.santacruzmountainvineyard.com/quintacruzwines.html">Quinta Cruz Wines</a> in Santa Cruz, or <a href="http://www.odiseawineco.com/">Odisea Wine Company</a> in Murphys, Calaveras County.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Savoy's halibut pineapple seviche with Harney Lane Albarino</td></tr>
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Perhaps it was meant to be: that Lodi’s <a href="http://www.harneylane.com/">Harney Lane Winery</a> happened to positioned right next to the table manned by Oakland’s <a href="http://www.savoyevents.com/">Savoy Events</a>, where chef/owner Mica Talmor Gott was dishing out a halibut pineapple seviche, tinged with the fresh licorice flavor of tarragon, pungent cilantro, and mildly green-spiced notes of chopped poblano, on oven crisped, red spiced tortilla chips and topped with milky, bouncy <i>queso blanco fresco</i>. </div>
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The funnest foods, of course, are balanced by exhilarating sensations exactly like that, and the match with the <b>2010 Harney Lane Lodi Albariño</b> – a steely dry white wine of lemony and mineral-toned dexterities offset by flowery fresh perfumes – not only made you want to grab more of these seviche chips and throw them in your mouth, it also made you wanna cry as if the intricacy of such simple, quiet yet effective sensations had suddenly eluded you all your pitiful life.<br />
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Another TAPAS Grand Tasting highlight was a cooking demo put on by chef/owner James Campbell Caruso of <a href="http://www.labocasf.com/">La Boca</a> in Santa Fe, who put out a dish of calamari seared in Spanish olive oil and lemon juice, served with rice cooked with dabs of <i>tinta calamar</i> (black squid ink) and refreshing specks of chopped tomato. If there ever was an earthy seafood dish bursting with the smell and taste of the ocean, this was it; and it was these sensations that brought out an almost revelatory saline, and <a href="http://culinarywineandfoodmatching.blogspot.com/2009/09/what-is-umami-and-why-is-everyone.html">umami</a> driven, side of the intrinsic minerality found in the grape of the varietal bottlings of both the lime and honeyed almond scented <b>2010 Bokisch Clements Hills-Lodi Albariño</b> and the slightly fuller yet lemony crisp, honeysuckle and tropical fruit nuanced <b>2010 Abacela Umpqua Valley Albariño</b>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2U48dRsn40b_xnYlVS42Q0t36-XNOv8AKAls7g3qVzSBjncIaipDDqqsRm8uxYFkLE9TNaqblTiL1wAsYxXCsocEJy8u9KjAQ0jzp6ho3uMBjltjWyQJ8EeUOqW5Y1sfAUwtUytnT9Aw/s1600/IMG_6825.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2U48dRsn40b_xnYlVS42Q0t36-XNOv8AKAls7g3qVzSBjncIaipDDqqsRm8uxYFkLE9TNaqblTiL1wAsYxXCsocEJy8u9KjAQ0jzp6ho3uMBjltjWyQJ8EeUOqW5Y1sfAUwtUytnT9Aw/s400/IMG_6825.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Countdown to ecstasy: Bokisch Albarino, Spanish olive oil & squid ink</td></tr>
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Hammering the lesson home: these really are <i>food </i>wines, and as such, phenomenal in themselves, whether or not this is understood by members of the mainstream wine press who traditionally abhor wines, or winemaking, that even hint at culinary purposes. </div>
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But it was, after all, a very large and public tasting; and in that situation you walk a floor, jostle with a jovial crowd at the tables, and take your best shot at some kind of mnenomic discernment of the wine samples splashing in your glass. Luckily we have plenty of experience at that, and the fact that we actually write down notes. Some of the other high points of that day:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alta Mesa/Silvaspoons' Ron Silva</td></tr>
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<b>2009 Alta Mesa, Alta Mesa-Lodi Verdelho</b> – There were a number of outstanding Verdelhos shown; and out of all of them, this one grown by Ron Silva’s Silvaspoons Vineyard might have been the most palate slaking: its flowery perfumes – suggesting peach skin, lavender, lime and lemon verbena – levitated by citrusy acidity and a moderate, slinky body. That said, in a similar vein, the <b>2010 St. Amant Amador County Verdelho</b> seemed just as sleek, suggesting sweet/tart pears as much as citrus. While even riper toned and fuller in feel, the <b>2009 Quinta Cruz Verdelho</b> (also sourced from Silva’s Silvaspoons) had the lacy, leafy green, lemon verbena notes found in the Alta Mesa, along with the soft, nutty, mildly bitter taste suggesting <a href="http://www.marconaalmonds.com/">Marcona Almonds</a>. <br />
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<b>2010 Jeremy, Lodi Albariño</b> – Many say Albariño should be lighter and zestier than what has been produced for the most part on the West Coast; and unquestionably, the higher latitude length of days in Oregon’s Umpqua Valley and the Delta cooled <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir"><i>terroirs</i></a> of Lodi have a propensity to produce Albariños of somewhat lavish perfumes (although deliberate earlier and earlier picking have lightened recent vintages by Abacela and Bokisch quite significantly). But if for a more pristine, puristic, light and lively Albariño you pine, the <a href="http://jeremywineco.com/">Jeremy</a> gives you that, with slivers of apricot and twists of lemon in lithe, limber sensations. Not too far off in a similar, light and unfettered vein, the <b>2010 Odisea<i> Dream</i> Clements Hills Albariño</b> – grown by Markus Bokisch in his La Cerezas Vineyard – was tasting more starkly floral, with more of a green apple rather than lemony tartness.<br />
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<b>2009 Odisea, <i>Two Rows </i>California Garnacha</b> – Sourced from both Mendocino and Lodi’s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clements_Hills_AVA">Clements Hills AVA</a> -- the latter, farmed by Gregg Lewis, the proprietor/grower of <a href="http://www.lodiwine.com/blog/lodi-tempranillo-takes-the-cake">Dancing Fox</a> -- this red wine stood out for its blast of bright, red, strawberryish fruit, luscious in the nose and meaty in the mouth, even when tightening in the middle with firming tannin and chewing tobacco-like juiciness. Granted, the accessibility of this wine is somewhat mainstream (wine geeks or critics can easily grasp its “opulent” fruitiness); but in the vein of a good TAPAS style wine, its moderately scaled bottle would also make it “awesome” with food (we’re thinking simple gazpacho or rustic <i>pan con tomate</i> – toasted bread rubbed with garlic, chopped tomatoes, olive oil and rock salt).<br />
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<b>2009 Odisea, <i>Unusual Suspects</i></b> – A blend of 50% Lodi old-vine Carignane, with Grenache (from Mendocino) and Tempranillo (from Lodi’s Lewis Vineyard), this fruit forward red is teeming with bright cherry aromas and flavors, soft and lush in the entry, solidifying into a smoky meatiness towards the finish. Think of this as like a cross-dressing Pinot Noir – it wants to be all pretty and perfumed, but the larynx is deepening and the shoulders too wide for the top – and as such, you can probably do things like stuff a steak with oysters, or simply rub it with olive oil, grill with cracked pepper, and lay it all out with thick slices of beefsteak tomato dressed in ribbons of basil and a variation of yellow Spanish rice.</div>
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<b>2007 Fenestra, <i>Silvaspoons Vineyards</i> Lodi Touriga</b> - Made from roughly equal parts Touriga Nacional and Touriga Francesa — the former known for making robust, full tannin reds, and the latter for lighter, more perfumed and finesseful reds — this is a generously black fruited red, dense and muscular down to the core, yet plummy, almost sweet toned around the edges. While fluid in fleshiness, the feel is beefy, and the finish tinged by some coffee ground tannin. Definitely a carnivore’s red; yet different, more visceral, from that of, say, a Cabernet Sauvignon drinker’s red: you wanna to drench your meats with more olive oil or pungent Mediterranean herbs with a wine like this to bring out the slightly raisined, sun inflected notes, or utilize more aromatic aged cheeses made from sheep’s mile (Manchego or Pecorino) to coax out more earthen bass notes. However which way you do it, this is a wine sharpened by awareness of food, not a wine critic’s pen.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEcQlYP0bt6IekGNtDYLOdoUikhVTGkoBCE9wbbvHk7iYLA67CDS3SL6wLqNvH6nI0UG4Ih7L2m6T26z1NEHKkk-4eOoRhWgXufEpNYd841Z3Uuo1eZR6ugDP1L1Hqt7ZtUjT26VaLWr4/s1600/IMG_6759.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEcQlYP0bt6IekGNtDYLOdoUikhVTGkoBCE9wbbvHk7iYLA67CDS3SL6wLqNvH6nI0UG4Ih7L2m6T26z1NEHKkk-4eOoRhWgXufEpNYd841Z3Uuo1eZR6ugDP1L1Hqt7ZtUjT26VaLWr4/s640/IMG_6759.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Harney Lane's Kyle Lerner with St. Amant's Stuart Spencer</td></tr>
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<b>2008 Harney Lane, Lodi Tempranillo</b> – For all intents and purposes, the Tempranillo grape epitomizes the TAPAS culture, producing red wines of quality that might be hard to fathom by conventional standards, particularly if you have trouble weaning yourself off, say, grapes of French origin, which are generally easier to define in terms of “varietal” character. The Harney Lane is typical: it is full and it is savory; yet it is not big and feels soft in the middle. The nose suggests red fruit, but the mind isn’t identifying strawberry, cherry or raspberry in particular. The phenolics seem to give toothsome, faintly chewing tobacco-like sensations; but in the end, the taste is not unlike how winemaker Chad Joseph describes it: like a “chocolate brownie.” Finally, as mentioned earlier, this is a wine that changes on a dinner table: the textures becoming meaty, and the fruit qualities taking on feral, almost animal-like sensations that are absent in the initial perception, sans food. </div>
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Or can we just agree Harney Lane makes delicious Tempranillo? So does St. Amant, for that matter (the <b>2008 St. Amant <i>The Road Less Travelled</i> Amador County Tempranillo</b> tasting particularly wild – like a snorting, black, musclebound bull – in San Francisco), as well as Bokisch Vineyards (a sensual <b>2008 Bokisch <i>Liberty Oaks Vineyard</i> Jahant-Lodi Tempranillo</b> currently laced in black cherryish, somewhat strawberryish, or maybe blackberryish fruit tones... or is it nothing at all?).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXx4wdm6Cmq13hAJIZMKICdij3jtIZ1LGimQy6z_R-hPp-M9TsbzyximWNLhJ3rWtJn6n4yqX_t7C6I6pzmck95OidBCovYrSWVRTxEorZk2sy_-MuvSa5VKzC51G7I6gDnLCALxK9Ubg/s1600/IMG_6772.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXx4wdm6Cmq13hAJIZMKICdij3jtIZ1LGimQy6z_R-hPp-M9TsbzyximWNLhJ3rWtJn6n4yqX_t7C6I6pzmck95OidBCovYrSWVRTxEorZk2sy_-MuvSa5VKzC51G7I6gDnLCALxK9Ubg/s640/IMG_6772.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Markus Bokisch workin' it at the TAPAS Grand Tasting</td></tr>
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We could go on about other fine renderings shown by the TAPAS producers in the City by the Bay. Totally unprecedented wines like the startlingly dark, sinewy, teeth rattling <b>2008 Alta Mesa Cellars Alta Mesa-Lodi Tannat</b>. Classically inspired wines like the sumptuously sweet, neverending <b>2007 Abacela Umpqua Valley Port</b> (crafted from Touriga Nacional, Tinta Cão, Tinta Amarela, Bastardo and Tinta Roriz). Or wines coming seemingly from places unbenownst to the conventional world, like the <b>St. Amant Amador County Tawny Port</b> (an amazing yet strangely <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madeira_wine">Madeira</a>-like, blondie of a sweet fortified wine, regaling the senses with a head shaking storm of vanilla extract, raw honey, preserved lemon, crème caramel and orange peels punctured by cloves). </div>
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But let us just give thanks to these intrepid oenological pioneers, embrace their thought process, and celebrate their success!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chains at San Francisco's Fort Mason</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-999303460548289762011-05-08T22:57:00.020-06:002017-03-21T11:53:12.952-06:00Syrahs in a season of discontent<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Another outstanding <a href="http://www.hospicedurhone.org/"><b>Hospice du Rhône</b></a> – America's premier Rhône style wine festival, taking place each spring in Paso Robles, CA – has come and gone this past April 28-30, and thus another good reason to stop and assess the progress of the quintessential Rhône style red: those made from the syrah grape. <br />
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First things first: there were some startling beauties at this year’s HdR. The <b>2007</b> as well as the <b>2008 Jonata <i>La Sangre de Jonata</i> Santa Ynez Valley Syrah</b>, for instance, seemed larger than life, swollen with perfumed, raspberry liqueur-like syrah concentration; the ’07 tinged by wild scrubby and toasty components, and the ’08 even more specific with roasting meats (what many call “bacon”), wild thyme intensities. <br />
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On a seemingly opposite end of the scale, the <b>2008 Baker Lane Sonoma Coast <i>Estate</i> Syrah</b> was velvety smooth and finesseful – for all the world, pinot noirish in gentility (is this a compliment or insult?) – despite carrying 14.2% alcohol weight; flashing piercing violet perfumes and earthy undertones suggesting sprigs of rosemary and browning forest leaves. The <b>2009 Baker Lane Sonoma Coast <i>Estate</i> Syrah</b> was even prettier – shrouded in lacy silk and flowery fragrances, yet crisply centered, with roasted meat/animal qualities that made you blink and think “Crozes-Hermitage."<br />
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A barrel sample of the Biodynamic® grown <b>2009 Qupe <i>Sawyer Lindquist Vineyard</i> Edna Valley Syrah</b> echoed the ’09 Baker Lane’s silk and lissomeness, with achingly ardorous perfumes of violet, licorice and winter savory. The roasted, chocolaty, coffee-spiced <b>2008 Stolpman <i>Originals Estate</i> Santa Ynez Valley Syrah</b> and framboise-like <b>2008 Stolpman <i>Hilltop Estate</i> Santa Ynez Valley Syrah</b> echoed the Jonatas in enormity – sensuous flesh draped over musclebound bodies – and gravity defying sense of scale.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Epoch winemaker Jordan Fiorentini</td></tr>
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Then there was an obscenely opulent <b>2008 Justin Paso Robles <i>Savant</i></b> (cassis-like syrah amplified by 22% cabernet sauvignon); a barrel sample of blustery, fisticuffing, French sausage-spiced <b>2009 Red Car Sonoma Coast <i>Estate</i> Syrah</b>; a wild scrubbish, smoky, compellingly lavender/violet/cassis scented <b>2007 Halter Ranch <i>Block 22 </i>Paso Robles Syrah</b>; an unrepentantly black, concentrated, pumped pectoraled <b>2008 Epoch <i>Paderewski Vineyard Block B</i> Paso Robles Syrah</b>; and a powerfully pungent, beefy and black cherryish <b>2009 Jaffurs <i>Larner Vineyard</i> Santa Barbara Syrah</b>. All these wines, among numerous others, underlining the point in defiance of oft-heard criticisms: American syrahs are heckagood, even great, by any standard of the grape, past or present.<br />
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For as serious a wine syrah can obviously produce – most wine cognoscenti would rank it with cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir, chardonnay and riesling among the five most important Vitis vinifera cultivated around the world – the grape has been much maligned during the past year or two by, well, that very same cognoscenti, for various reasons of discontent, depending upon the pundit:<br />
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• They say that syrah is grown in too many of the wrong places outside the Northern Rhône Valley; especially in parts of California and Australia where warm climates yield wines of overripe flavor, excessive alcohol, or both.<br />
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• They say American consumers, in particular, have not responded to the growing number of syrahs on the market either because they are “confused” by a plethora of styles or simply because they are disappointed by the overall quality (re the aforementioned reason).<br />
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• More seasoned market observers are saying that the dearth of syrah sales (entailing American, Australian as well as French produced wines) has more to do with the age-old issue of supply exceeding demand, exacerbated by the recent international economic woes and glut of wines, made from any and all grape varieties, in general.<br />
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One thing we do know: truly good, to great, syrah costs as much or more to grow and vinify as truly good to great cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir, chardonnay and riesling; and if anything, in recent years the majority of consumers haven’t exactly been in the mood to spring for $25 to $50-plus bottles of new or unproven brands or varietals. For $8 to, say, $18 bottles of new or unproven brands or varietals: yes, they’ve been more than willing to take the plunge. But as mind blowing as a $100 Jonata may be, we know this is a far less palatable proposition for the everyday Joe or Aunt Gladys than, say, a big, luscious, Lodi grown Brazin Zinfandel or !ZaZin – 14.5% alcohol and all, culled from 40 to 100 year old vines yet retailing for less than $20.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hilary Clarke (left) of Harrison-Clarke Vineyard (grenache & syrahs to die for) at 2011 HdR</td></tr>
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Insofar as the premise that consumers are confused by variations of syrah styles: that seems implausible, since syrah as a wine varies no more – and in fact, considerably less – than varietal wines of perennial popularity, like chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon, and zinfandel. Consumers aren’t that dumb. <br />
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Is the perceived indifference due to the facts that many syrahs are overripe, too high in alcohol, or just not very good? The problem with those assumptions: whether moderate or high in alcohol, sweetly fruited or moderately fruited, the quality of syrahs grown outside the Northern Rhône continues to rise rather than falter – as you would expect in a situation where producers continuously improve in skill and experience – and anyone who says otherwise probably has a hole in the head rather than a palate. In any case, refined, multi-faceted syrahs like the '08 Baker Lane make a mockery of the current preoccupation with alcohol: surely, one of the dumbest non-issues going down today.<br />
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As a matter of fact, the 2011 Hospice du Rhône was also a great opportunity to compare French grown syrahs with American ones, as there were over 90 producers or importers representing the Rhône (Northern and Southern) pouring alongside some 130 American producers. What true blue syrah lover doesn’t enjoy a good Cornas? No doubt, HdR traditionalists enjoyed the earthy, brothy, pungently gamey <b>2008 Clape <i>Renaissance</i> Cornas</b>, whereas I was duly impressed by the less fecal-like, flinty, muscular, marvelously compact and black pepper inundated <b>2007 Alain Voge <i>Les Vieilles Vignes</i></b> <b>Cornas</b>. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Clos Selene's Selene & Guillaume Fabre</td></tr>
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But honestly: could anyone with half a working nose and palate really step back and say that what we are tasting from France these days is still truly head and shoulders “better” or “preferable” to one of now many American grown syrahs of reasonable quality – like the precise and peppery spiced <b>2006 Alban <i>Reva Alban Estate</i> Edna Valley Syrah</b>, the decidedly rambunctious, deep, ponderous <b>2009 McPrice Myers <i>Les Galets</i> Arroyo Grande Valley Syrah</b>, or the dramatically high toned, framboise and licorice laced <b>2009 Clos Selene <i>Hommage à nos Pairs</i> Paso Robles Syrah</b>? I’m sorry, but I don’t think so.<br />
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On the other hand, one interesting observation made by a Frenchman – Michel Gassier of Château de Nages in Costières de Nîmes (where blends of grenache, carignane, mourvèdre and syrah rule the roost) – in a HdR seminar sponsored by the trade council, <a href="http://www.rhone-wines.com/pages/home-en.asp">Côtes du Rhônes Wines</a>, was that young <i>vignerons</i> tend to “start off with a primal scream... you want to produce wines that are too ripe and too extracted, and you think too much of a good thing <i>is</i> a good thing.” Only when a winegrower matures does he begin to understand <i>terroir</i> – “accepting some truths that cannot be explained” – until he reaches a third stage, what Gassier calls “an age of reason... when you view things holistically and are more open to change, and finally begin to make wines from grapes grown in harmony and balance with the environment.” <br />
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That final phase, according to Gassier, often entails the embracing of organic or Biodynamic® practices, although this is less important than simply developing a thought process engendering wines of more “soul,” reflecting a “a partnership of <i>terroir</i> and winemaker.” <br />
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Gassier’s comments became all the more insightful during the HdR seminar following immediately after, called <i>Find Your Mojo</i>, showcasing the syrahs of two American brands of some prestige (especially among the 100 point score circuit), Santa Barbara’s Tensely Wines and Sonoma’s Bedrock Wine Co.: syrahs, as it were, that generally seemed over-extracted, obsessively black and heavy, tilted more towards ultra-ripe fruit and sweet spices derived from oak as opposed to subtleties of texture and varietal character. That is to say: not all the American wines at HdR were impressive in comparison to the French. To a large extent, there is still a lot of immature winemaking going on in the U.S.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tardieu-Laurent's Bastien Tardieu</td></tr>
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The following week in San Francisco, I had a conversation with Bastien Tardieu, the 27 year old son of Michel Tardieu of Tardieu-Laurent, one of the Rhône Valley’s more acclaimed négociants. Having completed his Master’s of Oenology and Viticulture in Montpellier not too long ago, you would think Tardieu to be yet another vintner going through his phase of “primal screaming,” but in fact, wines like the exceedingly elegant, violet and wild mint scented <b>2007 Tardieu-Laurent Cornas</b> and the only slightly <i>rustique</i>, fleshy yet fragrant and multi-faceted <b>2008 Tardieu-Laurent <i>Vieilles Vignes</i> Gigondas</b> (grenache with 15% syrah) give a decidedly opposite impression: winegrowing far more obsessed with interplay of man, grape and <i>terroir</i>, rather than extraction or the almighty 100 point score.<br />
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When asked how effective it might be to grow syrah in warmer climates, like the Barossa Valley (he has worked at Torbreck), California, and the Southern Rhône Valley, Tardieu opined: “yes, you can grow syrah in warmer climates, but it is still a question of balance. I prefer syrah grown in the Northern Rhône where the climate is cooler because there you get a wine that is finer, with more violet, more licorice, and more minerals like silex – the taste of two stones scratching together. In places like Châteauneuf du Pape and the Barossa Valley, we can get the jammy taste that is common to warm regions, but we completely miss all the aromatic complexity we get in the Northern Rhône – the characteristics that make syrah <i>syrah</i>.”<br />
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I found Tardieu’s thoughts to be all the more intriguing because in between HdR and our meeting in San Francisco, I also sat for a <i>Cold Climate Syrah Seminar</i> taking place at Spring Hill Ranch, located in the middle of the Sonoma Coast’s Petaluma Gap. There, along with 40 sommeliers gathered from around the country, we tasted 8 syrahs grown in cooler sections of California’s North Coast; where syrah grapes picked closer to 22° rather than 25° Brix is a norm (resulting in potential alcohols closer to 12% rather than 15%).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eric Sussman, Ehren Jordan & Carroll Kemp pouring syrahs for sommeliers</td></tr>
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One of the presenters during this cold climate summit was Carroll Kemp, winemaker/partner of Red Car, whose Sonoma Coast syrah had wowed me a few days earlier in Paso Robles. According to Kemp, “the style of syrah popularized in previous years is the antithesis of the styles of syrahs now coming from marginal sites along the Sonoma Coast.” Failla’s Ehren Jordan added the point that “many people have a distorted view of syrah, especially from Northern Rhône. I found out fairly quickly, after moving there to work earlier in my career, that ‘roasted slope’ does not mean 90° or 100° temperatures like it does it California. It means more like 80° at the most, and I’m still wearing sweaters in the middle of the summer. If you pick at 21.5° Brix in Cornas, it’s the ‘vintage of the decade!’”<br />
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As it were, the unanimous favorite among the sommeliers seemed to be Jordan’s <b>2009 Failla Sonoma Coast Estate Syrah</b> – hugely, lusciously concentrated with wild blackberry and exotic tea spices and undertones of wild scrubby herbs, yet as lithe and compact as a Nadia Comaneci. Also in this limber, un-Sprockets style: the <b>2008 Wind Gap Sonoma Coast Syrah</b> portrays the flowery side of the grape, with a cassis-like silkiness and suggestions of caramelized game and blueberry; and the <b>2008 Arnot-Roberts <i>Clary Ranch</i> Sonoma Coast Syrah</b> is super spiced and perfumed, with mildly feral and sandalwood spice nuances.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Failla's Ehren Jordan</td></tr>
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In this tasting in Sonoma, winemaker Stephen Singer reprised his finely balanced <b>2008 Baker Lane Sonoma Coast <i>Estate</i> Syrah</b>, with its densely sweet concentration of violet, black/red berry fruit, and, earthy, brushy undertones, hinting at the<i> sauvage</i> typical of wines resulting from wild yeast ferments fostered in cool climate microbiology. There was also extravagantly spiced (cracked pepper, sandalwood, evergreen), if somewhat toasted oak lavished, <b>2007 Ramey <i>Rodgers Creek</i> Sonoma Coast Syrah</b>; and Eric Sussman showed off his woodsy, tightly wound, savory <b>2007 Radio-Coteau <i>Camp Cherry</i> Sonoma Coast Syrah</b>.<br />
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Ah, but is this the future of American syrah? Personally, I would withhold judgement; especially if you have yet to encounter some of the more fascinating growths of Southern Oregon; like the elegantly scaled, sweetly violet scented <b>2008 Cowhorn <i>Reserve</i> Applegate Valley Syrah</b> (also Biodynamic® certified). Or better yet: the flowery, raspberry, flint, lavender and rosemary scented <b>2009 Quady North <i>Steelhead Run </i>Applegate Valley Syrah</b>, draped in swaths of velvet; or the grandly full, judiciously savage and purple mountained <b>2008 RoxyAnn Rogue Valley Syrah</b>. <br />
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The experience of grandly rendered syrahs is not nearly as rare as you may think, and exhilarating examples are being grown in new and <i>different </i>ways outside the Rhône Valley. As to which are the most legitimate: it’s become clearer by the day that saying Sonoma Coast or Southern Oregon grow syrahs of greater validity than Paso Robles or Santa Barbara is as foolish as saying the only great Northern Rhônes are those of Côte-Rôtie and Hermitage and not Cornas, Crozes-Hermitage or Saint-Joseph.<br />
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The sooner the better, when we can all learn to appreciate <i>terroir</i> related qualities; not ones differentiated by artifice or concepts as inane or useless as numerical scores.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cowboy at Paso Robles fairgrounds</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-21283566161616692722011-03-29T07:15:00.006-06:002017-03-21T12:47:11.055-06:00What does make California pinot noir special?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAOR1LrRoM7w7vGvA34aZ4SqijbthqlOkCSJMYioU_BUjINX3-BMStDC8EA2IUsx8B-jdt-XxjTFUR_FuRii0jQqOc-RThLvGu10pIgMPpOs1qq0xr6hJZR91ZhCH50fw3xbnwedzr/s1600/IMG_1248.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAOR1LrRoM7w7vGvA34aZ4SqijbthqlOkCSJMYioU_BUjINX3-BMStDC8EA2IUsx8B-jdt-XxjTFUR_FuRii0jQqOc-RThLvGu10pIgMPpOs1qq0xr6hJZR91ZhCH50fw3xbnwedzr/s640/IMG_1248.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Santa Cruz Mountains' pinot paradise at Rhys Vineyards</td></tr>
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<i>I was entertaining a little girl up in my room, lord</i><br />
<i>California wine and French perfume, lord</i><br />
<i>She started talking about the war, lord</i><br />
<i>I said, I don't want to talk about the war...</i><br />
- Randy Newman (Lover's Prayer)<br />
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Why is it, recently, that every time I attend a wine symposium, a Fight Club breaks out? <br />
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Or so it seemed at both the Santa Cruz Mountains Winegrowers Association's <i>Pinot Paradise Technical Session </i>this past Sunday (March 27), and RN74's <i>In Pursuit of Balance Pinot Noir</i> panel and tasting the following Monday in San Francisco. The sad part is that both events involved pinot noir producers, who I've always though of as souls of sensitivity; or at least, knights of infinite resignation, given their difficult medium: a grape that tests <i>vignerons </i>mightily -- one vintage giving wines as sweet and pure as Sissy Spacek, and another vintage giving wines that make you recoil in the <i>Carrie</i> of it all. Does not trial and tribulation make one all the wiser?<br />
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Maybe not. The first gauntlet was thrown by Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard winemaker/proprietor Jeff Emery, who professed to not quite understanding contemporary style pinot noirs picked at sugars beyond 23 <a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_424786338">Brix</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brix">°</a> and finished with lower acids, riper fruit, and alcohol levels above 14%. A pinot soused soul crying in a Central Coast wilderness for restraint, finesse, and greater potential longevity. Problem being: the two wines Emery presented as evidence -- the <b>2001 Santa Cruz Mountain Pinot Noir</b> and <b>2004 Santa Cruz Mountain<i> Bella's Reserve</i></b><b> Pinot Noir </b>-- are not exactly epitomes of charm, however taut, tart, and moderately scaled (around 12.5% alcohol) they may be.</div>
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In fact, one could make an argument (judgements of quality being subjective) that the two fuller bodied, obviously riper picked pinots presented by Nathan Kandler of Thomas Fogarty Winery -- the <b>2008 Fogarty <i>Windy Hill</i> Pinot Noir</b> and <b>2008 Thomas Fogarty <i>Rapley Trail</i> Pinot Noir</b> -- shown at the <i>Pinot Paradise</i> session were more fragrant with the spice scented black and red berry perfumes as well as more finely delineated in the rich, textural qualities often associated with the grape, despite evident elements of oak (warm, smoky nuances). </div>
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To buy into Emery's premise, one would have to accept that a lean and stringy style of pinot is always more appealing than a fuller yet giving style. But what if you like the fuller, giving style -- is there something wrong with you? I think not. Variations of California pinot noir may be less <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brix"><i>terroir </i></a>related and more dependent upon conscious decisions of growers and winemakers than, say, variations of French Burgundy, but in the end it still comes down to preference. Do you prefer Musigny or Chambertin, Santa Cruz or Fogarty? Ezra Pound or T.S. Eliot, Mozart or Beethoven, Rembrandt or Pollock, Stones or Beatles, Ferrari or monster trucks... the world is full of choices, and the idea is for <i>you</i> to make 'em, not an arbiter with an agenda.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIs2D4wDCAgKxEQufq5FOxZX0V6UOCPiP5MPzoKxkZhc4XunFxFKugmUFA7tiad7WVwlNJ3q9odQRsFFhdxpWd2QIdonKqKnrq78iyPdJf2NFlDt6Ird80aH5I6nmRfQBBYNOhGyTh/s1600/IMG_3578.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIs2D4wDCAgKxEQufq5FOxZX0V6UOCPiP5MPzoKxkZhc4XunFxFKugmUFA7tiad7WVwlNJ3q9odQRsFFhdxpWd2QIdonKqKnrq78iyPdJf2NFlDt6Ird80aH5I6nmRfQBBYNOhGyTh/s400/IMG_3578.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evening Land Vineyards' cerebral Sashi Moorman</td></tr>
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Which is what I found so disconcerting about the <i>In Pursuit of Balance</i> symposium in San Francisco, however laudable its stated purpose, to "promote dialogue around the meaning and relevance of balance in California Pinot Noir." Generally speaking, echoing Emery in Santa Cruz Mountains, the panelists professed a preference for either pinot noirs picked earlier at lower sugars (when possible, of course, since Mother Nature is not always cooperative), lower <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acids_in_wine">pH</a>, higher acidity and less of that "physiological ripeness" often spoke of by denizens of the presumably opposite style, or a preference for vineyards located in relatively cooler climes and less permissive soils which give them a higher percentage chance of producing their idea of a balanced pinot noir.</div>
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The problem is when these winemakers, and the sommeliers and critics rallying to their camp, begin to speak ill of wines that don't quite fit into their conception of "balance." When asked if it should be less a "question of balance and more a question of <i>terroir</i>" (okay, that was me doing the asking), one of the panelists, LIOCO winemaker/partner Matt Licklider, opined that "there are a lot of terrible wines being made in good <i>terroirs</i>." </div>
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Ah, but therein lies the problem: there are also lots of less desirable wines made in the so-called "balanced" style. After all, who's to say a leaner, tighter pinot noir with more accentuated acidity and less oak is more appealing than a rounder, softer, richly oaked pinot noir? Of the 24 producers showing their pinots in the tasting following the San Francisco seminar at RN74, I can't say that all of them floated my boat, even though I personally prefer the finesseful style. Not that <i>I'm</i> the arbiter of good taste, but a good number of them were just... boring.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_MIOy7ubsVC1WZ3jO70rUIU0ZCNeJkeNmPfgfI35bkh8H3gm8E66QZqVriwWjqwH_a5r55KkUQkrLtCfqnJqHCsUEY7MTsouQigHrUC2X7nzDyC1Bfu5wl28BYZKr0i_4eOxbOVwV/s1600/IMG_3609.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_MIOy7ubsVC1WZ3jO70rUIU0ZCNeJkeNmPfgfI35bkh8H3gm8E66QZqVriwWjqwH_a5r55KkUQkrLtCfqnJqHCsUEY7MTsouQigHrUC2X7nzDyC1Bfu5wl28BYZKr0i_4eOxbOVwV/s400/IMG_3609.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Au Bon Climat's Jim Clendenen</td></tr>
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Then again, a lot of them were as exciting as any I've ever experienced. Of the six panelist sitting on the<i> In Pursuit of Balance</i> stage, I think the most sensible comment was made by Evening Land Vineyards winemaker/grower, Sashi Moorman, who expressed the sentiment I often feel when I taste an exciting pinot noir. "There is so much preoccupation with alcohol and balance, pH and acidity, we tend to forget what makes the best wines special," said Moorman. "When I think of the great pinot noirs that have made me literally weak in the knees, I never say 'this wine is so well balanced'... it's usually the aromatic or unique qualities of pinot noirs that make the difference."</div>
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Here are the unique pinot noirs tasted over those two days that <i>did</i> bowl me over:</div>
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<b>2008 Native9, <i>Rancho Ontiveros Vineyard</i>, Santa Maria Valley</b> - Fantastic concentration of red berry perfumes with smoky spices; velvety, luscious, yet vibrant in as much acidity as any.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Failla and Ehren Jordan, Failla Wines</td></tr>
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<b>2009 Failla,<i> Hirsch Vineyard</i>, Sonoma Coast</b> - Framboise-ish intensity in the nose, these red berry sensations strapped tightly over a medium weight body; silky, seamless, sensual to the touch.</div>
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<b>2009 Failla, <i>Keefer Ranch</i>, Sonoma Coast</b> - Distinctly softer yet also more curvaceous, velvety and sultry scented than Failla's <i>Hirsch</i>; smoky cardamon spiked citrus peel spices sexing up the nose.</div>
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<b>2008 Au Bon Climat, <i>Isabelle</i>, California</b> - Sweet toned pinot perfume penetrating the nostrils; long, silken, bright flavors against a faint backdrop of earth and oak.</div>
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<b>2007 Clendenen Family, <i>Le Bon Climat</i>, Santa Maria Valley </b>- Super fragrant, electrical pinot perfume, with a zesty edge prolonging the lush yet sharply defined flavors.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New sensations: Chanin pinot noirs</td></tr>
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<b>2008 Chanin, <i>Le Bon Climat Vineyard</i>, Santa Maria Valley</b> - Baskets of strawberryish fruit tingling the nose, with just as much lift and zest on the palate.</div>
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<b>2009 Domaine Eden, Santa Cruz Mountains</b> - By Mount Eden Vineyards; luscious raspberry/strawberry fragrance with smoke and earthen spices; high toned, yet with a round, velvety grip on the palate.</div>
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<b>2009 Sarah's Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains</b> - Super strawberry nose with peppermint and sweet oak spices; lean entry, yet intense fruit pushes right through a steel girded frame in mouth-watering finish.<br />
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<b>2007 Storrs, <i>Christie Vineyard</i>, Santa Cruz Mountains</b> - Here's a full, sweetly ripened style (14.5%) that is also very fresh and pristine; the strawberry/raspberry fruit fragrant and plump with thickened, meaty texturing. If this is "wrong," I guess... I don't care.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFZ63UhQsQcNdIZJlGQbkMSlRO44fxvGktE2nuImHuQnQf-FbVP14eIiJ3_x0Lyqafxd9gZG4_1N2gxAIYueyypgZ6DDQfZ8JPaMd_kcjg62d2v9H5Qa-aFb8vQjo7itYOshL0Kj-u/s1600/IMG_3590.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFZ63UhQsQcNdIZJlGQbkMSlRO44fxvGktE2nuImHuQnQf-FbVP14eIiJ3_x0Lyqafxd9gZG4_1N2gxAIYueyypgZ6DDQfZ8JPaMd_kcjg62d2v9H5Qa-aFb8vQjo7itYOshL0Kj-u/s400/IMG_3590.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Native9's James Ontiveros</td></tr>
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</style>Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-86952311648418561482011-03-07T21:08:00.011-07:002017-03-21T11:55:42.781-06:00As the pinot world turns<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiejiwoMQ4lZ0Xr3ovEAwycfumgp2f6GMJW3UqpwHtusVy_WQy80DnDCDTRI3LRTBwL7oLb9s-h6-fLPp4_KisvwmqwIWwvjwucP3ih3RfQce8KBpVT6iCdZdJ__6FmUgkwQWwAce8EZsk/s1600/IMG_2952.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="638" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiejiwoMQ4lZ0Xr3ovEAwycfumgp2f6GMJW3UqpwHtusVy_WQy80DnDCDTRI3LRTBwL7oLb9s-h6-fLPp4_KisvwmqwIWwvjwucP3ih3RfQce8KBpVT6iCdZdJ__6FmUgkwQWwAce8EZsk/s640/IMG_2952.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b>Finer American pinot noirs than ever dominate the 11th Annual World of Pinot Noir in Shell Beach...</b><br />
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March 4-5, 2011 – There were significantly more, and finer, pinot noirs than ever from the West Coast shown at 2011’s World of Pinot Noir. If anyone tells you differently? Tell them to take a hike...<br />
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The world of pinot, in other words, is spinning faster and faster. Two immediate observations:<br />
<ul>
<li>The idea of “typically over-oaked” American pinot world is now, officially, a a thing of the past. Tasting through the ’06s to ’09s shown at WOPN, qualities of fruit focus and natural acidity now predominate across the board, with toasty or smoky nuances pretty much pushed into backdrops. It was especially pleasing to find wineries hitherto associated with oaky styles now pretty much on the same bandwagon.</li>
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<ul>
<li>There’s been a lot of talk recently of the “high alcohol problem" of American pinot noirs (the <i>sheening</i> of American pinots?). Sure, recent warm or “ripe” vintages have given everyone cause for alarm, but the 2011 WOPN conclusively demonstrated that the concern is probably over-hyped. Even after tasting over 100 pinots on each day, I can count on one hand the number of times my palate felt raked by a wine striking me as hot, awkward, or pent-up with rampant alcohol or raisiny fruit. Conclusion: neither California nor Oregon pinot specialists are as deaf or dumb as some have been making them out to be. If anything, it’s amazing how finesseful their touch has become, considering the endlessly challenging circumstances making each vintage an adventure (be it rains or drying heat in Oregon, or fire or ice along the Californian coast).</li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8hyphenhyphenY_x8b7GycUXiueh_E_cKJTP37LFVhVk1noeo_xb_4q8Gy2YLS6v2V9PyulaXI5F514z-X4FYFHwdGtgZsrjROSL2RHk1Seg2CzwWLEzAjFGVFyGvooYiCptVGYgG-jddtZr5Z6NSY/s1600/IMG_2985.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8hyphenhyphenY_x8b7GycUXiueh_E_cKJTP37LFVhVk1noeo_xb_4q8Gy2YLS6v2V9PyulaXI5F514z-X4FYFHwdGtgZsrjROSL2RHk1Seg2CzwWLEzAjFGVFyGvooYiCptVGYgG-jddtZr5Z6NSY/s400/IMG_2985.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
Speaking of which: yes, there was a good slew of 14% to 15% alcohol pinots in the mix. So what? If you are a ROAR from Gary’s Vineyard or Belle Glos <i>Las Alturas</i> from Santa Lucia Highlands, a Chasseur or De Loach from Russian River Valley, a Melville from Sta. Rita Hills or even a Bergström from Willamette Valley, things are bound to get a little “big” when fruit is hitting on all cylinders. But that doesn’t keep producers like these from fashioning perfectly lush, round, tight and cohesive pinot noirs; wines that are as well balanced, or more finely balanced, as most pinot noirs falling in the sub-14% alcohol range. It ain’t the meat it’s the motion, my friends, when it comes to successful pinot. <br />
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Meaning: never, <i>never</i> choose your pinot by percentages you might read on a label. Pay more attention to the skill of the winemaker, or the reputation of that brand (providing that rep doesn’t come from shrill reviewers who use numbers and tend to describe wines as “opulent” or “hedonistic” – writers who can’t tell an alcoholic, and neither a good or bad, pinot noir from the side of a barn). Either way, if you buy by numbers you’re only depriving yourself of possible pleasures. Don’t even believe anything <i>I</i> tell you: tasting is <i>always</i> believing.<br />
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Finally, as always, when it comes to good pinot noir it’s more a matter of style and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terroir"><i>terroir</i></a> – the latter variable, a pervasive sense of where a pinot comes perceived through the sensations themselves – when it comes to exploring this ever expanding world of pinot. For instance, I may prefer a seamlessly knit, silken, perfumed and earth toned Keefer Ranch pinot noir from Green Valley by the likes of a trusty vintner like Failla or Freeman, over a dark, chunky Pisoni grown pinot from Santa Lucia Highlands or a brawny and intense Sea Smoke from Santa Barbara. But I’d be dead wrong if I said a Keefer produces a more valid style of pinot noir than any grown by Pisoni or Sea Smoke. Pinots by such high quality producerss are never “better” than each other: they’re just <i>different</i>, especially in respect to <i>terroir</i>; and anyone who tells you otherwise… well, you know where to tell them to go.<br />
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Enough dickering – in order of my favorites:<br />
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<b>2009 Landmark, <i>Spring Hill</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – You always gotta rank the most “oh-wow” wine first, don’t you? This was <i>oh-wow</i> because it’s this winery’s first-ever single vineyard bottling from this particular vineyard (located in the heart of the windswept, decidedly cold climate Petaluma Gap) – so newness is a factor here, folks – and because more than any other pinot tasted at WOPN this past weekend, a <i>strawberry-fields-forever</i> varietal fruitiness seemed to burst through velvet textured layers, energized by a vibrant core of zingy acidity and finely flushed tannin. A sheer richness lends a full feel, while sensations remaining fresh, immaculate, primal, electric; while charging discreetly through an obscenely long finish.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA5Yb8FEo9h-3QX-Kh1rgjt-NXmjKfX0jxVkEdAsBz5JROhquuHeZlP0cOwguo25N4Y4pwVxh6GcaiWAC0GRUuexAQu7y5qR8V1OO4XuMc11MIqrd7W2tc6nOwj2f4v_0QEJb-BUsJ_a0/s1600/IMG_3932.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA5Yb8FEo9h-3QX-Kh1rgjt-NXmjKfX0jxVkEdAsBz5JROhquuHeZlP0cOwguo25N4Y4pwVxh6GcaiWAC0GRUuexAQu7y5qR8V1OO4XuMc11MIqrd7W2tc6nOwj2f4v_0QEJb-BUsJ_a0/s640/IMG_3932.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spring Hill, in the rolling hills of Sonoma's Petaluma Gap</td></tr>
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<b>2009 Failla, <i>Keefer Ranch</i></b> (Russian River Valley, California) – Sweetly intense harmony of Christmasy fragrances – steeping plums, wild cherries, smoke tinged brown spices – tacked on to a lithe, flowing, bright and energetic body of components, arranged in pinpoint fashion. Yes, I may be a bit of a wuss, going for this balletic style, but at least it’s not a wine that invites incessant harping about technique, alcohol or oak – everything adroitly, almost prenaturally, knit, and just… <i>there</i>. <br />
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<b>2008 Failla, <i>Occidental Ridge </i></b>(Sonoma Coast, California) – When I tasted this Failla <i>cuvée</i>, I thought, “okay, this is just getting silly – why does simple deliciousness come so easily for this brand? Does it really matter? Intoxicating perfume – huge strawberry nose tinged with multiple baking pie spices – essaying forth on the palate in lively, luscious, finesseful flavors that never seem to end, despite a rock of solid tannin tightening the center.<br />
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<b>2009 Failla, <i>Pearlessence</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – From a vineyard in the Sebastopol Hills – the southernmost, and coolest, section of the Russian River Valley – Pearlessence enters softly, with a bouquet of red roses and strawberry alarm tingling the nose; and just as obligingly steps on the gas in the mid-palate, enveloping the senses with zesty, long, lovely, scrumptious red fruit flavors riding on fine boned tannin beneath a sheer, silken veneer. <br />
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<b>2009 Freeman, <i>Akiko’s Cuvée</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – This is co-proprietor Akiko Freeman’s yearly barrel selection of the spiciest, silkiest cuvées from among the winery’s best cold climate sites (largely in the hills west of Occidental on the western edge of the Russian River Valley AVA, with choice bites from Sebastopol Hills further south). A violet-red transparency signals a host of flowery, lacy perfumes suggesting black cherry and strawberry. Slender, lush, silken, spiced berry sensations come with an almost dancing sense of delicacy and ebullience. As that Leonard Cohen song goes, <i>hallelujah...</i><br />
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<b>2008 La Follette, <i>Sangiacomo Vineyard</i></b> (Sonoma Coast) – In vintages past, pinots from this vineyard – located at the base of Sonoma Mountain in the Petaluma Gap where fog collects and creates a refrigerator effect on a daily basis during peak ripening seasons – have consistently retained both an exotic, sweet spice (often suggesting tropical flowers and/or ginger) and wild, earthy sensations (winemaker/partner Greg la Follette has always described the latter as “feral”) most unusual, to say the least, in pinot noir grown anywhere (Old World, New World, maybe the next world...). In 2008 the exotica is there – the nostril penetrating, flowery perfume mingling with smoky spices – while the earth tones are not so much feral as faintly organic, more along the lines of composting loam and crushed brown leaves in autumn. Love it or leave it, folks. But if this floats your boat, you’ll like how the ultra-rich and earthy sensations also run rampant through the palate – lively, twisting, enervating for the weak, energizing for the terroirists – sliding beneath a blanket of silk from one side of the mouth to the other. As the Man once put it, are you experienced?<br />
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<b>2008 Littorai, <i>The Pivot Vineyard</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – The nose here is tight and youthfully concentrated – compellingly sweet preserves of black plum and strawberry – yet as soon as the wine hits the palate, the aromatically tight fruit profile becomes large and resplendent, forming a thick, proportionate wave of velvet flavors, tinged by smoky oak, rocking and rolling through the rye with all the grace and contradictory sensuality those phenomenally few pinots seem to achieve.<br />
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<b>2008 Alma Rosa, <i>La Encantada</i></b> (Sta. Rita Hills, California) – Sometimes a pinot is so pretty, so honest and pristine, you just want to cry. Especially with the Richard Sanford’s La Encantada, which seems to address you without pretension or artifice – just hugely intense, bare naked, knockdown pinot noir fruit expression: baskets of cherries, strawberry preserves, dark cocoa and cinnamon spices, and a silky, sensuously textured sense of finesse and femininity. Although less might be more, what “little” there is here is a helluva more than in the vast majority of American pinots.<br />
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<b>2008 Suacci Carciere </b>(Russian River Valley, California) – From one of the coolest sites in Sebastopol Hills – on a fog choked slope in Blucher Valley with natural Frigidaire funneled directly up from the adjacent Petaluma Gap – this is a beautifully fragrant pinot noir, mixing raspberry, strawberry, smoky brown spices and scrubby earth nuances in the nose, followed up by luscious, fluid, juicy flavors couched in a zesty, sexy, curvaceous body. Think Sophia Loren in leather – inconceivable.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Siduri's Adam Lee</td></tr>
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<b>2008 Siduri, <i>Keefer Ranch</i></b> (Russian River Valley, California) – Through the years Adam and Dianna Lee’s minimalist, yet never shyly oaked, approach to pinot noir vinification has grown in consistency, and now reach high points with special vineyards like Keefer. The ’08 is a doozy: smoky, red berry and cherry cola fruit aromas underlined by tinges of evergreen; and on the palate, even more impressively, a super-dense, concentrated, almost syrupy thick richness of fruit, punctuated by the smoky oak (perfectly appropriate here!), brightening acidity, and a core of solid, rounded tannin.<br />
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<b>2009 Freeman, <i>Keefer Ranch </i></b>(Russian River Valley, California) – Keefer also seems to rule in ’09 (Failla’s being drop-dead gorgeous), and in the hands of proprietor Ken Freeman and his winemakers (Ed Kurtzman and Eric Buffington), the aromatic notes are floral and pretty, dripping with sticky red berries, while the palate feel is compressed yet dense in concentrated red pinot fruitfulness; zapping the palate with intermittent swaths of sweet berries, in between the prickles of acidity and belt tightening tannin. Hang on, because this one seems to be in it for the long term.<br />
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<b>2007 Hartford Family, <i>Land’s Edge</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – Sourced primarily from the winery’s plantings around the hamlet of Annapolis at the north end of the extreme Sonoma Coast, where a climatic marginality is likely to yield fine boned pinots of pungent perfume and distinctly earth toned, woodsy/forest floor complexities. All these qualities hold sway in this bottling: plummy, black and red berry perfumes infused in the woodsy aromatics and enhanced by judiciously smoked oak. It’s on the palate, though, that the wine really starts to rattle and hum, and where the delineations become enlightening: the woodsy, perfumed fruit flavors seeming to expand and seep through every pore until the feel becomes full, fleshy, juicy, unbelievably rich, with nary a nick or bruise. Having tasted this vintage and bottling a couple of times before (finding it “very nice”), I was almost shocked by the evolution of these sensations – a vinous equivalent to a Nicollette Sheridan dropping-of-the-towel – which goes to show, as Chuck Berry once said, you never can tell.<br />
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<b>2008 De Loach, <i>OFS</i></b> (Russian River Valley, California) – Almost quietly, De Loach has stepped up its pinot program to the point where it no longer takes a backseat to any in this vaunted region – thanks to the full court pressing of the Boisset family, and the notably dramatic growth of winemaker Brian Maloney. There’s transparency in both the ruby red color and the upbeat, high toned, multifaceted red fruit concentration in the nose of this wine – screaming a fragrant, effusive purity of pinotness – coming together in a viscous, dense and velvety palate feel, revved up by zesty acidity, with medium strength tannins forming a sturdy, if totally unobtrusive, core of strength.<br />
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<b>2008 Bergström, <i>Bergström Vineyard</i>, Dundee Hills</b> (Willamette Valley, Oregon) – Oregonian participation in WOPN is usually relegated to a chosen few, but those few were chosen well enough to provide shed some illuminating contrast and similarity in comparison to the far more numerous California entries. Whereas the better California pinots are still unabashedly fruit forward with lower volumes of flower related aromas, the finer Oregon pinots are more floral with quieter intensities of fruit related aromas. Generalizations, of course, but certainly true in respect to this particular bottling of Bergström: lacy, lilting, fragrant red berry perfumes tinged by earth tones that are more dirt and evergreen than decaying scrub or forest floor, and minus the drippy sweet fruit tones prevalent in, say, the better North Coast pinots. On a ponderous, medium-full palate, there are youthful indescretions: a steely acid bite and tight, strapping tannin all but concealing a show of leggy, bright, red berryish pinotness, and contributing to an overall feel of precision and promise. It is no wonder Oregon winemakers, to a person, are now strongly urging their followers to embrace the softer, more exuberant ‘09s, or else the comely, feminine ‘07s, rather than dive straight into the ‘08s, which will undoubtedly prove more satisfying in the long run (i.e. in four to eight or ten years).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stoller winemaker, Melissa Bur<b>r</b></td></tr>
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<b>2007 Stoller, <i>SV Estate</i>, Dundee Hills</b> (Willamette Valley, Oregon) – If there is any question that the ‘07s from Willamette Valley have been transitioning into sleek, sultry, intoxicating pinots – pinot noir for adults, amused more by thoughtful grace and depth rather than youthful, gum chewing sass – this <i>cuvée</i> seals the deal: intriguing fragrances of wild red berries, still in attractively sweet primal stages, mixed with breathy earth tones suggesting loam and fallen leaves; manifested in soft, tender, lush, slinky qualities on the palate, firmed by moderate, rounded tannin, extending the multifaceted pinot qualities long and gently through a luscious finish. <br />
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<b>2008 Flying Goat, <i>Dierberg Vineyard</i></b> (Santa Maria Valley, California) – Hugely attractive nose of strawberry preserves, teasing the senses, and smartly framed by rich, smoky oak. On the palate, more pay dirt: generous, fleshy, juicy pinot flavors strapped upon a sleek, toned musculature. Immensely satisfying case of how the best of California’s concentrated, fruit forward styles of pinot can possess all the finesse in the world, even while tipping the scales in volume of fruitiness.<br />
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<b>2008 Talley, <i>Rincon Vineyard</i></b> (Arroyo Grande Valley, California) – There’s a tendency towards a fat fruitiness in pinots from Arroyo Grande Valley, but there’s always been a tauter, wilder, almost sauvage quality to Talley’s growth, consistently negating that sun kissed ripeness. The nose in the ’08 in floral and perfumed – raspberry, wild blackberry, and touches of cherry cola – but underlined by scrubby earth, smoke and clove-like spices. On the palate, the scrub and wild, sweet toned berry qualities take on juicy qualities, thickened by meaty tannin and brightened by energetic acidity. As good a pinot as ever from this celebrated estate.<br />
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<b>2008 Evening Land Vineyards, Seven Springs Vineyard <i>La Source</i>, Eola-Amity Hills</b> (Willamette Valley, Oregon) – Whereas, at this writing, most of the finer ‘08s from Oregon are spiny and reticent, La Source seems have been fashioned in a less austere style, teeming with pretty, sweet red berry and cassis perfumes, with smoky spices and burnt leafy earthiness in the nose; entering the palate in soft, gentle, hushed yet sweetly concentrated tones. There is a firm sense of youthful, coiled tannin packed into the center of a svelte, satiny, Twiggyish body, and enough concentration of the earth toned fruit to make for a long, sweet finish. Very stylish, very <i>terroiristic</i>.<br />
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<b>2008 Evening Land Vineyards, <i>Occidental</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – The instincts of this house is to underplay pinot noir fruitiness – or at the very least, contain a typical Californian ripeness into lower keyed structures – and so it’s the tension between that self-discipline and the actual lusciousness and masculinity of the fruit profile in this wine that makes this bottling so interesting. The nose is of sweet, juicy red fruit, juxtaposed with strangely attractive, deepening earth notes suggestive of either new leather gloves or rubber boots, depending upon stores in your memory bank. Then on the palate, the Occidental really rises and shines: outwardly soft, fleshy and inviting in the entry, becoming dense and sturdy with tannin in the middle, finishing with enough muscle to give the earthen red fruit qualities a broad feel and almost swarthy complexion.<br />
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<b> 2008 Costa de Oro, <i>Dijon Selection</i></b> (Santa Maria Valley, California) – Year after year, it seems, winemaker/proprietor Gary Burk seems to craft ridiculously good, and underrated, pinot noirs from his Gold Coast estate, at the coolest, westernmost end of the Santa Maria Valley AVA. The color here is an almost blue violet-red, giving fair warning of the oodles of luscious, fresh ripened fruit aromas, redolent of sweet strawberry; flavors of the same seeming to come in wave after wave, revved up by scintillating natural acidity on an absolutely plush, velvet textured medium-full body.</div>
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<b>2008 Chasseur, <i>Umino</i></b> (Russian River Valley, California) – Umino is another Sebastopol Hills pinot planting, located at the north end of Blucher Valley, the coolest section of this sub-region. Strawberries and cherries are wild in this pungent nose, underlain by notes of new leather and brown leafy undertones. Aggressively full, rich and concentrated qualities on the palate – not much femininity here – but the feel is fleshy, seamless, velvety, satisfying; notwithstanding firming tannin and toasty oak edges protruding through the middle and expanding the masculine profile. However you may feel about winemaker/proprietor’s Bill Hunter’s approach, an artful, impressive package.<br />
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<b>2009 ROAR, <i>Gary’s Vineyard</i></b> (Santa Lucia Highlands, California) – Gary Franscioni co-owns this vineyard lying at the center of the hillsides falling within the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA with Gary Pisoni, and his bottlings under the ROAR label always offer a nice, finesseful contrast to those under the Pisoni label. The nose here is stunning – luscious, exuberant pinot fruit of strawberry jam mixed with wild cherries – and the bright, exciting,, high toned fruit qualities are packed into a tight, juicy, mouth-watering medium weight body, underscored by mouth-watering acidity and just moderate tannin.<br />
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<b>2009 Lucia (Pisoni Family), <i>Gary’s Vineyard</i></b> (Santa Lucia Highlands, California) – Lucia is the Pisoni family’s sister label, producing pinots that are not quite so aggressively structured as pinots from the Pisoni estate, yet deep, dark, and saturated all the same. Violet red color and a smoky, spicy, generous mix of black and red wild berries in the nose; followed up by a lush, full, fleshy body containing a densely textured, toothsome sweet fruit profile in the middle, with enough balance and composure to remain unperturbed by bang-up smacks of fruit and oak tannins. Filling, yet delicious, stuff.<br />
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<b>2009 Dragonette, <i>Presidio</i></b> (Santa Barbara County, California) – This vineyard falls west of the Sta. Rita Hills AVA’s delimitations, and is one of the foggiest, coldest sites in the county. The nose is deceptively subdued – sweet red berries dusted in crushed, brown forest leaves – but the earth saturated pinot fruit flavors are packed into a fleshy, medium weight body, outwardly round but tightly wound at the core, finishing long, with a lip smacking, savory sweetness. Unique; nicely done.<br />
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<b>2009 Pfendler, <i>Estate Grown</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – Nestled near Sangiacomo’s Roberts Road vineyard on the western flanks of Sonoma Mountain in the Petaluma Gap, Pfendler’s plantings have been producing moderately scaled pinots that should satisfy all the needs of the nagging “anti-alcohol” crowd we’ve been hearing more from lately, yet with the deep, saturated colors (in this wine, a blue/violet red) and expansive feel appealing to lovers of more generously endowed pinots. The nose here is bright and puristic – raining wild cherry and raspberry fruitiness – and after a lush, velvety entry, the fruit qualities loom large and seamlessly in the mouth, pushed upwards by the crisp acidity typifying more and more of the wines we are seeing from this promising, future AVA (for more details, visit the <a href="http://www.petalumagap.com/">Petaluma Gap Winegrowers Alliance</a> page).<br />
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<b>2009 Belle Glos, <i>Las Alturas</i></b> (Santa Lucia Highlands, California) – If you’re into “gobs” of fruit and depraved, public displays of varietal flesh, this belle’s for you, you animal you. Hey, it’s also a nice wine – the pinot harlot with the heart of gold – particularly in respect to its bull’s eye display of spiced, strawberryish varietal focus enriched by sweet French oak, positively gushing through the nose and over a salacious palate. There’s enough acidity to snap the gorgeous fruit to attention, but the base intentions are still perceived through its outwardly soft, luscious, shamelessly fruit bombing profile.<br />
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<b>2007 Sierra Madre Vineyard</b> (Santa Maria Valley, California) – This long revered vineyard source is now found primarily under the estate’s own label, and it’s a red haired beauty: very sweet, concentrated red plum/strawberry perfume, star bright and fragrant in the nose; velvety, medium-full body with a good, taut, firming tannin center, filled to brimming with the intense, red berry pinot flavors.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alma Rosa's Richard Sanford</td></tr>
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This could go on and on, but I’m going to try to cut this short by listing other outstanding pinot noirs with more abbreviated descriptors. All of following, mind you, wines that I, for one, would be thrilled sip anytime, any day. From A to Z:<br />
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<b>2008 Alma Rosa, Sta. Rita Hills </b>(California) - Fine, friendly, luscious finesse.<br />
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<b>2009 Bergström, <i>Shea Vineyard </i></b>(Willamette Valley, Oregon) - Plump, red berry pudding<br />
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<b>2008 Cargassachi, Sta. Rita Hills </b>(California) - Sea salt, red berries, sharp and silken rolls of fruit.<br />
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<b>2008 Chamisal, <i>Estate</i></b> (Edna Valley, California) - Brilliant red cherry focus with real silk and snap.<br />
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<b>2008 Chasseur, <i>Blank</i></b> (Russian River Valley, California) – Broad, meaty layers of lush strawberry.<br />
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<b>2009 Copain, <i>Wentzel </i></b>(Anderson Valley, California) - Full, aggressive, peppermint and cherry intensity<br />
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<b>2008 Costa de Oro, <i>Reserve Oro Rojo</i></b> (Santa Maria Valley) - Lavish, smoky, pepperminted strawberry density.<br />
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<b>2008 De Loach, Green Valley </b>(California) – Flowers, herbed tea, red berries and silk.<br />
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<b>2009 Dragonette, <i>Hilliard Bruce Vineyard</i></b> (Sta. Rita Hills, California) – Fragrant cherry cola, bright and high toned.<br />
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<b>2007 Etude, <i>Heirloom</i></b> (Carneros, California) – Pillowy, plush cherries, full and round.<br />
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<b>2009 Evening Land Vineyards, Seven Springs Vineyard <i>Summun</i></b> (Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon) – Lush, silken, feminine transparency.<br />
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<b>2008 Expression 38°, <i>Gap’s Crown</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – Fleshy, leather lined red and black fruit.<br />
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<b>2008 Expression 44°, <i>Zena Crown Vineyard</i></b> (Eola-Amity Hills, Oregon) – Bursting perfumed fruit and leather gloves.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtDxQVsr5H37ycFBvEosMyk9HkYhVRLhSJtWdUQRjwbzQhToH_Ka15yU5XfluWm9Mxm3NZKsRqOXXy3sJbPIxLH6q3dQG_Amw_qChiQmRxFD_AThUoa8t0s4c8T36mELWiBWJLGM3o1og/s1600/IMG_2318.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="610" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtDxQVsr5H37ycFBvEosMyk9HkYhVRLhSJtWdUQRjwbzQhToH_Ka15yU5XfluWm9Mxm3NZKsRqOXXy3sJbPIxLH6q3dQG_Amw_qChiQmRxFD_AThUoa8t0s4c8T36mELWiBWJLGM3o1og/s640/IMG_2318.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Failla's Ehren Jordan in the extreme Sonoma Coast</td></tr>
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<b>2009 Failla, <i>Hirsch Vineyard</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – Amazing grace, velvet, perfectly composed strawberry notes.<br />
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<b>2008 Foley Estates,<i> Rancho Santa Rosa</i></b> (Sta. Rita Hills, California) – Fresh wild cherries, fleshy feel and zingy acidity.<br />
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<b>2008 Freeman, Russian River Valley</b> (California) – Sumptuous mix of black fruits, and strawberry, plump and full.<br />
<br />
<b>2008 Freestone, Sonoma Coast </b>(California) – Brilliant cherry/strawberry varietal spice; zesty, medium-full body.<br />
<br />
<b>2008 Gary Farrell, Russian River Valley</b> (California) – Classic smoky/toasty, lush and beefy Russian River style.<br />
<br />
<b>2009 Gypsy Canyon, Sta. Rita Hills </b>(California) – Gentle, refined, soft and luscious red pinot fruitfulness.<br />
<br />
<b>2008 Hartford Family, <i>Arrendell Vineyard</i></b> (Russian River Valley, California) – Lusciously ripened, dried cherry/red plummy, fleshy indulgence.<br />
<br />
<b>2008 Hilliard Bruce, Sta. Rita Hills</b> (California) – Affable, pure strawberryish varietal fruitiness.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_abRu-SE4dc00knTlx6Oh-2-C9zA55AEZnCb_Y711fxv9uobx8CrkurkeQwYZDuN8QmabjxYAZIxq4wh46g5idvuZ7U2h7UFjnTFwvkBoMOI0EzjrKasHViRafdh6dDWbT22sDXHU/s1600/IMG_2964.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_abRu-SE4dc00knTlx6Oh-2-C9zA55AEZnCb_Y711fxv9uobx8CrkurkeQwYZDuN8QmabjxYAZIxq4wh46g5idvuZ7U2h7UFjnTFwvkBoMOI0EzjrKasHViRafdh6dDWbT22sDXHU/s400/IMG_2964.jpg" width="284" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">David Hirsch</td></tr>
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<b>2007 Hirsch Vineyards, <i>San Andreas</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – Beautiful red fruit, rose petal and woodsy fragrances, tight and complex.<br />
<br />
<b>2007 Hitching Post,<i> Highliner </i></b>(Santa Barbara, California) – From the famed Fiddlestix Vineyard; floral perfumes, meaty fruit and dense textures.<br />
<br />
<b>2008 Jalama, <i>Heartbreak Joseph Blair</i></b> (Santa Barbara, California) – Another ultra-cold climate planting west of Sta. Rita Hills; earthen, smoky, crushed autumn leafy red berry perfumes and sharply defined acidity.<br />
<br />
<b>2008 Kessler-Haak, </b><b>Clone 2A</b> (Sta. Rita Hills, California) – Dollops of strawberry jam and wild berries, brightened by zesty acidity.<br />
<br />
<b>2009 Kosta-Browne, Russian River Valley</b> (California) – Full scaled, meaty, smoky, yet teeming with rich red berry fruits.<br />
<br />
<b>2008 Le Fenêtre, <i>Sierra Madre Vineyard</i></b> (Santa Maria Valley, California) – Red roses, cherries, strawberries and smoky peppermint spices with feminine allure.<br />
<br />
<b>2008 La Rochelle, <i>Sleepy Hollow Vineyard-Block A</i></b> (Santa Lucia Highlands, California) – Sweetly intense red berries and woodsy green perfumes, heady and sharp.<br />
<br />
<b>2008 Landmark,<i> Kanzler </i></b>(Sonoma Coast, California) – Flowery strawberry and baked cherry pie fruit and spices; full tannin and velvet upholstering.<br />
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<b>2008 Landmark, <i>Grand Detour</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – Raspberries and new leather with rich, round detailing.<br />
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<b>2009 Larry Hyde & Sons, Carneros</b> (California) – Black cherry jam and velvet lined, full bodied strength.<br />
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<b>2009 MacPhail, Sonoma Coast </b>(California) – Combines flesh, muscle, and sweet toned fruit penetrating a wall of sturdy tannin.<br />
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<b>2009 Melville, Sta. Rita Hills</b> (California) – Absolutely luscious, pure, strawberryish fruit with velvet texturing brightened by lively acidity.<br />
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<b>2008 Orogeny, Green Valley of Russian River Valley </b>(California) – Buckets of fresh red berries in zesty, buoyant, medium body.<br />
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<b>2008 Rusack, <i>Reserve</i></b> (Sta. Rita Hills, California) – Plump, ripe strawberries in masculine, musclebound packaging.<br />
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<b>2008 Seagrape, <i>Hibbits Ranch</i></b> (Santa Barbara, California) – Another exciting cold climate growth west of Sta. Rita Hills; super-spicy, vibrant, sweet fruit and loamy earth toned;; by Karen Steinwachs (also winemaker of Buttonwood Farm, and former Fiddlehead cellar rat).<br />
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<b>2008 Sinor-La Vallee, <i>Aubaine Vineyard</i></b> (San Luis Obispo, California) – Pleasingly plump, fragrant, cherry cola, sweetly oaked style.<br />
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<b>2007 Stephen Ross, <i>Stone Corral Vineyard</i></b> (Edna Valley, California) – Sprigs of mint, bright strawberries, solidly crisp and slender.<br />
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<b>2007 The Ojai, <i>Solomon Hills Vineyard</i></b> (Santa Maria Valley, California) – Sweet red fruit perfumes with green leafy herb nuances; sumptuous fruit overriding solid tannin.<br />
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<b>2008 Pey-Lucia, <i>Frisquet </i></b>(Santa Lucia Highlands, California) – Effusively perfumed red fruits wrapped in crisply creased silk.<br />
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<b>2008 Pey-Marin, <i>Trois Filles</i></b> (Marin County, California) – Achingly rich, scented immersion in the gentle, flowing, feminine side of pinot.<br />
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<b>2008 Sea Smoke, <i>Southing</i></b> (Sta. Rita Hills, California – Violet ruby, red berries and baking spices, fleshed out in medium-full, zesty sensations.<br />
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<b>2009 Siduri, Sta. Lucia Highlands</b> (California) – Decadently rich, round, fleshy blend of Gary’s and Rosella’s Vineyards, enriched by smoky oak.<br />
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<b>2009 Thomas George Estates, Russian River Valley</b> (California) – Showy, velvety, unbridled Russian River expression of pinot; red fruits steeped in smoky, minty spices.<br />
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<b>2007 Tolosa, <i>1772</i></b> (Edna Valley, California) – Effusive, spiced cherry pie aromas and round breadth of ripened varietal qualities.<br />
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<b>2008 Vergari, <i>Sangiacomo Vineyard</i></b> (Sonoma Coast, California) – Intensely spicy, earthy, smoky, silky fruit profile zapped by lively acidity typifying Petaluma Gap.<br />
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<b>2008 Zotovich, Sta. Rita Hills</b> (California) – Strawberry preserves on toast, with velvet textures punctuated by fruit sharpening acidity.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">La Follette's Simone Sequeria (winemaker) & Nancy Bailey (GM)</td></tr>
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Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4672453597195450348.post-36924982943574980072010-06-14T20:03:00.012-06:002017-03-31T15:48:21.047-06:00Denver, I hardly knew ye (lowdown on Mile High restaurants)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Here’s to all the poetry<br />
And pickin’ down the line…<br />
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- Townes Van Zandt (<i>To Live Is to Fly</i>)<br />
<br />
As I write this, after a three-year stay, I’m about to saddle up and check out of this Western town; where seldom were heard discouraging words, but rather, a chicken for every pot, and a space for every car. An American dream: that shining city on the hill, 5,280 ft. in the air. Hence, this final report: a farewell ode, in a manner of sorts, to Denver’s high altitude, low attitude restaurant scene…<br />
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It may not have looked like it on television during that ever-so-hopeful 2008 Democratic convention (except, of course, to those pitiful tea baggers, still out there gnashing their teeth under the mistaken impression that this is still “their” country), but Denver is still a “cow town.” There’s the <a href="http://www.nationalwestern.com/nwss/home/home.php">National Western Stock Show</a>, for instance, that takes place every January, and is still the country’s premier livestock event of the year – and a shot in the arm for the local food and beverage industry, often scratching out its winter business under a foot or two of snow, while the only big-time games in town are the not-so-steady Avalanche and the perennially frustrating Nuggets.<br />
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The upshot being, Denver is still where the beef (plus bison and lamb) is at: its metropolitan population of some 2.5 million (21st most in the country), surrounded by about 1.3 million head of cattle on some 13,100 independent ranches (64% of them still less than 50 head in size, many practicing sustainable methods). Besides crystal clear water (life tastes so good when it doesn’t all have to come from bottles) and crisp mountain air, we do have vibrant springs and the natural paint-by-number autumns, sandwiching sporadic spurts of 90+ degree summer days. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiC5hMSlxWnaPigeZUnLkGwh3aAo4xjpUNlDEz4dPYzc3FUAlFhYSJF3koVkQJ6XwvVBu1P7dO92vvli3h67Y1CerTXDkTpjao-ugLunlcTUzx0R2nY2bpZ9oX8h8fEl7UA1Aa8_AM9hM/s1600/IMG_0080.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiC5hMSlxWnaPigeZUnLkGwh3aAo4xjpUNlDEz4dPYzc3FUAlFhYSJF3koVkQJ6XwvVBu1P7dO92vvli3h67Y1CerTXDkTpjao-ugLunlcTUzx0R2nY2bpZ9oX8h8fEl7UA1Aa8_AM9hM/s400/IMG_0080.jpg" width="256" /></a>Consequently, food conscious Coloradans are gifted by plenty of locally grown vegetables, fruits and artisanal cheeses, overflowing the April-to October farmer’s markets, where you occasionally see some of the town’s savvier restaurant chefs (not a lot of ‘em, since, as in most towns, most are still addicted to Sysco suppliers) trolling about among the peons. One thing you can say about the Rocky Mountain citizenry, though: they’re a helluva lot fitter looking (everyone’s a marathoner, snowboarder, or alpine bike rider) than the joe-sixpackers and everyday soccer moms of Sarah Palin’s mythical America.<br />
<br />
By the time the local oil industry began to, like, run out of gas in the late eighties, the Colorado economy had already begun to diversify into the commerce we see today: high-tech, software, financial, renewable energy, bioscience, aviation, aerospace, and more. Flush with cash during the past two decades, seemingly all of Denver’s twenty and early thirty-something’s (at least those not prolonging school, waiting on tables, parking cars or pumping gas) have been packing into the half-million dollar lofts in LoDo (Denver’s “Lower Downtown”); or, once reaching breeding age, steadily fanning out into the comfortable digs of the ever-expanding suburbs, north and south of the city, or west towards the actual Rockies. <br />
<br />
Despite an extremely healthy recent-immigrant population (especially Latino or Hispanics, making up some 35% of metropolitan Denver and its five surrounding counties), the average per household income (about $52,000) has been well over the national average. Ergo: bustling restaurant, foodie and wine trades.<br />
<br />
So where is Denver at? As someone who’s lived, and opened restaurants, in cities as far flung as Honolulu and New York, and more than a dozen more in between, I can say this with authority: the average Denver restaurant guest expects, and receives, a knowing level of sophistication out of their restaurants; yet is not so tyrannical as the tough cookies in the country’s other major, so-called “restaurant towns” (i.e. San Francisco, Chicago and New York) in respect to standards, illusionary or not. In other words, folks in Denver just enjoy their food and drink, and are open to almost anything in customarily enthusiastic, forgiving ways.<br />
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Which I think is cool, in a refreshing sort of way. You don’t have to be a great chef or restaurateur to be “great” in this town. They’ll love you if you’re just decent, providing you don’t chase them out the door with the attitudes that work only in the bigger cities. In Denver, customers give their restaurateurs latitude, as long as they don’t abuse it.<br />
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<b><br />
</b><br />
<b>The star chef restaurants</b><br />
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There is, to begin with, a solid core of Denver’s own “celebrity” chef driven restaurants, beginning with those of Kevin Taylor: five in all, including a traditionally solemn, white tableclothed <a href="http://www.ktrg.net/rkt/">Restaurant Kevin Taylor</a>, the studied interpretation of Italian cuisine at <a href="http://www.ktrg.net/primaristorante/index.html">Prima Ristorante</a>, and the casual-chic <a href="http://www.coloradoeats.com/palettes/">Palettes</a>; the latter serving up an airy atmosphere and a New Mexican/L.A.-ish menu in a spacious, picture-window wrapped room attached to the city’s Libeskind designed <a href="http://www.denverartmuseum.org/home">Denver Art Museum</a>. Is Taylor’s food fresh and contemporary? <i> Si</i>. Does it rock your world and make you want to write home to Aunt Gladys in New Jersey or Uncle Max in Chicago? M-m-maybe, maybe not… but to the average Denverite, Chef Kevin is proudly theirs, and that’s that.<br />
<br />
In similar, almost painfully artful style, chef/entrepreneur Frank Bonanno has carved out his own culinary <i>Gallia est omnis divisa in partēs trēs</i>: starting with the <i>haute</i> American <a href="http://mizunadenver.com/">Mizuna</a> (encompassing the entire home on the range, from Hudson Valley duck with dirty rice to miso-scallop potstickers and Maine lobster mac ‘n cheese); the somewhat/somehow-Italian <a href="http://www.osteriamarco.com/">Osteria Marco</a> (house made mozzarella, meatball sliders, and lamb loaded down with goat cheese and tapenade); and most recently, a countertop-centered homage to Chinese (i.e. wontons and suckling pig buns) and Japanese (“lobster ramen” and “prosciutto soba”) cuisines called <a href="http://www.bonesdenver.com/">Bones</a>. As with the brazen leadership of Taylor, if you feel like you’ve gone through this type of culinary peregrinations before (the age-old question: why buy <i>interpretations</i> of Asian, Italian or American foods when the real things are just around the corner, for a lot less?), then you’re just not from Denver. The locals love it, and more power to them!<br />
<br />
Then there is chef/owner Jennifer Jasinski, who dishes out simpler yet eminently satisfying fare at <a href="http://www.riojadenver.com/">Rioja</a> (hard to argue with the clarity of her pecorino ravioli with fava beans, or her Colorado lamb burger with spicy aioli and arugula). Across the street from Rioja in <a href="http://www.larimersquare.com/">Larimer Square</a> (Downtown Denver’s restaurant row, where the strings of Christmas lights are never stored away), Jasinski’s brasserie-like <a href="http://bistrovendome.com/">Bistro Vendôme</a> serves up the requisite oysters and <i>poulet rôti aux herbes</i> with faithful aplomb, but the service there can be appalling – the closest thing to Big City airs in Denver. Too bad. <br />
<br />
Insofar as local celebrity chefdom, though, I have to give the most props to Troy Guard, who owns the recently opened <a href="http://www.tag-restaurant.com/">TAG</a>, sitting between Rioja and Osteria Marco under the bright lights of Larimer Square. Admittedly, I’m prejudiced – Guard’s first decade behind the stoves were spent alongside my former partner in Hawai`i, East-West doyen Roy Yamaguchi, followed by stints for Chef Y. in Hong Kong, Tokyo and New York – but Troy has come a long ways since then. At TAG, Guard now fuses Asian-Pacific, classical, Latino as well Colorado inspired techniques and ingredients; often all on one plate, to the point where it’s much less a “fusion” than an earnestly personal style. The crowd, predictably, is a yes-we-can convention of youthful, local beauty and bewildered looking business-account expenders. Service can be a little ragged (you wish the managers and servers spent more time with you than the sexy kids sitting two tables away), but that’s okay – after all, it’s always Christmas in Larimer Square.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Rioja</i><i> (in Larimer Square)</i></span></div>
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<b> </b></div>
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<b>French or Italian, if you must…</b><br />
<br />
TAG is an <i>It</i> eatery, but personally, I make no bones about ultimately preferring the smaller, mammy-made looking restaurants smacking of a little more individuality – as imperfect as that might be in Mile High City – than well capitalized thematics. If you feel like French, for instance, I would step up and suggest the postage stamp sized <a href="http://www.zcuisineonline.com/">Z Cuisine</a>, owned by French born, seasonal/organic/regional-source obsessed chef Patrick Dupays. While Dupays’ dishes are hit-or-miss (often a little more heavy handed than what you want in a bistrot), at least Z feels <i>authentique</i>; right down to the bad art, dust in the corner, frightfully serendiptous (and occasionally soused) staff, the raggedy but chichi clientele (from Denver’s hip, but lower rent, <a href="http://www.denver.com/highlands/">Highlands</a> neighborhood, just west if I-5 from LoDo), and wines as cheap in quality as they are in price (at least you get what you pay for). <br />
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Speaking of which: I don’t care what they say, but there’s always room in this world, or at least in every major city, for old fashioned “bad” French dining. So when I’m in the mood for stubby glasses of sour, off-beat <i>vin ordinaire</i>, and heaping, reasonably priced plates of charcuterie, confit and cheese, I confess a weakness for <a href="http://www.lecentral.com/">Le Central</a> on Lincoln – loopy service, funky setting and all. But I ask: what’s not to like?<br />
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The same goes even moreso for <a href="http://www.ilpostodenver.com/">Il Posto</a>, in the neighborhood of Northeast Denver on E. 17th Ave., just two blocks off E. Colfax: a cozy, 50 seat, open kitchen dining room where the dishes by Milanese born chef/owner Andrea Frizzi remain pretty faithful to the Italian tradition of focusing on ingredients rather than technique. In these days of chefs who cannot help but impose an overweening “personality” over a culinary discipline, a restaurant that somehow keeps dishes down to no more than four or five ingredients (like Il Posto’s grilled buffalo flank with Sicilian sea salt, mizuna, shaved Piave and caramelized <i>jus</i>) is a triumph in itself. Frizzi’s stature, even in this medium-sized city, may never be as large as a Bonnano or Guard; but to devotees of authentic Italian cooking, his looms extremely large.<br />
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<b>Best of the independents</b><br />
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But don’t get me wrong: small, independent restaurants in Denver are not necessarily quirky. In fact, I think you can eat off the floor of LoDo’s sleek, bright, professional, urban-chic <a href="http://sushisasadenver.com/">Sushi Sasa</a>, where chef/owner Wayne Conwell draws throngs of sophisticated aficionados of sushi: in Conwell’s hands, precision cut and pretty much perfectly balanced, focused without being rigid, creative without losing focus. Trust me on this: I’ve experienced great sushi from Honolulu to L.A., and from San Francisco to New York during my thirty-plus years in the restaurant business, and Conwell has the touch. If you get there when he is fooling around with <i>ankimo </i>(monkfish liver), by the way, jump on it – and thank me later. <br />
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Two other personal favorites among the smaller independents, both known for their equally individualist, reasonably priced, globally sourced wine lists: first, chef Teri Rippeto’s perennially seasonal and organic <a href="http://www.potagerrestaurant.com/">Potager</a> on Ogden, in the midst of the old Victorian neighborhood of Capitol Hill; and second, <a href="http://www.table6denver.com/">Table 6</a>, tucked in the homey hood of Capitol Hill on Corona, doing equally fresh, unadorned yet delicious cooking (plus, Table 6 manager Aaron Foreman has easily the most seasoned hand in his wine selection, among all of Denver’s aspiring sommeliers).<br />
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Then there is the almost soberingly pure distillations of flavor (in the best Northern California style, with Mediterranean rusticity) that you find at <a href="http://www.duodenver.com/">duo</a>; this Highlands neighborhood restaurant driven primarily by the intelligence of chef/partner John Broening. Pretty much same team at duo has also recently opened <a href="http://www.olivearestaurant.com/">Olivéa</a> on 17th Ave. (Capitol Hill), where Broening indulges his passion for off-meats like pork belly and pig’s feet, or in sausages and boudin blancs; while his pastry chef/wife, Yasmin Lozada-Hissom, wows the faithful with goodies like pistachio semifreddo, or the occasional apple crostada with caramelized bacon ice cream.<br />
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<b>Turningjapanese…</b><br />
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So let’s go back to talkin’ Japanese, which you actually find in reliable plentitude in Denver. First, I’m a big fan of the Japanese country-comfort cooking at <a href="http://www.domorestaurant.com/">Domo</a>, located in a garden setting on Osage; incredulously, just off the ear splitting I-5 freeway. Domo’s stews and custards are indeed comforting; and the only thing about the restaurant that doesn’t remind me of my eight years growing up as a child in Tokyo is Domo’s invariably rude, uncaring service (I remember the Japanese as being unceasingly polite, even to<i> gaijin</i>). But if you just pretend you’re somewhere else, like Juarez or Rome, I think you’ll do okay. <br />
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But if for the comfort of the traditional Japanese sushi counter and square cups of saké, hot or cold, there’s either <a href="http://www.sushiden.net/">Sushi Den</a> in the Southeast Denver burbs along Pearl St.; or the cozy, less hip (slightly fewer bottled blondes, tatoos and pierced body parts) but consistently fresh, efficient <a href="http://www.sonodassushi.com/locations/lodo.asp">Sonada’s</a> in LoDo, where everyone seems to know everyone’s name but mine <br />
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<b>Where everybody knows your name</b><br />
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Yet, speaking of which: there is a bustling, exceptional oyster bar (nothing but the freshest bivalves)/seafood restaurant in LoDo where, I swear, the bartenders always remember<i> my</i> name, even after being away two or three years: <a href="http://www.jaxfishhousedenver.com/">Jax Fish House</a>, an outpost of the original Jax in Boulder, where <i>Top Chef</i> dude Hosea Rosenberg has been doing his thing (the longtime chef at the LoDo Jax, Sheila Lucera, is plenty talented in her own right). Going back over the freeway into Highlands, there is a sister restaurant to Jax called <a href="http://www.loladenver.com/">Lola</a>, specializing in coastal Mexican seviches and fresh fish tacos (not exactly Puerto Vallarta, but close enough), and where both the high and low brows gather on a deck to enjoy the biggest selection (I think, if about 150 qualifies) of tequila north of the border.<br />
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As long as you’re hanging around the hip confines of Highlands, you might also want to drop in on the unpretentious, low-key <a href="http://venuebistro.com/">venue</a>, on 32nd off Lowell; where, for lunch or dinner, you can satisfy occasional cravings of Kurobuta pork belly, shrimp ‘n grits, or a more innovative (and totally delicious) mussels with chorizo. If time is of the essence, but the mid-day appetite demands remittance, the place to go in Highlands is <a href="http://www.masterpiecedeli.com/Masterpiece_Delicatessen.aspx">Masterpiece Delicatessen</a>; making waves of late with its wild tuna and truffled egg salad sandwiches (your choice of chips!).<br />
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<b>Brews and barbecue</b><br />
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But wait, there’s more… waiting for hungry, thirsty souls in Denver’s Highlands. Some say, for instance, that the pit roasted barbecued brisket, pulled pork, and bison baby backs at <a href="http://www.bighossbarbq.com/">Big Hoss Bar-B-Q & Steakhouse</a> is the best in Denver, and who am I to blow against the wind? Having lived in Memphis and Low Country Georgia, and also traveled through the Carolinas, I can say that Big Hoss stacks up.<br />
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Hungry for just a snack and, like me, harboring a secret passion for authentic, piping hot <i>chicharrón</i>? Then a stop at <a href="http://blogs.westword.com/cafesociety/2009/06/burrito_giants_giant_burritos.php">Burrito Giant</a> for their incomparably fresh, perfectly seasoned pork rinds – not too soft or oily, yet a far cry from dry or chewy – is an absolute must. Finally, if you wish to study the natives: the most frenetic and hardcore of the Highlands crowd is to be found at <a href="http://www.littlepubco.com/restaurant.cfm?id=7">Three Dogs Tavern</a> – can’t guarantee the pub fare, or endorse the artwork (dogs, of course), but there’s a lot to be said for $2.25 domestic brews.<br />
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Denver, as you might imagine, is also a decent microbrew town. The <a href="http://www.wynkoop.com/">Wynkoop Brewing Company</a>, for one, has been going full steam in LoDo since 1988; their variety of small-batch beers full and fresh, their steaks and game meats suitably steaky and gamey, and their burgers properly big and messy. But lately, I’ve been even more enthralled by <a href="http://www.oskarblues.com/" style="color: #073763;">Oskar Blues Brewery's</a><a href="http://www.oskarblues.com/" style="background-color: white; color: #073763;"></a> <a href="http://www.oskarblues.com/restaurant/tasty-weasel-tap-room">Oskar Blues Tasty Weasel Tap Room</a>, a little less than thirty minutes drive from LoDo in the outlying town of Longmont (close to Boulder). The food at Oskar Blues doesn’t stray far beyond all-you-can-eat peanuts, and a menu of ribs, pork sands and sweet potato fries; but its main thing is life-changing craft brews, on tap or packed in low-carbon-footprint cans.<br />
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My favorite Oskar Blues brews from the can: the reliably good, stiff <i>Dale’s Pale Ale</i>; the outlandishly black, malty-silky-sweet Scottish style <i>Old Chub</i> ale (8% alc.); the butt-kicking double-IPA <i>Gordon</i> red ale (8.7% alc.); the titanic sized <i>Ten FIDY Imperial</i> ale (10.5%); and the dark, humongous, Munich style, rye laced <i>Gubna Imperial IPA </i>(10%). Then there are the half-dozen or so crafts always offered on tap; including a heaping, hopping <i>Deviant IPA </i>(8%), and a honking big<i> Old Double Bagger Barleywine</i> (13.2%). As you might surmise, it takes a few trips to try these generously sized offerings, lest you risk the sight of flashing blue lights in your rear view mirror on the way home. But bring your designated driver – it’s more than worth the trip, for both in- and out-of-towners alike.<br />
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<b>The inevitable wine bar</b><br />
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Honestly, I’m the last person you should ask about wine bars precisely because I’ve been making my living buying, selling, writing about, speaking, and even making wine the past three decades. Wine bars bore me, mostly because I’d rather be out in the middle of a vineyard or enjoying my wine with good food (not the typical wine bar “snacks”). Plus, especially since I generally find American wine bars: 1) grossly overpriced (always ridiculous to down two glasses of wine and a miniscule appetizer, and be presented with a $30 bill – you get more in most restaurants!); and 2) dissatisfying in execution (I’ll never understand a “wine bar” carrying the same cheap stuff you see on every supermarket shelf, apart from the usual overpriced offerings).<br />
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But inevitably, someone calls for a confab in a wine bar; and if it must be in Denver, I’ll suggest the <a href="http://www.caveauwinebar.com/">Caveau Wine Bar</a>, Uptown on 17th Ave., which has been known to offer glasses of an interesting Montsant, a zesty Zinfandel, a soulful Rioja, or bright Dolcetto d’Alba (i.e. <i>real</i> drinking wines), usually falling within the $13-or-under parameters of their half-off 5-7 PM Happy Hours – which is why the place usually empties out later in the night. No matter, because there’s a perfectly gratifying <a href="http://www.hamburgermarysdenver.com/">Hamburger Mary’s</a> (gays and breeders alike dig HB's "cala-mary" and dollar drafts) a short block away.<br />
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<b>¿Por qué no?</b><br />
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Seeing that more than a third of Denver’s population is Hispanic or Latino, we happily eat that way, too. Going through the familiar litany of dishes: to me, God gave us offal, and burritos are properly made with all the offal in the world; and <a href="http://www.westword.com/locations/el-taco-de-mexico-4482/">El Taco de Mexico</a> in the <a href="http://www.artdistrictonsantafe.com/">Art District</a> on Santa Fe delivers exactly that, especially when smothered in their fresh, vivid green chile sauce. For taqueria aficionados, <a href="http://www.tacosysalsas.com/">Tacos y Salsas #3</a> on the “other side” of the freeway along Federal is worth the fight through traffic for. Tamales lovers (i.e. me) absolutely swoon over those of <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/place?oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=la+casita,+denver&fb=1&gl=us&hq=la+casita,&hnear=Denver,+CO&cid=16587516703250707763">La Casita</a> – the best $2 meal in the state – and for piping hot, pillowy, honeyed sopapillas, we turn to one of the three locations of <a href="http://www.littleanitas.com/">Little Anita’s</a>, where this treat comes<i> gratis </i>when you order any of heir New Mexico style <i>specialites</i> in mouth searing salsas. Then, for indubitably killer carnitas smothered in green or neon red chile, you have to drive to <a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/17/211773/restaurant/Denver/Lafayette-Louisville/Efrains-Mexican-Lafayette">Efrain’s</a>, thirty minutes north of LoDo in the quaint, little town of Lafayette. <br />
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But if you prefer your Mexican in the company of (forgive me) well-heeled, designer clad honkies, Denver has its share of such. Being of brown complexion, I’m not so comfortable in those settings; but I can enthusiastically recommend the cooking at <a href="http://www.tambien-restaurant.com/">Tambien</a> in Cherry Creek: justifiably known for its papusas (variations of cheese and chile stuffed masa) and, perhaps more interesting, its series of “Tequila Dinners” – during which I once enjoyed a raviolis de huitlacoche (the latter ingredient – pungently earthy, truffley corn smut) that was so good, I wish I had an old, aromatic bottle of red Burgundy (a grand cru Corton or La Tache would have been nice) rather than the countrified Del <a href="http://www.mezcal.com/">Mezcal del Maguey</a> that was making me see double. Finally, if your poison is indeed something like mezcal: for that gots-to-have-it Saturday or Sunday morning menudo, the short drive to <a href="http://www.arcosrestaurant.com/">Los Arcos</a>, in Lone Tree just south of metro-Denver, is worth the trouble; especially if you fancy menudo like me – much more tripe (and less hominy), not too brothy, not too spicy, but touching all the senses with piquant, soul rescusitating sensations.<br />
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Cora Faye's Priscilla Smith</span></i></div>
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<b>Fusion, schmusions…</b><br />
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Then there are fusions; which when done right, are possibly the funnest foods in the world. I’m originally from Hawai’i, and thank goodness for the Hawai`i originated <a href="http://www.hawaiianbarbecue.com/">L& L</a> in the workingman’s hood of Aurora where I can sate my periodic craving for<i> manapua </i>(Chinese pork dumpling), <i>kalua</i> (smoky Hawaiian pulled pork) and <i>laulau </i>(steamed kalua and butterfish wrapped in taro and <i>ti</i> leaves). For more elaborate, yet casually inclined, experiences of East-West/Hawaiian style fish, noodles and sushi, there’s <a href="http://www.konagrill.com/">Kona Grill</a> in the Cherry Creek Shopping Center. Across the way, on the posh streets of Cherry Creek, is <a href="http://www.hapasushi.com/">Hapa</a>, which specializes in fun, wacky sushi and decent poke (raw Hawaiian style tuna). If you still fancy the Latin/Asian fusions that were the rage at the turn of the present century, the tuna tataki, lobster potstickers and seviches at <a href="http://www.richardsandoval.com/">Zengo </a>might still ring your bell. Finally, if some say South American cuisine is in itself a New World fusion, <a href="http://www.cafebrazildenver.com/">Café Brazil</a>, west of the freeway at 44th and Lowell, is just off-beat and unique enough to be fun, casual, and zesty.<br />
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What’s the opposite of fusion? Schmusion? How about just plain American food, like Southern style soul food, for which I’ve developed a addiction after spending time doing jobs in Memphis and the coast of Georgia? Collard greens steeped with pork bones, combustible-hot fried chicken, White Lily® flour biscuits, fried pickles, stewed okra, heart-attack-salted country hams, peach cobbler, layered red velvet cake, smothered-this and smothered-that… oh, it’s baa-a-ad thing. So where in Denver can you go to fill that emptiness within? I prescribe the quaint living-room-like setting of <a href="http://www.westword.com/locations/cora-fayes-cafe-478233/">Cora Faye’s Café</a> in historic (if somewhat dilapidated) Park Hill, right on the tumultous Colorado Blvd. The menu at Cora Faye’s may be limited, and service as slow as blackstrap molasses, but the essentials are just about all there; including their own signature “red” waffles (not a breakfast food, but something to mop up chicken juices). Amen, bro.<br />
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Then there are Middle Eastern restaurants, which (like everywhere else in the country) tend to combine different strands (Lebanese, Syrian, Israeli, Turkish, etc.) of that part of the world; but to the apt exclusion of the rest of the globe. After a good friend of Lebanese descent brought me to <a href="http://www.shishkabobgrill.com/">Shish Kabob Grill</a> on Grant at E. Colfax, looking right at the Colorado State Capitol, I made the attempt to try a few more of Denver’s Middle Eastern eateries. Truth is, I’m not a huge fan of humus, falafel, fava beans, etc., although I do enjoy a good tabouleh and homemade baklava, and I go absolutely bonkers for anything with saffroned rice. But what has repeatedly drawn me back to Shish Kabob Grill is its seriously sensuous, Syrian style braised lamb shanks; served with saffoned rice (of course), and with braising liquids that absolutely intoxicate the senses with spices: from what I can tell – cumin, cinnamon, tumeric, coriander, and maybe a little paprika or sumac (the latter, a bitter/sour/sweet “secret” spice that kicks down the doors of your palate like an umami elephant). My idea of heaven, to hell with the 72 virgins! In fact, when I finally find myself far from the heady life at 5280 ft. up, I’m sure what I’ll miss most is the braised lamb shanks at Shish Kabob Grill, along with the <i>chicharrón</i> at Burrito Giant. Sigh…<br />
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<b>Asian</b><br />
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Like that of many towns, Denver’s Southeast Asian population supplies us with the grocery stores essential for our home cooking; and Denver’s pho restaurants, fortuitously, take the backseat to no other’s (including that of my former home in Orange County, CA, where the country’s largest single population of Vietnamese resides). Having tried most of what Denver has to offer (something of a feat, since there are at least 99 of them), I can say that the most consistently sustaining of them is <a href="http://www.westword.com/2004-08-19/restaurants/so-pho-so-good/">Pho 79</a> (four locations covering the north, south, west, and far-west sides of town); although the combinations of jellified fish and gelatinous meats at <a href="http://www.westword.com/2008-01-10/dining/ha-noi-pho/">Ha Noi Pho</a> on Federal are probably untouchable.<br />
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In respect to Korean barbecue, Denver may not be L.A. or Honolulu, but connoisseurs of <i>kalbi</i> (marinated shortribs), <i>godenguh gui</i> (crispy broiled mackeral), <i>bibimbap</i> (rice, eggs and <i>bulgogi</i>, i.e. thin sliced beef) and bancan (a bewildering array of complimentary side dishes, including <i>kimchi</i> and spiced tofu) can find everything they need at <a href="http://www.westword.com/2007-09-13/restaurants/sae-jong-kwan/">Soe Jong Kwan</a> (for civilians, called House of Korean BBQ) in Aurora for either lunch (incredible deals) or dinner.<br />
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It took me a while, but I finally got the hang of uncovering decent dim sum in Denver (not a lot of Chinese in Colorado). That said, the harrowing, pot-holed drive down W. Alameda in Southwest Denver (easily, the ugliest side of town) to the typically Chinese (i.e. cheesy) named <a href="http://www.denverpost.com/restaurants/ci_4333024">Super Star Asian Cuisine</a> may be less than eventful. But once you enter through the doors, Super Star is a dim sum lover’s paradise: all the squiggly, gooey, crunchy, hot, sour, spicy, sweet and mysterious variations of dumplings and odd animal parts we love, carted over to your table by all-business-like, yet surprisingly hospitable, servers (some of Denver’s hoity-toity restaurateurs might take lessons here). Better yet, for lunch, $9 to $12’s worth of Super Star’s dim sum adds up to more than what most of us can eat. Don’t tell <i>all</i> your friends, if you don’t want to spoil the secret.<br />
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<b>Morning afters</b><br />
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Denverites, of course, are cow-towners at heart, and so the Big Breakfast is important to them. For bleary eyed techies, though, breakfast spots open at 3 PM or 3 AM are also absolute musts, and they always know where to gravitate: either the classic, sixties-ish <a href="http://denver.citysearch.com/profile/1829214/denver_co/denver_diner.html">Denver Diner</a> on W. Colfax, or the venerable <a href="http://www.petesrestaurants.com/PetesKitchen.html">Pete's Kitchen</a> (continuously packed since 1942). Both are open 24/7 and fit the bill, like beautiful launderettes, whether you are trashed or not; but if you want “gourmet,” or dark, organic, or fair-trade coffee, you better move on, son. <br />
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Whatever your social pretensions, the urban-cool <a href="http://www.snoozeeatery.com/">Snooze</a>, down the street from Coors Field in LoDo, does serve gourmet coffee, and turns breakfast into a little bit of culinary expereince. I’m a guy, so I don’t go gaga so much over their battery of fruit and cream filled pancakes (so I can’t tell you about them); but I almost always end up with Snooze’s Niman Ranch pulled pork benedict (extra hollandaise on the side), which is something to text home about. Barring that, I find the crabcake benedict at <a href="http://www.toastygoodness.com/">Toast</a>, in the old town of Littleton off Santa Fe Dr., equally satisfying; and recently, a second location of Toast opened on Columbine in Cherry Creek, mercifully supplanting a Village Inn.<br />
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Then there are the occasional special needs: Dutch Baby pancakes are as good as they sound – fluffy as a cloud, filling as a cannonball – and for that (or a mile-high Spanish omelette), you need to repair down south to <a href="http://www.originalpancakehouse.com/phloc_co_greenwood.html">Original Pancake House</a>, among the tech centers of Greenwood Village. More dubiously speaking: for either chile rellenos with eggs or huevos rancheros (Denver being such a goddamned Western town), the Mexi-grill style <a href="http://www.westword.com/locations/sams-no-3-4692/">Sam’s No. 3</a>, Downtown in the Theatre District, has been dishing them out by the gloopy ton since, like, the roaring twenties; and finally, if you’re a glutton for punishing crowds and interminable waits, <a href="http://www.luciles.com/index.php?main_page=page&id=14">Lucile’s Creole Café</a> serves twisted renditions of Louisiana classics like eggs Sardou (where’s the artichoke bottom?), crawfish <i>etoufée</i> (I think), (strangely Lilliputian) beignets, and weak excuses for Creole coffee that the breakfast-starved folks in Denver seem to love nonetheless, and bless them all the same!<br />
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<b>Cowboy coda</b><br />
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Let’s cut this off with this one, final word: steakhouse. If anything, ever since the gold diggers and railroad men ran off the native American population back in the mid-1800s, Denver has been the place for heap big red meat. When I was first escorted around the town just over ten years ago, one of my first duties was to visit <a href="http://buckhornexchange.com/">The Buckhorn Exchange</a> – Denver’s oldest continuous restaurant (since 1893) – where among the specialites, you can savor buffalo prime rib and Rocky Mountain oysters (i.e. bull’s testicles, <i>mi amigo</i>). If your taste is more mainstream, however, <a href="http://www.elways.com/">Elway’s</a> (owned by the hometown hero) has been doing such a bang-up job in its first location in Cherry Creek, that they recently opened up a second store Downtown in the Ritz-Carlton where, I presume, there are plenty who can afford it. Otherwise, all the national brands (Fleming’s, Ruths’ Chris, Del Frisco’s, The Capital Grille, et al.) are here, and doing quite well, thank you. Yet, my personal favorite: <a href="http://www.sullivansteakhouse.com/"> Sullivan’s</a>, as much for its handy-dandy LoDo location (a block from Coors Field) as its scaled-down steakhouse bar menu, its good old fashioned tuna tartare (my “perfect” bar food), and the “Prime Rib Sundays” (always a weakness).<br />
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<i>Ay-dios</i>, Colorado!Randy Caparoso:http://www.blogger.com/profile/09592071993026270036noreply@blogger.com1