NEW
RELEASES!
Barry
Bonds, Bud-Lite, Mondovino and Me
Spring is my favorite time of year. Baseball returns and we release
my favorite wines: 2004 Grenache, 2004 Sangiovese, 2003 Syrah Benchland
Reserve and our 2005 Rose. This spring, however, has me thinking of
home runs, performance enhancing drugs and 90+ point wines.
Unless you’ve been
living under a rock (sometimes I wonder if that wouldn’t be
best), you are painfully aware of Barry Bonds’ plight to become
baseball’s all-time home run king. Bonds is a walking bundle
of conflict, both personally (just read any of his quotes) and symbolically.
Since the late 1990’s we have seen Barry go from a relatively
slim and fit all-around player (good hitter, base stealer and defender)
to a hulking barrel-chested one-dimensional home run machine. He has
become larger than the game itself.
Bonds, and countless other
body building baseball stars, such as Mark McGuire, Sammy Sosa and
Rafael Palmiero, enjoyed fame, fortune and inflated statistics by
hitting home runs in the late stages of their respective careers.
Unfortunately, they were most likely using steroids and other performance
enhancing drugs. Baseball fans, who typically are as obsessed with
stats, don’t know how to interpret these guys or their seemingly
illegitimate numbers. It’s enough to make your neck swell. How
could this happen?
IS THERE A COMMISSIONER
IN THE HOUSE?
Well, you could blame the
owners, or the players and their union for compromising our beloved
sport and its holy statistical records by not instituting and endorsing
an effective drug testing program until this year. They all decided
to ignore steroid use and its threat to both the players and the game
in favor of, you guessed it: big bucks. Home runs have a much greater
appeal to the casual fan than good pitching, solid defense and fundamentally
sound baseball. Even the purists who endorse the latter style of baseball
have to stop and watch Barry swing for the fences. They can’t
help themselves.
It is certainly not the first,
nor will it be the last time a sport was compromised for money. Just
look at all of the advertising displayed in every ball park. But someone
should have drawn the line at steroid use, and that someone is Commissioner
Bud Selig, or, as Bill King used call him ‘Bud Lite’.
The commissioner is supposed to be the guardian of the game from ideas
that cheapen it, no matter how financially lucrative the idea is.
It’s what separates Major League Baseball from the WWF (World
Wrestling Federation) or Roller Derby. Bud Lite has opted to address
this whole mess by audaciously pleading ignorance while we are left
to decide whether Barry Bonds and Mark McGuire are Hall of Famers
or future stars of Saturday Night Thunder.
WINES THAT GO YARD
The fine wine industry is
having its own “steroids era” controversy. If you subscribe
to Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar or have seen Jonathan
Noisseter’s 2005 film, Mondovino, you are aware of the fine
wine industry’s most vigorous debates: international style wines
(performance enhanced?) versus terroir driven wines. The former wine
style is gaining fame and fortune at the expense of the latter, which
appeal to the wine purest or traditionalist.
I read Tanzer because he
reviews my kind of wines from around the world: French, German and
Italian. He is often critical of those wineries producing wines in
an overly international style. You know the type: wines that have
ripe fruit, soft tannins, high alcohol, lots of new oak. The movie
Mondovino shows how globalization is taking place in the fine wine
world. It features super-consultant Michel Rolland, and wine critic
Robert Parker, two men who have had a profound influence on wineries
who produce international style wines. As we see in the film, wineries
from Bordeaux, California and even South America pay Rolland much
cash to help them make wines that will garner a high score from Parker,
which will in turn sell faster at higher prices to consumers. So,
what’s wrong with that?
Well, both Tanzer, Noisseter
and many wine purists are against proliferation of international style
wines. Like home runs in baseball, such wines can be exciting and
flashy but they might be lacking finer points; such as complex aromatics,
good acid balance, and flavors reflective of the growing region. They
fear that the wine world will be a duller place if winemakers simply
follow the 90 point or “home run” formula of making wine
because there is a tremendous financial incentive to do so. Armageddon!
Like Barry Bonds, Michel
Rolland gives us plenty of material to substantiate his role as “the
villain.” We see him as a pompous, chain-smoking consultant,
who screams at his clients over his cell phone, while his chauffeur
drives him (don’t I wish) to each chateau. He repeatedly encourages
wineries to “micro-oxygenate” (introduce tiny amounts
of oxygen into the wine to soften tannins), which is more or less
a technique used for those who didn’t pick their grapes at optimum
ripeness. He also calls the people from France’s Languedoc region
“country bumpkins and hicks” for not welcoming Robert
Mondavi to the area. Sebastien really appreciates that one.
But blaming Rolland or Robert
Parker for fine wine homogeneity is like blaming Bonds for the “Steroids
Era.” It’s up to winery owners to produce wines that measure
up to their own standards. Contrary to Major League Baseball, there
are plenty of opportunities to make and/or purchase high quality wines
that are reflective of their growing conditions. Despite consolidation
of wineries, wine publications or retail outlets—the wine business
seems to have an uncanny way of attracting iconoclastic rogues (perhaps
yours truly?), who are not willing to follow a formula even if that
formula could lead to greater financial reward or fame. Obviously,
we can only do this because we have customers who appreciate our style.
So while it would be nice to have our wines praised by the wine press,
we are confident there are enough of you out there who give us a 90
point score on your own scale. Bless your hearts. As Sly Stone once
said, “I want to thank you for letting me be myself again.”
Mick
2003
Syrah Benchland Reserve
Most
of you first visited us because of our Syrah. Okay, some of
you stopped by because you weren’t sure where you were
going, but let’s keep that on the down low. We made
our first Reserve Syrah in 2002. If you have had that burly
wine lately, it is really starting to show why we feel this
section of vines within our 6-acre block is so special.
The
2003, which basically comes from the same section, is every
bit as big as the ‘02, but with more complexity and
better acid balance. If the 2002 Benchland is Jerry Jeff Walker,
then this ’03 is Bob Wills. (You can just imagine the
two of them drinking this big boy in Fort Worth while chewing
on BBQ brisket.) Every once in a while we have a batch of
wine that is outstanding wire to wire, from crush to bottle.
This 2003 Benchland is surely a charter member of that club.
It is the single best batch of Syrah we have ever seen here.
Contrary
to 2004, we had some moderate weather during the ’03
growing season. This gave aromatics, deep color and structure
and ideal acid balance—all reminiscent of our favorite
Northern Rhones. The wine is concentrated enough to handle
40% new and 40% one year-old barrels.
The
high amount of new oak means this wine is undoubtedly built
to last, and, as such, we have bottled 50 cases of 1.5 liters.
2003
Syrah Benchland Reserve
Harvested:
9/21-24/03
Total Acidity: 0.57g/100ml
pH: 3.90
Aging: 14 mo. French oak, 40% new
Blend: 100% Syrah
Alcohol: 14.6%
Bottled: 12/6/04
Cases Produced: 410 (plus 50 1.5 L)
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2005
Rosé
We are turning Provençal,
We are turning Provençal,
We really think so…
The
2005 vintage gave us awesome Grenache and Mourvedre red wine.
It also gave us 3 tons of newly grafted Mourvedre which was
not ideal for red, but made lovely Rosé. It is a bit
richer and more full bodied than it’s predecessors.
Bandol freaks know that a Rosé without Mourvedre is
like a Provençal day without sunshine. And a Rosé
with twice as much Mourvedre is worth two in the bush.
Not
to throw another log on the axiom fire but, since this is
our best dry Rosé to date, it will sell out by August.
In other words, you snooze, well… you get the idea.
Only 425 cases produced.
2005
Rosé
Harvested:
10/20-11/1/05
Total Acidity: 0.65g/100ml
pH: 3.50
Aging: Stainless steel tank
Blend: 65% Grenache, 35% Mourvedre
Alcohol: 14.3%
Bottled: 3/24/06
Cases Produced: 425
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2004
GRENACHE
2004 SANGIOVESE
Hurry
up and wait or Cruel to be Kind
Last newsletter, I
pointed out our challenge with the 2004 vintage. A hot and sunny
August and September had most vintners racing to harvest grapes
before they all dried on the vine. For most growers, harvest
took place three to four weeks earlier than normal. Heck, most
of the Zinfandel vineyards here in Dry Creek were picked clean
by the first week of September!
Amid frenetic conditions
of grapes drying and neighbors’ tractors rolling, we decided
to trust our collective gut (not a nice visual) and wait for
flavor and phenolic (tannins) ripeness. Both Grenache and Sangiovese
can become too vegetal and astringent when you make your move
too soon. We ended up picking our Grenache and Sangiovese on
normal harvest dates, which in 2004, resulted in having to sort
through some dried bunches.
This resulted in lush,
ripe flavorful wines that have plush tannins and slightly lower
than normal acids. As George Zimmer would say, “You’re
gonna like the way they look.” You might think that these
wines are quite Mondovino-like. No way Rosé! They each
have a unique personality that is distinct to their respective
varietal grapes grown in our vineyard sites.
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2004
GRENACHE
I am
very proud of our 2004 Grenache because it really represents
our commitment to making Southern Rhone-style reds, regardless
of the vintage. To achieve maximum flavor ripeness we had
to harvest the same vines two or three times. One pass was
to select only the dried bunches hoping to minimize having
these grapes in the main lot. We ended up with almost 2 tons
of this stuff, which we have kept separate to make a Banyuls-style
dessert wine that might see the light of day in a year or
two.
Fortunately,
the result of our hard work is 2004 Grenache that is in the
style of our previous vintages. A few shriveled grapes made
it past the sorting table and they really add classic Southern
Rhone-like aromas of raspberry liquer and dried herbs. As
in our three previous vintages, we blended Syrah and Mourvedre
for color, structure and complexity.
Our Syrah in 2004 was quite ripe making it ideal
for this Southern Rhone blend. It is a wine that will really
sing over the next year or three.
Harvested:
10/13-16/04
Total Acidity: 0.60g/100ml
pH: 3.82
Aging: 13 months in neutral. French oak
Blend: 77% Grenache, 16% Syrah, 7% Mourvedre
Alcohol: 14.9%
Bottled: 12/5/05
Cases Produced: 660
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2004
Sangiovese
The
2004 Sangiovese is everything we have come to expect from
this hillside section. It is dark and full of cherry, chocolate
and earthy flavors. As with most of the current Brunello di
Montalcino stars, we have aged this wine in 30% new French
oak for added structure and complexity. The ripeness of the
vintage means this lush wine is already showing quite well.
Drinking this wine makes me think of sitting with my sweetheart,
Jean Fruth, in Montalcino’s Enoteca Osticcio, where
we are happily losing another afternoon enjoying some of the
world’s finest wines. It all works for me.
As well
as the ’04 Sangiovese is drinking now, it should improve
over the next two years. Because we only select grapes from
our hillside section, case production is limited to 500 cases…
and that means we won’t have it for much longer than
3 months.
Harvested:
9/10-13/04
Total Acidity: 0.57g/100ml
pH: 3.68
Aging: 11 mos.French
Oak, 35% new
Blend: 100% Sangiovese
Alcohol: 14.6%
Bottled: 8/31/05
Cases Produced: 549
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SANGIOVESE
SIDE BAR
Last summer Jean and
I had the good fortune of visiting Valdicava, one of Montalcino’s
most successful wineries. Vincenze Abruzzo, Valdicava’s
charming owner, was so nice with his time that we left him a
bottle of 2003 Sangiovese. Six months later I saw Vincenze at
a 2001 Brunello di Montalcino tasting in San Francisco where
he promptly said “your Sangiovese is the best I’ve
ever tasted from outside Tuscany.” Uh, thank you, I think?
I didn’t have the guts to ask him how many non-Tuscan
Sangioveses he’s tried. I’m guessing it hasn’t
been very many. Later, when having a conversation with my dad
(in Italian that is) Vincenze gave us a more sincere compliment.
Apparently upon tasting the Unti Sangio with his wife she said
“If this wine had Montalcino on the label, you would think
it is good.”
Obviously, Vincenze
has good taste in women, too.
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