Riedel of Austria, famous for its varietal-specific stemware, makes both of these glasses, and both are intended for use with brandy and its variants Cognac, and Armagnac. How is this possible? They could hardly be more different.
The glass on the left is the iconic brandy snifter, as instantly recognizable as a martini glass. Its large balloon bowl is intended to display as much of a brandy’s aroma as possible. And the wide bottom is intended for cradling in the palm of your hand, warming the brandy to further enhance the nose.
The glass on the right, although named by Riedel specifically for Hennessey Cognac, is suited for any brandy, Cognac, or Armagnac, and is the one preferred by connoisseurs and professionals. The bowl still allows for appreciating the aroma, without accelerating the evaporation like a snifter can, and the tulip shape concentrates it. A similarly-sized and -shaped wine glass can work nearly as well.
While I enjoy stemware like this, as always my advice is to use whatever you like. As far as I’m concerned, if you don’t have to slurp your beverage directly off the counter you’re good to go.
Yet another white-collar professional turned winery owner, Randy Wulff was an attorney for 20 years. After graduating from the Honors College at the University of Oregon and Hastings College of the Law, he worked as a successful trial lawyer and mediator at a law firm in San Francisco. “Even when I was one of the chief mediators during the World Trade Center property damage claims hearings arising from the tragedy of 9/11 that lasted for more than two and a half years, my wife Krys and I had always dreamed of being in the wine business,” Wulff reminisced.
Krys Wulff got her undergraduate degree at the University of San Francisco, and a Masters at Mills College in Oakland, California. She worked as an optical industry consultant for over 25 years while also raising two sons. She has devoted her energies to several philanthropic, educational, and advocacy organizations, including the Piedmont League of Women Voters, the East Bay Junior League, and EdSource, an independent, non-partisan organization that works to engage Californians on key education challenges with the goal of enhancing learning success.
Randy grew up with Krys in California’s Central Valley. “We were high school sweethearts and have been married for over 48 years,” shared Randy. “She is the heart and soul of Lobo Wines, and our success is directly related to her efforts. I can’t think of anything better than sharing our success with the person I love the most.”
As is not unusual for well-heeled San Francisco residents, the Wulffs eventually purchased a second home, in Napa Valley. “We were living in the East Bay and Napa Valley was only an hour’s drive away. Whenever we arrived there, it was like living in another world,” Randy recalled. They soon planted Chardonnay on the property, which is located in the Oak Knoll district. “When the first usable fruit came in, we sold the grapes to Randy Lewis, and he produced a wine that notched incredibly high scores. I thought to myself, this is easy, and we decided to really delve into the wine industry.”
Continuing to expand their efforts as grape growers, a few years later the Wulffs acquired a much larger vineyard about a mile from the first one, where they made substantial improvements to drainage and vine care. In 2007, they acquired a 42-acre property on Atlas Peak, on the eastern ridge of the Napa Valley. With that commitment, the couple established a winery of their own that same year, naming it Lobo Wines. Lobo is Spanish for ‘wolf,’ a play on their last name, of course. The first vintage yielded just 25 cases, but production has gradually increased to around 1,500 cases.
“We want to grow Lobo Wines carefully,” Randy explained. “Our goal is probably around 5,000 cases, and we want everything to be home grown. At this point, we crush some 100 tons of fruit, but we sell around 70 percent to other wineries. Over time, we will sell less and produce more.”
Sadly, the horrendous Atlas Peak fire of 2017 devastated the Lobo winery and the Wulffs’ home site. Undeterred, they immediately set about to rebuild the winery and residence, a project that is ongoing.
The Winemakers
Victoria Coleman Coleman, a Seattle native, began her winemaking apprenticeship at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars as a production assistant in 1998. While there, she enrolled in a winemaking class at Napa Valley College. As part of that course, she crushed a small amount of Cabernet Sauvignon in a drum with her feet in the time-honored manner. The experience of hands-on winemaking fueled her desire to learn everything she could about it.
She began working with Mario Bazán at Bazán Cellars in 2004 as the winery’s founding winemaker. To further her formal education, she enrolled at the University of California, Davis, (incubator for thousands of winemakers) in the fall of 2006 and graduated in June 2008. She was exposed to classic, Old World winemaking immediately thereafter while working alongside Erick Tourbier at Chateau Mouton Rothschild in Bordeaux. Starting in January 2010, she gained further international experience as winemaker at Jade Valley Winery near Xian, China. She returned to Napa Valley in 2015 and began work at Lobo Wines, where her products include both the Napa Valley and Atlas Peak Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, and a proprietary blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah named “Howl.”
Randy Lewis Lewis came to winemaking via a circuitous route. A native of Atlanta, Georgia, he was a race car driver for more than two decades, first as a Formula Three driver in Europe, where he discovered the wines there and what life as a winemaker could be like. He then raced in America in Formula 5000, Can Am, and finally Indy Cars from 1983 to 1991, competing in five Indy 500s. After retiring as a driver, he helped a friend set up a winery in Napa Valley, and then, with his wife Debbie, he established his own winery in Napa in 1992.
Lobo Chardonnay 2017
Made by Randy Lewis at Lewis Cellars, this 100% Chardonnay is sourced from fruit grown at the Lobo Wulff estate vineyard in Oak Knoll. It is lemon yellow in the glass, and features aromas of lemon, honeysuckle, and melon. The mouthfeel is rich and smooth, and offers flavors of lemon, grapefruit, and more melon. There is good acidity, restrained oak, and a bit of vanilla on the medium finish. ABV is 14.7% and 150 cases were produced.
Lobo Atlas Peak Cabernet Sauvignon 2015
This wine, made by Victoria Coleman, was chosen by Great Britain’s Decanter magazine in 2019 as the Top Cabernet Sauvignon in California over 197 other competitors. It was made from 100% estate grown fruit in the Atlas Peak appellation of Napa Valley, on a rocky, volcanic hillside at 1,350 feet elevation. This is a blend of 98% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot (allegedly for “balance and complexity,” although I can’t imagine how much of that such a small percentage could contribute.) On the nose, this Cabernet Sauvignon offers aromas of dark fruit and hints of vanilla. There are ripe plum, black currant, and blackberry on the palate. These harmonize with medium, satiny tannins, nicely integrated acidity, and hint of black tea at the end. ABV is 14.4%.
Maroon Wines Napa Valley Special Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
Like not a few winery owners of his generation, Paul Maroon came to the industry after a long successful career elsewhere. Of Lebanese descent, he was born in 1947 in Pennsylvania, where his father owned a produce business. His first exposure to wine came when he started as a teenager helping his uncle make wine. “It was terrible,” Maroon laughed years later.
Maroon graduated from college back east, and then migrated to California to pursue his MBA. After that, he started selling medical supplies, including pacemakers. He worked closely with hospitals and doctors, and ultimately started his own company, specializing in new types of medical devices.
In the late 1990s, he felt wine and his ancestral agricultural roots pulling him more strongly than ever, and he moved up from the San Jose Bay area to the Napa Valley. There he purchased the 37 acres that would become Maroon’s permanent home, in what is now part of the prestigious Coombsville Appellation in the Napa Valley AVA. Today, about 17 acres of this land is planted with Cabernet Sauvignon, which produce Maroon’s estate wines.
For the first ten years, Maroon was a grower only. He sold his Cabernet Sauvignon grapes to Joseph Phelps, among others, for their famous (and now quite expensive) Insignia blend. During that time, he became friends with Chris Corley, who is the second-generation winemaker for Monticello Winery. With assistance from Corley, Maroon made about two barrels of wine for himself, and eventually realized the quality that the fruit of his vineyard could achieve as a single-varietal, single-vineyard wine. He ended the Phelps contract, and the first commercial vintage of 500 cases of Maroon wines was produced in 2009 with Corley as winemaker. His philosophy is to introduce as little winemaking manipulation or intervention as possible from the vineyard to the bottle, and to focus on 100% varietal wines (no blending).
A staunch advocate of the wine industry, Maroon helped form the Save the Family Farms initiative, which aims to preserve Napa Valley’s small family vineyards so they can continue to thrive and be passed on to future generations. He was also active in the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the Knights of the Vine. Paul Maroon died in late 2019, but his widow Renée is committed to continuing the operation of the winery.
Maroon was a firm believer in terroir-driven wines. “Everyone in the business knows that it is the earth and the combination of drainage and minerals that make the difference,” he was once quoted as saying. “We at Maroon Vineyard are blessed to have everything we need in one particular place.”
x
Planted at an altitude of between 200 and 600 feet, Maroon’s estate vineyard in Coombsville is located in a bowl-shaped depression topped by Mt George, an extinct volcano. The grapes benefit from slower and more even ripening due to the location in the southern end of Napa Valley. Here, the fog burns off later in the day and frosts are less likely to occur. The land is composed of rocky volcanic soil and rich gravely loams, which provide both easy drainage and water access for the vines. A next-door neighbor was Robert Craig of Robert Craig Winery. Craig was Maroon’s friend and mentor, and he always insisted that Craig be given a great deal of credit for the successes of Maroon Wines.
Maroon’s total current production hovers around 10,000 cases of primarily Cabernet Sauvignon, with small lots of Chardonnay, Zinfandel, Merlot, Malbec, and Sauvignon Blanc. “This level is perfect for us, for here we can control all aspects of the wine from the beginning to the end,” Maroon often said. “If we were much bigger, this probably wouldn’t be the case.”
Maroon Napa Valley Special Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
Fruit for this Special Reserve 100% Cabernet Sauvignon originated in Maroon’s estate vineyard in the Coombsville Appellation of the Napa Valley AVA. It was aged for 24 months in all new French oak.
This wine is violet/black in color. Aromas of leather and blackberry join with dark chocolate, vanilla and a hint of espresso on the palate. The lingering finish features creamy oak tones and bracing tannins. ABV is 14.4% and 476 cases were produced.
“I came into the field of wine [at a young age], not because my parents were wine drinkers, but because I was given a microscope when I was 12 years old. I heard about these things called yeast, and I wanted to see what they looked like under a microscope. I was told if you want to look at yeast you have to start a fermentation. So I picked some blackberries, fermented the wine, took a sample, and brought out my microscope — and there they were — the little yeast. I’ve been having those yeast work for me ever since.” — Brian Carter
A charming tale of a precocious young scientist, no? There was just one small problem: before he got to actually inspect the yeast, during a robust fermentation that first blackberry wine exploded in his mother’s kitchen. “There was a big stain on the ceiling for a couple of years, until it finally got painted,” Carter admitted. History hasn’t recorded whether that chore fell to Carter or someone else. Continue reading “Brian Carter Cellars”
Juslyn Vineyards Perry’s Blend Click here for tasting notes.
Perry and Carolyn Butler emigrated from England to California sometime during the mid-1980s. Butler was a trained chef in England, and dabbled with his wife in the emerging high-tech business there as well. It was their growing interest in technology that drew them to Silicon Valley. Once there, they purchased Global Dynamics, a struggling IT company that provided IT staffing for American Airlines in San Francisco’s Bay Area.
Once their company was well-established, the Butler’s were able to indulge in weekend trips to nearby Napa Valley. It was there that they soon developed a passion for wine and the wine country lifestyle that Napa Valley offered.
In 1997, the couple sold their quite profitable IT business and relocated to Spring Mountain. They bought a picturesque 42-acre property that was once a small parcel of the 540 acres that California wine pioneer Charles Krug originally acquired as the dowry of Caroline Bale, who he married in 1860. The Butlers set about having a villa and gardens built, along with a winery facility, which Butler named Juslyn, for daughter Justine and wife Carolyn.
The vineyard on the property was replanted to a field blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon plus small amounts of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, reflecting the English preference for those Bordeaux blends they call Claret.
Early on, the Butlers became friends with legendary wine critic Robert Parker, who utilized their villa for many of his Napa Valley wine tasting and rating sessions. Parker was a big fan of Juslyn Vineyards’ early wines, and awarded them high ratings on several occasions. I’m sure having access to the villa didn’t influence his assessments in any way.
Without any real experience in the wine industry, the Butlers have relied on the work of their grape and wine specialists.
For the vines, Juslyn takes advice from the Renteria Vineyard management team, led by Salvador and Oscar Renteria. This father-son duo has produced grapes for many prestigious Napa Valley wineries.
x
The winemaker is Angelina Mondavi. She began her career at the age of 10 by assisting the lab manager at Charles Krug. (She had an in. Her grandfather Peter Mondavi (who was Robert Mondavi’s brother) owned the place.) After graduating from Villanova University, majoring in chemistry, she worked lab and harvest positions in Napa Valley and Barossa Valley. While in Australia, she earned a Master’s Degree in Oenology from the University of Adelaide. Following graduation, she gained experience with stints at Pine Ridge Vineyards and One True Vine where she was responsible for Hundred Acre, Cherry Pie, and Layer Cake to name a few.
Juslyn’s estate vineyard consists of some eight acres on rocky hillside soils with excellent drainage, where the vines are now over 20 years old. The winery is able to annually extract some three tons of fruit per acre.
Juslyn Vineyards Perry’s Blend 2016
The name “Perry’s Blend” (the wine was originally called Proprietary Red) was conferred by Robert Parker during one of his tasting sessions, and the Butlers took to the designation.
Perry’s is a blend of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Cabernet Franc, 7% Merlot, and 5% Petit Verdot, entirely from the Juslyn Spring Mountain Estate. The wine was aged for 24 months in French oak, 85% of which was new.
It is a fairly transparent but nonetheless dark purple The nose offers plenty of dark fruit aromas with a bit of cedar. These continue on the palate, especially black cherry, black currant, and black raspberry, with the addition of cocoa. There is medium acidity, paired with zoomin’ and boomin’ tannins. To be clear, I like my reds young, and I’m not afraid of tannins. But to temper those here, the wine should be decanted for a couple of hours. And really, another three to five years of bottle aging would be worthwhile. If you have the patience, the wine should drink well at least through 2030. As another reviewer noted, “An odd but awesome juxtaposition of a young California Cab mated with a first production old-world Bordeaux.” ABV is 14.5% and 480 cases were produced.
From Korbel he moved on, first to United Vintners, then Sonoma Vineyards, and in 1974 was chosen by the founders of Chateau St. Jean Winery to become their first employee and winemaker.
In 1981 Arrowood met Alis Demers at the first California Wine Experience in San Francisco. They started dating and were married in 1985. They soon began plans for building Arrowood Vineyards & Winery, which opened later that same year. For the first three years, Alis ran the winery while Arrowood fulfilled his ongoing obligations as executive vice president/winemaster at Chateau St. Jean. In April 1990 he joined Alis to devote himself full-time to Arrowood Winery.
Robert Mondavi Corp. purchased Arrowood in 2000. Constellation Brands purchased Mondavi in 2004 and subsequently sold Arrowood in 2005 to the Legacy Estate Group, which filed for bankruptcy just a year later, in 2006. At that point, Arrowood Vineyards, along with Legacy’s two other operations, Freemark Abbey and Byron Vineyard and Winery, were sold to Kendall Jackson.
The peripatetic Arrowood moved on in 2010; he opened his newest winery, Amapola Creek, in June of that year. The 120-acre ranch (purchased in 2001) that is home to Amapola Creek is situated on the western slope of the Mayacamas Mountains, which rise between and separate the Sonoma and Napa valleys. Although Alis envisioned the site as the place for a peaceful retirement, Richard had other ideas, and immediately set about selecting the best 20 acres of the property for use as the foundation for Amapola Creek Winery.
x
Arrowood claims he’s “saved the best for last.” Perhaps he’s right; after making quality wine for over 45 years, he says his quest now is to make his greatest wines ever.
x
In early December 2019, Richard Arrowood announced his retirement.
The organically-farmed estate vineyard for this Cabernet is a high-elevation site featuring mineral-rich volcanic soils and cooling breezes from San Pablo Bay. The grapes were hand-picked and pressed. After fermentation the wine was aged for 24 months in new and seasoned French and American oak. It is neither fined nor filtered.
This release marks Arrowood’s 50th vintage. It is composed of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Petit Verdot. The wine is is classic deep garnet-purple in color, and gives up somewhat closed notes of blackberries, black plums, and cassis with touches of pencil shavings, and cedar chest. The palate is full-bodied, and continues with blackberries and black cherry. It has a solid frame of firm, grippy tannins, and finishes long with a minted lift.
Irv Bliss’ early years as a farmer were occupied with growing pears, prunes, walnuts, and a large family garden just outside of Healdsburg, in Sonoma County, California. Although successful, for years Bliss nursed the vision of planting a vineyard in Mendocino, which he believed to be one of the best places around to grow grapes. In 1943, he purchased a plot of land in southern Mendocino County, and immediately planted the vineyard of his dreams. In the early days, in addition to growing grapes on the property, Bliss farmed figs and raised sheep and cattle. At some point in the 1970s, all 100 acres of the land was converted to grape production, mostly Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel.
When Leonard met Martha
In 1910, the Brutocao (pronounced brew’ tuh coe) family emigrated from Treviso, Italy (a small town near Venice), at first settling in Canada. Son Leonard Brutocao was born in 1935 in Fort Erie, Canada and, after the family moved to the U.S., was raised in Covina, Calif. He met Irv Bliss’ daughter Martha while attending the University of California, Berkeley. After Leonard and Martha married, the families joined forces, and continued to farm grapes which they sold to well-known Sonoma and Napa wineries. Irv and Leonard worked together for over 35 years until Irv’s retirement in 1969, at which point the new ownership was split between Lenonard and Lenonard’s brother Albert (who co-founded with Leonard the Brutoco Engineering and Construction company in southern California which the Brutocao clan also owned and continued to operate, as well as a number of other entrepreneurial ventures).
For several years, most of the family’s grapes were sold to local area wineries, including Beringer and Mondavi. Leonard and Albert were interested in more than just farming however, and saw the potential for producing a handcrafted Mendocino wine. Acting on this vision, the Brutocao family released their first wine with the 1980 vintage. Shortly thereafter, they chose as their symbol of family tradition and quality a version of the Lion of St. Mark, the lion on top of St. Mark’s Cathedral in Venice, Italy, (But they flipped the way it faces, for whatever reason.) x
In 1991, the original winery was built, and the first estate vintage was produced. Around the same time, Leonard’s three sons, David, Len Jr., and Steve, joined the family business. (Forth son Dan and daughter Renee Ortiz also share ownership of the winery, but have limited involvement.) David is Director of Winemaking Operations, and works side by side with Brutocao winemaker Hoss Milone to produce their estate wines. Len Jr., as Director of Vineyard Operations, oversees the cultivation of the land from new plantings to grape harvest. Following the death of his father in 2010, Steve assumed the role of CEO after many years of experience in wine marketing and sales.
Brutocao outgrew the first winery by 2003, when a new facility was built, and it was expanded in 2009. The original building has now become an onsite wine storage warehouse. The more visitor-friendly tasting room is about a mile and a half due west, in Hopland, California. x
The Legacy Continues
The Brutocao operation is now in its fourth generation. Ryan, Director of Custom Label Sales, is tasked with distribution as well as coordinating with Brutocao’s non-profit partner, Wine to Water. Kevin, a jack of all trades, does a bit of everything, from pouring wines in the Hopland tasting room to managing the winery’s online presence. He also creates many of the designs for marketing materials.
The Winemaker
Hoss Milone became the winemaker for Brutocao in 2009 after spending 18 years toiling for Ferrari-Carano. Hoss is a fourth-generation winemaker who grew up in his family’s vineyards, and watched his grandfather and father produce their own Mendocino wines. Milone is also a trained cooper, aka barrel maker. At some point it was discovered that Milone’s grandfather tilled the land for Irv Bliss in the original vineyard. Quite a coincidence.
The Vineyards
TheBliss Vineyard, also known as the Home Ranch, is the original property purchased in 1943 by Irv Bliss. The vineyard is 400 acres, with 177 acres planted to Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc, Zinfandel, Merlot, Sangiovese, Barbera, and Dolcetto.
TheFeliz Vineyard was purchased in 1994. It is 583 acres in size, with 114 acres planted to Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese, Dolcetto, Barbera, Zinfandel, and Pinot Noir.
The 251-acre Contento Vineyard was purchased in 1997, but not planted until 1999. 90 acres are now under vine, growing Cabernet Sauvignon and Primitivo*. Contento is the site of an old cattle ranch, where purebred Brangus cattle were raised. Some of the ranch was used for research and development of new tractor equipment, resulting in very well-worked soils. Contento is also the site of an abandoned gold mine.
Brutocao Chardonnay 2019
Made by Brutocao since the mid-1980s, this pale-straw colored Chardonnay comes entirely from Bliss Vineyard, the original property purchased by Irv Bliss in 1943. The wine was 100% barrel fermented and sur lies aged for nine months in French oak, 30% of which was new. Some of the grapes were “whole cluster pressed” for maximum flavor extraction. It underwent 100% malolactic fermentation, which in this case lead to citrus rather than the more typical buttery notes.
The wine opens with aromas of honeysuckle, pear, and mango. These evolve into a full-bodied palate of tropical fruit with just a hint of butterscotch on the finish. Serve moderately chilled at about 60° F. ABV is 13.5%, and 3000 cases were produced.
Brutocao Quadriga Red Blend 2017
A quadriga is a chariot pulled by four horses, harnessed side by side, and is an ancient Italian symbol of triumph. This selection, on offer since the early 2000s, is a proprietary blend of 43% Primitivo*, 31% Sangiovese, 19% Barbera, 6% Dolcetto, and a 1% topping of Syrah, which is reminiscent of traditional Italian field blends. “Field blending” is the custom of planting different grape varieties together in the same vineyard, harvesting them all together, co-fermenting, and making a wine from the mixture. However, Milone was careful to point out that Brutocao’s varietals are kept separate in their vineyards, and he makes individual wines from each of the grape types before he begins the blending process. This offers him much greater control over the flavor profile of the wine than the traditional field blend approach would. The fruit was sourced from the Bliss, Feliz, and Contento vineyards. After fermentation, it was aged for 18 months in 90% French oak and 10% American oak, of which 25% was new.
This wine is a totally transparent medium purple, but is more boisterous than its color suggests. The nose features aromas of red berries and cinnamon stick. These continue on the palate, with additional flavors of blueberries and caramel, complemented by a rich, smooth mouthfeel. Decant for an hour or two before serving. The ABV is 14.5%, and 500 cases were made.
*There is ongoing debate about whether or not Primitivo and Zinfandel are the same grape. However, it is agreed that at the least they both share a Croatian forebear. Primitivo is mostly planted in Italy, while Zinfandel is almost exclusively American. Winemaker Hoss Milone insists that Brutocao’s Primitivo can be sourced back to mother vines in Italy. He also believes Primitivo prefers French oak aging, while Zinfandel is more suited to American oak.
There is a long-extinct volcano that is part of the Mayacamas Mountains called Mt. Veeder, named for a Dutch Presbyterian pastor, Peter Veeder, who lived in Napa during the Civil War era and enjoyed hiking on the mountain, where the Douglas firs and Knobcone pines reminded him of the forests of home.
Winemaking on Mount Veeder was first recorded in 1864 when Captain Stelham Wing presented the first Mount Veeder bottling at the Napa County Fair, a wine hailing from today’s Wing Canyon Vineyard.
Commercial scale production arrived on Mount Veeder in 1900 when Theodore Geir, a colorful and flamboyant German-born Oakland liquor dealer, bought the property that would later become the Christian Brothers’ Mont La Salle Winery (today’s Hess Collection Winery). By that time, there were some 20 vineyards and six wineries on the slopes of Mount Veeder.
The modern post-Prohibition era began with the planting of the Mayacamas Vineyards in 1951 and the Bernstein Vineyards in 1965. Once the site of an old prune farm, San Francisco attorney Mike Bernstein and his wife, Arlene, purchased the property in 1963 to use as a weekend retreat, and planted a few vines two years later in the most casual way possible. A farmhand who lived on the property gave the Bernsteins a bundle of cast-off grapevine cuttings. As legend has it, Bernstein stuck the unrooted cuttings into the ground and promptly ignored them. Miraculously, of the 60 cuttings planted, 58 lived. In 1969, the Bernsteins purchased another farm a half mile up the road, which was turned into a five-acre vineyard planted to the classic Bordeaux grape varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec. Next came an actual winery, which produced 375 cases of Cabernet Sauvignon in 1973. By 1977, Mount. Veeder’s other Bordeaux varietals were ready for blending with the winery’s Cabernet; the 1977 Mount Veeder Cabernet was the first California Cabernet to be composed of a blend of all the classic Bordeaux grape varieties. The Bernsteins were also the first in the state to produce a Meritage-style wine using all five grapes, like the great chateaux of Bordeaux
In 1982, the Bernsteins sold the operation to Henry and Lisille Matheson, formerly of Miami, Florida, where Matheson’s family was very active in real estate. (His great-grandfather once owned the entire island of Key Biscayne!) A year earlier in 1981, the winery had retained a new winemaker, Peter Franus, who had worked previously at Chalone and Chateau St. Jean.
Unfortunately, Matheson was more adept at real estate than winemaking, and in 1989 the winery was sold again, this time to Agustin Huneeus of Franciscan Estate Selections, which owns Franciscan Oakville Estate, Estancia, and an estate in Chile known as Veramonte. Huneeus and his team immediately set about making many improvements, such as retrellising the vineyards, providing drip irrigation so that the vines would not be over-watered, and installing a computerized press for the grapes. Changes were made in teh winemaking style to soften the aggressively tannic nature of the Mount Veeder fruit, and new barrels were brought into the winery. Darice Spinelli became winemaker in 1993 after working for three years under Greg Upton, the senior winemaker who oversaw all the Franciscan Estates properties.
At the time of the sale Mount Veeder had about forty acres planted to vine, and Huneeus increased that by another fifty acres (called the North Ranch). Production now centers on four Cabernet Sauvignons, and two red blends. Total annual output is about 12,500 cases.
The whole operation is rather secretive. Janet Myers is the current winemaker, but Mount Veeder provides no biographical information on her. There is no tasting room (they used to pour at Franciscan, but that tasting room is permanently closed), and although the winery is now located in Rutherford, Calif., no address is available.
The Mount Veeder district was granted AVA status in 1990. The boundaries of this appellation include 25 sq mi (64.7 sq km) with 1,000 acres (400 ha) planted on thin volcanic soil. Many vineyards are found on the steep mountain face some as steep as 30°. The steepness of the angle gives the vineyards benefits of more direct sunlight and better drainage.
Philosophy
The philosophy at Mount Veeder Winery is that each wine has its own way of expressing the mountain soil from which it was born. Mount Veeder asserts that great wines are a reflection of their terroir—the combination of soil, topography, microclimate, and people—and that excellent grapes handled with minimal processing have the potential to produce the greatest wines.
The Vineyards
“The mountain is unforgiving, but only an environment this demanding offers the potential to cultivate such exceptional fruit. My mission is to be a true steward of this land, and to have that care come through in every glass of wine.” — Matt Ashby, Vineyard Manager
Resembling a giant staircase, Mount Veeder’s vines are planted on wide terraces of earth cut into steep slopes. At elevations of 1,000 to 1,600 feet, the microclimate is very different from the Napa Valley floor. Above the fog bank, exposed to the gentle morning sun and protected from the afternoon heat by the surrounding mountains, grapes on these vines ripen slowly and evenly.
Mount Veeder Winery Cabernet Sauvignon 2016
This Cabernet is classic deep ruby in color. A blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 3% Malbec, and 2% Petit Verdot, it spent 20 months in French oak barrels. The nose is moderately aromatic, offering up ripe berries and black cherries, complemented by hints of cedar and dried sage. The well-structured palate presents black cherry, leather, cassis, plum puree, and a bit of dust and cocoa. It’s all supported with snappy tannins and just the right amount of acid. ABV is 14.5% and 60,000 cases were produced.
Austin Hope Cabernet Sauvignon. Click here for tasting notes.
Chuck Hope and his wife Marlyn came to Paso Robles (which roughly means “passageway of oaks”) in California’s Central Coast in 1978 to farm, and eventually to start what would become Hope Family Wines. This early arrival put them on the forefront of the Central Coast becoming a world-class viticultural region. Initially, the Hopes planted apples and grapes in this then sparsely-populated area. Seeing the property’s potential for grape growing, Hope eventually replanted the apple orchards with grapes. Vine density was increased, and each vine was pruned to limit yield for better-quality fruit.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the Hope family grew grapes for various wine producers. In the 1980s, the Wagner family, owners of Napa Valley’s Caymus Vineyards, turned to the Hope family to source Cabernet Sauvignon fruit for their Liberty School label. Thus began a long-lasting partnership between the two families.
Since that beginning, in Paso Robles specifically and throughout the region generally, Hope Family Wines has built long-standing relationships with over 50 growers. They coordinate with farmers to carefully limit crop yields to ensure concentrated flavors.
In 1995, the Hopes acquired Liberty School from the Wagners. In 1996, they launched Treana Winery with Chris Phelps serving as winemaker.
At about this same time, while studying fruit science at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, the Hope’s son Austin spent some time working in Napa Valley under Caymus winemaker Chuck Wagner. This opportunity solidified his decision to pursue winemaking for his family. He became the head winemaker in 1998, and has held the position ever since. Since taking the lead as president and winemaker, Hope has helped Hope Family Wines grow from producing around 20,000 cases per year to over 300,000 cases per year. Austin’s wife Celeste, a professional photographer, produces all winery-related photography.
Hope shared, “At Hope Family Wines, we believe that it is our job to demystify wine and make it approachable. As a beverage that often accompanies food, we need to get away from the rules and intimidation, and trust our individual preferences. I am excited to see the wine industry becoming more dynamic and approachable as younger generations embrace education through online sources that are right at our fingertips.”
In 2000, the family started a limited-production label, Austin Hope (surprise!), focused exclusively on Rhone varietals grown on the family’s estate vineyard, based on the calcareous loam, marine sediment, and dense clay soil of the Templeton Gap, which has the coolest microclimate in Paso Robles. It closely matches the climate of the Rhône Valley in France, as well as Napa’s acclaimed Rutherford district. The winery’s now-mature vineyards produce Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot, Mourvedre, and Grenache.
In 2008, the winery introduced Candor Wines, a multi-vintage label focusing on Zinfandel and Merlot wines with fruit sourced from family-owned vineyards in Santa Barbara, Paso Robles, and Lodi. It introduced its second multi-vintage blend, named Troublemaker, in 2010.
The winery.
The tasting room.
Hope Family Wines is committed to sustainable growing practices that promote vine health, improve wine quality, and ensure that growers remain profitable. Spraying is only done when necessary, and never after August first. The number of tractor passes is kept to a minimum, protecting the integrity of the root structures and avoiding compacting the soil. The winery works actively to promote best practices in the vineyards of the growers they partner with. They use the self-assessment tools put together by the Wine Institute and the California Association of Winegrape Growers to gauge progress and identify areas for improvement over time.
Austin Hope Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon 2017
The 2017 is just the third iteration of this wine, and is 100% sourced from Paso Robles. This luxurious wine is inky purple in the glass. There is a super-rich nose with an abundance of dark fruit, such as blueberry, black currant, and hints of cherry. The full-bodied palate is full of lush fruit, especially blackberry, supported by vanilla and subtle oak. The polished tannins and fresh acidity are just right, and in excellent balance. It all wraps up in a nice long smooth finish. ABV is 15%.
Saké, the national alcoholic beverage of Japan, is often called rice wine, but this is a misnomer. While it is a beverage made by fermentation, the production process more closely resembles that of beer, and it is made from grain (rice, of course), not fruit. To make saké, the starch of freshly steamed glutinous rice is converted to sugar and then fermented to alcohol. Once fermented, the liquid is filtered and usually pasteurized. Sakés can range from dry to sweet, but even the driest retain a hint of sweetness.
This saké is a domestic product from SakéOne saké brewery in Forest Grove, Oregon. The company began as a saké importer in 1992, and in 1997 they expanded the operation and began brewing saké.
In premium saké, water composition matters a great deal. SakéOne’s founder chose Oregon because he believed that the best-quality water for saké brewing is in the Northwest.
The other crucial component is rice, and SakéOne sources its Calrose rice from the Sacramento Valley. Calrose is derived from Japanese saké rice and has several qualities that produce saké with more body, higher viscosity, and a long finish.
SakéOne’s modest tasting room.
x Momokawa Pearl Saké
Pearl is a rich, full-bodied Junmail* Ginjo** Nigori*** saké that opens with vanilla and pineapple on the nose. It is quite sweet as far as I’m concerned, with banana, coconut, and marshmallow on the palate. The producer suggests pairing this with spicy cuisine, but I would personally reserve it for desserts, especially those featuring tropical fruits.
Nigori is an acquired taste, in my opinion. If allowed to settle, there will be about an inch and a half of very fine-grained solids in the bottle. If mixed with the saké as intended, the solids create a chalky mouthfeel, which I am not a fan of. YMMV. The ABV is 14.8%, and the SMV**** is -10. The rice has a polish of 58%, so 42% of the rice has been removed. Serve chilled.
SakeOne offers a three-tiered monthly saké club (but not all three tiers are available in every state, due to local liquor laws). Club membership offers attractive discounts and access to limited production sakés. Unfortunately, SakeOne marks up the actual shipping charges by 30% to 50%, making those discounts in reality rather less attractive. I for one would prefer that the discounts be less, if necessary, and the shipping costs accurate.
*Junmai is pure rice wine, with no added alcohol). Until recently, at least 30% of the rice used for Junmai sake had to be milled away, but Junmai no longer requires a specified milling rate.
**Ginjo designates that at least 40% of the rice has been polished away. If a bottle is labeled just Ginjo, distilled alcohol was added; if it is labeled Junmai Ginjo, no alcohol was added.
***The Nigori designation translates roughly to cloudy because of its appearance. All sakés are usually filtered to remove grain solids left behind after fermentation. However, Nigori sake is filtered using a broader mesh, resulting in the inclusion of fine rice particles and a far cloudier drink.
*****An important gauge of saké is the SMV (Saké Meter Value). This measures the density of saké relative to water, and is the method for determining the dryness or sweetness of saké. The higher the SMV, the drier the saké. The range is -15 to +15.
This selection is from Georgia the country, in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Specifically, Lost Eden is produced at the Vaziani Winery, located in Telavi, Georgia
Little known to most Americans, Georgia is one of the oldest wine regions in the world. The fertile valleys and protective slopes of the Transcaucasia, which spans the southern portion of the Caucasus Mountains and their lowlands, straddles the border between the continents of Europe and Asia. Here grapevine cultivation and neolithic wine production began at least 8000 years ago. The very word “wine” is believed to have been derived from the ancient Georgian word “Gvino” which means something that “rises, boils or ferments.” Due to these many millennia of wine history in Georgia, and its prominent economic role, the traditions of wine are considered entwined with and inseparable from the national identity.
When Christianity and the Eucharist came to Georgia in the 4th century AD, wine gained further importance in the nation’s culture. According to tradition, Saint Nino, who preached Christianity in Kartli, bore a cross made from vine wood. Another old legend tells of how soldiers prepared for battle by weaving a piece of grapevine into the breastplate of their armor. If they fell in battle, a vine would rise not just from their bodies but from their very hearts.
In 1950, vineyards in Georgia occupied 143,000 acres, but in 1985 that had grown to 316,000 acres, primarily due to increasing demand in what was then the USSR. However, following the dissolution of that alliance and the end of the Cold War, the relationship between Georgia and Russia has often been rocky, if not outright hostile (including a war with Russia in 2008), and production saw a subsequent decline. Even so, a recent trade agreement with the European Union has brought renewed optimism to Georgian producers.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, in 2009 Georgia exported about .9 million cases of wine to 45 countries. By 2019, production and exports had increased significantly, with total exports of 7.8 million cases to 53 countries. During those ten years, exports to the US, although still modest, increased 48%, to 56,512 cases. The wine is produced by thousands of small farmers (using primarily traditional techniques of winemaking), as well as some monasteries and modern wineries. In 2006 there were roughly 80 registered wineries, but by 2018, the number had ballooned to 961.
Growing conditions
Extremes of weather in Georgia are unusual: summers tend to be mild and sunny, and winters frost-free. Natural springs abound, and the many streams of the Caucasian Mountains drain mineral-rich water into the valleys. The moist, moderate climate, influenced by the Black Sea, provides excellent conditions for vine cultivating. In many regions of the country the grapevines are trained to grow up the trunks of fruit trees in terraced orchards, a method of cultivation called maglari.
Georgian grape varieties
Perhaps not surprisingly, traditional Georgian grape varieties have been little known in the New World. However, with increasing international awareness of the wines of Eastern and Central Europe, grapes from this region are gaining a higher profile. Although somewhere between 400 and 500 exist, only 38 varieties are officially grown for commercial viticulture, in 21 distinct wine-producing regions (a.k.a. PDO – Protected Designation of Origin).
Traditionally, much like French regional wines such as Bordeaux or Burgundy, Georgian wines carry the name of the source region, district, or village. They are usually a blend of two or more grapes, and are classified as sweet, semi-sweet, semi-dry, dry, fortified, and sparkling. The semi-sweet varieties are the most popular in the domestic market.
The Winemaker
Lado Uzunashvili is an 11th generation winemaker. He was raised in Mukuzani, in the largest wine-producing region in Georgia. He learned oenology in Moscow, France, and Australia.
“When making the Lost Eden Red Blend, it was important to showcase Georgia as the birthplace of wine. To do this I found the perfect balance between modern and traditional Georgian winemaking practices to illustrate the quality and evolution of wine produced in my country. We believe wine is better with less human intervention,” Uzunashviliexplained.
Lost Eden Saperavi Red Blend 2018
Lost Eden is a new product, launched in September of 2020. The producer states, “In partnership with the Georgian Ministry of Agriculture and Partnership Fund, Lost Eden was crafted to build ties with the West and forever pivot Georgia, the birthplace of wine, away from Russian dominance.”
“The Georgian people have suffered many years of Russian oppression and a number of crippling embargoes that have negatively impacted both our current wine industry and our 8,000 year winemaking tradition. To break free from Russia’s grasp, we partnered with an incredible team to create Lost Eden for the United States wine market. This visionary wine project will not only introduce Americans to an exquisite Georgian wine, but also will help us build back a strong, free wine market in Georgia,” said Irakli Cholobargia, of the National Wine Agency, Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia.
The Vaziani Winery
Lost Eden harvests grapes
from arguably the oldest vines on earth. They use the ancient clay pots called qvevris (pronounced kwevr-ees for fermentation and aging. They are always buried in the ground, and are usually coated on the inside with beeswax, a natural sealant designed to keep undesirable bacteria from seeping through the walls.
The qvevris are buried in the winery floor.
Saperavi, grown in some areas of the Kakheti region, is one of Georgia’s most important indigenous varietals. It produces substantial, deep-red wines that are suitable for extended aging of up to fifty years. It has the potential to produce high alcohol levels, and is used extensively for blending with other, lesser varieties.
The bottle of this unoaked blend features a glass stopper, which is rather stubborn to remove, instead of a cork, and the “veins” molded into it invoke the maglari cultivation method. Although 100% Saperavi, it is considered a blend because a portion of the wine came from the traditional qvevris and a portion from stainless steel. And, grapes were sourced from several vineyards.
Lost Eden pours a crystal-clear ruby in the glass. The nose offers light to medium aromas of red and black cherries and mulberries. These continue on the smooth palate, joined by cassis and some cocoa. This is a semi-dry wine, with moderate but pleasant acidity, low tannins, and a somewhat short finish. ABV is 13%, and 4,500 cases were made.
x Author Jack London (1876 – 1916) was an American novelist, journalist, and social activist. A pioneer of unabashedly commercial fiction in both novels and magazines, he was one of the first American authors to become an international celebrity and earn a large fortune from writing. His most famous works include The Call of the Wild and White Fang, both set during the Klondike Gold Rush.
In 1905, London purchased a 1,000 acre property in Glen Ellen, California, on the western slope of Sonoma Valley which he named Beauty Ranch. He wrote, “Next to my wife, the ranch is the dearest thing in the world to me. I write for no other purpose than to add to the beauty that now belongs to me. I write a book for no other reason than to add three or four hundred acres to my magnificent estate.” Continue reading “Kenwood Vineyards”
As any resident of San Francisco will tell you, “Don’t call it Frisco!” But we’re talking spirits here, not the city, so I think we’re OK.
Pisco is a colorless or yellowish-to-amber colored brandy first produced in the winemaking regions of Peru and Chile around the turn of the 17th century. It is made by distilling fermented grape juice into a high-proof spirit, as all brandies and cognacs are. It must be aged for a minimum of three months in vessels of “glass, stainless steel, or any other material which does not alter its physical, chemical or organic properties,” so wood barrels, which are used to age most other brandies, are off limits. It was developed by Spanish settlers as an alternative to orujo, a pomace brandy that was being imported from Spain at the time. It had the advantage of being produced from abundant domestically-grown fruit.
San Francisco was the North American city that first embraced pisco, and residents drank a lot of it from the Gold Rush to Prohibition. Frísco’s (here pronounced ‘frees-koh,’ so the pun isn’t quite right) founder Charles O’Connell had an abiding love for pisco, and his goal of creating a sustainable, pisco-inspired, American-made spirit was realized in May of 2017. It is created from sustainably-farmed Muscat grapes from California, which are made into wine, double distilled in copper, rested in stainless steel instead of oak barrels, and then finished with unique charcoal mellowing – a technique rarely used on this type of spirit.
x Frisco Pisco
Frísco has a clean, full-bodied, yet delicately smooth taste with floral overtones, suggestions of tropical fruit, and just a hint of sweetness. 45% ABV.
Listen to my podcast about brandy, Cognac, and Armagnac here.
The Raymond name has been associated with Napa valley since the year Prohibition ended. The Raymond family arrived in Napa Valley in 1933. Roy Raymond married into the Beringer family in 1936. He worked as winemaker for Beringer from 1933 to 1970. The following year, he and his two sons Walter and Roy Jr set out on their own with a 90-acre estate property in Rutherford. They released their first commercial wine under the Raymond Vineyards label in 1974. The estate now comprises 300 acres in Rutherford, St. Helena, and Jameson Canyon. All are are certified organic and biodynamic. The winery is also operated on 100% solar power.
In 1989, Kirin Holdings purchased the winery, with the Raymond family still managing the property and production.
Just about everyone knows about the world-famous Niagara Falls, of course, but the area is home to some increasingly serious winemakers as well, on both the Canadian and U.S. sides of the border.
New York State’s commercial wine industry began when its first bonded winery, Pleasant Valley Wine Company, was founded in Hammondsport in 1860, and the state now ranks third in grape production by volume after California and Washington.But 83% of New York’s grape output is Vitis labrusca varieties, mostly Concord, that find their way into grape juice, jams, jellies, and wines such as, ahem, Manischewitz. The rest is split almost equally between Vitis vinifera (the broad vine species that produces 99% of the world’s wines) and select French hybrids. Continue reading “Black Willow Winery”
and I had always dreamed of being in the wine business,” Wulff reminisced.
There he purchased the 
of wine [at a young age], not because my parents were wine drinkers, but because I was given a microscope when I was 12 years old. I heard 
Mondavi. She began her career at the age of 10 by assisting the lab manager at 
Arrowood fulfilled his ongoing obligations as executive vice president/winemaster at Chateau St. Jean. In April 1990 he joined Alis to devote himself full-time to Arrowood Winery.
the Brutocao family released their first wine with the 1980 vintage. Shortly thereafter, they chose as their symbol of family tradition and quality a version of the Lion of St. Mark, the lion on top of 
was built, and the first estate vintage was produced. Around the same time, Leonard’s three sons, David, Len Jr., and Steve, joined the family business. (Forth son Dan and daughter Renee Ortiz also share ownership of the winery, but have limited involvement.) David is Director of Winemaking Operations, and works side by side with Brutocao winemaker Hoss Milone to produce their estate wines. Len Jr., as Director of Vineyard Operations, oversees the cultivation of the land from new plantings to grape harvest. Following the death of his father in 2010, Steve assumed the role of CEO after many years of experience in 
The
The
The 251-acre 
