The Sarah Jane English Newsletter: 27th Edition
June 11, 1999

TOP PICKS FOR THE MONTH
(look for current releases; prices vary store to store)

Meritage:

• St. Supery, Napa Valley, $40; Beringer White Alluvium, $16; Ferrari-Carano Trésor, $55

Sangiovese:

• Chapellet Sangiovese, $22

Chardonnay:

• Grgich Hills $30
• Trefethen $30
• Canyon Road $8
• Salmon Harbor $10
• Siginorello $30
• Charles Krug Peter Mondavi Family $16
• Canoe Ridge, Columbia Valley, WA $12
• Tessera $9

Sauvignon Blanc :

• Spicewood, $7
• Ste. Genevieve, $5
• Fall Creek, $7
• Parducci, $8

Italian:

• Fontana Candida Frascati DOC $8
• Gabbiano Vino Rosso di Toscana $8
• Castello Di Volpaia Chianti Classico DOCG $15

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NEWS

PLEASANT HILL WINERY, Brennen, TX, has made the first commercial crush in Washington County in 50 years. Look for Blanc de Bois, Collina Bianca, Sauvignon Blanc, and Chenin Blanc. Texaswine@aol.com

CLOS DU VAL named Elizabeth Skemp the director of communications.

ROBERT MONDAVI WINERY announced the first major refurbishing for the 33-year-old Napa Valley landmark winery. The renovation will create a new state-of-the-art facility for producing and barrel-aging the high-end reds and improvements will also be made t the winery visitor programs.

WINE INSTITUTE announced that high-end wine sales expanded in 1998 while generic wines declined in sales. "American consumers are moving upscale to high-end varietal wines, shifting their preferences from jug wines," according to industry analyst Jon Fredrikson. California table wine priced $7 and above was the fastest growing segment. Categories include ultra-premium wines (over $14), super-premium wines ($7 to $14) and popular-premium wines ($3 to $7).

BALZAC COMMUNICATIONS announced the appointment of Joe Gargiulo as account executive.

KIM McPHERSON has released his first two CAP*ROCK red wines from the 1997 vintage: CAP*ROCK Merlot and the CAP*ROCK Cabernet Sauvignon.

WINE INSTITUTE announced that in a historic regulatory breakthrough, the Treasury Department’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (BATF) has approved Wine Institute’s new label statement: "To learn the health effects of wine consumption, send for the Federal Government’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans, web site WWW.USDA.GOV/FCS/CNPP.HTM."

CHALONE Inc. announced that it will support the new "health effects" by BATF by using one statement on the back label of CARMENET Dynamite Cabernet Sauvignon.

KENWOOD announced a new Yulupa series of wines designed for the on-premise market: Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot and "Old Vines" Zinfandel. They’re made to please a wide range of palates and be adaptable to a variety of foods.

SALMON HARBOR is now being sold nationally by Vintage New World, beginning with the 1997 Central Coast Chardonnay, $10. Winemaker Tom Eddy produces premium wines under his Tom Eddy label and created Salmon Harbor as high-quality, easy-drinking, affordable wines that are compatible with food.

CHAMPAGNE CHARLES HEIDSIECK reports that a revolution is being born that is going to change the world of champagne. Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve will be the first non-vintage champagne to bear a date. Cellar-master Daniel Thibault believes so strongly that champagne improves with age that beginning with this current wine the Brut Reserve will bear the date on which it was put to age—of Mis en Cave. A Mis en Cave en 1993 label, therefore, is not a vintage label but rather a blended non-vintage champagne laid down in the year 1993. It will be six years old this holiday season. The Mis en Cave wines will be available in the United States in March 1999, and three different years will be offered: 1993 ($38), 1994 ($40), and 1995 ($42).

PETER POULAKAKOS, son of restaurateur Harry of the famed Harry’s, has opened his own restaurant. The restored Bayard’s is in the space over and upstairs from Harry’s at Hanover Square. The wine list offers 1,000 mostly California and French wines, many still drawn directly from Harry’s stellar cellar.

LEE HODO was appointed RODNEY STRONG Vineyards’first director of communications, the first time that public relations and communications have been coordinated directly from the winery. The winery has been owned for 10 years by the Klein family.

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NEW RELEASES

ROBERT CRAIG’s wine represent the proverbial overnight success that results from years of hard work. The first Robert Craig Cabernet Sauvignon (1992) debuted in 1995 and was enthusiastically received by consumers and wine reviewers. One magazine listed him as "Rookie of the Year" in 1995 and another as "Hot New Wineries" in 1996. Yet, for more than 20 years, Bob has been a leader in the development of mountain vineyards and the production of wines of great depth and character from hillside vineyard sources. Craig’s Affinity is a cabernet sauvignon blend that features grapes from the estate vineyard located in the eastern foothills of Napa Valley. "It produces wonderfully distinctive cabernet sauvignon," Craig says, "that was used previously in Joseph Phelps Insignia blend. We believe this vineyard is an ideal counterpoint to the grapes from Rutherford, Oakville and Carneros used in Affinity." The 1996 is 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc and only 1,250 cases were made." Bob tells me there is more to come, so, please stay tuned.

• ROBERT CRAIG 1996 Affinity $40: "rich blackberry, cherry, vanilla, cocoa and mint and sweet oak, complex and layered. Long and lush finish.’

• CARMENET 1996 Delta Zin, Evangelho Vineyard, $16.50: "There’s a certain self-assured, stately elegance from these gnarled old vines which, for over a hundred years, have faithfully offered luscious bunches of berries to succeeding generations of winemakers. We present their tale, resisting the urge to reshape it with presumptuous meddling." Winemaker Jeff Baker
• CARMENET 1995 Cabernet Franc, Moon Mountain Vineyard, Sonoma Valley $25: "Cabernet Franc is an important component of our Meritage red wines, softening and rounding it out with intriguing aromas of raspberries and chocolate. Its performance has been so superb that we withheld a small amount to bottle on its own. The 1995 has complex aromas of berry, cassis and toast, full-bodied and rich." Jeff Baker
• CARMENET 1996 Merlot Sangiacomo Vineyard, Carneros, Sonoma $30: "We consider the first Merlot from this famous vineyard to be a resounding success. It has the sensuous accessible mouthfeel which we hope for from the variety, explosive fruit and modest tannin." Jeff Baker
• CARMENET 1997 Dynamite Cabernet Sauvignon $19.50: "Label artist Diana Lee Craig depicts a fanciful visit by native bears to our vineyard under the swoosh of comet Hale-Bop as the moons fades into an eclipse. The superb 1997 vintage produced dark, intensely fragrant wine with aromas of cassis, black cherry and cedar."

• CHALONE Vineyard 1997 Estate Bottled Chardonnay $31: "a real powerhouse of fruit, toast, and richness, a lively 1997 produced livelier fruit than previous vintages—tropical fruit, peach, orange peel and deep roasted almond and crème-brulée-like aromas, firm acidity; serve with chicken or veal with wild mushrooms."

• ECHELON 1997 Merlots, Central Coast $14.50: "muscular although smooth and well fleshed, grape, plum, black cherry, toasty oak—pair with lamb and beef, grilled foods."

• EDNA VALLEY VINEYARDS 1997 Pinot Noir $18.50:"well-oaked, cherry pastry notes, brown sugar, complex array of rose petals, leather and spice."

• CHATEAU SOUVERAIN 1996 Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley $11: "wild blackberry and black cherry, hints of nutmeg and cinnamon, jammy mouthfeel, modest acidity, ripe tannins, medium-bodied, touoch oak."

• ALEXANDER VALLEY VINEYARDS 1997 Wetzel Family Estate Syrah $17: "approachable, blackberry and cherry character with layers of flavor and aroma. It won gold at the 1998 Sonoma County Harvest Fair."
• ALEXANDER VALLEY VINEYARDS 1997 Wetzel Family Estate Cabernet Franc $16: "intensely aromatic and fuller in body than the previous vintage."
• ALEXANDER VALLEY VINEYARDS 1997 Sin Zin, Alexander Valley $14: "medium bodied with flavors of dark cherry, blueberry and raspberry."

• KEMPTON CLARK 1997 Lopez Ranch Zinfandel Cucamonga Valley $18: "A brand from R.H.Phillips solely devoted to producing Zinfandel. The winery is named for sheep rancher, Zin grower and pioneer, Kempton Clark who planted 10 acres of Zin in 1962 for his Basque shepherds—part of the contract for bringing the shepherds from Spain. This is a robust, spicy wine, with plenty of ripe berry, full-bodied, expansive grape and black pepper spice, full tannins and good structure."
• KEMPTON CLARK 1997 Kempton Clark MAD ZIN $12: "a delicious blend of appellations, spicy and jammy, hints of toasty American oak."

• JEKEL 1997 Gravelstone Chardonnay $15: "hints of pineapple, coconut, juicy mango and apricot, nice acidity, balanced with kiss of spicy oak.’
• JEKEL 1996 Cabernet Franc Sanctuary Estate Vineyard $24: "textural elegance, white chocolate, plum and cedar accents, lush mouthfeel and long finish."
• JEKEL 1995 Sanctuary Estate Reserve $26: "a new proprietary wine, blend of five Bordeaux varieties, ripe plum, cinnamon-spice and fresh blackberry, lush and rounded, berry fruits and spicy oak, complexity."

• KENWOOD 1997 Reserve Sauvignon Blanc $16: "well-balanced, fruity fresh, smooth, creamy finish." (3,500 cases)
• KENWOOD 1997 Reserve Chardonnay $25: "enticing floral, tropical and vanilla flavors, a rich, creamy texture." (3,200 cases)
• KENWOOD 1997 Russian River Pinot Noir $17: "wild berry, plum, cherry flavors, enticing floral bouquet."

• MICHEL-SCHLUMBERGER 1996 Merlot Benchland Estate $21: "This wine is from a remarkable block of merlot vines that yields sensational fruit every year. Extremely perfumed and richly flavored, the grapes have elaborate varietal character. Although most of the fruit enriches the winery’s Cabernet Sauvignon blend, winemaker Fred Payne reserves a small lot and proudly creates a very limited quantity of this Merlot." SALMON HARBOR 1997 Chardonnay, $10: "fresh, green apple quality, rich, buttery and balanced."

• KORBEL 1996 Natural Champagne $13: "very dry, sophisticated, balanced, uniquely crisp, fruit centered."

• LAKE SONOMA 1997 Russian River Valley Chardonnay $15: "apple, pear, pineapple, lemon, floral and spice."
• LAKE SONOMA 1996 Alexander Valley Old Vine Zinfandel $18: "blackberry, chocolate, roasted nuts."

CASTELLO di GABBIANO owner Rino Arcaini reports historical research about his property: "The origin of the horseman (Cavaliere) on our label has been curious to us and we discovered it was depicted in a fresco. The first construction at Castello di Gabbiano was 1100 AD, a simple garrison tower—a protective trade route overlook. The Bardi family, bankers, expanded the Castello in the 1200s to be a country home. Customs of the 13^th and 14^th centuries encouraged the family to celebrate themselves in a fresco; hence, the Cavaliere appeared as part of the wall art, indicating that they were honored citizens who had been given the right to wear golden spurs. Our current releases thus symbolize our history. Both wines are made only in vintages that are judged to be superior and represent our admiration for tradition.

• CASTELLO di GABBIANO 1993 Chianti Classico Riserva "Oro" (90% sangiovese) $24: "balanced structure, soft tannins, ripe raspberries and cedar-spice flavors."
• CASTELLO di GABBIANO 1992 PerAnia (100% sangiovese) $30: "concentrated fruit of blackberry, raspberry and spices, complex, vanilla-oak components.’

• GROTH 1995 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Reserve (1,350 cases) $125: "As with the two previous reserves, 1992 and 1994, all the cabernet comes from the Block One section of our Oakcross Vineyard. The cool year provided a long hang time, allowing grapes to reach full maturity at a slow pace. The grapes were not harvested until November. I increased Merlot to 20%, resulting in a more integrated tannin structure. The wine is unfined and unfiltered. It has rich cherry/berry characters, notes of plum, black cherry, vanilla and spice, firm yet supple tannin backbone promises exceptional development and complexity." Winemaker Michael Weis

• BEL ARBOR 1997 Cabernet Sauvignon Chile $6: "soft, approachable, with black cherry and oak-spice."
• BEL ARBOR 1998 Chardonnay California $6: "rich tropical fruit, apricot and spice, vanilla complexities."
• BEL ARBOR 1997 Merlot California $6: "soft, smooth, forward berry fruits and toasty oak spice."

• FERRARI-CARANO 1996 Siena, Sonoma $28: "’Siena’ describes the earthy, burnt orange colors of the Tuscan hillsides and the Dry Creek soils that match them. The wine has rich raspberry, plum, layered hints of cassis and black berry fruit, cedar notes with a complexity of blending. Enjoy with hearty chicken dishes, duck and lamb."
• FERRARI-CARANO 1996 Zinfandel, Sonoma $17: " A supple, well-balanced classic Zin, with full ripeness, bursting with black berries, plum, cherry and spice, toasty oak and mouth-filling flavors. Enjoy with crab, mussels, shrimp, pork, tomato sauces and sausages."
• FERRARI-CARANO 1997 Chardonnay Alexander Valley $22: "Seven clones combine bud-wood to produce this wine, selected from 60 different lots in eight vineyards. It’s well-balanced with lush fruit, ripe pear, peach, spice, vanilla and restrained oak notes. Enjoy with lobster, salmon, scallops, turkey, cream saucaes, avocado, mushrooms, and mild cheeses."
• FERRARI-CARANO 1996 Chardonnay Reserve $32: " . . . made from selected lots of wine deemed the best of the vintage to create this elegant wine with finesse. Delicate, pure varietal character, barrel fermented, extended lees contact an extensive barrel and bottle aging with a balance between fruit and oak. Enjoy with cooked oysters, sea bass, lobster, swordfish, pheasant, quail, rabbit, butter sauces."

• RIVEFORT DE FRANCE wines grow in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France and David Schlottman of Napa Ridge and Jean Louis Mandrau and Aaron Pott—all of Beringer Estates—work with the growers to produce these wines. They are delicious and great values.
• RIVEFORT DE FRANCE 1996 Merlot $6: "Filled with ripe black cherry plum notes with supple tannins and layers of black fruit, leather, tobacco and ccedar."
• RIVEFORT DE FRANCE 1996 Cabernet Sauvignon $5: "Black cherry and chocolatenotes, soft, rouond, well-structured tannins, flavors of raspberries and cassis with a velvety finish."

• KING ESTATE 1996 Pinot Noir Oregon $18: "Bright raspberry, blackberry, and currant enhanced by oak spice, port pourri spices and beautifully balanced intense fruit."
• KING ESTATE 1996 Pinot Noir Reserve Oregon $35: "Rich and concentrated aromas of abundant raspberry, balckberry, blueberry and lavender, subtle notes of hay and spice, and thoroughly integrated oak, great acid balance, soft smooth tannins and a velvet finish.’

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CAYMUS PROFILE

An informative publication, California Wine Pioneers, includes, quite naturally, Charles (Charlie) Wagner and his son Chuck. It reports that in the early 1970s Charlie said to Chuck, "if we want to start a winery, it’s now or never." There was quite a winemaking history for the Wagner family.

In 1885 Charlie Wagner’s father moved from Alsace to America, eventually settling in San Francisco in 1890. After the devastating earthquake (1906) they moved to Napa Valley and bought a farm, where Charlie was born in 1912. His father began a bulk winery in 1915 that was producing 30,000 gallons in a year.

After Prohibition, the family began planting other commercial crops and made wines for their own enjoyment. In 1941, Charlie and his wife Lorna, bought 73 acres down the road from his family’s farm which included the Liberty School site—the school Charlie attended as a boy. After WWII, the local school district abandoned the school and the Wagners used its lumber to build their home. Among the many crops they raised, grapes gradually took on an increasing importance. Charlie has been growing grapes since 1943, but at that time he made wine only for home consumption. Nonetheless, his homemade wines earned him a reputation as an excellent winemaker. In the mid-1960s, the fruit orchids were pulled out and Charlie planted cabernet sauvignon, pinot, noir and Johannisberg riesling. In 1972 Charlie asked Chuck to join the wine-making enterprise and they founded Caymus Vineyards. Charlie told Chuck, that if he’d join him, they could go into commercial production and Chuck agreed. They selected Caymus (California Indians) as the name for their business and produced wines from the already planted varieties.

Chuck started this new venture by pruning 60 acres of vineyard with his dad in the winter of 1971 and the first Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon was produced in 1972. He soon realized that winemaking would be his chosen work. Now, 28 harvests later, Chuck continues the Wagner winemaking philosophy.

Caymus wines reflect Charlie and Chuck’s personal philosophy of winemaking. The wines have concentrated flavor, exceptional balance and are consistent in quality. Charlie’s winemaking skills come from his knowledge of soil conditions, climate considerations and viticultural practices. He strives to produce wines of consistent quality and character. The Wagners, however, have never stopped being farmers, and their approach to winemaking is always influenced by the grapes.

• MER & SOLEIL 1996 Chardonnay: "This wine is sold only through fine wine retailers and restaurants. The winery is not open for tours or tasting. An outstanding vintage, following a season of long, sunlit days and cool nights, the fruit at harvest had ripened to full maturity. Hand picking selected the richest, ripest grapes. A blend of clones determined which grapes offered dimensions and depth, making a final complex and rich blend.
• CAYMUS 1995 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $65: "low yields, prime vintage, long-term growers, clonal choices, varied viticuultural practices and soil types combined to create the quality essential to this superb wine."
• CAYMUS 1997 Conundrum $20: "this lively, unique white wine, true to winemaker Jon Bolta’s original intentions, is an exciting blend of different varietals from several California viticultural areas. It has been a favorite of mine since my first discovery."
• CAYMUS 1997 Sauvignon Blanc $14: "round and lush, forward tropical fruit characteristics, 10% chardonnay added for additonal complexity and softness."

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DeLILLE CELLARS Profile

DeLILLE CELLARS makes extremely limited amounts of very fine wine. I was introduced to this Washington winery three years ago when I visited the property and was immediately spoiled by the quality of these captivating wines. They are elegantly balanced, generous with fruit, ripe and rich and completely satisfying. I don’t recall when I last used the word unique to describe wine, but I do so now.

DeLILLE produces only four wines—three reds and one white: Chaleur Estate Red, Harrison Hill, and D2 (named for wine route in Bordeaux), and Chaleur Estate Blanc (all Bordeaux blends). These luscious wines give a whole new meaning to hand-crafted. The total production is less than 3500 cases and the bottles sell out within a few days of being released. They are truly premium wines—superior in every way.

• 1996 CHALEUR ESTATE RED $42—66% cabernet sauvignon, 24% merlot and 10% cabernet franc.
• 1996 D2 $28.50—44% cabernet sauvignon, 38% cabernet franc and 18% merlot.
• 1996 HARRISON HILL, single vineyard $42—63%cabernet sauvignon, 25% merlot and 12% cabernet franc.
• 1997 CHALEUR ESTATE BLANC $25—63% sauvignon blanc and 37% semillon.

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