A few Arizona (ARIZONA!?) winery stops

While visiting Tucson I went to four southern Arizona tasting rooms in the Sonoita/Elgin area between Tucson and the border. In fact, on the way back to Tucson we went through a Border Patrol stop manned by three guys about 30 miles north of Mexico (your tax dollars at work).

Many of the wines are from grapes brought in from California, but most were local grapes. They seem to be growing most everything from Sauvignon Blanc to Zinfandel. Tempranillo and Rhones also seem to do well. This is a high desert area, about 4500 ft. elevation.

Area vineyards. Photo taken Nov '09

Following are recollections from my four stops. I've listed the wineries from my least favorite to my favorite stop.

Rancho Rossa

They are the only estate vineyard in the area meaning they grow all their own fruit.

Across the board, except for the Cabernet, the wines are flawed. There is a very distinct, and bad, nose and taste to the wines. I sampled the Sauv Blanc and about six reds. Something in the soil? The water? Cellar? It was sort of a metallic, chemically taste. Somehow the Cab escaped this and was pretty decent.

Kief-Joshua

Sampling several reds I noticed most were from CA grapes. One that had the same nose and flavor flaw as the Rancho Rossa wines was made of grapes from Mendocino County per the label. The other wines were decent, but there was nothing I would have to take with me.

Canelo Hills

I tried several reds. The Sangiovese and Syrah were my favorites, but they were pretty good across the board. They were sold out of their Tempranillo that seems to be a favorite.

Callaghan

I sampled several reds here, also. Most were blends and all were very good to excellent. Nice fruit in the wines; better than the other stops. It's possible they may leave a little residual sugar in them (I'm just guessing), but so what if it works? By far my favorites. And they get bonus points for using screw caps.

A number of Spanish and Rhone varietals in the blends; even a Petit Verdot based blend.

Don't have a corkscrew handy?

Here's how the resourceful French open a bottle

:)

Fall is in the Air!

October 26th Photos

Grapes in at Field Stone Winery, Alexander Valley

White Oak Vyds, Alexander Valley

Dry Creek Valley

Lytton Springs, Dry Creek Valley

Two Stops: Dry Creek and Matrix

Along Westside Road

Dry Creek Vineyards

Dry Creek has been around for a long time and has always been known for Zinfandel (as anyone in Dry Creek Valley should be). David Stare started the winery about 35 years ago and was well respected for his wines. His daughter is running the place now.

I counted 19 wines open in their tasting room! They are one of the few that still make a Chenin Blanc. The grapes are from Clarksburg (towards Sacramento). For some reason Chenin grows well there. If you haven't tried an American Chenin Blanc try this one.

The reason for stopping by was the night before I'd opened a 2001 Dry Creek reserve Zinfandel that was corked so I took it back to exchange.

I sampled the 2006 version that I got as a replacement plus three vineyard-designated Zinfandels. The Somers and Beeson Ranch Zins were outstanding (and $35). The '06 reserve I picked up to replace my '01 will need some time.

Matrix

They are part of the Wilson family of wineries--they own about five now and seem to be doing well. Matrix started with Meritage wines (Bordeaux-style blends) I believe, so I was surprised to find five Pinot Noirs on their tasting menu. The tasting room hostess said the Wilson family thought they should be making Pinots as the winery is in the Russian River Valley (just barely) -- an area well-known for Pinot Noir.

I liked all the Pinots and wound up taking the 2006 Nunes Reserve (Russian River Valley). Their wines are in the $30 to $45 range.

A bit of fall color at Matrix Winery

The Bottle Barn

And for what it's worth I made a stop at the local wine shop and picked up a couple $25 Pinots from Siduri and Melville plus a Zinfandel from Armida (Maple Lane, Tina's Block).

It's a beautiful day in the vineyards

Oct 16 Sonoma Valley

Top down cruisin' weather as things dry out and warm back up.

Oct 17 northern Napa County

Some varietals have pulled through last week's rains OK. This is Cabernet, I think.

More rain coming tomorrow though then warm and dry for the foreseeable future. The grapes need not only to dry, but to build their sugars back up to ripeness.

If you've never seen vineyards in their fall colors you should sometime. Main color season is early November, but it's well underway now.

Oh, oh, it's raining

The Growing Season in a Mediterranean Climate

The great thing about grape growing in CA is the dry weather during the growing season. But you can't always trust mother nature. Every year there seems to be something to annoy the farmers.

We had significant rain on October 13th in a relatively warm storm (think warm, moist rotting grapes). The next day was humid, but mostly dry. Here we are on the morning of the 15th and it's raining again.

Not all Grapes are Created Equal

Some grapes stand up better to dampness.

Cabernet is generally the last grape to come in, but also the skins and grape bunches dry out better.

The thinnest skinned grapes, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, are the earliest to be picked so are less likely to get rained on. (Isn't Mother Nature smart). Cabernet is usually the last to be picked.

Luckily, it has thick skins and relatively loose bunches--so less damage from bad weather and easier to dry out.

Another grape still hanging out there that's near-and-dear to the hearts of Sonoma County is Zinfandel. Zin doesn't do so well with the wetness. It ripens unevenly and tends to rot. Even in good time you'll find a bit of rot on the bunches.

In 2006 when we had some September rains some Zin never quite got ripe.

This year I know of one winery known for Zin that will remain nameless here that is probably losing a large percentage of their Zinfandel (they have Zin and Cab still hanging). The only good news is that the crop is much larger than last year so the total tonnage may be about the same as last -- though still below average.

So, pray for low humidity's and wind to dry out the grapes still hanging.

Sonoma County Harvest Fair 2009

An annual three-day tasting for medal winners of grapes grown in Sonoma County. A huge number of medals were given out; almost every wine won something, but that's a subject for another time.

I don't have good descriptions because, well, it's kind of a madhouse and difficult to write down anything while standing and trying to hold on to your glass, awards booklet and a pen. I probably sampled 100 wines out of the hundreds available. All reds; no whites for me!

By mid-afternoon there's no room left to walk in the aisles.

Complete results are here.


The Good

Bordeaux-type Blends

Overall I was impressed with the quality of these. Easy to drink, but complex and interesting.

Trentadue 2005 Alexander Vly La Storia Meritage, $22
Their La Storia line are always excellent wines and a good deal

Murphy-Goode 2005 Alexander Vly Claret All In, $45
Best of the Bordeaux-type blends I tried

De La Montanya 2006 Sonoma Co Tres Amour, $58

Pinot Noir

I love good Pinot, even more when I can find one for under $35. There was nothing here that I have to rush out and buy.  I sampled more Pinots than any other variety.

De Loach 2007 Russian River Maboroshi Vyd, $45
The best of the Pinots I tried, but I was disappointed overall with the Pinots  vs. their price.

Leveroni 2007 Sonoma Vly Seven Oaks Vyd, $18
A very drinkable one for the price

Ashton 2006 Sonoma Vly, $55
Great backbone, spices. Should age a bit.

Rhone-types

I generally love Californian Rhones. Usually very nice for the price.

Jus Soli 2007 Sonoma Co Roots Red, $20
A big, rich, excellent wine at a nice price.
I tried a couple other wines from Jus Soli. Never heard of them, but all were very good.

Sangiovese

A misunderstood variety, Made to stand up to spicy / acidic foods.

Viansa 2005 Sonoma Vly Thaila, $45
The best Sangi I've ever had, also the most expensive.

Syrah

A very nice job overall with "the other beef wine."

Davis Family 2007 Russian River Guyzer Block, $38

Needs some time yet

Loxton 2006 Russian River Archer Vyd $30
Spicy

Pena Ridge 2006 Dry Creek Piccetti Vyd, $44
Nice fruit

Longboard 2006 Russian River Dakine Vyd, $45
I've had and liked this one before and it stood up well here against others

Palmeri 2005 Alexander Vly Van Ness Vyd, $53
Well-balanced

Zinfandel

Sonoma's own

Armida 2005 Dry Creek Maple Vyd Tina's Block, $48 (a price drop from previous years)
A stand-out. Great balance, flavors, and a smoothness rather than heat like many Zins.

DH Gustafson 2007 Dry Creek Mountain Vyd, $36
If you like 'em big and ageable rather than fruit bombs, then lay down this one. It's a big boy. 

Fannucchi 2005 Russian River Old Vine, $40
A really well-done Zin. Probably my 2nd favorite Zin of the weekend behind the Armida Maple Vyds Tina's Block.

Stryker 2006 Knights Vly Speedy Creek Vyd, $34
Another great wine from Stryker. This one is a little rough on the finish so needs a bit more time.

Other Reds / Generics

Loved these blends too

Wilson 2007 Dry Creek Family Red Estate, $30
Another outstanding red from Wilson. Well worth the price.

Here's where it got interesting. Two other gold medal winners in this category were from Ravenswood and Ty Caton. What they have in common is they both retail for $75. The Ty Caton was very well done.
Then there was a Wellington gold medal-winning red called The Duke retailing for $8. This one is the QPR of the year for me. Wow, amazing for the price.

Petite Sirah

Sonoma's old time killer red. More manly than Syrah even.

Miro 2006 and 2007 Dry Creek, $23
Had these two vintages back-to-back and they do a nice job at a decent price.

Overall impressions

I really liked the Bordeaux-type blends and some of the varietals--Cab Franc and Malbec. Also, they're doing a good job with Syrah.

Favorites from the three day event:

-- Armida Maple Vyd Tina's Block Zinfandel

-- De Loach Russian River Maboroshi Vyd Pinot

-- Jus Soli Sonoma Co Roots Red

-- Murphy-Goode Alexander Vly Claret All In

-- Viansa Sonoma Vly Thaila Sangiovese

-- Wellington Sonoma Vly The Duke at $8!

The Bad

Overall the Pinot Noirs had lousy quality for the prices. It didn't really matter if it was a $18 Pinot (those are hard to find) or $60 (easier to find). I've felt this way about the Pinots I've had at this event for the last couple years or so. The main element of some Pinots and Syrahs was heat. And a few Zinfandels were this way too, but that's almost to be expected these days.

The Ugly

In order to enter a wine in this judging there has to be a certain level of availability so if someone wants to actually buy a medal winner they have the opportunity. Well, Adler Fels Winery took a chance; won big, then lost big. They won the red wine sweepstakes (best red wine) for a Pinot and then it turns out they were nearly out of that vintage. They tried pouring the next year's wine instead hoping nobody would notice.  The fair board stripped them of their medal. Well, they got a lot of local publicity, at least.

These are my notes from the 2009 Harvest Fair.   Go here for notes on 2010.

A few Napa & Sonoma stops

Disneyland vs. Regular Folks with Real Wine


"The Castle" (Castello di Amorosa)

Daryl Satui has made a mint from his very popular winery, V. Satui. Great place for a picnic. There are usually lots of buses in the parking lot. He's made so much money if fact that he decided to drop a few million on a castle on the hillside in Napa.

Yeah, it's a real castle. Should you visit? Yes, do it once, but don't come for the wines, come to see the castle and the views of Napa Valley. I tried all their wines and there's nothing I would spend $15 on (they run about $20 to $75). Some would not show well against two buck chuck.

Apparently Daryl Satui got so caught up in his Italian castle building he started calling himself Dario.

Benessera Winery

Not too many left like this in Napa--a working winery with no fancy pretenses for the tourists. OK, I don't know who the owner is, but it doesn't look like it would belong to Fosters or Constellation.

Solid wines, semi-reasonable prices. A great Sangiovese.

Deloach Winery

Deloach has been just outside Santa Rosa in the Russian River Valley appellation for a long time. Cecil Deloach started the winery about 30 years ago. He turned it over to a son who got the place in financial trouble and they sold to a French family. The Deloach family has started Hook & Ladder Winery just up the road.

The French folks set them down the biodynamic trail. OK, I get the organic farming and taking care of the land, but I don't quite understand burying a cow's horn in the vineyard based on lunar cycles.

Anyway, what's more important is the wine and it's good. Several different Pinots from the $20's to the $40's. Their display said the least expensive one, the Russian River Valley labeled, got 90-some points from some writer, but I didn't like it so well, but try it yourself as it's tough finding a good Pinot for that price. My favorite was the Van der Kamp vineyard Pinot at $42. It's a bit unusual in that it's a Sonoma Mountain appellation Pinot. That area is known more for Cabernet.

Zinfandel is their other "specialty" and their $20 Russian River was so-so, but the $32 Nova Vineyards (Lake County) was very good.

Deloach make lots of vineyard-designated wines.

Pellegrini Family

They have been growing grapes in the Russian River area for a long time. Several other wineries have made outstanding wines, most notably Pinot Noir, from their vineyards. For some reason they are not able to repeat that feat with their own grapes.

If they were in the $10 to $20 wine business I'd say OK, but they are priced with everybody else and pretty much everybody else is doing a better job of winemaking. At least judging by what I tasted at their facility. They weren't serving their Olivet Lane-designated Pinot, I've had it before and it's very good.

Kunde

Now here's a family that's been around awhile--over 100 years on the same ranch in Sonoma Valley. They are a well-known and respected family in the area. In the last decade or two they've gone into attracting visitors with their tasting room, caves, and events area. They offer lots of options for tasting and touring. A good web site, too, explaining it all.

I tried their "standard" red wines, syrah, merlot, zinfandel and cabernet, and they were all very nice and reasonably priced. They also have vineyard-designated and reserves. I'll have to go back and try those sometime.

The 2009 Harvest Begins

The first grapes to be picked in the county make the news every year. Usually it seems to be Chardonnay or Pinot Noir meant for sparkling wine as these are picked earlier (less ripe). And usually it's from Carneros.

This year was a small Pinot Noir vineyard in Sonoma Valley near Glen Ellen--a little warm for Pinot. These grapes are meant for sparkling wine as usual. And it was a much larger crop than last year.

What was surprising is the size of the crop. Last year was a very small crop. Lots of winery folks are at least secretly hoping for another small crop this year as the demand for grapes isn't there. Like a lot of other fruit they cycle through small crops and big crops.

The harvest is predicted to be two-to-three weeks behind the average meaning things may not get into full swing until well into September. Is that a problem? No, as long as the autumn weather stays dry and warm.

Why California Wine Tastes the Way it Does

So, wines from Italy and France and ____(fill in the blank) taste different than California wines. Q: Which one is best?

A: It's a tie. Whatever works for you.

Current CA wine is not the same as it was 20 years ago. Is it better now? I dunno, it's certainly more popular.

What makes CA wine the way it is?

-- Winemaking, to include the education, mostly from UC Davis, to growing, to actually making it with all the stuff that goes into that: trellising, irrigation, abundant sunshine, etc. I'd say the two biggest reasons are UC Davis training of winemakers and the California climate which is nearly perfect for wine grapes.

-- Marketing to the American consumer. Or how do you get Americans who thought CA wine tasted like Thunderbird, who drink lots of Pepsi, and who actually like the taste of Wild Turkey to move to premium wines?

First CA imitated the French-style with lots of tannins, acid, not so much fruit, and a long wait for best drinking. Then came leaving a little sugar in to make it easier to drink now (good if you're sipping, bad if you're having a meal with it). Then fruit-forward wines easy to drink now, but usually lacking complexity.

So why is the fruit-forward style so popular? Because you can drink the wine now. Almost nobody takes wine home and puts it in a properly temp-controlled cellar for a few years.

The worst part of this trend is the high alcohol levels. This isn't necessary to make great wine. In fact, 12-13% alcohol is almost always better than 14-15%. So which is best--lower alcohol and fruit with higher tannins and acid or the fruit-bomb? I'm guessing somewhere in between. More is not always better.

This is what you call your full-bodied cabernet ...

Want to try a range of CA styles? Look for these and compare for yourself. Try these wines by themselves and with a meal. All of these are good wine; just different. I'm listing what I consider the most "new world" style second.

Dry Creek Vineyards and Mazzocco Zinfandel

Williams Selyem and Landmark Pinot Noir

(If you can't find a Williams Selyem or don't want to pay the price for an "old world" style Pinot from Sonoma then look for Carneros or Green Valley on the label or look for alcohol under 14%. This isn't a guarantee, of course).

Audelssa and Sonoma-Cutrer Chardonnay

(If you can't find Audelssa then look for anything saying "unoaked" or an appellation of Sonoma Coast).

Kenwood Jack London Ranch and Geyser Peak Cabernet

Winery architecture

Ledson's tasting room in Sonoma Valley was originally meant to be someone's home until one of the many California real estate busts.  Can't say I'd want to live in something this spooky.   Every time I drive by I start singing the theme song from the old Addams Family TV show, "They really are a scre-um. The Addams Family."

Darioush in Napa Valley. OK, the guy is from Syria. I suppose you could also say a French chateau is out-of-place in California, but not as wacky as this thing looks in the vineyards. I won't say it's not beautiful, maybe. You expect this from Napa (aka Disneyland for Adults) because if it'll draw tourists they'll allow it.

Artesa is southern Napa is how a high-end winery should be done. It's gorgeous inside and out, and it doesn't protrude on the environment.

And then there's your real winery building ...

Hall Winery, in Napa Valley, is in the process of building a new, "unique" facility. I've seen pictures of what it's supposed to look like ... and it doesn't look good. Appears they're framing it, not necessarily using 90 degree angles, then throwing a big burlap sack on it. OMG

Best of Sonoma County

OK, this is my Best of List. My tastes may not be yours, but what do you expect for free? :) Based on recent or semi-recent visits.

Best Wineries for a first (or second) visit

Buena Vista. The wine isn't great (but it isn't bad either) however the building and history are worth the trip. It will be crowded on in-season weekends.

Chateau St Jean. A beautiful spot, a large corp-owned winery, but they usually do things right. Pay the extra for the reserve room tastings.

Korbel. Historical tours, deli, over a dozen bubbly wines to chose from.

Sebastiani. They've been here forever, but have gone through some changes. You can always find a couple great value wines. Avoid the weekend crowds.

In Napa: South end Artesa for the view, architecture and wines. At the north end of the valley Shramsberg for the great tour and bubbly (appt required).

Best Smaller Wineries

These don't require reservations, because why spoil your trip with plans?

Armida. The Party Winery of Dry Creek.

Arrowood. Cabs and Syrah.

Audelssa. Chardonnay and Syrah blends.

David Coffaro. Easy-drinking, well-balanced, robust reds. And easy on the wallet.

Preston. Been making good Zinfandel since ... forever.

Russian Hill. Pinot Noir and Syrah.

Best Winery Views

Paradise Ridge. In Santa Rosa.

Sbragia. At the north end of Dry Creek Valley at Lake Sonoma.

Stryker. In the northern part of Alexander Valley. Great wines and views.

Favorite Restaurants

None of these will break the bank

Bear Republic Brew Pub. Red Rocket and a burger. Mmmm

Hanks Creekside. For breakfast.

La Vera. Pizza!

Ravenous. Kind of high-end comfort food.

Rosso. Pizza and you can get wines that are not from California! Don't miss Gnocchi Night.

Union Hotel. Pizza & pasta.

Other things besides eating and drinking

Armstrong Woods redwood preserve

Bodega Bay and Bodega Head. Bring your jacket!

Charles Schultz Museum. For kids from four to 70 years old.