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Whats best??? From grapes to glass PDF Print E-mail
Written by Fred McMillin, Northside Wine Editor   
Wednesday, 31 August 2005

 

Some of California’s BEST Grapes!



“Single-vineyard wines loomed large in Europe by 1850. Something new was added in California 100 years later – the vineyard-designation label, with its implication of superior quality. Lately, more and more vintners are producing vineyard-designated wines.”
– Steve Heimhoff, wine enthusiast

Our Fort Report



Looking over the results of our recent blind tastings, we can’t find a poor single-vineyard wine. But we can find plenty of good ones. For example, last Saturday the top two bottles scored 91, and both had vineyard names:

    Richard Sauret Vineyard, Paso Robles, Zinfandel by Rosenblum
    Westwind Vineyard, Lodi, Jessie’s Grove Winery Zinfandel


Here are other homes of some of the Golden State’s best grapes:

    Bien Nacido (“Born Well”) Vineyard, Santa Barbara County, Pinot Noir by Steele Wines
    Rochioli Vineyard, Russian River Valley, Pinot Noir by Gary Farrell
    Moose Valley Vineyard, Napa Valley, Cabernet Sauvignon by D.R. Stephens
    Don Miguel Vineyard, Russian River Valley, Chardonnay by Marimar Estate


Best New Wine Book



Quotes from the book:

“Much has been written about ideal combinations of wine and food. Much of it is pompous piffle.”

“When we drink a glass of [Spanish] sherry, it is entirely possible that we are drinking, at least in part, from the same vineyards that sent the first wine to the New World, which Columbus brought in 1492.”

About the author, Roy Brady (1918-1998): Transfinite Modular Lattices was the title of Roy’s M.A. math thesis at the U. of Chicago. Though the university wanted him to continue to a Ph.D., in 1947 he read American Wine by Frank Schoonmaker. From that time on he focused on wine and never regretted it.

Since then his track record includes tasting very carefully the first 40 vintages of Beaulieu’s Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and the first 65 vintages of Dom Perignon Champagne except the very first, which he refused to buy because at that time it was an exorbitant $8 ... and he spotted winners early.

Among the California wineries showing promising beginnings four decades ago were David Bruce, Hanzell and Schramsberg.

“Oregon and Washington are creating a stir beyond anyone’s expectations.” (written 25 years ago)

The book is Unpublished Writings on Wine by Roy Brady. Nomis Press, 2003. Only 250 copies. $100 (& worth it). To order, phone Gail Unzelman, (707) 546-1184, for this milestone in 20th-century wine literature.

Bertrand Russell postscript: The brilliant British mathematician-philosopher was one of Roy’s instructors at the University of Chicago. He praised Roy as being only one of three people who read and digested all three volumes of the magnificent Russell-Whitehead Principia Mathematica. Brady must have been the best mathematician ever to devote his life to fermented grape juice!

Best-Educated Vintner in the U.S.A.



My nominee spent 14 years at seven universities and became an expert in particle physics, music theory, Greek philosophy and electronics ... all before two stints at U.C.-Davis in winegrowing. He is William Jarvis of Napa Valley’s Jarvis Winery.

Best Wine in Our Next Class



A Trimbach Cuvee Emile Riesling was rated 99 recently by the Wine Spectator. We’re going to taste the latest Emile release in the first of our two September classes. Here’s the schedule. Phone (415) 561-1860 to enroll; they fill early.
Sept. 10 – Basics for Beginners
Sept. 24 – Taste the Terms (20 wines that are examples of common descriptors such as closed, fat, etc.)

Best Winery Landmark



“Hops are used to give beer bitterness and character. They are picked at just the right time and then dried carefully [in a kiln] to conserve the delicate, fine aroma essential to choice brewing.”
– Grossman’s Guide, 6th edition

Solomon Walters built his three-towered, stone hop kiln exactly 100 years ago six miles south of Healdsburg in Sonoma County. Today the press describes it as the “best example of its kind still standing in America.” To see it, visit the Hop Kiln Winery ... and enjoy the complimentary wine samples in the tasting room, open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., phone (707) 433-6491. Note: For the record, the kiln is Registered California Historical Landmark 839.

Best Aviator-Vintner



Doug Meador, founder of Ventana Vineyards three decades ago, flew over 200 combat missions in his Navy Skyhawk A-4 during the Vietnamese war.

Best Recent California Vintage



Vintages 1999 through 2003 have been rated by many tastings in my Fort classes. Here are the number of votes for each year. The columns represent rank, number of votes, and vintage.

    5th 40 2000
    4th 43 2002
    3rd 44 2003
    2nd 59 1999
    1st 71 2001


So the students’ choice is 2001. It looks like Golden State wineries got the new millennium off to a good start. (Research assistant Ophie Mercado compiled the statistics.)

And a Final Wine Smile



Rose, a wine shop owner, was startled one night when her phone rang about midnight and a gravelly voice said, “How’re you doing, babe?” Taken aback, she replied coolly, “To whom did you wish to speak?” Voice: “Oh, oh ... nobody who says to whom!”

Fred McMillin was voted one of the U.S.A.’s 22 best wine writers by the Academy of Wine Communications. If questions, phone him at (415) 563-5712.
Last Updated ( Saturday, 19 January 2008 )