Andersonoir Valley Pinot Noir Festival

As the winemakers in the Anderson Valley pushed the nightmarish 2008 vintage back into their distant memory, they found cause to celebrate the stellar 2009 wines. The 14th Annual Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival presented the first opportunity for many to sample the 2009 Anderson Valley Pinot Noirs. Some producers were reluctant to offer their 2009 wines, feeling they needed more time in the bottle to show well and substituted their excellent 2007 vintage Pinot Noirs. Nearly every 2007 vintage Pinot Noir available at the Grand Tasting has been previously reviewed in the PinotFile and will not be discussed further here.

Several 2009 Anderson Valley Pinot Noirs were reviewed in Volume 8, Issue 35 of the PinotFile including Balo Vineyard, Black Kite “Kite’s Rest,” and Couloir Wines. I referred to these wines as redemption for the disastrous events of the 2008 vintage that led many producers to sell off their entire production in bulk.

Veteran Anderson Valley winemaker, Bob Klindt (Claudia Springs Winery, Harmonique), called 2009 “a typical growing season in the Anderson Valley.” Larry Londer of Londer Vineyards said, “The quality of the 2009 vintage in the Anderson Valley parallels the 2007 vintage, and may surpass it.” Winter rains were lighter than usual, and a mid-May heat wave brought high temperatures for the second consecutive year. Bud break was late and spring was generally cool but not accompanied by frost. The summer was moderate and relatively cool allowing slow ripening and a prolonged harvest which began in mid-September and finished the last week of October. A late September heat wave brought grapes quickly to optimum ripeness and a large October storm provided a challenge that most vintners avoided.

On Saturday morning, before the Grand Tasting at Goldeneye, I sampled in quiet a number of 2009 Anderson Valley Pinot Noirs at Schraffenberg Cellars. Although young, many wines were very appealing and approachable. Quality was consistently very high indicating that 2009 is a spectacular vintage for Anderson Valley Pinot Noir. This is a vintage you can stock up on with confidence.

A number of other wines were sampled briefly at the Grand Tasting. Here are a few quick impressions.

Balo Vineyards Tim and Michelle Mullins have been growing and selling grapes in Anderson Valley since their first crop in 2003. The 8-acre vineyard is across the street from Goldeneye and a new winery and tasting room is under construction on the site. In 2009, the Mullins began producing their own wine under the Balo Vineyards label under the direction of noted winemaker Jason Drew. This is a producer to watch. Love the website handle: www.killerpinot.com.

Baxter Phil L. Baxter, Sr., and Phil T. G. Baxter, Jr., teamed up in 2002, pooling fifty years of experience to produce single vineyard wines under the Baxter label. Father and son work together in a ridge top location above the Anderson Valley, now joined by Claire, Phil Jr’s English wife. All the 2009 Baxter wines impressed me including barrel samples of 2009 Langley Vineyard and a tiny lot of 100% whole cluster Pinot Noir. Winemaker Phil Baxter avoids new oak completely, creating wines of great fruit purity.

Black Kite Cellars Rebecca Green submitted for review two limited production 2009 Pinot Noirs from Black Kite Vineyard. Both the Stony Terrace and River Turn Pinot Noirs remind me of a curvaceous woman clothed head to foot in black leather with discrete and strategic openings. The wines are distinguished by elevation, soils and trellis type. Both blocks are planted to Pommard clone. The 2009 Black Kite “Kite’s Rest” Estate Anderson Valley Pinot Noir was reviewed very favorably recently (PinotFile, www.princeofpinot.com/winery/ 530/). A third Black Kite Pinot Noir, “Redwoods Edge Block,” is not ready for prime time yet. Black Kite Cellars produces less than 1,500 cases of single vineyard and block-designated Pinot Noir annually.

DrewJason Drew is crafting consistently fine Pinot Noirs from his winery on Mendocino Ridge above the Anderson Valley. His 2009 Valenti Vineyard Pinot Noir from the Mendocino Ridge AVA was a knockout. I have never had a bad wine from Jason.

Esterlina Vineyards & Winery Lynn Krauseman has been recently appointed as winemaker for Esterlina and its affiliate brands, Everett Ridge and Diabilta. Krauseman has been the winemaker at Williams Selyem for the past six years and before that worked at Clos du Bois, Freemark Abbey Winery, Robert Mondavi Winery, and Cloudy Bay Wines in New Zealand. Barrel samples of 2009 Esterlina Estate Pinot Noir and 2009 Esterlina Estate Reserva Pinot Noir were both outstanding with the Estate more forward and approachable and the Reserve needing considerable time for full development. A top flight producer in the Anderson Valley and a special winery to visit.

Harmonique Moira Conzelman (photo below) was on hand for the event as usual and was pouring the just released three 2006 Harmonique Pinot Noirs: “The Noble One,” “Elegancé” and “Delicacé.” Harmonique draws on excellent vineyard sources within the Anderson Valley including the old vine Conzelman Vineyard. Veteran winemaker Robert Klindt oversees production. Older vintages back to 2003 are still available on the website at www.harmoniquewine.com.

Londer Vineyards 2009 is a break out year for Londer who chose to declassify and sell all 2008 production in bulk. I have had the Londer Vineyard Pinot Noir from Couloir and it was exceptional. Londer’s 2009 Estate Pinot Noir and 2009 Ferrington Vineyard Pinot Noir were both impressive wines with the Ferrington drinking spectacularly now.

At each of the recent Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festivals, local artist Gerald Reis paints original art to commemorate the Festival. The original paintings are auctioned at each event and prints of the originals are available for purchase from the artist. Each print is reproduced from the original on fine archival paper. Visit the website at www.reisdesign.com to view and acquire the prints. This year’s painting is shown below.

For more information on the Anderson Valley, including its history, growers and wineries, visit the website: www.avwines.com. Also, well over 30 major California Pinot Noir producers located outside the Anderson Valley appellation source grapes from the Anderson Valley including Anthill Farms, Adrian Fog, Arista Winery, Barnett, Benovia, Brogan Cellars, Cakebread Cellars, Castle Rock, Copain Wines, Couloir Wines, Fulcrum Wines, Gros Ventre Cellars, Harrington, Hartford Family Wines, Kutch Wines, La Crema, LIOCO, Littorai, Lulu, MacPhail Family Wines, Papapietro-Perry, Radio-Coteau, Roessler Cellars, Rhys Vineyards, Saintsbury, Skewis, Tudor, Twomey, Waits-Mast Family Cellars, Whitcraft, Williams-Selyem and Woodenhead.

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Arcadian: A Classic Sense of Pinot Noir

If you like your Pinot Noir elegant, balanced, relatively low in alcohol, well-aged upon release, and cellar worthy, read on. If you prefer “bimbo” Pinot Noir with high scores and sweet fruit flavors, Arcadian wines are not for you.

Winegrower, winemaker and proprietor of Arcadian Winery, Joe Davis, is somewhat of an iconoclast among today’s popular and high-scoring California producers of Pinot Noir. Stylistically, he has always been steadfast in his vision of what Pinot Noir should be, and his target consumers are connoisseurs of Pinot Noir, often Burgundy drinkers, who prefer the classic style of Pinot Noir with consummate age ability. Writer Dennis Schaefer said, “Almost every winemaker who makes Pinot Noir professes to follow the Burgundian model. And, more or less that’s true. But with some winemakers, the ‘less’ part is apparent, and plenty of shortcuts may be employed. With winemaker Joe Davis, everything is always ‘more’ Burgundian.”

Davis sums up his philosophy as follows. “The tendency to harvest very ripe and sometimes over ripe grapes to produce a highly extracted wine with deep color and intensity and yes, high alcohol, has become the norm and has met with both critical and consumer success. While I applaud my colleagues for their successes, I do not subscribe to their theories that this is the best way to make Pinot Noir here in California. Rather, I am looking for much more elegance and balance. I chose to harvest with much more modest sugar levels and much higher natural acidity. The belief that my wines will continue to evolve in the bottle for years to come and this continued evolution will ultimately produce a much more interesting wine is what drives my philosophy of winegrowing.”

Joe carefully manages all of his vineyard sources, doing the tough work before the grapes even arrive in the winery. He is fanatical about meticulous sorting of his incoming grapes. He prefers lower alcohols, bright acidity, well-honed tannins and avoids any funny business in the winery such as watering back or acid and enzyme additions. Joe’s time spent in Burgundy at Domaine Dujac has led him to become a firm proponent of whole cluster fermentations, believing that stems offer a distinctive character and complexity to Pinot Noir without detracting from its site-specific origins. Typically, Joe uses 50%-75% whole cluster. He performs pigeage (foot treading) 3 to 5 times a day to gently extract color, tannins and richness. Pigeage introduces oxygen to the yeast, helps keep the shearing of stems and crushing of seeds to a minimum, and maintains the vintners sensory relationship with the wine. The wines finish fermentation in barrel, are aged for up to 22 months, bottled unfiltered, and then further aged for another 14 to 18 months before release. His current releases are from the 2005 and 2006 vintages. What other winery in California is offering the 2005 vintage of Pinot Noir as a current release?

When you look at Joe, its no surprise that after growing up in Monterey, California, he attended the University of Washington on a football scholarship where he studied chemistry. Unfortunately, knee injuries prevented him from a successful athletic career. Fortuitously, he happened to get a job in a wine shop in Seattle during his undergraduate years. He remembers drinking a number of different wines such as Acacia Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon from Jordan and Robert Mondavi, but began to gravitate to Pinot Noir. It was one wine in particular that proved to be epiphanic. In 1982, an appreciative customer brought Joe a bottle of 1978 Domaine Dujac Clos de la Roche. He opened the bottle with the customer after the store closed and described it as a “levitating” experience, and a wine that he has been chasing his whole career.

Joe enrolled in medical school, but to the dismay of his family, dropped out to pursue graduate studies in enology at University of California Davis. After graduation in 1984, he became the Assistant Winemaker at Morgan Winery in Salinas under owner and winemaker Daniel Morgan Lee and the following year became the Winemaker. His winemaking skills matured over the next ten years at Morgan where he crafted Chardonnay and developed a Pinot Noir production plan for the winery, crafting Morgan Pinot Noirs with uncommon longevity and critical praise. After his time at Morgan, Joe traveled to Burgundy and worked at Domaine Dujac. It was here that he learned to carefully manage vineyards. Upon his return in 1996, he founded Arcadian Winery, releasing his first vintage of Chardonnay to impressive reviews. The winery is now located in Lompoc.

The name Arcadian is a reference to Dionysys, the God of wine and divine intoxication, who lived in Arcadia around 5,000 B.C.. Greek mythology stipulates that he planted the first grapevines and made the first wine. An Arcadian is one who hails from this place and is often referred to as one who lives a simple, peaceful and pastoral life.

Arcadian owns no vineyards, but sources grapes from prestigious vineyards in the Santa Rita Hills, Santa Maria Valley and Santa Lucia Highlands that he has worked with in multiple vintages. He was the first to produce a vineyard-designate Pinot Noir from Pisoni Vineyard (Joe with Gary Pisoni below)

Production is about 8,000 cases annually of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah. The wines are sold through a mailing list, on the website at www.arcadianwinery.com, and through limited retail distribution. The wines are not inexpensive, but they have already been well-aged. A Sleepy Hollow Vineyard Santa Lucia Highlands Chardonnay, and several Syrahs are also available. Tours and extensive tastings are available by appointment (805-688-8799) at the winery or in Solvang (see website for addresses).

I recently sampled most of the 2005 vintage Arcadian Pinot Noirs. Davis considers 2005 to be one of the greatest vintages on the Central Coast. 2005 was a rainy growing season, with as much as 39 inches falling on the vineyards in the Central Coast. The overall result was that fruit was harvested with much better balance and higher natural acidity with excellent juice to skin ratios. Many Central Coast vineyards enjoyed large harvests as well because of the better overall set.

The 2005 Arcadian wines are extremely well-crafted and well-mannered and have benefited from the additional time in bottle. The oak is well integrated, the tannins have mellowed, and the textures are smooth and comforting. That said, I would still decant all but the Jill’s Cuvée before drinking as I found these wines at their best a day or two after opening. This is a very charming lineup of wines that you can savor for at least another ten years. I did not taste the 2005 Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir, 2005 Gold Coast Pinot Noir, 2005 Clos Pepe Vineyard Pinot Noir, 2005 Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir or the 2005 Francesca Pinot Noir, all of which are still available from the winery.

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Inman Family Wines: Sensitive Farming & Winemaking

Englishman Simon Inman was visiting Napa Valley when he stopped at Napa Creek Winery’s tasting room and became enchanted with Kathleen McGowan, a college student working the first day of her summer job at the winery. He discreetly wrote a letter to the owner of Napa Creek Winery asking him to pass along a second letter to the “assistant” to whom he had spoken with briefly in the tasting room. Two years later, Simon and Kathleen were married.

After living in England for fifteen years, the Inmans acquired a passion for New World and Old Word Pinot Noir. In 1998, they left behind their careers in England and arrived in California. After searching for a year, they discovered a farm owned since the 1880s by the Greeott family at the junction of Olivet and Piner Roads in the Russian River Valley. The Inmans bought the property and named it Olivet Grange Vineyard, after the family’s English country home, The Grange at Elvington, and its location on Olivet Road. Because of a challenge from Australia’s famous label, Grange, beginning in 2005, the Inmans have had to display OGV instead of Olivet Grange Vineyard on their front label.

In 2000, 7.2 acres of Pinot Noir, clones 114, 115, 667 and 777, and Pinot Gris, clone 145, were planted using carefully selected rootstocks appropriate to the Russian River Valley location. Today, the vineyard consists of 10.45 acres and includes Pinot Noir clone 828. From the onset, Kathleen has been the vineyard manager, winemaker, salesperson, accountant and General Manager. Family members help out when they can, including Simon who also is a practicing lawyer. You have to really hand it to this hard working woman who has built a winery of repute from scratch while still managing a family and raising two daughters.

Farming is strictly organic and sustainable with the aim of promoting a healthy ecosystem. Compost, referred to as “Four-Course Compost,” derives from table scraps from high-end San Francisco restaurants and hotels. Worm castings are used to create a bio-fertilizer that is delivered by the vineyard’s drip irrigation system. Eco-friendly practices extend to the wine labels, recyclable packaging, reduction of waste, and use of renewable sources of energy in the winery.

In September, 2010, the Inmans opened a new winery on their property. An ecologically friendly tasting room is the center point. All the wood for the cabinets and tasting bar were salvaged from the old barn that was taken down to allow the new winery to be built. All the power need for the winery is supplied by solar panels. The tasting room is open Thursday through Sunday from 11:00 to 4:00. A private tasting and vineyard tour with owner and winemaker Kathleen Inman is available by appointment (707-293-9576). For visitors with electric automobiles, Inman winery has Sonoma County’s first privately owned public charging station drawing from the electricity produced by the winery’s solar panels.

Three Pinot Noirs are produced: a Russian River Valley appellation blend, the OGV Olivet Grange Vineyard Estate Pinot Noir, and a vineyard-designated Pinot Noir from Thorn Ridge Ranch in the Russian River Valley. An outstanding Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir Rosé (“Endless Crush”), both among the best from California, and a Russian River Valley Chardonnay are also offered. The wines are sold through a Wine Club and online at www.inmanfamilywines.com.

Natural winemaking is emphasized with the goal of displaying the unique vineyard sites from which the wines are produced. Fruit is picked relatively early allowing for naturally low to moderate alcohol levels and high natural acidity. Grapes are 100% de-stemmed. Fermentations are driven with native yeasts, with the addition of organic yeast only when necessary. Usually no water, acid, enzymes or tannin preparations are added.

A three-bedroom farmhouse on the estate, the Olivet Grange Farmhouse, is available for rent and is a lovely place to stay while touring the Russian River Valley. I can personally attest to its comfortable accommodations having stayed there myself.

I recently tasted through a mini-vertical of many of the Pinot Noirs produced at Inman Family Wines since the 2003 inaugural vintage. I personally enjoy the style: elegant with lower alcohols and bright acidity consistent in each vintage but with flavor and intensity reflecting vintage variation. The wines could be described as more feminine, but they are not wimpy, with good color and a firm tannic backbone for age ability. Because of the moderate tannins, decanting is usually suggested. I found the wines tasted better when opened in the morning and re-tasted later in the day. The older vintages were still drinking beautifully and should last several more years due to their admirable balance. I found the 2004 and 2006 vintages similar and the 2005 and 2008 vintages somewhat alike. Kathleen is refining her wines as she acquires more familiarity with her vineyard and the 2008 Pinot Noir and 2010 Rosé are world-class and among the best I have had this year from the Russian River Valley. Kathleen has been committed to screw caps for all her wines essential since the winery launched.

The 2006 (limited quantities) and 2007 OGV Pinot Noirs are available directly from the winery. The popular 2010 Pinot Gris has been released ($30) and the 2010 Endless Crush Rosé is selling quickly. I tasted both the 2007 and 2008 Thorn Ridge Ranch Pinot Noir at the winery. The 2007 vintage (14.1% alc., $52) has a plethora of dark fruit with a satisfying earth and herbal accent. The 2008 vintage carries the same theme with less oak influence and is very exciting. The Thorn Ridge Ranch bottlings offer an appealing contrast to the OGV bottlings with their darker fruit profile, minerality and a touch more tannin.

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Pinots to Covet

Belle Glos

This label is one of four brands produced by the Wagner family (including Caymus, Mer Soleil and Conundrum). Chuck Wagner’s son, Joseph, handles the viticulture and winemaking for this label which honors Joseph Wagner’s grandmother, Loma Belle Glos. The first release was in 2001. Three vineyard-designated Pinot Noirs are produced: Taylor Lane Vineyard (Sonoma Coast), Las Alturas Vineyard (Santa Lucia Highlands) and Clark and Telephone Vineyard (Santa Maria Valley). The bottles are among the most charming in the business, offering a long neck dipped in generous wax. A strip tab allows removal of the wax on top (this is not easy to do and should not be attempted by women with long nails). A value-priced bottling, Meiomi, is a blend from all the vineyards and is a popular restaurant wine. The wines are widely distributed in the retail market. The website is www.belleglos.com. I did not find the 2009 releases as appealing as the recent two vintages but there is a good chance they will improve with more time in the bottle. The style of the wines is masculine and dark fruit-centric.

Bonneau Wines & Vineyard

August and Catherine Bonneau, who were originally from Bordeaux, bought 70 acres of land south of the town of Sonoma in 1921. The Bonneaus farmed the land, ran a dairy, and operated a small country store and delicatessen at the corner of Bonneau Rd and Arnold Dr. (Highway 121). In 1988, their daughter, Yvonne, planted 30 acres of Chardonnay on the property, enlisted the Sangiacomos to farm the vineyard, and began supplying well-known wineries in the region. In 2002, Yvonne’s son, John Bambury, introduced Bonneau Wines with the release of a 2002 Estate Los Carneros Chardonnay. Since then the winery has expanded into other red wines sourced from vineyards in Sonoma, Napa and Amador counties. The Pinot Noir program began in 2008 with grapes sourced from a Sangiacomo vineyard nearby off Bonneau Road. John is the Director of Winemaking, working with consultant John Tracy at the old Kosta Browne space at Deerfield Ranch Winery in Kenwood. I sampled the following wines with John at Bonneau’s corner, a tasting room and family operated delicatessen (The Carneros Deli, open 10:00 to 6:00 daily). The Bonneau wines are also available for tasting at Cellars of Sonoma in Santa Rosa. The wines are also sold on the website at www.bonneauwine.com. All wines are reasonably priced considering the high quality.

Brogan Cellars

Margi Wierenga initially worked out of a bare-bones, makeshift winery arranged under a carport roof in Sonoma County's Dry Creek Valley. You will find there's a sense of déjà vu at Brogan Cellars, and for a good reason. Besides sharing father Burt Williams' hearty laugh and passion for Pinot Noir, she has pursued a similar course in her winemaking career. Margi was a teenager when her father, Burt Williams, started making the first Williams Selyem wines in a basement beneath their garage in the late 1970s. For several years she worked as a volunteer at her father's winery housed in a garage in Fulton before taking a paid position in 1993 at the Westside Road Allen Ranch facility. In between, she worked in different capacities at Hop Kiln Winery. In 1998, she decided to follow in her father's footsteps and start her own winery.

Brogan Cellars, named after Margaret's ("Margi's") paternal grandmother, has all the earmarks of a mom and pop operation. "It was a bootstrap business run on a lean $75,000 start up budget," she says. Her husband, Mike, who owns a refrigeration company, is a handy man who rigged up her winemaking equipment. They use small old dairy vats for fermenters and purchased most of the other equipment second hand, including a tiny crusher. The barrel-aging room, office and tasting area are in a tight, 800 square-foot converted garage that Wierenga was happy to call home until 2002, when additional space was obtained in Hopland, 30 miles north of Healdsburg, where the winemaking now takes place. In 2004, Margi and Mike's son James joined Brogan, adding a third generation to the family business. Customers, too, become family at Brogan. During the harvest, many still volunteer to help with the crush.

Margi crafts age worthy Pinot Noirs from premium vineyards in the Russian River Valley, Sonoma Coast and Anderson Valley (her father's Morning Dew Ranch, referred to on the labels as “My Father’s Vineyard”). At times she produces other varietals as well. Most of the wine (less than 2,000 cases annually) is sold to an eager mailing list the old fashioned way: by a mail-in or fax-in order form. Tasting is by appointment. 707-473-0211. The website is www.brogancellars.com.

Margi noted in her release newsletter that the 2009 vintage produced “stunning, very dense wines with deep fruit and complexity.” Yields were low so production was limited with each bottling totaling 75 cases or less. She estimates that the wines will age for 10-15 years. I recently tasted the Spring 2011 releases from the 2009 vintage. These are richly fruited and darkly colored wines that make a statement. Despite their full-bodied character, they retain a welcoming balance and silky presence. Do not be in a rush to open these.

Carr Vineyards & Winery

This urban Santa Barbara winery has been releasing consistently solid Pinot Noirs from vineyards that Ryan Carr personally oversees through his vineyard management and development company. He is also the owner and winemaker for Carr. The winery’s first vintage was produced in Carr’s home garage in 1999. Today, Carr produces 3,000 cases of several varietals including Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Syrah, Grenache and Cabernet Franc with a focus on Pinot Noir from Sta. Rita Hills fruit. The Carr tasting room and Wine Bar is open daily and includes wines by the glass, by flight and on tap. Visit the website, www.carrwinery.com, for online sales of Carr wines. Ryan’s spouse, Jessica, handles sales and marketing.

I recently sampled the latest 2009 Carr Pinot Noirs. This vintage offered more elegance, charm and refinement than 2008 with an impressive velvety mouth feel on all the wines. All the wines are fruit-driven, moderately intense and approachable now, especially the Three Vineyards bottling which should be consumed within a couple of years. I suspect the vineyard-designated wines will drink their best within 2-3 years and age another 4-5 years.

Copain Wines

Wells Guthrie began his wine career working at the Wine Spectator’s San Francisco office as a tasting coordinator. He fell in love with Syrah and moved to the Northern Rhone, working for Chapoutier for two seasons and spending time as well with Jean Louis Chave. Wells then returned to work at Turley Wine Cellars. Today, Wells crafts Pinot Noir, Rhone varietals and Zinfandel at Copain Wine Cellars sourced primarily from Mendocino County vineyards. Copain Pinot Noirs in the early years were bold and extracted, but since 2007, Wells has chosen a more elegant, lower alcohol, nuanced style that I find more appealing. The offerings are Tous Ensemble Blends (early drinking blends from vineyards in Mendocino County: Rosé, Viognier, Pinot Noir and Syrah), Les Voisons Blends ( more distinctive, unique Pinot Noir and Syrah blends from vineyards in Anderson Valley and Yorkville Highlands) and single vineyard wines (allocated to mailing list). Tasting is by appointment. The wines are sold primarily through the website and mailing list with some retail distribution. Visit www.copainwines.com. The winery’s tasting room in the Russian River Valley is open Thursday through Sunday and other days by appointment.

The Donum Estate

Donum translates from the Latin to “gift or donation” and refers to grapes as a gift of the land. The Estate is devoted solely to Carneros Estate Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and a Russian River Valley Estate Pinot Noir (from the 11-acre Nugent Vineyard Racke planted in the mid 1990s). Winegrower and President, Anne Moller- Racke, was the Vineyard Manager for Buena Vista Carneros for many years. With the sale of Buena Vista in 2001, Anne split off 200 acres of the Buena Vista Estate to form The Donum Estate as well as to grow grapes and produce wine under the rejuvenated Robert Stemmler Winery label. The Donum Vineyard consists of 70 acres and contains several clonal selections including Calera, Hanzell, Swan and a Roederer selection known as the Donum “clone.” Donum also farms the nearby 20-acre Ferguson Vineyard, planted to Martini clone in 1974 by Thomas Ferguson. Special bottlings from the Donum Vineyard have included West Slope, East Slope and Thomas (Ferguson Vineyard). The winemaker is talented Kenneth Juhasz (YOU haas) who mentored under Ken Bernards (Ancien). He became the winemaker for both The Donum Estate and Robert Stemmler Winery in 2005. The Donum Estate wines are sold through a mailing list and an online store at www.thedonumestate.com. 2005-2007 vintages of Donum Estate Grown Carneros Pinot Noir are still available in limited quantities. The winery is not open to the public, but occasional Open Houses are offered.

The 2008 vintage was marked by two major frosts that caused major damage in Donum’s vineyards. The Russian River Valley vineyard lost two-thirds of its crop to frost, and in Carneros about 20% was lost. The vines weathered some heat spikes and cool temperatures in mid and late September allowed good hang time.

Donum Estate is now producing remarkably beautiful examples of Carneros Pinot Noir. The 2008 lineup of Pinot Noirs show more elegance and refinement than previous vintages and all are impeccably crafted. The wines are bold in style due to extended maceration and relatively high new oak elevage and will benefit from decanting. If you want to taste what Carneros is all about now, these connoisseurs’ wines are a perfect place to start.

Gros Ventre Cellars

A new producer of small lot Pinot Noir from cool climate vineyards in Sonoma and Mendocino counties. The inaugural releases were from the 2009 vintage totaling 300 cases. The winery is off to a smart beginning. Chris and Sarah Pittenger launched the idea of a winery on the banks of Gros Ventre River near Jackson Hole where they met in 2003. Gros Ventre (grd;’ vänt’)translates in French to “Big Belly,” and the name for the new winery not only refers to this romantic meeting, but to Sarah’s pregnant belly during the 2009 vintage and their son, John Henry, who was born the same year. Chris Pittenger worked at noted wine retailer, Wally’s in Los Angeles, later becoming a sommelier, and finally developing his winemaking skills at Biale, Torbreck, Williams Selyem and Marcassin. The six vintages spent at these wineries gave him a solid background for working with Pinot Noir. Gros Ventre wines are available through a mailing list and the winery’s online store at www.grosventrecellars.com.

Kent Rasmussen Winery

Kent Rasmussen is not a highly visible Pinot Noir winemaker but he is highly respected among those in the know when it comes to Carneros Pinot Noir. A University of California Davis graduate, he developed his winemaking skills at Robert Mondavi Winery, Domaine Chandon, Stellenbosch in South Africa, and Saltram’s Wine Estate in Australia. In 1979, he planted 6 acres of Pinot Noir in Carneros, at a time when there were few vineyards in the region. He gradually increased his plantings and gained early recognition with Pinot Noir from his estate vineyard beginning in 1986. Winemaking, which began modestly in a tractor shed barrel room on Cuttings Wharf Road in Napa Carneros, is currently performed in St. Helena. Kent Rasmussen Winery may be the only continuous producer of Napa Carneros Pinot Noir from a single vineyard and by a single vintner for over 25 years. Rasmussen also has a Pinot Noir clone named after him. Rasmussen produces several varietals along with Pinot Noir and a sister label, Ramsey, started in 1989 using his wife’s maiden name, offers value priced wines aimed for the restaurant and retail market. A third label, Esoterica, is built around Petite Sirah. Grapes are either estate grown or under long-term contract with established growers. Tours and tasting are available by appointment at the winery on the Silverado Trail in St. Helena (707-963-5667). I am embarrassed that I have not sampled more of Rasmussen’s “Purely Poetic” Pinot Noirs as the one reviewed below was outstanding.

La Rochelle Winery

Livermore, California, would not be high on any one’s Pinot Noir list, but La Rochelle Winery is Livermore’s best kept Pinot secret, specializing in 4,000 cases of small lots of Pinot Noir from leased vineyards. Founder Steven Kent Mirassou acquired the label from the Mirassou family in 2005 and moved the base of operations to Livermore. The winemaker, Tom Stutz, who has more than 25 years of Pinot Noir winemaking experience, crafts several Pinot Noirs sourced from multiple appellations in California and Oregon. The portfolio of wines include whites, sparkling wines, rosés, appellation wines (Pinot Noirs from Santa Lucia Highlands and Santa Cruz Mountains), single-vineyard wines (Pinot Noir from San Vicente Vineyard in Monterey, Sleepy Hollow Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands, and a Pinot Meunier from Four Sisters Vineyards on the Sonoma Coast) and Pinot Noir Program exclusives available to wine club members only. A tasting room is open each afternoon in the Livermore Valley and the wines are also sold through the winery’s online store at www.lrwine.com.

Longoria

Rick Longoria is a veteran winemaker in Santa Barbara County who first appeared in the region in 1976 after spending two years at Buena Vista Winery in Carneros where he developed a friendship with Andre Tchelistcheff. Currently, he crafts 3,500 cases of several varietals from his winery in Lompoc under the Longoria label which dates to 1982. He sources grapes from his 8-acre estate Fe Ciega Vineyard, Rancho Santa Rosa Vineyard, Bien Nacido Vineyard and the Sanford & Benedict Vineyard. A tasting room is open daily in Los Olivos. Wines are available for purchase online at www.longoria.com.

I recently sampled the first of the 2009 Longoria Pinot Noirs. The vintage offered ideal weather and balanced crop levels. The wines are nicely crafted in a sweetly fruited style with the Rancho Santa Rosa bottling showing the most restraint and charm.

Sonoma Coast Vineyards

John and Barbara Drady founded this label with the 2002 vintage concentrating on wines sourced from the extreme or true Sonoma Coast. The winemaker is veteran Anthony Austin who has experienced 35 vintages in California. A University of California Davis graduate, Austin studied under the great Andre Tchelistcheff. He help found and directed the first crush at Firestone Winery in 1976, the first modern-day commercial winery in the Santa Barbara region. After leaving Firestone in 1981 to establish his own label, Austin Cellars, he crafted two legendary Pinot Noirs in 1982 from Sierra Madre Vineyard and Bien Nacido Vineyard.

Sonoma Coast Vineyards was sold in 2007 to Vintage Wine Estates, with John Drady staying on as a managing partner and Austin continuing as winemaker. The label was changed, but extreme Sonoma Coast vineyard sources remained intact. The emphasis is on vineyard-designated wines with several single vineyard Pinot Noirs, a Blanc de Noir, two single vineyard Chardonnays, a Sonoma Coast Chardonnay, a single vineyard Sauvignon Blanc, and a single vineyard Syrah. The wines are available through the website store at www.sonomacoastvineyards.com. Tasting is offered at Vintage Wine Estates Tasting Room in downtown Healdsburg.

The Sonoma Coast Vineyards Pinot Noirs are vinified in an extracted style using long cold soaks and generous new oak treatment.

Wren Hop Vineyards

A new family winery owned by partners James McDonough and his father James McDonough, Sr., who are both wine geeks. James notes, “Some families play Monopoly, this family would rather debate rootstock and French barrel selection.” The winemaker is former syndicated wine columnist Russell Bevan (Bevan Cellars, Showket Vineyards, Drystack Cellars, Harbison Wines), the viticulturist is Greg Bjornstad, and the estate vineyard management is under the direction of Glenn Alexander of Bacchus Vineyard Management. McDonough has assembled an impressive team and his website and wine labels are very professional and provocative. As the website points out, the wren, not the eagle was the King of birds in ancient times. Each of the wines tells of a mythic tale of the wren. The inaugural wines come from the 2009 vintage. The wines are sold through a mailing list and an online store at www.wrenhop.com. Besides the wines reviewed below, there is a 2009 Estate Omens & Prophecy Russian River Valley Pinot Noir ($60). A winery to watch. Listen to Russell Bevan on Grape Radio:http://www.graperadio.com/archives/2008/07/14/talking-wine-with-russell-bevans/ .

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Pinots of Distinction

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Chardonnays of Interest

I came across an interesting article in Science (Vol 285, September 3, 1999) titled, “Historical Genetics: The Parentage of Chardonnay, Gamay and Other Wine Grapes of Northeastern France,” written by John Bowers, Jean-Michel Boursiquot, Patrice This, Kieu Chu, Henrik Johansson, and Carole Meredith (several authors were from University of California Davis). 322 cultivars of Vitis vinifera taken from the vineyards at University of California Davis and the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique at Domaine de Vassal, near Montpellier, France were analyzed.

16 cultivars, including Chardonnay, had genotypes consistent with their being the progeny of a single pair of parents: ‘Pinot’ and ‘Gouais blanc.’ This study was important because it had been speculated that Chardonnay might have been of foreign rather than French origin, possibly coming from the Middle East.

The determination that 16 varieties are the progeny of ‘Pinot’ is not surprising since the grape has been in Burgundy for a very long time. The authors point to references to a variety that was probably ‘Pinot’ that go back as far as the Roman agricultural writer Columella in the first century A.D. They speculate ‘Pinot’ may have been in the Burgundy region at the time of the Roman conquest. What was surprising, however, is that the other parent was ‘Gouais blanc,’ a mediocre variety with yellow-gold berries that is no longer planted in France. The authors point out ‘Gouais blanc’ was at one time planted throughout northeastern France, but in less desirable sites, with the best sites reserved for ‘Pinot.’ It is likely ‘Gouais blanc’ was introduced to France from an eastern European origin, possibly by the third century Roman emperor Probus.

Because ‘Pinot’ and ‘Gouais blanc’ were planted throughout northeastern France in proximity, it is probable that the crosses occurred here, although other crosses may have occurred in disparate regions of Europe as well.

The parent of the dark-berried cultivars, including ‘Gamay noir,’ was probably ‘Pinot Noir.’ Some of the light colored progeny may have had ‘Pinot gris’ or ‘Pinot blanc’ as a parent.

The following Chardonnays were tasted recently. None are “naked” (produced without oak or MLF).

Bjørnstad Cellars

Greg Bjornstad (“Byurn-sted” is Norwegian for “bear place”) has an impressive resume as an accomplished viticulturist, including international vineyard consulting. His well-known clients have included duMOL, Hirsch, Kistler, Kosta Browne, Paul Hobbs, Pisoni and Scott Paul. In 2005 he founded his eponymous label concentrating on vineyard-designated Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from vineyards that he has personally worked with for many years. Winemaking is non-interventional in its purist form. The Chardonnay pressing regime is dictated by the vintage and condition of the fruit as to choice of whole cluster or de-stemmed. Native yeast fermentation is employed with most clones. Aging is carried out on the lees in barrel with about 50% new French oak. 100% MLF, unfined and unfiltered. Chardonnay sources include Ritchie Vineyard (Russian River Valley), Barbed Oak Vineyard (Bennett Valley), and Keefer Ranch (Green Valley) which makes up most of the Sonoma County bottling. Total average production is 800 cases. I was very impressed with the 2007 vintage Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs and can recommend Greg’s wines without reservation. The 2008 Chardonnays reviewed here are all beautifully crafted with charming restraint impeccable balance and extremely well integrated oak. The wines are sold primarily through a mailing list and online (www.bjornstadcellars.com).

Patz & Hall

Patz & Hall have been producing premium Chardonnay since 1988 and Pinot Noir since 1995. The winery is a joint effort between winemakers James Hall and Anne Moses and the sales and marketing team of Donald and Heather Patz. The portfolio includes two Sonoma Coast cuvées (a Chardonnay and a Pinot Noir) and a selection of vineyard-designate bottlings from several winegrowing regions. The grapes for each program are treated exactly the same in the vineyard and in the winery; the difference is the way they imagine the wines. The Sonoma Coast Chardonnay has a significant amount of fruit from Gap’s Crown Vineyard as well as other growers such as the Martinelli family, Charlie Chenoweth and Steve Hill. The Dutton Ranch Chardonnay has been a vineyard-designate since 1998. This wine incorporates the oldest vines farmed by the Duttons, dating to 1969 and the average vine age for this blend is about 20 years. The Hudson Vineyard Chardonnay is in its fifth vintage. Farmer Lee Hudson shares a special block of Hudson Vineyard planted to Hudson-Wente and Dijon 95 clones. The Chardonnays are characterized by well-mannered primary oak and toast related aromas and flavors. The wines are sold through the website with the Sonoma Coast wines entering the retail and restaurant marketplace. The winery has a tasting salon in Napa (visit www.patzhall.com).

Other

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No Need to Blush When Drinking Rosé

Pinot Noir Rosé is a favorite of mine, particularly as the weather warms in the dog days of summer. No need to blush or feel embarrassed to admit you like dry Rosé for it is one of the world’s most versatile food companions. Dry Rosé has become de rigueur in restaurants in Paris (often as Pinot Noir versions from Sancerre or Grenache from southern France), Spain (where it is often made from Tempranillo and called rosado), Italy (often crafted from Sangiovese and called rosato), and picnic tables here in the United States. (from red grapes that a winery specializes in, but often Pinot Noir). There are many devotees, a number of which are members of Rosé Avengers and Producers (RAP), founded in 2005 to preach against wine racism and right the wrongs done to dry Rosé (www.rapwine.com). The organization holds Pink Out! gatherings to celebrate fine Rosé.

Pink-hued wines made from Pinot Noir go by many names including Rosé, blush, and vin gris, with the term ‘blush wine‘ coming into popularity in the 1970s. Rosé is the French word for pink. Vin gris (van GREE) is French for gray wine. The French refer to dark-skinned grapes as black or noir and grapes that are somewhere in between black and white as gris. There are no pink grapes (grapes with pink skins) per se, but red-skinned grapes can produce wine that is dark red, pink or white. Rosé can be made from any red grape, but Pinot Noir Rosé from California and Oregon is very popular.

Rosé wines are not new, having introduced many neophytes to wine over the last fifty years. Slightly sweet Mateus and Lancers Rosés were a favored quaff of young people of my baby boomer generation. Jay McInerney (Bacchus & Me 2002) remarked: “Back in the summer of 1973 I probably derived just as much pleasure from that first bottle of Mateus as I have from any number of first-growth clarets since. Maybe more. I had just acquired my driver’s license, I was in the company of my first love; the night and, beyond it, the entire summer stretched out ahead of me like a river full of fat, silvery pink-fleshed fish. And that was what the wine tasted like. It tasted like summer.” More recently white Zinfandel, which is the third best-selling varietal wine in California, has filled the role. These slightly sweet rosés appeal to the American soda pop palate, but often lead to interest in serious, bone-dry versions which have become increasingly popular.

Rosé is intended to be drunk immediately while it is fresh, although serious examples may improve in the bottle for a year or two. There are three methods of production. The first, adding red wine to white wine, has fallen out of vogue and is mainly reserved for sparkling rosés. The second approach involves lightly crushing the grapes, chilling them, and cold macerating them for up to 48 hours. The juice is then drained off and fermented in stainless steel in a manner similar to the production of white wine. The third method, saignée, eliminates the cold soak. Whole or crushed grapes go into a fermentation vat, the color is periodically checked, and the free run juice is drained or bled off to finish fermentation in a separate tank. In the last two methods, fermentation is completed without further skin contact, leaving the most of the color, flavor compounds and tannins in the skin behind. The juice is typically bottled shortly after fermentation with no oak barrel aging.

Pinot Noir Rosé is best served slightly chllled at 55ºF (warmer than refrigerator temperature of around 35ºF). No contemplation is needed, for these wines are to be enjoyed for their refreshing charm. Many examples are bottled in screw cap. Unfinished bottles can be closed and kept in the cellar or refrigerator for a few days without significant loss of flavor.

Unfortunately, wineries do not produce Pinot Noir Rosé in significant quantities, despite its popularity. Pinot Noir grapes are expensive, vinification can be costly when a serious Rosé is crafted, and yet the wines demand only a half or a third of the price of a premium Pinot Noir. The wines reviewed below, ranged in price from to $15 to $30. The wines are typically released in the spring of the year following harvest and disappear rapidly from the marketplace.

The packaging of Rosé is often quite alluring. Unusual bottle shapes and colorful labels are frequent. Names can be creative (“Pink Belly,” “Kinky Pink,” “Endless Crush,” “Pink Fiddle”). Colors can range from a faint apricot to a deep strawberry red, reflecting the length of contact between the wine and the skins (In photo below from upper left clockwise: Ellipsis, Ott, and Calera). The aromas are often shy and not particularly complex. Unlike Pinot Noir, where much of the enjoyment comes from smelling the wine, the pleasure of rosé comes from the bright flavors more than the perfume. Tannins are minimal, making the wines a perfect accompaniment to summer fare including hot dogs, sausages, hamburgers, grilled chicken and seafood, chicken salad, crab or shrimp Louis, and my favorite, a BLT sandwich.

Two Rosés that stood out are reviewed elsewhere in this issue: 2010 Inman Family Endless Crush Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Rosé and 2010 La Rochelle Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir Rosé. I added a French Rosé to this tasting for comparison.

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Pinot Briefs

Vinify Wine Services Home to Many Pinot Producers Vinify Winery in Santa Rosa is a modern custom crush facility housing a number of boutique Pinot Noir vintners. An in-house collective tasting salon will be opening soon and the first ever Vinify Winery Collective Tasting & Sales Event was held on June 11 for the trade and public. Notable producers of Pinot Noir at Vinify include: Baker Lane, Bjornstad Cellars, Lattanzio Winery, Sojourn Cellars, Barbed Oak Vineyards, Argot Wines, Desmond Wines, Frostwarch Vineyard & Winery, Olson Ogden Wines, Gracianna Winery, Vaughn Duffy Wines, Wren Hop Vineyards & Winery, and Kanzler Vineyards.

Pinot Dieback in Sonoma in 2011 A strange syndrome affecting Sonoma Pinot Noir this spring in which top leaves curl and burn off similar to sulfur burn. Termed “Pinot dieback” or “Pinot leaf curl,” it is has been considered a more extreme version of a milder leaf curl common with Pinot Noir in cool weather. Clones 115, 777 and Pommard are most affected. The dieback is a physiologic change and not insect-induced. Leaves have been observed growing back and it is thought that the problem will not affect the overall crop.

The Wine House Pinot Noir Futures The Wine House in Los Angeles holds a Santa Barbara Futures tasting each year. An exclusive pre-arrival sale is still going on until June 30 for those who did not attend. Good values on Pinot Noirs from Ampelos, Cargasacchi, Clos Pepe, Costa de Oro, Flying Goat, Foxen, La Fenetre, Lea, Melville, Ojai Vineyard, Paul Lato, Point Concepcion, and Samsara. Visit www.winehouse.com.

Hotel Healdsburg Partners with Williams Selyem A “Behind the Scenes with Williams Selyem” package offers a chance to visit the winery which is closed to the public. The package includes a Deluxe Guest Room, a welcome bottle of 2005 Williams Selyem Blanc de Noir, and tour and tasting at the new Williams Selyem Winery, and a chef’s tasting menu dinner for two at Dry Creek Kitchen. Available June 1 - October 21, 2011. Contact the Concierge Desk at 707-922-5249 or e-mail concierge@hotelhealdsburg.com.

Recent Wine Business Monthly Closure Survey Natural cork is still the dominant closure for 750ml wine bottles among the wineries surveyed in California, Washington, Oregon, New York and Virginia. Screw caps have now reached parity with technical corks and synthetic closures. Synthetic closures are primarily used by large wineries. Closures like Vino-Seal, Vino-Lok and Zork are not widely employed but their usage is increasing. Amorin, the cork supplier, has reported recently that 70% of wines are closed with cork stoppers, 16% with metal screw caps and 14% with plastic. Aluminum screw caps can be recycled, and plastic stoppers can be as well if they are marked with a chasing arrows symbol. Natural cork cannot go in the recycling bin and is not compostable. Wine drinkers can recycle real cork stoppers through ReCork or Terracycle.

Crushpad Moves Headquarters from Napa Valley to Sonoma Foley Family Wines, the parent company of Sebastiani and a major investor in Crushpad, has struck a financial deal to allow Crushpad to move its primary winemaking facility to a portion of the historic Sebastiani Winery in downtown Sonoma. Crushpad plans to open a tasting bar at this new location later this year, allowing more than 100 Crushpad clients to offer their wines for sale. Crushpad also plans to have interactive wine education stations, and host pouring seminars and events in the new location. Clients will still be able to make wine in the Napa Valley at Bin to Bottle. Crushpad has produced more than 5,000 wines since its founding in 2004 in San Francisco (1 out of every 100 wines sold in the US). A full list of vineyards available for prospective winemakers is listed at www.crushpadwine.com/vineyardlist. I will be visiting the new headquarters in June to taste a number of Pinot Noirs vinified at Crushpad and will report on my experience in a future issue.

Portland Urban Wineries A new association has formed to increase the visibility of Portland urban wineries that include Grochau Cellars, Hip Chicks Do Wine, Vincent Wine Company, Helioterra Wines, ENSO Winery and Seven Bridges Winery. Urban wineries are becoming the modern day “garagistes,” and are quite popular among urbanites. The organizations first tasting event, PDX Urban Wineries Premier was held June 12 at The Slate in Portland. Visit www.pdxurbanwineries.com.

Carlton’s Walk in the Park This event benefits local charities and offers gourmet foods from local restaurants, fine wines, talented musicians, and colorful art. Notable Yamhill-Carlton participating wineries include Anne Amie, Belle Pente, Carlton Winemaker’s Studio, Elk Cove Cellars, The Four Graces, Luminous Hills-7 of Hearts, Penner-Ash, Scott Paul Wines, Solena Cellars, and Soter Vineyard. Held at Wennerberg Park in the quaint town of Carlton, Oregon, on Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24. Admission is only $15. Visit www.caltonswalkinthepark.com for more information.

Farm Dinners There are currently two major traveling farm dinner organizations that set up tables outside in a farm or vineyard, occasionally in a barn or greenhouse, source food from local purveyors and artisans, and serve a wine-paired feast. Ingredients are determined by what is fresh the day of the dinner. Farm to Fork Events is located in Oregon and was founded by Chef Matthew Domingo. Big Table Farm in Gaston will be the featured winery at an August 20, 2011 dinner. For a list of this season’s dinners, visit the website at www.farmtoforkevents.com. The same idea has become extremely popular in California where Outstanding in the Field conducts wine-paired dinners at farms throughout the state as well as the nation. The OITF crew revitalized a 1953 red and white tour bus that carries the team of Caleb Coe, Jeremy Fenske and Elaine Skinner and others from site to site. Meals are prepared by celebrated chefs of the region. Farmers, producers, culinary artisans and diners share the long table. OITF was launched in 1999 by chef and artist Jim Denevan. Some people have been known to follow the bus around, attending several dinners in succession. For this year’s list of dinners (many of which are sold out), visit www.outstandinginthefield.com.

Startling Facts to Ponder The Wine Enthusiast reported the following general statistics in the May, 2011 issue. Millennials offer a huge wine market as half the world’s population are under 30 years of age. 96% of Millennials belong to a social network, and Facebook would have the world’s third largest population after China and India. 67% of Millennials get wine information online, compared to 47% of Boomers. 30% of Millennials and 61% of GenX are tweeting about wine. At the 33rd Annual Russian River Valley Barrel Tasting held over two weekends in March 2011, Millennials made up a large portion of the estimated 27,000 people who attended.

Many Summer Wine Events in West July 12: Sonoma in the City, San Francisco (www.sonomawine.com); July14: Forks & Corks, City Scape in Phoenix, AZ (www.forksandcorks.com); July 16: Passport to Wineries of Santa Cruz Mtns (www.scmwa.com); July 21: Taste of Terroir - Livermore Valley Wine & Food Experience, Pleasanton (www.lvwine.org); July 22-23: Chardonnay Symposium, Santa Maria (www.thechardonnaysymposium.com); Aug 1-7: San Francisco Chefs 2011, San Francisco’s premier food, wine and spirits week, Union Square (www.sfchefs2011.com); Aug 12-14: Wine & Fire, 10th Anniversary of Sta. Rita Hills AVA (www.staritahills.com); Aug 19-21, Grape to Glass, Russian River Valley (www.rrvw.org); Sept 3: Taste of Sonoma, MacMurray Ranch, Healdsburg (www.sonomawinecountryweekend.com).

Adelsheim “Best of Vintage” Pinot Noir A prestige cuvée, “Vintage 29,” represents the epitome of the Adelsheim Vineyard and will not be made in every year. The first release is from 3½ barrels of Pinot Noir from the 2006 vintage. 972 bottles are available from the winery at $140/bottle. A 3-bottle vertical of 2008 Vintage 31 and 2009 Vintage 32 is available for $500. Visit www.adelsheim.com.

6th International Wine & Heart Health Summit This biannual event is being held in Oregon for the first time in the heart of the Willamette Valley at the Allison Inn & Spa in Newberg. I look forward to this conference as it brings together winemakers, winery owners, physicians, and researchers from around the world to discuss and exchange ideas about wine and health and the biology of wine. This year’s event includes private winery tours, special tastings, and a black tie wine dinner and auction featuring auctioneer Matt Kramer. Honorary Co-Chairman is Donald R. Olson, MD, FACS, founder and owner of Torii Mor Winery in Dundee, Oregon. Visit www.winesummit.com to see the full program.

Moderate Alcohol Decreases Risk of Dementia A recent study from Germany has shown that moderate intake of alcohol protects against dementia in people over the age of 75. The daily consumption of alcohol decreases the risk of dementia by nearly 30 per cent compared to nondrinkers and the risk is another 30 percent lower for people who imbibe one to two standard drinks a day. The study also found that the risk of Alzheimer’s Disease, a specific form of dementia, is similarly reduced with light to moderate alcohol consumption. Other scientific researchers have considered this study to be vary valid, even after controlling for factors such as better education, absence of depression, more social contact and not living alone. The study also confirmed what other similar research has demonstrated, namely, that the beneficial effects of light to moderate alcohol consumption for those with dementia are significantly increased in wine drinkers compared to those who drank beer or spirits.

New Wine Label Laws in Canada - US Next? Beginning in 2012, a new Canadian labeling law requires that both domestic and imported wines that contain proteins that might cause allergy display a warning label that states, “Contains eggs, fish, or dairy,” as well as sulfite information. The labeling only applies to wines that have potential allergens remaining in the finished wine, that is, wines that are fined but not filtered. A similar law was proposed in 2006 in the United States but has not been enacted and remains voluntary. Opponents of this labeling requirement point out that allergic reactions to fining agents such as isinglass, albumin and casein are extremely rare and those with serious food allergies should probably avoid wine completely anyway.

West Sonoma County Wineries Eleven wineries within 11 miles now offering many events. Wineries include 1-Balletto Vineyards & Winery, 2-Dutton Estate Winery, 3-Dutton-Goldfield Winery, 4- Freestone Vineyards, 5-Graton Ridge Cellars, 6-Hanna Winery & Vineyards, 7-Iron Horse Vineyards, 8- Miramar Estate Vineyards & Winery 9-Red Car Winery, 10-Russian River Vineyards, and 11-Taft Street Winery.

R² Wine Company Opens Tasting Room Roger Roessler, who founded Roessler Cellars, and brother, Richard who has been part of the winemaking team at Roessler Cellars, have opened a tasting room for their new label, R² (R squared) at 653 Broadway in Sonoma. Grand Opening Week was June 10-17. R² Wine Company offers single vineyard and appellation blended value wines including Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Rhone Red and Rhone White, Grenache Blanc and Rosé. In addition, limited production wines are sold only through the tasting room and to wine club members. Visit the website at www.r2winecompany.com.

WOW Wine Festival West Sonoma County Vintners (not to be confused with West Sonoma County Wineries above) is having an inaugural event, the West of West (WOW) Wine Festival August 5-7, 2011, in Occidental. The highlights on Saturday are a seminar on older Pinot Noirs with Burt Williams and Ted Lemon, a Grand Tasting of wineries in the association, and a Whole Hog Feast with season 3 Iron Chef contestant Duski Estate of ZaZu Restaurant. Open houses will be held Sunday at all participating wineries including Peay, Red Car, Littorai, Failla, Freeman, Freestone, Flowers, Martinelli, Cobb, Hirsch, Miramar Torres, Patz & Hall, Ramey, Boheme, Ceritas, Evening Land, Benziger, Fort Ross, Small Vines, Benovia, Chasseur, Lioco and Whetstone. For information and tickets, visit www.westsonomacoast.com.

2008 DRC Retail Prices Brother, can you spare several hundred c-notes? Echezeaux - $650, Grands Echezeaux - $825, La Tache - $1,700, Montrachet - $2,850, and Romanee-Conti - $9,000.

Sta. Rita Hills Wine & Fire 2011 The Sta. Rita Hills AVA is celebrating its 10th Anniversary with a revival of the Wine & Fire event, August 12-14, 2011. On Friday, August 12, tastings in locations on the eastern and western boundaries of the region are offered. Saturday morning will feature an in-depth tasting with the important winemakers and wines of the past decade, and a look at the future of the Sta. Rita Hills. The seminar will be held at Rancho El Jabali, Richard and Thekla Sanford’s heritage vineyard. Panelists will include Richard Sanford, Rick Longoria, Bruno D’Alfonso and Kathy Joseph as well as upcoming winemakers, who will each select a wine that they believe is their best representation of the AVA over the past ten years. Saturday evening there will be a wine tasting reception in the courtyard of the historic La Purisma Mission in Lompoc that will include fire-grilled foods. Winery members of the Sta. Rita Hills Winegrowers Alliance will be open to all visitors through the weekend. A full listing of events will be posted on the Sta. Rita Hills Winegrowers Alliance website (www.staritahills.com).

George Rose Photography For decades George Rose has covered Hollywood, sports stars, Western landscapes and wine country. He led a remarkable career at the Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Rolling Stone, and Time Magazine. In 1990, he traded a career in photojournalism for wine, focusing on wine country photography. Currently, Rose is Public Relations Director at J Vineyards & Winery. Visit the website at www.georgerose.com to order the book “The Art of Terroir,” or to purchase other wine country photography and fine art prints.

Sogno del Fiore 6th Annual Wine Tasting Dinner Jerry Fiore hosts this annual event at his beautiful home in the Santa Ynez Valley (2045 North Refugio Rd., Santa Ynez) on Saturday, August 20, 2011. Benefiting People Helping People and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, “The Gathering II” includes a Champagne reception, wine tasting with prominent California wineries, and food from recognized chefs in Santa Barbara County. Featured Pinot Noir wineries include Arcadian, Carr Vineyards & Winery, Kosta Browne, Melville, Paul Hobbs, Pisoni, Roar, Sinor-LaVallee, Seagrape Wine Company, and Siduri. Featured chefs are from The Ballard Inn, The Brothers Restaurant at Matteo’s Tavern, Chef Rick’s Ultimately Fine Foods, Full of Life Flatbread and Trattoria Uliveto. Tickets are $145 per person with a discount for Friends of Friends Wine Club Members (see www.sognodelfiore.com).

Pinot Family Reunion The 7th Annual Pinot Family Reunion will be held Sunday, July 10, 2011, at John Ash & Co. at Vintners Inn in Santa Rosa. The event includes a Wine & Food Tasting from 1:00-4:00 ($50) followed by a Family Style Dinner at 5:00 ($120 all inclusive). Proceeds benefit the Sutter North Bay Woman’s Breast Care Center and the Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County. Participating Pinot Noir vintners include: Alysian, Amphora, Benovia, Dionysus, Emeritus, Ferrari-Carano, Gracianna, Graton Ridge Cellars, Hartford, Holdredge, Iron Horse, James Family Cellars, John Tyler, Kokomo, Kosta-Browne, La Crema, Lazy Creek, Littorai, MacMurray Ranch, MacPhail, Martin Ray, Martinelli, Merry Edwards, Moshin, Old World Winery, Orogeny, Paradise Ridge Winery, Paul Hobbs, Roessler Cellars, Siduri, Small Vines Wines, Suacci- Carcierre, T.R. Elliott, and Trecini Winery. Visit www.vintnersinn.com for information and tickets.

Wally’s 8th Annual Central Coast Wine & Food Celebration This annual event will be held Sunday, July 31, 2011, from 1:00 to 4:00 at Wally’s (a wine retailer) in West Los Angeles. The Michael Bonaccorsi Scholarship Fund at University of California Davis Department of Enology is the benefactor. Many notable Central Coast wineries will be pouring along with signature dishes from renowned restaurants including Hitching Post II, Spago Beverly Hills, CUT, Bouchon Beverly Hills, Lucques/ A.O.C./Tavern, The Hungry Cat, Osteria & Pizzeria Mozza, Bouchon Santa Barbara, The Wine Cask, La Brea Bakery, Jar, Melisse, and Chef Rick’s Santa Maria. A silent auction includes special wines, winemaker-led-tours, tastings, luncheons and dinners, and travel packages. Tickets are $95 ($149 for VIP ticket). Visit www.wallywine.com.

Oregon Cult Pinot Noir Cruise 2012. On June 25, 2012, join Oregon winery founders and winemakers including Rollin and Corby Soles of Argyle and ROCO wineries and Dick and Nancy Ponzi of Ponzi Vineyards, on a 10-day cruise from Barcelona to Athens. Visit www.foodandwinetrails.com or call 800-367-5348 for details.

Chehalem Winery has Wine on Tap To celebrate its 25th harvest anniversary release, Chehalem Winery has started a new program in the Newburg, Oregon tasting room, offering wine on tap. Consumers can buy a 1-liter branded bottle for a $5 deposit, the fill it up with the 2009 3 Vineyard Pinot Noir or the soon to be released 2010 INOX Chardonnay. The refillable bottles hold significantly more wine than a 750 ml bottle, yet are priced the same. Visit www.chehalemwines.com.

Society of Wine Educators’ 2011 Conference The 35th Annual Conference will take place in Providence, Rhode Island, August 3-5, 2011. Both pre-conference and conference activities will be held on the campus of Johnson & Wales University, the largest educator of hospitality professionals in North America. This year’s plenary session will focus on Portugal, including a comparative tasting of fortified wines including Port, Madeira and Moscatel. Over 50 guided lectures and tastings on wine, beer and tea will be offered. A winery tour of Rhode Island will follow the conference. If you are not a member of the Society of Wine Educators, you can still get the member rate to the full Conference by using code PRCON11. Visit www.societyofwineeducators.org.

Family Winemakers of California 21st Annual Wine Tasting The public is invited to theFestival Pavilion Fort Mason Center in San Francisco for this huge annual wine tasting. More than 325 wineries will be pouring a variety of wines at this showcase for small, family owned wineries. This year there will be take away wine sales offered. Visit www.familywinemakers.org for information and tickets. As in 2010, Family Winemakers of California is co-sponsoring a resolution in the California Legislature opposing H.R. 1161.

Sacré bleu! French Drinking Less Wine A report recently from The Telegraph (www.telegraph.co.uk) stated that French wine consumption had dropped by three billion bottles to just four billion in two generations. That is equivalent to one bottle per adult each week. 16.5% of the French wine population are regular wine drinkers, but the younger generations are drinking less often regularly with meals and show decreased awareness of the significance of wine in French culture.

J. Christopher Winery Begins Phase II Construction The winery and its “Appassionata” Vineyard are a joint venture project between German winegrower, Ernst Loosen, owner of Dr. Loosen and a Pinot Noir lover, and veteran Oregon winemaker, Jay Somers, founder of J. Christopher. Phase I of construction, the underground barrel cellars, was completed in 2010 and Phase II which includes fermentation rooms, crush pad, bottling room and lab space, will be completed in time for the 2011 harvest. At full build-out, the winery will have a production capacity of 8,000 cases of Pinot Noir and 2,000 cases of Sauvignon Blanc and other white wines. The construction is being undertaken with the utmost care and respect for the environment. The adjoining Appassionata Vineyard will be dry farmed and managed using biodynamic principles. The winery is located at 17150 NE Hillside Drive, Newberg, Oregon. For more information, visit www.LoosenBrosUSA.com.

Napa Valley Mexican-American Vintners Association (NVMAVA) Mexican-American vintners, growers and wine industry notables have organized NVMAVA, a nonprofit organization formed to promote Napa and Sonoma County wines produced by Mexican-American vintners and the contributions of Mexican-Americans to the California wine industry. To commemorate the founding of NVMAVA, a wine and food event called Bautizo (Spanish for “Christening”) will be held on Saturday, July 30, 2011, at Maldonado Vineyards in Calistoga. At the event, the NVMAVA log will be unveiled and attendees will be able to sample wines from member wineries including Alex Sotelo Cellars, Ceja Vineyards, Delgadillo Cellars, Encanto Vineyards, Maldonado Family Vineyards, Marita’s Vineyards, Mi Sueño, Renteria Wines, Robledo Family Vineyards, Rios Wine Company and Voces Wines. Napa Valley chefs will offer small bites. Tickets are $85 per person in advance. Only 200 attendees will be admitted. For tickets and information, visit www.nvmava.org.

Bronco Wine Company’s Charles Shaw Wines Win Top Medals Charles Shaw wines sell for $1.99 per bottle ($2.99 in some states) and over 600,000,000 bottles have been sold at Trader Joe’s. The wine has become known as “Two-Buck Chuck.” The 2009 California Pinot Grigio won Best of Class/Gold Medal and the 2009 California Shiraz won Double Gold/Best of Class and nine other medals in three major wine competitions (2011 Pacific Rim International Wine Competition, 2011 California State Fair Wine Competition, 2011 Jerry D. Mead’s New World International Wine Competition. Several other Charles Shaw wines won lesser medals in 2011. Is it possible they can do it with Pinot Noir?

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It has always been my intention to refrain from advertisements in the PinotFile other than promoting Pinot Noir and other wine related events. Fortunately, the financial rewards of my previous career as an ophthalmologist have allowed me to pursue wine writing in its purest and most independent form. I accept no press junkets to wineries or regions, pay for most of my travel expenses, purchase a significant number of wines I review, and have no financial interest in any winery, wine business, or distributor.

The PinotFile is free to subscribers, and although it remains a noble and thoroughly redeeming endeavor, I have chosen to improve my coverage of the ever-expanding Pinot Noir West Coast universe by adding some modest income by permitting wine related advertisers that hold special merit on my site.

Avalon Wine (www.avalonwine.com or northwest-wine.com) is a top source for getting your mitts on Noiregon juice. This retailer dates back well over twenty years when it was founded by Jean Yates. She has been well connected in the Oregon wine industry since its early beginnings and seems to know practically everyone who crafts wine in the state. Her computer background and writing skills lend educational and visual interest to her website. Yates also operates a retail store in the over 100-year-old Corvallis Arms Hotel in downtown Corvallis. Oregon has an open and non discriminatory direct-shipping law allowing Yates to ship wines throughout Oregon and any other state that permits wine shipments. You can even phone Jean personally on her direct line for any special requests or inquires: 541-424-8004. Sign up for frequent e-mail blasts announcing new releases and special offers.

Lot 18 (www.lot18.com) is a flash wine sales site based in New York City founded by Kevin Fortuna and Philip Jones. The site offers premium wines averaging $27.95 in price at an average discount of 39% over retail price. The wines are in limited quantities and only offered for a short time. Lot 18 began operations in November 2010, had sales well past $1 million in April and recently announced they had raised $10 million from investors to expand. Lot 18 leads the other five leading flash sites in average price per bottle. In other words, they sell relatively higher quality wines including Pinot Noir. Lot 18 is simply an advertising platform for wineries who sell directly to consumers that order through Lot 18. You must join, but are under no obligation to buy, to receive the daily offers by e-mail which are quite informative and include reviews by professional sommeliers and wine critics.