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More California Cabernets
- HONIG CELLARS
2008 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon SALE $29.99 (750ml)
2008 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $79.99 (magnum)
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $19.99 (375ml)
 Honig
is a small Rutherford winery and vineyard owned, in part, by former California
State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Bill Honig. The family has been getting the Rutherford soil
under their fingernails since 1962! Somebody did his/her homework when planning this
Cabernet.
They've got four specific clones of Cabernet to make this delicious wine.
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The 2008 vintage is in stock and, we're delighted to note, it's quite
good
bottle of wine. Adhering to the usual Honig "recipe," the wine is
predominantly Rutherford-grown Cabernet Sauvignon. It has 95.5%
Cabernet Sauvignon, no Cabernet Franc this vintage and 4.5% Petit Verdot. There will be a quiz later, so you will want to memorize these stats.
The harvest started near Mid-September and stretched to the third week
of October. We like the woodsy notes of the American oak in this
wine. It's big, round and supple on the palate. They always
seem to manage the tannin nicely...it's there as support, but not
dominating or aggressive.
Winemaker Kristin Belair
As with previous vintages of Honig's
Cabernet, this is drinkable upon release. Winemaker Kristin
Belair does a terrific job in producing Honig's Cabernets. The
vineyards are organically-farmed, by the way.
It's interesting to note that the Honig wines are extremely popular with
our discerning customers, yet most of the publications that critique
wine rarely give these wines the credit and plaudits they deserve.
Part of the reason, we suspect, is Honig makes its wine for "wine
drinkers." It is not crafted with the idea of aiming at wine
critics who need to be whacked over the head by a wine to take notice.
OOPS! The 2007 vintage, which
was sold last year, DID catch the attention of some of the point-assessing
critics.
We've had it in a tasting and it was quite showy and nice, as
usual. Wonder what took them so long to 'discover' Honig as a good
source of Napa Cabernet???
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- JORDAN VINEYARD & WINERY
2000 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon SALE
$54.99
2000 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon SALE
$99.99 (in magnum)
2007 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon SALE
$45.99
 Never the darling of the wine critics, Jordan, somehow,
manages to prosper. Maybe it's because the people who actually BUY a bottle of wine
enjoy drinking this, even if The Critics don't.
From less-than-humble beginnings,
they've blossomed into a reasonably reliable source of elegant Sonoma County Cabernet
Sauvignon. The initial vintage was a bit herbal for my taste and it was
shockingly high-priced compared to other Cabernets (I think it was about $6.50!).
The winemaker at Jordan has been Rob Davis. He's been there since
they started and was a protégé of consulting winemaker, the legendary
Andre Tchelistcheff. Though Andre passed away some years ago, his
teachings still have an impact on a few winemakers, Davis being one of
them.
We stay in touch and I sent Rob a note commending him on the 2004 Jordan
Cabernet. It's a nice change of pace, frankly, from the big,
hugely extracted, high alcohol wines which seem to get the highest
scores from critics.
Rob wrote backing saying "Even my
friends in France are changing their winemaking- more alcohol.
I fear Jordan is becoming the exception. But my mentor, André Tchelistcheff would not have it any other way. 'Too damn much
alcohol!' he would say- and that was back in the '80s."
I guess Rob and I are both
"old timers," now!
Jordan also turns out a good Chardonnay using mostly Russian River
Valley fruit.
Tom Jordan's daughter Judy runs a separate company which makes the
"J" sparkling wine, along with some light Pinot Noirs and a
slightly sweet Pinot Gris. These are made at the old "Piper
Sonoma" facility in Windsor, the work of an entirely different
winemaking team. The sparkling wine, "J," is noteworthy.
The 2007 is their current release. It displays the usual character
of a Jordan Cabernet. Mild red fruit notes and the oak
seems more pronounced than in the previous few vintages.
It's beautifully balanced and showcases the vineyard rather than the
barrel builder.
The wine
is 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot, and less
than 1% Malbec if
you're keeping track, vintage to vintage. The wine spent a year in
wood, 2/3s of the barrels being French and the rest are American
oak.
It's quite nice and even those who don't often like Jordan's Cabernets
ought to check out this vintage.
JUSTIN
 The
Justin winery is located in California's Central Coast region, in a
small valley west of Paso Robles. The Adelaide Valley is not (yet)
as famous as Napa or Sonoma for its wines. Though Justin is
working on changing that.
Justin Baldwin was an investment banker before embarking on his
"Green Acres" project in Paso Robles. The vineyards were
planted in the early 1980s, with the first wines being made in
1987.
Cabernet grown in this area is decidedly different from that cultivated
in Napa. I find more ripe fruit notes in the wine, sometimes
bordering on jammy. Justin's famous Cabernet-based blend is called
Isosceles and, to my taste, the wine has become more refined and better
balanced over the years.
The 2007 is 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc, 4% Merlot.
They typically a modest percentage of new oak...the winery technical
data shows this being blended in August of 2008 and matured in a
lower percentage of new barrels than in years past. Still, you'll
find the oak to be a strong presence in this wine. It's nice
drinking now with grilled meats and we suspect it will be fine for 5-10
more years.
Though they're extending their plantings of Cabernet and Merlot, the
wine remains quite limited in supply. -
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Currently in stock: 2007 Justin Isosceles
SALE $54.99
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LA HONDA WINERY
 What with
Global Warming and the passion of so many California vintners to chase
various wine critics and their need to taste massive, potent, powerful
wines, some Cabernets are more reminiscent of Port wine than
"Claret."
We expect if this Global Warming trend continues, they'll be making
great Cabernets in the Sonoma Coast appellation and Santa Barbara's
Santa Rita Hills.
We had a lovely, tiny production Cabernet from fruit grown in Monterey's
Chalone appellation, though that is now sold out.
Just released in a lovely 2009 Cabernet from the vaunted Santa Cruz
Mountains appellation. Not many people think of Portola Valley as
the home of great California Cabernet, but maybe you know that one of
the top vineyards was situated in nearby Woodside back in the
1880s. It was planted by Emmett Rixford and called La Questa
Vineyard.
Well, viticulturalist and winemaker Ken Wornick made a splendid Cabernet
in 2009. It's a blend of two sites, one in Portola Valley and one
from Los Altos Hills. Ken farms these backyard vineyards himself
and he produced less than 140 cases of this remarkable wine.
Wornick's La Honda Winery is located far from showplaces such as Opus
One in Oakville, Caymus in Rutherford or the Bryant Family Vineyard in
St. Helena. It's located in Redwood City, California, just 12
miles south of our little shop!
We like the wine because it's not a "hedonistic, sexy" monster
with "gobs of fruit." This is an elegant wine with some
black fruit notes. It's not astringent with mouth-puckering,
coarse tannins, another strike against it in the eyes of those who
"rate" wines using the pseudo-scientific 100 point
scale.
Our colleague Bob Gorman (who wrote Gorman on California Premium Wines
back in the 1970s) gave this the 'thumbs up.' It's reasonably-priced,
for one thing (sale priced at $22.99 for a bottle, less than the tasting fee at Opus
One) and the wine has a beautiful fruit/oak balance.
We suspect this can be cellared for about a decade, or so, but it's
wonderfully drinkable now, especially with grilled or roasted meats.
If you're a fan of powerhouse Cabernets, La Honda's is not for
you. But if you're looking for a drinkable, well-balanced Cabernet
that won't beat you over the head, this might be worth a try.
We also found La Honda has a really nice Pinot
Noir made from locally-grown grapes -
- Currently in stock: 2009 LA HONDA "Santa Cruz
Mountains" CABERNET SAUVIGNON SALE
$22.99
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- KARL LAWRENCE
2005 Napa Cabernet Sauvignon $59.99
Single vineyard wines are periodically available...Please inquire.
 There is nobody named Karl Lawrence at this little
winery in Napa. "Karl" is the middle name of Michael
Trujillo, the winemaker and "Lawrence" is Bryan Henry's middle
name.
Michael has long been friendly with the Allen family of the
Sequoia Grove winery and works there full-time, moon-lighting at Karl
Lawrence. Bryan Henry has been a gynecologist in St. Helena and
his brother Ric, when he's not writing screenplays, take care of some of
the business of running this operation.
The Henry side of this firm owns some acreage on Howell Mountain and
they're in a good neighborhood: right across the road from Beringer's
Bancroft Ranch and between Dunn and Duckhorn vineyards.
For now most of their fruit comes from the Morisoli Vineyard in
Rutherford and the Herb Lamb vineyard on Howell Mountain. The
winemaking, judging by tasting, seems fairly straightforward. A
modest amount of oak is used, but the wine isn't as cedary or oaky as
many high profile bottlings. In 1997 they made a tiny amount of
single vineyard wines (3 bottles to a 'case'--and these are long gone,
so don't even both asking!).
The 2005 is a good example of what these folks produce. The wine
is medium-full bodied and has nice dark fruit notes and a touch of
wood. You can drink it now, if you like, though several more years
of bottle aging will definitely enhance this.
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- LONG VINEYARDS
 If
you're a wine geek you'd know that there are some famous Cabernets grown
on Pritchard Hill.
We first became aware of this region back in the 1970s when we tasted
some of the Cabernets of Chappellet. There was something very
particular about the character of Chappellet's wine and it's what the
wine world refers to as "terroir."
Chappellet has been making good Cabernets since the late 1960s.
For my taste, the 1973 was extraordinary.
Over the years, a new estate called Bryant moved into the neighborhood
and became a "cult" wine. "Cult" is wine-speak
for "stupidly expensive if you can find it." (We have
some bottles if you're interested.) Now that Bryant costs about
$400-$500 a bottle, we've had to stop "floor-stacking" the
cases as we got tired of all the CPR we had to administer to
customers. Ellen pointed out this wasn't a good idea, so I changed
the display from Bryant Cabernets to Screaming Eagle. We still
have a lot of CPR incidents.
So...
Long had all of two acres of Cabernet Sauvignon. They made a few
hundred cases of this wine and, unlike their neighbors, they didn't ask
you to mortgage your chateau or sell your Ferrari so you can buy a
bottle of Cabernet.
The 2004 vintage was the last wine we'd seen from Bob Long...his father
wanted to sell the property and this essentially pulled the rug out from
under Bob and winemaker Sandy Belcher.
Their web site is "under construction" and we hope Long is
able to resurface and offer good wines again.
Currently in stock: 2004 Long Napa Cabernet Sauvignon (Winery
price is $60) Sold Out
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LONG MEADOW RANCH
 We've
periodically stocked the Cabernet from this Mayacamas Mountains
estate. They make a rather "classic" style of Napa
Cabernet, the sort of wine that's perhaps appreciated by old-timers,
rather than young wine drinkers who may prefer the proverbial
"fruit bomb."
Long Meadow Ranch is not only a wine growing estate. Ted Hall and
his family (and crew) also raise horses, cattle, olives, chickens and
vegetables.
Mr. Hall was a home winemaker in the early 1970s and was seriously
bitten by the wine bug. His degree in electrical engineering means
he can probably program a video recording machine and his MBA from
Stanford means he knows something about economics. In fact, he was
the chairman of the board for Robert Mondavi's little establishment and
engineered the sale of that enterprise to Constellation Brands for
something like a billion dollars.
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The property covers some 650 acres, but only a small part is cultivated
for wine. They began planting in 1990 and today the vineyards are
entirely farmed organically.
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- Cathy Corison was the winemaker in the early days. Today the reins
are held by Ashley Heisey, who's been there since the summer of
2003. She's been around the block, so-to-speak, having worked for
Far Niente, Schramsberg, Opus One and the University of Robert Mondavi
(Oakville campus).
We had their 1997 vintage some years ago and liked that wine very
much. Over the years, the price escalated and we lost interest,
frankly. Now, perhaps, the reality of the market has set in and
the wine is, again, offered at a price that merits the attention of our
discerning clientele.
Unlike so many California red wines, this is under 14% alcohol!
Imagine that!!!
The wine is fairly full-bodied, but it's not a heavy wine or a
'powerhouse.' This was matured in 50% new French oak and while
there's a note of cedar, wood is not hugely prominent here. We
like the balance of this wine and find it's especially good on the
dinner table. We find Long Meadow's 2005 to be drinkable now, but
suspect it will cellar nicely for another 5-10 years.
Currently in stock: 2005 LONG MEADOW RANCH Napa CABERNET
SAUVIGNON $39.99
- MINER FAMILY
 The
Miner Family winery is, based on our recent experience in tastings, one
of Napa's most reliable wineries.
The quality has been uniformly good for a number of years and we're
thrilled by their 2005 Cabernet.
The grapes came from a rather high-elevation vineyard in the eastern
hills of the Valley. Oakville. Volcanic soil. It's
blended with 7% Cabernet Franc. Deep,
dark red fruit notes of Cabernet are nicely framed by a bit of
wood. They matured this in both French and American oak barrels,
predominantly French. Drinkable now (and how!).
Bob is a big fan of this wine...
 They have a
dynamite Bordeaux blend that's new. It's called "The
Oracle," a tip of the cap to the Miner family's ties to The Oracle
corporation. The blend is one-third each of Cabernet Sauvignon,
Merlot and Cabernet Franc. About half the barrels in which this
was matured were brand new. It's a delicious Napa Valley Cabernet
and nicely-priced given what Napa wines cost these days. We find
the wine to be very drinkable now, though it ought to do well with
another 5-10 years of cellaring.
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Currently in stock: 2005 Napa "Oakville" Cabernet
Sauvignon Sold Out
2005 "The Oracle" (Cab blend) Sold
Out
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ROBERT MONDAVI
2008 Napa Cabernet (List $32) Sale $23.99
Started in 1966 when he established his little cellar in Oakville, a few
miles down the road from the family's Charles Krug Winery. He left Krug
because he had a vision about increasing wine quality and making hefty
investments to do so.
The rest of the family, apparently,
did not share this vision, content to make relatively modest-quality wines (though they
claim otherwise, the wines of the Charles Krug label are pretty lackluster).
Robert
Mondavi, wanting to be a "world class" winemaker, left the family business to
seek his fortune. With help from a Washington State brewer, he got a great start
and the rest is history. His impact on California (and world) winemaking is
immeasurable.
Striving to always be a producer of "premium" wines, Robert Mondavi
 never intended to make "jug" wines. In the litigation
against the family, he ended up with a facility near Lodi (now the "prestigious
Central Valley" location of "Woodbridge") which cranked out vin
ordinaire. These were known to winery staffers as "Bob Wines," and
they were "Cheap, cheap, cheap!" Initially sold as "Robert Mondavi
Table Wines," they have slowly changed the name to focus on Woodbridge rather than
"Robert Mondavi." The wines are rather ordinary and many restaurateurs trade on the
fame and prestige of the Napa wines by offering the modest Woodbridge plonk as
"Robert Mondavi Napa."
Many top winemakers have "studied" at the University of Napa at Robert
Mondavi. The winery, many years ago, made some stellar Cabernets (not that they
don't today, but the wines don't get as much attention as they did some
years ago).
Mondavi, knowing he had pretty good wine in the bottle, sought to
bring attention to his wares by organizing tastings against formidable competition.
He would set up blind-tastings for the trade, pitting his Cabernet Sauvignon against wines
from Chateaux Lafite-Rothschild, Mouton-Rothschild, Margaux, Haut-Brion and Latour.
If his wine came in last place, well, he could always say, "Look, my wine is $5,
while those others are $30." If his wine, as it frequently did, placed higher
than last, he could say his wine was comparable to the best in the world and at a more
favorable price. In marketing terms, this was a
"win-win" situation.
Mondavi, ever eager to experiment and improve, offered a "regular"
bottling and an "unfiltered" Cabernet. Eventually they started a
"reserve" program (I think with the 1973 vintage).
- The winery turns out some good Cabernets. The standard bottling is pretty
decent, while the reserves are certainly upper echelon wines. They've got some
regional bottlings, too. Stags Leap and Oakville.
Mondavi is also making less expensive wines from vineyards in the Central
Coast. So, if you've heard something about Robert Mondavi "going postal,"
turn up your hearing aid. They're "going Coastal."
Way back when, Mondavi was asked by Baron Philippe de Rothschild if he
would sell him a parcel of Napa Valley vineyards. Mondavi then
asked Rothschild to sell him a parcel of vines from the Chateau
Mouton-Rothschild estate. It was this little chess match that
inspired the pair to collaborate on a wine and to do so in the Napa
Valley.
This "project" became what is now called "Opus One,"
a remarkable vineyard and winery located virtually across the street
from Mondavi's Oakville facility. The cellar is the only one I've
visited in California that has the "fragrance" of a French
Bordeaux winery.
Of course, Opus One is a luxury product and a wine whose name elevates
the price of the wine to a lofty level. Mondavi's 1978 Reserve may
have contained some of the first wine of the collaboration, but it was
with the 1979 vintage that the Opus One label made its debut.
Some years ago the "house" of Mondavi had some
difficulties. Robert's son Michael was the "President"
of the Mondavi wine empire. His brother Tim, who was a really
passionate winemaker, left the family business...
The winery ended up being sold to Constellation Brands and the who
enterprise is far different today than in the 1970s.
Some of the wines are of good quality...some of the wines are of a more
"commercial" quality.
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