Category: Napa Valley wine

Vol 3 No 2.3 visiting some old Napa favorites

To those of you who dream of owning a chateau in Napa Valley try this and Dream.  Keep in mind what I said in the last blog about valley floor land going for $350-450,000 and acre. I saw this right after I posted and wanted it to share with you.

While Napa Valley was able to avoid the Santa Clarafication that Silicone Valley caused, it has developed its own problems of traffic and a cost of living that means workers must come from more than an hour away. Agricultural minimum-sized plots were 10 acres in 1969, when we could have bought land for $5,000 an acre (of course good wines from here were selling for around $5 a bottle). As the boom developed they raised the minimum to 20 acres which prevented the conversion to residential and commercial properties. Now, even one acre would eliminate the problem.

The original landmarks on the highway remain with few major changes in appearance: B.V., Louis Martini, Inglenook (now Francis Ford Coppola Winery). Beringer’s Rhine House, Christian Brothers Greystone, and some visible from the highway. These are interspersed with the new wineries. The Robert Mondavi Winery was the first to change the character which further changed with the OPUS joint venture with Rothschild. One that is missing is the little red shack on Hwy 29, that was for decades the Heitz tasting room. It has been replaced by a nice stone building with vine-covered trellises that blends in with the environment and provides surprises when you enter the tasting room.

Through friends, one of whom unbeknownst to me was related to Joe Heitz, a group of us,  made a pilgrimage to Napa Valley with me doing the planning. The year was 1978, and his nephew said his uncle had a small ‘mom and pop’ winery there. I said sure we can go there and shrugged it off. His uncle was Joe Heitz and on a beautiful Napa Valley morning I was surprised to find out that that was our destination. As we sat on the deck with Joe and his wife Alice, drinking a riesling and enjoying sausages with it, I abandoned my wine snobbery. There was something about this man and following a guided tour, I was hooked on Joe and his wines. So much so, that when I tried his 1974 Martha’s Vineyard Anniversary bottling, I purchased a case at $25 a bottle; the most I had ever paid at that time. Consider that most of the name brands were still well around $5 a bottle. It was also the most luscious cabernet I had ever had. Joe kept saying we didn’t have to buy anything but we wanted it that time and enjoyed it over the next several years – until I was down to the last bottle.

Whenever I visited the ‘little red shack’ and Joe was there he would smile and greet me with “hi, Bill”. Thus I had a strong relationship with him and his wines that lasted. Joe was a smart man with simple, sound values. He had learned under Andre Tchelistcheff, and then went to Fresno State College to set up a viticulture program, where later his son would graduate: they had classes but not a major. He was there for six years then bought the land for his winery. This is background for something he told me that day: “people think of wine as romantic but owning a vineyard is nothing more than agriculture…it’s farming.” That thought stuck with me all these years. One last thing about the tasting room: it is perhaps the last in the valley with no tasting fee. When some charge $25, $50, or even $100, that is amazing and they still make good wines.

I drove over to the Silverado Trail and up Taplin Lane to the winery and the old home. Going inside the building, Kathleen Heitz, Joe’s daughter and the business manager, sat down with me to discuss Joe and the winery. Her brother, David, is the winemaker, and she told me that her dad had been hospitalized when that ’74 was made and he guided David through the process and never failed to give him credit for the wine. That is some kind of a winemaker and man! It’s nice to return to a place and although it had physically changed, what you liked about it is still the same. The wine was named one of the top 10 wines of the century by the Wine Spectator, and President Reagan took it to a 1982 State dinner in Paris.

Just down the hill on the opposite side of the road is the Joseph Phelps Winery. I decided to visit it and while no one from the family was down I saw that much had changed of the winery which is perched on a hill overlooking the vineyards and the valley floor. The two Joe’s were good friends and while Heitz’s specialty was his cabernet’s, Phelps produced the first Bordeaux blend of cabernet in the Left Bank style, under the name Insignia.

My final stop of the day was with an old friend, George Hendry. George is the only ‘rocket scientist’ in the wine business. In fact, he had just completed consulting work on a cyclotron. His father was a professor at U.C. Berkeley and purchased the land on Redwood Road, just above Hwy 29, north of Napa. Originally they had farm animals and grapes which when George took over became all vineyards. We met at ZAP, Zinfandel Advocates and Producers at their annual tasting event in San Francisco when I was pouring for Lamborn Family Vineyards. Each year I would seek him out because I enjoyed talking with him but also because his zin’s appealed to my taste like no other besides the Lamborn.

I also visited the winery for tours and tastings with friends coming to the Valley. George conducts all the tours personally, and as for thoroughness, I recall standing in the hot sun for what seemed 20 minutes explaining the vineyard and its characteristics as well as his philosophy. The tastings were also unique as George would describe the wines with you and loved to use ‘experiment’s’ to make his points. These tours were always the highlight for friends I brought to the winery. No one ever had a bad wine at those tastings. All were beautifully made and very good examples of each varietal.

When George walked in for our meeting, he didn’t seem to have changed. His charm, humor, and the inevitable taste experiments, were still there. We discussed the longevity of the winery and he proudly said, “I never quit my day job.” He understood what many, especially those who only consume wine, don’t know: it is all about cashflow. He never brought in partners because their time horizon might be different than his and he wanted to make wine his way. He had watched many wineries fail or change hands because of a lack of understanding that stuff happens. When that happens, partnerships sour, banks call loans, and much more. Thus his conservative way of running the business has paid off. He also sells his excess fruit in some years, but whereas payment is usually made after the wine is made and sold, he requires a partial payment with the sale, which attests to the quality of the fruit he produces. It was George who told me about land prices around Yountville running from $350-$450,000 an acre. Such is the lure and lore of Napa Valley.

His advice to those who want to own a winery or be a winemaker is “forget about a 40 hour week,” and “the hours are not always when you want them to be.” He also said, what Joe Heitz told me over four decades ago, “wine making is farming.”

We finished tasting our wine and I drove home…into the traffic…and glad that I had visited him again. The drive back to Calistoga took 20 minutes longer than in the middle of the day but I had a lot to process during the drive. The only person I had wanted to visit was Mike Grgich, who was unavailable.

TB

 

 

 

Vol. 3 No 2.2 on the road to Napa

(Note: an apology for the delay in this post. The cold I had turned into an infection that has plagued me since. Finally, on my second course of medications, my body is winning the battle. Hopefully, I can get back on track to finish this story and tell of my most interesting vino experience that occurred last week. TB)

We drove up towards Napa taking Hwy 37 across to Sonoma and the heart of the Carneros Region. Carneros in Spanish means ‘rams’ (although it sounds like it would mean any animal such as cattle), and we were going to a winery on bay side Sonoma Raceway. I was familiar with the area because, besides taking a driving course at the track, a classmate from high school, Vicki Lott had married Sam Sebastiani and after a falling out with the family, they built Viansa Winery, a combining of both their names, here. It is like an Italian hill town and very charming. This, however, was not our destination but I mention it as this area is not on the radar for most Napa Valley visitors. We were headed for Ramsgate Winery, and when you reach the top of the hill it is situated on you are immediately stunned by the elegance of the winery. It is very modern but in an environmental way with an amazing use of blending wood with concrete. We were greeted in the atrium with two glasses of their pinot blanc to enjoy as we toured the winery with our guide. The wine was perfect and only added to the visual sensations.

Carneros is the best area in Napa Valley for pinot noir, and chardonnay, as it is not only the coolest region, but the proximity to San Pablo Bay provides cooling breezes even on the hottest summer days. That is not just my view but one that was expressed decades ago by great Andre Tchelistcheff, who was the inspiration for my book project. It took decades before the cooler climes of Santa Lucia Highlands and Santa Barbara County would be found to have similar attributes.

A friend of mine and a few of his long time friends decided buy the land and create the winery, and they have done wonders. Looking out on the marshes of the bay with gentle sloping vineyards pointing the way they are planting mainly the two varietals, Andre said would prosper. In the meantime, they are sourcing fruit from some of the best North Coast vineyards and their acclaimed winemaker, Jeff Gaffner, is producing great wines.

A group of friends could really enjoy just walking through the winery and finding one of the comfortable niches to relax in, or walk down the slope to a table and chairs and enjoy the natural look of the vineyard with the contrasting, yet not out of place, winery in the background. Note that reservations are required and while the costs are not small, they are in line with other new wineries. The point is, you get a lot for your dollar, something I failed to see in some of the other similar (not architecturally) wineries in the Valley. While they don’t have a restaurant, due to local ordinance, they have excellent pairings with their wines in their spacious event room overlooking the bay. Highly recommended. For more information visit their website at: Ramsgate Winery, the pictures alone are worth clicking.

From there we drove north to the Napa/Sonoma Road where there are several other wineries to visit, or you can keep going into the heart of Sonoma County wineries, some of which will be discussed in this series.

Some of you are aware of the quality of Howell Mountain wines, which is attested to as it being made a sub-appellation of the Napa Valley ava, in 1983, the very first. This was because of distinct characteristics such as the soils (volcanic), altitude, as high as 800 feet above the valley floor, which makes the temperatures more moderate (10 degrees higher in winter and a like amount cooler in summer while catching the evening breezes that blow over the valley floor), and creating a distinct terroir.

We arrived at Lamborn Family Vineyards, atop the mountain, which produces exceptional cabernet sauvignon and zinfandel’s. Mike Lamborn sat with us on his deck overlooking the vineyards and the distant mountains to the east and south.

I met Mike when he was a neighbor in, not to distant, Orinda, California. About eight years later I learned that he and his dad, Bob, one of the most interesting people I have met in the industry. They had to ‘unload’ some inventory that was costing them money by taking up warehouse space due to a distributor not fully promoting the wines. At the time, zin was all they produced, and it was very good as one would expect with winemaker/family friend, Heidi Peterson Barrett producing it. That was the beginning of a great relationship that drew me into the wine industry by frequent visits to the vineyard, pouring wine at events, and stimulating my interest in wine, beyond just a beverage.

I love Howell Mountain wines, and find the zinfandel’s far above other appellations. That may just be a preference but I believe, and have generally had agreement by winemakers that the spectrum of flavors is probably more distinct than any varietal except pinot noir. There is none that I like more and only a few that I would put in the same tier. As for the cab’s, they have Heidi’s imprimatur, guaranteeing an excellent wine now and for years.

You won’t find Mike’s wine in stores, which is similar for most of the other wineries I visited on this trip. The internet has opened direct client marketing and that plus membership clubs, allows most or all to be sold direct, saving a 35% haircut which is even more significant for a small winery operation. He does have a few select restaurants that he allows to serve his wine, another common trait.

Even though the Lamborn’s bought their two parcels before the land boom, selling the wine through distributors would significantly reduce profits, and for those purchasing land in the valley today at prices of $350,00 an acre, direct selling  is imperative.

Visits to all Howell Mountain wineries are by appointment only. This is due to avoiding congestion in this rural area, and similar regions, so contacting a winery you are interested in directly is the answer. Speaking of the congestion, even though we were there in February, and in the wettest winter since 1935, there is always late afternoon traffic on Hwy 29, especially between Rutherford and Calistoga. This was primarily due to the level of local drivers. It is dreadful during the tourist season.

As along the Central Coast, I have never seen the valley so lush and beautiful. It has been years since this last occurred. After our visit, we drove to Calistoga, at the north end of the valley, for what was the nicest lodging I have found, on a par with the aforementioned Petit Soleil in San Luis Obispo (and no I do not receive anything for mentioning any lodging or restaurant, it is a service to make readers trips more enjoyable). It is the Cottage Grove Inn. This former small trailer park just past downtown Calistoga is truly unique. Each room is a separate building and all have every amenity you can imagine. Like Petit Soleil, the wine and cheese hour features good wines, cheeses and other surprises, and a wonderful buffet breakfast. Want to be in the wine region but also be alone, this is the place to let down. If you are planning to visit the adjoining Alexander Valley, Dry Creek, Anderson Valley, or Healdsburg or head back to Sonoma, this is an outstanding location.

When we first came to Napa Valley in 1969 there was only one place to stay other than the hotel in St. Helena or in downtown Napa. We have stayed at several, beginning with the first and only in the valley, La Bonita motel just out of town on Hwy 29 in St. Helena. It is a traditional motor court motel, but they have kept it up and it gets high reviews for a reasonably-priced place to stay in the valley and in a great location. I was surprised when we drove past it and even more  I heard it was more than it looked like, confirmed when I went to their website. Imagine what the value of the land is!

More Napa wineries next.

TB