Châteauneuf-du-Pape ? Côte Rotie ? No, Healdsburg !
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Dear wine lovers,
To verify my great interest for red Zinfandel, I recently had the chance to visit with 3 different wineries that produce Zinfandel in Northern California.
*On June 24th, I left San Francisco on a sunny day to reach Napa. From there, there is a small road taking you up to Redwood where vines are planted in the small family estate of Hendry* :
Mike Hendry was waiting for me for a very interesting tour. The notion of terroir is deeply rooted here and Mike is always trying to fit the right grapes to the right areas, grafting vines with new varieties if necessary. Irrigation is monitored at its lowest and old vines are producing low yields upon a sustainable vine maintainance.The tasting of the whole range is very nice. Fruit, elegance are the key words there. Of course, I was completely delighted with the two red Zinfandels, especially "block 28" which is marvelous even with a 15,8% alcohol which is very well balanced with texture and acidity.
From there, I joined the "famous" Estate of Ravenswood near Sonoma. Of course, I know it is now part of the big constellation group but I had the chance to have a personalized treatment and we only focused on single Zinfandel vineyards plus 2005 barrel tasting. I really enjoyed the 2003 Belloni. From the barrels, Big River and Cooke were great but the best was at the very end when we tasted an open bottle of 1995 from Old Hill which was very complex (reminding me an old Mourvèdre) and still very fresh.
Continuing north up to Healdsburg via Santa Rosa, the landscape begins to be more and more sloped and there begins the great fun for a guy who loves terroir. For the first time, I began to see non irrigated vines, some of them (probably Zinfandel) being more than 100 years old. Arriving at Ridge Lytton Springs vineyards, I was welcomed by Gerald Stone who works there and right away I was astonished by the beauty of the landscapes which reminded me of the dear Chateauneuf du Pape, Banyuls or even Côte Rotie. No more irrigation there, steep slopes and old vines everywhere.
Barrel tasting and cellar tasting were all awesome at Ridge. Ponzo, Buchignani (including this superb 100% Carignane), Lytton Springs, York Creek, Independence School, Geyserville, Monte Bello or even this Syrah blended with 10% of Viognier....all was just great. Too bad I could not get more bottles on the airplane because, and I insist, this winery is just doing a fantastic job. The new building construction, ecologically made with straw and solar panels tells you the spirit of these wines and of such a respectful wise man, Paul Draper, who I would be more than honored to meet someday.
Then Victoria, Gerald and Loren invited me for a fantastic dinner at their house and we had the chance to taste, besides Ridge, the wines from Rochioli where Victoria works and whose vines are also located in Healdsburg. This superb 2002 Sauvignon Blanc had just evolved to nutty and honey hints with still a nice acidity. Then we had a 2000 Pinot Noir with this beautiful barbeque salmon recipe, which now enables me to tell you that there is at least one Pinot Noir in California that has the same elegance as the ones in Oregon, New Zealand or Burgundy.
At this point, and even if I surely have not tasted all the wines from Healdsburg, I am totally convinced that a great terroir is there and, here is the most important part, people understand it. All the guys I met there were so nice and were very close to my way of considering the wines. A good example is this memorable chat with Ross, the sommelier at Ravenous (who also participates in making this beautiful Pax rose wine, probably the best American rose I had with Unti), a great place to eat or with Pedro who runs the wine shop in this small charming town.
And this very French-rooted guy who currently export French wines to the US and who writes to you now, tells himself that he could live in Healdsburg, among the leafy slopes, and promote these great American wines without selling his soul to devil.
Cheers,
Jean-Marc Espinasse
Any comments, edits are very welcome at [email protected]
PODCASTS :
Listen to this whole edition in French (allow some delay depending on your speed internet connection)
Listen to this whole edition in English (allow some delay depending on your speed internet connection)
A good book about the very US grappe variety :
See the California vineyards I have visited on a map
*Le 24 Juin, j'ai quitté San Francisico sous le soleil pour rejoindre Napa. De là, il y a une petite route qui vous amène à Redwood où sont plantées les vignes du petit domaine familial de Hendry*.
