My neighbor and wine buddy, Scott asked me if I wanted to join him on a trip to Sonoma to pick up some Pinot Noir from Joseph Swan Winery. As if there were multiple answers to such a question? Since Scott recently purchased a new car a couple days prior, he was in good spirits to be the one to drive giving me the chance to be a passenger and fully enjoy a day of wine tasting through Russian River Valley.
We live a good life. Cruising up highway 680 with the cruise control set at 75, the ambient sounds from the Dave Mathew's Band heard in the background, the windows cracked slightly to let the crisp fall air in and good company with good conversation on our way to wine country. Harvest in wine country may be over but that doesn't mean I stop visiting wineries. On the contrary; this is the best time to go in my opinion. Granted, the excitement of grape stomping, barrel cleaning, tank pumping, and bottling are over but so are the crowds!
I had a rough idea of wineries I thought would be fun to stop at but there was really no set game plan. Scott needed to get some Pinot Noir at Joseph Swan but that was it. A perfect fall afternoon in Sonoma around the Russian River Valley was upon us. I brought my trusty winery map as always. You know the one... where the marked points are wineries. The only real map ever needed in a car. Forget where rest areas are, where's the closest Zinfandel!?
Kendal Jackson was going to be our first stop. I know, I know... Scott had the same reaction: "KJ?! Are you serious?" Since I got into wine, I was taught to snub the large wineries despite their history and commitment to bring wine to the masses. Every wine lover needs to recognize the greatness these major players have for without them, Napa & Sonoma would be vastly different. Besides, I knew Kendal Jackson made other wines than the panther-piss you see everywhere. I was also banking on a hope that I may be able to twist their arm into pouring some other labels such as La Crema, Edmeades and Yangarra Park.
Founder, Jess Jackson opened the winery in 1982 and was one of the first wineries to source grapes from across California rather than sticking to traditional single vineyard winemaking. The widely distributed Vintner's Reserve lineup was made and popularized on this model. Today, Kendall-Jackson exports to over 60 countries and farms more than 10,500 acres of vineyards. Four separate wineries house what is possibly the single largest barrel fermentation project in the world. Kendal Jackson is considered one of California's premier family-owned wineries. Undeniably impressive. But to add on top of this their Grand Reserve portfolio of wines typically goes unnoticed because most people disregard one's credibility as soon as the KJ name is mentioned. These wines are incredible and snobs should take notice.
Our experience at their Wine Center was a delight. The tasting room is filled with enormous amounts of natural sunlight and floor-to-ceiling windows opened the view to vineyards that extended to the hillsides. We were pleasantly greeted by their staff member Sam, a recently now-legal wine lover himself. Sam explained their tasting list and offered his own recommendation to start -- their Great Estates Chardonnay at $20/bottle against their Stature Chardonnay at $50/bottle. Robert Parker raved about the Stature with a whomping 93pts! While we all agreed it is a phenomenal wine, we couldn't just bring ourselves to drop $50 for it when the $20 version from Santa Barbara was also very good and in closer agreeability with my wallet.
As we were making our way through some very tasty and affordable red wines another friendly staff member, Joseph, chimed in when we were tasting the Grand Reserve Meritage. Neither of us enjoyed this very much as we found sharp tannins and edgy spices overpowering the fruit. Off the record, I think both Sam and Joseph agreed with us. Before we were about to pour what was left in our glass, Joseph poured a small splash of their Malbec blending the two. The result was a wine I wish I could have brought home. It was much softer and the fruit was more in balance. Joseph clearly has had some experience with the behind-the-scenes-blending of winemaking. Kudos to Joseph!
Afterwards and coming close to the end of our tasting, Sam began to explain the two Cabernets they make. One, their Grand Reserve Cabernet for $24 and the other, their Stature for $90/bottle. Again, we tasted them side by side and were floored with our findings. Both Scott and I enjoyed them both but found the Grand Reserve to be our favorite. While the Stature was very good tasted blind, comparatively its an awful value. Scott and I were having a great time. Sam wasn't trying to push a wine club down our necks nor was he counting how many wines we tasted to collect tasting fees. He provided a friendly, warm and inviting experience from which we not only spent a great deal of money but time as well. The more time we spent talking with Sam, the more bottles we added to our order.
To those of you that have yet to experience the wine center at Kendal Jackson, you should make an effort. Along with an incredibly friendly staff, they offer Wine Sensory Gardens; where visitors are invited to stroll through the gardens, smelling and tasting the herbs and produce with their wines. Viticulture exhibits and tours are also provided with insight for people interested in learning a little bit more about wine.
Scott later admitted he had an awesome time and was wrong for making a snap judgment. Lesson learned. Now on to our next stop!
Joseph Swan
This is now my second visit to Joseph Swan. I don't like to admit my first encounter here because frankly, I barely remember it. I know there a lot of people, commotion and a LOT of wineries stops before hand. I'm not proud. Blame it on the industry... I did however remember thinking to myself that Joseph Swan wines were among the most unique and individual expressive wines I've tasted. Thankfully, I did return with my senses in tact and my palette awaiting sheer magic.
Founder, Joseph Swan started his winery after making Zinfandel in 1968 after a full career as an airline pilot. Without formal training, Joe's wines became world renowned and later became a mentor to many upcoming winemakers while lecturing at UC Davis. After passing away in 1989, daughter and son-in-law Lynn and Rod Berglund continue to oversee winemaking under the Swan name. Rod Berglund continues to product single vineyard, expressive wines each year. Rod carries on the great tradition of "old fashioned" winemaking. He was originally a partner and the winemaker for a ground-breaking winery called "La Crema Vinera" which eventually was bought by Jess Jackson and today it's simply called "La Crema." Both Lynn and Rod can be found pouring in the quaint winemaking building tucked away in the valley.
When we arrived, Rod was on his way out to grab lunch while Lynn stayed behind to help us. Scott had been waiting patiently all week to taste their wines so he initiated conversation quickly as we enjoyed every drop of wine poured for us. For me, the word "terrior" was a difficult word to understand and grasp. Terroir is anything that affects the quality of the grapes grown on the vines that is NOT able to be controlled by man is considered to be the terroir. Think of it as the environment the grapes grow in. Aspects that make up a region's terrior are climate, natural irrigation, hillside, soil type, geography, and a myriad of other factors. To taste the meaning, you need to taste the various Pinot Noirs and Zinfandels made here. Each example is wonderful and expresses the similarities which the varietals carry but they also showcase unique personalities given to them by their distinct region. Rod is a firm believer in allowing the terroir to determine each wine's character rather than manipulating wines through machines and controlled conditions.
Oh, how these wines shine! Getting your hands on his wines can be difficult since they produce no more than 4,000 cases per year and usually sell out to local restaurants. His wines are dazzling. I can not say enough fabulous things about Rod's little bottles of heaven. We happily off-loaded some of their inventory into our car and took a moment to enjoy our place in time.
Hanna Winery
Quite a while back, Jen and I enjoyed a romantic dinner at Stacey's Cafe here in Dublin. We splurged on filet mignons and a moderately priced Cabernet from Hanna Winery. At the restaurant, I only spent about $50 for the bottle which we found amazing. I figured, at that price, I could probably find it much cheaper elsewhere. The hunt began. I've since seen their Estate Cabernet all over shops including Costco!
Hanna has a tasting room just down the road from where we were between the towns of Santa Rosa and Sebastopol. Since I'm only familiar with two of their wines, both impressive, I wanted to see what else we could find and taste. Their Hospitality Center is their original "Home Ranch" and is surrounded by Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vineyards. Inside, the room has a large tasting bar where two large groups were culminating their tasting experience. There was one woman working behind the counter so we took our place at the bar and waited patiently for these groups to disperse. We were handed a list of ALL their wines but only certain wines were available for tasting. The woman began running off the ones we could try but I couldn't remember them for the life of me. Why they didn't have a chalk or white board with the wines offered is beyond me... It would have helped.
I'm not going to go into the history or background of Hanna since this was just their tasting room and we didn't enjoy any tour or indulge in a deep discussion with the woman behind the counter. What I will help to bring to your attention is the unusually large number of labels they control. It confused the hell out of me before she explained it. They have their Hanna line up which consists of their standard varietal wines. Then their is their Reserve lineup and the Bismark Ranch lineup which are wines coming off the to of the Mayacamas Mountains. Then there is the Elias line up which consists of a few wines in very small quantities and finally the Jasmine label which is also small production stuff.
Overall, the wines were nice. Nothing shook our boots until the the last wine, their 2001 Bismark Ranch Zinfandel. This was one of the better more, balanced Zinfandels I've tried. At $51/bottles, its a bit much for me to justify a purchase but its undeniably tasty. We tasted a lot of wines but left with nothing. The wines were good, moderately priced and our experience was mediocre. While we weren't necessarily treated poorly, it wasn't the most friendly, warm and inviting experience either. I'll give them another chance when I visit their winery in Alexander Valley.
It was about that time to start heading home. The trunk was filled with wine and we had spent an incredible fall afternoon in Sonoma Valley. Scott was taken back that Kendall Jackson was so much fun and offered up some great wines. He still talks about how impressed and shocked he was. As always, it was another successful adventure through wine country. While others on the East Coast struggled with downright cold weather and snow, we enjoyed wine and a beautiful fall afternoon.
Life is truly good to us.
