Pinot Patchwork?

Last night I saw an interesting post on Twitter. Jayson Bryant of TheWineVault, tweeted, “If smell were a fabric, what would Sauvignon Blanc be?” Immediately I thought of linen. Cool, crisp, clean. He then asked me "what about Pinot Noir". My first thought was corduroy. Textured, structured, yet soft, like our Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir. Then I thought, no, pinot noir is more like velvet – deep, dark, elegant, smooth, luxurious. Hmmmm…which is it? Maybe it’s actually shantung silk, silky with some texture, crisp and brilliant color…I can’t decide! Maybe the true answer is that Pinot Noir would be a patchwork quilt. Some pinots are corduroy, some velvet and others silk…aren’t those differences part of the beauty of Pinot Noir? What are your thoughts?

Visiting Vineyards - Searching New Sources, Cementing Relationships

Tom Stutz and I spent the day in Sonoma County last Friday meeting with three growers to taste wines, walk vineyards, and talk winemaking philosophy.

La Rochelle does not own any of its own vineyards so it has the opportunity to source out the best possible fruit and to create relationships with people who are as passionate about growing great grapes as we are about making great wine.

2009 is going to be a very important and exciting year for us as we bring on new fruit from the Gran Moraine Vineyard in Willamette Valley, grapes from Londer Vineyard's estate vineyard in Anderson Valley (we now have 2 sources there), and fruit from Donum Estate vineyard in Carneros (another new appellation).

On this trip, we had the great fortune to talk and taste with Anne Moller-Racke from Donum Estate. Her winemaking and grape growing philosophy matches ours nicely, and we are lucky to be one of the very few to get grapes from her vineyard.

We also met with the Ross Cobb, the winemaker of Keller Estate, the owner of La Cruz Vineyard. Ross also owns his own eponymous brand, making great Pinot from Sonoma Coast fruit. The pictures show the Petaluma River off to the west from the Coro block of La Cruz Vineyard and our block of clone 115 Pinot beginning veraison.

Our appointment with Al Steele, the vineyard manager for Dutton, served the duel purpose of locking in the details of the Dutton-Campbell Pinot Noir for 2009 as well as looking at the Morelli Lane Vineyard, one of the new sites for the Merrillie brand (more on this later). It also included lunch at the Underwood in Graton (our Sonoma Coast restaurant of choice!).

La Rochelle began life in Livermore with the mission to make world-class wines. We also wanted to work with world-class people...it's nice to see that this part of the equation is working too.

Differences Between French and American Barrels

In an earlier post I wrote about the flavor and aromatic differences in two newly released La Rochelle Pinot Noirs. Though made from the same fruit and in the same way, the Pommard Clone in American oak differed greatly from the same wine aged in French oak.

While much of the differences in wine owe to the winemaker's hand, the actual structure of the trees made into barrels in France and the US is responsible for the "macro" characteristics of grain tightness, aromatics, flavors, and durability, among others. With the advent of improved curing regimes for American oak, qualitative difference between domestic and imported barrels are much less than they used to be.

Wooden receptacles have been used to store and age wine for hundreds of years, at least since the 1600s. We think of the 60-gallon barrel (or barrique) when we think of wood, but large wood upright tank made of redwood are still in use today. Chestnut has also been used for aging wine, and Balsamic vinegar starts as Trebbiano and is aged in a series of different woods to provide much of its flavor.

Oak is uniquely qualified for aging fine wine because of its relatively neutral aroma and flavor (compared to Redwood), its tightness of grain (Chestnut is not used much anymore because its porosity allows too much wine to evaporate), and its ability to bend without breaking (steam and fire are used to bend staves as barrels are being made).

White oak, Quercus alba, is the species of oak grown in America used for barrels; Quercus sessilis, is the European species. Midwest and Eastern states produce nearly all American barrels, with Missouri leading production. the map to the right shows production areas. Quercus alba differs structurally from Q. sessilis in the number of tyloses it contains. A tylose is a cellular structure in the xylem of the tree that blocks the nutrient-carrying tubes that run from the root up the tree, making the wood watertight. The American species has significantly more tyloses so the staves can be milled from larger sections of tree and up to 50% of the tree will be usable for barrel making. The European species, with fewer tyloses, needs to be handsplit into staves along the tylose lines, and up to 80% of the wood is wasted.

American oak barrels, as a consequence, are less porous than French oak and less tannic. At the same time, American oak is significantly more odorous than the French counterpart, contributing aromas of vanilla and coconut while the less powerful spice aromas of clove, and cinnamon are a feature of French oak.

French oak is used in large part because it tends to bolster the mid-palate of the wine, providing a sense of roundness and shape (just as it does in the La Rochelle Pommard clone Pinot Noir).

At La Rochelle, we tend to uses significantly more French than American oak. The aromatics of French oak and the structuring effects of French barrels work better with a majority of the Pinot Noir we harvest. For our Cabernet brand, American oak is often used because the depth of Cab fruit stands up well to the powerful aromatics.

A great deal of the improvement in American oak can be attributed to the air-drying of staves. French coopers have been doing this for centuries, but it is much newer for American coopers. In the early 20th century whiskey producers used newly sawn wood from which to make barrels. The extremely high tannin level and balsamy quality of the wood was overwhelmed by the product inside. Recently, American coopers have been air-drying their barrel staves for 24-36 months, stacking the wood, open to the elements, so that as the wood gets wet then dries many times over the course of time, much of the tannin and sappy quality of the wood is leeched out.

Toast levels of the barrels also add significantly to the aromatics, flavor, and quality of wine. the better barrels are toasted over an open fire both to bend those staves into a barrel shape and to bring out specific flavors and aromas in the wine. It is known that specific flavor elements such as coffee and chocolate are created in the wood at various temperatures and toasting durations. Depending upon the type of wine being made, we will buy barrels that have undergone medium, medium-plus, and slow heavy toasting so that we can capture these organoleptic elements in the finished product.

While American oak was originally seen as a poor man's alternative to French oak, its recent quality and the characteristics it brings to wine aging make it a very valuable tool in the wine maker's arsenal.

Defined by Barrel: The Wood Affects the Wine

We have written many times before about how the transparent nature of Pinot Noir reveals everything about itself. The place of its origin, the lateness of harvest, the yeast types used for fermentation, the length of time and type of barrel used for aging all put their very obvious stamp on the finished wine.

A great part of the fun of wine is in the knowing, and we think the deliciousness of the La Rochelle wines can be more greatly appreciated when you know more than just the surface details.

The 2007 vintage will be one of the best Pinot vintages in recent memory. The La Rochelle wines are just now rolling out. Some of the first include a pair of wines that, on the surface, differ only in the type of barrel used for aging. But a deeper look, will show just how profound a difference that aging vessel can make.

We have just released two single barrel wines: the 2007 Pinot Noir - Mission Ranch, Pommard Clone, American Oak and French oak. The barrel used to age wine obviously affects that wine's aromatics and flavors. But it has as dramatic an affect on the texture and structure of the wine as well.

Up front there is substantially more woodiness in the American barrel than there is in the French counterpart. The aromatics include the relatively overt, smoky, sweet oak notes of a Nadalie American oak barrel (Virginia wood) while the wood effect of the French (Nadalie, Allier forest) barrel is more in the shaping of the wine. The aromatics persist longer in the American barrel, the dark fruit notes heightened by the sweet underlayment of wood.

In the mouth, a similar sensation is also present. The French barrel seems substantially more elegant: tighter and less overtly fruity than the American barrel, while the smoky sweetness and dark fruit aromas are translated readily to the mouth in the American.

Imagine the route of the wine through your mouth as a highway. Upon entry, both wines are on a two lane road. Quickly though, the American's exuberant fruit expands the road to 4 lanes. On the mid-palate, the American road is wider still, and on the finish, the road resembles a funnel: the fruit, tannin, and acid are rampant. Conversely, the French road widens only a little and only on the finish. This wine lacks the American's full-throttled wideness at this point, relying instead on a staid and elegant containment (a very well paved, pot-hole-free journey). The French does, on the finish, hint at its own abundance, however: an abundance that will reveal itself over the next several years.

Only 20 cases or so of each wine was produced and it is moving quickly. Grab yourself a bottle of each and make your own comparisons. Let us know which you prefer.

Next time we will discuss just why there is so much difference between French and American oak barrels.

Are Pinots Getting Too Big?

Eric Asimov, wine writer at the New York Times, recently wrote about the "revolution" occurring in the increasing lightness of California Pinot Noir. Steve Heimoff, columnist for Wine Enthusiast magazine, responded, in his blog, to Asimov's assertion.

Taken together these two viewpoints underscore a fundamental issue for me. The only truth in wine is that which is circumscribed by your vineyards and fruit coupled with the winemaker's overriding sensibility that takes those raw products and makes the most authentic wine out of them.

Asimov is talking about a STYLE of wine for which he has a PREFERENCE. There is no right and no wrong to this. The style that he prefers (or that Parker or the Spectator prefers) is not intrinsically better than the fatter style of wine that he doesn't.

The winemaker really only has a responsibility to himself. I can't truly know what the "market" wants especially when I release a new wine. I can only promise that the wine I am producing is as true to the vineyard and to the grape as it can be and, more importantly, that it is true to my winemaking philosophy.

Styles of wine change. Critics gain a pre-eminence which can shape the way wines are produced. That pre-eminence will eventually cease to be, and the next major critic may like a different style of wine. Making wine to suit the perceived palate of the critic is a fool's errand. It's philosophically dishonest and boring...and there's every likelihood that the wine style and the critic won't arrive at the same place at the same time.

There is room in the wine world for any number of wine styles and wine varieties. We, the consuming public, will vote with our palates and our pocketbooks, some styles and grapes will be steamrolled under and serve as the fertilizer for the next "revolution."

In the end, we should all worry less, explore a lot, and drink more good wine.

La Rochelle in the Larger World

We have very consciously decided that we want to stay small...and that we want to sell wine to our friends.

Though most of our wine is sold at the Winery to members of our wine clubs, we do sell a small percentage to fine restaurants and wine shops, mostly in California (they're our friends too!)

Click on the link to see an evolving map of the fine folks all around California who sell our wine.

La Cruz Release Heralds New Appellation

We recently released our latest Pinot Noir made exclusively for members of our Pinot Noir Program. The 2007 Pinot Noir - La Cruz Vineyard, Sonoma Coast marks the first wine we have made from this wonderful appellation.

La Cruz Vineyard sits right on the Petaluma River and is comprised of two distinct sections. These sections are further divided into blocks based upon varietal and clone (in the case of Pinot Noir). The upper portion of the site is called the El Coro block and is comprised of very light, infertile soil, while the lower block is alluvial soil from the river...much darker, heavier, and fertile than El Coro. The photograph to the right shows El Coro block soil along with bird netting that is held together by plastic spoons.

In 2006 we harvested only Dijon clone 115 but got it from both vineyard sections. We vinified each section separately then blended them before release. The photo below and to the left shows the distinctly light brown soil of the El Coro Block.

This wine is distinctly different in weight, aromatics, and flavors than any other Pinot we have made. While our main source of fruit (the Santa Lucia Highlands) is generally characterized by dark raspberry fruit notes and significant mid-palate viscosity, the La Cruz wine is much more an amalgam of rose petals, blood orange with a transparency in the mouth that shows off the very clean, expansive acid line of the wine.

In the future we hope to have a couple more sites from this appellation so that we have wines to share both with club members and Tasting Room guests. For the time being, however, if you would like to get a couple of bottles of this wonderful wine, we'd like to invite you to join our club.

Terrific Wine, Better People

I had the occasion to taste at Testarossa Vineyards today after having visited Ridge Winery earlier in the day for their 2008 Monte Bello assemblage event. I have enjoyed the Testarossa wines quite a lot (their 2005 Pinot Noir, Sleepy Hollow Vineyard was stunning) and have been up to their tasting room only once before.

The team there, led by Jeffery Marino, the Tasting Room Manager, could not have been nicer and more generous.

The thing that most tasting room teams share, and what the Testarossa folks have in spades, is a love of wine. Apparently, quite a lot of them had had some of our Pinots in the past (I think I have Bob Zamorra, a great wine lover in his own right, who works both for us and Testarossa, to thank for that!) and liked them. And being as passionate and as generous as they are, they allowed me to taste some wines that have not been released yet or that were part of their library.

The 2006 Chardonnay, La Cruz Vineyard and 2007 Chardonnay, Sleepy Hollow Vineyard were both stunning. They were outshone, however, by the 2006 Diana's Reserve Chardonnay that is a blend of the finest barrels from each of the vineyards from which they source fruit.

On the Pinot Noir side, the 2006 Pinot Noir, La Cruz Vineyard was gorgeous (another tie-in: our 2007 La Cruz Vineyard will be released very soon) as was the 2007 Sleepy Hollow.

More info about the winery can be found at www.testarossa.com. Tell the great team there, that we sent you!

Beauty and the Beast

It was the end of a working day last week, and I wandered into my wine cellar in the garage looking for a bottle of Pinot.

From the 2005 vintage, we had produced a number of very small (some only a single barrel) offerings and will have 11 separate single-barrel releases in 2009. Anyway, I found a bottle of one of the 2005 wines wedged behind some Cabernet.

The 2005 Pinot Noir - Mission Ranch, Pommard clone is both beautiful and ugly simultaneously.

Shortly after I acquired the La Rochelle brand from my cousins, we decided to change the packaging to more clearly delineate what we wanted La Rochelle to be. Before our current label design (created by Nick McNeill), we developed a new look that was just horrendous. The picture to the right shows the abomination (kids, this is why you leave the label design to the pros!).

The wine inside the bottle was wonderful. Explosive aromatically (fresh raspberry and cranberry fruit, spice from barrel), the wine had a beautiful, silky mid-palate, open fruit flavors, and great acidity. I had it with roasted chicken, mashed potatoes and corn. Yum score = 100.

Beautiful labels, do not guarantee delicious wine, and - thankfully enough, in this case - the ugly ones don't also describe the wine inside.

2006 Pinot Noir, Santa Cruz Mountains Released

While single-vineyard wines make up the backbone of our Pinot Noir Program (in fact, we will release a wine from the Deer Park Vineyard from Santa Cruz Mountains for the wine club later in the year), our appellation wines boast a complexity and deliciousness that typify our best offerings.

Grapes have been grown in the Santa Cruz Mountains since the 1850s with Pinot Noir a growing contributor to the overall acreage planted in the appellation, especially recently. Unlike other more hill-challenged appellation, many of the vineyards in this appellation are small, the average size (according to John Haeger in his seminal book North American Pinot Noir) being just 11 acres.

The Deer Park Vineyard provides the vast majority of fruit for this offering with the San Vicente Vineyard adding the last few percent. This wine is dramatic, imbued with wonderfully intense dark-berried fruit, great mid-palate acidity and a fair amount of tannin. This is one of those wines that needs some time before it shows its best.

When it does, though, the results will be stunning. Only 80 cases of this wine were produced and can be ordered in our on-line store.

The Game's all About Food

We may root for a particular team, wear that team's jersey, live and die with the fortunes of that team...but we all really know, the big game is about the food and wine. I am serving the dish below...what Pinot would go best?

In Good Company

There are a lot of great wines produced in California. It has always been a goal (especially in our Cabernet House where the Livermore Valley appellation doesn't get the credit it deserves) to make wines that are considered among the best.

And while I am deeply conflicted about the wine reviewing process (more on that another time), the benefits of a positive review are undeniable. Jim Laube, the California wine reviewer for the Wine Spectator magazine, just published a list of top scoring Pinot Noirs from last year, and our Garys' Vineyard from 2005 is included.

We are re-releasing the last 120 bottles from our Library. The limit is 2 bottles per person. The price is $75 per bottle. Click to order Pinot Noir - Garys' Vineyard.

Making Sense of La Rochelle

The world of Pinot Noir can be confusing... the myriad flavors and aromas and appellations and clones... lots of stuff to know.

In an effort to give you more information, we have created a Pinot Noir Characteristics matrix that details information about all of our wines.

Find the downloadable Matrix here. We will update it regularly.

It's Soy Good...

Soy. Not a descriptor I would normally attach to a wine. Sushi maybe, wine no. I've seen this word used before to describe wine and as a matter of fact I have heard Steven refer to it several times with some of our pinots in La Rochelle. I never could quite get the soy. I just chalked it up to my amateur palate. Then I opened a bottle of the 2003 Garys' Vineyard Pinot Noir which was created especially for the Steven Kent Future Release Program. One sip and I was hit with a soy bomb. Yes, a soy bomb! It was unbelievable. Not only was the flavor amazing, but the mouthfeel was silky and coated my tongue like a cashmere jacket in autumn. It was perfect. How could I have missed this?

I thought back and remembered when we released this wine in 2005. We had never done a pinot before and I was not familiar with the grape. Sure, I had pinot noir prior to this but it was a casual acquaintance, not a varietal I could appreciate. I remember tasting the 2003 and enjoying it, but thinking I enjoyed cabernet more. Since its release I have had the honor of tasting many more pinots, whether our own at La Rochelle or those we bring in for tasting to compare and contrast with our own. While I still enjoy my cabernet, I have come to appreciate what pinot noir has to offer. I enjoy opening each bottle, wondering what flavor awaits me…will it be earthy…dark fruit…perhaps cardamom - a favorite of mine, or another spice??? Or maybe this time it's soy.

Grab a bottle of pinot and open it up…what do you taste???

(ed. note: Just our opinion, but the wines that are predominantly made from Sleepy Hollow Vyd. fruit also display this soy quality in spades.)