We make over forty different
wines, and I can’t be in the tasting room for more than twenty minutes before
someone asks me which one is my favorite.
I have a standard reply, “Rephase your question counselor and you may
uncover the information you seek.” I
don’t have a favorite and when I do it changes, often by the minute. On the other hand, if the query was, “Of all
the wine you produce which one do you drink the most of?” then there is a definitive response;
“Barbera”. And if you asked what I drink
most after Barbera it would be Pinot Noir.
The wines produced from Pinot Noir are considered by many to be the most
spiritual wines in the world. The author
of “The Wine Bible”, Karen MacNeil sums it up well when she says, “Of all the
wines in the world, Pinot Noir is the one that poses the deepest questions and
reminds us that the answers still lie in Mystery.” Pinot Noir has a reputation for expressing
the site in which it was grown to a greater degree than any other variety. In
Burgundy, the home of Pinot Noir, there is a saying that Pinot Noir reflects
the vineyard and not the winemaker. I
find Pinot Noir similar to Barbera in that it is a versatile red wine for
pairing with food. It has an elevated
level of acidity and a long smooth soft-tannin finish. Stylistically, that is what I enjoy, flavor
without astringency. Both Barbera and
Piot Noir fit the bill.
Although our winery is in Amador
County, we do not limit ourselves to making wine solely from local grapes. If that was the case we wouldn’t make Pinot
Noir. In my five decades in the wine
industry, I have learned that the key to success in the wine business is to
produce wine from grapes grown in the right location with a soil and climate
matched to the grape variety. Amador is
not as suitable an appellation for Pinot Noir as Los Carneros. Therefore, we team with growers Dharam Goel
and Myrto Frangos in Napa and purchase Pinot Noir grapes from their Sisters
Vineyard on Cutting Wharf Road in Carneros. We have done so for twenty-five years, and it seems to be working.
