Highlights

The Last Wimpy Wine

Roger N. Kimball
Goshen Wine & Spirits Inc.

What a great trip.  There I was:  son of the owner of one of the best wine shops in Connecticut.  Yet at age 24, thanks to a curiously motivated, self-imposed moratorium on anything containing a measurable quantity of alcohol, I knew virtually nothing about wine, other than that some bottles looked really cool.  That, of course, was tantamount to judging a book by its cover.  The time had come for me to open these books and peruse them for a deeper understanding and appreciation.  I was ready.  Ready to taste, ready to learn, ready to enjoy.  Ready to cross the Golden Gate Bridge to wine country.

And so, in the spring of 1999, I found myself deep in the heart of California wine country with my girlfriend, Michelle, and my wine-savvy mother, Johanna.  We only had a few days, and yet there was so much to see!  If you wanted to, you could easily spend several months-- even years-- wandering around these splendid parts.  Thank goodness at least one of us had a clue how we should budget our limited time.  My mother had planned an itinerary that included exposure to a diverse mix of vineyards and wine-making styles.

Our first stop was Ravenswood in Sonoma Valley.  Historically, the wine community has shed its spotlight more prominently upon Napa Valley.  In fact, many of the biggest names and best reputations are anchored in Napa.  But Sonoma has earned respect in a more subtle, some would argue a more down-to-earth manner.  In that, Ravenswood was quintessential Sonoma.  No fancy shmancy, state-of-the-art equipment.  No loud marketing campaigns.  Just good wine, produced the old fashioned way.  And personalities to match.

TO ERR IS HUMAN
BUT TO ZIN IS D'VINE
HERE LIES THE LAST WIMPY WINE
R.I.P.

Ravenswood doesn't mince words.  This epitaph pretty much sums up their philosophy of life... and wine-making.

I quickly learned that their low-tech appearance was not a reflection of their brainpower, their work ethic, or less sophisticated taste buds, but rather it was a reflection of their fundamentalist philosophy about how to produce the most authentic, best tasting wines.  They knew what they were doing.  And one had the uncanny sense that everything from the casual atmosphere to the garagesque storage facility was a quiet statement to the effect of "this is how wine was meant to be made".

We were taken around back to taste straight from the barrels.  Our guide used an oversized syringe to withdraw samples from barrels constructed of different types of wood and aged for different periods of time.  To my surprise, I could actually taste the difference.  All this stuff about "oaky" or "fruity"-- maybe it wasn't hocus pocus after all.

After soaking it in and enjoying the scenery, we saddled up and headed to Landmark...

Landmark - Squaw - Sterling - BV - Opus - Franciscan - Schramsberg