Jan

15

Aubin Cellars “Verve”

Filed Under Reds

Today we tasted a truly artistic lineup called “Verve” by Aubin Cellars.

The Verve label was founded by Jerome Aubin, native of France turned California wine producer. But not before completing his International Business Masters Degree in Paris, then relocating to Sonoma County in July 1995 to help start a cooperage in the classic french tradition. That project ultimately transitioned into a successful wine barrel and bin importing business, providing close to 600 west coast wineries with artisan style barrels, cement, stainless-steel and wooden fermentation tanks.

Also worthy of note are the beautiful Verve labels, displaying (mostly French) expressionist paintings, from Jerome Aubin’s personal collection.

First poured was an interesting French white varietal called Colombard. If you’re not familiar with the Colombard varietal, it’s likely because it’s normally used as a blending grape in the production of Armagnac, a distinctive style of brandy.

The 2007 Verve French Colombard comes from the “Domaine de Mirail” located in the heart of Gascony in southwest France. The specific site is in the Cotes de Gascogne region, and is an old, densely planted vineyard situated on a south-facing limestone and clay hillside. Hints of white peach, jasmine and honeydew on the nose, slightly creamy texture with a crisp, refreshing minerality and racy acidity typical of French Colombard from the Cotes de Gascogne. Served well-chilled, Verve French Colombard will prove a classic match with fish, oysters and other shellfish, salad or goat cheese. On its own, the Verve Colombard is a nice alternative to your normal first-course whites. Perfect while preparing dinner or simply feasting on a sunset.

Next was a pleasant 2007 Sauvignon Blanc made from twenty-two year old “Villa San Juliette” vineyard in the northeast of Paso Robles. The vines are grown on a limestone hillside soil with a southern exposure. With an almost restrained, lightly floral nose, this Sauvignon Blanc explodes with tropical fruit on the finish. It would be best served very cold, on a very warm day.

Verve has also turned out two interesting single-vineyard Pinot Noirs in the 2006 vintage, one from the Sonoma Coast Appellation (Freestone) and the other from the Willamette Valley (Dundee Hills).

First poured was the 2006 Sonoma Coast Pinot, which showed a classic nose of mushrooms, must and sweet perfume. On the palate were elegant notes of sweet cherry and rhubarb. Not overly extracted, this is a nice (affordable) expression of Pinot coming from a region well suited for the varietal.

Next came the 2006 Willamette Valley Pinot made from the sustainably farmed “Stoller Vineyard” in Dundee Hills (a sub-appellation of the Willamette Valley) which was another example of “new school” Pinot, but with a healthy nod toward traditional Burgundian styling. Again on the nose I caught ample mushroom, earth and perfume, on the palate was a pleasant core of light red berry fruits, with a distinctive thread of mineral essence that would encourage me to call this Pinot a definite “food wine.”

Last but definitely not least came two single vineyard offerings of Syrah. The first was a 2005 “Richard Dinner Vineyard” Syrah from the Sonoma Mountain Appellation. Sweet jammy fruit on the nose, with a very pretty core of sweet, ripe berry fruit. A very well rounded, well balanced Syrah.

Finally came their 2005 Syrah from the 900-1200ft elevation “Boushey Vineyard” in the Colombia Valley Appellation near Yakima, WA. This Syrah exhibiy6 black pepper, smoke and dried roses on the nose, a deep, intense darkness in the glass, velvet on the palate with cocoa and asian spice.

In reflection, the Verve wines are in my opinion stylistically balanced between the “new school” of winemaking and the classic french tradition of expressing the varietal in its truest form. Truly an art form in the glass.

Dec

22

Renaissance Vineyard & Winery

Filed Under Reds, Whites

Renaissance wines are best known for their uncompromising expression of terroir and distinctive style. After 30 years of extensive varietal experimentation, Renaissance focuses on limited production of the Bordeaux and Rhone families of varietals. Their Sierra Foothills vineyard is organically cultivated and elevations range from 1,700 to 2,300 feet.


Renaissance’s winemaker Gideon Beinstock handcrafts their estate-bottled wines in a traditional European style. Gideon first arrived at Renaissance in the 1970s and helped to plant the vineyard. During the 1980s he roamed the vineyards of France, exploring their wines and wineries. He built friendships with a number of winemakers in Burgundy and the Rhone Valley, and was particularly influenced by such wine experts as Steven Spurrier (Academie du Vin, Paris, 1980/81) and Maggie McNie, MW (Masters of Wine Program, London 1989). With his half-French heritage, Gideon’s first love was definitely French wines. He began to write articles about wines and conduct classes. He returned to Renaissance in the early 1990s where he gained hands-on experience as assistant winemaker under Diana Werner.

When he became head winemaker in January 1994, Gideon brought a radical change to their winemaking art: he “finished” the 1991 Cabernet Sauvignon, blending Renaissance’s traditionally pure varietal Cabernet Sauvignon with 4 percent Merlot and 1.5% Sauvignon Blanc. The result was a gold medal at the 1995 VINEXPO and a great deal of critical praise. Wine author and columnist, Matt Kramer, proclaimed this 1991 Renaissance Cabernet Sauvignon as “one of its best–intense, filled with a blackcurrant scent and superbly balanced” and further described it as “stunning and long-lived.” It was this wine that prompted him to call Renaissance “California’s best-kept Cabernet secret.”

Originally, the Renaissance winemaking style was highly extracted, thick, very tannic, designed for long aging in the bottle. Gideon’s “hands off” style of winemaking is based on minimal manipulation: gentle extraction, no inoculations, no fining or filtration doing everything in his power to highlight the expression of the terroir in the wine.

Since 1994 Gideon has conducted a series of experiments with additional grape varieties in their vineyards, searching for the best microclimate, soil, and varietal combination. This program opened new horizons for their use of blends as a winemaking tool (for example, Cabernet Sauvignon with Cabernet Franc and Merlot), and lead to the creation of a whole range of exciting new wines, such as Syrah, Grenache, Viognier and Roussanne.

Compared to the single varietal approach, blending a few varietals to maximize the expression of the soil and “sense of place” is a key element in the French winemaking tradition. Gideon, who trained as an artist, describes his winemaking art: “Just as a painter mixes different colors to capture the essence of light, I work with a palette of different grapes to achieve compositions that capture the essence of our vineyard.”

Contact Jonathan Keller to acquire Renaissance wines.

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