Chardonnay, JOSEPH CARR, "DIJON CLONE", Sonoma Coast, California

California estate vineyards with traditional French techniques makes this Chardonnay delicious.  The vines are Dijon Clones 75, 76, 95, 96  growing in the Sonoma Coast region. The Growers picked the grapes by hand at the peak of ripeness and the winery gently pressed the grapes into juice using a membrane press. The juice was then chilled, settled, and racked into Burgundy oak barrels for fermentation. The yeast lees were hand stirred monthly to enhance the creamy finish produced by barrel fermentation and to encourage secondary malolactic fermentation. Less than 1,200 cases were produced.

• Apple
• Pear
• Vanilla
• Butter
• Citrus
• Tropical fruit 
• Creamy Butter
• Toasty

In 2009, New York Times writer Eric Asimov proclaimed Joseph Carr to be “a producer to watch”, and put his wines alongside the likes of Far Niente, Clos du Val, Heitz, Grgich Hills and Rubicon. Mr. Asimov continues to comment that these are “wines of balance and restraint”. As director of Joseph Carr Napa Valley, Joseph continues to work with many of the associates he has met throughout his long career in restaurants as a Sommelier. Influenced by the wines of Bordeaux and Burgundy, Joseph Carr's winemaking philosophy is balance, sophistication and approachable. Since launching his business in 2005, Mr. Carr's wines have been received with great enthusiasm. His wines grace some of the finest restaurant lists in the United States and abroad.

BRANNON'S CAFE
WINE LIST

Tour de France: Chardonnay, Chablis, DOMAINE LONG-DEPAQUIT Burgundy, France, 2011

This is the wine that made the world fall in love with Chardonnay! Crystalline beauty with pale yellow color and light green highlights hint that this is not a California Chardonnay; this is CHABLIS!   Bursting with mineral precision counterbalanced by finesse this is lovely and exciting; more than a glass should contain. 

• SUPPLE
• Melon
• Pear
• Apples
• White Flowers
• Flint
• White Almonds
• Sea Shell

Maison Albert Bichot, a traditional négociant houses of Burgundy, has been reborn.  The date for this rebirth was 2004 when Bichot was named Winemaker of the Year by magazines in both England and France.  This has occurred under the leadership of Albéric Bichot, the sixth generation to run the business, and he has expanded all areas of the operation and increased the quality throughout. While the Bichot portfolio is wide one of its best estates is DomaineLong-Depaquit in Chablis.

Tour de France: Pinot Noir, Bourgogne, LOUIS CHEVALLIER, Burgundy, France, 2010

Does this name sound familiar to you; Louis Chevallier?  It might, to students of history.   Louis Chevallier was the Mayor of Puligny, in Burgundy, who went on to become a great diplomat for France.  He is most famous for his participation in the sale of Louisiana to the United States.  The wine house, created by the Chevallier family over 200 years ago, produces fine wines from the best terroirs of the region from regional appellations to Premier Crus and Grand Crus.  In this wine, The Bourgogne Rouge we find an honest and good Pinot Noir; that is genuine Burgundy. 

• SOPHISTICATED
• Sweet Plum
• Cinnamon
• Red Cherry
• Dry Cranberry
• Smoky Oak
• Earthiness

The winemaker, Bruno Larmonica, is very talented and has won many awards for his wines. His hometown is Nuits-Saint-Georges in Burgundy, so his greatest ambition is to make wines that express the soul of the terroir of Burgundy.  He works very closely with a small family of growers monitoring every step from the vineyard  to the harvest. The grower partners work with sustainable agriculture and are required to maintain the specificity and traditions of each appellation.  This provides the best quality grapes and Bruno is able to manage the vinification process and all the way to bottling. This enables Louis Chevallier produce quality wines without leaving behind the tradition of Burgundy.

Tour de France: What is in a name; Francesca's?

WAY back in the summer of 1999 we sat around the Boardroom Table in the The Grille at the The Resort Course of The Westin La Cantera Hill Country Resort.  The Resort was sparkling new, just opened, and our fine dinning restaurant had yet to open.  Around the table were Westin executives, the Matre 'd, servers and our consulting Chef Mark Miller.  Yes, THE Mark Miller of Coyote Cafe fame.  I was one of the servers.  The hot topic was how are we going to pronounce the name of our restaurant.

We all agreed that it sounded best as "Fran-CHESS-kas."  It is just how most of us said it.  Then Chef Miller gave us a lesson in European pronunciations; the "Fran-CHESS-kas" we were saying was Italian and we wanted to stay away from being an Italian restaurant.  Since we have more Spanish influence in our cuisine, culture, and region he maintained that we should use the Spanish pronunciation .."Fran-ses-kas."  From there on we agreed, the Spanish pronunciation was the way to go.

Nowhere in all our discussion do I remember us talking about what the name meant. We all got that it was a girl's name, which is obvious, the legend that our name is honoring was the prettiest lady in the county who stole the heart of a young man that was destined to become a priest.

What I did not catch is that it was acknowledgment of France or French heritage which was itself a reference to freedom or "free one!"  

Many will agree that this French Spirit of freedom is vibrantly on display in the feats of the month long race that tours the country, called the Tour de France.

AND it can be tasted in the wines made from their land!  Which is why our wine list is featuring French wines during July.  Check out this wine list here.

Featured Red Wine:

• Grenache, SHATTER, Maury, Roussillon, France, 2010
• Pinot Noir, Bourgogne, LOUIS CHEVALLIER, Burgundy, France, 2010
• Merlot / Cabernet Blend, Graves, CHÂTEAU CABANNIEUX, Bordeaux, France, 2009
• Merlot/Cab. Sauvignon, CHASSE, Bordeaux, France, 2008

Featured White Wine:

• Sauvignon Blanc, Sancerre, JEAN REVERDY "La Reine Blanche" Loire, France, 2011
• Chardonnay, Chablis, DOMAINE LONG-DEPAQUIT Burgundy, France, 2011
• Viognier,  CINQUANTE-CINQ, Vin de Pays d'Oc, Languedoc, France, 2012
• Melon de Bourgogne, Muscadet de Sèvre et Maine, Sur Lie, DOMAINES VINET, "DOMAINE ST. MARTIN" Loire, France, 2011

Variety the Spice of Life; Chardonnay

Chardonnay can range from medium to full body with expressive aromas, fruit forward flavors and complexity.  And, most importantly they have a SUPPLE mouthfeel that drives Chardonnay drinkers wild!  This grape is grown everywhere and the styles can be diverse with some being ordinary in their expression and others tasting absolutely sublime!!!

Flavors Commonly Experienced :

• Apple  
• Pineapple
• Pear  
• Lemon / Lime
• Vanilla  
• Oak / Butter

Chardonnay is the offspring of the noble grape Pinot Noir and a rather ignoble grape called Gouais Blanc.  The wines from Gouais Blanc were so bad the French government in acted laws requiring the vines to be pulled out of existing vineyards and forbidding them from ever being replanted.  Learning this genetic origins of Chardonnay helped me to understand the wines from this grape better.  This combined with the grape's ability to reflect the soil composition and vinification techniques used to make it; result in a quite beguiling and fascinating wine.

Some Recommended Chardonnay...

• CHARDONNAY,FREI BROTHERS, "RESERVE" SUSTAINABLY GROWN, RussianRiver Valley, California, 2011
• Chardonnay, FERRARI-CARANO, Sonoma County, California, 2011 

And please reply to this blog; 
what is your  favorite Chardonnay?

BRANNON'S CAFE
WINE LIST

Variety the Spice of Life; Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir makes some of the lightest red wines around. They can sometimes be fuller bodied than normal and stretch into the medium body red wine territory.  No matter how light-bodied a Pinot Noir may be; it will also be complex and nuanced.  It might take a discerning palate to notice all the layers of flavor and hints of tastes, making this wine one that is always SOPHISTICATED and when it is really good; sensuous.

Flavors Commonly Experienced :

• Strawberry

• Cranberry

•  Mushroom

• Mint

• Vanilla  Smoky / Oak    

• Violet

• Floral  

• Underbrush  

Pinot Noir grows well in cool climates around the world, including California, New Zealand and France it's home.  Pinot Noir was already in Burgundy when the Romans invaded Gaul and it was among the first vines to be domesticated and cultivated.  It's name, dates to the fourth century; "Pinot" which comes from its small pinecone shaped clusters and "Noir" it's dark almost black color.  With the notable exception of Champagne, Pinot Noir is almost never blended with other grapes. 

Some Recommended Pinot Noir...

• Pinot Noir, EMERITUS, Hallberg Ranch, Russian River Valley,  Sonoma, California
• Pinot Noir, A TO Z, Oregon
• Pinot Noir, GREG NORMAN, Santa Barbara County, California
• Pinot Noir, BUENA VISTA, "VITICULTURAL SOCIETY" Sonoma County, California

And please reply to this blog; 
what is your  favorite Pinot Noir?

BRANNON'S CAFE
WINE LIST

Wine Study- "Pinot Noir"

Romanée-Conti Grand Cru Vineyards

“If Bordeaux’s pleasures are above the neck, 
then red Burgundy is something completely different…”
 –Jancis Robinson."

We continue a series of sessions with the Francesca's at Sunset and Brannon's Cafe teams we are calling "Wine Study."  We are meeting every other Saturday for the purpose of expanding our knowledge and experience with wine.  Some Saturdays we have had to miss due to high business volumes at the resort or because I was out of town.  No matter how long we take off; wine is waiting for us when we return. Our guide is Jancis Robinson's Wine Course DVD, Mrs. Robinson poured depth and detail into this television series that aired in the United Kingdom in 1995 it withstands the test of time!  If you have not purchased this DVD series yet; do so now, it is really GREAT!

Episode 7- Pinot Noir is exciting like the previous episodes where we have seen personalities of the winemakers influencing the wines and/or the terrior of different regions in comparison.  This episode we see the drama that unfolds over many vintages and a significant paradigm shift... 

The show starts in a peaceful pastoral setting in Burgundy, Eastern France, and Jancis warns us there are passions smoldering underneath the calm surface.  She tells us about “Queen of Burgundy” who is in exile, “Pope of Burgundy” given up earthly matters almost retired and hints at the drama surrounding the creation of these "Bottles to Die For" coming from this world famous village; Vosne-Romanee!

As dramatic as this all sounds coming from a breathless Mrs. Robinson it is nothing compared to the French Revolution.  It is brought up here to explain how the vineyard plots are carved up into smaller and smaller segments with each generation. The French Revolution, with it's overworked GUILLOTINES, ushered in the Napoleonic Code which changed the inheritance laws so that all family members shared equally.  Thus, when a person died with four children; each child received ¼ of the holdings.  For a vineyard site that was two hectares the four children would then each have 1/2 a hectare.  If each of them has only two children they will end up with a 1/4 hectare and within a couple more generations the family will be dividing up vine rows and then individual vines. Seems very fare to the families yet brutal to the vineyards and the terribly crippling to the making and selling of great wine. 

Where ever some men make problems; others will make solutions.  Out of this fragmented ownership came a robust system of  negociaints. The good negociaint assembles wines from a variety of sources and sells them to customers and exporters/importers.  Examples of negociaints are Bouchard Père et Fils, Joseph Drouhin, Jadot, Faiveley, and Jean-Claude Boisset.  While these names we see the most on the wine shop shelves and restaurant wine list Jancis devotes many minutes to the noble grower producers.  Because there are over 115 négociants who produce the vast majority of the burgundy wine; they only control around 8-10% of the area. Individual growers own 65-67% of the area, and only produce and market only 25% of the wine. Yet, when they become successful they become ROCKSTARS of the wine world! 

Pop-culture t-shirt honoring an old farmer!

“I haven’t a SECRET; I let nature take its course.  I am not a brave person and as nature does the work SO WELL, I don’t see why I should interfere.”  -Henri Jayer

Lalou Bize-Leroy of Domaine Leroy is still rocking!  She set the wine world on fire with sales of DRC to the Japanese market. When she was kicked out of DRC she founded Domaine Leroy which is now fierce competition to the old historic estate.  All the while she remains in harmony with nature and practices BIODYNAMIC farming.  This is a system of organic agriculture based on a series of lectures to farmers in 1924 by Rudolf Steiner, a German Theosophist.  Biodynamics uses the principles of organic farming—no pesticides or chemical fertilizers—and goes on to include practices of planting and harvesting by solar and lunar cycles and fighting pests such as moths and rabbits by scattering the ashes of their predecessors.  Sometimes looking a lot like 'witchcraft' it is often misunderstood.  One thing seems to be clean the farmers practicing Biodynamics are highly focused on their vines and their vineyard and producing some OUTSTANDING grapes!

“I am sure that it’s for the GLORY of WINE!” -Lalou Bize-Leroy

With so many of these man made obstacles and the impossibly wet and cold conditions, remarkably; Burgundy makes some of the greatest wines in the world!  You see; seventy million years ago Burgundy was underwater, this region was covered with silt, shells and bones of sea creatures that became fossils.  Then thirty-five million years ago geological activity forced up the hills and ridges making fortunately east facing slopes.  The combined effect with the people's wine making ingenuity; these breathtaking wines that can not be made anywhere else on the planet...

Then Mrs. Robinson takes us across the globe to the western coast of the USA for an International Pinot Noir Festival held in OREGON every year.  Here she interviews two men; James Halliday, wine writer and wine maker, along with Robert Kacher, Burgundy Importer.  They raise the question “What is man’s contribution to terrior?” They review the many things a grape grower and wine maker can do that influence the quality of the wine.  Things like;  lowering yields, using state-of-the-art trellising, green harvesting of fruit at the point at which grapes start to change color, hand harvesting of fruit at the point of physiological (taste) ripeness (not analytically (laboratory) ripeness) and sorting by quality as the grapes are harvested.  Just as important, if not more important than the place the grapes are grown is the care and effort by the people growing the grapes and making the wines.


Which is a very nice segue into Jancis' short interview of  the first man to plant Pinot Noir in Oregon; David Lett, founder of Eyrie Vineyards.  He recounts a time in a class at UC Davis, our nations leading university for viticulture, when the professor said “There is NO climate cool enough for Pinot Noir in California.”  Mr. Lett took the professor at his word and searched for a region closer to the same climate as Burgundy and he found the Willamette Valley.  


Today, the world is in love with the Pinot Noirs from Oregon.  Can you imagine if everyone had ONLY gone to Oregon to plant Pinot Noir?  Can you imagine a wine world with out California Pinot Noir???  There would have been no 'Sideways Effect,' there would have been no Williams-Seylem Winery, in the Russian River Valley!  Which is Jancis Robinson's next stop to interview Burt Willaims and Ed Selyem.  Two friends who made incredible success by making Pinot Noir.  Starting in 1981 they grew to the point in 1995 when the interview was filmed they were making five-thousand case a year and selling it in three weeks!  And, in 1998 they sell their winery to the John and Kathe Dyson who by all accounts are making wines as good if not better than the founder's of the winery.  On top of that they have expanded production and built a beautiful new winery!  (Makes one wonder where Mr. Lett's UC Davis Professor is today?) 

“The Old Ways are better.” –Burt Willaims

Williams-Selyem Winery, Russian River Valley 1981

Williams-Selyem Winery, Russian River Valley 2011

That is all for this episode.  On a casual viewing I missed it.  Cheers to Mrs. Robinson and her team; they  have expertly woven into this short show all the wonder and complexity that is Pinot Noir!  A bit of mystery and intrigue, along with some earthy Biodynamic farming and sophisticated power plays in the business of wine.  Reoccurring in these personalities is a bit to a lot of contradiction and this is a quality that I find in some Pinot Noirs and can make this varietal a challenging wine drink, even more so to make. All together we see a portrait of a grape varietal, amazing television.


If you will read this handout which has a few notes from the video and a lot of information and links to more on the web related to the topics Jancis covers, hopefully it adds to the subjects and fills you in on where the personalities from the video are today.  It is my sincere hope that you are finding this blog informative and instructional. 

To check your learning experience and highlight the most important information here is the quiz.  And the quiz with answers.  And please reply to this blog; is Pinot Noir  your  favorite wine?