Sonoma, Anderson Valley and Beyond: New Releases

The buzz in Sonoma, Anderson Valley and the neighboring
appellations is palpable. Once again, I came away from my tastings
energized by the sheer number of compelling wines coming out of these regions.
Best of all, prices remain exceedingly fair within the context of today’s
market.

&nbsp;<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1422659362732-SonomaGriffins+-+vinous.jpg">

2014 Griffin's Lair
Syrah at Arnot-Roberts

The 2013 Growing
Season

Two thousand thirteen was the second year of the current
drought cycle in California. I remember tasting with Paul Hobbs in early
January. Even then, Hobbs was deeply concerned and
was contemplating starting irrigation immediately, which is pretty much unheard
of. The year got off to a quick start and progressed at an equally rapid pace,
leading up to a very early and condensed harvest that started in mid-August.
Even though conditions were warm, they were also even throughout the year.
Vines, like people, don’t like sudden changes. With the exception of an unexpected rain in June, there were few, if
any, real weather shocks throughout the year. Perhaps for that reason, most
grape varieties achieved full maturity while retaining considerable acidity,
something that is quite unusual for an early year. Overall, yields were high,
more or less similar to 2012, but the cluster morphologies were quite
different. In 2012, large berries led to high yields, while in 2013 berries
were small, but the bunches themselves were bigger and therefore heavier. Small
berries in 2013&nbsp;resulted in high skin-to-juice ratios, which is generally favorable for
color, tannin, structure and overall depth. These are of course general
observations, but thoughts that were a common refrain during my estate visits. 

&nbsp;<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1422659313515-Littorai.jpg">

Littorai’s Pivot
Vineyard, Sebastopol

The 2013 Wines

Chardonnay is one
of the clear stars of the vintage. The wines are bright, focused and nuanced,
with tons of energy and site-specific character. Quite honestly, that is a bit
of a surprise for a warm, early vintage, but the wines speak for themselves.
Readers will not want to miss the 2013 Sonoma Chardonnays, as they are simply
magnificent.

Similar qualities come through in the red varieties. The
2013 Cabernet Sauvignons are
fabulous. Just like their cousins in Napa Valley, the Sonoma Cabernets are
dark, inky and powerful, with vibrant, pulsating acidity and tons of structure.
Syrah is also very strong, with many
of the same attributes as the Cabernets. Perhaps more importantly, the 2013
Syrahs are intensely aromatic and varietal, something that was much less the
case in 2012. I was quite surprised to hear from a number of growers that Syrah
sales have rebounded, which is fabulous news and a significant turnaround from
where things stood just a few years back. It’s great to see the best California
Syrahs getting the attention they deserve. From a consumer’s
standpoint, there is no richer treasure trove of value in California wine than
there is in Syrah. Zinfandel and Zinfandel-based wines are also defined by bright
acidities, but here the strong presence of field blends results in a wide range
of styles.

Pinot Noir is the
enigma, as quality is highly variable across the board. I tasted quite a few
2013 Pinots that lack color and depth. In
2013, the Pinot harvest stretched a full two months, from the middle of August
to the middle of October, which is remarkable considering most producers define
2013 as a year with a condensed harvest.

It is also clear the quality of the Pinot Noir was
affected by a spell of rain in late June. Most growers reported one or two inches
of rain, if any at all, but the little bit of moisture that fell was enough to
restart vegetative growth. Ideally by this time of the year the canopy has
stopped growing so that all of the energy of the vine can be directed to the
fruit. If the plant starts to grow again, that results in competition with the
fruit for nutrients. This may be one of the reasons why some of the 2013 Pinots
lack color, depth and come across as dilute. Of course, 2013 was also &nbsp;a year with high yields, and that likely
played&nbsp; a role as well. That is
not to say the 2013 Pinots are weak across the board; far from it. But readers
will have to be selective.

&nbsp;<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1422659178289-WindGap+vinous.jpg">

Wind Gap, Sebastopol

What Am I Looking For
In Wine?

It is a question I get often. When I was a child, my
grandfather gave me a classical guitar. He wanted me to be Andrés
Segovia. I wanted to be Angus Young. As a teenager I played guitar in all sorts
of bands, from my high school’s jazz big band to my own rock band. Later, when
I studied music as an undergraduate, I was taught to understand and appreciate
all styles of virtuosity. I approach wine in exactly the same way. Stated simply:
Quality and style are not the same thing. High quality wines are made in all
styles. I began tasting wines for this article late last year. Those tastings
were followed up with ten days of winery visits and more tastings in my office.
Over that time, I sampled well over 1,000 wines. With that context, the cream
rises to the top. Two of the highest rated wines in this report are 2013
Chardonnays from Arnot-Roberts and Mark Aubert. Is one better than the other?
Of course not, they are just different in interpretation and style. Just like
Coche-Dury and Domaine d’Auvenay’s whites are different. Only you, the reader,
can know what you like and don’t like, but personally I think it is a shame to
not experience the full breadth of what wine is and what it can offer.

Specifically, when&nbsp;it comes to top-flight Sonoma wines, I am looking for a
sense of place in vineyard-designate bottlings. Too often I encounter lineups
where all the wines taste pretty much the same. Wineries that don’t own
vineyards must purchase fruit. Often, vineyard owners specify that their name
must appear on the label of vineyard designates. Herein lies the problem. Not
all vineyards are created equal. Or, more specifically, not all vineyards truly
deserve to be bottled on their own. California does not have an established
ranking of sites, which means that consumers have no way of knowing the quality
or reputed quality of a vineyard other than by gathering that information
informally over time. Year after year, I find various Sonoma Coast Pinot and
Syrah bottlings just as good, or better, than some vineyard designates. There
is a reason for this and it is the same reason vineyards are blended in other
parts of the world. Very few sites are capable of delivering a singular voice
vintage after vintage. Most vineyards have one or two key attributes, that,
when combined with the signatures&nbsp;of other sites, can result in a whole that is greater
than the sum of its parts. The very best Sonoma wines are highly expressive of variety, vintage and site.&nbsp;

&nbsp;<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1422659050312-Aubert+-+vinous.jpg">

Tasting at Aubert,
Calistoga

A Word on Anderson
Valley

Anderson Valley seems to get a little lost in the shuffle, which
is unfortunate. Once again, this year I tasted a wide range of fabulous wines
from this stretch of vineyards in Mendocino County. Several major groups have
made significant investments here, including Roederer, Jackson Family Estates
and Cliff Lede, with his recent purchase of the Savoy Vineyard. Many of the
best Anderson Valley offerings are made by wineries in Sonoma, including Littorai
and Copain, which is both good and bad. On the positive side, these established
wineries bring attention to a region that is still being discovered by the
consumer, but at the same time, Anderson Valley needs to have at least a few
local producers who can be ambassadors for the region. Still, the future looks
very bright for a region that continues to prove it can excel with Chardonnays,
Pinots, Syrahs and Cabernets.&nbsp;

Closing Thoughts

My tastings of wines from Sonoma County, Anderson Valley and
neighboring appellations were the broadest and most extensive I have ever done.
Readers should be on the lookout for a small supplement to this article that
will be posted in a few weeks. The sheer breadth and diversity in this part of
California is truly breathtaking. I hope readers will take some time to
discover the wines, producers and vineyards that form the rich oenological
landscape of Sonoma County, Anderson Valley and beyond.

-- Antonio Galloni

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