The New California: An Interview with Jon Bonné

Posted by | Posted in Interviews | Posted on 01-31-2014

Bonné discussing his book in Brooklyn with Abe Schoener.

Bonné discussing his book in Brooklyn with Abe Schoener.

“Slowly, I encountered other winemakers with similar beliefs. I found people who remained committed to restrained, compelling wines that spoke clearly of their origins — and who shared my frustration with California’s modern style.

“Some… had been toiling for decades; others were upstarts with the same energy and ambition as the pioneers from previous generations. Eventually, the brushstrokes began to turn into something recognizable: the seeds of a new movement, a new California wine in the making.”

These words appear in the introduction to The New California Wine, the just-released book from Jon Bonné of the San Francisco Chronicle.

To say I’m excited about Jon’s book would be an understatement. The wines that fill the pages are both compelling and delicious – and all the producers he highlights deserve the attention.

Last week, Jon and I chatted about his book. Check out the interview below!

David White: What inspired you to write The New California Wine?

Jon Bonne: I think it was just realizing, after seeing a lot of clues, that there weren’t just some people doing interesting things in California, but really a sea change that was starting to happen. It was finally something that was worthy of spending the time that’s required to do a book.

Second, it was really important to get there early because it had been about a decade since there’d been a serious California wine book — and it was a moment that needed to be captured, because you just don’t get too many moments like this. So it was a very distinct case of right place, right time.

In your book, you obviously spend lots of time discussing the new, exciting producers. But you’ve said that a defining moment in your understanding of where California wine is headed was a meeting Paul Draper at Ridge Vineyards. So talk for a moment about how a winemaker like Draper fits into the New California paradigm. In other words, you talk a lot about the folks who have been doing the same things for decades – Paul Draper, Josh Jensen, and Cathy Corison – but also folks like Steve Matthiasson and Matt Rorick, who are relatively new. How do those two planets align? Is what’s old new again? 

There were two things at play there.

One, it became really clear to me that if I simply made this about people who had come to this relatively recently, it was going to diminish the book. It was going to make it just about new and shiny things, and make it look like, “Well this is just the millennial wine book.” And I really didn’t want it to be that, mostly because I felt that this wasn’t about the amount of time someone had spent working to make California wine and pioneering, but it was about style. It was about an ascetic, and a social change that was taking place.

So I had to include people like Cathy Corison and Paul Draper and Josh Jensen, who had really been inspirations for a lot of younger winemakers and whose wines had come back into currency. It’s important to remember that Ridge and Calera, after having sort of found their way into the background for a long time because they just weren’t doing flashy, were finding a new audience once again. So it became evident I had to include them.

That leads to the second point, which is that there’s obviously a stylistic continuity between the wines they make and the wines that some of those younger or newer winemakers in the book make.

More specifically, and this is what I thought was really important, there were two generations of pioneers that I needed to capture somehow.

One is the current generation. But the second is a generation that included folks like Draper, Cathy Corison, Josh Jensen, and Bob Travers of Mayacamas. And honestly, that really included, more than anyone probably, people like Robert Mondavi and Warren Winiarski. And that generation — the generation that pioneered great wine in California 40 years ago — had spiritual similarities with the current generation. What’s happening now is really a new iteration of the pioneering spirit that put California on the world stage in the late ’60s and early ’70s.

So I needed to include the people who had really been the original pioneers and kept the faith. But also, there was a kinship. If you look now at how those two generations have come together, I think there’s finally this realization that what made California great as a wine region is very much being explored again, and being explored in a similar way to how it was successfully explored about 40 years ago.

So guys like Josh Jensen and Paul Draper avoided the rise of what you call “big flavor.” Let’s talk about that for a bit. In one interview, you note that it isn’t just about alcohol but that it’s about “some fundamentally cynical beliefs in what California can achieve.” What do you mean by that? To what do you attribute the rise of big flavor? Read the rest of this entry »

Daily Wine News: Initial Impression

Posted by | Posted in Wine News | Posted on 01-31-2014

Syrah. (Flickr, McD22.)

Syrah. (Flickr, McD22.)

“I think I can speak for all of us when I say that our initial impression was, ‘Wow!'” Eric Asimov is quite impressed with the state of California Syrah.

Alder Yarrow celebrates his tenth anniversary of blogging. Congratulations, Alder!

“They aren’t looking to tell you where they’ve been, what they’ve done, who they’ve done. They just want to learn a little more about a place they dearly love.” Alfonso Cevola lists “a few of the stand-out characters” that attend winemaker dinners.

That off-putting sulfur smell that sometimes appears in the wines of J.J. Prüm? It’s sponti, obviously.

Harry Oldman comments on Parker’s now-famous screed.

“In Sonoma, after last year’s record dry year, some vineyards ponder whether it’s better to lose this year’s harvest by cutting all the fruit to save the vines themselves.” George Yatchisin explores what this year’s drought means for California wine.

“Schuler warned wineries and retailers that they need to find ways to compete for consumers by being original or exciting, not just on price.” In Wine-Searcher, Rick Kushman reports from the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium’s State of the Industry seminar.

Meanwhile, in Wines & Vines, Kate Lavin reports from the “innovation” panel at the symposium.

“You wouldn’t catch a Burgundian suggesting his wines transcended the Côte d’Or.” Elsewhere in Wine-Searcher, Adam Lechmere visits Colgin Cellars.

Elsewhere, Lechmere chats with Bruno Clair, a vintner in Burgundy.

W. Blake Gray discovers that German Pinot Noir is worth paying attention to.

Daily Wine News: Trendsetting Force

Posted by | Posted in Wine News | Posted on 01-30-2014

taste vin“While dominant in Europe, the academic route has never been fully absorbed here, and I’d argue that this fact is part of what’s made America’s sommelier culture the trendsetting force that it is today.” In Punch, Carson Demmond explores what it means to be a sommelier and why an exam has nothing to do with it.

In Table Matters, Jason Wilson explains why he enjoys obscure wines like Xinomavro and Agiorgitiko — and doesn’t care what Robert Parker says.

“Switching off his Twitter feed, ignoring his critics and taking his dog for a walk would have served him better than explaining and complaining.” In Wine-Searcher, Rebecca Gibb comments on Robert Parker’s recent vitriolic screed.

Elsewhere in Wine-Searcher, W. Blake Gray suggests some wines for Super Bowl Sunday.

Wine Enthusiast’s editors also chime in.

Meanwhile, in Colorado Wine Press, Kyle Schlachter urges his readers to drink local!

Thanks to Greg Brewer and Chad Melville, Lily-Elaine Hawk Wakawaka recently got a glimpse of the Sta Rita Hills.

A documentary charting the rise and fall of Rudy Kurniawan is in production — and should be finished by year’s end. Decanter has the details.

China has surpassed France and Italy to become the biggest consumer of red wine in the world.

Aaron Nix-Gomez and Panos Kakaviatos attend a 16-vintage vertical tasting of Calon Segur.

On WTOP, wine writer Scott Greenberg and Wine Club Group founder Eric Nagel offer some suggestions on what to pair with girl scout cookies.

Daily Wine News: New Harlan

Posted by | Posted in Wine News | Posted on 01-29-2014

van winkleLevi Dalton explains why Pappy Van Winkle is the new Harlan.

“You can have too much of everything, but not elegance. You can never have too much elegance.” Lily Elaine Hawk Wakawaka tours the Sta Rita Hills with Sashi Moorman and learns all about Domaine de la Cote.

“I’ve been trying to learn as much as I can about wine… for the past ten years, and the point is, I’m still scratching the surface when it comes to any real knowledge of what is great wine and what is not.” The Brooklyn Guy writes a thoughtful essay on quality and what it means.

“These aren’t my everyday wines. These aren’t my collect and put away for 20 year wines. These aren’t the wines I open with my wine geek friends. These are wines that make me excited. They make me feel young.” Alfonso Cevola names his favorite “sexy Italian wines.”

“Why would students do this in addition to their studies? For a variety of reasons, in addition to a love of wine: to build friendships, network and even develop important job skills.” In the Washington Post, Dave McIntyre writes about the Left Bank Bordeaux Cup.

“I also found winemakers working with esoteric varieties so that when the wines didn’t taste right, no one would know. This, too, would be the New California wine.” The HoseMaster reveals “The Lost Introduction” to Jon Bonné’s new book.

In Medium, Ryan Flinn explains “how a chef-turned-biotech consultant rediscovered his grape-growing roots and created a unique California winery.”

“Sound affects the way we drink more than I had thought.” In Punch, Charles Antin explains. Turns out “it all started with the Krug Shell.”

The United States now has 7,762 wineries, with California alone accounting for 3,674 of them.

Daily Wine News: Debating Parker

Posted by | Posted in Wine News | Posted on 01-28-2014

Flickr, winestem.

Flickr, winestem.

“Let me begin by asking why you seem increasingly satisfied to tar the world with such a broad brush?” Alder Yarrow debates Robert Parker.

“The most expensive bottles being drunk in the dining room are rarely purchased off the restaurant list any longer.” In Eater, Levi Dalton writes about “Boomers and the Emergence of the Corkage Economy.”

“They’d all figured out that the latitude of the Willamette Valley was the same as Burgundy’s famed Côte d’Or. But in the early ’70s, there was little other evidence to support the idea that fine wine might be made here, where walnuts, plums and cherries were the cash crops.” In the Wall Street Journal, Jay McInerney profiles Dick Ponzi.

In Serious Eats, Meg Houston Maker offers some tips on “How to Pair Wine With Super Bowl Snacks.”

“Expectations play a vital role in the eventual pleasure we experience at consumption. Oftentimes, the anticipation is as enjoyable, if not more, than the actual event. Built up tension often explodes in a cathartic release when the moment arrives and reality meets vision.” In the latest newsletter from Peay Vineyards, Andy Peay writes a wonderful essay on wine and expectations.

“Clark Smith has a tremendous knowledge of the science of wine… However, the conclusions he draws from that knowledge and know-how are sometimes very difficult to connect with their premises.” In Palate Press, Remy Charest takes a look at Clark Smith and his “postmodern winemaking.”

In his latest letter from Europe, Robert Camuto’s profiles Jacopo Biondi Santi, who recently had his first harvest at Il Greppo without his father.

“Why doesn’t sherry get more love outside the bubble? After all, the Laws of Wine Writing seem to dictate that one must proclaim sherry the most misunderstood/neglected/underappreciated wine in the world.” In Table Matters, Jason Wilson pays homage to Sherry — and shares eight classic Sherry cocktails.

In Wine-Searcher, Sotheby’s Jamie Ritchie shares his recipe for “Roast Veal with Vegetables in Garlic-Shallot Butter.”

 

Wine & Waves with John Conover

Posted by | Posted in Grape Adventures | Posted on 01-27-2014

From PlumpJack

John Conover (Credit: PlumpJack Group).

John Conover’s a big guy with an unassuming personality. He laughs loudly and often. And if you spend more than five minutes with the guy, you’ll realize that he’s a man who loves life.

Since 1999, John has been general manager at Napa Valley winery PlumpJack, which is co-owned by California Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom and San Francisco philanthropist Gordon Getty. During Conover’s time, the estate has grown from 1,000 cases a year to 10,000, and PlumpJack’s Oakville Estate offering has developed quite a reputation. Conover is also a partner in Cade, a Howell Mountain estate, which kicked off in 2009. And he has his hands in a third Napa project, Odette Estate, which recently opened at the former Steltzner Vineyards property.

It’s hard to imagine how Conover does anything else. But, like me, John has another powerful passion: surfing. We’re both members of two global tribes (wine nerds and waveriders), so John and I had a lot to talk about when we met a few weeks ago at Civil Cigar Lounge in Washington, DC.

I always enjoy meeting other surfers. We’re a fun- and nature-loving group, and we love putting ourselves in extreme situations just for kicks. John told me stories of surfing through heavy kelp in Santa Cruz and Monterrey, and I traded tales of catching bombs at Salmon Creek, a beach break on the Sonoma Coast, and getting into some shady situations at remote spots in Mendocino. My stories of chasing swell around New Jersey and Delaware beaches couldn’t really compare with his frequent reef pilgrimages to the North Shore, the Mentawais and Indo. But, then again, the guy runs several big-time Napa Cabernet projects, and I’m a writer.

John seems to strike a balance between his wine and his surfing. He tries to paddle out a few times a week. During harvest, when the grapes are reaching peak ripeness and the Pacific is lighting up with swell, things can get a little hectic. (I know the feeling. Try to get me to commit to anything during September. When the Atlantic starts kicking, I cannot be relied upon.)

We tasted through some of his 2010 Napa Cabernets, a vintage we both praised for its freshness and vibrancy.  “But,” he added, “just wait until you try the 2012s. And the 2013s.”

I asked John about some of the changes at PlumpJack over the years. He told me he never thought he’d have a double-digit number of employees. “But now I have 40 of the most passionate people in the world.” It’s simple, he says: “Great grapes and great people make great wine.”

The wines, I have to admit, are damn good. And they’re highly delicious. There’s no denying a similar stylistic thread weaves through Cade and PlumpJack. (I haven’t yet tasted Odette Cabs.) “Approachable” is a word Conover embraces, and it’s a fitting descriptor. The 2010s have tons of flavor yet — dare I say? — a graceful presence on the palate. Even so, I’d love to stash some Cade and PlumpJack 2010s away for five or six years, just to see what kind of deliciousness seeps out.

I took some notes on four wines from the evening. Check out my notes below. Read the rest of this entry »

Daily Wine News: Winemakers to Watch

Posted by | Posted in Wine News | Posted on 01-27-2014

2007_aglianicoIn the San Francisco Chronicle, Jon Bonné names this year’s crop of “Winemakers to Watch.” Be sure to check out his profiles of Graham Tatomer, Mark Adams, Chris Broomell and Alysha Stehly, Megan and Ryan Glaab, and John Lockwood.

“If you look in my refrigerator, there’s only a jar of mayonnaise and a six-pack of Modelos.” Grub Street spends a week with Patrick Cappiello, the managing partner and wine director of Pearl & Ash.

“Who is to say that the zeitgeist won’t shift toward California-grown Teroldego, or Tempranillo, or Touriga Nacional, or that Chenin won’t become the new hot Blanc?” In Beverage Media, Lily Elaine Hawk Wakawaka looks at the growing interest “in uncommon varieties and unique styles of wine in California.”

Elsewhere in Beverage Media, Lenn Thompson contends that while “other categories [in New York] garner more attention… there may be no better value than the bubbly.”

In Palate Press, Michelle Locke profiles (and chats with) Taylor Fladgate’s Adrian Bridge.

In an excerpt from Sherry, Manzanilla & Montilla, Peter Liem and Jesús Barquín worry that producers in the region don’t focus enough on their vineyards.

Tendu, a table red from Steve Matthiasson, has released a red wine. Maggie Hoffman is a fan.

In Wine-Searcher, Katherine Cole chats with Fabrice Rosset, “the heavy who rescued Champagne Deutz, built Louis Roederer’s import arm, and jazzed up the Rhône’s Delas Frêres brand.”

Alder Yarrow wonders if the Languedoc could one day be “one of the world’s best sources for reasonably priced organic wines.”

Be careful when opening Champagne. You might destroy ancient artwork.

Wine Reviews: Portugal

Posted by | Posted in Wine Reviews | Posted on 01-25-2014

A diverse group of wines to say the least. These dry white, dry red and fortified wines were received as trade samples and tasted sighted.

Review: 2012 Gazela Vinho Verde
Portugal, Minho, Vinho Verde
SRP: $7
Slight fizz. Aromas of grapefruit, lime and a slight herbal note. Tangy and fresh, with very fine bubbles. The grapefruit, lemon and margarita salt flavors are bright and easy. Seems like a perfect summer beach wine. (85 points IJB)

Review: 2012 Quinta de Gomariz Loureiro Vinho Verde Colheita Seleccionada
Portugal, Minho, Vinho Verde
SRP: $14
A straw-slightly grassy color. Bursting with lemon, pineapple, honeysuckle and minerals on the nose. Starts off with a big dose of acid, but the creamy fruit comes in to back it up (green melon, pineapple, apricot). I like the kick of minerals and the dried honey and white tea aspects to this wine. Crisp, very clean and refreshing. (86 points IJB)

Review: 2011 Aphros Vinho Verde Daphné
Portugal, Minho, Vinho Verde
SRP: $23
Nose smells of apricot, white peach, and an aroma that reminds me newly unpackaged rubber. There’s also an oily, hazelnut aroma as well. Crisp, medium+ acid with some richness to the body. Delicious green apple, white peach, lime and fresh apricot, accented with sea salt, oyster shells. Also some nutty, creamy, whipped honey aspects. Clean, floral, mineral-driven. A beautiful Vinho Verde, 100% Loureiro, fermented with indigenous yeasts and aged in old oak and chestnut barrels. Has the mineral and oceanic elements of a granite soil Muscadet and the stone fruit purity of a Mosel Riesling. I’m seriously impressed. (91 points IJB)

Review: 2012 Quinta da Raza Alvarinho Grande Escolha
Portugal, Minho, Vinho Regional Minho
SRP: $11
Pale straw color. Aromas of melon, guava, and some sea salt and lime aspects. Tangy on the palate, with creamy honey, green melon, lime. There’s some real pop and punch to this white. High acid but juicy and waxy in texture. A great wine to have with salads. (87 points IJB)

Review: 2010 Casal do Paço Padreiro Vinho Verde Afros Silenus
Portugal, Minho, Vinho Verde
SRP: $?
A magenta-purple color. Wonderfully smoky and meaty on the nose, with pepper, dried flowers and pickling spices. Wow, the acid is so tart on the palate, but there’s enough dusty tannin to fight back. Mineral-driven, with black cherry and tart cranberry fruit, backed up by green and black pepper, pickling spices and charcoal. A tingling and tart wine. I love it, and I’d love it even more with some grilled sausage and peppers. From the Vinhão grape. (89 points IJB)

Review: 2010 Quinta de Roriz Douro Prazo de Roriz
Portugal, Douro
SRP: $16
Nose shows bright cherries and cranberries on the nose, with some roses, anise and earth. Fully-bodied with tangy acid, chewy tannins tannins. Currant fruit leads the way, and I get a lot of earth smoke and iron. Some anise and sweet lavender on the finish. Tasty stuff for a great price. A blend of red Port grapes including Tinta Barroca, Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca and Tinta Amarela. (87 points IJB)

Review: 2011 Prats and Symington Douro Post Scriptum de Chryseia
Portugal, Douro
SRP: $25
A light purple color. Roasted coffee and smoke accent the plum and black cherry aromas. Nice grit from the tannins but freshness comes from the acid. The black cherry and plum fruit is pure and crisp, backed up by coffee, rich loam and a pleasant dose of vanilla and cinnamon. The finish is long and delicious. Impressive structure, this wine has some staying power. A blend of 56% Touriga Nacional, 30% Touriga Franca, 7% Tinta Barroca and 7% Tinta Roriz. (89 points IJB)

Review: 2011 Sandeman Porto Vintage
Portugal, Douro, Porto
SRP: $80
Dark, lush purple color. Aromas of brandied plums, blackberry jam, charcoal and violets. So full and big on the palate, with prune and blackberry fruit mixed with sweet coconut shavings and chocolate. A deep sense of crushed rocks and granite. Sweet and saucy but still fresh. Long, full, intense finish. So good, but so young. If you got married in 2011, bury some of this for your 30th! The first declared vintage since 2007, and it’s awesome. (92 points IJB)

Daily Wine News: Savennières Suggestion

Posted by | Posted in Wine News | Posted on 01-24-2014

Savennières. From Wikipedia.

Savennières. From Wikipedia.

“If you’re looking for a winter-weight white wine, one that’s substantial enough to warm the insides yet elegant enough to dance intimately with many different foods,” Eric Asimov suggests you drink Savennières.

If you’re a wine lover, Tom Wark hopes you’ll “get your prayer on.” There are some worrying signs about the 2014 harvest in Napa.

“Even back then, if I could have designed the perfect job scenario, Pearl & Ash would have been it.” In Food & Wine, Ray Isle chats with Patrick Cappiello, wine director and managing partner at Pearl & Ash in New York City.

“It took me close to three years to bring myself to listen to the tape. There’s just too much good here — history, opinion, personality — for me to hold back from publishing it.” Alice Feiring publishes the first part (of three) of an interview with Joe Dressner. It was his last.

In Grape Collective, Courtney Humiston chats with Becky George, the winemaker at Kelly Fleming. (As regular readers know, we interviewed Becky in November.)

In C-Ville, a weekly magazine out of Charlottesville, Virginia, “local winemakers look forward to what 2014 will bring.”

From Wine-Searcher, “10 things every wine lover should know about Lascombes.”

Alfonso Cevola explains why the future of Italian wine is unchartered.

In Slave to the Grape, Mick Cameron chats with Evan Goldstein MS (part one, part two) “about his love of wine, his passion for food, and the professional path that has informed both over the last quarter century.”

In Florida, a funeral parlor “has opened an on-site wine cellar in order to offer mourners ‘a different way to grieve.'”

Daily Wine News: Water Fight

Posted by | Posted in Wine News | Posted on 01-23-2014

waterwine“It’s valid to ask whether grapes should be grown at all in such waterdeprived places — although that question can as logically be posed to the entire San Joaquin Valley, the so-called breadbasket of America, whose endless acres of crops wouldn’t exist without irrigation.” In Wine & Spirits, David Darlington writes a fascinating essay about the water fight that’s erupted in Paso Robles.

“And while I understand wanting to give customers more information, it isn’t fair to capitalize on the words if the requirements aren’t met. Or capitalize — intentionally or not — on customers’ understandable confusion on what all these words mean.” Tom Natan comments on the use of words like organic, biodynamic, and sustainable on restaurant wine lists.

The Sacramento Bee’s Mike Dunne names the 11 wine blogs he visits each day. Tyler Colman and I make a cute couple.

In Wine Spectator, Jennifer Fiedler offers “6 Tips for Becoming an Expert on Piedmont Wines.”

Elsewhere in Wine Spectator, Harvey Steiman contends that “Australian wine is gaining the attention of American wine drinkers again.”

In Sonoma, the City Council is expected to decide soon whether the city needs new regulations to curtail the rise of tasting rooms and bars. Tom Wark thinks the people who want those regulations are idiots.

“I love hanging out at Channing Daughters; I love their blended whites.” In Wine Enthusiast, Michael Schachner chats with model Hilary Rhoda.

In Grape Collective, Christopher Barnes visits Charleston.

The Family Winemakers of California have announced the details for their annual tasting in Pasadena, and this year, it’s open to the public.

“There are, of course, mass­-produced, characterless examples of both, but as we already know about wine, the finest versions offer much more ­ nuance, complexity, even guile ­ to those paying attention.” In Palate Press, Mike Madaio explains why you should treat extra virgin olive oil like wine.

Jacob Sullum reports that “the anti-pot group Project SAM was not pleased by President Obama’s  recent observation that marijuana is less dangerous than alcohol.” Indeed, Project SAM chairman Patrick J, Kennedy regrets the repeal of prohibition. Never mind his own history.