Those who eschew wines with animals on the label would be well advised to do so only selectively.

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This exuberant, fruit-forward red blend is a bit blockbusterish at 14.9% alcohol, but balance and flavor interest make it a keeper.

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Spring is here, which means it’s time to put away your sweaters and winter coats, break out the shorts and flip-flops, and refocus our enjoyment of wine. In his “Server’s Perspective” column, Jorge Eduardo Castillo discusses refreshing wines for the season.

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It’s time for a change of pace, so let’s think slow, as writer Donald Dibbern offers us a broader look at Slow Food and the big picture of wine and food appreciation.

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Recently, Forbes Magazine published one of their common articles-cum-slideshows entitled “Exceptional Hard-To-Find Wines” in which they outlined some of the hardest to get and most expensive wines of the world. Leaving aside for a moment the fact that such an article belongs more in the Robb Report than it does in Forbes, the article offered an impressive for the aspiring, or merely curious, businessperson to print out and hand to their secretary along with their American Express Black card.

The wines, which included many of the usual cult suspects (Screaming Eagle, Harlan, Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, Krug) were listed with their current release prices and case productions / US import allocations (very high, and very low, respectively).

One other interesting fact was on offer — the length of the wait in order to get onto some of their mailing lists to purchase wines upon release. Here are some of those figures:

Bryant Family Vineyards: 7000 people on the waiting list
Colgin: 3000 people on the waiting list
Harlan Estates: two to three years wait to get on the list

There are plenty of other California wineries whose wines aren’t quite as expensive as those in this Forbes article, but whose waiting lists run just as long, from Sine Qua Non to Turley Wine Cellars.

The question, of course, is whether the folks who actually jump onto these lists as #70001 or #3436 are totally insane. Or not.

I’m the kind of guy who doesn’t like to wait for a walk-in table at most restaurants for more than half an hour, and I could come up with about nine million things I’d rather do than stand in endless lines at places like Disneyland. Although I will admit I did stand on a three hour line to get into the Japan Robotics Expo in 2000, that was an anomaly, and a feat I most certainly wouldn’t undertake again, now that I’m seven years wiser. So it will come as no surprise that the idea of being thousandth in line for the chance to purchase a bottle or two seems like a pretty ridiculous idea to me.

Of course, the nice thing about these waiting lists is that you don’t have to actually stand on line, or constantly speed-dial repetitively like a diner desperate for a two-month-out French Laundry reservation. You simply put your name on the list, and when it’s your time, they send you a mailer and tell you which wines you have the opportunity to purchase.

For those unfamiliar with the ins and outs of highly “allocated” winery mailing lists, here’s how it works. Most such wineries sell the majority of their wines directly to individuals and to a very few select restaurants, and more rarely, retailers. After pulling aside those wines that go to businesses, these wineries make them available to their mailing list customers, starting with the best customers and moving downwards to the least best. What does it take to be a winery’s best mailing list customer? It’s simple: you have been buying every wine they have offered you for as long as possible. Most of these wineries have folks who have been on their mailing lists since Day One, and who have bought every possible bottle they could get their hands on. It is to these rabid fans that wineries offer both their greatest selection of wines to purchase (if they make more than one wine) and also the opportunity to purchase wines in the greatest number.

When releasing wines, wineries simply work their way down the mailing list in chunks, making offers to each group of customers. If you buy your full allocation of wine, you maintain your relative place “in-line.” If you purchase less than your allocation, or especially if you decline to purchase, you can sometimes slip downwards in line, which is also how people who DO purchase their full allocation move up in line, and also how you eventually get onto the mailing list off of the long waiting list. It’s a war of attrition.

Most wineries have more people on their mailing list than they have wine to offer, so it’s not uncommon for folks who get on the mailing list but who hesitate to place their order sometimes don’t end up getting any wine. I’m only on a couple of mailing lists (not for anything fancy, I promise you) but just the other day I waited a couple of weeks after getting my mailer before going online to buy a couple of bottles from one of my favorite Sonoma wineries and lo and behold, the wine I wanted was no longer available. Snoozed and lost, I did.

But let’s get back to the question at hand. What purpose would be served by me jumping on the Harlan Estate mailing list, for instance? If things “work out” perhaps in three years I might get a little brochure in the mail saying “Welcome to the Harlan Estate Mailing list. Your allocation for 2011 is: One (1) Bottle. Please send your check for $450 to us as soon as possible.” That is, provided I haven’t changed addresses or fallen out of love with California Cabernet.

Even though it is discouraged, many people simply turn around and sell their allocations of highly valuable wine like Harlan for a tidy profit, which is what I could do, theoretically if I ever did get on the list but didn’t end up wanting the wine. Some wineries even monitor the secondary market and reduce the allocations of folks who simply resell, though this is tough to police, as Anne Colgin points out the Forbes article.

I think at the end of the day there’s nothing wrong with getting on these long waiting lists, just as long as you’re not doing it with a desperate desire and hope. As for me, I can’t be bothered, simply based on principle: there’s far too much good wine in the world that anyone can buy to waste the time, energy, and hope on a queue that stretches into years.

Of course those desperate to taste these wines can always just go to the big auctions with a well lubricated credit card, or a very diligent and patient secretary.

Read the full article.

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To say there are “undiscovered” areas of Napa Valley may be overstating the case a bit, but there are certainly a few areas of California’s most famous wine valley that most wine lovers have never heard of, let alone visited, no matter how many times they’ve been to Napa.

The small, shallow valley of Coombsville is one such place. Literally off the beaten path, this area of Napa Valley that lies east of the city of Napa cannot be found by traversing Highway 29 or the Silverado Trail, the two main arteries of Napa. Instead one must strike out east before the valley is even reached. Traveling through the quickly suburban streets east of Napa, the inquisitive will come upon the innocuously named “Third Street.” A right hand turn at this point will shortly lead to one of my favorite “secret” quiet spots in all of Napa wine country, and not coincidentally to one of my favorite secret wine producers, Farella Vineyards.

As I composed this post in my head over the last couple of days, I’ve been struggling to figure out the best way to describe Tom Farella. The best thing I can come up with is Renaissance man. He seems to successfully embody all the romantic notions that we have about the most traditional of small winemakers while remaining very firmly planted in the present of the 21st century. Talking to him about wine (which isn’t hard — the guy loves to talk) invariably involves a journey through philosophy, botany, geology, and the wide history of the wine world. It’s impossible not to see that this is a guy who thinks and feels deeply about what he’s doing as a winemaker, and someone who is most comfortable when he’s out among the vineyards of his small farm, checking on his vines and plucking fresh chanterelles from the roots of his oak trees after the winter rains.

Farella is a second generation vintner, following in the footsteps of his father, Frank Farella, who had the foresight (or the stubborn singlemindness, it seems) to buy 26 acres of land on the outskirts of Napa and make a go of being a winemaker in the late sixties. By the time he was old enough to make the decision, Tom Farella found that there was really no other one to make: he would become a winemaker just like his father.

They say that talents peak at different ages. Gymnasts seem to be at their finest in their late teens. Mathematicians seem do their best work in their mid twenties. And as a friend pointed out to me last night, Alexander the Great and Jesus both did their best work by the time they were 33 (and dead).

It’s unclear when exactly winemakers hit their stride, but after 27 vintages, Tom Farella really seems to be in the zone. His education at UC Davis and subsequent gigs at Neyers and and Flora Springs eventually led him to winemaking duties at Preston Vineyards in Sonoma from 1983 to 1989. After some time spent there, he made wine at Ponzi Vineyards in Oregon, and for several harvests at Domaine Jacques-Prieur in Burgundy (Meursault). After this tour of duty, not unlike the adventures that young men have sought for centuries as they go out to “make their own way in the world,” Farella returned home to take over the family farm (which had been, and still does sell much of its fruit to the likes of Pahlmeyer and Shafer Vineyards) and to begin making the Farella wines an expression of everything he had learned. Sixteen years into that effort, he feels the wines are starting to express the vision he has long held for them, a feeling embodied by the creation of new top-tier wine named “Alta” in the 2001 vintage, a blend of 70% Cabernet 30% Merlot.

In addition to this top wine, Farella also produces estate grown varietal wines under the Farella Park Vineyards label. Farella’s winemaking philosophy tends towards the minimalist, eschewing fining and filtration for his red wines, and offering restraint in the use of new oak — only 75% new for the Alta, and as little as 20% new for his Merlot. The wines are also unusual in this day and age for their remarkably sane alcohol levels which rarely rise above 14%.

Farella makes around 1200 cases of wine each year with no real plans to increase that amount. That’s just enough for him to feel like he has crafted each wine personally to the standards of quality he requires. And after tasting through his wines, it’s pretty easy to see how high those standards are.

Full Disclosure: I received some of these wines as press samples.

TASTING NOTES:

2005 Farella Park Sauvignon Blanc, Napa
Pale green-gold in color, this wine has a slightly yeasty nose with hints of citrus and pineapple aromas. In the mouth it offers flavors of golden apples and light tropical fruits. While it possesses a nice texture, the wine lacks a little zippiness that would make it more dynamic, with a greater range of expression. Still, it’s a solid example of the form, and pleasant to drink. 8.5. Cost: $14. Where to Buy?

2002 Farella Park Merlot, Napa
Dark garnet in the glass this wine has an alluring dark nose of wet earth, ripe black plums, and something I can only describe as wet tree bark — a deep soothing aroma of forest. Extremely Bordeaux-like in the mouth, this super smooth, balanced wine offers flavors of slate and other mineral undertones nicely married to dark plum and cherry fruit. Excellent acidity and a supple, understated tannic structure buoy the wine along the palate through a nice finish, and speak volumes about its aging potential. A keeper. 9. Cost: $24. Where to Buy?

2002 Farella Park Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa
Inky garnet in color to the point of opacity, this wine has a rich nose of black cherry and cassis aromas, with a hint of cedar. In the mouth it epitomizes smoothness, like Bogart in a fedora, with flavors of black cherry and forest floor sculpted by perfectly integrated tannins and excellent acidity. Definitely one of the undiscovered gems of the Cabernet variety from Napa. 9/9.5. Cost: $32. Where to Buy?

2001 Farella “Alta” Red Table Wine, Napa
Medium ruby in the glass, this wine smells of dirt, wet stones, and pure cherry fruit. In the mouth it is incredibly juicy, with fantastic acidity lifting flavors of cherry tobacco into an aerial ballet of ethereal flavor that tumbles dynamically across the palate and lingers for a long time in the finish. This wine achieves a brightness and lightness that so few California Cabernet’s are interested in pursuing these days, instead opting for darker, deeper richness. This wine hearkens back to the old world (and old California) style of Cabernet — lighter, more food friendly, and designed to age with beautiful bouquet. 9.5. Cost: $50. Where to Buy?

The last time I stopped by the winery, I also had the opportunity to taste a library wine that starkly highlights the ageability of Farella’s wines.

1995 Farella Park “Orchard Block” Merlot, Napa
Medium garnet in the glass, still holding excellent color for its age, this wine has a heady mysterious nose of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cedar, with the hints of the plum fruit that once must have dominated the nose. In the mouth it is gorgeously textured with flavors of figs, cassis, and chai tea spices wrapped around a hint of cherry and plum. This wine has blossomed into something beyond fruit that just wants to linger and chat with the back of the throat as long as you’re willing to pay attention. Wow. 9.5. Cost: $45. Where to Buy?

I also had the opportunity on a recent visit to taste the following barrel samples which indicate great things to come from this little winery in the next year or two:

2004 Farella Park “West Face Block” Cabernet, Clone 7, Barrel Sample
Medium ruby in the glass, this wine has a luxurious nose of cherry and cassis aromas. In the mouth it offers a nice balance of light herbal flavors wrapped in cherry and hints of toasted oak. Great length on the palate. (9/9.5?)

2004 Farella Park “Rockpile Block” Cabernet , Clone 7, Barrel Sample
Medium ruby in color, this wine smells of cherry, green peppercorn, and spices. In the mouth it is cola driven with flavors of vanilla, cherry, and spice, excellent length and complexity. Will be gorgeous. (9.5?)

2004 Farella Park Cabernet, Clone 4, Barrel Sample
Medium ruby in the glass, this wine has a sweet nose of pure cherry fruit. In the mouth it is expansive and broad with great texture and excellent billowy tannins that carry the core of cherry fruit to great lengths of flavor. Stunning. (9.5?)

2004 Farella Park Syrah, Barrel Sample
Medium garnet in the glass, this wine has a nose of blackberry. boysenberry, and well-worn leather. In the mouth it tastes of fresh mud, blackberry fruit and spiciness that rides on the back of excellent acidity. There’s a uniqueness of personality in this wine that if possible to maintain into the bottle will make this one of the best Napa Syrahs I have ever had. Period. (9.5/10?)

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Spring is in the air, and Spring has been associated with Bordeaux for a long time in the wine world. The annual Bordeaux En Premieur season, in which members of the trade and the media get to taste the most recent vintage from all the major Bordeaux producers, is underway, and will culminate soon in the pricing of 2006 Bordeaux futures.

In Stravinsky’s ballet Rite of Spring, based on the ancient pagan rituals that were so common this time of year, the plot involves the sacrifice of a virgin girl to the god of Spring to ensure his benevolence. In 2006 it’s looking like there will be two sacrifices — the Cru system in Saint Emilion and the outlandish profiteering of 2005. Neither are particularly virginal, and both are the source of wild speculation and rumor mongering among the French wine establishment.

To the average wine drinker, the En Premieur season may just be a distant rumble on the horizon, barely worth paying attention to, but to the establishment of the wine world, this event has all the must-watch appeal of a blockbuster daytime soap opera.

Personally, all I can ever muster up for this event is a sort of vague bemusement. I don’t purchase Bordeaux futures, so the potential revelation that 2006’s prices will likely be closer to 2004 than the excesses of 2005 amounts to little more than a bit of trivia.

For all my blasé, however, I do have a moderate interest in someday going to see what the fuss is all about — who wouldn’t be interested in the ultimate level of pomp and circumstance that the world of wine is capable of producing.

For the second year in a row, those closer to Europe, or those simply with more flexible schedules and available funds can actually partake in something modeled on the exclusive trade campaign.

Called Le Weekend des Grands Amateurs this publicly accessible event essentially offers an opportunity for any interested consumer to experience a toned down (and admittedly less complete) version of the En Premieur campaign. I haven’t attended this event myself, but after I wrote about it last year, Cuyler, one of my readers, decided to go, and he found it quite rewarding:

“I went to this event last year (thanks to your posting). It was a very well organized event and the tasting of nearly 200 wines was spectacular. There are no First Growth Chateaus representing but there are some top tiered producers showcasing their most recent releases.

The trip was an eye opening experience not only into the world of wine but also into the world of the Bordelais. Before the trip I had drank only a handful of French wines, but like most wine aficionados became quickly enamored with their elegant and understated winemaking style. I figured there is no place (other than Bordeaux) where I could taste that many wines from that many great producers so I booked my ticket and went (alone nonetheless). After it was all said and done; I came away with a permanent impression of how great Bordeaux can be and why it is revered as some of the best wine in the world. Its a great introduction into the region and a great way to learn which areas mesh with your own particular palate. For me, it was all about St. Julien and Pauillac. The town of Bordeaux is quite charming but I found the people a bit too proud of their worldwide wine reputation. There are plenty of great restaurants and tons of shopping sight seeing in the actual town of Bordeaux-all of which can be done in a weekend if you are determined enough.

The actual tasting is held inside a giant “hangar” which is the equivalent of an mini-convention center-except this one overlooks the Gironde river. The hosts were very professional and very friendly-most of whom spoke very good English. It was a much more formal event than any Californian tastings I have attended. The dress was semi-formal with most attendees sporting suits or blazers along with some pretty serious tasting faces. Upon entering the main tasting room you are greeted with one wine glass, a spiral bound notebook with each Chateau listed in order by region. It took about three hours to work through the u-shaped tasting layout but could obviously be done quicker or slower depending on one’s agenda. The event definitely has an air of professionalism that was a bit intimidating especially to someone who had never actually spit out such great tasting wine (I would highly recommend practicing these spitting skills in the privacy of your own home or hotel prior to trying it in front of hundreds of onlookers). Despite tasting over 200 wines, I left with a clear impression of my favorites and some great notes on one of the great recent vintages (2003).

The second day was spend on a tour bus driving through all the districts on the left bank. Once outside the city, it is pretty much flat farmland (think Kansas with beautiful French Domaine’s sprinkled about) with rows and rows of well manicured vineyards. I was really surprised by how small the actual vineyards are and equally surprised at just how majestic the Domaines were. We were invited into Chateau Lascombes to tour the grounds and to watch a brief video on the history of their winemaking. I was a little disappointed as there was no tastings involved at any of the Chateaux-only sightseeing from inside a tour bus. Nonetheless, it was a great tour of the region and a great chance to put a “face” to a label.

All in all, it was a great trip and a great introduction into the “taste” of Bordeaux. I plan on going again this year with some friends and look forward to trying some of my new favorites. If you have the time, you should definitely check it out.”

It’s really a shame that none of the first growths pour their top wines at event, but the fact that Bordeaux has even thought to organize an event like this at all speaks to the gradual awakening of the powers-that-be to the fact that one way to sell more Bordeaux will be to soften its intimidating and exclusive image.

The Weekend des Grands Amateurs takes place May 12th and 13th of this year in Bordeaux. The Grand Tasting is only about seventy bucks, and the full weekend with dinner and bus tour that Cuyler talked about will run you about $240. Not bad, especially considering some of the prices for similar events here in the States. Tickets can be purchased on the event’s web site.

If anyone else makes it over there, let me know how it goes.

Regardless of how you choose to celebrate spring, I hope you do it with a glass in hand and a full heart. Happy Spring!

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Philosopher-wine maker Patrick Campbell scores again with the 2005 version of this bargain delight.

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