Wine is such a nerdy subject that I hesitate to say it has celebrities, since that seems to imply a level of glam that I just don't think exists, but if there were to be a wine celebrity, most certainly it would be Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon Wines.Courtesy of Empire Distributors and Miller Union, a very trendy, great restaurant in Atlanta's West End, I had the pleasure of attending an intimate lunch and spending an afternoon with this fascinating man.
Volumes have been written on this guy (including a book that he authored, "Been Doon So Long") so I'm not going to rehash that stuff but I'll give you a quick summary of who he is and what he's done so in case you aren't familiar, this US Weekly version will get you up on the gossip. Here a few fun facts on him:
- He started Bonny Doon Winery in 1984 with a wine called Le Cigar Volant, the French
term for UFO. It was unusual for the time because it was a blend similar to Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the Southern Rhône Valley (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre and a few other grapes) and the US was coming on strong with Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. He became an advocate for growing grapes from the Rhône and was termed the original "Rhône Ranger," for his support of those grapes in California's Central Coast. The quirky label with a UFO on it captured lots of attention for its "irreverent" vibe. - The dude built huge brands through good wine and a genius for marketing -- Big House, Cardinal Zin, and Bonny Doon made up 450,000 cases of wine by 2008. With quirky, artsy labels
, and an off-beat twist rare in the wine industry (and 
by this I mean the grapes, the labels, the communication with consumers and the fact that the Winery was located in Santa Cruz, rather than in traditional wine areas), Randall Grahm found a great niche in this over-crowded industry. He seemed to have it made...but he was completely dissatisfied. - Around 2008, he decided that he'd gotten away from what excited him about wine and sold Cardinal Zin and Big House to the conglomerate, The Wine Group. He decided to get back to the vineyard and concentrate on wine and land and terroir, rather than marketing and business. He sought a retreat to his roots as a wine guy (he attended UC Davis -- THE wine university as a youth) so, regardless of how controversial it was, he sold the cash cows and focused on the stuff he loves. That's what he's doing today.
For lack of a better description, Randall Grahm was so Santa Cruz -- long hair, a beret, and a very relaxed demeanor. And yet, there's something about him that reminded me of every great professor I've ever had -- smart, intellectual, good listener, clearly a keen observer. I felt like I wanted to be in his presence to soak up everything he had to say. My father is a professor, so I have a certain level of comfort around these academic types and I had the sense that if he wasn't in wine, this self-termed philosopher would be the next Socrates or at least the toast of Stanford or Oxford or something.
Randall started by telling us that he cashed in the chips because he wanted to make "Vin de terroir" -- wines that reflect the land. He bought some raw land in a crazy, undeveloped area called San Juan Bautista. It's southeast of Santa Cruz and known for its mission, which was featured in Hitchcock's movie"Vertigo." This area is on the big fault line that will eventually push San Francisco into the Pacific, the San Andreas Fault, and it has amazing soils and is very cool in climate, which theoretically will allow him to grow terrific grapes for wine. Theoretically, he admits. And this is not something that most winemakers are comfortable saying. I've found that there's a certain hubris sometimes about them, like they know what the land will produce and can tell you the outcome of every vintage.
Not here. Randall Grahm fully admits that he's making it up as he goes along and he has no idea what he's going to get out of a new vineyard. There's an element of risk and reward that's exciting and scary. In an industry obsessed with margins and money, this is a very unique outlook.
I was already drinking the Kool Aid but then the dude said the thing that I've never heard another California winemaker say. He said that he strives to make the best wines he can, but that he'll never make wines that have the character of European wines. Without the soil and without the centuries of time to iterate and make changes, he just can't do as well with his grapes as they do there. Rather than putting down European producers, he was realistic about the differences in land, production and experience and showed an appreciation for the Old World that you don't always see in California.
Given that, his interest in making another Chardonnay or Cabernet Sauvignon is nil. You're not going to see Pinot or Chard or Merlot out of Bonny Doon or its sub-brands.
Ok, so he's a big thinker and a big talker. But besides buying a vineyard in a weird place, what exactly IS he doing in wine? Well, it's not just the same 'ole stuff. He's doing something very different. In San Juan Batuista, Randall Grahm is doing a "Grand Experiment." He is trying to create genetic crosses of conventional grapes. He's identifying the best areas for red wines and the best for whites and then creating hybrids of grapes in the fields to see what happens.
He's not doing this passively, mind you. The guy is trying everything from employing new fertilization methods from gurus in Switzerland to calling in people that study nature spirits that will make the vineyard more prolific.
Why is he doing this? Because this is Randall Grahm's life work. Rather than follow his hewn path as the wine industry's best marketer, which is what all the trade rags and business writers say about him, he wants to be the industry's innovator...or die trying.
He's just starting this path so in the meantime, he still has his Bonny Doon, Ca' del Solo, Contra, and Le Cigare brands to make and sell. And in my view, these wines are better then ever. The sell off of the larger Big House and Cardinal Zin brands seem to have really benefited these brands and I was really impressed at the event.
Here are mini-reviews of the lineup:
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The Whites and Rosé
The first few wines were from the Ca' del Solo vineyard, which is farmed Biodynamically (check out the podcast or blog on this) and produces non-Rhône grapes. The vineyard is located in Monterey County, about an hour south of San Francisco. This line doesn't have standard varieties -- and I love that.
I was surprised at how well Spain's white gem, Albariño, and the grape from which all others derive, Muscat, performed in this moderate climate.
The Wine: Ca' del Solo Albariño
The Grape: 92% Albariño, 8% Loureiro (another Spanish blending grape)
Where it's from: Soledad, Monterey County, California
Alcohol: 12.8%
Vintage: 2009
Price: $18
Note: This wine was a bit of an experiment for the Winery, but they did a great job. If this is how Albariño behaves in Monterey, I think it has a bright future there! Randall did note that the Biodynamic farming and hands-off winemaking were big factors in getting the flavor right.
Color: Beautifully golden and very shiny, with kind of thick legs. The wine looked just like all the Spanish Albariños that I've had the pleasure of knowing.
Smell: Lemon, lime, and a salty mineral note just hit the mark. It was very similar to Spanish
Albariño, which is rare because the soil and climate of Galicia is hard to replicate. The smell was like green herbs and green apples too -- it reminded me a little of Herbal Essence shampoo (the old school one in the green bottle).Taste: Maybe it's because the vineyard is Biodynamic, or because the winemaking is hands off, but this wine is very true to form. It was a little simpler than some of the Spanish Albariño I've had but still had a great barely-ripe peach flavor with wet rock, and a little saltiness to boot. It had great herbal flavors and was a bit like fresh cut grass. It had good acidity and was super dry. Awesome with the arugula salad.
Drink or Down the Sink? Drink. Amazing wine and very impressive that this grape can grow so well in Monterey.
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The Wine: Ca' del Solo Muscat
The Grape: 98% Moscato Giallo (yellow muscat from Northeastern Italy), 2% Loureiro
Where it's from: Soledad, Monterey County, California
Alcohol: 12.7%
Vintage: 2009Price: $15
Notes: Randall mentioned that he traveled to Alto-Adige in Northeastern Italy to pick out the Moscato Giallo clones himself. He did an amazing job finding grapes suited to the terroir of his vineyard.
Color: A super light yellow, almost clear with tiny little bubbles from a continued bit of in-bottle fermentation.
Smell: Muscat, in general, is really fragrant and sometimes over-the-top. Apparently this clone is a little less floral, which I found a good trait. I got that honeysuckle, orange sherbet smell but then also a celery twang. It sounds a little weird but I liked the contrast a lot.
Taste: The floral/honeysuckle note was kickin' and it reminded me of orange tea too. There was a sharp bite of acid that made the wine refreshing and not syrupy, despite the fact that there was noticeable sugar left in the wine (which is par for the course for Muscat). The acid cut the sugar and the wine was just a delicious treat and not so sweet as to be a dessert wine. It lingered around forever.
Drink or Down the Sink? I usually don't love Muscat, but this one could be a staple. What a great study in contrast of flowers and bitter celery with honeysuckle flavor and acid. Another winner.
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The Wine: Le Cigare Blanc
The Grape: 57% Roussanne, 43% Grenache Blanc
Where it's from: "Beeswax Vineyard," Arroyo Seco Monterey County, California
Alcohol: 14.3% Vintage: 2008
Price: $22
Notes: This is Randall Grahm's white version of Châteauneuf-du-Pape of the Southern Rhône Valley. It's the Rhône Ranger at his best! This is a huge wine and we actually had it last because it's oily and flavorful so it had enough gumption after the reds. It went really well with the ginger flavored ice cream sandwich we had for dessert (yum!).
Color: I would expect nothing less than a golden yellow wine. Roussanne tends to be a darker color, and this looked like rich and flavorful.
Smell: All pear, all the time. A little bit of melon and ginger too. It smelled rich and like it was made with uber ripe grapes.
Taste: How I wish I'd had a nice piece of fish to pair with this...would have been amazing. The wine was like laying my tongue on a fluffy pillow -- so soft and full and gentle. Big pear flavor with a touch of acid to prevent the wine from being thick and gross. Loved this...although like I said, next time I'm having it with some halibut.
Drink or Down the Sink? Drink. I'm a big fan of the wine after which this one is modeled: Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc. This one is a great New World version of that big daddy of a wine. For $22 it's a steal too!
__________________________________________________________________________ The Wine: Vin Gris de Cigare
The Grape: 71% Grenache, 16% Roussanne, 11% Grenache Blanc, 2% MourvedreWhere it's from: Central Coast, California
Alcohol: 12.8%
Vintage: 2010
Price: $15
Notes: Vin Gris is technically white wine made from red grapes, usually Pinot Noir. So this wine isn't exactly a Vin Gris because it was a salmon colored wine and it was made from red and white grapes. That said, this is a signature wine for Bonny Doon.
Color: A beautiful copper salmon color, this wine was just what I like to see in my Rosé. Too red and I know it's going to be too much, too light and it may not have panache. This was perfection in color.
Smell: The Grenache gave it a raspberry and strawberry tang and it was just a little bit like yeasty baked bread too. A pretty fresh nose but nothing that bowled me over.
Taste: I gotta say, of all the wines, this was my least favorite. It had a raspberry flavor but there was a pine tree note for me that put me off. An herbal flavor was there too, that I thought didn't mesh well with the strawberry flavors. The wine was slightly bitter for me and the acid wasn't quite strong enough.
Drink or Down the Sink? Down the sink. I really wasn't a fan. It was a simple wine and it was good in that, but I think the experiment of blending red grapes (Grenache and Mourvedre) with white (Grenache Blanc, Roussane), which is not done in the South of France where Rosé reigns supreme, really didn't work for me. That said, there were some at the event that raved about this wine. Give it a try and let me know what you think.
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The Reds
In my opinion, this is where Randall Grahm really shines. Rhône grapes made in a pure style. These reds kick ass!
The Wine: Bonny Doon "Le Pousseur' (means the trickster)
The Grape: 100% Syrah
Where it's from: Central Coast, California
Alcohol: 13.5%
Vintage: 2007
Price: $20
Color: An opaque, beautiful rich plum color with a ruby rim, this wine looked like ripe fruit plucked right off a vine. The legs were thick (so I expected high alcohol) and the wine had so much pigment that it made them take on a color. Blockbuster city!Smell: ...And yet the smell was so much more delicate than the looks of the wine. It had a light plum scent with chocolate and then a lavender and thyme twang. It smelled fresh and delicious.
Taste: The first sensation I had was of black pepper and cinnamon with chocolate. Then there was plum and black raspberry fruity goodness. The tannins were not too mouth drying and there was a little acidity too. It was fresh! Everything just seemed to work together -- wine harmony.
Drink or Down the Sink? Drink. This is an excellent wine. Not over-the-top but still fruity. Lots of subtle flavors and something that you could drink for hours and it would be a different wine with each sip. I love that. This is especially a winner and since Syrah is so unpopular in the market today (don't get me started on why...so dumb), the price of this wine is INSANE for the high quality of the wine.
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The Wine: Bonny Doon Contra
The Grape: 55% Carignan, 16% Grenache, 14% Mourvedre, 7% Petite Sirah, 5% Zinfandel, 3% Syrah
Where it's from: Central Coast, California
Alcohol: 13.5%
Vintage: 2009
Price: $14
Notes: This comes from the warmer inland area of Contra Costa County, hence the name Contra. Randall revealed that you can see the house where that poor girl who was kept hostage with her two kids for 15 years from this vineyard.
Color: Another super-dark wine. Carignan can be kind of a ghetto grape in the Rhône, but in it's old age, it creates wines with tons of flavor and these vines are old so the wine is dark, rich, and thick!Smell: This was the most earthy of all the wines we had. It had a ton of raspberry fruit but the overall impression was more of dried dirt and cinnamon spice than of fruit. It was kind of subtle but also seemed like it was going to be flavorful at the same time...just not in the typical fruit bomb way.
Taste: The wine was like it smelled -- subtle and earthy with a good hit of raspberry flavor and a ton of cinnamon or nutmeg thrown in.
Drink or Down the Sink? Drink. It was a good, solid red that would go well with food because it's just not too fruity or alcoholic (I'd pair it with mushroom sauces, au jus, grilled veggies or meat, simple preparations).
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The Wine: Le Cigare VolantThe Grape: 44% Syrah, 43% Grenache, 12% Cinsault, 1% Mourvedre
Where it's from: Central Coast, California
Alcohol: 14.4%
Vintage: 2006
Price: $35
Notes: This is Randall Grahm's homage to Châteauneuf-du-Pape Rouge and he rocks it out! There isn't much to say except that this is his flagship and calling card. He seemed really proud of the wine as he was talking about it and he genuinely believes that his increased focus on this wine after selling off Big House and Cardinal Zin has improved the juice. I couldn't agree more.
Color: Similar to the other reds, this was a dark, opaque, plum color with a rosey, watery edge. Typical of Syrah and looking delicious. Super thick legs = pretty high alcohol.
Smell: Wow. I could smell this for days. Tobacco, smoke, and bacon hit me right away. Then there was a dark blackberry or raspberry thing -- like stewed berries or compote that goes on waffles. There was a little spearmint too. It was strong, it was delicious.
Taste: The wine was true to the smell except that it had a wonderful peppery flavor that just brought it to life. The tannins were tame and the acid was prominent, so the wine tasted tangy (in a good way).
Drink or Down the Sink? Drink. I've had this wine before but I don't remember it being this good. It's such a flavorful and complex wine and it tastes damn good. You can enjoy it or analyze it, either way it's a real pleasure to have. Amazing stuff.
Thank you so much to Empire Distributors and to Randall Grahm and Miller Union here in Atlanta for a great experience. I can't wait to visit the winery in Soledad. Great guy, great wine, and a very interesting future ahead for us all if he succeeds in his quest!
Have you had these wines? Drop a comment and let me know what you think!!!
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