Late-April tasting of 2007 Bedrock Wines

Many people assume that upon the sale of Ravenswood to Constellation Brands in 2001 that somehow my father’s duties disappeared. Sadly, he spends more time on the road now than ever and bears a title that makes his inner-hippy quake in fear “Senior Vice-President, Constellation Brands USA.” In all of his busy time trying to save the soul of Ravenswood from the machinations of large-company politics it is rare that I can pin him into the cellar to taste through the Bedrock wines. So yesterday, when I was able to line him up in front of a line of wines, I was quick to extract what know-how I could from him.

Now my father, like all father’s, carries with him a good amount of fatherly pride (notice, I used father three times in that sentence for emphasis). Yet, I also know, from all the experience garnered from the time he caught me as I slid into the world to this point 27 years later, that he has an inability to bullshit when he is confronted with a line-up of wines. This is not necessarily always a good thing as witnessed by the time, on a panel in front of a public audience, he told James Laube that he had a “wooden palate” (aka, a palate that can only taste wood). Aka, pretty stupid, albeit, right. Not that Laube respects Zinfandel much anyways.

My father’s opinions of my wines is paramount because not only do his opinions carry the weight of one of the best winemaker’s in the world but also the weight of a father. This is not a matter to be taken lightly, as I firmly feel that Tim Mondavi’s beard is in place to protect him from the looks of his father. And there is no doubt that Tim is the best winemaker the family has seen. Seriously though, it is my conservative estimation that my father has critically evaluated at least 100,000 wines in his career (and this is a VERY conservative estimation that my father tasted 273 wines a year over 30 years, it is likely that this number is double). Consider that for every run of Vintner’s Blend Zinfandel, Dad rejected 99% of the bulk wine samples that came in.

In any case, onto the notes.

First the bad.

Abbastanza Vineyard: I was really hoping for good things from this 85 year old vineyard. Alas, the vineyard never ripened properly. It was harvested more than a month after Bedrock Heirloom was brought in and still was not quite ripe. To be honest, the Pinot Noir has darker color than this vineyard planted to Zinfandel and Petite Sirah! I am not sure what I am going to do with this puncheon worth of juice. I have another puncheon of Bedrock Zin that was not blended into the Heirlooom wine that I may blend with it to create a jug-format, Sonoma Valley, appellation wine. As we both noted, no color, slightly under-ripe notes, and not a lot going for it.

Bedrock Merlot: This is not my favorite wine in the cellar. I just do not feel the fermentation got warm-enough to get the type of extraction I was looking for. When people talk about cold soaks I generally do not buy it. This is a wine that validates my feeling. This wine spent 25 days fermenting, never going over 82 degrees. No matter what the aqueous extraction was, and it took five days before the natural yeasts started going, it just did not make enough difference in extracting enough color compounds. The long, cold, ferment also meant that the VA kicked up higher than I was wanted. It currently sits at .093, which is sitting on the fence. As I am not sure I want to blend this into the Cabernet I am sitting on what to do. The good news is that the Sylvain barrel it is in (the wine is 2 barrels, 50% new oak) has begun to integrate really nicely.

The good:

Lorenzo’s Heirloom Wine: This wine is showing all the power, spice, and dark-berried fruit I would expect from Dry Creek. My dad’s note, which is well-taken, is that all the tannin from the petite sirah, could use a bit more oak to sweeten up the finish. The wine is currently seeing 20% new oak (a Nadalie Nevers M+ barrel), and a good percentage of one year old wood. Agreeing with my pop I ordered another Nadalie barrel and a Remond Allier M+ barrel. This wine will see another 10 months in barrel, so I think kicking up the oak to 60% at this point will add a good amount of spice and depth without overwhelming the wine.

Glenylon Syrah: I was a bit down on this wine as I felt there was little integration of the tannins and the center was a bit hollow. Pop, like the sage 61 year old he is, reminded me that this wine has another 10- 12 months in barrel to go and that things are going to fill out. I am personally terrified by the wines 3.94 pH, but as long as the 4-EG, 4-EP tests show no brett in the wine I will stick with not fucking with it. I do adore the wines gamey, meaty, sauvage Syrah aromatics, I am just hoping the mouth-feel will improve some.

Kick Ranch Syrah: This wine, like always, has been showing the aromatic prettiness endowed by the Viognier. It is also still showing some tough tannin. My impulse is to drop the acidity a touch and wait– the pH of the wine at 3.54 allows for good stability at low-sulfur levels right now. That said, the wine is not immediately plush. It was necessary here to remind myself of all the Syrah’s I have tasted in my life– and how the tannin in this wine wanes in comparison to the levels I find in my favorite Cornas, Cote-Rotie, and Hermitage. My fear is more a function of knowing that the smoothed-out style of Alban, Sine Que Non, and others, are that preferred by many.

Old Lakeville Syrah: This wine, which I think has the greatest core strength of any Syrah I have made, is still not done with ML!!! I think it is because it was one of the last vineyard to come in and was quickly confronted with the cold of winter, but there is still .90 grams of malic left in this wine. I even innoculated with Scott Labs strongest culture and there is little difference– hopefully as summer comes and the internal temperature of barrels rise things will get going. This is so frustrating because this site, and this wine, is wonderful. It has all the dark fruit, spice, smoke, one would hope for from Syrah along with the distinct mint component given by the site.

Bedrock Cabernet Sauvignon: This wine is enormous. I often liken Sonoma Valley to St. Estephe, if Napa is Margaux, St. Julien and Pauillac. Cabernet is typically more high-tone, aromatic, structured, and often tougher. It is the reason why wines such as Laurel Glen, Pickberry, Monte Rosso Cabernet, Audelssa, Kamen, and others absolutely need extended elevage and bottle aging before being showing their inner-beauty. The Bedrock, coming from fruit grown on a valley floor hillside has a darker and denser core of fruit than many of the mountain examples previously mentioned, however it shares in having a Katherine Hepburn-like angularity of beauty and haughtiness; Something I also admire so much in my favorite St. Estephes– Calon-Segur, Haut-Marbuzet, Montrose, and of course, Cos D’Estournel. The lavish oak is just starting to show on the nose, but MAN the tannins are ripping hard right now. This one has another 18 months in barrel, and at least another 4 rackings to go.

The Great:

Rebecca’s Pinot Noir: This is the best Pinot Noir I have ever made, and I have been making Pinot since I was five. The site is just so special, Josh Hermsmeyer is a great farmer with a excellent understanding of wine, and the result is that the laissez-faire path taken towards making the wine has yielded something lovely. I am sorry to say that Josh texted me today to say that the hard frosts of this month may have robbed him of 20% of the vineyards crop for 2008– which is a total bitch for him, since 2007 had poor yields as well. It is a good lesson for anyone wanting to own a vineyard– mother nature has no mercy and one has no control over her, just because one year is bad does not mean that karma grants you a pass the following year. In this respect it does not matter if you are getting $4500 a ton or $600 a ton. In any case, when pop tasted the 2007 Rebecca’s his eyes closed in a wistful manner– this is a good sign. I love the wine. I also think it a good omen that the first grapes ever harvested for Bedrock Wine Co. has yielded such a formidable example of Pinot Noir.

Bedrock Heirloom Wine: What was pop’s thought when he tasted these wines. “If only you could have a Napa field blend and a Russian River Valley field blend to complement the two already had!” Lorenzo’s is so Dry Creek– dark fruit, deep spice, something inelucatably primal about the fruit. THIS, is so Sonoma Valley. It is a result of what vines do when they are closer to the sea– this is not coastal fruit but the salt-breeze of the pacific is still speaks a small dialectic in its development. This is the result of the diurnal variation– not the multi-colored fixture of the mens room– but rather the grace of nature blessing a particular soil and number of vines with the ability to make wine that tastes nothing like anything else.

This wine is showing all the spicy, dark raspberry and boysenberry components I would hope for from this vineyard. This wine happily shows those things I love about Sonoma Valley. Here, where it is hot and cold, grapes develop plenty of tannin and acid– not as extreme as the further inland areas such as Amador county. The best fruit here, no matter what varietal, shows vibrance, perfume, and sneaky intensity. This area has never made slutty wines. Ain’t nothing given up for free here, and those wines that does try to disenfranchise the region with residual sugar and sneaky winemaking practices, makes wines that are generally boring and lacking in soul.

All in all, a good line-up of wines that are progressing will. I am thinking about combining the last puncheon of Bedrock Zin not used in the blend, the Abbastanza, and perhaps some Harwood Syrah, which has great color and mulberry fruit, to make the first release of a jug wine– perhaps called Hooker’s Delight, or, Sherman, Hooker, and Hearst’s Proprietary Blend– in honor of Bedrock Vineyard’s luminary previous owners General William Tecumseh Sherman, General Fightin’ Joe Hooker, and Senator William Hearst.