As linked in WineTerroirist, KelliWhite has a terrific article in GuildSomm: MakingSense/Mendocino
on making Making Sense of Mendocino. Very well researched, very well written…a must-read.
Although the AndersonVlly is the most well-known AVA in Mendocino, she points out the tremendous/unrealized potential the inland valley has for (once again) making great Mendocino wines.
There are a bunch of sub-AVA’s in MendoCnty that I’d never heard of, nor seen on a label ever. I was unaware how much area the MendoRidge covers, though the actual AVA, above 1,200 ft elevation, is still pretty small.
The article points out that many of the grapes go out of the County to Napa/Sonoma to flesh out the 15% slop in the AVA-labeling.
One of the things I didn’t realize is that the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas, once owned by Andy Beckstoffer, was once a Calif state (mental?) hospital. It’s a beautiful property that Andy made a huge mistake when he sold it, I think.
I, of course, have followed MendoCnty wines from the very start. When BarneyFetzer released his first Zins in '72. I pine for the days of the great Green Hungarians from ole Fred Weibel. Make no mistake, MendoCnty can make great wines every bit as good as any area in Calif. The CortiBros Reserve(Edmeades) '78 remains one of the greatest Calif Cabs I’ve ever had. The Cabs & Zins from JedSteele at Edmeades, mostly MendoRidge, were stunning. The Zins/Cabs/Petites from Milano were outstanding. The early McDowellVlly Syrahs, made by John Buchenstein, were as good as any ever made in Calif. This is, of course, now the GibsonRanch owned by the Bilbros. Some of the Rieslings from ColeRanch and Guinness McFadden’s McFaddenRanch in PotterVlly are as good as it gets.
The article mentions the Coro Mendocino wines. I’ve not read anything about those wines in ages. I thought the project was dead, if not comotose. Anybody know where you can buy that set of wines?? I’d like to try them again.
Visually, MendoCnty is absolutely beautiful. My heart always skips a beat as I drive over that rise and drop down into the UkiahVlly. Lots of very fond memories of my times up in MendoCnty. Sitting around the table at Lynn & Casey Hartlip’s up on EaglePointRanch, PeeWee dozing away off in the corner, James and Bob grunting away in their pigpens off in the distance. Great times, indeed. I need to get back up there again.
Anyway, Kelli has written a terrific article that’s worth reading.
Tom
Thanks for posting the link, Tom. I’ve just glanced through the article - will have to read it through when I have time this evening - but it looks like a really good, detailed overview of Mendocino and its many AVAs. I think Yorkville Highlands is an AVA to watch in the coming years, with Halcón, Theopolis, and a couple of others making very good wines from there, and Sam Bilbro starting to plant a bunch of Italian grape varieties there now.
I’m hoping to get my write-up of the recent Taste of Mendocino event online in the next couple of days - that’s the best annual tasting that covers all of Mendocino rather than just Anderson Valley. Always a fun event and I discover a couple of promising wineries that are new to me nearly every time I go.
Tom’s post happened around 6:00 am this morning and now only two responses. That tells you what Mendocino is up against. BTW that was one of the most detailed stories on our county that I can remember. Very well done.
Coro can be purchased and has their own website. One of the things that bothers me is that many growers are planting more f*cking Cabernet and Chardonnay for the big boys. Ukiah and Redwood Valleys sure aren’t the same as Oakville and Rutherfold, they’re more like the southern Rhone or Montalcino. Another great loss. Folks should be planting Sangiovese, Grenache, Counoise and Barbera to name a few. Wait until our Gruner comes on board in Anderson Valley, we’ll take over the world!
When I first moved to Fremont in 1985, Weibel still had vineyards and winery in the foothills of the hills that rise up along the east side. Love driving past those vineyards every day. Now they are replaced by multi-million dollar homes. I found this little snippet on some Fremont vineyard history:
Photo below of the only Coro I tasted at the recent Taste of Mendocino event - a very good one from Testa. I had thought from info I’d seen before the event that Coro Mendocino was going to have their own table at Taste of Mendocino (as has sometimes been the case in the past) but they weren’t listed in the final event booklet and I didn’t see them anywhere. Any idea on why they weren’t there, Casey?
Yup…there you go…straight from the horse’s mouth (I believe I got the right end!!). A very well-written piece I thought as well.
Yo’all must read it.
True dat…about planting more Cab/Chard for the big boys. That does nothing for MendoCnty’s reputation.
Lodi is a good case in point. Over the last 5-6-7 yrs, they’ve been planting a lot of new/interesting stuff there. Sure…there’s plenty of Cab/Chard/Zin/Carignan for the big guys.
But there’s a lot of new/interesting varieties that’s attracting a lot of interest in Lodi. Much of it being made outside the Lodi AVA.
Over the last 4-5-6 yrs, a lot of the hot/hip new winemakers are going up to Mendo to get old-vine grapes. And making darn good wines.
Make now mistake about it, MendoCnty can grow grapes as good as anybody in Calif. And not just the AndersonVlly. Those old Edmeades and Milanos
were as great as any wines ever made in Calif. They just need to up their game in the winemaking department. Growing Cab/Chard for the big boys
and making another Cab/Chard there in Mendo cnty is not agonna hack it.
You got any customers for your Gruner yet, Casey??
Tom
Yeah Tom, gonna keep it in AV, probably with Phillips Hill. I sell them Chard, Gewurtz and Pinot already and they are nice folks.
I catch hell from other Mendocino growers when I suggest varieties other than Cab/Chard. When the market turns (and it always does) the big boys won’t be picking up the phones. I’ve seen it in 2-3 different cycles.
Interesting to hear about the Italian grape varieties being planted. Any particularly good wines on the market already from Sangiovese, Barbera, etc. or is that still a few years off?
I look forward to reading the article later today. Lots to learn.
Yup, Andrew…Sam Bilbro of Idlewild is making some killer Italian varietals, mostly from the Fox Hill Vnyd. And
planting a lot of Italian varieties at his property in the Yorkville Highlands. His Cortese & Arneis are world-class.
Grazi (Greg Graziano) makes a bunch of Italian varietals, but not at the level of Sam’s.
Tom
Thanks, Tom. I had forgotten about Idlewild. I’ve only had two of their wines - The Bird (a red blend) and The Bee (white blend). I thought the white was more successful, as the red was lean and tart. It was also quite young, though, and would probably have benefited from time in the cellar. I see it’s one of David Bueker’s go to bottles with pizza. I’ll have to explore a little more.
Hmmmm, Casey. Went to the CM WebSite and it notes the last vintage produced was 2011.
Am I to assume the CM project is dead?? Or just comatose?
I noted Ken’s Testa CM was 2014, so it must not be buried yet?
Tom
Coro Mendocino may not be dead, but could possibly be on life support. It was one of the most exciting times of my wine life when we hammered out the details of the protocols. I made a wine from '01 to '06 but then we shut our brand down in '07.
I really don’t see many of those folks anymore, but will visit Grazie and fellow Coro tattooed blood brother Fred Nickel this weekend. Ill have more news after that. If you’re serious about getting a full set, call Sip Mendocino in Hopland.
Not that my write-up on the Taste of Mendocino event compares with Kelli White’s excellent article, but since my post on that yesterday afternoon, it’s gotten all of one reply (from Tom) and fewer than 90 views. More evidence that there is way less interest in Mendocino wines than what they deserve…or else it’s just evidence that most people ignore anything I post, which on second thought is really more likely!
Ken: I always read your reports, always. Keep up the good work. I just didn’t have anything to add. I’m kind of ambivalent about Mendocino, have had some good pinots and sparklers in the past and Savoy pinots from good producers. Part of the problem is that it is a bit of a trek to go up there and see things at ground level. I went up once on a Sonoma trip and really don’t care to go back, although it is certainly a beautiful place.
Mendocino produces probably half the California wine I buy (via Copain and Halcon, even Carlisle). I’ve been convinced for some time that it is one of the finest regions to source Pinot, Chardonnay, and Syrah fruit from; and in the right hands makes world class wines.
Mendocino is the absolute ace in the whole for certain varieties as Casey has stated. I have been harvesting and producing sangiovese from a high elevation mountain vineyard for some time now up there. Its a stunner and in my opinion is as close to the flavor profile of Montalcino as we have in N. California. About half of our production comes from Mendocino vineyard sources mostly older vine,high elevation.
Mendocino is very versatile having ideal sites for pinot, syrah etc. For me the most exciting feature of Mendocino is the future of Italian varieties being sourced and planted. Ideal soils, climate and diurnal shifts. IMO no better place for the Cal-Ital future.
I read Tom’s post, as well as Ms Kelli White’s piece, and contemplated digging through some of my bookmarked links to accompany a long, wandering response, but I decided to spare everyone.
