- Tim Teichgraeber
Monday, July 29, 2019
Review: Two Angels 2018 High Valley Sauvignon Blanc ($17)
- Tim Teichgraeber
Wednesday, July 17, 2019
Review: Eberle 2018 Côtes-du-Rôbles Blanc Paso Robles ($19)
Monday, July 15, 2019
A Night Out With Ramey Wine Cellars
David Ramey has been an influential player in the Northern California wine scene for a good while. Very much a student of Burgundian techniques and low-intervention winemaking practices, Ramey honed his art at Dominus, a Bordeaux explorateur in Yountville, Rudd Estate in Oakville, and other premiere estates while launching his own Ramey brand, built primarily around Chardonnay and Cabernet, as is done in Napa Valley.
The other night I had the pleasure of meeting up with the Ramey team at 25 Lusk in San Francisco, and I learned a lot about how they make wine, as well as the style of the wines that they make. We had a nice private room upstairs, where Obama had dined a year or two ago, probably with some Bay Area fundraisers.
Somehow I wound up sitting exactly where he had dinner, which kinda gave me the warm fuzzies, "He sat right where that gentleman is sitting," said our server, nodding at me. "He had a couple of Ketel Ones on the rocks and it seemed like he was having a great time." I bet he did.
I was here for the wine, but I had a great time, too. The hilarious thing about 25 Lusk is that they were hosting this Game of Thrones-themed food and wine dinner thing, so the stereo system was blasting the TV score through the restaurant. Over, and over, and over. On repeat.
It was a little weird. On the positive side, we were not asked to drink the wine from pewter goblets, no one was decapitated, and the food was pretty good.
That said, I hope that A-16 doesn't start hosting Godfather-themed nights anytime soon. I appreciate the humor, but at some point it smacks of desperation...
Cameron Frey, David Ramey's first employee, as well as Alan Ramey, Claire Ramey-Pejovic, and associate Lydia Cummins were all there.
We tasted a couple of Chardonnays, one from Rochioli Vineyard in Russian River Valley, another from Woolsey Road Vineyard, also in Russian River Valley. Ramey might be best known for Chardonnay.
One of the most interesting discussions we had was about the 'natural' wine movement and what that term means and how they make wines at Ramey (and for that matter, a lot of other important high end low-intervention wineries in California). At Ramey, almost all fermentations are native yeast fermentations, fining is usually done after several trials to decide the best course and fining agent (e.g. egg whites or bentonite clay for example)
2015 Ramey Chardonnay Rochioli Vineyard, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, CA ($65)
The Rochioli was a bit more floral with honeysuckle, orange, butter, hazelnut, quince and fennel notes, all built around a flinty, "matchstick" taut quality that you often see in young white Burgundies. I think that last part has a lot to do with winemaking technique and not a lot to do with terroir, but the end result lends itself to longevity in Chardonnay. (92 Points)
2015 Ramey Chardonnay Woolsey Vineyard, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, CA ($65) Nutty and warm on the nose, with crisper lemon, apricot notes on the palate. It's a dynamic and wide-ranging wine with white tea-like bitterness on the finish that complements the fruity side. What's great about it is that there are so many disparate things going on at the same time, like a beautiful firework expanding in every direction. Delicious and extraordinarily complex. (95 Points)
I've tasted more Ramey Chardonnays than reds over the years, and I find them really intriguing. As much as they are generous, sunny California Chardonnays, when young, they also have a taut "struck-match," slightly reductive, flinty, sulfuric note that you get from some Burgundies, like the wines from Domaine Leflaive.
I don't know exactly how either of those wineries achieve that character, but it's notable. That taut, tightly-wound is uncommon in California Chardonnay. It makes for an interesting yin / yang balance. You can taste the complexity and potential, but everything seems to be tense and bound up really tight, and you're just waiting for it to unravel and be brilliant. I think it's very much a result of the way the Chardonnay is managed in terms of oxygen exposure, lees stirring and the vessels used for fermentation and maturation. Ramey Chardonnays really parallel certain Burgundy producers in this way, and you can taste the similarities.
I think this style or flavor profile this is a hard thing to explain to someone who hasn't experienced it, but I hope that the previous paragraph might help you recognize it when you do come across it, and that will usually be in the context of a fairly expensive, young Chardonnay, and you might have an 'aha' moment.
I was really impressed with the finesse of Ramey's red wines. There is absolutely a French influence that carries though the reds. The Russian River Pinot Noir isn't opaque and sweet. It's translucent and elegant, far lighter and finessed than today's average Russian River Valley Pinot Noir, which frankly is often too sweet and sappy.
Even the Napa Cabernet is savory, focused, minerally and filled out with just enough red, black currant and toast flavors to remind you that it's from California.
Ramey 2016 Pinot Noir Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, California ($68) Ramey's respect for French paradigms is evident in this wine, and frankly in almost all of Ramey's wines, though the crew would readily conceed that they are working with California fruit and not trying to make French wines. The truth is that Ramey makes low-intervention wines that are very much influenced by France, traditional French techniques, and French aesthetics. This Pinot has a lovely, translucent cherry juice color, violet, blueberry, rhubarb pie and white pepper notes. (93 Points)
Ramey 2014 Rogers Creek Vineyard Syrah ($65) True to the French Rhone inspirations, it shows grilled meat, pepper, salt and savory notes in the nose, has a silky texture, a fruity, spicy finish. It's from the cool wind tunnel of the Petaluma Gap AVA of Sonoma, a particularly challenging area for Syrah that can pay great dividends. 400 cased produced. (93 Points)
Ramey 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley ($62) Wow, this is terrific. It has a mix of black and red currant fruit with a deep-running saline, minerally notes and a good bit of toasty oak, but it isn't syrupy or over-ripe. It avoids a lot of the pitfalls of Napa Cabernet and presents itself as a an elegant example of achieving balance in an environment that invites excess. (94 Points)
- Tim Teichgraeber
The other night I had the pleasure of meeting up with the Ramey team at 25 Lusk in San Francisco, and I learned a lot about how they make wine, as well as the style of the wines that they make. We had a nice private room upstairs, where Obama had dined a year or two ago, probably with some Bay Area fundraisers.
Somehow I wound up sitting exactly where he had dinner, which kinda gave me the warm fuzzies, "He sat right where that gentleman is sitting," said our server, nodding at me. "He had a couple of Ketel Ones on the rocks and it seemed like he was having a great time." I bet he did.
I was here for the wine, but I had a great time, too. The hilarious thing about 25 Lusk is that they were hosting this Game of Thrones-themed food and wine dinner thing, so the stereo system was blasting the TV score through the restaurant. Over, and over, and over. On repeat.
It was a little weird. On the positive side, we were not asked to drink the wine from pewter goblets, no one was decapitated, and the food was pretty good.
That said, I hope that A-16 doesn't start hosting Godfather-themed nights anytime soon. I appreciate the humor, but at some point it smacks of desperation...
Cameron Frey, David Ramey's first employee, as well as Alan Ramey, Claire Ramey-Pejovic, and associate Lydia Cummins were all there.
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| GM Cameron Frey and Founder, David Ramey |
We tasted a couple of Chardonnays, one from Rochioli Vineyard in Russian River Valley, another from Woolsey Road Vineyard, also in Russian River Valley. Ramey might be best known for Chardonnay.
One of the most interesting discussions we had was about the 'natural' wine movement and what that term means and how they make wines at Ramey (and for that matter, a lot of other important high end low-intervention wineries in California). At Ramey, almost all fermentations are native yeast fermentations, fining is usually done after several trials to decide the best course and fining agent (e.g. egg whites or bentonite clay for example)
2015 Ramey Chardonnay Rochioli Vineyard, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, CA ($65)
The Rochioli was a bit more floral with honeysuckle, orange, butter, hazelnut, quince and fennel notes, all built around a flinty, "matchstick" taut quality that you often see in young white Burgundies. I think that last part has a lot to do with winemaking technique and not a lot to do with terroir, but the end result lends itself to longevity in Chardonnay. (92 Points)
2015 Ramey Chardonnay Woolsey Vineyard, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, CA ($65) Nutty and warm on the nose, with crisper lemon, apricot notes on the palate. It's a dynamic and wide-ranging wine with white tea-like bitterness on the finish that complements the fruity side. What's great about it is that there are so many disparate things going on at the same time, like a beautiful firework expanding in every direction. Delicious and extraordinarily complex. (95 Points)
I've tasted more Ramey Chardonnays than reds over the years, and I find them really intriguing. As much as they are generous, sunny California Chardonnays, when young, they also have a taut "struck-match," slightly reductive, flinty, sulfuric note that you get from some Burgundies, like the wines from Domaine Leflaive.
I don't know exactly how either of those wineries achieve that character, but it's notable. That taut, tightly-wound is uncommon in California Chardonnay. It makes for an interesting yin / yang balance. You can taste the complexity and potential, but everything seems to be tense and bound up really tight, and you're just waiting for it to unravel and be brilliant. I think it's very much a result of the way the Chardonnay is managed in terms of oxygen exposure, lees stirring and the vessels used for fermentation and maturation. Ramey Chardonnays really parallel certain Burgundy producers in this way, and you can taste the similarities.
I think this style or flavor profile this is a hard thing to explain to someone who hasn't experienced it, but I hope that the previous paragraph might help you recognize it when you do come across it, and that will usually be in the context of a fairly expensive, young Chardonnay, and you might have an 'aha' moment.
I was really impressed with the finesse of Ramey's red wines. There is absolutely a French influence that carries though the reds. The Russian River Pinot Noir isn't opaque and sweet. It's translucent and elegant, far lighter and finessed than today's average Russian River Valley Pinot Noir, which frankly is often too sweet and sappy.
Even the Napa Cabernet is savory, focused, minerally and filled out with just enough red, black currant and toast flavors to remind you that it's from California.
Ramey 2016 Pinot Noir Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, California ($68) Ramey's respect for French paradigms is evident in this wine, and frankly in almost all of Ramey's wines, though the crew would readily conceed that they are working with California fruit and not trying to make French wines. The truth is that Ramey makes low-intervention wines that are very much influenced by France, traditional French techniques, and French aesthetics. This Pinot has a lovely, translucent cherry juice color, violet, blueberry, rhubarb pie and white pepper notes. (93 Points)
Ramey 2014 Rogers Creek Vineyard Syrah ($65) True to the French Rhone inspirations, it shows grilled meat, pepper, salt and savory notes in the nose, has a silky texture, a fruity, spicy finish. It's from the cool wind tunnel of the Petaluma Gap AVA of Sonoma, a particularly challenging area for Syrah that can pay great dividends. 400 cased produced. (93 Points)
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Ramey 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley ($62) Wow, this is terrific. It has a mix of black and red currant fruit with a deep-running saline, minerally notes and a good bit of toasty oak, but it isn't syrupy or over-ripe. It avoids a lot of the pitfalls of Napa Cabernet and presents itself as a an elegant example of achieving balance in an environment that invites excess. (94 Points)
- Tim Teichgraeber
Sunday, July 7, 2019
Nellcôte Wines from Napa Valley
Nellcôte is the passion project of Tyler Olbres, a former communications
director for several apparel and footwear brands. He is now chasing the upper end of
the Napa Valley price spectrum, and the red wines are pretty impressive. He sources fruit from some coveted benchland and hillside vineyards. There are some Formula One racing references in the proprietary wine names. He wisely tapped the very talented
Phillip Corallo-Titus of Chappellet and Titus fame to be his winemaker / consultant.
I was rightly impressed with the Cabernets, even though they carry a very ambitious price tag for a novel Napa brand. Very tastefully executed, and better than many from the valley at similar price points.
Nellcôte 2015 '500 Chevaux' Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley ($125) A very fine Napa Cabernet made by winemakers Phillip Carallo-Titus (Chappellet) and Ry Richards, it has a lively, fresh nose of violet and rose petals, and rich mulberry and black currant fruit, graceful licorice, vanilla, espresso and gravelly mineral notes that let you know this isn't valley floor fruit. The name '500 Chevaux' translates to '500 horses,' in reference to a typical Formula One race car. The alcohol clocks in at 14.8%, which isn't too high for a Napa Cab in this league. I appreciate the freshness that this wine shows, and it bodes well for its longevity. (94 points)
Nellcôte 2015 'Rallye 76' Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley ($225) The flagship has a bit more Petit Verdot in the blend and has a tad more plushness, intensity, and cohesiveness. As lively as it is intense, it shows rose, lilac, coriander spice and espresso notes on the nose, and focused blueberry, black currant, tar, gravel, and licorice flavors through the long, grippy finish. It's less sappy and more precise than so many high end Napa Cabs these days. It's great to taste a wine in this league that has real finesse, as I've noted in my reviews of Dalla Valle right here at Modern Wine. (95 Points)
Nellcôte 2017 Rose Mount Veeder Napa Valley ($60) The rose is a blend of 51% Malbec and 49% Syrah from Bald Mountain Ranch on Mt. Veeder in the Southwestern corner of Napa Valley. It's fairly dark orange-pink in color and I'm not sure I really get it. The nose isn't very floral or really all that fragrant. It does have nice guava and cherry fruit flavors in the mid-palate, but it wants more acidity on the finish. An interesting wine, but not really what I'm looking for in a rose, and my inclination wouldn't be to look to these grape varieties to make a high-end rose. (84 Points)
- Tim Teichgraeber
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