1983–From an El Niño year, heavy rainfall hit all of Napa but the vineyard, a rocky well-drained hillside, was not affected. And yes, there’s a dash of butter flavor but nothing overwhelming. “It’s really fun being part of Montelena where I think a lot of people assume we do have a very specific style,” Crafton said during a recent phone interview. Email us with confirmed reports of damage. Vintage Retrospective: The 2001 Napa Valley Cabernets. It was born in a drought, matured through terrible heat spikes and had endured smoky conditions … What’s most impressive about this tasting is that these wines are from the same vineyard, using the same type of yeast, same barrel program (typically 20 percent new French oak), and aging 18–24 months, with little variability over the decades. So if you look at the wines that have been made over years, you’ll see that the wines change.”. And while direct losses and smoke damage may cut into the 2020 vintage, industry experts note there is plenty of wine not affected by the fires. The popular Chateau Boswell Winery was destroyed in this fire over the weekend. “It taught Americans about wine and how hard we work to make an integrity product.” And though the film was not a financial success, it did leave its mark. “That includes offering older vintages. Now, fire season is upon us as Oakville brings in its first white grapes adding another dimension to the 2020 balancing act between health, safety, and … One of those priorities was that the measure of great wine is that it must improve with age. “From ground zero (the fire started at Tubbs Lane) we had the vineyard across the street,” says Bo Barrett, CEO and former winemaker at Chateau Montelena who hosted the tasting. The tannins are less obvious and there is a slightly shorter finish, but this still is a commanding wine. Fortunately, the winery was able to pick all its Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc grapes before this past summer’s wildfires in Napa Valley. Since then, Crafton has been creating classic wines that honor Chateau Montelena’s history while also helping to bring the winery into the 21st century. 1979–This was the second-estate bottling and though there was excessive heat for this vintage resulting in a 40 percent crop loss, this is where you see the identity of Montelena Cabernet beginning to come together. Alfred TubbsAtlas Peak FireBo BarretBottle Shock movieCabernet SauvignonChateau MontelenaDream TastingNapa Valley. COVID-19: Vaccine news and outbreak updates. Do you like this website? (Photo by Ken Ross). The analogy I like to use is the grape has this DNA in it so it’s kind of my job to decode it based on the growing season. “I learn something new every year. (Angela Hill/Bay Area News Group) The 2020 wine vintage was already difficult in Napa Valley. Framed by a brisk acidity and bright, crisp blueberry, blackberry, and red fruits, this represents the hallmark they will become known for. The Glass Fire was a wildfire in Northern California, that started on September 27, 2020, at 3:48 AM from an undetermined cause and was active for 23 days. “Everything kind of in between those two is up to us. They can withstand drought, erratic weather, and can grow nearly everywhere. Some 200 miles north of Napa, the Zogg Fire claimed its fourth fatality—a man airlifted to the hospital with burns on Sunday, said Shasta County Sheriff Eric Magrini. “We’re very honest in our feedback, what we did well and what we didn’t” Crafton said. Wine of the Week: Champagne Palmer & Co. 2003 and Chateau Montelena 2005 “The Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2005, is part of a program that the iconic producer is offering: For each new vintage that Montelena releases, they also will be making available bottles of the vintage from a decade before.” Read Full Article It was more of a function of the smoke (damage). The 2008 motion picture Bottle Shock starred British actor Alan Rickman and American actor Bill Pullman, and it loosely chronicled the Judgment of Paris tasting in France where Chateau Montelena beat out their French counterparts in a blind tasting specifically designed to show off French wine. That’s kind of what makes Montelena special and what’s helped us stay at the forefront.”, “Again, it’s the philosophical, cultural belief that Jim started when he founded the winery and that Bo has continued,” Crafton said. But misinformation persists about the 2017 vintage. Its aroma is flinty yet floral. There’s this incredible amount of freedom that we have and the goal is literally to be as expressive as possible.”. The plan for Chateau Montelena was always to hold back 10 percent of their production for at least 10 years, then sell 5 percent of that. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. That’s something I’ve really worked on.”, He added that’s also true with the rest of the winemaking team at Chateau Montelena. 2000s: Focusing on Balance Simplicity in a way is incredibly beautiful.”, Crafton added, “If we do our best to make a really beautiful wine, it’s going to taste beautifully also.”. Or if that winery was no longer producing a 2020 … Spirited Quarterly Magazine in Print and Online, by The result made international news and unleashed a flood of interest in wines from California’s Napa Valley. October 1, 2020 In total, the wildfire damaged at least 114 structures and burned 48,440 acres of coveted California wine country. Rutherford Dust: Cabernet-Sauvignon’s Mythical Ingredient, Dubai Duty Free shop breaks record selling $530,000 Macallan collection, Luxury Diving Resorts to Take Your Breath Away, Whiskey Forever: Building the Infinity Bottle, Talking Shop with Dalmore’s Master Distiller Richard Paterson. Everything tastes just right. “So for me, it’s easy when you’re young and you think more of everything – more ripeness, more extract, more tannins, more wood. As a result, Crafton explained that he doesn’t have a specific style he’s going for every single year. Vineyards planted in the early 1970s had now come to maturation, and the dominant British press, who long championed a dryer more austere style, lost ground to the likes of Robert Parker and his palette of bolder, bigger wine styles where you begin to see higher alcohol in American wines. The Napa and Sonoma Valleys, two of the most famous areas for wine production in California, are both being affected by the LNU Complex fire, which is the third largest in the state’s history. Sandwiched between three cool years and three growing seasons affected by late-season heat spikes, 2001 has proven to be a Napa Valley classic for Cabernet Sauvignon and Bordeaux blends. Even so, we rigorously evaluated these grapes and if they do not meet our standards, they will not be used,” Belinda Weber, director of digital trade and consumer marketing for Duckhorn Wine Company, told OLM. Yet questions arose immediately about smoke taint and how the fires would affect Napa wines. acidity and gripping tannins. You have to have what I call intellectual honesty. “Pick when it’s ripe, not based on seed tannins or sugars.” By this time they had started to phase out longer macerations so you still get the bright fruit character but with more maturity and a richness of fruit. The age of this is obvious yet still the wine is drinkable and quite enjoyable. Chateau Montelena has a celebrated history, and the Judgment of Paris is just one chapter. Chateau Montelena: Spectacular reserve tasting experience - See 673 traveler reviews, ... 2020 . Chateau Montelena is ... the ducks and swans cruising past and saw the vineyards towards Mt Saint Helene and a few scorched hills as the Tubbs fire( … It’s really kind of a philosophical or cultural style if anything else. Ideal weather befell Napa from 1990 through 1997. THE 2020 vintage was already difficult in Napa Valley. The proverbial “perfect storm” occurred in the 1990s. (AP Photo/Noah Berger) The Associated Press The 2020 vintage will be much smaller than other years. All 11 judges awarded their top scores to either the Chardonnays from Chateau Montelena or Chalone Winery, another California wine producer. He leads Chateau Montelena’s sustainability program and was instrumental in helping the winery become certified as a Bay Area Green Business and Napa Green Winery. ... at least 10,000 cases of wine were ruined. Critics have scored this wine 93 points. I think our tastes change too as we get older. “From ground zero (the fire started at Tubbs Lane) we had the vineyard across the street,” says Bo Barrett, CEO and former winemaker at Chateau Montelena who hosted the tasting. That’s because some of the grapes were damaged by smoke from this past summer’s forest fires in California. “We look to make wines on a very simple level that are delicious – they have to taste good – and they also have to age,” Crafton said. “We lost all of our red grapes this year” due to smoke damage caused by this year’s wildfires, Crafton said. Though a cooler vintage this retains classic Cabernet character with noticeable blackberry, raspberry, and blueberry flavors. Planted to Saint George rootstock and Clone 6 (typical of the was Swiss-Italians who dominated the area at the time), the soils are mainly rocky and lomey, a mix of alluvial, volcanic, and sedimentary. Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password. “It still brings people to our tasting room. “It’s constantly evolving,” Crafton said. Grapes hang from a vine at Chateau Boswell Winery as the Glass Fire moves through the area on September 27, 2020, in St. Helena, Calif. Overall there were higher temperatures and the wines became more ripe. More dominant with darker fruits and hints of spice. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your California Privacy Rights (each updated 1/1/21). 1980s Updated: Sept. 30, 11:45 pm PDT. Which Wines Save Your Dinner Party Menu From Disaster? “When the fires devastated people whose wines we sell, we did what we could do to help,” Williams says. There isn’t a ton of alcohol. I think we made the right decision under the circumstances to not go ahead and not go forward with anything. Chateau Montelena: 50 Years, Fires, and the French: A Five-Decade Tasting Retrospective. The Glass Fire burns along Silverado Trail in Napa County near the Chateau Boswell Winery on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2020 in St. Helena, CA. But if I had to make the same wine every year, I think I’d go crazy.”. Users have rated this wine 4.5 out of 5 stars. “We work in the fresh fruit medium,” Barrett says. 1974–Blended fruit from Alexander Valley in Sonoma and Napa retaining an excellent acidity, you find ripe red raspberry resin, cranberry, mild prune, and raisin. “We lost an 11-acre field of Cabernet (equaling 2,300 cases) so one of our vineyards took a torpedo and sank.” “I’ve reflected on it a fair amount and it’s just one of those things,” Crafton said. “We didn’t pull out the greatest hits, we were showing how this place does well under adversity,” Barrett told me. “You cannot make the smoke go away, you can’t just wash it off,” Barrett admits. I had a beautiful time in Napa, this was my first visit to the Chateau Montelena, it's a beautiful place, full of history and it's great for wine lovers, ... Annie143Florida wrote a review Dec 2020. A fire engine leaves a burning property as the Glass Fire tears through St. Helena, Calif., on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2020. Critics have scored this wine 93 points. They began helping fire crews, trying to keep the flames away from Sherwin Family Vineyards. In 1981 the Atlas Peak Fire charred 26,000 acres, the work of an arsonist who was never caught. A year later the Silverado Fire burned 2,000 acres, and even as far back as 1913, the Sage Canyon Fire corrupted valuable agricultural land. California’s Chateau Montelena could easily cash in year after year on its legendary “Judgment of Paris” victory in 1976. Updated on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 4:00 p.m. For the third time in four years, wildfires have wreaked havoc in Wine Country, with the still-burning Glass fire destroying or damaging some 600 homes in Sonoma and Napa counties and scarring more than … Its flavors are soft and subtle. “They assume it’s cut into this very specific box. UPDATE: This post has been updated to note that Chateau Montelena will not be producing their 2020 Cabernet, but they will be producing their 2020 Chardonnay. “Because Cabernet is a thick-skinned variety and because the grapes were so fully developed, we do not expect smoke impact in the finished wines. Sedona, Arizona 526 contributions 199 helpful votes. Great Wine. It’s a love story to California wines and it showed Americans they can be proud of our wine industry.”. © 2021 Advance Local Media LLC. After all, many French châteaux have been around for hundreds of years, some longer. Fire, too, consumed the winery at Cain Vineyard and Winery, ... Chateau Montelena, a historic producer near Calistoga, will not make an estate cabernet sauvignon because the … Damage to an archway on the grounds of Kenwood winery Chateau St. Jean is visible on Oct. 10 in the aftermath of the Sonoma wildfires. 1994–Nearly perfect weather lays the foundation for this robust Cab offering a bold. The fast-moving Glass Fire … Which is why on an overcast Thursday afternoon I met with a handful of other wine writers to taste 15 wines, three per decade, representative of the last half century, something the Montelena people dubbed the Dream Tasting. The Barrett family still owns and operates Chateau Montelena. Follow Ken Ross on Twitter and Instagram and Facebook. And even France. 2005–Balancing red raspberry, boysenberry, blackberry, blueberry, and black cherry, there is a uniformity of good acids and firmer tannins. A fictionalized version of Chateau Montelena's historic victory was featured in the 2008 film Bottle Shock. Things get reinvented every year. This is a wine that coalesces beautifully, balanced with fruit, wood, acidity, and pH, presenting mature blackberry, boysenberry, and blueberry flavors, nonetheless elegant in spite of its vibrant character. Chateau Montelena is a Napa Valley winery most famous for winning the white wine section of the historic "Judgment of Paris" wine competition. Here you'll find all collections you've created before. “We lost an 11-acre field of Cabernet (equaling 2,300 cases) so one of our vineyards took a torpedo and sank.”. The 2020 vintage was already difficult in Napa Valley. Within 12 hours 2,500 acres had burnt and at least one winery, Chateau Boswell, was on fire; Officials said 64 other wineries were within the evacuation or evacuation warning areas In an effort to stay at the forefront, Crafton will oversee one of the largest vineyard replants and redesigns in the winery’s history next year. In real life, Bo became the head winemaker in 1982. “Thankfully, we didn’t lose our vines. “I’ve made all different sorts of wines – very modern wines, very classic wines and everywhere in between. 2010–A new winemaking team was responsible for this direction. The wine country inferno began with the Glass Fire at 3:50 a.m. Sunday and two subsequent fires merged with it, burning 17 square miles (44 square … Proud might be an understatement as Bo Barrett presented five decades of his wines. Subscribe now. It’s less bright fruit and more darker and concentrated with a noticeable polish to it, making it velvety and smooth. Chris Pine played Barrett’s son, Bo, who also worked at the winery. Thanks! But, No Seating. Actor Bill Pullman played Jim Barrett, the owner of the winery, in the 2008 film. Here then are selected tasting notes. But the Tubbs Fire was something more aggressive. Modern technology does not replace people or the art in winemaking but expands our creative potential. So we’ll vary almost everything we do. That community included winemakers with grapes affected by the fire and smoke. The 2020 vintage will be much smaller than other years. We’ll pick at different times based on flavor profiles – acid and those things. Chateau Montelena's Chardonnay was in competition with nine other wines from France and California under blind tasting. Then in 2014, Matt Crafton was promoted to the position of head winemaker. “They’re both beautiful but you look at a great master who can paint a still life, something so simple. “All these things combined gave winemakers incredible confidence,” Barrett says. The 2018 Chateau Montelena Napa Valley Chardonnay ($60 Suggested Retail Price) is a great example. Originally the Gothic castle-like building was called the A.L. Georg Salzner, president and CEO of Castello di Amorosa, sprays water on a building at the property, Monday, Sept. 28, 2020, in Calistoga, Calif., which was damaged in the Glass Fire. Crafton added he continues to learn more about winemaking with each vintage. “The movie’s a great ad,” Barrett told OLM. “It’s a challenge every year (at Chateau Montelena) because there isn’t much to hide behind,” Crafton said. News of the deal, reportedly worth US$110m, surfaced in June, but Montelena has now terminated the sale agreement, saying purchaser Reybier Investments had been ‘unable to … Tubbs Winery named for Alfred Tubbs who commissioned it. As evidenced from the earlier 1974 and 1975 there is a more comprehensive feel, more seamless integration of the fruit, oak, and acidity, finding its stride with better balance. Burned grapes and vines are seen at the Chateau Boswell Winery after the Glass Fire came through, in Saint Helena, California, U.S., September 28, 2020. The 2018 Chateau Montelena Napa Valley Chardonnay. “We built our wines that way,” he says. Fred Greaves | Reuters Founder Jim Barrett wanted consistency, therefore all of the wines fell under a tight perimeter of 14% alcohol, a pH range of 3.55 to 3.75, and 6.2 grams per liter acidity. It was born in a drought, matured through terrible heat spikes and had endured smoky conditions from the haze of numerous Northern California fires. This list of Sonoma and Napa wineries affected by the Glass fire will be updated as necessary. And I think there are still a lot of people who still think that way. But just because it was a great year in the fields doesn’t mean the wines just make themselves in the cellar, Crafton explained. However all the “big money fields” had already been harvested he says, roughly 80% of the Napa Valley. A winery that turns 50 years old is not impressive. Currently, there are 78 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon. Sep 30, 2020. HELENA, CA - SEPT. 28: The charred trees at the entrance of the Chateau Boswell Winery after being destroyed by the Glass Fire in St. Helena, Calif., on Monday, Sept. 28, 2020. There are slight tropical notes, a hint of almonds. Please take a moment to leave us a review here! All you can do is make good decisions with the cards you draw.”. “Though Cabernet Sauvignon is thicker skinned and can persist through inclimate conditions, a thicker skin is not impervious to smoke effects. “It’s not an oak driven wine. Everything’s well balanced and in harmony with each other. Napa Valley, an hour's drive north of San Francisco, California, is the most famous and presti ... Stores and prices for '2015 Chateau Montelena The Montelena Estate Ca … “It’s amazing to participate in and work with the Barrett family who, since day one, were committed to not only creating these breathtaking wines but to have the foresight to hold them for the future,” says current winemaker Matt Crafton. The Debut of Angel’s Share Wine & Liquors in Washington, D.C. At least 18 wineries have been at least partially damaged by record-breaking wildfires that have torn through California over the past month. Michael Cervin “There’s still that Montelena character that weaves through it, which is a function of the growing site.”. Napa Valley, an hour's drive north of San Francisco, California, is the most famous and presti ... Stores and prices for '2015 Chateau Montelena The Montelena Es ... ' | … “The ’90s wine tasted like we made them last month,” he believes. But perhaps most important, Crafton has not lost sight of what matters most – making great wines. We’ll vary how we process – whole cluster, destemed or crushed. It has also forced the evacuation of at least 70,000 people. Not to mention Hollywood has also made a movie about you. Research is incomplete on quantification of the smoke phenols in the wines, so the final decision to blend and bottle post-fire lots will be determined by our sensory powers in the winery.”, Clearly, Cabernet grapes can withstand climate variations, even fire. Fire damage to vineyards. Wine Press by Ken Ross appears on Masslive.com every Monday and in The Republican’s weekend section every Thursday. Grapevines are notoriously resilient plants. All rights reserved (About Us). It was considered to be part of the 2020 California Wildfires and the 2020 Western United States wildfire season.The fire was named due to its origin nearby Glass Mountain Road in Deer Park, Napa County, and it extended also into Sonoma County. Proud might be an understatement as Bo Barrett presented five decades of his wines. Note to readers: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate links we may earn a commission. But if you are Chateau Montelena in the Napa Valley, besting French wines in the famed “Judgment of Paris” tasting in 1976, you already have a storied provenance that has elevated you in the pantheon of American wines. At that infamous wine tasting in Paris, the winery’s 1973 Chardonnay beat out some of the best Chardonnays from France’s famous Burgundy region in a blind tasting. A movie (“Bottle Shock”) was even made about the tasting, focusing mostly on Chateau Montelena. 25.8k Views. Careful consideration drives every project with the determination to build our future. “I think it’s easy to try to fit yourself into a box,” Crafton said. One hundred and twenty-nine years later the name Tubbs would take on a new meaning as the Tubbs Fire swept through parts of the Napa and Sonoma valleys in October 2017, destroying nearly 38,000 acres and over 5,000 buildings, including a number of wineries. The 1980s saw more weather fluctuations and erratic weather patterns. There’s no magic recipe. I think what I try to go for is originality and honesty in what we’re creating.”, “Why I love my job is these wines aren’t stamped out of the same mold each year,” Crafton said. Though Bo Barrett is inexorably linked to Montelena, a familiar face, and name (his wife Heidi Peterson Barrett is best known for making Screaming Eagle), it was Bo’s father, Jim Barrett, who founded the winery and established strict priorities for the wines that are now in front of me. But the Tubbs Fire was something more aggressive. That’s because some of the grapes were damaged by smoke from this past summer’s forest fires in California. So if you aren’t able as a winemaker and a grape grower to tease out the nuances of the vineyard and the vintage – which is more difficult that it sounds like – you end up with a pretty monotonous, boring wine.”. There’s no thou shalt not make a wine under 14 percent or over 14 percent. Users have rated this wine 4.5 out of 5 stars. “Smoke affects plants in general by filtering the light, which in turn can affect photosynthesis depending on the intensity of the smoke,” says winemaker Pam Starr of Crocker & Starr Winery in St. Helena. There are no formulas here. If it’s missing something then please contact us here. You have to look very carefully at the decisions you make every year and the results of that. Fire and Napa have a long relationship. “The 2018 Chardonnay was definitely more of a classic California ripe year and that’s in stark contrast to some of the cooler years,” Crafton said. But what you miss out on is just that really kind of dynamic cohesion.”, “It’s the difference between a still life and an impressionist painting,” Crafton added. Further south in Napa, stalwarts like Duckhorn agree. Experience helps you a little bit, with being able to understand the long-term trajectory and the potential of some of the decisions you make. Cheers to that! “So based on what we’re tasting and the vineyard, you start to piece together this picture. Many California Chardonnays hit all the wrong notes – too much oak, too much butter, too over the top. Interestingly this wine feels less structured and refined however it is more typical of what we now taste as Napa Cabernet. Does the Dream Tasting reflect that vision, or is it mere reverie without reward? There’s less overt ripe fruit and more a sense of maturity. “He really allows us to explore. In this decade the addition of Cabernet Franc, though in small portions, helps to round out the wine. BY STEPHEN TANZER | JUNE 23, 2020. Old Liquors Magazine was invited to participate in a 50-year retrospective tasting of Chateau Montelena’s estate Cabernet Sauvignon at their historic winery, built in 1888. When the fires came in the middle of the night to Spring Mountain, 2,000 feet above the Napa Valley floor, Steve Sherwin and his son Matt were not going to give up without a fight. The sale of Chateau Montelena to the owner of Bordeaux's Château Cos d’Estournel has collapsed, it has been revealed. Some of the best and most consistent winemakers like Dave Ramey and Doug Schaffer all had 20 years experience under their belt. Kent Nishimura / … “People need to know their producers—the wineries with integrity that don’t make compromises will only sell you the good stuff,” Barrett says. Early on Montelena decided on a specific formula, mimicking Bordeaux. The famed 41-year-old Chateau Boswell Winery in Napa Valley, California, was destroyed during the Glass Fire on Sunday evening, according to CNN affiliate KPIX. Chateau Montelena’s 2018 Chardonnay takes a complete different approach. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. “So no Cabernet, no Zinfandel.” Smoke and fire also destroyed this year’s Riesling crop, Crafton said.
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