Wine Podcast: The Honest Pour With John Lenart

Over the past few years California wines often go to one of two extremes. They tend to either be sweet, high alcohol jam bombs that meet the likes of a few well regarded and powerful wine critics, or they tend toward the reactionary "new" school style of being intentionally low in alcohol, lean and under-ripe. Josh Phelps, a native of Napa Valley and son of a well regarded winemaker, is a millennial winemaker with a new brand called Grounded Wine Co. who is marching to his own beat. The initial release from Grounded Wine Co., a Bordeaux blend called Steady State is a truly balanced beauty. Phelps plans other new releases from growing regions in Washington State as well as Paso Robles which will be priced to be accessible to younger wine drinkers. But don't let a low priced wine from a young winemaker fool you. If  the wines to come from Grounded Wine Co . are as good as Phelps' inaugural  release, this is a guy you'll want to follow.

While working with some of Napa Valley’s most influential wine producers, in some of the best vineyard sites in all of California, Andy Erickson and his wife Annie Favia started a small project in their garage. That single barrel blossomed over the years to what has become Favia. Erickson and Favia are now producing outstanding wines from premium California growing sites in their small winery located on their historic Coombsville ranch. While these wines are hard to find, due to small production, and are on the pricier side, you can be sure that they are absolutely outstanding wines which showcase the best of the vineyards which they are grown.

Randy Snowden's parents purchased what is today The Snowden Ranch in 1955. The 160 acre property lies on the eastern slopes of Napa Valley looking down at Rutherford and St. Helena. This unique site isn't part of either the St. Helena or Rutherford appellation, yet it produces fruit that shows some distinctive characteristics of both St. Helena and Rutherford. Everyone knows Napa wine isn't cheap. With land costs that can approach a million dollars per acre, how could it be? Yet, while many Napa wines work their way well into the 3 figure price points, relative value still exists. Perhaps there's no greater example of value from Napa than Snowden Vineyard wines.

Sherry took me a long time to get to know. My friend, sherry guru Elizabeth Mendez tried to show me the light for years. Somehow I just couldn't see it. But finally, on a trip to Spain hosted by González Byass, maker of Tio Pepe fino sherry, I was able to put context to the ethereal fortified wine of Jerez. It happened while eating tapas, a simple grilled shrimp on a skewer and sipping Tio Pepe sherry, that it all came together. I talk some sherry basics and sample some stunning wines with the charming Victoria González-Gordon.

Manuel Louzada is a thoughtful well spoken winemaker. A fourth generation winemaker his family's commitment to quality winemaking has been passed down through the generations and today he maintains that commitment on two continents. Chasing harvests between South America and Europe his wines are distinctive and terroir driven. The wines I tasted in this episode are no longer the current releases but the tasting notes below will give you an idea of the style of wines Louzada makes and what you can expect from the current releases.

In Episode 12 of The Honest Pour I interviewed Marchese Lamberto Frescobaldi, owner of Frescobaldi. In this episode I interview a winemaker from one of his estates, Eleonora Marconi, winemaker at Frescobaldi's Castello di Nipozzano Estate. Built in the year 1000 as a defensive fortress, today Castello di Nipozzano houses the wine cellars. I spoke with Marconi about her dedication to making wines for this historic estate her close working relationship with the Marchese.

When you think about drinks from Texas what first comes to mind might be Lone Star beer or Tito's Vodka. But for the wine lover, look to Texas Hill Country. Here lies a burgeoning wine industry. The arid land and gently rolling hills there brings to mind the south of Spain. It's in the hill country just outside of Austin that William Chris Vineyards is located. The Chris of William Chris, is Chris Brundrett, the native Texas winemaker winemaker who studied at Texas A&M. Brundrett is making some really delicious and  intriguing wines that express the terroir of the lone star state.

Back in November I visited Jericho Canyon. I spent time with the winemaker Nicholas Bleecher who literally grew up beneath the vines of the vineyard his parent planted in Jericho Canyon, a secluded, steep sloped cut in the hills of Calistoga. Nick and I started our conversation atop the windy canyon, then went deep into the echo filled caves to taste some very special wine.

IIn Rutherford, just north of Oakville lies the Georges De Latour vineyards. While Mr. De Latour lacked creative naming for his vineyards, he found some of Napa's greatest land for growing cabernet sauvignon. From these amazing properties the great André Tchelistcheff created some of the best wine available from Napa Valley. The weight of that history and sense of place is not lost on Jeffrey Stambor who today, as winemaker at BV, fosters that tradition of excellence. Stambor approaches winemaking at BV with the French sensibility of expressing what the land gives him rather than creating character in the winery.

Without the influence of Robert Mondavi Napa Valley would still be a world-class wine region, but it wouldn't be the same as it is today.  While his eponymous winery sold to a large corporation more than a decade ago, the wine making team there strives to assure that Mr. Mondavi's influence and philosophy live on today.  Joe Harden is responsible for making the Bordeaux wine varieties for Robert Mondavi Winery. A former pro basketball player, Harden grew up in Lodi, the son of wine grape growers, who sold grapes to Mondavi. Upon leaving the hard court he returned to the world of wine and landed an internship, which turned into a job as winemaker, at Robert Mondavi. Even though he's a young man, the responsibility of maintaining the tradition of Robert Mondavi does not escape Harden, and he's making some fabulous wines from Mondavi's To Kalon and other great vineyards.

A lot of marketing efforts are being made to convince consumers that Champagne is not just for special occasions. While that's true, some bottles are meant for times of celebration and opulence. Just by looking at the unique metalicized bottle of Armand de Brignac one can tell these cuvees are for special times. Produced by the Cattier family, who have been making fine Champagnes for 11 generations, Armand de Brignac produces five multi-vintage cuvees.. Hip hop star and mogul Jay-Z loved the wine so much he bought the brand in 2014. Winemaker at Armand de Brignac, Emilien Boutillat is a native of Champagne who is committed to creating wines that express the best of Champagne.  While talking with Boutillat and tasting his wines, one can tell his efforts are succeeding.

Austin Hope was destined for the vineyard since he was in the fourth grade. Preferring to work in the dusty vineyard under the blazing sun of the Paso Robles summer, handed out by his father as punishment for poor behavior to school work, Hope began his career in wine from an early age. Today, Austin handles the wine making for the numerous labels of the Hope Family Wines portfolio.  He approaches wine making with a sensibility and understanding of balance like only a select few winemakers of his generation do.  It's this understanding that makes his Treana Blanc, a white Rhone blend, one of the most intriguing wines I've tasted this year.

It seems that every year China gobbles up a bigger share of the world’s best wines. Yet when it comes to producing great wine, China makes none. Until now. It would seem in a country so vast that a great wine growing region must exist. The minds at Moet Hennessy thought so too and sought it out. After years of research they settled on the foothills of the Himalaya, high in the Yunnan province, and charged Maxence Dulou, with creating a world class Cabernet Sauvignon from vineyards exceeding 8500 feet in elevation.

When it comes to Burgundy the name of the producer on the bottle might just be the most important piece of information. Some producers make a scant barrel or two per vintage fro a single vineyard. Others, like Maison Louis Jadot make wines from across Burgundy, ranging from Chablis to the Mâconnais. The challenge is to maintain the terroir from each bottling. Frederic Barnier, winemaker at Maison Louis Jadot, tells me how he embraces this challenge and others while we sample wines from the upcoming release of the 2015 vintage.

Andrea Cecchi leads the fourth generation of his family in the wine business. Not only is Andrea dedicated to making wines of outstanding quality and value, but he also is the pioneer of the Maremma growing area. The coastal area of Maremma was traditionally a farming area of crops other than grapes. But today, under the guidance of Andrea, some fabulous vermentino is being grown.

The history of the Pellegrini family in the California wine industry goes back to before prohibition. Today, that heritage and history is fostered by Fred Reno, President of Olivet Lane Estate and Pellegrini Wine Co. We sat down to talk with Fred about the heritage of the company and its special vineyard in Russian River Valley, Olivet Lane.

For a long time wine from South Africa suffered a reputation of low quality, mass produced jug wine. But a group of young wine makers are out to change all that. People like Donovan Rall are searching the growing regions of South Africa for old, high quality vineyards, that produce high quality fruit that was once blended into bulk wine. Today, Rall is making some of South Africa's most dynamic wines.

Without the name Mondavi Napa Valley would still be a world class wine producing region, but it certainly wouldn't be the same as it is today. In 1966, after the much publicized split with his brother, Robert Mondavi and his son Michael started the Robert Mondavi Winery. And the rest, as they say, is history. And what a history it is. After the family took the company public in 1994, then selling the winery to Constellation Brands in 2004, Michael Mondavi left the boardroom and returned to the vineyard when he purchased property on Atlas Peak. Today, Michael, along with his wife and children, continue the family tradition of making wine in Napa Valley. I sat down with Michael to talk about his family's colorful history and what that legacy brings to the wines he makes today.

Charter Oak Winery is a gem of Napa Valley. Like many other wineries in the valley it began as a small family operation. While it's grown since its founding in the early 20th century by Italian immigrant Guido Ragghianti, Charter Oak is still family run, by Guido's grandson Robert Fanucci, who continues to use much of Guido's original equipment and techniques today. The tiny winery is located in a house, just off of Highway 29, at the end of Charter Oak Avenue, in St. Helena. It's a place I highly recommend you visit and get to know Robert, his world renown artist wife Layla, and their delicious wines.

Chris Howell is a wine grower who marches to his own beat. Many of his practices vary from just about any other winery in Napa valley. Relying more on blending than single grape varieties, multi-vintage blends, even using brettanomyces, the yeast strain often feared by others, Howell's wines are unique, thought provoking, and truly expressions of his philosophy about what makes great wine. I enjoyed our interview so much this episode runs a little longer than most. Be patient though, what Howell has to say is worth listening to.