Sweet and Sour Spectator

Notes in Fine Wines of California use the following rating system:

(****) Excellent
(***) Very good
(**) Good
(*) Average
(BA) Below Average

Now, let us fire up the Way-back machine and return to those thrilling days of yesteryear. The rest of this post is all quoted from “Fine Wines,” except that the names of the wineries have been changed to protect the guilty. Let’s begin with a short history lesson about labeling:

“What then is a California Burgundy, Sauterne, Chablis, Rhine Wine, and Claret? Perhaps the only general statement that can be made about these wines is that they usually bear little if any resemblance to their European namesakes. Often they are wines of lesser quality, although there are a few wineries that do produce fine wines under these labels. California wines bearing these generic (regional) names are made from a myriad of grape varieties including a few good ones, and a host of inferior types, and their quality ranges anywhere from a good wine to one that is barely palatable at fraternity parties.”

“In Europe a Chablis is a quality dry wine made from the Chardonnay grape. A Rhine wine may be dry or semisweet and is generally made from grapes of the Riesling family. A Sauternes is a luscious, sweet, golden wine made in the district of the same name, near Bordeaux. In California, on the other hand, a white wine labeled Chablis may be indistinguishable from one called Sauternes. In fact, among the large commercial wineries it is not unheard of to stop the production line, change labels, and contine filling the bottles with the same wine.”

N.V. XXX Burgundy (USA, California) Made from Carignane, Duriff, and Grand Noir(whatever that is) grapes, this is a light to medium red wine with a vinous aroma. The body, tannin, and acid are all light to medium, and combine to give a wine with a somewhat fruity taste, though with no great character. Not bad for a California Burgundy. (*)

N.V. XXX Chablis (USA, California) From the Chenin Blanc, Folle Blanche, and Pinot Blanc grapes, this is a medim yellow wine with a faint, very slightly vinous aroma. Dry light to moderate in body and acid. Not a particularly distinctive wine, but not unpleasant. (*)

1965 YYY Johannisburg Riesling (USA, California) Little of the 1965 Johannisburg Riesling remains to be found. This was a smooth, clean wine with a fruity aftertaste. A speck drier than the non-vintaged Johannisburg, this was also a good wine, though whether it was worth $1.30 a bottle more is questionable. (**)

1967 ZZZ Gewurztraminer Cabinet (USA, California) The 1967 is light yellow in color with a beautiful spicy-flowery aroma. A medium-dry wine with a light body and moderate acid. Rather sweet for the connoisseur, this is nevertheless a very nice wine that will appeal to those who like a white wine with some residual sugar. Probably should be served only with dessert or all alone (***)

N.V. WWW Chablis (USA, California) Two different wines have appeared under this label in recent years, the first being medium dry, and the latest dry. Produced from Chenin Blanc, French Colombard, and Green Hungarian grapes, both were generally light to medium yellow in color with a pronounced, pleasant aroma, light to medium body and moderate acid. Both of these wines have been quite pleasant and have shown good character for a California Chablis, but it’s a shame there’s not identifying mark so the consumer can tell if he’s buying a dry or medium-dry wine. (**)

1966 VVV Burgundy (USA, California) This wine is made from a large variety of red grapes in which the Petite Sirah predominates. Light red in color, with a good aroma. The body is fine for a California Burgundy; acid and tannin are moderate. This is a good wine, not a great one, but selling for only $1.79 in California, it is an attractive buy. (**)

N.V. UUU Hostess Burgundy (USA, California) A slightly sweet, medium red wine with a mellow, vinous aroma. The body and acid are light to medium and the tannin is low. This is a smooth, well-made wine which, though it probably will not appeal to connoisseurs because of its sweetness, will be appreciated by people who find dry red wines a little too astringent for their taste. (*)

XYZ Winery (For folks looking for XYZin Winerey, click here)

The XYZ Winery is located a few miles north of Healdsburg on Healdsburg Avenue. The tasting room, though small and resembling a curio shop, is adequate for the number of visitors received and the presided over by two very friendly elderly women who provide walnuts for your between-wines relaxation. While some of XYZ’s production is sold in bulk to other wineries, a full line of red and white wines is available at the tasting room under the XYZ label.

XYZ, along with many of the other wineries in the Russian River area, believes in long aging in wood for its red wines. Most spend eight or nine years in the wood in everything from one-thousand-gallon to twenty-five-gallon barrels and then are released for sale almost immediately after bottling. In most cases at least several months of bottle aging are still needed, if only to smooth out the shock of bottling, and many of XYZ’s wines should be laid away for several years to overcome the forcefulness they picked up in the wood.