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Charter Oak Zinfandel chosen TOPS out of 730 world wines!

To find out what wines "Millennials" (individuals in the 21-35 age group) enjoy, a worldwide competition was held in the Bay-area last month, bringing together Millennial winemakers and Millennial judges. The competition was called “The NextGen Competition,” short for Next Generation.

As I have been making Charter Oak wine with Rob Fanucci since 2002, two years ago, he asked me to come inside his family winery business and join him as an active partner. (Let’s get this potential Conflict of Interest relationship off the table…. But it has nothing to do with the story I’m about to relate.)

David pours wine at the annual Charter Oak ZinArt party, an infusion of good wine and good art, the latter produced by Rob’s wife, Layla Fanucci. Layla’s “Cityscape” oils are internationally shown and collected.

Over time, we have encouraged Rob’s son, David Fanucci, to help us make the wine and 21-year-old David is now Charter Oak’s official assistant winemaker, helping punch down fermenting wines, rack wines throughout the year and help prepare final blends. (That’s David in the first shot above.)

The rules for the NextGen Competion were that you must have a Millennial on your winemaking team – and as David fits the age-grade category, we submitted our 2007 Charter Oak Monte Rosso Zinfandel, which David had a large part in making and blending.

Twenty-four Millennial-aged judges – all of them wine industry professionals – assembled in the Bay-area in June and tasted through 730 wines submitted from all over the world.

Our 2007 Charter Oak Monte Rosso Zinfandel was chosen blind as THE NUMBER ONE WINE IN THE WORLD to be made by a Next Generation "Millennial" OUT OF 730 WINES IN THE COMPETITION!

You can read more about Charter Oak Winery at www.charteroakwine.com and you can read more about the NextGen Wine Competition at www.nextgenwinecomp.com.

Donny and August Sebastiani, recognized pioneers in developing innovative wines in America, served as honorary co-chairs of the NextGen event.

“For four generations, our family has produced quality value wines and now it’s our chance to take the wine business to the next level, says Donny.

Organizers of the NextGen Wine Competition say they intend to make it an annual event.

 From left to right: Hear no evil, Speak no evil, See no evil. The three monkeys at Charter Oak – David Fanucci, me, and Rob Fanucci.

Over at Charter Oak, we’ve had to put sand in Rob’s cuffs to keep his feet on the ground.

If you’ve never been to Charter Oak, in St. Helena, let me explain its microscopic imprint; there are something like 500 wineries in Napa Valley and we are pretty sure that Charter Oak is (proudly) the smallest of the 500.

Charter Oak’s secret weapon: we press all our wine in the near-100-year-old wooden basket press, formerly used by Rob’s grandfather, Guido Ragghianti, who taught Rob how to make wine 25 years ago.

We make all our wines (about 750 cases per year total) by hand, the old-fashioned way. Which explains why our Zinfandels and Petite Sirahs have a silken texture and an elegant balance, not typically found in these varietal wines.

Jim and Rob clown around (as usual). Our motto: “If you don’t have fun making wine, stay out of the cellar!”

To make an appointment to visit Charter Oak, call Rob at 707-963-2298. Rob says that if you mention you read this story in napaman, you’ll receive a 10% case discount. See, it pays to read napaman!

What we Drank at Dinner Last Night....

.... major yum all of it.

But the hands-down favorite of the dinner group was the 1991 Philip Togni Cabernet from Spring Mountain.

Philip has told me in the past that his 1991 oeuvre may be the single best wine he's ever made, even better than his legendary 1969 Chapellet!! (You can read about THAT experience at the following URL)

http://www.napaman.com/napamancom/2007/05/1969_chappellet.html

Her Fruits & Vegetables are the Best, even out of Season!

 Lisa Livoni, watercolorist

Let’s get potential conflict of interest charges out of the way:

I know Lisa Livoni.

I have purchased her gorgeous watercolors and love them.

I think she is one of the most talented watercolorists in Napa Valley.

And one more thing: I worked with Lisa last year in a common endeavor, a project called Local Color, in which we tried to get Napa Valley restaurants and wineries to buy her stunning, interpretative art.

Now, the general, art-loving, art-buying public will have a chance to acquire some of her newest paintings. Lisa’s colorful watercolors – mostly of fruits, vegetables, and flowers – are on view at Whiting Nursery, in St. Helena, from today through September 30. The show is called “A Brush in the Garden.”

For the first time ever, Lisa has produced large format paintings, some in the 3- x 4-foot range, significantly larger than the postcard- and letter-sized watercolor paintings, for which she is known.

“Marsha's Inspiration,” 34" x 47"  

“Painting is a very physical thing to me,” says Lisa. “This new larger size let’s me explore how I truly feel about what I am painting… and let’s me revel in my love of color.  I should have moved to the larger painting format sooner, but art is a personal, evolutionary process and I just wasn’t there.” 

"Red Flag," 34"x 47"

As she loves to garden, Lisa has turned to this theme for the watercolors in this exhibition. The words “joyful,” “colorful,” and “fresh” come to mind when viewing the collection.

Where’d she develop her sense of color and her near-compulsion to paint?

“I developed a serious interest in art as a child and feel that my earliest creative influences came from extensive family travel at a young age. This included three years of living in Japan.”

“Anne's Artichoke,” 34"x 47"

After graduating from the California College of Art, Lisa worked as a graphic designer for 23 years. Then, after designing some of California’s most iconic wine labels, she decided to become a fulltime, professional painter, which she has been for the last 10 years.

Lisa’s watercolor images have been exhibited at the I. Wolk Gallery, in Napa Valley, at the William Zimmer Gallery in Mendocino, in the Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, and at the Napa Valley Museum, Yountville.

“Quince,” 40"x 35"

Images in the Whiting exhibit range in price from $300 to $5,000 per watercolor.

A reception for Lisa will be held Saturday, July 3, at Whiting Nursery, from 2 to 4 pm. Napaman readers are invited – see you there.

Whiting Nursery is at 738 Main St, St. Helena, corner of Charter Oak Ave. Open Mon. through Sat. 8:30 am to 5 pm, and Sundays 9 am to 5 pm. For information, call 707-963-5358.

Lisa Livoni

If you are visiting St. Helena and are not familiar with the local restaurant scene, be sure to stop at the best restaurant on Charter Oak Avenue, just across the street from Whiting Nursery.

I’m speaking about Tra Vigne, one of the valley’s landmark restaurants. The food, Italian by theme, has never been better here, thanks to the attentive touch of executive chef Nash Cognetti. For a reservation, call 707-963-4444. Tra Vigne, corner Charter Oak Avenue and Highway 29/Main St., St. Helena.