Today’s Rutherford Dust Society event was held at Francis Ford Coppola’s Inglenook Winery.
I never expected to come away from an all-day tasting of 2011 Rutherford Cabernets and use the word “plush” as a descriptor of the vintage.
Nor think of it in terms like a dog’s, or a child’s, play toy, which when in use, brings a smile to your face. But it really is a totally friendly, totally tasty, vintage.
Regina Weinstein, Honig Vineyards & Winery, is president of the Rutherford Dust Society. She addressed members of the press, describing aspects of the 2011 growing season.
The press – and winemakers – have been leading us to believe that 2011, which was plagued with rain, cooler-than-average temperatures, and low yields due to mold, rot and Botrytis, is a mediocre vintage, sandwiched between two stellar vintages, 2010 and 2012.
Members of the media at the tasting.
So what a treat to discover that so many 2011 Cabs from Rutherford are “charming,” “balanced,” “feminine,” “showing poise,” “food-friendly,” and “supple.” These are words I found myself using over and over to describe 13 wines tasted blind at this morning’s annual Rutherford Dust Society Trade and Media Tasting.
Tom Rinaldi, Director of Winemaking at Hewitt & Provenance said that to be successful with the 2011 crop, winemakers had to be extremely diligent about sorting fruit – to remove rotten, moldy, or Botrytised grapes.
The event, one of my favorite trade events of the year, is hosted by Rutherford growers and wine makers.
Today’s event was held at Inglenook (formerly Rubicon, and formerly before that Niebaum-Coppola Estate Winery, and some time before that, it was called... Inglenook).
The gorgeous stained glass window at Niebaum-Coppola...er, Inglenook.
Rutherford is one of 16 sub-appellations within Napa Valley. Many winemakers in this tiny appellation chose to tweak their 2011 wines with up to five percent of their 2010 or 2012 beefier Cabernets to give a boost to their potentially underwhelming reds. This is totally permissible by wine-making regs.
In the morning, the Press tasted a flight of 13 unlabeled 2011 Rutherford Cabs; in the afternoon, restaurant and retail wine buyers were let into the action as Rutherford wineries poured their new-release wines.
There was a pleasing uniformity among all 13 wines in the Press blind tasting.
One of my favorites of the tasting was the 2011 Conn Creek Cabernet Sauvignon which I discovered afterward has an extremely low alcohol level – 13.5 percent – just as top Bordeaux often exhibit.
How refreshing to find wines of lower alcohol levels – this tends to make them prettier, softer, more approachable early on.
Though make no mistake about the 2011 Cabs – they are going to age just fine. In fact, I predict that some of the wines we tasted today will still be gorgeous six to 10 years from now.
Lunch time.
Philippe Bascaules, Inglenook Estate Manager and Winemaker, at lunch.
After the morning media session, guests were treated to a catered luncheon at Inglenook. I had the pleasure of sitting with Philippe Bascaules, Estate Manager and Winemaker, who hosted the luncheon. His own 2011 Inglenook Cab was approachable, refined, charming, and did I say compelling?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rutherford Factoid
% of vineyard acres planted to Cabernet Sauvignon – 71%
Size of viticultural area – 6 square miles
No. of wineries in Rutherford – 48
Oldest bonded winery – Inglenook, 1879
Average altitude - 172 feet above sea level , though if the polar icecaps melt as predicted, tractors in Napa Valley may have to be equipped with pontoons by 2050
Soil composition – the soils here are primarily Gravelly, Sandy and Loamy. Wait, aren’t those King Lear’s three daughters?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After lunch, guests joined trade members in a free-for-all tasting of some 65 different wines poured by no fewer than 37 wineries
2011 Frank Family, Winston Hill -- another one of the wines I really liked at the morning press tasting. The wine was velvety in texture, had a softness you might associate with the photos of gorgeous fashion models taken with a camera lens smeared with Vaseline to heighten the desire; the wine was that alluring.
Pouring Cabernet at the Alpha Omega stand.
Nancy O’Connell pours el Molino Chardonnay and Pinot Noir – proof that man cannot live on Cabernet Sauvignon alone!
Comments