THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 19, 1997 TAG: 9701160037
SECTION: FLAVOR PAGE: F5 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: WINES & SPIRITS
SOURCE: BY M. F. ONDERDONK, WINES & SPIRITS CRITIC
LENGTH: 80 lines
DON'T GO WEST, young man. Go South. And East.
And you don't have to be young, either. Look at what Robert Mondavi is doing. The grand old man of California wine recently signed an agreement with Eduardo Chadwick, whose South American winery produces Caliterra, a popular line of wines in the under-$10 range. The partnership pairs a consistent supply of wine from Chile with Mondavi's considerable presence in California (not to mention the world). Look for more of Caliterra's agreeable chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon and sauvignon blanc on the shelves.
A bit further in the future is a super-premium Mondavi/Chadwick label. Unofficially dubbed ``Chile One,'' the wine will be made in the style of Opus One. (Opus One is the high-end, high-priced, Bordeaux-type red that came about through a joint venture between Mondavi and the late Baron Philippe de Rothschild.) Look for the first vintage of Chile One - a red, and possibly a white - to be bottled sometime in 1998.
To the east, Mondavi is also reportedly considering purchase of vineyards in that great unpioneered wine territory of - France? Yes. While Bordeaux and Burgundy have been wrapped up for a few centuries, good wine growing lands still languish (more or less) in such regions of France as Languedoc. While marketing Mediterranean-accented wines under the Vichon label, Mondavi is actively looking for a French partner.
As for California's other wine super-power, Gallo is busy back in the Old Country. Italy, whence the parents of Ernest and the late Julio emigrated a century ago, is now a source of wines for Gallo, marketed under the label Ecco Domani. Made in Venezie with fruit from this area's three wine growing regions (Veneto, Friuli and Trentino-Alto Adige), the Ecco Domani pinot grigio is refreshing and light, while the merlot has an earthy, exciting kick. Both are competitively priced at $10-$12.
The tireless Gallo family - whose juice production has bubbled to levels upward of $1 billion annually - is expanding on the home front, too. Positioned for vineyard-specific labeling, the new Zabaco line showcases more of the fine fruit coming out of the company's Sonoma properties. Like Gallo's sought-after Frei Ranch label, Zabaco zinfandel is good, rich and peppery. And the chardonnay and sauvignon blanc are both well crafted. All are in the $12 range.
Introduced three years ago, the Gallo Northern Sonoma Estate-Bottled label is the company's Holy Grail. Over several vintages, both the chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon have drawn enthusiastic reviews from critics. Not surprising that, with such enormous resources, Gallo could make a wine like the '92 cabernet. It is full and luscious with dark fruit, opening up to chocolate and coffee flavors on the finish. What is surprising is that this line retains the Gallo name, for decades a jug wine. At around $50 per bottle, it's an impressive testimony to the power of family pride.
Far, far removed - philosophically, anyway - from the West Coast's mass wine production, Dick Arrowood plies his craft. For more than a decade he has vinified signature lots of sought-after chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon, and also won attention for world-class viognier. In recent years, pinot blanc, riesling, malbec and syrah have also been added to the Arrowood line, though these can be hard to find here. But Arrowood's Domainedu Grand Archer line, which includes chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon and merlot, is widely available and invitingly priced in the $12-$15 range.
On a recent sweep through Norfolk and Virginia Beach, Arrowood paused to have lunch at Todd Jurich's Bistro and talk about the work of his Sonoma winery. For all the magic of fermentation, he's emphatic that ``90 percent of the flavor of the wine is determined before the grapes are picked.'' Choosing the right vineyard location and the best grape to grow therein, thinning the vines and cutting back leaf cover - all affect the flavor of the juice.
The proof's in the drinking. Arrowood's 1993 Sonoma County cabernet sauvignon is earthy and smoky, with complex layers of fruit and elegantly light tannins. Recently ranked 10th in Wine Spectator magazine's top 100 wines for 1996, it sells for about $27.
A veteran winegrower whose resume lists stints with Korbel and Chateau St. Jean, Arrowood consults for just one client at present - former comedian Tom Smothers, whose Remick Ridge is a Sonoma neighbor and whose vineyards also provide some of the grapes for Arrowood's own wines. While continuing to expand his Sonoma vineyards, Arrowood depends on other growers for much of the fruit he needs. His esteem for them is reflected in such labels as Preston Ranch white riesling and Saralee's Vineyard viognier and pinot blanc. Arrowood says he's looking to add Rhone-style blends to his line sometime in the future.