Saturday September 25th, 2010
11am - 8pm
Featuring:
2006 Turley "Hayne Vineyard" Napa Valley Zinfandel
2006 Turley "Hayne Vineyard" Napa Valley Petite Sirah
2006 Turley "Ueberroth Vineyard" Paso Robles Zinfandel
2006 Turley "Rattlesnake Vineyard" Howell Mountain Zinfandel
2006 Turley "Dusi Vineyard" Paso Robles ZInfandel
2006 Turley "Duarte Vineyard" Contra Costa Zinfandel
2006 Turley "Dogtown Vineyard" Lodi ZInfandel
2006 Turley "Cederman Vineyard" Howell Mountain Zinfandel
Is it any exaggeration to say that the American's consumer's embrace of wine has been one long branding exercise? Wine has, for nearly two decades, been a liquid Gucci, a vinous BMW, an alcoholic Armani or any other lofty consumer good you can name. Not for nothing did Louis Vuitton get in the wine business a while back: owning Dom Perignon must have seemed natural to handbag and perfume company.
That's not to say that the wine brands that drove this market were somehow dishonest or empty: Silver Oak was popular because, upon release, it's delicious. Caymus Conundrum allowed America its sweet tooth, without actually admitting to having one. Cakebread was the Chardonnay because, well, I have no idea on that one. It was a perfectly good Chardonnay but not unusually good. At least Rombauer could boast its friendly pricing.
No matter. Napa Valley took over from France ten or more years ago: to be able to boast of bottles of Harlan or Bryant or Grace Family in the basement was far more rarified than bottles of most any Bordeaux, except for Le Pin and Petrus. Margaux makes more than 25,000 cases, for crying out loud; Harlan is certainly less than 500. But there have been many, like Silver Oak, that have been plentiful enough in supply to allow the boasting of tens of thousands of businessmen (and some ladies too), sometimes in the space of a single evening, and therein lies at least part of their success.
Turley is such an animal. Perhaps my experience is not a scientific survey, but I have seen that many buyers actually think legendary winemaker Helen Turley has something to do with the winemaking there (she doesn't; that was a long time ago and only briefly). Her brother is the owner of the label and the wines have offered a curious perspective into the world of aspirational wines: they are mostly Zinfandel (hardly ever the object of any cult), and not particularly age-worthy (but that never slowed down Silver Oak).
Perhaps most important is that Turley presaged, indeed, might be reductively blamed for the current malaise of California wine: its super-duper alcohols. Ten and fifteen years ago, the folks at Turley were open about their lofty alcohol levels; they were even boastful of it. Seventeen percent alcohol Petite Sirahs and Zinfandels are not unusual today (more's the pity) but they were when Turley became one of the darlings of California wine.
The wines are a bit less full-throttle today (Do I detect a note of remorse? Nah.), but every bit as intense as they were when they blasted onto the scene. Can you tell that I'm not their favorite customer? Well, I don't turn my nose up at them either. I like wine, in all its forms. Turley wines will knock you back in your chair like some blockbuster summer movie, like the blockbusters that Larry Turley and his team are proud to have produced for two decades and will happily continue to produce for years to come. Just consider yourself lucky to taste them and be sure to brag to your friends.
Happy Tasting and we'll see you Saturday!
Cheers,
Doug Frost, MS MW
Master Sommelier & Master of Wine
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