New Rating System and Introducing Patassy Vineyard Pinot Noir!
September 30, 2004
So I finally had to succumb and begin taking
the Wine Spectator magazine again after a year's hiatus. There is a
firm policy here at the store, that most winery and distributor reps learn
quickly, that if they are pouring a wine for me to sample (that is, attempting
to sell me a wine) and a score or rating is uttered by them, I will
automatically NOT purchase the referenced wine. It was a
pretty interesting year, and kind of brought me full circle when I first
started purchasing wine for myself in the early 1970s, because then one could
not depend upon the Wine Spectator, or Robert Parker to help you sort out the
good from the standard....or the okay from the downright awful. You had to
taste more and learn to trust your own palate. The dollar spent was the
voting. Not to wax poetically about ratings, because you really don't want
me to get started on this subject. But I like the rating system that goes
like this....
one whiff (sniff)
one sip (slurp)
one glass
one bottle!
two bottles!!
Basically, if you like the wine enough, the
following consumption progression takes place. Very practical and
easily understood by all who drink wine!
Anyway, the Wine Spectator is back in the
store and stacked for sale on the tasting bar. Did you know,
that as a merchant account, if you stop subscribing to the magazine, the
Marvin Shanken publishing empire scrubs you from its online data base and
does not acknowledge your existence as a wine store? I opened the
store in 1990. If you wanted to search for a store in your Zip Code or a
particular region, POOF!..... I had just been vaporized. This
was one of the main reasons I decided to renew my
subscription!!
The other reason, were
the references so many of you make to all of the
"centerfolds".....I mean the "Buying Guide" ratings! As if, when
I was 19 years old and I subscribed to Playboy....."Oh yes!" I would say, "I
just love to read the interesting articles and the interviews!" By
the way, do you know that the Wine Spectator use to review and rate wines
by a panel consensus? Now, if you want to know who is actually making the
review/rating, you need to understand which editor is the current
specialist for which particular wine growing region of the world.....AND what
his initials are (as they are listed after each entry). James Laube for
California (JL), James Suckling for Bordeaux, Italy and Port (JM), Thomas
Matthews for Spain (that would be TM), Per-Henrik Masson for "at Large" (kind of
like a relief pitcher from the bullpen).......and it goes on.....
Well, the first issue to arrive
was the "Special Value Issue" that listed the best "50 California Red
wines under $20" by somebody named Maryann Worobiec Bovio, listed as one of
three "tasting department coordinator"(s)! But, no where are any
initials found? Could this actually be a panel tasting consensus or just a
computer's compilation of past results from JL? Ten Pinot Noirs were
listed in this report ranging from 87 to 85 points and $19 to
$11.
In the same issue, the California
editor (that be JL, for those of you having difficulty following all of
this) does a report on rating the 2002 California Pinot Noir
vintage. Incidentally, JL rates the 2002 vintage as the best in his
more than 25 years of writing about this category. Question!
Wouldn't it make sense and add credibility to this report if the
Burgundy specialist editor Bruce Sanderson, (who's initials following
any review would add a curious note!) and the Oregon-New
Zealand specialist editor Harvey Steiman also rated these
wines? If there are editors who specialize in a region and the grapes
indigenous to that region, then why shouldn't there be a cross over of editors
when a specific grape varietal is the focus? After all, the Pinot
Noir produced from all of these regions is constantly being compared and
contrasted with one another.
So now I am finally going to get
to the point of this email!
Monday afternoon, Renee and I attended a
trade tasting at a local restaurant hosted by a broker that specializes in small
producers of high quality California wines. As we typically
attack this type of venue; first the sparkling wines to refresh and
alert the palate, then the white wines progressing to the heavier bodied
Chardonnays, on to the light and medium bodied reds, then the riper and
bolder flavored Zins, Cabernet, Syrah and finally the dessert wines to
finish. There were some damn good wineries at this tasting: David
Arthur, Miura, August Briggs, Showket, D.R. Stephens, Kosta Browne, Audelssa
(formerly Schaefer Sonoma), Garretson.....to name just a few! Over in the
corner, at the end of the "bench" sat a newcomer by the name of PATASSY VINEYARD! "Old man" Frank
Patassy (I say this affectionately, for his obvious old world Hungarian
charm) was pouring his only wine; his estate grown 2002 Pinot Noir
from the Green Valley sub-appellation of the Russian River Valley (east of Santa
Rosa bordering the Atascadero Creek). Patassy is an old nursery man who
for 20 years has helped to plant the region with root stock and knows the best
clonal selections for specific sites. GUESS WHAT!! The
Wine Spectator MISSED ONE!!!!
NOT only is this wine a GREAT VALUE!! IT IS A
VERY GOOD WINE!!!
The 2002 Patassy Vineyard Pinot Noir is stunning from
the moment you take your first sniff! Immediately, you sense a balance and
a refinement from the soft aromas of pristine black cherries and black
raspberries. Nuances of spice and smoke linger. On the
palate the same pristine fruit flavors expand with a lilting symmetry
and cashmere like mouth feel. The finish slowly glides
away....... Trust me, I am not over stating this wine's
description. Many "up to $50+" Pinot Noirs from noted producers
can only wish their wines were as good as this one. It is my job to alert
you to just this kind of gem!
The twenty year old vineyard is
about 5 acres of tightly spaced vines (4 x 8), with multi-clones,
producing extremely small clusters of fruit that ripen very late into the
harvest season (mid-October for Pinot Noir is unusual).
Destemmed and cold soaked for a few days prior to fermentation, a cool
temperature is maintained during the open top fermentation and the cap
is punched down by hand three times a day. The wine was
aged for nine months in a combination of one year old, and older "neutral"
French oak barrels. The results yielded 550 cases of a wine that displays
the essence of the vineyard's terroir without interference or
manipulation.
This is the perfect wine for the upcoming
holiday season! If you prefer dark meat turkey, then this is a must
have for the Thanksgiving table. Other suggestions would included
quail, pork tenderloin, grilled veal chop, cedar plank roasted salmon,
seared Ahi, or a wild mushroom risotto.
Normally, the 2002
Patassy Vineyard Pinot Noir sells at the bargain price of
$19.50 a bottle. If it makes you feel more secure
purchasing the wine at this price, then no problem.....I will accept your
money!! However, please take advantage of my special introductory
price of only $12.50 a
bottle!! It is only a matter of time before this
charming and delightful Pinot Noir will soon be discovered and
become nonexistent!!
Eric Stumpf
The Wine
Consultant
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