Breath-taking views and beautiful vino
is always abundant while in wine country, and while the Russian River
Valley certainly delivered there, I was delightfully surprised by the
wonderful families and rich wine-making heritage of the people who
call the weaving river home. During my short stay I was able to visit
the wineries of Thomas George Estates, Gracciana, J. Rochioli, and
Korbel and had a wide array of experiences ranging from impersonal
and corporate to incredibly curated and boutique. In this brief
winery review I will discuss my tastings and break down what was so
great (or not so great) about each place, and rank them in terms of
wine quality and customer interaction.
J. Rochioli
Wine Quality: 2nd
Customer Interaction: 4th
Overall: 4th
To say that I was excited to see the
grounds of Rochioli would be an understatement of monumental
proportions. The history alone is enough to make a wine nerd like
myself start salivating, not to mention some of their most prized
single-vineyard pinot noirs have a five year waiting list to get your
hands on a bottle. The wines exhibited exceptional balance but the
way we were shuffled through the tasting with very little face to
face time with an employee left for much to be desired. Our tasting
was scheduled in the last hour of the day and when we asked to
revisit a wine while waiting for our ride service to arrive, we were
told, “We close in twenty minutes.” When we were drinking wine,
there was very little chance to actually nerd out about the wines,
and the staff seemed more interested in informing us on where the
best burger in town was rather than what we were actually there for.
After paying ahead for a scheduled tasting, I think the money might
have been better used on a decent bottle from here rather than what I
thought was going to be a guided tasting. Slightly disappointing, but
it goes to show that passion for your wine might be more important to
a tasting experience than accolades.
Korbel
Wine Quality: 4th
Customer Interaction: 3rd
Overall: 3rd
Anyone going to Korbel should know what
they're getting in to; the place is massive and a corporate giant in
the wine world, the tasting “stand” might be the least focused
element in their tourist shop and deli, and you'll have to dig pretty
hard to find someone involved enough to actually know about the wine
making processes. With that being said Korbel provided a fun
environment and exciting tasting even though the quality of their
wine has lacked over the years. Their list was as large as one would
expect from the biggest name in American sparkling wine, and even
though the employee pouring for us was not that knowledgeable about
their wines, he loved his job, and seeing someone with a love for
having fun in a corporate house was uplifting and made for a pretty
awesome tasting. The wine was remarkably average but reasonably
priced and make for awesome take home bottles after your palate is
overstimulated and your BAC a little too high to enjoy the nicer
bottles you picked up throughout the day. If you're looking to try a
wide variety of wines after a long day of pinots and chards, Korbel
is a good last stop.
Wine Quality: 3rd
Customer Interaction: 1st
Overall: 2nd
Gracianna is located only a short walk
away from Rochioli, but situated as far as possible in terms of
winery values. After catching their fifteen year old son making wine
in their garage, the owners of Gracianna decided to start a family
venture named after their French Basque grandmother. This small
family winery aims at providing an intimate experience with their
bombastic wines by taking each visitor in and treating them like
family. Each employee was knowledgeable, eager, and involved in every
step of operations. Picking grapes from their vines as the owners
poured us their favorite wines was the highlight of the weekend and
while most of their wines were not necessarily my style, their
personable nature and willingness to show off their passion project
make this place a definite stop for anyone looking to experience the
great people of Sonoma. The winemakers at Gracianna like to push the
envelope when it comes to ripeness and make some truly American style
pinots. The true gem here lies in their Zinfandel, which is much
lighter in its approach and was one of the more exciting bottles that
we tried all day.
Wine Quality: 1st
Customer Interaction: 2nd
Overall: 1st
Thomas George Estates is nothing short
of wine nerd heaven and provided the boutique experience that I had
been yearning for since purchasing my ticket to SFO. Upon walking in,
the first thing that caught my eye was the samples of soil from all
of their different blocks on display, and I knew I was in good hands.
We had our cave tasting with Miranda, a wonderful employee who was
oozing with both wine knowledge and an unmatched fervor for the
bottles that they were producing at TGE. (Definitely ask for her if
you get the chance) She led us on a wonderful journey of some of
their estate pinots and chards of which the Baker Ridge Pinot Noir
was certainly the star, and a personal favorite of the employees. All
of their wines were extraordinary but the Baker displayed intense
depth, balanced structure, and wonderfully pronounced secondary
characteristics that were unparalleled by any wine I've had the
opportunity of trying from the region. The wines of TGE are
expensive, but you're paying for a quality and attention to detail
that is rarely seen in the states and especially rare in some of the
over explored areas of California. After an unforgettable tasting,
Miranda took us inside and let us try the very special Belle's Blend
(Grenache Blanc/Viognier), which was the undeniable champion in the
battle arena of Pinot/Chard land. Oily, bright, floral, lively,
remarkable, and perfectly balanced, Belle's Blend exemplifies the
astounding effort and knowledge put into each bottle at Thomas George
Estates. The wine and the people at TGE are both amazing and a case
of Belle's Blend will find its way to my apartment ASAP.
The Russian River Valley provided
everything I imagined and more, and proved to me that California has
more to offer than the over-stomped vineyards of Napa. I also learned
that the people of this famed AVA have a burning love for their land
and their wines, and that showing you care goes a long way when it
comes to both wine-making, and providing a memorable tasting
experience. Hopefully this short excerpt can lead you in the right
direction if you decide to visit this amazing parcel of the US,
(which you definitely should) but also know that nothing anyone can
say can truly paint the picture for you, and experiencing the Russian
River Valley for yourself is the only way to know which experiences
are for you.