It Was a Very Good Year : A List of the Most Memorable Wines of the Past 12 Months

ONE OF the most heated discussions occurring during the recent three-day “World of Wines” assemblage at the Ritz-Carlton in Laguna Niguel was set off by panelist Bill Jekel. President of Jekel Vineyards in Monterey County, with about 15 years of history in wine making and gold medals galore for his Rieslings and Cabernet Sauvignons, Jekel is concerned about the lack of registered status for his and other leading California vineyards. Citing the famous French Classification of 1855, which ranked Bordeaux wines--based on prices over preceding years--in a Grand Cru system which has remained virtually unchanged for more than 130 years, he led off a discussion titled, “Rating America’s Vineyards: Should there be an American Grand Cru System?”

All the panelists agreed that consumers need something beyond medal recognition to find their way to reliably better, finer wines, but even there, numerical evaluations falter, and using the 100-point scale, as Agustin Huneeus said, “It’s a disaster to say that one wine is a 97, another one merely 92. It’s like doing the same thing to a Mozart concerto at one rating and a Beethoven symphony at another. It’s a personal experience.”

Darrell Corti, Sacramento’s leading wine merchant, scholar and writer, said: “American consumers like everything compartmentalized in neat little boxes, into which wines don’t fit!” All panelists were worried about any ultimate government bureaucratic interference. Bitter barbs came from the platform as well as the audience on the implementing of any system or criteria for quality judgment. I overheard the colloquial American wisdom, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” as the answer.

In its November-December, 1987, issue, Wine Country magazine, published in Benicia, Calif., stated that consumers are well served by its annual listing of the “Best of the Best Wineries,” which ranks wineries by ratings derived from its own tastings. In 1987, that amounted to a point system that statistically ranked 194 wineries in a “rank spread” that reduced the ratings of 400 wineries, down to one Platinum class (Buena Vista Winery), 10 Gold Medal winners, 15 Silver, 25 Bronze, and 40 Top Producer winners, for a total of 91. There are obvious flaws in the system--which did not include Robert Mondavi, Jekel, Grgich Hills, Jordan, Chateau Montelena, Louis M. Martini, Raymond, Far Niente, Zaca Mesa, Wente, Chalone, Acacia, Stainsbury, Schramsberg and Concannon--but did include Almaden and the nearly extinct Paul Masson.

I’ve compiled a list of the outstanding wines in my 1987 experience for shopping guidance in 1988. Memory records them all as wonderful, with price no indication of quality.

RED WINES CABERNET SAUVIGNON Barefoot Bynum Sonoma County (1.5 liter) $5.99 (1.5 liter, 3.99 Beringer 1983 Knights Valley 10.50 Buena Vista 1984 L’Annee-Carneros Red Table wine (Magnum) 30.00 Christian Brothers 1984 Napa Valley 7.50 Creston Manor 1984 Edna Valley 10.00 Domaine Michel 1984 Sonoma County 19.50 Far Niente 1984 Napa Valley 25.00 Ernest & Julio Gallo 1980 Sonoma County -Limited Release 7.99 Geyser Peak 1983 Alexander Valley -Unfined/Unfiltered 12.00 Geyser Peak 1984 Reserve Alexandre 20.00 Grgich Hills 1982 Napa Valley 17.00 Guenoc 1983 Lake County 9.00 The Hess Collection 1983 Napa Valley 13.50 William Hill 1984 Napa Valley--Reserve 16.00 Inglenook 1983 Napa Valley Reunion 30.00 Jordan 1983 Alexander Valley 17.00 Keenan 1984 Napa Valley--Estate 15.00 Laurel Glen 1984 Sonoma Mountain 15.00 Louis M. Martini 1985 Special Selection -Duke of Bourbon 10.00 Opus One 1983 Napa Valley 50.00 Zaca Mesa 1983 American Reserve 9.75 PINOT NOIR Buena Vista 1984 Carneros-Private Reserve 14.50 Edna Valley 1984 Edna Valley Pinot Noir -Estate Bottled 10.00 Robert Mondavi 1983 Napa Valley 10.30 Sanford 1984 Central Coast 12.00 Rodney Strong 1984 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir River East Vineyard 8.00 ZINFANDEL Enz Vineyards 1984 Lime Kiln Valley 6.90 Rodney Strong 1980 Russian River Valley -River West Vinyard 10.00 MISCELLANEOUS RED WINES Arciero 1985 Paso Robles Petite Sirah 7.50 Bonny Doon 1985 California Le Cigare Volante 12.00 Martin Brothers 1985 California Nebbiolo 7.50 Enz Vineyards 1980 Lime Kiln Valley Pinot St. George 9.90 WHITE WINES CHARDONNAY Beaulieu Vineyard 1985 Los Carneros Reserve $12.00 Bouchaine 1985 Napa Valley 19.00 Byron Vineyard 1985 Santa Barbara County -Reserve 13.00 Calera 1984 Santa Barbara County 11.25 Callaway 1985 Temecula “Calla-Lees” 9.25 Chateau Montelena 1985 Napa Valley 18.00 Chateau St. Jean 1985 Alexander Valley 16.00 Chimney Rock 1984 Napa Valley 0? Clos Pegase 1985 Alexander Valley 13.00 Conn Creek 1983 Napa Valley 14.00 Domaine Michel 1985 Sonoma County 16.00 Far Niente 1986 Napa Valley 24.00 Ferrari-Carano 1986 Alexander Valley 14.25 Freemark Abbey 1984 Napa Valley 14.00 Grgich Hills 1985 Napa Valley 22.00 Jordan 1984 Alexander Valley 16.00 Keenan 1984 Napa Valley 12.50 Kendall-Jackson 1985 Proprietors Reserve 16.00 Sanford 1985 Santa Barbara County -Barrel Select 20.00 Ventana Vineyards 1985 Monterey -Gold Stripe 9.00 RIESLING Jekel Vineyard 1986 Arroyo Seco 6.50 The Firestone Vineyard 1985 Santa Ynez Valley-Ambassadors Vineyard Select Late Harvest (375 milliliters) 9.50 GEWURZTRAMINER Fetzer 1985 California 6.00 Mark West 1985 Russian River 7.50 Joseph Phelps 1984 Napa Valley 8.00 SAUVIGNON BLANC/FUME BLANC Beringer 1985 Napa Valley 7.25 Chimney Rock 1985 Napa Valley 9.00 Clos Pegase 1985 Napa Valley 9.00 Creston Manor 1986 San Luis Obispo County 7.98 Concannon 1985 Livermore Valley 9.65 Raymond 1986 Napa Valley 7.50 Ventana Vineyards 1986 Monterey County 7.50 Vichon 1985 Napa Valley Chevrignon 7.00 MISCELLANEOUS WHITE WINES: Bonny Doon 1985 California Muscat Canelli Ice Wine (375 milliliters) 15.00 Enz Vineyard 1986 Lime Kiln Valley Orange Muscat (Dry) 6.90 SPARKLING WINES (METHODE CHAMPENOISE): Chandon Reserve-Napa Valley Magnums 28.75 Chateau St. Jean 1983 Blanc de Blancs-Brut 12.00 John Culbertson 1984 Brut Rose 16.50 Erdman-Tedeschi 1983 Maui Blanc de Noirs-Hawaii 21.88 Gloria Ferrer Sonoma County Brut 12.00 Iron Horse 1984 Sonoma County Green Valley Blanc de Noirs 16.50 Korbel 1981 Blanc de Blancs -Reserve Magnums 35.00 Maison Deutz Arroyo Grande Brut Cuvee 15.00 Mark West 1984 Blanc de Noirs -Russian River Valley 16.50 Scharffenberger 1984 Mendocino Brut 13.50 Wente Bros. 1982 Arroyo Seco Brut 10.50 GRAPPA-MARC-EAU DE VIE: Bonny Doon Marc de Muscat Canelli -Marc Brandy 90 proof (375 milliliters) 10.00 St. George Spirits Williams Pear -California Eau de Vie 80 proof (375 milliliters) 10.00 St. George Spirits Marc St. George of Gewurztraminer 80 proof (375 milliliters) 10.00

Note: The above three products of California vineyards, made through extraordinary distillation, are traditionally served to punctuate fine dining, with desserts or coffee, at room temperature or ice cold.