Vines Traced to the Legendary Lillie Langtry

Guenoc Vineyards in Lake County has discovered eight vines believed to have been planted before the turn of the century by actress Lillie Langtry.

The discovery, made about a month ago, surprised Guenoc owner Orville Magoon, who for the last decade has been trying to trace the commitment to wine made by Langtry, who bought the 4,000-acre ranch in Lake County, north of the Napa Valley, in 1888 and, it is believed, made wine and sold it under her own brand.

However, little is known about the Langtry wine making venture--no labels or bottles of the original Langtry have ever been found. Magoon has searched diligently to discover a more complete history of the venture.

In August, as land was being cleared to make way for new plantings of Cabernet Sauvignon, workers discovered a stand of old vines. Apparently, some additional acreage had already been cleared before workers stopped to inform Magoon.

Dr. Harold Olmo, a viticulture professor from the University of California at Davis, visited the ranch and said he felt one of the old vines might be original Syrah, a grape of the Rhone. It is known that Langtry’s wine maker, French-born and -trained Henri Deschelles, imported some grapevines from Europe, and this red-wine vine might have been one of them, said Magoon.

Interestingly, although the vines had not been cultivated or irrigated for more than 80 years (Langtry sold the ranch in 1906), they had survived and outlived even big trees that had grown in their midst. The vine that is believed to be Syrah had wrapped itself around a pine tree and had strangled it.

Magoon, who has walked over his property over the years, discovered some vines here and there in what is now forested land.

“A hundred years ago, it was vineyard land, but the trees grew up around the abandoned vines in the last century,” he said. He said he was unsure how many old vines remain on the still-wooded portions of the ranch.

Olmo took some of the leaves and seeds back with him to Davis and hopes to learn the variety of each vine as well as to determine if the genetic stock that has lived for the better part of a century can be converted into new plants that bear a commercial crop.

By Jan. 1, 1990, wineries that use a “sub-appellation” in the Napa Valley on their wine labels will be required to also state that the wine comes from the Napa Valley.

A bill passed by the legislature and signed into law by Gov. George Deukmejian was intended by the sponsor, Assemblywoman Bev Hansen, to maintain the integrity of the Napa Valley appellation on wine labels.

At present, it’s possible for a wine made from Howell Mountain grapes to have on its label only the sub-appellation of Howell Mountain. Starting next Jan. 1, that wine label could use the term Howell Mountain only if the phrase “Napa Valley” also appeared.

The Napa Valley appellation was approved as a growing region in 1981, permitting the term to be used on bottles of wine that contain 85% or more of grapes from the Napa Valley. However, since then a number of smaller appellations entirely within the boundaries of the Napa Valley have sprung up.

The Napa Valley Vintners and Napa Valley Grape Growers Assn. both felt that the use of the term “Howell Mountain” or any other so-called sub-appellation within Napa Valley would detract from the image that Napa Valley conjures up in the minds of people around the world.

The Napa Valley appellation now applies to grapes growing on more than 30,000 acres of land.

Jekel Vineyards has released its best red wine to date, a stylish and complex 1987 Cabernet Franc ($13.75).

The Monterey County producer known for its delightful Rieslings has had a spotty record with red wines to date. Monterey County is known to produce some fairly intense aromas in red wines, notably a bell pepper characteristic that can, in some vintages, dominate the otherwise elegant fruit in a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon.

However, using fruit from a new planting (1987) protected from strong winds that roar down the county from Monterey Bay, Jekel wine maker Steve Pessagno has fashioned a deeply concentrated wine that shows only traces of the peppery element combined with tarragon, cherry and cedar notes.

The wine is most appealing after it’s been decanted for an hour.

Using a new pricing formula, Sebastiani Vineyards’ latest Estate Group special selection wines have been released, including four Chardonnays from the 1987 vintage.

Wine maker Mary Sullivan chose to put all four wines through complete malolactic fermentation, which converts the stronger malic acid into the softer, more buttery-scented lactic acid, and the result is four wines that offer breadth at the expense of fruit.

The wine that Sebastiani most prides itself in is the 1987 Wilson, which offers butterscotch and roasted hazelnut aromas, and is complex in the aftertaste. It should appeal to those who love a broad, unctuous style of Chardonnay.

Similar but not as deep are the Clark (slightly closed in at present) and the Wildwood Hill (with 14.2% alcohol and a faint peppery note in the aroma). I preferred the leanest of the four, designated Kinneybrook, a more delicate wine with what appears to be better acidity.

Last year, the 1986 Sebastiani Estate Group Chardonnays were all priced differently, with one--Niles--priced at $17. This year all are priced at $13 a bottle. In 1987, the Niles ranch fruit wasn’t good enough to release under its own name, said a winery spokesman.

Also released is a 1986 Cherry Block Cabernet Sauvignon ($14) that is a bit plummy and concentrated for my tastes. Not the most elegant of wines.