WINE : The Jordan Vineyard : Current Cabernet, Chardonnay Output Will Perpetuate Its Storied Status

IN THE ONE-TIME advertising campaign “What becomes a legend most?” a mink coat is wrapped around a superstar such as Lauren Bacall or Audrey Hepburn. In similar fashion, the mellifluous voice of actor Burgess Meredith envelops a bottle of legendary wine during a video shown to visitors at Jordan Vineyard and Winery in the Alexander Valley.

Besides Meredith, the video includes other celebrities--movie stars, socialites and politicians. Among politicians who have visited the winery is Valentin Berezkov, a former Soviet envoy to the United States, who visited in 1980. In a nod to free enterprise, he said: “Only in America could such a splendid wine estate be created in less than 10 years.”

When the first Jordan Cabernet, a 1976 vintage blend of Cabernet Sauvignon with about 6% Merlot, was released, most people agreed that it was “a pleasant little claret, a bit light, for early enjoyment” and drank it young. Those who held it, for tasting later, were stunned by its gloriously elegant transformation to absolute distinction. Thus began the legend of Jordan Cabernet, and it has been enhanced with each successive vintage, as has the Chardonnays, which went into production in the the late ‘70s.

One reason for this success is wine maker Rob Davis, who, after 13 years at Jordan, is still intrigued by the grapes.

“Cabernet is stern, steady, no nonsense. But Merlot is so fruity, so lively. I’ve been increasing the amounts of Merlot in our Cabernet, as the harvests dictate. There’s 12.5% in the ’85. It brings a softer elegance. Every year, when the must is in the tanks, you can put your nose to the tank and get the fruity aromas. But when the ’85 was in there, you could get that heady perfume coming around the building, in the driveway, outside,” Davis said recently.

I asked him about the American oak uprights, in which the young Jordan Cabernet has always spent its infancy. The flavor of oak was not detectable in the bouquet of the ’85. “Oak is like an oven,” he said. “You don’t want to taste the oven; you want to taste the bread. We’ve been decreasing the American oak influence, favoring the French oak. But the style of the wine is still the same. That is from the vineyards.”

The two Jordan wines currently in release continue to support the winery’s storied status.

JORDAN 1986 ALEXANDER VALLEY CHARDONNAY--ESTATE BOTTLED ($17.50). This Chardonnay undergoes malolactic fermentation and is aged in French oak five months before bottling. After that, it is aged in the bottle two years before release. (Most wines are released days or weeks after bottling, because holding wine in inventory is like holding money.) This wine is round, long, oak-evident, wholly impressive and bone-dry but silky. JORDAN 1985 ALEXANDER VALLEY CABERNET SAUVIGNON--ESTATE BOTTLED ($19.50). From the exemplary ’85 vintage, this lovely ruby comes on fruit-first, suggesting cassis and cherries. It has assuring depth and full-bodied taste-character. As Davis suggested, wood is not evident in the wine’s bouquet. The wine is not yet ready for pouring, with obvious puckery tannins pointing to its youth. Another two or three years of aging is needed for rounded maturity, but the balanced structure is in place. Jordan Cabernet’s dependable elegance is here.