A New Look, Bottle for Blue Nun

For the first time in its long history, Blue Nun wine will not have a nun dominating its label.

The New York-based firm H. Sichel Sohne, which has produced Blue Nun in Germany for 64 years, said the Liebfraumilch wine will be adorned with an eggshell white label with a gold rim. Above the type is a small, stylized depiction of a nun, a fraction of the size of past labels.

Also, the wine will be bottled in a taller, tapered bottle.

Peter M. F. Sichel, whose family firm markets Blue Nun in the United States, said the wine, which has a good dose of Riesling in its composition, once was sweeter than it now is, and as a drier wine than it has been is now aimed more at pairing with food. This necessitated a change in the label, he said.

“The gradual change (in the label design), which encompassed reducing the number of nuns on the label, was insufficient to keep pace with the evolving world of consumer packaging,” said Sichel.

After eight different packaging concepts were tested, and after 1,200 personal interviews were conducted, the new design was selected.

The 1986 Blue Nun is a better wine than many vintages of the past that were sweeter. The wine retails for about $5.50 a bottle.

Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon Vineyards in Santa Cruz Country, who has an abiding interest in making wines from grape varieties native to the Rhone Valley in France, has formed a joint venture with a Spanish wine maker.

The informal project, which as yet has not been finalized, calls for red wine from the Grenache grape, widely planted in the Rhone, to be produced in Spain under the direction of Grahm.

Patrice Boyle, an associate of Grahm’s at Bonny Doon, said the joint partner is Carlos Falco de Fernandez de Cordova, the Marques de Grinon, who has a small winery that produces Cabernet Sauvignon outside Barcelona.

“Carlos stopped by on a visit some time ago and Randall asked him, ‘Why are you making Cabernet when Garnacha is planted all over Spain?’ And that convinced him that there was some killer Garnacha lurking around,” said Boyle. Garnacha is the Spanish name for Grenache.

An enologist for the Spanish winery worked at Bonny Doon for two weeks this harvest to see how Bonny Doon makes its wines, Boyle said.

Under the joint venture, Garnacha will be harvested next year and the wine made to Grahm’s specifications. Some trial lots of wine were made this year.

In addition, the venture is looking into using the Mourvedre grape too, she said.

Beckstoffer House and a structure at St. Supery winery were among five buildings honored by Napa County Landmarks Inc. at its 1989 Awards of Merit for architectural preservation.

Beckstoffer House was built in 1884 as an apartment building and renoted in 1981 after it was bought by wine grower Andy Beckstoffer.

The St. Supery winery building is a redesign of museum designer Gordon Ashby. The Queen Anne Victorian structure was originally the home of the founders of the property, the Atkinson family, and was called the Atkinson Manor House.

The redesign was carried out under the auspices of the owner of St. Supery, the Skalli family of Paris and Sete, France.

The Carneros is one of California’s best regions for consistent wines, and three new releases of the last few weeks are testament to the marvelous fruit found in this cool region that bridges the southern portions of the Napa Valley and Sonoma County.

Sterling Vineyards’ just-released 1987 Winery Lake Pinot Noir ($20) is more impressive than Sterling’s first release from the Winery Lake Vineyard, the 1986.

The aroma of the wine is reminiscent of delicate fresh cherries scented with cloves and nutmeg along with a light peppery quality and a trace of fresh tomatoes.

Charles F. Shaw Winery, which has specialized in Gamay Beaujolais since its founding in 1979, is releasing a small quantity of a 1987 Pinot Noir made from Carneros-grown fruit.

It is the winery’s first Pinot Noir, and only 200 cases of it were made by wine maker Ric Forman. However, 600 cases were produced in 1988 and 900 in 1989.

Priced at $14, the 1987 wine is an excellent rendition of Pinot Noir, with deep ripe-cherry flavors and a delicate hint of anise.

This wine will be available at a limited number of Los Angeles- and San Francisco-area wine shops as well as by mail from the winery. For details, write to Charles F. Shaw Winery, 1010 Big Tree Road, St. Helena, Calif. 94574.

Both of these wines exhibit delicate hints of citrus-like notes that add to the impression that they will age beautifully.

Cuvaison Winery in the Napa Valley has released a stunning 1988 Chardonnay ($15), the winery’s best effort to date.

Wine maker John Thatcher used only Carneros fruit for this wine, and the result is bright citrus fruit, lemony and spicy, but with a light pineapple element and a faint toasty note that adds depth to an already inviting wine.

“The trick is to make a wine that is so intriguing that you keep going back to your glass for another sip,” said Thatcher.