Crane Brothers Michael and Rob

It was the night they figured out the final blend. Also the night they came up with the crazy name. But after hours doing micro-assemblages of tiny lots of estate-bottled Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, finally even a touch of amazing Syrah, the Crane brothers came up with a bit of magic. The 2004 release drew raves from Parker. The 2005 just won the San Francisco Chronicle Gold Medal. The wine was named “Brodatious,” a combination of “brother” and “bodacious” — and maybe just one glass too many of a deep purple, sumptuous Napa Valley red wine that you can’t quite put down.

Michael and Rob Crane spent top dollar developing these nine pristine acres on Oak Knoll, planting largely to Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. It’s a spot that’s attracted the elite of Napa, wineries like Caymus and Lewis. Why? Because the vines enjoy cool breezy evenings, allowing the Cranes to stretch out the growing season. In 2005, this paid big dividends as the three separate blocks were harvested a week apart, going well into the end of October, allowing each variety to reach perfect physiological maturity before harvest. Then they went one more; with Biale winemaker Al Perry performing micro-vinifications before aging each part in 50% new French barrels, they set about creating a unique proprietary blend off the estate, a wine that would set them apart.
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Riesling Grapes

It’s arguably the greatest white grape in the world, but only when it’s grown in the right place. Nothing beats Riesling for its combination of freshness, minerality and off-dry vibrancy. There were some great examples in California, like the Pritchard Hill wines of Chappellet in the 1980s and Bob Long’s exquisite Riesling from not far away. Now there’s another one, and its existence can be credited to a 4:30 a.m. wake up call and a search for Steelhead trout.

Matt Cline is first and foremost a vineyard ferret with an uncanny knack for sniffing out remarkable and singular vineyard parcels from Contra Costa to Russian River. But as much as he’s a winemaker, Matt’s a fisherman, and when he picked up the phone at 4:30 a.m. in early December 2007, he knew who was calling.
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Pinot Noir grape clusters

How do we know this is the best under $30 small-berry Russian River Valley Pinot Noir on the market today? It’s easy. Just simple arithmetic.

We were standing in some pretty special rows, a unique spot where the Petaluma Wind Gap provides a direct conduit between the cold Pacific and the Russian River Valley. The berries were tiny, perfect, small, conical clusters, the kind of fruit that Pinot Noir makers dream about. The vineyard had been farmed to perfection by the best grape-growing family this side of the Oakville Grade. There’s a reason why most of the Russian River Pinot Noir is simple. The clusters just don’t look like these.
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Domaine Jean-Michel Sorbe

It’s the ultimate winegrower’s vintage. The 2008 growing season in the Loire began uneventfully, at least until the midsummer hail storm ripped through the valley, leaving shattered clusters in its wake. For many producers, like Jean-Michel and Guillaume Sorbe, production would be cut by 40%. If that wasn’t enough, the rain came in August, pounding the region, making producers wonder if they would actually have a harvest. Those who weren’t superbly attentive suffered. The best producers of Sancerre and a few superb young growers in the satellite appellations kept things in check. And they waited.

The rigor and the waiting paid tremendous dividends when the skies turned blue, the days warm and the nights cool — stretching out the harvest until the few grapes that remained reached fantastic physiological maturity. Vincent Ricard called it “the best vintage in a decade.” Dominique Roger said “it was the most amazing vintage of his 25 year career.” Jean-Michel Sorbe, who fashioned this superb tiny-production Sauvignon Blanc from the sand and gravel soils of Quincy, just called it “etonnant.” (”amazing”).
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