Ultimate California Wine Blog

This is going to be a rare one for me — for change, I am going to document a winery and wine without having met its principals, visited its vineyards, or talked to anybody who even works for the winery. While at the Copia Cognoscente tasting, the folks at The Bounty Hunter had a number of wines they were representing on their table. The parchment paper color, Doré-like woodcut design, and deckled edge drew my eye. Axios.  It is a Greek word that looks like this: άξιος and means, worth.

Reading through the company website, the gist is that a Constantine ‘Gus’ Kalaris, after running a wine distribution company for twenty-plus years, decided to finally begin making his own. Kalaris did well in hiring winemaker Robert Egelhof, mythic for his association with such wines as Harlan, Pahlmeyer, and David Arthur. I can’t tell you anything else. Their website has vineyard information for the 1999 release, yet what I tasted was a pre-release which won’t be available for sale until the middle of 2006. Perhaps at that point I can re-visit this intriguing wine house and tell you more.

2003 Axios Cabernet Sauvignon – Medium red color, giving the aloof  impression of a light-bodied wine. While not have heavy as I would have preferred, the aromas of defined minerals, juicy plum, and dusty herbs don’t disappoint. The mouth entry is clean and deep, showing supple wood and rich, dark berry fruit. $130.00.

No company information available. Earlier vintages available through Bounty Hunter; link above.

Frank Husic has had some astonishingly good luck and some astonishingly bad luck. The good luck is that he has nine acres of prime Stags Leap appellation vineyards which produces 500 cases of one of the more highly sought-after California Cabernets currently on the market.

The bad news is that Frank owns 120 acres in the same area and he isn’t allowed to plant them to grape. It seems that those nine acres were planted before an anti-mountain growing ordinance went into affect, preventing the rest of the acreage from being developed.  Frank is pretty philosophical about it all. “It isn’t going to hold us back from planting elsewhere — in fact, we’ll be releasing our first Chardonnay next year.” It is easy to be taken in by his enthusiasm. Having winemaker Celia Welch Masyczek crafting his wine doesn’t hurt either. Masyczek came into view when she created the now much sought-after 1998 Staglin.

The bottle is immediately recognizable as different. It is easily the tallest and heaviest bottle on the market. Substantial in size, Frank revels in pointing out the archway design with the names of his family crowning the artistic representation of his hillside vineyard. The two palm trees under the logo name actually exist on the property – a rather odd occurrence in the Napa Valley and one I am glad he represented.

Husic made insider news at the 2004 Premiere Napa Valley auction (an
event where barrel samples are tasted and purchased as futures by
high-roller retailers) when five cases of an un-released, unknown wine
was sold for $13,000. Bottom line? This is a winery to keep an eye on — could it be the next Screaming Eagle?

2002 Husic Cabernet Sauvignon – A mere hint of the earthy terroir of Stags Leap that I often find overwhelming. Some dusty earthy with a core of dark cassis and currant in the nose. Black raspberry and cinnamon hit the tongue first, but a cinnamon that is intensely soft and elegant, blossoming to show layers upon layers of dark brambleberry, blackberry, and dark plum. The finish shows velvety vanilla. Sold out – usually only available and finer restaurants.

Husic ~ Vineyard; 189 Ridge Drive ~ Napa Valley ~ CA ~ 94558; Office; 80 McLaren Avenue ~ San Francisco ~ CA ~ 94121 ~ 707-812-4909

Julie Johnson is an incredibly busy woman these days. She has recently been named President of Zinfandel Advocates & Producers (known as ZAP by wine geeks). That in itself is a tremendous understaking, except to consider that she is also CFO, CEO, and now winemaker for her own label, Tres Sabores, which translates to mean ‘three tastes."

Diminutive in stature, and quick and agile like a lean fox, Julie gets excited and speaks quickly when talking about her winery. She started the winery as a bit of experiment. The Three Tastes concept was such that she had this lovely organic vineyard in one of the most sought-after appellations, Rutherford. In a bold and innovative move, she hired three different winemakers to produce wines from her single vineyard.

The initial plan was a six-year project; she wanted the three winemakers to produce the wine for six vintages. Instead, she had four winemakers; Rudy Zudeima who did produce a total of six labels, Karen Culler who made five different vintages, and Ken Bernards and Ashley Heisey both producing three vintages each. Now, having made an astonishing reputation with the help of these mythic winemakers, Julie is taking the reigns herself is making the wine.

2003 Rutherford Zinfandel – A blend of three different cuvees, the warm, red fruit aromas provided a soft, supple entry that displays elegantly integrated tannins. Dark fruit dominates the mouth with a core of spice that shows some of the classic Rutherford dust. Only 500 cases made. $30.00

2002 Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon – This is the second year that Julie herself has made this wine. Dark purple in color, the bouquet is mostly dark cassis with layers of dusty herbs. The mouth entry is complex showing dark chocolate and blackberry with a chiseled finish. Not yet released, price unknown.

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For contacting: P.O. Box 238 ~ Rutherford ~ CA ~ 94574
Actual location, by appointment only: 1620 S. Whitehall Lane ~ St. Helena ~ Ca ~ 94574 ~ 707-967-8027

There are so many ultra-small boutique wineries who only produce a single label and who are not open to the public. It is those wineries that are the most difficult for me to write about except for the wonderful people at Copia who occasionally throw special events that enable me to meet the proprietors of these wineries. As an aside, my biggest problem is that there are too many of these vendors at these tastings for me to have adequate time with them to get their stories… But I’m chipping away at my humongous list of wineries one label at a time.

Marston Family Vineyards is one of the more prestigious so I was quite thrilled for the opportunity to taste their wine. Located high on Spring Mountain, the Marston name has been well-known in the industry as vineyard owners for almost forty years having acquired this piece of property that already had a 100+ year history as grape growing vineyards. As vineyard owners, the Marstons supplied grapes to numerous award-winning winemakers including Andre Tchelistcheff and Sean Thackery.

Elizabeth Marston was representing the family at the day’s tasting event and is part of the lineage carrying on the history of quality as Director of Public Relations. Now producing wine under their own name, continuing in the tradition of exceptional winemakers using their grapes, the Marstons have none other than Phillipe Melka at the helm. The wine, limited to 500 cases is unlikely to be available for very long.

2002 Cabernet Sauvignon – Purple-hued and intensely dark, tons of dark cherry, plum, and a tease of mint appear in the nose. Chewy and complicated, heightened tannins present up front in this newly-opened bottle, but show well-developed flavors of dark blueberry, chocolate, minerals, and balanced acids. The finish is supple and engaging. The price is $240.00 for three 750ml bottles.

Marston Family Vineyard ~ P.O. Box 668 ~ St. Helena ~ CA ~ 94574 ~ 707-963-8490

I’ve know about Robert Craig Wine Cellars for a while, in a back-handed sort of way… When I was working up at Ladera, Robert Craig’s winemaker, Chad, would come over and visit as he and Tres are really good friends. I’ve been privy to a tasting now and then but never got to visit the actual facility up on Howell Mountain. Fortunately for me — and now for you! — they have opened a tasting room in downtown Napa, making it a lot easier for all concerned except for maybe Chad, who still drives up the mountain to make their extraordinary wine.

The downside to the tasting room is that it is quite off the beat-and-track. Although technically downtown, it is located in a small building essentially surrounded with some of the more downtrodden Victorians (although there is hope as signs of renovation abound). An additional note on the tasting room; because of its slightly remote location, it is technically appointment-only, Tuesdays through Saturday. Although Rachel Miller, their manager, assures me that she tries her best to never turn anyone away.

The day of my visit was a special open house so there were some munchies and Ms. Lynn Craig there to welcome visitors. Rachel advised me that normally the table is set-up for a more informative sit-down tasting which is always complimentary (yet another rarity in Napa!). And knowing my penchant for mountain wines, how could I not be impressed…

2002 Syrah – Rich, sweet aromas of smoke and bacon with a tease of mint. Chocolate taste at first, then dark fruit streaks of blueberry, blackberry, and plum. Rachel explained this was a the blend of two vineyards; a cool Los Olivos and a warmer Paso Robles. Being younger than I normally drink Syrah, I was impressed that it already showed supple, smooth characteristics. Medium-bodied, it was not over-the-top with heat or alcohol, but already well-developed. $28.00

2000 Affinity – Their name for the Bordeaux blends that are made, which are mostly Cabernet Sauvignon. In this case 76% Cabernet, 22% Merlot, and 2% Petite Verdot. The wine displayed some dark, twiggy, rustic brambleberry aromas with a whisper of chocolate. Initially sweet on the entry, an earthy core was balanced with dark blueberry and a rich, long, silky finish. Sold Out

2001 Affinity - 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, and 2% Pertite Verdot. Intensely rich dark core of blackberry and smoke with a hint of sweetness on the back of the nose. Tight entry blossoms to show bright, engaging fruit with some oak and a currant finish. $Available only as part of a vertical

2002 Affinity – Over-the-top black fruit with tones of black licorice. Bright, sweet entry is concentrated with layers of herbs. Darker finish with a touch of cocoa. $40.00

2002 Mt. Veeder Cabernet – 97% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2% Merlot, and 1% Cabernet Franc. Classic Veeder with tons of dark cherry, leather, and tobacco. A touch of hot twig and herbs showing the wine’s youth. Mouth entry has tons of up-front fruit with flavors of dark cherry and cranberry. $50.00

2002 Howell Mountain Cabernet – Purple in color, spice dominates the intense dark fruit aromas. Silky smooth entry is velvety and rich with developed structure and perfectly balanced tannins. Supple. Wine club members only.

Robert Craig Wine Cellars ~ 880 Vallejo Street ~ Napa ~ CA ~ 94559 ~ 707-252-2250