Cole Bailey – 104
Sunday, June 26th, 2005
Having just spent the weekend learning about Mendocino appellations and wines, it seems odd that my first blog entry should be the last winery I visited. Cole Bailey Vineyards is not forefront in my mind for being the last visit of my trip, but because of the utter and complete charm in the wine and in the owner.
I actually met Bob Anderson the day before, at a mass tasting Mendocino wines at the 7th Annual Mendocino Wine Affair, where I met several dozen winery owners and winemakers. A lot of information gets lost in those events as palate shock sets in and mental overload takes place early on. But I was completely taken with the Sauvignon Blanc he was pouring at the festival and a bit saddened that he was sold out of his Cabernet Sauvignon. Then the artist in me was drawn to his piece of sales media, an elegant 4 1/2-inch square fold-out with Renaissance etchings watermarked behind stylish text with a splash of red here and there invoking a simple line-drawing of both glass and bottle.
It was on the following day, when I stopped in his tasting room in Hopland on my way home, that I discovered the intriguing story behind Sesquipedalian, the name of their wine. "Sesquipedalian" is the term used for one who is given to the use of long and ponderous vernacular. Instead of dumbing down a wine description for the masses, the Andersons instead are "smartening-up for the aficionado." But it is done in a manner so verbose as to be hilarious. Here, for example, is the text found upon the Sauvignon Blanc’s front label:
Pigment-challenged to be sure. But this crisp, fruity white will lure tannin addicts from their mauve-drenched lairs faster than a Francophile dismisses Belgian chocolate. Like a 17th century painting of a bacchanalian feast, you know the kind, where young women in translucent garments reveal heaving pre-silicone nakedness and event the cherubs are amply endowed. You will find it at once satisfying and titillating. Sauvignon Blanc. Sesquipedalian. Blanc. Blanc. You’re morte.
Here lies a winery whose growth I will anxiously watch with great anticipation. I only regret that my descriptions are so pedestrian and less worthy than the wine I tasted:
2004 Sesquipedalian Sauvignon Blanc – Clean aromas of key lime peel and white stone fruit with a whisper of spice. A very crisp entry that blossoms to reveal melon in luscious hedonism. $18.00
Cole Bailey Vineyards ~ 13275 S. Highway 101 ~ Hopland ~ Ca ~ 95470 ~ 707-744-1230