In preparation for our new Bordeaux blend; Eternity, we decided to chip bud one acre of Cabernet over to Petit Verdot and one acre to Cab Franc. The Petit Verdot is in full production. We budded the Cab Franc this last spring. A typical vineyard planting requires 5 years before the vineyard is in full production. Chip budding gives us an incredible jump on that number.   

The “budders” are true artisans.  First they cut the vine from the trunk leaving about 2 feet of trunk in the ground.  Then a ”chip” is taken from a vine of the desired variety.  The “chip” is the size of the tip of your thumb nail.   Next a tiny wedge is cut into the remaining trunk and the chip is fit in.  Then the trunk with its new chip is wrapped at the budded juncture in a white plastic tape.  From there a whole new vine will grow using the established root system of the previous vine.  It is truely amazing!

Our newly chip budded Cabernet Franc is reaching for the sky.  We will have a bit of fruit this year which will be dropped.  If Mother Nature is kind, by 2012 we expect to have a decent crop.

Our CC Wine Club is growing!  Members are not only receiving a guaranteed allocation, but also special pricing on all wine orders, unique invitations and little perks along the way. 

I love to share special places in the Napa Valley.  Consequently, each club member recently received a gift from the Napa Soap Company, one of my favorite shops in St. Helena.  Using just the right combimation of essential oils and natural ingrediants, owner Sheila Rockwood’s most important ingrediant is cold pressed grape seed oil.  Her products are luxurious and very limited!  For example, only 50 hand made bars of soap are produced each day.  Not surprising, Cabernet is my favorite!

You can plan to stop by Napa Soap Company the next time you are in St. Helena or visit them at; www.napasoap.com.

This recipe by Chef Stephen Barber; Fish Story, Lark Creek Group in Napa, defies the general belief that only white wine or light reds should be paired with fish.  In fact, Chef Barber created this recipe specifically to pair with our Estate Cabernet.  I expected him to come up with a meat dish, but not only does this work, it is spectacular! 

I have summarized the recipe below.  The detailed recipe can be found in, Decanting Napa Valley; the Cookbook.

Clark-Claudon Cabernet
Grilled Crispy Skin Wild Salmon with Creamed Corn, Baby Bok Choy & Beurre Rouge Sauce

Ingredients:                                          Beurre Rouge:
Salmon fillets; wild, skin on                1/2 C Clark-Claudon Estate Cab
4 heads baby bok choy                       1/4 C minced Shallots
4 ears sweet corn                                1/2 tsp. red wine vinegar
3/4 C cream                                         8T unsalted butter
lemon
olive oil                                                 Garnish:
salt & pepper                                        Pea shoots on top, with a squeeze of lemon & drizzle of olive oil

To Make Beurre Rouge:
Bring wine, shallots, & vinegar to boil
Reduce heat & simmer until liquid is reduced to 2 T
Add 8 T of butter; one at a time wisking continually until thick.
Season with salt & butter.  Hold in warm kitchen spot

Creamed Corn:
Shuck corn & grate on largest side of box grater
Milk cobs by running the back of a knife down them
Bring corn & “milk” to simmer
Add cream, cook for 10 minutes & season with salt & pepper

Bok Choy:
Cut each head in half length wise
Drizzle with olive oil, squeeze of lemon, salt & pepper

To Assemble:
Prepare Grill
Generously sprinke each side of Salmon with salt & pepper
Grill skin side down until skin shrinks and separates from flesh 
Flip and grill until opaque throughout and translucent at very center
Transfere to platter
Grill Bok Choy
Spoon Cream Corn on plate, place Bok Choy on top
Place Salmon, skin side up, on top
Drizzle sauce around. Serves 4

2010 has been like a good suspense novel; luring you in slowly and then waking you up with surprise, intrigue and a great cast of characters.  Of course Mother Nature always has the lead roll, but when you learn to dance with her the results  are amazing!

It is that dance that sets Clark-Claudon apart.  Rather than try to control or manipulate what the terrior and season give us it is the balance & joy of the dance that shows in our wines from vintage to vintage.  This is the true art of winemaking.

Our 2010′s from the Wild Iris Sauvignon Blanc to the Estate Cab are already showing tremendous promise.  As I taste through the lots I know 2010 will not just be good, but rather a great vintage for Clark-Claudon.

Given the cool season, this year could turn out to be the best or worst of times. I am betting on the best.  Given the micro climates that make up the Napa Valley, the out come will depend on vineyard location & what Mother Nature hands us over the next weeks.

Right now, the Clark-Claudon Vineyards look better than ever.   The cooler temps are allowing the fuit to mature gradually.  Each day they are a little closer to perfection.  Also, due to location, we were 10 degrees cooler than many other sites during the 2 day heat spike.  And lastly, our retro-fited trellis system accomplished what we had hoped in providing perfect “sun hats.” 

I am absolutely betting on an exceptional vintage!

We are all hearing such down news every day.  But, there are some good stories out there.  I had to blog about this particular one.  Chuck Jenkins, a wine consultant & educator from Houston, Texas was the winner of the etched 2005 3L we raffled off during Premiere Napa Valley. Rather than just say yahoo and take the wine, Chuck wrote; “ 

Prompted by the film Bottle Shock, there is a lot of talk these days about the famous Paris tasting in 1976.  It was then that everyone realized that Napa Valley could compete on a wine world stage.  In 1998 a similar tasting was repeated in San Francisco with some new additions, including the 1995 Clark-Claudon Cabernet. 

The tasting was organized by Gordon Getty in conjunction with the Headlands Foundation Wine Auction.  A stellar panel of wine gurus blind tasted 42 wines including each French First Growth & every California Cult Cabernet.  In addition, a number of up and coming wineries were included. 

We were pleased just to be invited to participate.  That pleasure turned to pure thrill when we heard that our 1995 Estate Cabernet took a very strong first place.  Again, a Napa Cabernet won the tasting, but not just any Napa Cab, it was ours! 

If that tasting was repeated again today I wonder what the outcome would be.  As Eric Asimov deftly discussed on August 19th; New York Times, The Pour, “The prevailing style of Napa Cabernet today emphasizes power, weight and extravagance.” A very different animal from the wines that won in ’76 or our 1995 Cabernet that won in 1998.  Yet, he goes on to say, “…a small but significant number of Cabernet producers form a kind of alternate Napa universe. They are making wines of balance and restraint that are a direct link to Napa’s past, when wines…forged the region’s reputation as a source of great Cabernet Sauvignon.”  Asimov then named Clark-Claudon as one of those, “alternate universe” producers.

On August 7th, in the Long Beach, CA Press Telegram, staff writer Eric Nolan writes, “There are many merchants and restaurant sommeliers who believe California’s vintners have strayed off course…Finding wines made in styles similar to the classics of ’76 is the tricky part.  It means gravitating to winemakers who don’t follow rating chasing fads. For Cabernet purism, Stromer of the Woodland Hills Wine Company suggests Clark-Claudon.” 

I appreciated Azimov’s, Nolan’s & Stromer’s views. Finally the pendulum is beginning to swing back again.

Napa Chardonnay went through a similar evolution about 10 tears ago.  The extravagent wines being produced at first dazzled and then diminished its popularity.  Chardonnay sales took years to recover as people sought out varitals that were lighter in style with food friendly balance. Thankfully, though you can still find those huge Chards, today there are many lovely alternatives available.

Napa Cabernet is going through the same growing pains.  The bigger is better logic has prevailed for a number of years.  Yet, many previous Cab drinkers have switched to Pinot, a wine much lighter in style.  Still the fruit bomb Cabs tend to get the very high scores.  In a blind tasting they jump out of the glass always attracting attention.  But, we trust that the pendullum will continue the swing that has begun, back to more complex, nuanced Cabernets that speak from where they come.

I believe the ideal Cabernet combines the best of both the old and the new world.  We strive to produce a wine that is elegant, nuanced & balanced with beautiful varietal fruit character; a wine that is invitingly seductive rather than obtuse; a wine that is delicious upon release, but also worthy of aging.  Most importantly, we want our wines to represent their origin rather than score seeking, over ripe fruit & manipulation in the winery.  If that makes me old fashoned, I guess I will happily own it!

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Wow!  Auction Napa Valley raised over $10,000,000!  Wine is an amazing vehicle for raising money for life changing programs.  Our wine was a great success, but more importantly it is so satisfying to contribute to this amazing event. 

Thanks to the NV Vintners staff.  They are even more amazing!!!

People lining up to taste our barrel lot

Making new friends…

Re-connecting with old friends… 

Our community is ready to be the hostess with the mostest as Auction Napa Valley 2008 kicks off.  This four day event, sponsered by Napa Valley Vintners, brings together the entire community to raise money for health, housing and education programs in our county.Click here to learn more about who it helps.  Local, out of state and international attendees come to savor the generosity & bounty that is Napa Valley.  Over its 27 year history, the auction has enabled Napa Valley Vintners to give nearly $78 million to our community.

Tom & I will be pouring our 2006 vintage from barrel during the Taste Napa Valley Barrel Auction on Friday.  With a history of being in the top tier of barrel lots, we are looking foreward to sharing this vintage while raising a good chunk of change. Clark-Claudon wines will also be part of the Welcome Wagon lot being auctioned off during the main event on Saturday evening. 

If you are attending please come by our barrel for a taste!

I figure wine enthusiasts fall into at least three categories. There are those who see wine as an expression of art & soul; something much bigger than the bottle in hand. Some are looking for a trophy to admire and enjoy while communicating who they are. While others want an enjoyable beverage to have on its own or to accompany a meal; better yet, if perceived to be a deal.

I imagine that many of us fall into all of these categories depending on the moment and the wine. None is more, “noble” than another, but I do wonder if the emphasis on trophy wines & their accompaning scores has taken away from plain ordinary enjoyment and/or a realization of the hard work and wonder that goes into making a beautiful wine.

In other words, is the emphasis on scores and consequent perceived worth driving the soul out of winemaking? Or worse, is it motivating winemakers to use the, “score formula” rather than working with the season and the vineyard to define each wine. Is wine a product of nature; a story of place, one season and all the hard working hands & hearts that make it or is it all about manipulation in the winery, marketing bluster & dazzle. I know it is not as black and white as this, but I hope the historical soul of wine making isn’t lost to “modernization”, the need to drive sales or the ever present ego.

Your thoughts?