Val du Vino PART II: The Big Reds of Calaveras County
Dearest gentle drinkers–I hope many of my fellow local wine lovers take the opportunity to go spend an afternoon in our neighboring town of Murphys partaking in some amusing wine-tasting. Many of you may even have your favorite tasting rooms–I know I do! Especially in Spring, it's lovely to drive the short distance “across the river” through our rolling and still green landscape–it is the perfect mood-enhancer and disperser of our winter “cobwebs”!
You may know that our region is renowned for its big, bold, juicy and often higher-alcohol red wines like Zinfandel, Syrah, Petite Sirah (no relation!) and Cabernet Sauvignon, but do you know why? It's because of a magical meeting of strong sunlight, elevation and soils that would not be caught dead growing anything but vines!
Our elevations around 1,500 up to 2,500 result in stronger UV radiation from the sun–do wear your bonnets, my dears! In essence, this causes red grapes to thicken their skins to protect themselves and become a source of our big reds’ extraordinary concentration of delightfully deep fruit flavors. Our rolling landscape of hill, dale and mountains send cooling air travelling downwards during the night, allowing our red grapes to cool off and slow their race to ripeness, preserving a tongue-tingling acidity–unless you were actually intending to make jam my dears! The final growing factor are our native soils, mostly made of (and I do apologize, gentle drinkers, for some technicality here) schist, slate, decomposed granite and volcanic ash. It is infertile, does not hold water but features our iron-rich “Red Dirt” that is probably in your garden as it is in mine. For those of you tending to your roses, this iron-rich red dirt is technically known as Sierra Sandy Loam–as demanding in our gardens as it is in the vineyard! The very best of wines come from cruelty to vines, my dears! They must struggle to survive in these conditions, putting all their energy into adapting to save and concentrate their fruit.
I shall provide a small, personal anecdote: I attended a charming games night in January, bringing with me two Murphys Val du Vino red wines, a 2021 Shake Ridge Zinfandel and a 2021 Noble Cuvee blend. I was chatting with my old friend, writing tasting notes as I do, and generally expounding on the loveliness of these two wines. I suspect it may have been in an effort to shush my effusions, but my cher ami suggested that I write a local wine blog for the Chamber–and so, with the help of a couple of delicious Val du Vino reds, Lady Whistledrunk was born…
Ken Rider and some lovely tasting partners inside the tasting “barn”
The Val du Vino tasting room is at the very end of Murphys main street where the road bends towards Angel’s Camp. It has the distinction of being the only working winery on the main street and you will not doubt me when you enter the beautiful barn from the early 1900s and see the racks of barrels behind the tasting bar. Owned by winemaker Mark Hoover, the winery focuses on small-batch production of Italian, Rhone and Spanish wines and some delectable blends–maybe in the future we will win blending Gold and contribute to this effort (see Val du Vino Part I, where we had to be satisfied with Silver).
Waiting to greet you with a smile and many lovely wines to try is Tasting Room Manager, former chef and, of course, enophile (like myself!) Ken Rider. I fully encourage a visit where he will most obligingly share a taste of the 2021 Zinfandel and Noble Cuvee blend to try for yourselves. I’ll briefly share some knowledge on them to hopefully pique your interest: The Noble Cuvee is what is known as Bordeaux Blend but here there is just a fun zip of Californian Zinfandel added (7%) for spice. The blend (“cuvee”) is classical, from three “noble” French grapes varieties: Merlot (48%), Cabernet Franc (37%) and a small amount of Cabernet Sauvignon (8%). As 2021 was a drought year for grape growing, and when combined with our higher-elevation UV rays, I dare say that these grapes speak to us with deep, lush dark fruit flavors of blackberries, dark cherries and plums, as well as little gift from Cabernet Franc in the delicate aroma of violets, a touch of earthiness and silky, yet structured tannins. Everything in this rich blend has been artfully put together like the perfect set of evening clothes. If you enjoy any of these “noble” grapes, I encourage you to enjoy this pleasing flavor fusion with a juicy, fatty grilled steak with herbs, braised lamb, smoked brisket, or wild mushroom risotto or roasted root vegetables to bring out the wine’s earthiness.
I have a tendency to seek out any Shake Ridge wines, regardless of grape variety or the winery who has made an (often) splendid wine from them. I could wax on romantically about the obsessive quality of the grapes that Ann Kraemer expertly grows in her small Grand Cru vineyard, not located in France or even Napa, but in our Sierra Foothills in Amador County (oopsie daisy, not in Calaveras county). In my defence, Shake Ridge vineyard at 1,700-1,800 feet experiences very similar growing conditions to Calaveras, except for soils. Shake Ridge quality is legendary and results in a waitlist of winemakers for her grapes. The 2021 Val du Vino Shake Ridge Zinfandel is a wonderful example of this quality–indeed, it may be that Ann Kraemer herself recommends this wine as an excellent expression of what a Zinfandel wine should be! Again, 2021 was one of the driest growing seasons on record, resulting in an inky-dark wine with very concentrated aromas and flavors of crushed blueberries and black cherries baked in a pie. Anyone who knows me will tell you that I generally eschew Zinfandel but this elegant powerhouse has won me over–legendary grapes meet legendary drought conditions and some skillful winemaking. This is a bold, high-alcohol wine born of that drought and not wanting any kind of delicate foodstuffs! Gentle drinkers, think “BIG” when pairing with this friend: dry-rubbed tri-tip or the smokey char of a brisket to tame the tannins and make friends with its mineral notes; some kind of game or lamb served with a fig jelly to match the savory and jammy notes of the wine; extra-sharp aged cheddar, smoked gouda and again, fig jam, will also allow you to really meet this wine if you want to keep it casual and friendly.
Oh, but I do go on! If tickets are still available you may be able to join the 2026 GSM Blending Party at the winery. Call or stop in to purchase tickets–I might secretly be your blending partner! Otherwise, choose a pretty day and head “over the river”.
A votre sante, cher amis!
